Caropop

Singer-songwriter Michael McDermott is in a good place now, but what he went through to get there could fill a book and did. His early ‘90s emergence was met with hype, acclaim and public praise from author Stephen King, but his sales figures disappointed, and he spiraled into addiction and self-destruction, even as he kept creating new music. Both lead characters of the poker movie Rounders were named after him, with one resembling him more than the other. If you’ve heard McDermott’s lyrical songs, you won’t be surprised that he is a tremendous storyteller, and he offers great energy, hard-earned wisdom and jaw-dropping tales here. He also relates his fears of forgetting the lyrics to “The Star-Spangled Banner” at Wrigley Field, and, wait, HOW many verses did he write for that new song? (Photo by Darin Back.)

Marshall Crenshaw is a master of smart, instantly indelible guitar-pop-rock songs, starting with his outstanding 1982 self-titled debut album (“Someday, Someway,” “Cynical Girl,” “Mary Anne”…) and continuing with Field Day (“Whenever You’re on My Mind”) and beyond. He grew up in the Detroit area, played John Lennon in productions of Beatlemania but always saw himself as a solo artist, not a band member. What about the first album's sound did he want to fix on the new remaster? Does he think Steve Lillywhite’s booming production of Field Day gets a bad rap? Does he regret how the business side came to affect his creative work? How has he enjoyed guesting in the Smithereens? Will he ever record another album? This conversation will be more than your favorite waste of time.

The second half of this lively conversation with the great Graham Parker covers his classic run of ‘70s and ’80s albums, including the first five with the Rumour. What impact did producers Nick Lowe, Mutt Lange, Jack Nitzsche, Jimmy Iovine and Jack Douglas have on his music? Did Parker have any inkling that Squeezing Out Sparks would become so revered? Which of his albums does he consider a “stone old classic”? What’s his issue with The Up Escalator? Why did he need to move on from the Rumour to maximize his growth as a singer-songwriter? Whom was he evoking in his singing on “Wake Up (Next To You),” his one U.S. Top 40 hit? Which of his songs should’ve been a dance hit? This episode hits the spot. (Photo by Dion Ogust.)

From his 1976 debut album with the Rumour, Howlin’ Wind, through the all-time classic Squeezing Out Sparks through his 1980s commercial peaks and much excellent work since then, Graham Parker stands as one of the all-time great singer/songwriter/performers. In Part 1 of a lively, insightful conversation, Parker recalls growing up in Deepcut (!), England, and falling under the spell of the Beatles, the Stones, American R&B and a certain Motown singer he would try to emulate. He was a hippie singer-songwriter before developing his “nasty voice” and creating scorching albums with the Rumour. He recounts his decades-later reunion with that killer band, their appearance in Judd Apatow’s This Is 40 and why he is working with other musicians again. And he lets us know what he really thinks of the term “pub rock.” (Photo by Dion Ogust.)

Jennifer Egan is a rare novelist whose work is innovative, fiercely intelligent, emotionally potent and fun to read—and she’s equally thoughtful and provocative in conversation. She won the Pulitzer Prize for A Visit from the Goon Squad (2010), and The Candy House, just out in paperback, made Barack Obama’s list of favorite 2022 books. Those novels’ interconnected stories and characters occupy the same universe, but should someone read one book before the other? Does she start her novels with an idea, characters, plot or storytelling strategy? Has she ever learned anything useful from a review? Why does she think every college student should be an English major? And what did she hear from David Bowie about Goon Squad? (Photo by Pieter M. Van Hattem.)

The Bangles specialized in intricate harmonies and tough, taut, tuneful guitar songs yet broke through with relatively glossy versions of “Manic Monday,” “If She Knew What She Wants” and “Walk Like an Egyptian.” Drummer/singer Debbi Peterson recounts the female foursome’s formation in L.A. with her sister, Vicki Peterson, and Susanna Hoffs, both of whom wrote, sang and played guitar. Debbi sang “Going Down to Liverpool” on the wonderful debut album, All Over the Place, but had a hard time with producer David Kahne. Label pressure increased on Different Light, with band members having to audition to sing the “Walk Like an Egyptian” verses. Why did the Bangles split after their third album and power-ballad smash “Eternal Flame”? Would they have been treated differently if they weren’t women? Is the Bangles’ tale triumphant or something more bittersweet?

Cary Baker was a Chicago music writer and fanzine creator who made a good impression on R.E.M. and wound up running publicity for the band and its label, I.R.S. Records. There he also worked with the Go-Go’s, General Public, Fine Young Cannibals, the Alarm, Concrete Blonde and Timbuk 3, whom he got booked onto Saturday Night Live. After R.E.M. left the label, Baker did too, moving to Capitol Records and working with Paul McCartney, Tina Turner, Bonnie Raitt, the Smithereens and other big names. Eventually he formed his own firm, Conqueroo (a Chicago blues reference), and represented acts including the one that changed his life as a college student: Cheap Trick. Baker recently retired after 42 years of adventures in the publicity game, and he has stories to tell.

When Adrian Belew was brought in to record his mind-bending guitar solos on what became Taking Heads’ landmark 1980 album Remain in Light, he felt an unprecedented amount of freedom. He was presented not with almost-finished songs but unstructured grooves that felt like vast open spaces for him to color in. That he did, brilliantly, and Belew and Jerry Harrison of Talking Heads are now revisiting this album with a live tour. Of course, Belew’s resume covers a lot more ground, including guitar wizardry with Frank Zappa, David Bowie, Paul Simon and Nine Inch Nails, his stint as lead singer/songwriter of King Crimson and his own solo career. How did each of these collaborations stretch him? And was he really asked to replace David Byrne in Talking Heads?

Peter Case is a singer-songwriter who has covered a tremendous amount of ground, both physically and stylistically, over a long, impressive career. He played pop-punk with the Nerves, power-pop with the Plimsouls (“A Million Miles Away”), Americana as a solo artist before Americana was a thing, and many styles since then, including the pounding piano blues of his upcoming Doctor Moan. Here he recalls days of scraping by as a street musician, tells jaw-dropping L.A. stories featuring the Go-Go’s and Jerry Lee Lewis, recounts how Blondie came to cover the Nerves’ “Hanging on the Telephone,” recalls the Plimsouls' appearance in Valley Girl and relives his dreams, disappointments (with a cameo by the label exec who also rejected Wilco’s Yankee Hotel Foxtrot) and triumphs, This is a great conversation for songwriters and music fans alike.

Denny Laine was the one full-time Wings member whose last name isn’t McCartney—as well as a Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductee with the Moody Blues. Wings went through multiple lineup changes during the 1970s, and for Band on the Run and much of London Town, the band was down to just Paul and Linda McCartney and Laine. Which Wings lineup does Laine consider the strongest? What was co-writing with McCartney like? How did they come to write and record “Mull of Kintyre,” and were they surprised when it became, at the time, the biggest-ever British hit single? Did they work better without an outside producer? Did McCartney’s cannabis arrest in Japan mark the end of Wings? Laine co-wrote “No Words” but has plenty of good ones in this Caropop conversation.