Colin Hay Discusses Males at Work, His Solo Profession, and the Music Biz [Part Two]

Hay spoke to AllMusic shortly after the discharge of his newest solo launch, Man @ Work: Quantity 2, which like its profitable predecessor, comprises “re-imagined favorites from throughout Hay’s wealthy catalog, together with Males at Work classics, solo album highlights, and new materials.”

So with out additional ado, right here is the second a part of AllMusic’s prolonged interview with Hay.

What do you recall in regards to the precise recording of the Males at Work albums from the ’80s, Enterprise as Common, Cargo, and Two Hearts?

“Effectively, Enterprise as Common was very fast and it was nice, as a result of we had a ten day pre-production with the producer, Peter McIan, who sadly handed away fairly not too long ago. Very unhappy to listen to that information. He was an ideal file producer. He was good for us, actually. And we had a technique of pre-production the place in a manner, he ‘pop-ified’ the music. We had simplified sure components, and turned perhaps a six-minute music right into a three-and-a-half minute music – whereas retaining the integrity and what was vital to the music.”

“And once we truly received into the studio, it was a really small studio known as Richmond Recorders [in Melbourne]. And it took about ten days to file – 5 days for the rhythm tracks and 5 days for overdubs. So, it was very fast. We labored fairly rapidly and it was a really cheap file to make. However he was actually the important thing in bringing that album collectively – Peter McIan.”

“Cargo took us a bit bit longer. We finally launched that album too rapidly. I feel we must always have waited, however water underneath the bridge now. However yeah, Cargo took a bit bit longer. I nonetheless assume we had some good songs on that file. Maybe we may have spent a bit bit extra time on that – we would have had a greater file, who is aware of? However we had been a bit bit extra skilled and we nonetheless had McIan engaged on that file, in order that was good.”

“By the point Two Hearts got here round, the band was accomplished. We did not understand it on the time, however the band was over. And certainly, it was solely three of us left. John and Jerry had been sacked. So, it was Ron and Greg and I, and Russell [Deppeler] the supervisor, and we made the Two Hearts file.

“However it was actually the loss of life throes of the band. Ron left midway via, and on the finish of it, Greg mentioned, ‘I’ve had sufficient,’ and he simply went residence – and the band was accomplished. I feel there’s some fascinating songs on it, however the first two you could possibly say had been the actual Males at Work albums, in a manner, due to the truth that these information contained the basic line-up of the band.”

Enterprise as Common topped the US charts for an unprecedented 15 weeks from late 1982 to early 1983. How overwhelming was the band’s success?

“Effectively you do not understand it is overwhelming. You assume that you will deal with the whole lot effectively. It is like lots of people, once you’re younger…I imply, I would spend in all probability 15-20 years dreaming of getting a profitable recording profession and touring the world. And unexpectedly, once you get that, it is form of like, ‘Oh, okay, effectively, your goals grew to become realized.’ After which how do you deal with that? If you’re younger, effectively, definitely, when I was younger, I assumed I knew the whole lot. And it turned out that I knew virtually nothing. So, your training about life and in regards to the enterprise you are in, and creativity and interpersonal relationships and all these sorts of issues usually occur after you have had success. And that is what occurred to us.”

“We had unimaginable, phenomenal success…after which all of it imploded. And we did not have the communication expertise to avert what, in essence, ended that profession, which was the demise of the band. When that occurred, I’ve to say that I wasn’t sad about the truth that Males at Work broke up. I used to be fairly glad to be alone. I would spent 15 years alone, and I used to be fairly glad to be alone once more, and begin once more, and experiment and play music and hold shifting ahead.”

“However the influence of the band, I feel, has continued over a protracted time frame. We solely made three albums, however two that had been profitable commercially. And but, there’s an ideal love for these songs by tens of millions and tens of millions of individuals. For which, I am eternally grateful.”

What do you recall in regards to the excursions within the ’80s, when Males at Work was on the peak of their success? As a result of lots of people level to the ’80s as a time of extra and partying. Is it truthful to say that was the identical for Males at Work?

“Yeah. I imply, in all probability not as a lot as a whole lot of bands. However we did our justifiable share of that. I imply, alcohol was my Achilles’ heel. And I spotted that I had an issue with that fairly early on. And I spent about in all probability six years attempting to surrender alcohol. And I finally did in 1991. It wasn’t that vital to us. I imply, we had been extra form of cups of tea, have a little bit of weed or one thing after the present. It wasn’t a lot the opposite factor – of going loopy.”

What music is the underrated gem of the Males at Work catalog?

“I do not know. I imply, I do not learn about this entire ‘underrated’ factor. I imply, underrated by whom? Who’s doing the ranking? I do not know. I discover the entire thing about whether or not one thing’s underrated as being bizarre. I feel there’s a whole lot of songs on the information which can be which can be nice, and I feel that they’re appreciated by [fans]. Y’know, it doesn’t matter what music I play at a live performance, for instance, there’s all the time any individual within the viewers who loves that music, and I feel, ‘Effectively, it is not underrated by them‘.”

I personally assume the music “Blue for You” off Cargo was underrated, and would have been a superb single.

“It is a single now, off the brand new album. I do not know [why it wasn’t a single off Cargo]. I am unable to even bear in mind whether or not it was talked about. I feel that the folks determined that ‘Overkill,’ ‘It is a Mistake,’ and “Dr Heckyl and Mr. Jive’…I by no means actually cared for ‘Dr Heckyl and Mr. Jive’ that a lot as a music. I by no means cared for it then and I nonetheless do not take care of it that a lot. However on the time, it appeared to work, and folks appreciated it.”

What was your tackle the comparisons on the time between Males at Work and the Police? Have been they legitimate or invalid?

“Yeah, I feel they had been fairly legitimate in some ways. It is not like we went out of our solution to copy the Police. It wasn’t like I began singing simply after the Police got here to the scene. However I bear in mind driving alongside and listening to the Police for the primary time, and I simply needed to pull over and assume, ‘Oh my God. There is a man that feels like me.’ After which, in fact, they grew to become profitable earlier than we did. And so, clearly the comparisons had are available primarily I feel, due to the sound of my voice. And likewise, perhaps the add9 chords that we used, that Andy Summers used, as effectively. However I do not actually care. Should you’re gonna evaluate us to the Police, effectively, I will take that. They had been a unbelievable band.”

And what was your tackle the lawsuit in 2007 regarding “Down Beneath’ and “Kookaburra” [the latter of which was written in 1932 by Marion Sinclair]? Do you are feeling that declare was based or unfounded?

“Effectively, clearly I did not assume it was. It was a critical declare, as a result of we went to court docket for six years defending it. So, it is a sophisticated topic, however there was a lawsuit which we needed to defend ultimately, as a result of there’s two bars of ‘Kookaburra Sits within the Previous Gum Tree’ and ‘Down Beneath,’ which had been added to the music – innocuously and unconsciously – though folks discover that onerous to imagine. However that is the reality of it.”

“And after 28 years [since ‘Down Under’ was first released], there was a lawsuit, and we misplaced. However I feel that they [Larrikin Music] misplaced, as effectively, actually. I imply, they acquired a really small proportion – not of the copyright of the music. So, the co-writer of the music remains to be because it was. I feel that it was a declare which ought to have by no means gotten to court docket. It ought to have been settled earlier than it went via the court docket system.”

“However they wished 60% of ‘Down Beneath,’ which was a really cynical factor for them to say. That they had greed and greenback indicators of their eyes, they usually went for it. And so, we needed to defend it. EMI, that was, and I used to be sued, as effectively. I do not lose sleep over it. However it was one thing that I will always remember – or forgive – for that matter.”

How was it touring once more as Males at Work with Greg within the late ’90s and early twenty first century, and did his loss of life in 2012 come as a shock?

“Effectively, I cherished Greg. I all the time cherished Greg, and I nonetheless love Greg. So, I cherished touring with him from ’96 till 2002 [which spawned a live album, 1998’s Brazil]. However he was struggling a bit throughout that point. However we had some nice reveals, we had some nice excursions. And I feel when he handed away, it was a shock, however I knew that he was in hassle earlier than that. I might go and see him, and Greg was by no means a drinker when he was youthful, however he developed an alcohol factor later in his life. And he appeared sad.”

“And the lawsuit had affected him tremendously. He wasn’t sued for it, however he was the one who performed the road [on the flute], so he felt a duty or a guilt for that, and thought that he’d be remembered for that. And it was horrible. It was simply horrible when he died, as a result of he was an ideal buddy of mine and somebody who I actually revered, and he was so good and intellectually succesful. And he was somebody that I all the time imagined that I might develop outdated with and giggle at ridiculous issues till we may giggle now not. So, it’s totally unhappy that he is gone, and I nonetheless get upset about it after I give it some thought.”

Are you continue to in contact with the opposite surviving former band members of Males at Work?

“No.”

How do you assume the music of Males at Work holds up right now once you hear it, or from the followers’ response once you play it?

“Effectively, I feel it is actually robust. If I take heed to the information we made, it is nonetheless sonically very robust, and I feel all of the components nonetheless work. I feel it is music that can be round for lots longer than I am round.”

How would you evaluate enjoying with the present Males at Work line-up to the basic line-up?

“Effectively, I really like the band that I’ve now. It is only a totally different band. You possibly can’t actually evaluate them, as a result of it is a totally different dynamic. It is a totally different construction. I imply, Males at Work was a band again then, who had been having an try at having a democratic band, and making selections collectively, and all these issues.”

“It is a band now the place I am using folks. So, it is a complete totally different factor. It is not even actually one thing you possibly can evaluate. However I really like enjoying with this band. I really like these musicians that I play with, as a result of they’re all glorious musicians, and we’ve a good time touring collectively. So, it is unbelievable.”

Are there any solo songs on the Man at Work 2 album that once you play them, you are feeling may have labored as Males at Work songs?

“There’s a whole lot of overlaps. However I’ve made like, 15 albums since Males at Work. So, it is a whole lot of materials to attract from. The songs that I recorded with Males at Work had been particular to that band. As a result of if I had a music and I might take a music to the band, the music contained everybody’s musicality and everybody’s enter. So, these Males at Work songs seemed like that band, as a result of we had been those who had been enjoying it.”

“Now once we play the songs, it has a unique taste to it due to the musicians who’re enjoying the songs. However you continue to should have respect for the unique recordings and the unique components and the unique preparations – as a result of that is what was profitable, and that is what folks need to hear. So, I’ve no downside enjoying these songs.”

“However I’ve solely been actually touring as Males at Work – aside from the excursions that Greg and I did from ’96 till 2002. I have never actually accomplished any Males at Work excursions – solely since like, 2019. So, it is only a tour right here and there. It is probably not an enormous a part of my life, is what I am saying. Y’know, what you probably did 45 years in the past is nice, and I find it irresistible. However it’s not like I get up daily fascinated about Males at Work.”

You simply talked about that in 2019 you started touring once more as Males at Work. Did you all the time personal the title ‘Males at Work,’ or did you get the rights to it again? How did that work out, that you just had been capable of tour as ‘Males at Work’?

“Effectively, it is a nebulous factor, actually. Greg and I toured as ‘Males at Work’ – the title was like a model, which was form of floating round there, like a rudderless ship. So, there’s an inner-dynamic that occurs, the place I can go on the market and play as Males at Work. That is simply the best way that it is occurred. I feel if anybody has a proper to exit on tour as Males at Work, it is me. So, that is what I am doing.”

How would you evaluate touring right now to again within the outdated days?

“On stage, it is nice. I imply, technically, it is nice. All of the sound methods are a lot better, and the best way you possibly can hear on stage is nice. I am going out on tour solo, simply myself, and so I additionally exit with the band – the identical band that I’ve now, that’s underneath the moniker of Males at Work. I really like touring with them slightly below my very own title, as a result of we are able to play much more materials from all of the totally different intervals of various albums. And plus, we all the time play the Males at Work songs, anyway. It is not like we by no means play them. We all the time play just a few of these within the set. So, it is not like we do not play Males at Work once we play the solo reveals.”

“After which after I play as Males at Work, I feel there’s one music we try this’s not a Males at Work music – however the remainder are all Males at Work songs. After which if I play solo, that is a unique form of touring altogether – it is simply me and a guitar and an viewers. And I feel that is in all probability the dearest factor to me, as a result of after I received dropped by MCA Data, I simply began touring alone, and folks began to return. Not very many individuals, however they began off 40-50 folks, and now it is nonetheless not large stadiums or something – I play to perhaps 1,000 or 1,500 folks an evening after I play in theaters. And that is developed over the past 30 years.”

“And that is in all probability my favourite factor to do, as a result of it’s totally private, and it simply entails myself and the viewers. The viewers who know what their very own struggles are like, they know what it is wish to rise up on stage and play music. And there is an understanding which occurs between myself and the viewers, which does not occur wherever else. It would not occur with the music business, so to talk, and even doing what I am doing with you. Y’know, you write about it, and folks will examine it, and that is nice. And I am glad to speak to you and so forth.”

“However there’s nothing just like the expertise that you may have with an viewers, the place they arrive and see you, they usually need one thing from you. And so hopefully, you give them that. And everyone seems to be richer for it. I definitely know that I’m. So, that is actually what’s vital to me now, greater than the rest – is that feeling of being helpful, and part of folks’s lives that has some resonance and that means right now. Which, is affected by what you probably did 40/45 years in the past – however it’s not outlined by it.”

I might think about additionally enjoying with Ringo Starr & His All-Star Band has introduced a whole lot of consideration in direction of you as a solo artist and together with your previous work, proper?

“Probably not. The solo factor sits exterior that in a manner, and enjoying with Ringo is unimaginable – as a result of he is Ringo, and he was in the Beatles. However that is a particular factor, I feel. Y’know, folks come alongside they usually need to hear these outdated songs, they usually need to hear ‘Down Beneath’ and ‘Who Can It Be Now?’ And that is form of roughly what that’s – it is a ‘hit fest,’ and you are a sideman for everybody else. And it is an ideal factor to be a part of. However enjoying solo – particularly enjoying for the final three a long time – is one thing which has simply developed over time, which is its personal factor.”

“There are overlaps with the whole lot – there’s overlaps with Males at Work, there’s overlaps with Ringo, there’s overlaps with the solo factor. However the solo factor is simply form of, as I mentioned earlier than, expensive to me due to the truth that it simply entails myself and the viewers. Which, it has its personal life. It is not depending on large success or something. It is simply relying on you are going to flip up and they’ll flip up and see you. And there is one thing nice about that.”

You simply talked about the Beatles. How a lot of an affect had been the Beatles on you as a major affect early on? And had been there different artists?

“There have been different artists, however in actuality there was the Beatles, after which there was all people else. My brother turned me on to black music. He turned me on to Otis Redding and Booker T & the MG’s. And a whole lot of a whole lot of music that I used to be unaware of till he made me conscious of it. After which I grew to become conscious of the truth that the Beatles had been conscious of it, so I assumed, ‘Oh, that is the place all of it comes from.’ I used to be unaware of it earlier than that.”

“However a lot of folks had been influences as I grew to become a bit bit older, like Randy Newman is a large affect. And I really like Joni Mitchell, and naturally Bob Dylan was nice. And James Taylor. Once I began enjoying acoustic, James Taylor and folks like that had been an enormous affect when it comes to the best way they performed the guitar and the best way they structured songs and so forth.”

Do you’ve got another upcoming initiatives along with Man at Work 2 or excursions you want to debate?

“I am going out on the highway doing a solo tour. Effectively, I am going again out with Ringo after this tour [on a bill with Toto and Christopher Cross], after which I do a solo tour within the fall of the US and the UK and Australia. So, that takes me via to December. So, I am not considering an excessive amount of past that, besides that after that, like subsequent yr, I need to spend a bit extra time at residence and within the studio, the place I can hopefully do some fascinating issues downstairs with some fascinating folks. So, that is what I am trying ahead to, simply being extra at residence. Who is aware of if that’ll occur, however that is my plan.”

Lastly, my mates had a debate not that way back: a few of them named ‘Overkill’ as the best music of the ’80s, and a few of them took exception to that. Would you wish to settle this argument for them?

“I might by no means ever declare that myself. However I am very, very glad for different folks to make that declare.” [Laughs]