Brian on the cover in Sweden!

Slim Jon Phantom wrote:

Hahaha, unfortunatelly for you, I'll leave the harsh task for you but... I have that magazine in my files. Pity it's a short interview !

I'll be happy to translate it. And I don't have a dog and kids so maybe more time..

Here is a cool old magazine up for sale, Brians first cover in Sweden!
http://www.tradera.com/SCHLAGER-1981-13-Stray-Cats-Pugh-The-Who-auktion_2105_141317268

nietsk wrote:

Slim Jon Phantom wrote:

Hahaha, unfortunatelly for you, I'll leave the harsh task for you but... I have that magazine in my files. Pity it's a short interview !

I'll be happy to translate it. And I don't have a dog and kids so maybe more time..

nitesk....be my guest!

Slim Jon, you're from Spain but got the Dutch mag??
How come?

Patrick,
I bought it a few years ago. Apart from the 7", CDs and all that, I also collect magazines with the Cats featuring on cover... I have like 120 mags with the Cats, Setzer, Lee & Slim on cover (and I am still missing some 40 - that I know they exist!)

I also have a couple of Dutch mags of 1981 (Muziek Express and Hit Parade if I can recall properly)

Slim, so you read Dutch?
Or you just got it for the pics?

Besides do you have the Dutch "Popfoto"?
There was an awesome pic of Brian's hair!
I lost that one probably abou 1982...

Hey Patrick,
no no, I cannot read Dutch - well, I could possibly read it, but without understanding a single word, hah!

The only thing I can say in Dutch is "Een Dikke Zoen" and "hoet goet et" (I think it's something like this), because I had a Spanish friend ages ago whose parents were inmigrants in R'dam so, once she sent me a birthday postcard saying that... that's why I know it.

I collect mags with Stray Cats on cover as part of my collection, not only limited to CDs or LPs.

Slim Jon Phantom wrote:

"hoet goet et" (

LOL!
Took me awhile to figur it out haha..you probably mean "hoe gaat het" meaning how are you.

If you literally say "Hou gihgt hat" then you're close as it can get....haha..(only the 'g' of gight is a big problem for all not Dutch)
But who cares, that must be quit a collection you have.
I'll check what more I can find here.

tvthewiredturtle wrote:

Andi wrote:

but then, the Stray Cats weren't punk either...

baaaagh..yes they were, watch em in rockpalast...sez it all. The look, the sound and the attitude was a
giant "F" you to my father's era of rockabilly and all its clean livin' gentleman style.

Ya know, you're right.

We were practicing this morning and my fella was making some crazy feedback noises with the SSLVO and Hi Mu... sounded exactly like "Storm the Embassy." I played it for him and he was like, "who is THAT?!" He was shocked when I told him

Andi wrote:

He was shocked when I told him

Yeah that's what pissed me off for years.
The Stray Cats have tons of good songs, but only the hits people know.
Then I gave up trying to convince them.
"Ok go ahead and enjoy your Wham, Prince and Neneh Cherry crap!"
(don't get me wrong I think Wham and Prince were good acts)

Well I did it. This artical is from the Dutch Parool, Aug 2, 2005.
Just before his Tilburg and Amsterdam gig.
Hope I translated well.

It wasn’t that easy to make a choice out of all those great Rockabilly songs.There for Brian Setzer doesn’t exclude a follow up of his tribute album.
Thursday he’s coming to play in Paradiso, but not with the Stray Cats.

Because of his 18 year old son and his friends, Stray Cats front man came to the idea.
While Setzer was listening to some old rockabilly records at home they entered the room. And they were totally blown away by what daddy was playing on the old turn table.
Hence now the new cover cd with rockabilly songs from the 50’s, the early beginning of this genre.
“Now kids only know music that’s on the radio. Today’s music that is. It’s great to introduce them to the origin of rockabilly.” Setzer tells in the eve of an European tour with the three piece occasional band the Nashvillians.
“And I notice it works. All young people who get to hear it love it. A new world opens for them.
But naturally I also did it for my own joy.”
Along with the Nashvillians, Setzer also recorded the album ‘Rockabilly Riot volume one – A tribute to Sun Records’.
It’s recorded in Nashville, Tennessee. The Nashvillians are all from that part of Tennessee.
Besides that, the home of rockabilly music gave the perfect atmosphere for such a tribute cd.
The album contains 23 songs that were released under the famous Sun label from 1954 – 1957 like Blue Suede Shoes, Red Hot and Real Wild Child.
But also lesser-known pieces.
The Setzer versions sounds noticeably authentic. “I didn’t feel any need to add my own sound to it. These songs come from the days when rockabilly was born. That I wanted to record, as much as possible with the technique and equipment from those days. So what is a better place for the old recording stuff then in Nashville self? The studio was located on a beautiful countryside around just outside the town. While recording I looked at the hills of Tennessee. It was very inspiring.”
It was a small problem to make a choice between the enormous amount of songs from that period.
No wonder Setzer added the ‘Volume one” to the cd’s title.
“I’m not sure if there’s gonna be a volume two or even three, but with this title there’s always a change”, chuckles the singer-guitarist.
"All of a sudden I had some 100 albums under my nose. I choose a mixture of some classics and some less familiar songs. For example everybody knows Blue Suede Shoes, but few know this is an original rockabilly song”.
Besides some minor musical side tracks, like the very successful Brian Setzer Orchestra, 46 year old Setzer always played rockabilly music since the start of the Stray Cats 25 years ago.
After all these years it’s simply the music that still gives him that special feeling.
“It’s hard to explain. I think it’s the unique mixture of three instruments. That slappin’ double bass, the specific somewhat jazzy guitar sound and the stripped down drum kit with just one cymbal, snare drum and the bass drum. It’s a very energetic and exciting type of music.”
It is remarkable Setzer played in a three piece rockabilly band all those years.
On this new tribute album for the first time he worked with a piano player.
Quite an eye opener he admits.
“On many old Sun records piano and acoustic guitar were used. Strange enough rockabilly bands after that period almost didn’t do that. But when I listen to an oldie like ‘Put your cat clothes on’ and the piano enters; fantastic!
In that way It thought me a lot”.
Yet the Stray Cats, who still preform, according to Setzer don’t need a piano.
“With the Stray Cats we never wanted to approach that old sound. From day one we wanted to give our own twist to rockabilly and I believe we added something extra to that genre.”

Thanks, Patrick!