In an interview published in a 1982 Rolling Stone article, Eddie cites two different aspects of himself. Referring to the rock and roll lifestyle that led to his near-death experience in late 1980, he described how Edward Mahoney, the hard-working kid from Brooklyn, had succumbed to Eddie Money, the rock star everyone knew. Recognizing his demons helped him get back on track and, by the time he had this talk with Scott Muni in 1988, he was supporting his fourth album since 1980.
Nothing to Lose was released in 1988 and featured the top ten hit “If I Could Walk on Water.” There is an introductions to that song and other cuts from the album in this interview, as well as introductions for his biggest hits: “Baby Hold On,” “Two Tickets to Paradise,” and “Take Me Home Tonight.”
The other recollections and stories contained here cover everything from his childhood to his future plans. Throughout, we are offered a glimpse of both Mahoney and Money as tales of womanizing and getting high are interspersed with claims that he wants to make it to his mother’s house for a home-cooked meal. Whatever the content, Eddie talks without pretense, and while this sometimes comes across as impulsivity, it is wonderful to hear his New York accent speaking from the heart.
00:12 – Why and how Eddie makes money 01:03 – Taking his time to make the new album 01:58 – Intro to “If I Could Walk On Water” 02:27 – Intro to “Let Me In” 04:04 – Growing up / choosing to be a singer over being a policeman 05:23 – Living in Berkeley, CA under martial law 05:43 – What Eddie wants to do: producing, voice lessons 06:47 – Musicians on the new album / who wrote “American Pie?” 08:08 – Intro to “Take Me Home Tonight” / working with Ronnie Spector 09:10 – The continuing influence of Ronnie Spector 09:37 – A fan’s portrayal of Eddie in an air guitar contest 09:56 – Intro to “Pull Together” / being a womanizer 11:11 – Starting out singing covers / the 60’s never went away / meeting Roy Orbison 12:23 – Being a grown-up / staying humble 13:31 – Wishing he was still opening for other bands 14:47 – Doing charity gigs / in the black again / not wanting to be a rock star 16:06 – Intro to “Love In Your Eyes” / having a chance to scat 17:30 – Intro to “Two Tickets to Paradise” / she eventually left him anyway 18:40 – Not selling “Two Tickets” for commercial use 19:10 – Eddie’s take on “Rhapsody in Blue” 20:00 – Eddie’s instrument of choice 21:28 – King Curtis 22:27 – Intro to “Dancing With Mr. Jitters” / not getting high anymore 24:18 – Still having fun 26:08 – Writing “Baby Hold On” on a roll of toilet paper