When you mention the genre of alt-country or americana
one of the first names to come up is Uncle Tupelo. During a break
between tours the leaders of Uncle Tupelo, Jeff Tweedy and Jay Farrar,
who would later go on in different directions as Wilco and Son Volt,
started Coffee Creek, a country cover band. Brian Henneman was also part
of this band.
Impressed by his guitar playing, Tweedy and Farrar invited him to join Uncle Tupelo, which he did. After the break-up of Uncle Tupelo, Henneman played lead guitar on Son Volt's album, A.M. Henneman later started his new band, The Bottle Rockets. In the interview below I mention "Wave That Flag," which is my favorite song by the Bottle Rockets. Members of Uncle Tupelo played on that single.
The Bottle Rockets are one of my favorite alt-country bands. Other favorites include The Jayhawks, Robbie Fulks , The Waco Brothers, Bob Schneider, Ol' 97s and Steve Earle .
What makes Bottle Rockets stand out, though, from these other groups is the lyrical content. Where some of those bands I listed have pretty vague lyrics The Bottle Rockets often sing about race and class issues with titles like "Welfare music" and "$1000 car."
I was excited to have the opportunity to interview the band's lead singer about their latest album, Zoysia, "Wave That Flag," and related matters. If you haven't given the Bottle Rockets a spin (I'm going to resist making a clichéd spin the bottle reference here) then I suggest you give them a try.
What have you guys been up to? It's been so long since your last album I feared you'd broken up.
We were housecleaning. Got new management, new record company, new booking agent, new band members. You know, small stuff like that...
What were your goals for this album? Did you achieve those goals?
The goals were to make a great album, and sell a million of 'em. We achieved the first part...
How does this album differ from your others?
It's a better band, for one thing. There was a lot more involvement from each member. It made a difference. The subject material is more consistently "grown up" than the other albums, I'm not positive that that's necessarily an "improvement", it's just a fact. As we matured, so did the songwriting. It's a more "grown up" album than our others.
What song on the album is your favorite and why?
I like "Happy Anniversary," 'cause it's perfectly written for what it's about, and, what it's about, is not what you'd think it was about, and, what it's actually about, I ain't tellin'. It has secret meaning, yet, also works at face value. I love it when that happens...
Could you tell me about the song "Blind" and how it came about?
There's the American Idol in that limousineI wrote "Blind" in my head at jury duty, while I was waiting for my number to get picked. Jury duty is the greatest place to see an accurate cross section of America. Just lookin' at all the different people, wonderin' about 'em. The third verse was inspired by an amazingly inept vocal performance I saw Gwen Stefani lay down on national TV one night, while thousands cheered her on, as if she was doing a great job.
She got the sold out shows, the clothes, the body so young and lean
Well she's the total package except for just one thing
She ain't got much talent, nah she can barely sing
Is it my imagination or is race - the song's main topic - a common topic of yours? "Blind" is my favorite song on this album.
Well, there's two young lovers, they're the best of friendsDiscrimination, of any kind, bothers me to no end. We're all victims of it. We all do it ourselves. I think its human nature, and, I believe there's no cure. I'm not talking just racial discrimination either. A lot of people consider "store brand" canned vegetables to be inferior, without even trying them...
Got everything in common except the color of their skin
They hate to think about it, but they can't ignore
Her family lets him in, but leaves the welcome at the door
If everyone was blind would we be surprised
At who'd become important in our lives?
Could our own two eyes be our own worst enemy?
If we all were blind, I wonder what we'd see
Race is also the topic of my favorite song you've ever recorded, "Wave That Flag," about those waving the confederate flag. How did that song develop and how has it been received? I am wondering if you have had any problems performing in the south when taking stong positions about southern stererotypes and traditions?
That song just came from watching the "imaginary southerners" ride around my home town, in their big trucks. Missouri is NOT the south! It's not the north, east, or west either, but, it is DEFINITELY not a "southern state." I knew a bunch of guys from my hometown, who basically, LOVED "Dixie" 'cause, to them, it represented "hating the black man." Most of the guys I knew didn't even KNOW a black person, but they felt it was necessary to show the world WHY they didn't know any black people. Made 'em feel macho, I guess. As if their big trucks weren't enough.
Never had a single problem, anywhere, performing that song. Guess there ARE advantages to havin' a smaller fanbase. The law of averages on this sorta thing works in your favor...
What is the biggest myth or stereotype about your band?
That we're America's greatest bar band. I used to be a drunk. I was quite the bar-hopper in my time. If I saw the Bottle Rockets, while I was drunk, and, bar-hopping, I'd think they sucked. You gotta pay attention to our music, to get the most from it. Not somethin' I'm gonna do very well, while drunk in a bar. I'd LOVE Southern Culture On The Skids if I was drunk in a bar. I'd be able to dance to it, and lust after Mary Huff in a cross-eyed stupor. Who'd CARE what they were singing about? THAT'S a great bar band. Our songs ain't great to dance to, the lyrics are crucial, we have no "schtick." If we could ever get some damn gigs that weren't in BARS, we might just make somethin' of ourselves someday! America's Greatest bar band? Not hardly. I can think of TONS of better bar bands than us...
What question do you wish you would be asked more often?
"Why have you repeatedly been called "America's Greatest Bar Band"?
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