Members Login
Username 
 
Password 
    Remember Me  
Post Info TOPIC: Questions for Russell...?


The Only Way is Down

Status: Offline
Posts: 2300
Date:
Questions for Russell...?
Permalink  
 


Hey folks, Long time no chatter, but hey, that's parenthood for you! Hope you're all well? I'm about half way through the Russell book at the moment and have also managed to wangle an interview in person with the great man. Hurrah! I could have done it by email and had a much better interview, but as a fanboy of many years standing I'm choosing to meet him and potentially mess this up. But hey, I'll have met him and so this is pretty much the peak of meeting a living popstar for me. I have many questions for him which I'll pull together before I meet him...but I was wondering if you folk have any too? I'll be happy to pop them onto my list, so fire away!

__________________

swaying slightly, drunk on the sun, I suppose



Quiet Revolutionary

Status: Offline
Posts: 474
Date:
RE: Questions for Russell...?
Permalink  
 


Hi Stephen,

Well, that should be very exciting! Lucky you.

In terms of questions for Russell, I would like to know what things he regrets not keeping, photographing, or otherwise recording from his days in Pulp and which things he wishes he could remember better.

Also, to what degree did band members get to know each other's families/friends/girlfriends/boyfriends?



__________________
Three blind mice go owww


The Only Way is Down

Status: Offline
Posts: 1775
Date:
RE: Questions for Russell...?
Permalink  
 


Well, I've always wondered why Russell took up the violin and used it so prominently in Pulp. What does he think it brought to the sound and look of the band? I don't think he covers it in the book but if he does I missed it.

__________________

Where Pigeons go to die.



Different Class

Status: Offline
Posts: 271
Date:
RE: Questions for Russell...?
Permalink  
 


He mentions picking up the violin for the first time on page 34/35, Saw, but doesn't really go into it. It's something I'd like to know about too and even the guitar - I mean what drew him to those instruments and not something else such as the drums and how he learned how to play them but then again he talks in the book about not being able to play instruments 'properly' as being far more interesting I find his style much more interesting than a formally trained musician or someone who might be considered technically better. Good luck with the interview, Stephen. Cant wait to see it :)



__________________


The Only Way is Down

Status: Offline
Posts: 4482
Date:
RE: Questions for Russell...?
Permalink  
 


Great news, I was hoping that Stephen or Sturdy would be able to get an in-depth interview with him.

When is it due to take place, Stephen? I've a lot of the book still to read but there's already things I'd like to hear him elaborate on/explain more but want to wait til I've finished to see if he expands on them or if he raises other things that would be good to press him further on.

__________________

Tell mester to f*ck off!



Loss Adjuster

Status: Offline
Posts: 321
Date:
RE: Questions for Russell...?
Permalink  
 


I'm not too far into the book either, so don't know if any of this is covered, but these are the first questions that come to mind...

When he talks about decorating the practice studios he says "the Pulp style isn't exactly my style--only one or two of the items came from home." Which items came from his home (the "snot-green" Eames chairs?)?

What happened to all of those songs that were practiced but never played? Did they record any of those rehearsals?

When/where was the last flight he took?

__________________


The Only Way is Down

Status: Offline
Posts: 2300
Date:
RE: Questions for Russell...?
Permalink  
 


Thanks for these. Sorry I forgotten I'd asked the question before! Shall try and incorporate some into the interrogation...



__________________

swaying slightly, drunk on the sun, I suppose



The Only Way is Down

Status: Offline
Posts: 4482
Date:
RE: Questions for Russell...?
Permalink  
 


I met Russell last week after attending the ''Louder Than Words'' event in Manchester.

He spoke to music journalist, the affable John Robb for almost an hour and fielded a couple of questions at the end (mine was crap, Robb called me a hipster and Russell called me a fisherman but more of that anon).

In terms of stuff Russell hadn't mentioned in recent interviews or the book, he did repeat an earlier assertion that he didn't feel Help The Aged was up to it as a comeback single (but, like many Pulp songs, he grew to like it afterwards). He was also less even-handed when it came to talking about Jarvis, mostly negative stuff only(! - although he says he always rated him as a performer) - believing his own publicity during a drug-addled few months at the height of Britpop, and this not being conducive to effective song-writing was before. Robb opined that Britpop has been a dirty word since the ''era'' ended, and Russell, to his credit, said he never felt ashamed of it and that a primary reason for doing the book was to offer a fresh, positive perspective on it. He said he'd met Alex James after another ''jaded'' Britpop programme/book and Alex had said something along the lines of ''They're onto us now'' or a similar phrase meaning that basically the whole messy thing had been exposed (which surely can only mean John Harris' book as I'm not sure there's been anything else that's delved as deep into it). But I guess Russell's version of Britpop is the artier and more interesting one - early Blur, Lush, Suede, The Auteurs, Saint Etienne, before Oasis' explosion turned it into indie-guitar plodders etc. 

He maintained that Pulp to him, were never mean to be a career band and when he sees bands since/nowadays unload and pack-up their gear, he identifies a lot more with it - ''Pulp are a small band in my head''.

More amusing stuff - they did try to recreate the home-made feel of early live shows at a later point (I presume he was talking about during the reunion), and they rehearsed being surrounded by sky-high sheets of tinfoil but it all just fell around them so the idea was scrapped (the chucking bog-rolls from wheely bins at Sheff arena presumably being Plan B). Again, he emphasised the ''Celtic thugs'' aspect to Pulp - the Doyles (and Manners?), though he himself said he had some Celtic blood and as frustrating as those mid-80s days were and the Freaks line-up, he clearly retains a lot of fondness for both the people and the time.

In terms of formative years, he wanted to be in/like Hawkwind after seeing them on Top of the Pops. Given the location of the talk, a lot was discussed about the musical similarities between Manchester and Sheffield, much of which he describes in the book. The talk was taking a more or less chronological pattern but the ''climbing the rung of the ladder'' after the positive reaction to the My Legendary Girlfriend single and the decent sales of it in Manchester quickly zoomed to him going onto Glastonbury '95 which was a tad disappointing as there obviously were four more years (of arguably him/Pulp at their best) that could have been discussed. His and the band's view of how their set was going at the time at Glasto'95 again is described in the book - i.e. they couldn't hear a thing, thought that they were bombing and just wanted to get off according to Russell.

He mentioned that after leaving Pulp the re-adjustment period was pretty difficult. ''I remember scraping poo off the toilet when John Peel was being interviewed and asked his favourite ever gig and he said us at Glastonbury''. A lot of his stuff - instruments, personal possessions, were nicked shortly after he left the group after staying at Candida's, including his Filofax with numbers and addresses for many of the people he had met through the band so it was, actually, quite easy to become detached from things in one way, he said. He also recounted the Saint Etienne story from the book - John Robb reminded him that Bob Stanley had been reviewing Pulp London gigs since the late 80's and he, Robb, had even accompanied him to one in the early 90's. There was a fair bit of banter about how Russell and the band were quite old when they did make it and Russell extolled the virtues of make-up. 

My question at the end was a bit garbled, having been a bit put-off after Mr Robb likened my facial hair to the hipsters that they had just been discussing in relation to current musical trends and how difficult it is for them to move from underground to the mainstream. Russell (who I recall hasn't got many nice words to say about beards in the book!), spotted I was wearing a woolly jumper akin to that of a fisherman's geansaí, and he told me to give John a slap!

Afterwards at the signing, I held up the queue, chatting to him for a good ten minutes and he was really lovely - I felt much more at ease talking to him than the couple of times I've met Jarvis (I spoke with Mark before quite naturally too but could sense his natural shyness).We spoke about about Pulp's visits to Ireland as he didn't have much good to say about them in the book and I also asked if stories like the Dolores O'Riordan one (with Russell, the Cranberries singer and Nick Banks playing a trick on a hotel porter) and he said, deadly serious ''Oh yeah. The only one in the book that's made-up is about the sign falling onto Jarvis' head''. So there you go... maybe not too much false memory/fiction based on facts etc.

He really tried to get Pulp live at Park Hill in 2012 but there was problems with the local council. I also asked him about the promo of the book itself, remarking that I'd not seen any reviews at all in the press. He told me that his PR person had left the book company (Jessica I think, who I was emailing on and off since the summer until about two months ago. I thought she'd just got sick of my requests for updates!) shortly before the book came out which put the kibosh on press. I asked him was he disappointed by that given how good the book is, and he was quite pragmatic about it, saying that a paperback edition might helpt get it (re)appraised properly. I asked about the likelihood of an audio version but he didn't seem to know much about it (he does read an extract from it - Pulp v Suede in the drumkit story, on the Quietus website, if anyone wants to check it out). Got a photo with him and actually felt he would have been happy to chat for longer (''sparked-up'' an e-cigarette while we talked. Quite amusingly, during the talk, he was chewing-gum in between the e-cigs, - he'd have the cigarette, then take a chewing gum out, then have another fag, then gum!) and he signed my book with an illustration of a fishermans' jumper with a matching corduroy cap.


You'll have a great time meeting him, Stephen. I wouldn't want to cross him, still has the air of someone you wouldn't want to piss-off, but he was a gent and I'm glad I made the trek.  I'll have to think of some q's before you do meet him, though.








__________________

Tell mester to f*ck off!



Quiet Revolutionary

Status: Offline
Posts: 474
Date:
RE: Questions for Russell...?
Permalink  
 


Superb account, Eamonn. Ta v much for posting.



__________________
Three blind mice go owww


The Only Way is Down

Status: Offline
Posts: 2300
Date:
RE: Questions for Russell...?
Permalink  
 


Wow, thanks Eamonn! I shall put him on the back foot about my beard in case he takes an instant dislike, then! (mine is not for hipster reasons, but makes it less distressing for my babies when they want to cuddle against my neck/face at the end of the day!) I had wanted to go to the talk in Manchester, but it was the weekend of the eldest's birthday. Not a huge fan of John Robb's ego though, so mightn't have enjoyed the experience anyway!

__________________

swaying slightly, drunk on the sun, I suppose



The Only Way is Down

Status: Offline
Posts: 2300
Date:
RE: Questions for Russell...?
Permalink  
 


Btw quite keen to hear the 'negative' Jarvis stories. Care to share? And yes, the book is very generous about Britpop. Which is nice for those of us to whom it meant everything!

__________________

swaying slightly, drunk on the sun, I suppose



The Only Way is Down

Status: Offline
Posts: 4482
Date:
RE: Questions for Russell...?
Permalink  
 


Well, it was more that he hadn't anything good to say about him except acknowledging his talent as a performer.
And that the thought crossed Russell's mind more than once that he should bin Jarvis off and find a different singer! Might be worth pressing him on that, he might have even mentioned meeting other singers to work with, I can't remember exactly what he said but there was an amusing quip about that notion.

__________________

Tell mester to f*ck off!



Loss Adjuster

Status: Offline
Posts: 362
Date:
RE: Questions for Russell...?
Permalink  
 


I'd take all that negativity with a pinch of salt. Russell's occasionally exhibited a habit for being unnecessarily scathing here and there and there were some staggering inaccuracies in his book (Gary Numan performing at Glastonbury 1995?). Would Pulp have got very far without Jarvis?

__________________


The Only Way is Down

Status: Offline
Posts: 4482
Date:
RE: Questions for Russell...?
Permalink  
 


Of course not but I can imagine in the 80's, maybe even when Jarvis left for London, that Russell, clearly wanting to continue, may have felt ''Bugger off then, I'll find someone else who's easier to work with".

__________________

Tell mester to f*ck off!



The Only Way is Down

Status: Offline
Posts: 4482
Date:
RE: Questions for Russell...?
Permalink  
 


Questions, before I forget. When reading the book, I half-thought about putting sticky-notes on pages with stories or information I wanted to discover more about but that might have been taking things a bit far. Don't have the book to hand at the moment but...

Obvious ones:

His favourite Pulp gig (before reunion and of reunion itself)?
His favourite Pulp song? Album? (Have a feeling he'll say Freaks!)


Nerdy ones:

Did Pulp write many songs between 1990-1995 that haven't been released i.e. is he aware of what's on the deluxe editions?
Which other songs apart from She's A Lady do you feel were compromised too much in the studio and did the band agree?


Book-related (and also nerdy):

Can you remember what the video to Maureen was like?
Are there any photos of the press-day you mention you had with Jarvis in London (need to check the book to see when exactly this was - around the time of Little Girl?).

You became a dad and Pulp effectively split-up over the same couple of days in 1988. In the dormant period of the next couple of years with half the band in London, how often did you meet-up? Did fatherhood stop you thinking too much about Pulp/being bitter that it was barely active? You are probably more prominent on Separations than any other album. Was that a sign of you really making the most of it when the band periodically re-convened to rehearse and record the album during that time (in the absence of hardly any live shows)?


Despite your disdain at some of the London-based contingent's changes in attitude and behaviour, you clearly had good times when you were down there for gigs and press. I was a bit surprised to read you'd hung around in The Good Mixer with Menswear etc. Without having a settled family in Sheff might you have been tempted permanently by the trappings darn sarf?

You held back on ire towards Fire, Buller (who are not mentioned by name) and not one catty reference to Suzanne Catty in what appears to have been a conscious effort to not make the book a score-settling exercise.
These are some of the main Russell/Pulp gripes that fans have previously heard about - are there many more?! (i.e Has he read that Amazon review of the book?!)

Was it difficult being in the rehearsal room during the reunion when the band ran through post-Different Class songs or would you just not stick-around for them?
You mention in the book that hearing Wickerman reduced you to tears - now that you've heard more of Pulp's output post your departure, what do you reckon to it?

Of all the Britpop contemporaries, Oasis are barely mentioned in the book. Did you feel any affinity with them as northerners? If they hadn't come along would Britpop have remained as an artier ''movement'' which you appear to retain a fondness for (i.e. 1991-'94, touring or hanging-out with Blur, Lush, Suede, Elastica, The Auteurs, Menswear etc. ?


...If I went through the book again I'd probably have a hundred more things to ask. I'm sure you have dozens of excellent questions Stephen, so whatever you ask, I'm sure will be of huge interest on here.



__________________

Tell mester to f*ck off!

Page 1 of 1  sorted by
 
Quick Reply

Please log in to post quick replies.

Tweet this page Post to Digg Post to Del.icio.us


Create your own FREE Forum
Report Abuse
Powered by ActiveBoard