|
continued from page 22
first track . When I first heard it , I thought it was special because it focuses so directly on your partnership with Curt . I could imagine you sitting together with acoustic guitars , working it up head-to-head . RO : That ' s exactly what happened . It ' s one of those things with life . Once I got into a much better place , I was engaged to a lovely young lady from Denver , and life was finally starting to look a bit more like a positive experience . I just had this voice in the back of my brain , saying you need to get together with Curt . You need to get together alone without any songwriters , without management . I was pretty sure that he held the key to the advancement of the record , and I got together
|
our songwriting catalog . We walked on stage and got a standing ovation from our peers . It was like , “ What ?” It all comes as a lovely surprise . So , we ' re entering a new phase . And , of course , it comes with owning one ' s age . Going on stage with white hair now is a little bit ... [ laughs ]. It took me a while to get used to it .
IE : During the holidays , you can put on a jolly red suit ! It looks good . RO : Exactly , yeah . Or I could be in Lord of the Rings .
IE : Ha ! That ’ s got potential . Time is heading toward 40 years of performing songs from the first two records . Those guitar parts from “ Everybody Wants to Rule the World ” or some of my favorite anywhere . Just like a lot of other people , I can ' t wait to hear that one
|
RICH AND IKE
F or 48 years , Rich King was a constant presence on Chicago radio and television , first as a reporter / writer / editor at WGN Radio and WBBM Radio , then later with WBBM-TV ( Channel 2 ) and WGN-TV ( Channel 9 ). He hosted one of the first sports radio shows in Chicago and covered all of the biggest sports stories .
But that wasn ’ t the inspiration for his new book Ike and Me ( ikeandme . com ), released last month . The inspiration was his friendship with his former photographer / cameraman Richard “ Ike ” Isaac . The two men worked together for more than a quartercentury after they met on the job . “ We got assigned together ,” Rich explains . “ Dan Roan was responsible for bringing Ike into the sports department before I got to WGN . When I was hired to be the main reporter , I was teamed up with Ike , and we worked together for 26 years . About a year ago , I had lunch with Ike and posted a picture of us on
|
By Rick Kaempfer
ered ,” he says , “ And that ’ s because we had access to some of the greatest athletes in history . We had access to Michael Jordan . To Walter Payton . To Mike Ditka . That kind of access doesn ’ t exist anymore . They ’ ve separated these stars from the media now . We talked to Michael Jordan every day , especially in his pre-baseball days . We became friends with Walter . Ike and I were invited to his funeral . So we included a lot of stories about those guys , and people like Jimmy Piersall and Harry Caray , what they were like , and what it was like to cover them . I thought , you know , that era is gone . Let ’ s chronicle it for the future generations to come .”
The Last Dance documentary on ESPN attempted to chronicle that Bulls era too . King says he believes that show got a few important details wrong , a subject he also tackles in his book . “ I was in the prime of my career at that time , and I had tons of sources everywhere . I had several sources on both
|
|||
Rich King and Richard “ Ike ” Issac |
||||||
|
Tears For Fears circa 1985
with him . Within one hour , he was just fiddling around with this country riff , and then we were off . And it was simple . From then on , it was a joy .
IE : I would say that another thing that distinguishes The Tipping Point is that it doesn ' t signal any sort of an ending for Tears for Fears . In baseball terms , I ' d say you were swinging for the fences . You spent many years making it and chose your best songs . The arrangements seem to be very forwardthinking , with sounds you didn ' t use in the past . Do Tears for Fears continue making new music after this ? Is that a fair question at this point ? RO : It ’ s a fair question , but I try not to answer it with any arrogance . We seem to have entered a different phase . I think it ' s due to the fact that we are a lot older . We ' re starting to get what people call that legendary status , which is always a bit of a surprise . A few years back , when we did the BBC documentary Classic Albums : Songs from the Big Chair , even that was mind-boggling . I didn ' t know , “ Do we really deserve that ?” For me , the classic artists when you ' re a kid are people who are 10 to 20 years older . But of course , we are at least that now ! And in all fairness , we have influenced a phenomenal amount of young bands and hip-hop artists , etc ., etc . You then hear talk of the Hall of Fame , and Curt and myself got an Ivor Novello award last year for
24 illinoisentertainer . com july 2022
|
in concert . I ' m not the one playing the song every night , though . How do you keep it fresh ? RO : With “ Everybody Wants to Rule the World ,” it ' s the structure of the song . The song is structured so brilliantly , it plays itself . But it ' s not just that . Because it ' s become this megahit with all of the plays on Spotify and countless cover versions that people have done , it also feels like you ' re singing someone else ' s song . So that ’ s another thing that ’ s quite joyful .
IE : You worked through your breakup with Curt decades ago , and I ' ve heard you characterize the key as understanding each other ' s strengths . Are there ways that you and Curt balance each other ? I imagine you both as meticulous but is one more of a craftsman and one more spontaneous ? RO : No , I just think that we swap roles . It ' s quite simple . If one is being gung-ho , the other one is applying the brake . If I ' m singing a song , I would say Curt becomes the executive producer . So , he ' s more objective . And if Curt ’ s singing a song , then I become the fussy bastard . But if I really , really love something and Curt really , really loves something , then generally everyone else does .
This Q & A was quoted for a story in the Chicago Sun-Times .
|
Facebook , and a lot of people commented that we should write a book because we have so many great stories . Every ex-broadcaster writes a book about his career . I didn ’ t want to do that , so I wrote it about Ike and me .”
The poignant book includes the surprising storyline of how race affected their time together and how they each learned from the experience . “ I grew up in a very racist neighborhood ( Pilsen in the 1950s / 60s ),” Rich says , “ and here I am working with a Black guy for 26 years and having a great time . The book starts out examining that racial aspect , but it evolves into two guys who just tried to do the job together . Two guys who fought obstacles and became friends . Over the years , we ’ ve had a great relationship .”
King is very complimentary of Ike ’ s work as a cameraman / journalist , a job that Isaac continues to do for WGN-TV . “ Ike ’ s forte is aggressiveness ,” Rich explains . “ He gets the shot . Period . I remember one time when we needed to talk to ( Chicago Bear ' s linebacker Brian ) Urlacher , and he hadn ’ t spoken to the press in a while , and there must have been 20-25 camera crews around his locker . Somehow Ike found a way in there . That ’ s what he loves . He loves the adrenaline of the deadline . Chasing the story . Luckily , there were lots of opportunities for him to do that , particularly during the Bulls championship era .”
The business that the two men worked in a few decades ago , of course , isn ’ t at all like it is today . Ike and Me chronicles a special time in Chicago media history and , more specifically , a very special time in Chicago sports history . King explains the significance . “ We do get into the sports stories we cov-
|
sides , players and management . Based on what I heard from the people involved in that last season , Jerry Krause was not the villain he was portrayed to be in the documentary . He was difficult at times , no question . He was not the most affable guy in the world . But say what you want to say about him personally ; he didn ’ t break up the Bulls . Phil Jackson was at a point in his life where he had personal issues , and he couldn ’ t do one more year . He needed a rest . He deserved it too . The guy won six titles . I ’ m not blaming him for wanting a rest . Plus , Jordan had hurt his finger cutting a cigar . My sources tell me that the last year of the championship , Michael barely made it through that year . He was battling knee problems . Without those factors , I don ’ t think Krause would have broken up the team . It might be true that he relished rebuilding it , but he didn ’ t want the championship run to end . He was not the villain .”
At the end of May , King returned to his hometown of Chicago ( he lives inArizona now ) to launch this book , and he reconnected with several of his old friends . The timing was perfect because he just happened to be here during Dan Roan ’ s retirement week . Rich was back on WGN-TV talking about his old boss and friend . “ I was glad to be able to be here for his retirement ,” Rich says , “ to help celebrate him and his accomplishments . Ike was there too . Dan Roan was instrumental to both of our careers .”
The highlights of those impressive careers are featured in the book Ike and Me , available now at Ikeandme . com .
Full disclosure : Rick Kaempfer is also the co-owner of the publishing company Eckhartz Press
|