Paul Collins: “I do believe that power pop is coming back, all over the place”
Paul Collins was an important figure on the Los Angeles power pop scene. In 1979, The Paul Collins' Beat penned an album which is still considered by many as the best disc of power-pop ever. In 2005 "Flyin' High" Paul Collins' eleventh album since The Paul Collins' Beat features twelve all-new songs.
Paul Collins was born in New York. At teenage age he has taken a great interest in music and since then many years he sincerely loves his life-work which has devoted his life.
We know, that many our readers who will find this interview, will want to learn more about Paul Collins and necessarily visit his site. And the most inquisitive will find a lot of interesting in web search systems.
Fans of The Ramones learn that till last days lives of Dee Dee Ramone Paul was his close friend. Looking through pages various web-editions everyone will find a lot of interesting information and get close acquainted with the talented musician who has devoted his songs creativity!
Powerpop.Ru: Thanks, Paul, that agreed to communicate with us. Tell to our readers a little about Paul Collins from Paul Collins's eyes view. What better qualities did young Paul Collins had? What qualities would have in future?
Paul Collins is a guy who started out with a dream when he was 17 years old. He wanted to be in a rock n roll band that became superstars, just like the groups he admired the most, The Beatles and The Rolling Stones, real bands that had great songs and great musicianship. He got very lucky when he met Jack Lee and Peter Case in 1974 in San Francisco. Here was a band that had great songs and great musicianship. Paul thought for sure that this band was going to conquer the world; he had no doubt in his mind about that. Paul was sure that all that was needed was time, hard work, belief and dedication and all would be good. Paul learned the hard way that sometimes that is not enough. Paul spent many years confused about why things happened the way they did, but he did not stop on his quest to scale the heights of rock n roll fame. His second group, The Beat, looked even more likely to take Paul to where he wanted to go…but it didn't….still Paul held on to his dreams. In the future Paul would have to start looking at things differently if he wanted to survive, and he did. He learned that the more important thing is love, love of life and love of music, that's when Paul came back after a long absence and made a record filled with love and the people liked it!
Powerpop.Ru: I heard that in Spain a lot of good power-pop groups. Is it the truth?
Paul Collins: I don't think there has ever been a lot of any good groups at one time in any one place, I do believe that power pop is coming back, all over the place, and that is great. But as it was when I was starting out, a long time ago, some are good and some are not. But it seems that these days there are more and more good rockin young bands and that is a good thing.
Powerpop.Ru: Is Paul Collins the friend of youth? Do you take part of musical life in Spain (in the organization of musical festivals and so on)? Do you help young talents? Or as many creative people with the years you more like loneliness and a creative solitude.
Paul Collins: I try to help anyone I can, musician or not. If I here a good band or good song, mainly now on Myspace, I take the time to let them know. If a young musician asks me for advise, I tell them the truth, as best as I can. You need to spend a lot of time alone to write good songs, it's always been like that.
Powerpop.Ru: You are for many years ranked as a power pop artist. But listening to your albums it seemed to me that you never excited opinion of critics. You simply tried to write good beautiful songs, not limiting yourselves frameworks of fixed style. Isn't it?
Paul Collins: I love music, I always have, to be called a musician and a songwriter for me is an honor. For me the most important part of what I do is to try and write good songs, any kind of song, just so long as it's real and good. I learned a lot about what makes a good song from Jack Lee. He was extremely critical and I believe that you must work very hard to produce a good song, a great song. I hope that as a songwriter I can draw from all the music I have listened to that I have loved: rock, blues, jazz, country, folk and rhythm and blues.
Powerpop.Ru: In your opinion, is there pronounced difference between talented people living in the Europe and living on other continents? It seems to me, all physicists of a planet are similar, and all fate-musicians, theatrical actors, artists are similar.
Paul Collins: I think talented people are lucky to be alive no matter where they are. I think that the talented people who are able to live off their talent are very happy and they get to travel through their work, which for me is a great thing.
Powerpop.Ru: What you see the future of guitar popular music?
In my opinion last thirty years all is very similar, the form of a song does not almost vary unless the modern sound became more dense.
Paul Collins: I think the guitar is a beautiful and very expressive and sexual instrument, I don't think it will have any problem surviving for the next 1000 years or so. I am sure some guy will be playing a guitar for some girl, as they sit on the moon, looking down at the earth.
Powerpop.Ru: I know, that Paul Collins very much would like to carry out concert performances in Russia.
And as a tourist did you visited any cities of the post-Soviet Union? There are a lot of beautiful cities and they are not only capitals of fifteen republics of the former USSR.
Paul Collins: I have never been to Russia, but I have read many wonderful books about it and I would very much hope that one day my music could take me there. When I was living in NYC I met a lot of Russians who lived there and I would always say to them, "Someday I will go to your country!"
Powerpop.Ru: Guitar the basic tool from which you write music. For many, a guitar is only means for self-expression, but there are a lot of for whom guitars mean much more (they have many guitars, always change pickups for them for an original sound, they like to assemble and strip guitars).
Paul Collins: I own 4 guitars, pre CBS Fender Strat with a custom John Caruthers neck, a vintage 1969 Rickenbacker sunburst red 6 string, 1984 Guild D25 acoustic and a mid 70's Gibson Gospel acoustic. I love these guitars and I have had them for many years. I sometimes think of buying other guitars but then I go, why, I love the ones I have…maybe someday… All I do is keep them in good repair as they are working guitars.
Powerpop.Ru: All musicians probably have similar methods of inspiration. One take a guitar almost every day and during certain time the inspiration often appears. Another need to be in state of mind to write a good song. How it occurs in you?
Paul Collins: I have no secret recipe other than spending as much time as I can trying to write and thinking about music. To me it's kind of like fishing, you have to have your hook in the water if you want to catch a fish. Some songs are born full grown, others can take years to come to life…it's a funny thing…you can not predict it….I think that is a good thing…but you sure as hell know when a good song shows up…wow!
Powerpop.Ru: What are your most favourite five albums, created on one breath and never bother you?
Paul Collins: I couldn't say, but I would probably have one of The Beatles, one of The Stones, one of mine, one of Johnny Cash, one of Elvis Presley and one of The Ramones, that's six!! There is so much great music I am glad I don't have to make these kinds of choices!
Powerpop.Ru: Do you want to tell to our readers something that I forget to ask you?
Paul Collins: Yes, that we must all bond together in the very many different ways that each of us can to make our world a better place so we can all enjoy it. I want to come and see your country and meet the people and play them my music and then have a few vodkas! Thank you.
форум (rus) |
