Freelance journalist Stephen McCue interviewed John Waite in January of 1998. Many thanks to Stephen for providing Net Waite with this exclusive transcript!
Stephen writes: I recently had the opportunity of interviewing John Waite following the release of his new album, "When You Were Mine." As both a fan and a person dedicated to doing an intelligent, informative interview; I tried to ask Mr. Waite questions that would reveal aspects of his career that his fans would be interested in. What follows is our discussion of his greatest accomplishments thus far, and a direction his life may take.
SM: First, I would like to congratulate you on the release of your new album, When You Were Mine.
JW: Thank you
SM: What song or songs on the album are you most proud of?
JW: "I-95" because it was written the same morning we recorded it.
SM: Really?
JW: Yeah, I went into the studio with [guitarist] Shane Fontaine, sat down on the floor and just knocked it off and then recorded it.
SM: So you wrote and recorded the song on the same day?
JW: Yeah, that was more or less the premise of the record, to cut it like Bob Dylan's album Blonde on Blonde Another song that I am proud of is "Bluebird Cafe." I think it is a lovely story, and one that is intelligent, not patronizing. It is a really compassionate story about young hopeful musicians.
SM: The vocals on your new release seem to be stripped clean of any special effects, which in turn allows the beauty of your voice to really shine through. What led you to produce the album in this way?
JW: Precisely that. I am just not interested in effects. I am not interested in being produced. I am also not interested in somebody else's vision of what I should sound like. I found that even the imperfections in my voice stayed just there, exposed. Its part of the expression of being a singer. I think that great singing is about storytelling and about being believable. On this album, I wanted the unvarnished truth.
SM: It certainly creates an intimate atmosphere when listening to the album. You feel like your in the same room with each other.
JW: Well, hopefully that is what you would go for.
SM: What led you to cut the Bob Dylan song, "Just Like a Woman"?
JW: I always had a collection of Dylan albums around and every couple of a years they would come to the top of the pile. I would just play them and away you go into a sort of magic cave of symbols, images and stories, and then you can't believe that you spent time outside that cave. He is so brilliant. I had found a copy of "Blonde on Blonde" that I had been playing a lot and as we started to work on my album I wanted that sound. Shane and I were sitting in a coffee shop one morning and as I was looking at the cover of "Blonde on Blonde," Shane leaned over and said, "Why don't we try that one ("Just Like a Woman")"? . It was Shane's idea, and it was kind of a relief that somebody else suggested it.
SM: The album has a nice flow, the highs and lows seem to be perfectly placed, with nice transitions from song to song. The album also seems to be a new style for you. Can you talk about that?
JW: The premise of the album is that it is American music through the perspective of an Englishman.
SM: How long did it take for you to write and record the album?
JW: About a month. The fact is I think that we took too much time with it. If we had only two weeks to cut it, we would have probably wound up with a really wild mercurial sound. The faster you work, the better the work is, usually.
SM: Since the completion of When You Were Mine are you currently working on another album?
JW: Well, I already have half an album written. Its very hard for me not to keep working. If I could make an album every six months, I would be a happy guy. It would be great to stay in a creative space. It would be great to be able to do different kinds of albums, like purely acoustical records or piano, or with a full band for more of a rock sound. There just seems like such a lot of work to do, and once you open the door, it just seems limitless.
SM: Do find that there are times when it is easier to write music vs. lyrics, or are you comfortable writing both the lyrics and music?
JW: I find that certain cords, like an E minor or how you voice the cord will tell you what the story is. If I just free associate and just let myself run, all this stuff comes out in rhymes. If I slow down and start using a notebook, it doesn't happen in the right way.
SM: Slowing downs makes you tighten up?
JW: Yeah, ninety percent of "Missing You" was written on the spot, with free association. You can't do that everyday, I wish that I could. A lot of the songs written with The Babys and my solo work was also done in that matter, with free association on the spot.
SM: Correct me if I am wrong, but the lyrics on the album When You Were Mine seem to be less autobiographical than the lyrics on Temple Bar Why is that?
JW: No, not really. Temple Bar is about being divorced and living in New York city in a skyscraper building and walking around with all the ghosts from my past. It was really about New York and me. When You Were Mine is about being slightly older and wistful. The title track "When You Were Mine" is really about my home town in England and looking back over my shoulder. At this point in my life, I feel that I have really lived a lot. There is a lot of references to my past in the songs of the new album.
SM: Do you find that you have a tried and true method for song writing?
JW: Yeah, my method is that there isn't one. I think that when there is a tried and true method, then there is a problem. It makes for horrendous pop songs and rock songs that are written to a formula.
SM: What do you believe to be your most under appreciated work?
JW: My album Temple Bar I felt the same writing that album as I did when I wrote "Missing You." Someplace that was almost unbearable, and I was so proud of it. It was hard for me to even have other people hear it. In fact when I wrote "Missing You" I could not look anyone in the face after I finished it in the studio.
SM: Because it was so personal?
JW: Yeah, Temple Bar means the same thing to me. It was a return to the same truthfulness.
SM: Can you predict what you might be recording in the years ahead?
JW: I think that the next album will be slightly blacker. I want to get to the same place as "Missing You" which is blues singing. I miss being able to sing the blues in some manner. So the next album will be another step sideways, or forward or off a cliff, knowing me. <laughs>
SM: You have released a volume one compilation, are there plans for a volume two?
JW: My management does not want me to do that just yet until we establish When You Were Mine. But I would like to. There is certainly enough material, at least another seven top ten singles. I also have an entire album I recorded after Ignition and before No Brakes that I would like to get out there sometime. I recorded it with a full band in New Jersey with a 24 track. There are a couple country songs, and a dissident piano song called, "Here We Go Again." I would like to release it, so we'll see.
SM: Have the changes in the art of making music had any effect on your desire to continue recording?
JW: Its all about money these days. You really have to have guts. I have a voice and I have always stuck to my guns and I have always wanted to be what I have become. I never really wanted to stay in the spotlight. I have been able to step outside and step back in and keep my privacy. I like to be able to keep my musical freedom, and if it was ever threatened, I would just quit.
SM: You have said in the past that there is a chance you may move back to England. If you did move back, does that mean that you would also stop recording?
JW: I went back to Lancaster for three months last year, in the summer. I helped my dad paint his house. We would go down to the local pub for lunch, sit out in the garden and watch the old guys play ball. I would also go for long walks, and sketch, paint. It was like a really laid back English life. It really appeals to me. I think that if I didn't go back to that, I would close the door on my career. I don't want to be hanging around when there's no demand. If it comes to a close, then it comes to a close. You have to leave on an up note.
SM: Yes, that makes sense.
JW: I want to get out in one piece <laughs>.
SM: You have had a twenty-one year career now, that's a real accomplishment.
JW: Yeah, its hard to survive. A lot of people thought that I was totally gone, and at times I kind of was. But the urge to create and write work that has some relevance has been stronger than the opposition.
SM: Looking back, is there any one song, or one album that you feel is representative of your careers work? Be it with The Babys, Bad English or solo work
JW: I think that No Brakes had a lot of romance and violence. Both halves of myself co-existed quite nicely on that album. "Missing You" was on that record, also "Restless Heart," and "For Your Love."
SM: "For Your Love" is a great song.
JW: I heard that the other day, and I thought, Jesus Christ, the energy, I was almost snarling as I am singing the song.
SM: At this point in your career, are there any other aspects of performing that you would like to pursue?
JW: Yes, I would like to act again. I would like to do something serious and get hold of something that had absolutely nothing to do with rock and roll.
SM: Would you prefer to work on stage, T.V. or film, or all three?
JW: No, film. I would like to go into something that would be really demanding. So now I am still painting, drawing and playing every instrument in front of me, but I would like branch out and do something that is not within the confines of the music business.
SM: Well, Mr. Waite, I want to thank you for both your time and also for all the great work you have shared over the years.
JW: Thank you!
I would like to thank the folks at Gold Mountain in New York for setting up this interview, also Elizabeth for getting it onto her John Waite website.
c.1998 Stephen J. McCue
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