Thirty years old? Still pretty young right? But if you're thinking of the life expectations of a rock band, it's a helluva long time. Brace yourself, but Motorhead, once Guinness-certified as the loudest band on earth is 30. In album years, they've released 21.
In America they remain part of the Underground scene in many ways, though if you start to look around they've infused the mainstream (They have a song in the SpongeBob Squarepants movie for Chrissakes. They sing wrestling star Triple H's theme song, "The Game."). And their influence and collaborations with more familiar rock bands is wide. Overseas, in Europe especially, they remain very much a part of the mainstream consciousness.
These days the "they" is Lemmy Kilmister vocal/bass, Phil Campbell, lead guitar and drummer Mikkey Dee.
Motorhead are, for the third time, up for a Grammy for Best Metal Performance. As a band they have not won, but Lemmy has won for writing four Ozzy Osbourne songs on his "No More Tears" album. Whether they win or not this year is decided Feb. 13. [Update, they won their Grammy for Whiplash]
Seems like a good time for an interview. This was done Feb. 3, 2005, 1:12 to 1:31 PST.
At work I told them to pass the telephone to me in an adjoining office ext 108, just off the Casa Grande (AZ) Dispatch newsroom. Lemmy called in a little late and I was waiting patiently (yeah that's it, not nervously) and then the phone rang. Usually the ladies up at the front say, "Hi Temple, so and so is on the phone. I'm putting you through now OK? So I say. Yep, hi there. Is it the call I've been expecting? And I get this guy's voice in return.
Temple Stark: Lemmy?
(Ian) Lemmy Kilmister: Hello? Yes?
Pressed Record
TS: Can I record this I'm going to try some way to get it on the Internet.
LK: OK
TS: How long have you got?
LK: Um about 20 to 25 minutes
TS: Ok, that's time. You're probably just doing the rounds here today?
LK: Yeah. We're doing a few, yeah, because we're going out on tour
TS: Well I'll start with this one: There's a "My Generation" moment in Ace of Spades that begs the obvious question ...
LK: NO.
TS: ..... Here's the verse, which loses something in the reading:
You know I'm born to lose, and gambling's for fools,
But that's the way I like it baby,
I don't want to live for ever,
And don't forget the joker!
LK: Now see instead of don't forget the joker nowadays on stage I say, Well, "but apparently I am." [laugh]
Article comments
1 - Aaron, Duke De Mondo
i wanna join mohicans for jesus. I used to have a mohican, so maybe i could get a retrospective membership or somesuch. Seriosuly, though, great interview Temple. I love the whole as-is transcript, too. Unedited. Warts and all, as is fitting for sir L. I find it hard to believe, though, that Motorhead aren't big in the states. i just assumed they were one of the ROCK GIANTS like, i dunno, Motley Crue or Marky Mark And The Funky Bunch.
Interestingly, motorhead were one of the few metal bands it was ok for punks to like. Probably the shared love of amphetamine (which is where the name comes from, i belive)
Whatever. Great stuff.
2 - Eric Olsen
super job Temple, thanks, a real sense of who Lemmy is and how he thinks. I think Motorhead's greatness and relative lack of popularity is probably because they don't easily fit any given category, sort of like speed-grunge or just maximum rock 'n' roll or something: much more organic
than most of what gets called "metal," but too roaring and wired to be "punk" - much harder to market that way.
3 - HW Saxton
Waaay back in time around the early 80's
Motorhead was the only "ROCK" band that
it was cool for the punk rock types to
admit to liking.
Of course,the punks were still listening
to their Sabbath,Van Halen,Kiss etc but,
if you admitted it,your friends would be
giving you grief about how "Un-Cool" you
were to be listening to stuff like that
instead of worshipping at the altar of
The Germs,Black Flag,X,et al.exclusively
I saw Motorhead open for Ozzy many years
back and the crowd was pretty well split
between Punks and Headbangers.Majority
of the punks left after Motorheads set.
4 - Eric Olsen
and the favor is returned, remember the Motorhead song "Ramones" from the 1916 album?
5 - Douglas Mays
"come on baby, eat the rich...." Good interview, TS....
6 - Temple Stark
Thanks Doug. For some reason - perhaps because of the expected shorter answers - I felt the need to inject a bit more of myself in this inerview and keep the conversation flowing. That would be at least one of he main differences so far between most of the interviews I conduct and the one's with people in te arts, musicians.
I wish I had been able to get the sound quality good enough for an audio take. But it was not happening.
7 - Eric Berlin
Great interview, Temple -- you get a real sense for who Lemmy is and what he's about. The phenomena of wearing Motorhead tee-shirts as some kind of cultural/personal statement makes a lot more sense to me now.
8 - Temple Stark
PS Motorhead won their Best Metal Performance Grammy. Wooo-hoooh.
That's awesome.
9 - gmacgrl
Great interview. I heard somewhere that Lemmy is having health problems, possible liver (not that it would be suprising!) damage. Sounds like he is not slowing down, so maybe a rumor is all that it is.
Good interview.
10 - lemmy fan
i totally agree lemmy should have a reality show