|
Interviewed By: Dan Epstein
Photos: W.A.R.
Glenn Tilbrook, formerly of Squeeze,
released his first solo album in his 25-year career in August
of this year. He is a guy who is understands that he used
to be much more famous than he is now, has come to terms with
it and has turned it into a series of situations that makes
him very happy. He does his art probably better than he has
in a decade. He has a following and enjoys himself. What more
can a guy ask for.
Dan Epstein : Why did it take you
so long to do a solo album?
Glenn Tilbrook: Because I was really
happy being in Squeeze until the last portion when Chris
[Difford] sort of lost interest in it for whatever
reason. Mainly I think he didn’t want to tour and he was disappointed
at the lack of commercial success we had recently. I didn’t
even want to even try going back to a major label. Whether
we could or couldn’t is of course another issue altogether.
But I didn’t want to go there anyway. He half put himself
into the last record we made and that wasn’t really satisfactory
to anyone. So it was time for me to do my own thing.
DE: So if it wasn’t for Chris giving
up touring and Squeeze, would you have not done the album?
GT: I would be happy staying in Squeeze.
I never felt frustrated in the band. I never felt unfulfilled.
I also have been nothing but happy being in that situation.
DE: You’ve said that you’re excited
about being "loud and clear on MP3". Are you in
favor of music downloads?
GT: I think that I have to take a
step backwards from my own fear of what it may mean to my
livelihood and embrace the technology because I’d be a fool
not to. It’d be like when the musician’s union in Britain
didn’t allow American jazz musicians into the country because
it would take jobs from British jazz musicians. That’s what
they used to do in the 1940’s and 50’s. Not many of the great
jazz players could come play in Britain. I would love everyone
to pay me whenever they download my music, now it’s a challenge.
You have to find a different way of doing things. So I do
embrace it.
DE: You sell quite a bit of music
online. Has the Internet changed the way you sell music?
GT: The way of reaching people has
become slightly different. Because now I don’t get much radio
support to put it mildly so I’m going out there and playing
to people. The more old-fashioned way and I’m really enjoying
doing that.
DE: You’ve said that the lyric a
small shop in the age of the global superstore on The
Incomplete Glenn Tilbrook was the most difficult lyric
to write?
GT: Yes it was. Trying to get the
balance right. Because part of me gets frustrated in the direction
commercial music has taken. It seems to be more manufactured
than ever.
DE: The track "Observatory"
on The Incomplete Glenn Tilbrook was co-written by
Aimee Mann. How did you first meet her?
GT: Squeeze toured together with
Aimee in 1994. We were in the Untied States and the UK playing
each other’s songs. We had a large amount of fun doing that.
I’m on her upcoming record as well. We go back a long way.
I love her and I love her writing.
DE: You wrote songs with Aimee by
email. How is that different from having someone there with
you?
GT: Well, Chris and I never wrote
together anyway even though we co-wrote, we always worked
separately so it’s exactly the same [laughs].
DE: You recently played in Grand
Central Station. Did the police come after you?
GT: Initially they did but then they
found out we had the permits. It was a bugger at first but
we worked it out.
DE: What does G.S.O.H. stand for?
What does it mean?
GT: Good sense of humor. You always
got to have one.
DE: What was it like playing with
one of your childhood idols, Keith Richards?
GT: It was tremendous to play with
him. We are definitely at different ends of the success scale.
What I loved about him was his obvious enthusiasm. We just
played in someone else’s for fun and you don’t do that unless
you love playing.
DE: Have you been playing Squeeze
songs on the tour?
GT: Yes I have been. I spent 25 years
writing and playing with Chris and I don’t want to just disown
all that stuff because I’m very proud of it.
DE: What were your favorite times
with Squeeze?
GT: I guess I had two periods of
time that I thought were the best. The first time was around
1980, the lineup when [founding member] Jools [Holland]
was in the band and then with Paul Carrack [after
Jools left]. They were really great lineups. We were enjoying
ourselves then. I think we were touring in top form. Then
in 1993 we had a great lineup again with Pete Thomas
on drums. I’ve had other lineups that worked really well for
me, but they were the most enjoyable.
DE: You wrote your first song at
age 11. Is that song around anywhere?
GT: It was one of the tracks that
is on the first Squeeze EP, which is called Packet Of Three.
We sort of amended it a bit but it is basically the same song.
DE: I’m sure you hear this question
a lot. Did you really stuff a whole roll of toilet paper down
your pants for Squeeze’s first album cover?
GT: It was my idea of a tremendous
joke at the time [laughs]. It sort of helped people be interested.
DE: You did DJing work with Grandmaster
Flash, what was that like?
GT: Really different but really fun.
Sort of learning how a dance floor works. Learning what you
can and can’t do in a way. I loved it. The fact is it introduced
me to a whole lot of music.
DE: Does being famous still make
you uncomfortable? You used to shy away from the spotlight
as much as possible.
GT: I don’t really think I’m famous
in the sense that I would feel uncomfortable in any way, anymore.
I think the elements that I would have felt uncomfortable
with happen on a small enough scale that I felt perfectly
happy with it. I felt really happy that I have an audience
that will come and see me. I’m older now and I have more of
a sense of balance than I used to.
DE: What was it like being compared
to Lennon & McCartney?
GT: Yeah it was very flattering but
it was also not something I thought a great deal about. When
I did think about it, it produced a period of Chris and my
self-consciousness songwriting, which it never was before
that.
DE: Also I read you did a Dr. Pepper
commercial. How did that come about?
GT: Oh god. Probably 1985. Someone
played me that commercial quite recently and I hadn’t heard
it since it was on television. It was okay for what it was
bearing in mind that the source material was truly awful.
[laughs]
DE: With Squeeze, within a very short
time, the label A & M dropped you, you got picked
by Reprise and then dropped again, what were these
labels expecting from you?
GT: We were dropped after they released
Play on Warners. We went to Ark 21 and
that was shot down a few weeks after Ridiculous came
out. We didn’t really have the best of times in the nineties
as far as record labels go.
DE: In 1994, you toured by yourself
calling yourself a pub entertainer. What was that like playing
small venues again?
GT: I had a great time doing that
tour. It wasn’t what I would call a career move. It was just
a fun tour to do. There was no particular purpose behind it
other than to get to play a lot of songs. The only thing I
would do differently with that tour, thinking back on it,
now is that I wish I had made it more clearly to people that
there was no higher reasoning behind that tour. I think most
people had a great time but I definitely confused some people.
DE: In a BBC documentary you revealed
that before you were a star you watched women undressing in
a clothing store. How did you manage that?
GT: I’m afraid that’s true. There
was a light on in the changing room. It sort of shone through
the curtain. I did have a peek now and then.
DE: Are you and Chris Difford going
to write together again?
GT: I would think so. We wrote a
song together about six months ago. Its not like we haven’t
worked together.
DE: The reviews to The Incomplete
Glenn Tilbrook have been almost universally favorable.
How has audience response been to it in the UK and the U.S.?
GT: Really, really good. I wasn’t
sure what people would think. I knew people might be upset
that Squeeze wasn’t happening anymore but the response has
been excellent.
— Dan Epstein is also a columnist/reporter
for davidfincher.net
and a guest columnist for ifanboy.com,
a comic book website. Dan lives on the Upper West Side of
Manhattan and will never leave New York City.
Send Dan an e-mail at danepstein75@hotmail.com
Talk Back
post
in the webboard
e-mail the chief
Like this article?
e-mail it to a friend!
|
