Interview mit Shakin' Stevens - zur Sendung "Hit Me Baby One More Time"
Why did you decide to do the show?
Well, I have to be honest and say that I have a release out and you need TV to push a record.
But the show will be fun. I’m really looking forward to it.
Why did you decide on ‘This Ole House’ when ‘Green Door’ is a big hit?
Well, they gave me two to choose from – ‘This Old House’ or ‘Green Door’ – and I went for the first. ‘This Old House’ was actually the biggest seller so it kind of made sense to choose that one.
As for the Pink track, they gave us a list of about 200 songs to choose from, but we could choose outside of that if we wanted.
So I got loads and loads and loads of CDs of contemporary bands and listened and listened and listened and we kind of went back to the original list and I chose Pink.
You’re gigging a lot at the moment. Do you get women throwing knickers on stage at you?
No, you’re talking to the wrong man – you’re thinking of Tom Jones!
What’s been the best and worst thing about being out of the limelight?
I stopped recording officially in 1992 in the UK but I carried on doing festivals and tours so I kept the live side of it going and I was still going.
So there have been compilations and things, especially in Europe. Last year I had a number one with a CD DVD in Europe.
You were massive in the eighties. How did you deal with the pressure of celebrity?
Oh yeah, I was doing three tours a year, I was doing an album a year, I was doing loads of interviews and I was putting singles out like bullets from a Tommy Gun so I think then maybe I needed to stand back a bit and look at everything.
I kind of looked at everything and what actually went on.
You’ve opted for a suit – why no denim on the night?
Well, denim is too obvious.
If I wear denims – I don’t really wear that stuff any more (of course I still wear jeans) – but you have to move on. Rod Stewart doesn’t wear a leotard anymore, and neither does Elton John wear the platform heels. So I think if I wore denims and white boots while singing ‘This Ole’ House’, it would look a bit retro wouldn’t it?
These Reality shows are quite a cruel process. Are you a bit worried that your ego’s going to take a dent if you don’t get through?
Not really.
When we were first offered a TV show it was just a big hit and a contemporary song. I never heard anything about the vote. Then two weeks later I heard there was a vote and I thought ‘Oooh’.
But when they explained that it was a light vote I felt a bit better about the whole thing. They’re not voting for me as an artist.
How has the industry changed since you were at the top?
Technology-wise it has certainly changed. With computers and all that.
We’ve had lots and lots of pop idol shows and things like that and boy groups and girl groups. But then, we’ve always had that kind of thing with The Crystals.
It’s nice to see that people are using real drums and guitars and things and that people aren’t just making records with machines.
What do you make of the bands that come out of reality TV shows?
I think Will Young has done very well. He’s gone against the grain a bit in such a way that he wants to be taken seriously. So I take my hat off to him.
How did you keep your feet on the ground during your success?
I was from a family of 13, and it wasn’t a rich family and when you mention the new bands and things – I spent 10 years going up and down the motorway in a tin van, sleeping on floors, we used to go and do pubs, greyhounds, colleges. We’d stopped in a public convenience and do our bits and shave our bits…not those bits, and then go and do the gig.
Maybe that helped us keep our feet on the ground. Today, these kids don’t have to do that.
So are the pop stars of today spoiled? Do you think that leads to diva-demands?
I don’t know whether they get the chance to do that as they are just thrown into talent shows so they don’t get the chance to do the groundwork.
But I’m sure there are bands around that do have to do that.
Is there a modern artist that you particularly like?
There are several bands that I like at the moment. For instance Feeder. Kings of Leon I really like – though they are a bit near the bone in terms of their lyrics. But I think that their music is good.
Shakin Stevens
