By the time he was 23 in 1983, Bryan Adams had written songs that had been recorded by BTO, Prism, Ian Lloyd, Loverboy, and Kiss; he had also toured in support of two solo albums, opening for the likes of the Kinks and Foreigner. After recording Cuts Like a Knife with Bob Clearmountain, his potential for being “the next big thing” resulted in this lengthy interview with Dean Hill, taped in Vancouver before Bryan spent the rest of the year on tour.

The making of Cuts Like a Knife is the centerpiece here, with Part 2 of the interview containing a track-by-track dialogue of every song on the new album. In Part 1, he also discusses in depth what it was like to work with Bob Clearmountain, the new band, making videos, and the possibility of the album flopping. There is also a wealth of material that provides insight into his songwriting process.

Throughout the interview, there is a thematic element of what it is like to be on the brink of international fame at such a young age. Bryan is confident and seemingly proud of his work, including some of the clichéd writing that would eventually be fodder for some of his harsher criticisms. At the same time, his sincere and unapologetic drive to rock his fans is extremely endearing.

Part 1 00:00 – Origins of “Cuts Like A Knife” 01:19 – Recording in Vancouver, Montreal, and New York 02:18 – What he looks for in a studio 02:50 – Working with Bob Clearmountain / Bryan’s favorite work from Bob 06:21 – Picking up Mickey Curry from Hall & Oates 08:30 – Working with Lou Gramm from Foreigner 11:43 – Writing with Jim Vallance / overall teamwork 15:27 – Measuring the value of a song through live music 15:53 – Writing for other artists: Loverboy, Prism, Pat Benatar 17:56 – Writing from fantasy vs. direct experience 18:47 – Favorite songs from the first three albums 20:57 – Movie videos / achieving a high profile 26:15 – Upcoming tours (with Hall & Oates, Journey) / possibility of burning out 28:02 – Concern for predictability with one’s sound 29:31 – Being young (23 years old) 30:38 – Possibility of flopping / other jobs 31:59 – Forced into singing / getting comfortable with a mic / meaning what you sing

Part 2 00:00 – Joking around 00:22 – “The Only One” 01:34 – “Take Me Back” 02:27 – “This Time” 03:18 – “Straight from the Heart” 04:37 – “Cuts Like a Knife” 05:52 – “I’m Ready” 07:24 – Conducting the band / finally having a great band / Mickey Curry 09:22 – “What’s It Gonna Be” 10:07 – Never gets stage fright / just having to rock a town / opening vs. headlining 16:41 – “Don’t Leave Me Lonely” / romantic unrest 18:09 – “Let Him Know” / sequel to “Don’t Let Him Know” / winning a motorcycle 21:40 – “Straight from the Heart” / co-written by Bryan’s lawyer / good titles 23:14 – Back to “Let Him Know” 25:57 – “The Best Was Yet to Come” / Dorothy Stratten

Part 3 00:00 – The gift and the challenge of songwriting 01:48 – Summary of the album 02:34 – The future of his writing / freedom to do what he wants 04:09 – Meeting Burt Bacharach 04:49 – Staying in Vancouver / writing in other places 06:48 – Not growing up too fast 08:46 – OUTTAKE: “Cuts Like a Knife” / title of the album / personal experience

After Alvin Lee’s guitar playing at Woodstock catapulted Ten Years After to international fame, the band took a more commercial direction and started playing stadium tours. Come 1974, Alvin felt limited within the confines of this band and embarked on a solo career.

By the time this interview was recorded with Mary Travers in 1975, he was supporting his second solo studio album, Pump Iron! The chat starts off with predictable questions about why he left Ten Years After, what it’s like to be playing “solo,” and how the new album was recorded. Some of the best parts, however, are when the two world-class performers’ conversation becomes more metaphysical as they talk about venue acoustics, the music business, and the labeling of genres.

00:18 – Touring as Alvin Lee vs. touring with Ten Years After 01:41 – Writing process with the new band vs. with Ten Years After 02:43 – Why he got out of Ten Years After 03:20 – New directions on the new album 04:15 – Creating music live vs. creating in the studio 06:56 – Re-creating the live experience in the studio (“Burnt Fungus,” “Truckin’ Down the Other Way”) 08:19 – Inviting friends to the recording barn 09:01 – The acoustics of performance venues 10:16 – The economics behind concert promotion / some favorite venues 11:44 – Anglicized rock (Ten Years After) better suited for playing arenas 12:28 – Exploring subtlety with the new band 13:21 – Influences: traditional blues, early rock and roll 15:13 – Seeing Elvis Presley in Las Vegas 15:52 – The beauty of a Little Richard record 16:34 – The ideal producer 17:38 – “What the audience wants” / the origin of one-hit wonders 18:30 – Jazz musicians have the right idea / the original shoe gazers / self-indulgence 20:36 – Forays into his roots / any music with a beat / release vs. escape 22:01 – Classical music 22:22 – The direction of contemporary music / the silliness of pigeonholed genres 25:00 – Interlude 25:48 – Recording Pump Iron! / a hobby without a deadline, a job with one 26:34 – Always dissatisfied with albums he’s made 27:52 – Mary’s desire to make a compilation album 28:27 – Fast food in Japan

This phone interview for the World of Rock radio show was recorded just as .38 Special was kicking off a 6-month US tour in support of their Rock & Roll Strategy album. It was a transitional time for the band, as the tour included Danny Chauncey (guitar) and Max Carl (keyboards, guitar) for the first time. This would also prove to be the last stage of the band’s prime. The album, powered by the adult contemporary hit “Second Chance,” marked a turning away from their distinctive style of Southern rock.

In this interview, Scott Muni chats on the phone with Donnie Van Zant (lead singer, guitarist, co-founder of the band, and brother of Lynyrd Skynyrd’s Ronnie and Johnny) and the aforementioned Max Carl (current lead singer of Grand Funk Railroad). The latter provides the highlight of the interview with his story about Kiwi the Bonecrusher, the Jell-O wrestler that inspired the song “Little Sheeba.”

00:15 – Where are you? 00:24 – Current tour: just started; upcoming dates 00:58 – Good spirits / looking for a new keyboard roadie 01:28 – New band members: Max Carl, Danny Chauncey 02:22 – Intro to “Little Sheeba” / Kiwi the Bonecrusher (the Jell-O wrestler) 04:58 – Intro to “Rock & Roll Strategy” 05:48 – Upcoming tour: 6 or 7 months 06:43 – Outro 07:25 – OUTTAKE: Intro to “Hot ‘Lanta” / sweat and grits

John Lennon stopped performing, writing, and recording professionally in 1975 to concentrate on raising his son, Sean. This hiatus from the music scene lasted until the summer of 1980, when he and wife Yoko Ono began writing and recording once again. This interview, conducted later in that year, took place as this comeback album, Double Fantasy, was being mixed in New York’s Hit Factory.

Due to these circumstances, Lisa Robinson focuses her questions on Lennon as a father and what it’s like to be back in the studio. But there are also more general discussions regarding his writing process and his need to express himself artistically.

We all know what happened outside his apartment building just over two months after this recording was made and, with that in mind, this interview is especially chilling. On the other hand, it’s comforting to hear how content he was, both as a musician and as an individual.

00:00 – Introduction 00:28 – Thoughts he had during his 5-year hiatus 01:02 – Why it was harder to stop than continue 01:40 – Life as a stay-at-home dad 02:25 – ‘The rewards of motherhood’ 03:10 – Learning how to cook 03:52 – Relationship with his son Sean / Sean’s thoughts on making Double Fantasy 06:30 – Pressures of the music business / not resting on his laurels 07:50 – Not wanting to see Elvis in Vegas 08:28 – How he became a professional musician / alternate outlets of expression 09:08 – Disinterest in acting / thoughts on How I Won the War 10:28 – Having the ability to walk away / writing music fun again 11:14 – Misery during his separation from Yoko 11:44 – Feeling lucky to be alive 13:08 – The song-writing process / the joy of being a medium 14:12 – The joy of creation / “Nowhere Man” as an example 15:29 – John’s reaction to the criticism he received for being absent from the music scene 17:17 – Family more important than rock n’ roll

David Byrne is nothing else if not eclectic. With a career spanning music, film, dance, photography, graphic art, and just about anything else you can think of, he seems to make a living by keeping everyone on their toes. And this seems to be exactly what happens to Lisa Robinson, who doesn’t always seem to know what to make of Byrne in this 1984 interview.

Recorded in support of the Stop Making Sense film and album, Byrne came prepared with a list of questions for Robinson to ask him. They spend a lot of time talking about the making of the movie, and since Byrne was in charge of, or at least involved in, almost every aspect of the film, this is a must-listen for Talking Heads fans. The two also spend a good deal of time covering Byrne’s upcoming movie, 1986’s True Stories, which was in its infancy when this conversation was recorded.

The line between performance art and reality may often be blurred when it comes to David Byrne, and this interview is drawn fuzzily indeed. However, with his lack of pretentiousness, it is an enjoyable listen either way you spin it.

00:00 – Giving questions instead of answers 01:04 – Problems on tour with lighting 02:23 – Not performing in the movie 02:43 – Trying to get the singers to be jerkier 03:34 – Different song orders on album and in the movie 04:05 – When music and videos don’t mix 06:03 – A list of the last few records he purchased 06:32 – Surviving the 1970’s New York punk scene 08:37 – Not having to deal with sudden success 09:40 – Not playing in Madison Square Garden 10:27 – Origin of the film title 11:04 – Creating a framework for spontaneity 12:04 – Not fitting on stage / fibbing promoters / temper tantrums 13:34 – The show evolving into a movie 14:27 – How the film was edited 15:04 – Designing the show / choosing outfits 16:13 – Maintaining control without being tyrannical 17:35 – The Big Suit 20:07 – Working in L.A. / directing 20:40 – What True Stories is about / making a movie 22:08 – Starring in a film vs. starring in music 23:28 – Putting the band’s career in perspective through a live album 24:12 – Cause of the original awkward stage demeanor / still feeling terrified 25:56 – Projecting more confidence 26:54 – Origin of the odd movements on stage 28:03 – The history of the Talking Heads 28:29 – Writing songs for the next album (soundtrack) / different genres 29:59 – Writing songs from different points of view 32:16 – Expectations for Stop Making Sense 32:58 – Difference between the two Talking Heads live albums 33:31 – Working again with the just the four band members 33:53 – What’s coming up next 35:16 – The possibility of never performing live again 37:20 – The Talking Heads being a big band / being assimilated into culture 38:30 – Adjusting with growth 39:32 – Being nervous about not wanting to settle down 40:35 – The source of craziness / not actually nuts