Freddie"steady" Krc has been an Austin institution who has been one of our musical ambassadors over the past few decades to Europe and the fruited plains of America. We got a chance to do the 22 Questions column with him, and his answers make good copy. Enjoy.Q1- Your early influences include, of all things, polka. Tell us about your family life growing up. Was your entire family musically oriented? Your first band was at the age of 10. What was that like, starting so early?
A1- My biggest early influence was The Beatles. When I saw them do their first performance on the Ed Sullivan Show, I knew instantly that playing music in a band was what I wanted to do for the rest of my life! My immediate family was not musically inclined but my father's mom, my grandma Annie Krenek, played music as did all her father, brothers, cousins, uncles, really, all the family played. They are the Krenek Orchestra and are still performing today. There has been a Krenek Orchestra here in Texas since they immigrated from Czechoslovakia in 1863. They made records for RCA in the 1940s and are still performing and recording today! I am very proud of them. Can you tell?
Yes, I started my first band at age 10. We were called The Sound Kings. We played mostly Beatles & Stones covers. I remember we played The Beatles' "There's a Place" and it's still one of my fave Fab Four songs. It was a thrill playing in a band at the tender age of 10 and it's still just as thrilling to me today as it was then!
Q2- What were your early musical influences, aside from polka?
A2- My early musical influences, besides The Beatles, were my family polka band and the great rock, soul, R&B, Mexican, Cajun and C&W I heard on the radio growing up outside of Houston. The first live rock band I saw was Sir Douglas Quintet and after that, the Boogie Kings. They were both great bands. I remember going to grandma's
house and listening to a local station that played Czech & German music and the DJs spoke only in Czech and German.
Q3- You were once a theology major in college. What are your spiritual beliefs?
A3- Yes, I studied theology at a small Methodist Jr College in East Texas called Lon Morris College. I briefly considered a vocation in the ministry. There were about 400 students enrolled. The friends I made in college are still my friends and we stay in touch on a fairly regular basis. I believe in the teachings of Jesus Christ. I studied the teachings of all major religions. Most seemed to focus on asking the student to look within and see how to make yourself better by devoting all your energy toward yourself. What appealed to me about Christianity was that the teachings were about seeing what you can do to help others, and, in doing this, helping yourself as a person.
Q4- Your career is fascinating. For example, you played with one of my all time favorite writers, B.W. Stevenson ,author of "My Maria" and "Shambala". How did this influence your future work? I always thought B.W. died way too soon. He had a lot of music left in him.
A4- Playing with B.W. Stevenson was my first "real" gig with a major label artist. Man, I was 21 in LA w/ BW making a record for Warner Brothers Records! Heavy stuff! I was just out in LA on biz last week and had a
business lunch w/ my song publisher at a restaurant called Musso & Franks. It's the oldest restaurant in Hollywood. It opened for business in 1919 and is located on Hollywood Blvd., right down the street from Mann's Chinese Theater. That lunch last week was the first time I'd been in there since August 1975 when our producer, Tommy LaPuma, took the whole BW Stevenson group there for an evening meal. I saw Art Carney across the room dining with a friend. A very magical time for me. I think playing with BW, and Jerry Jeff, influenced my work
as a songwriter by really trying to "keep the bar up" as far as songwriting as a craft and trying to "keep it real". Back then, when I was coming up, Texas singer-songwriters, like B. W., Jerry Jeff, Guy Clark, Billy Joe Shaver, Steve Fromholz and Townes van Zandt lived a certain "freewheeling" lifestyle and wrote about it. Today, many of the younger writers have simply grabbed the "Texas singer-songwriter" title for themselves and, without much, if any, life experiences, began writing. So, what you have now in many cases is style with no substance. And, yes, BW died way too soon! Very sad, indeed.
Q5- Let's talk about your relationship with Roky Erickson. Musical releases, songwriting, etc.
A5- My musical relationship with Roky Erickson began in June of 1979. I had recently put together The Explosives and we started playing around Austin. Mostly at Raul's. Roky's manager had contacted a mutual friend and told him Roky was coming back to Austin from San Francisco and needed a band. My friend recommended The Explosives and when Roky returned, he began rehearsing with us and we started playing around Austin & Texas shortly after. This run lasted from mid-79 through the end of 1981. Roky had quit taking his meds and began his slow, downward spiral. In early 2005, the Explosives released a 2CD set titled "KaBOOM!" and did some promo gigs around Austin. Roky must have been aware of us being active again and contacted lead guitarist Cam King and I and asked if we would play some shows with him. As most people in Austin are aware, Roky made a most triumphant comeback which took us to the big festival stages all over the USA, Lollapalooza, Coachella Fest, also to Montreal Pop Fest in Canada, to London's Festival Hall on the Thames and all over Scandanavia. This run of Roky & Explosives gigs ran from 2005-2008. In February 2008, my SteadyBoy Records label released a Roky Erickson & The Explosives CD titled "Halloween". It's a compilation of songs from live shows between 1979-81 in Texas and California. Over the years there have been a dozen bootlegs of some of this stuff. Roky's manager back then, Craig Luckin, also became The Explosives manager. He and I worked together on this project. I went through hours of live performance tapes to find the best versions of songs we performed, some never heard before. We also included rare photos from our personal collections. I consider Roky masterful at the craft of songwriting. I see a similarity in his and Bob Dylan's work in that, in many cases, the verses are allowed to flow, be dreamy, contain double meanings, whatever, but the choruses are strong and drive home the point. Although The Explosives no longer play with Roky, we still care very much about him and wish him all the best.
Q6- ...and then Jerry Jeff Walker, of course...
A6- Wow, discuss my relationship with Jerry Jeff. It would take more words than space allows. I practically grew up playing with Jerry Jeff! My musical career was intertwined with Jerry Jeff for many years. I started playing with him at age 23, from Jan 1977-June 1979. That's when I started The Explosives. When I left The
Explosives at the end of 1982, I returned to Jerry Jeff's band and stayed through 1985. I then began to go to England for extended stays and recorded my first solo record, Freddie Steady's Wild Country "Lucky 7", in London. After establishing myself as a frontman, singer and guitarist, I began doing some drumming gigs
again with Jerry Jeff. This run lasted from 1990-2000,co-existing with my career fronting my group The Shakin' Apostles.
Q7- I have a pirate radio station in Pilsen, Czech Republic. Give me your top ten tunes you want me to play from your entire catalogue, and why these songs over others?
A7- Here's my top 10 I would want you to play on your radio show in
Pilsen.
01) WILD WILD WEST Just because they like stories about the romantic US western badlands.
02) THE LION I wrote this for the Czech Revolution of 1986 and recorded it on the record I made in Prague in 1990.
03) BARROOM BALLADEER A Czech group took my song to #2 on the charts there in 1991. My version is in English.
04) SAILORS A song inspired by the Czech people about human strength and hope.
05) ROADHOUSE ROCK because Czech people like to party!
06) GARDEN OF LIGHT It's a really pretty melody with a good story.
07) HOTSPUR It's another song about the wild west
08) TUCSON Yet another western story with cinematic bed of music.
09) WHEN THE WALL CAME DOWN My story of how I felt when they fought their revolution for freedom in 1989.
10) DEVIL'S HAND The Czechs like to ROCK! I recorded this on my Czech album in Prague in 1990.
Q8- Ever been to Pilsen, mecca of the best beer brewed? You have done a lot in the land of the Czechs. In fact, you have an interesting story of interacting with the Czech government. Can you elaborate?
A8- I haven't been to Pilsen. It's in the west country and I stayed mostly in Prague. I went once to the west country to play a festival in a town called Sucice. It's about 50 miles north of Pilsen. Also on the bill right before me was our US ambassador, Shirley Temple Black. So, I did a gig with Shirley Temple! This was when I went to make a record there in spring of 1990, six months after the revolution. When my wife Karen and I arrived at customs, they said "Your Lou Reed was just here!" Is seems Lou Reed and Frank Zappa were both friends with the new president Vaclav Havel. We saw Allen Ginsberg in the Old Town Square. It was a very exciting time. People were so happy! Upon my return to Austin, I received a letter from President Vaclav Havel thanking me for
dedicating my song "The Lion" to him and the people of the Czech Republic.
Q9- Who have you wanted to work with in Austin that you haven't as of yet?
A9- A couple of people, off the top of my head, I'd like to work with in Austin but haven't yet had the chance to are Ron Flynt and Ian McLagen. I did do a little bit of work in the studio with Ron but I would like to do some live gigs together. I am a HUGE Small Faces fan and I did work with Ronnie Lane when he lived here. I just
really like the Small Faces approach to their music. I've seen Ian a few times and think he is tops!
Q10- Let's chat gear. What are you playing on now and what were you playing on in the past?
A10- For my guitar gigs, I am playing a newly acquired Fender Jazzmaster. I love it. I still always use, and have been using for the last 5-6 years two Phantom guitars, a "Phantom" model and a "Teardrop" model. Phantom guitars are copies of the old Vox guitars, lovingly made by Jack Charles. The "Phantom" model is a solid body and the Teardrop is a hollow body. I also have a Phantom "Phantom" model 12-string which is also really nice. I also have a Rickenbacker electric 12-string and a Gretsch "Country Club" but use them mostly in the studio. For amps, I use a Vox AC-30, AC-15 or a Fender '65 Reissue Deluxe Reverb. I have been using the Vox amps mostly as of late. When I do my drumming recording sessions or gigs, I use one of two vintage mid-60s sets of Ludwig drums I own. I have tried many brands of drums and always went back to the mid-60s Ludwigs. For me, they offer me every sound I need.
Q11- Have you done some production work for others? Can you tell us about that?
A11- I have been in the recording studio making records as a musician since 1975. As a session musician, I have played on over 100 records. I always took every opportunity to observe the producer and see why he made whatever decisions he did regarding the recording session. I had the opportunity to observe some of the greats, producers Tommy LiPuma and John Boylan and engineers Al Schmidt and Paul Grupp, to name a few. In this day and age of home studios, I see lots of recording engineers suddenly become producers. I am sort of old school, but I think producers and engineers perform different functions. When I watched the greats, the producer never touched
the engineering control board and the engineer never offered his opinion regarding production unless asked. In doing this, they were able to focus totally of their job at hand. I saw great records made that way. In other words, a masterful sound engineer isn't necessarily qualified to offer great ideas on arrangement, best choice of instruments to obtain certain feelings and sounds, etc. Of course, there are exceptions to the rule. I produce for many clients on my SteadyBoy Records label and take a few outside projects. I really enjoy all the sessions I do as I learn from each and every one.
Q12- You have also worked with the one and only Carole King?
A12- Yes, I did work with Carole King on a record she made in Austin called "Touch The Sky". It was March of 1979 at the old Pecan Street Studio on W. 6th Street. She was a wonderfully talented and most gracious artist. I remember she brought her two daughters here from LA and flew in her dad, Mr. Klein, from NYC. Also, I remember her showing up at the studio with one of those cowboy belts with her name hand-tooled on the back. She really got into the Texas thing. We all had a great time at that session. It was very musical.
Q13- You are no stranger to Europe, having done your music over yonder. Name us 5 venues you played over there that you enjoyed.
A13- The Green Note in Camden, London is my favorite place to play acoustic gigs overseas. Also, I love playing electric band gigs at The 100 Club in London. I played there in 1988 and again a few years ago. I really haven't played anywhere overseas I didn't enjoy. Those I listed are just my top two!
Q14- What are planning on springing on us for 2010?
A14- Wow, 2010 is gonna rock! My record label, SteadyBoy Records <http://www.SteadyBoyRecords.com
has 5-6 releases scheduled for 2010. The first release is a CD/
DVD titled "Three Ring Circus" from my group, The Explosives. We
will celebrate with a release party at Emo's Feb 18 and then some
more shows around Texas. My March release is "Through a Faraway Window" A Tribute to Jimmy Silva. Jimmy and I were label mates on ESD Records, a branch of Rykodisc, in the 90s when I had my band, The Shakin' Apostles. He passed away in 1994 and I always wanted to do a trib CD to him including many of his friends performing his wonderful songs. The CD includes tracks from Sal Valentino from Beau Brummels, Roy Loney of Flamin' Groovies, Christy McWilson, John Wesley Harding and Scott McCaughey(REM, Minus 5 & Young Fresh Fellows). In April, we'll
release The Freddie Steady 5 "Live From Sugar Hill Studios". In late summer/early fall, we will release Al Staehely "Hot Rods & Cool Women" CD, a reissue of a record he made for the German label Polydor in 1980. Also, "Dangerous Ground" by The Downliners Sect. Never heard of them? Google the name! They are contemporaries of
the Stones & Yardbirds. A GREAT rock r&b band. Lots of electric and acoustic gigs for me already on the books. It will be a great year!
Q15- Name 4 Austin restaurants you frequent, and what do you usually order?
A15- Veggie plate at Threadgill's, combination plate at El Gallo, combination plate at El Patio, fried tofu and mixed vegatables at Suzy's & fried tofu and vegetables at Hau Hau. Creature of habit? I guess so!
Q16- What current Austin venues are close to your heart?
A16- Venues in Austin that are close to my heart are Ruta Maya, Evangeline Cafe and, although I don't play there frequently, The Broken Spoke and Emo's. Close to my heart? The places that give me the most work!
Q17- And what Austin venues do you lament their closing?
A17- I really miss Armadillo World Headquarters. Also, the old Continental Club circa 1979-87. They used to have a very eclectic booking policy which kept things interesting. I miss Club Foot, Raul's, Soap Creek Saloon, Black Cat Lounge and the Split Rail.
Q18- You have also lived at times in L.A. & London. How was that life in London? How long did you reside there?
A18- I treasure my time in London. I have spent as much as half a year there at a time. I figure, in all, I've spent about 2 years there. I still have many dear friends there that I stay in touch with. I spent quite a bit of time based in LA but probably more in San Francisco.
Q19- Do you read much? What do you usually read as far as music media goes? Books? Periodicals?
A19- I read all the time. I love fiction, science-fiction, westerns and I read many biographies, mostly about musicians, and many books about music. I do read periodicals. My favorites are Shindig!, Ugly Things, 3rd Coast and Mojo. Sometimes I read Roctober from Chicago, Brutarian from Washington D.C. and Bucketful of Brains and Maverick, British-based music mags.
Q20- In a relationship? Married? Single?
A20- I have been happily married to my wife Karen for 24 years!
Q21- How do you book tours in Europe? For example, who do you work with?
A21- When I do dates in UK, I book some things for myself, my friends in London book some for me and for others, I have a UK or European promoter, same with the rest of Europe.
Q22- You are on a desert island with a solar-powered boom box and you have all of 6 CDs. Those CDs are?
A22-
Beatles "Rubber Soul"
Moby Grape "Moby Grape" (first album)
Byrds "Younger Than Yesterday" or "Fifth Dimension" I can't decide,
can't I bring both?
Buffalo Springfield "Again"
Love "Forever Changes"
Rolling Stones "Aftermath"
oooh, wait a minute, could I sneak on Beau Brummels "Triangle" or "Bradley's Barn"?
