Interviews |
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March
19, 2017 |
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Buck was one of the most extraordinary people I’ve
ever known — a second father to me in so many ways.
What inspired me to travel the country with him and
write a book about him was his indomitable optimism
about life and the world. Few had more of an excuse
to feel some bitterness. He was a fine player in the
Negro Leagues — but he should have gotten a shot to
play in the Majors. He was a fantastic manager in
the Negro Leagues — but he should have been hired
to manage in the Majors. He was a wonderful big league
scout — signing, among others, Ernie Banks and Lou
Brock and Joe Carter and Lee Smith. He was the first
African American coach in major league history. He
was baseball’s greatest story teller, keeping alive
the memories of all those great Negro Leaguers who
people never got to see play.
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November
3, 2016 |
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There
is a huge market for erotic writing that goes from the
straight out pornography to literary work and I’d like
to think my work is more on the literary side. I’ve
always published under my own name and not kept it a
secret but, on the other hand, don’t exactly broadcast
it around the workplace or tell my nanna.
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From
the Backpack ~ Originally posted November 5, 2004 |
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September
19, 2016 |
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When
I was a little kid I had this cousin (Wim) from Holland
come stay with my family for an extended period of
time. He had long hair, bellbottoms and wildly colored
shirts. No idea where it came from but there was this
old beat up acoustic guitar that had been laying around
our house forever. He picked it up, tuned it, and
began to play. The song was “Cecilia” by Simon and
Garfunkel. That was a true “God wink” moment for me!
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July
27, 2016 |
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I
need to be intrigued by something. Needs to get my
creative juices going. I am an ‘artiste’ to the Nth
degree. I love to write songs, books, poetry. I love
to perform. I love to do my radio shows. I love to
act.
In
fact, I ‘love’ entertaining people in whatever guise
it takes.
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April
23, 2016 |
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I
was a working radio guy, with a beard and long curly
hair. It just happened that some folks thought I sounded
like Roy. Someone I knew had a backyard barbecue and
engaged a karaoke DJ. While I was singing, I think
it was “Crying”, a late arriving guest who happened
to be an Elvis act showed up at the shindig. When
I was through, he came straight over and said he was
looking for openers for his shows. He did say, however,
that he could not imagine how I would ever get “the
look”. A razor, a bit of hair dye and a pair of Ray-bans
convinced us all that it was possible.
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March
4, 2016 |
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I’ve
recently added Taylor Swift to my list of artists
that I impersonate. It really has been fun to impersonate
her! I enjoy the fact that we both have long, skinny
arms and similar body types, and it’s fun to be awkward
on stage like her! With Taylor I can wear anything
of hers and feel confident that I am portraying the
correct image and body type.
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January
19, 2016 |
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It’s
hard to answer this because just reading the question
made the inside of my head go a bit screamy. I guess
the most noteworthy challenge is that I will do a
LOT of stuff to get out of doing any work at all.
I recently read a quote from Mindy Kaling in which
she said she probably does about one hour’s work to
every seven hours of messing about and I think that
may be about the same for me… on a good day. So my
biggest challenge is getting out of my own way and
getting the work done. At every stage.
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December
1, 2015 |
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Two
years into my seven-year stretch as an undergrad,
I landed a job as a copyboy at the St. Louis Globe-Democrat.
The moment I stepped into the newsroom (which was
straight out of “The Front Page” - reporters and editors
banging away on typewriters, cradling phones on their
shoulders, and yelling across a sea of army-surplus
desks piled with paper and coffee cups, a thick stratum
of cigarette smoke overhead) I had an overpowering
sense that I had arrived where I was supposed to be.
The editors gave me a reporting internship the following
summer, which was my first real writing job.
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March
8, 2015 |
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People
seeing a show from an impersonator are looking for
the hits. And if you only have ten to fifteen minutes,
you have to go to them and fit in as many as you can.
So I do look at what songs were the first hits for
a performer, and research which songs were number
one the longest or went the highest on the charts.
Still, there is more to it. You want to think about
the order of the songs. You want to be aware of the
audience, who you might be working with, and all of
the other details from the costumes to the stage.
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March
1, 2015 |
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Live
performing is the most difficult of disciplines as
you are not allowed the luxury of relying on recordings
you made, film or TV tapings that exist or anything
else that archives your accomplishments. You are required
to prove yourself all over again each and every time
you set foot on a stage. No one in the audience cares
a fig about your wonderful performance last night
or the great show you will give three weeks from now.
This is a singular one show at a time job, and every
night you have to win over a new group of folks.
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July
10, 2014 |
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In
my opinion, Justin Timberlake is the most talented
guy on the planet so those are some tough shoes to
fill. The fact that he is a living performer who is
still very much active in the business also makes
it a tough challenge to deliver a great performance.
The voice was the easy part for me. The dancing was
the hard part. I can’t dance exactly like Justin Timberlake
but I certainly capture some of the iconic choreography
that he has done throughout the years. My biggest
goal was to be able to mimic the movements and mannerism
and facial expressions. I feel like I have done a
great job at bringing those to life on the Legends
stage.
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April
12, 2014 |
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In
this business, there has to be a certain amount of
understanding about what you’re getting into. No one
gets perfect reviews on every project. And there is
going to be an increased spotlight on things. I just
want to do the best I can, appreciate and respect
those that assist and support me, and as I said, always
be a bit better tomorrow than I am today.
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March
19, 2013 |
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I
can tell people, quite honestly, that I’m an actress.
It’s not simply me singing Celine’s songs. I’m supposed
to be delivering a tribute of Celine, which includes
creating as closely as I can her voice, stage presence,
physical appearance, and so much more. Also, everything
behind the scenes is our responsibility. I do my own
makeup and hair, and have to find my own costumes.
And that’s an amazing and strange part of it as well,
because you learn so much along the way to do things
better or faster. No one else is doing that for you.
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March
11, 2013 |
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When
I auditioned for America’s Got Talent, I
was brought into this room with some of the production
crew. You don’t immediately go on the big stage and
audition for the three judges. There are some phases
before that. So there I am with Emma, standing maybe
ten feet or so away from the group, and we do “At
Last.” One of the people at the table looked at me
and said, “That’s very nice, but you’re not allowed
to use microphones and recordings.”
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March
31, 2012 |
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The
first time my wife and I met was during the period
where I was singing as others and DJing. That first
night she listened to me perform Engelbert Humperdinck,
Barry Manilow, Neil Diamond, Frank Sinatra and a few
others. She later confessed that during the first
few weeks of dating she was determined to learn how
the “trick microphone” worked because she didn’t believe
that any one singer could sound “so much like all
those great singers.” We still laugh about that trick
microphone.
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March
28, 2012 |
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I’d
love to own authentic models of some of his guitars,
but I don’t think I’d use them on stage that often
if I did have them. Maybe at a one-night event with
the most hard-core of Elvis fans. The truth is, if
you could see the back of that guitar, you’d probably
be stunned by how beat up it is. Those belts do not
treat guitars kindly. The thing is, I know I don’t
look exactly like Elvis. I don’t think anyone really
does. And what that means is I have to do all of the
little things I can to create an illusion. I’ve got
nine different jumpsuits. I’ve got the guitar and
the decal on it. Put a live band out there with me,
and all of it sets the atmosphere up just right. Everything
I can do helps. There are three elements any tribute
artist has to get right, and those are the look, the
voice and the stage presence. And for Elvis it’s even
tougher, because he is so identifiable in each of
those areas.
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March
27, 2012 |
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And
that’s really the joy of a great band. Even today,
just like then. It’s not the same every night, and
I don’t think good music is supposed to be exactly
the same every night. Let them play. I love listening
to them. To the piano, the sax, the trombone. I love
seeing them take some room in the middle of the songs
and explore it, fill it in, and bring it together.
That’s real talent at work, it makes for a great show,
and it’s exciting to be a part of it. I know it’s
made me a better singer.
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March
19, 2012 |
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It’s
funny, because you’re wondering if it’s hard to perform
as someone else, but I actually find it to be easier.
Shania scared me when I began working with her material.
As you mention, my normal voice is much closer to
how she normally sings, and I never wear a wig as
Shania.
It
comes back to confidence I suppose, and the acting
as another person is a part of it. If we tried to
dig deep we might find some connection, that in the
same way I wanted people to turn around on the school
bus I enjoyed a bit of the extra layer brought about
by changing my voice and putting on a wig or costume.
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November
10, 2011 |
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I
absolutely hated the Epilogue. In fact… “hated” isn’t
a strong enough word. I think the Harry Potter legacy
is weaker for it being there. My basic feeling is that
it gives us absolutely nothing new. If the book had
ended fifteen pages earlier, and you had asked people
that read the books what happened next, just about every
one of them would have included the basics… Harry with
Ginny… Ron with Hermione… their children going to Hogwarts…
blah… blah… blah. Heck, most would have some uncomfortable
moments for Harry and Draco! Maybe Rowling was trying
to block off someone else coming along and trying to
take over the tale (now she’s told us that everything
was fine for years after Voldemort was killed, so no
one should be plotting a work of their own about his
return). Perhaps she was giving in to some emotional
feeling (if she didn’t write that Harry and Ginny had
children, then they didn’t… must be written to be true,
so she did). Maybe it was just to offer a rapid-fire
finish to where everyone went. Whatever. I have read
that she had a more detailed version of the chapter
written, but she felt like it contained way too much.
I can understand that too. But… trying to bring this
around to a question… my point is that I felt let down
by it. I wish I had skipped it. After navigating the
waters very impressively to bring this behemoth of a
story around to a satisfying conclusion, for me she
let go of her focus. How do you feel about the Epilogue?
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From
the Backpack ~ Originally posted June 2, 2008 |
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November
10, 2011 |
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My
favorite book so far is book 1. This is the book that
got me hooked and left me wanting more. There was some
really great fantasy and imagination entwined in this
book from the characters to the buildings. I loved the
school and all its occupants from the ghosts to the
caretaker to the sorting hat. The Weasleys were a fun
family and you just loved to hate Draco Malfoy.
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From
the Backpack ~ Originally posted November 20, 2005 |
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March
24, 2011 |
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I
immediately starting relating to the instrument as
a melodic instrument as opposed to an instrument only
concerned with the foundation of the music. I later
got more of the idea that the instrument is also extremely
rhythmic and connected to the drums as well. Putting
the two together was a revelation and growing up on
a healthy dosage of Latin Salsa music, rhythm was
inherited through my family and our culture. (Another
reason for choosing the trumpet as a youngster.) So,
even if you don’t start off playing horn first, I
think it is good advice to study horn players no matter
what instrument you play. Melodically, the horn players
have so much information to offer as a single line
instrument.
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October
1, 2009 |
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It’s
funny, because right now I have several songs written
that are just instrumental pieces. I don’t know if
they’re instrumental pieces or not though. You know
what I mean? They’re completed as far as the music,
but I’m not sure they’re finished. They simply don’t
have any lyrics right now. I
do find it’s important to have something to start
with though, some hook of a melody. Gives me something
to hang my hat on and I can write a lyric after that.
I
will say that for me, I think the music and how it
feels is the most important part of the song. No lyric,
no matter how good it is, is going to save it if the
music is bad and it feels wrong.
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September
24, 2009 |
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The
people that have been the least enthusiastic about my
songs are the Boston fans when I wrote the “Shady Brady”
song. I received many, many emails from them making
sure I had a “day job”… and those were the nice ones!
I also received a lot of negative emails from Kentucky
fans earlier this year when I wrote a song describing
how awful they were doing at the start of the season.
I had written nothing but positive songs about Kentucky
before so people didn’t appreciate me “turning
on the team”, although I didn’t see it that way. I was
just being honest. For the most part, though, I
have received much more positive email regarding the
songs than negative… even from Boston fans.
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From
the Backpack ~ Originally posted March 2, 2008 |
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September
20, 2009 |
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Whenever
I write about the smallest, tiniest detail, it’s a way
of checking out whether I’m the only one who has experienced
these things/felt these things. The answer is
almost always “no.” I am one of many. This establishes
an instant connection for me with people that I’d not
be able to connect with otherwise, as my abilities
at small talk are not as polished as I would like them
to be.
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From
the Backpack ~ Originally posted June 1, 2006 |
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March
19, 2009 |
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Most
journalists “look” for book ideas because, well, we
like the idea of writing books, and also like the idea
of fantasizing about a best-seller. But unless you have
the words “Harry'” and “Potter” in your title, it’s
unlikely you’re going to make much money off a book.
If you spent the same amount of hours at a job where
you say, “Do you want fries with that” you’d often make
more money.
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From
the Backpack ~ Originally posted July 9, 2006 |
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February
24, 2009 |
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Years
ago, if you had asked, I would have immediately told
you I had no desire to look into television. Then about
six or seven years ago, the Craft brand began to consider
reaching out beyond New York. I still can recall in
season one of Top Chef we were getting feedback
like “Who’s Colicchio?” and comments about how they
had never seen me on the Food Network.
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February
9, 2009 |
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They
had the script for Leather for a long time… couldn’t
find the girl. She had to be tough/vulnerable,
and could sing and act. The casting lady went into her
daughter’s bedroom and saw my picture on the cover of
Rolling Stone and went crazy. I got a call
while on tour in Japan to fly to America and audition.
Never heard of the show, as it hadn’t reached England
yet. Wore my leathers of course (Garry Marshall thought
I dressed in the part!)… and got the part… which turned
into 3 years.
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From
the Backpack ~ Originally posted March 10, 2008 |
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January
5, 2009 |
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One
of the fun things is showing people that it isn’t just
the gear. People will say things like “look at the equipment
you get to use” as if that’s what it’s all about. So
we’ll set up the full rig and say “ok, here’s the gear,
show us.” Music is internal as much as external. It’s
the phrasing and the tone… a complete package.
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From
the Backpack ~ Originally posted April 5, 2006 |
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