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prime mover Malcolm McLaren before shifting gears again as manager of The Police . Chapters on Copeland ’ s explosive achievements with the Police include shenanigans and outrageous promotional activities designed to build the band ’ s myth to towering proportions , including unprecedented touring activity into India in 1980 along with barely-precedented and groundbreaking excursions to Egypt and Greece . The chaotic whirlwind of activity managed to include actual rock concerts in addition to the trio ’ s exploration and celebration of local culture to be broadcast around the world by a throng of photographers , filmmakers , and interviewers . “ The world would see the humor of the band , the intellect – and let ’ s face it , they were not shy ,” writes Copeland of his most successful charges . The results included exotic and iconic images of Andy Summers garbed as a Maharaja , Sting stylized as Lawrence of Arabia , and Stewart as an Argentinian gaucho on horseback . The Copelands ’ unusual family connections with the Egyptian government averted
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COLIN HAY Going Somewhere
( Compass )
The collapse of Men at Work was the end of stadium-level stardom for Colin Hay , but it left an open door . Hay stepped through that door and persevered through hard times to rebuild his brand as a respected guitarist , master storyteller , and unparalleled songsmith . True , Hay ’ s career as a New Wave-era frontman gave the world entertaining hits like “ Who Can it Be Now ” and “ Down Under ,” and the band ’ s popular peak included thought-provoking fare like “ Overkill ” and “ It ’ s a Mistake .” But if Hay had only written intimate and confessional solo songs including Topanga ’ s “ Waiting for My Real Life to Begin ” and Transcendental Highway ’ s “ I Just Don ’ t Think I ’ ll Ever Get Over You ,” he would still merit standing among the finest popular singer-songwriters of the 20th and 21st centuries . Compass celebrates Hay ’ s solo
28 illinoisentertainer . com june 2021 roadblocks that would have been insurmountable for any other artist , and Miles ’ acumen for diplomacy kept band members out of prison on multiple occasions following a cultural offense or two . Copeland describes recognizing the undeniable talent of the Go-Go ’ s along with their inherent marketability , at a time when every other label had declined to sign the all-female band of composers and players . “ Miles is like P . T . Barnum or Colonel Tom Parker ,” says Go- Go ’ s guitarist Jane Wiedlin . “ He ’ s eccentric , and smart and strange .” Copeland describes an underwhelming early relationship with critical darlings , IRS signees , and acknowledged “ nice guys ” R . E . M . “ There was never a problem , no dramas , and I can ’ t even remember any funny stories ,” Copeland writes . He also writes that the Athens , Georgia band was utterly reliable , despite being frustratingly unwilling to appear in their own videos . Copeland ’ s outsized personality and motivation altered the face of popular music during the MTV generation , and the ripples continue today . Dave Wakeling of The English Beat offers the highest praise any rock manager could ever hope to receive , saying , “ He ’ s evil , but he ’ s got a heart of gold .”
work with this 20th anniversary reissue and debut vinyl release of 2000 ’ s Going Somewhere , pressing a limited edition onto white vinyl . The album is acoustically focused , designed to mirror the sound of Hay ’ s intimate solo performances . It ’ s an expression of musical zen , with Hay ’ s deft melodies adorned only by his beautifully played guitar and expressive vocal . The original 13-song running order included several songs reinterpreted from Hay ’ s earlier solo albums . This reissue omits Looking for Jack ’ s “ Children on Parade ” and “ Circles Erratica ,” Transcendental Highway ’ s “ My Brilliant Feat ,” and “ I Don ’ t Know Why .” The remaining songs serve as a refined primer of Hay ’ s second act as a folk artist , while adding the chin-up sadness and resignation of masterpiece “ I Just Don ’ t Think I ’ ll Ever Get Over You .” “ Looking for Jack ” casts Jack Nicholson as an elusive metaphor of satisfaction . The singer longs for “ someday , someday ” while striving to shed nostalgia . The trouble is , Jack is an unattainable myth even to himself . “ Even Jack is always looking for Jack ,” sings Hay . “ He ' s always in another room .” “ Water Song ” describes true love lost . “ Oh , how blind some people can be ,” sings Hay . Hay is haunted by the absence of “ Maggie ,” a lover from youthful days taken too soon . The song doesn ’ t explicitly name whether the thief was disease or suicide , but a palpable ache is present in either case . Hay is happier with his wanderlust as a troubadour during “ Wayfaring Sons .” The relatable “ Waiting for My Real Life to Begin ” will resonate with any dreamer still longing to transcend the mundane . The lilting “ Beautiful World ” is a hypnotic and blissful mantra about embracing life and fully experiencing simple pleasures in defiance of a chaotic world .
– Jeff Elbel
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of space between those riffs . MK : I couldn ’ t agree with you more . And it ’ s something , I think , that you don ’ t pick up on until you ’ re older . When you first start playing an instrument , there ’ s almost an insecurity about leaving gaps . And for me , putting space in music takes confidence and experience , and the more I realized that Angus Young is the master of making these riffs sound huge , the more I understood that it ’ s because of all those gaps he puts in his riffs . It just creates such a rhythm . And that ’ s exactly what ’ s on this album , and I tried to do it with every single song because it works very well , and it makes everything so much more musical .
IE : In “ Limbo ,” you lyrically admit that you ’ ve become someone you don ’ t recognize , someone you actually despise . There ’ s a lot of guilt and self-recrimination on Typhoon . MK : I wrote the album in a very clear headspace and from a very positive place . And I think that allowed me to actually look very honestly into the darkness from which I just came . And it was a … a very dirty mirror to go and look into , you know ? So yeah — I think it allowed me to be that honest , and that critical , of just how bad things were . I mean , rather than writing from the frontline of it , where it would be easy for me to almost romanticize that era of my life .
IE : Looking back on it now , are there any scary moments where you nearly passed the point of no return ? MK : Oh , multiple . Multiple situations , just where I went too far . I just really tested my body , and I didn ’ t treat my body with much respect , you know ? I almost treated my body like a machine , really , just in the sense of running myself into the ground , physically and mentally , and not allowing myself to come up for air , you know ? And it comes from a place of just not looking after yourself . But my life couldn ’ t be any different now — I spend all my time and energy focusing on my health . I just ran my first marathon a couple of months ago , on Brighton Beach , and it was epic . And I ran another one three weeks ago . So I ’ m writing from a different space .
IE : What is your health-conscious routine now ? You get up in the morning , and … what ? MK : Well , the first thing I usually do is go for a run or do some kind of boxing , usually to music . And then I go in the sea , and I go straight into the water , no wet suit , and the water is eight degrees Celsius , and it is fucking cold ! And I go in all year- ' round , even when it ’ s snowing . And then I come back home and shower and have coffee , and then I go into the studio — that ’ s how my day goes .
IE : But it ’ s not a home studio ? MK : I did have a bit of a home studio at one point , but I chose to move it and have a space that wasn ’ t in my house because I like the separation , and I want to associate my house with switching off , whereas the studio is somewhere for me to work . And it ’ s a great place to be , you know ? It ’ s like a little playground .
IE : Musically , what was the turning point on Typhoons ? Where you thought , “ I ’ m
BACK , bitches !” MK : Ha ! The I ’ m-back-bitches moment was , I think , “ Trouble ’ s Coming ,” which was definitely a Eureka moment . But it could ’ ve been a fluke if that makes sense — I needed to have one more thing , so I didn ’ t feel like I ’ d just gotten lucky with that song . So it wasn ’ t until the song “ Typhoons ” itself came along , where I was like , “ This one of the best songs I ’ ve ever written !!” It just felt so magical and so electric , and honestly , I put work into it , but I wasn ’ t banging my head against the wall to get it to work . It was really kind of fun to make , and I think once I had that , I was just like , “ This is a different ballgame now — now I ’ m on a different level .” So that ’ s when I knew . I knew we were onto a winner .
IE : Well , you ’ d kind of painted yourself into a stylistic corner from the beginning , restricting Royal Blood to only bass and drums . MK : Yeah . And I feel like , on this record , we ’ ve managed to wriggle our way out of that now . And it feels great . I feel like on the first record , that limitation — that setin-stone kind of attitude — really served us well at the beginning , and we were really creative . But I think we just ran out of steam after the second record , and it was time to change . So this record now I feel was almost an escape mission , and I now feel very liberated . So it ’ s a very exciting time .
IE : Did you have a faithful pet to keep you company through all this ? MK : I didn ’ t fall into the trappings of having a pet , and I think that ’ s been a good thing . But Ben , however , did — he got a puppy .
IE : In the new album ’ s opening track , “ Trouble ’ s Coming ,” you clinically diagnose yourself as having psychosis . How do you know ? MK : They always say , “ How do you know when you have ' dain bramage '”? But I think I ’ d expected a very low standard for life , a very low standard of living . And I think I got acclimatized to it , and I don ’ t think it was until months of sobriety — when I realized how good I felt — that I could identify how bad it was if that makes any sense . So it ’ s not to say that I didn ’ t feel bad or have dark experiences in that period , because I really did . But I didn ’ t think I really knew how bad because they weren ’ t really highlighted . And it ’ s exactly the same with fitness , as well . I never did any fitness until I was 25 , and when I started doing it , I was like , “ Oh , man ! How was I existing like that before ?” You just become acclimated to a certain way of feeling .
IE : And turning 30 is a big deal — it ’ s when the carnality of your 20 ’ s segues into a more spiritual decade . MK : Yeah . And I can ’ t help but blame that on sobriety , really . I entered my 30 ’ s completely clean and sober , so everything has gotten better since then . I ’ m 31 [ this month ] in June , but being 30 ? It ’ s been the best year of my life , quite honestly , even though it was in the middle of a global pandemic .
IE : What has the pandemic itself taught you ? MK : It reminded me not to underestimate the power of boredom . Because when I ’ m bored , I get VERY creative ….