RIL: Let’s change gears and talk about Blackfoot. I was a big fan
of the band back in the day. “Blackfoot Strikes” was an incredible
record, and I wore out the album playing songs like “Highway Song” and “Train,
Train.” Was there one song, or even one particular concert, that you
would say was Blackfoot’s defining moment?
RM: Blackfoot’s defining songs were “Highway Song” and “Train,
Train.” Those songs are where we left our mark on rock history. The
defining moment in concert took place in Europe. We were Southern rockers,
heavy, and laden with the blues. The European crowds just ate that up. I’ll
never forget the first Monsters of Rock concert headlined by Whitesnake and
AC-DC. The European press was calling Blackfoot “the Cinderella band” of
the Donnington Festival. There was a lot of anticipation when we went on
in front of 280,000 people, and we kicked major butt.
We got so much mileage
out of that performance. It defined Blackfoot and what we were all about,
which was the music. We went on mid-afternoon. It had been raining all
day so the people were soaked and wet. The band before us, More, went on
and
they were bombed with mud clumps, cans and bottles. I told my band that
it wasn’t going to happen to us. We stomped our way through a 45-minute
set. The people were swaying, jumping up and down, and 280,000 heads were
banging. It’s honestly something that I’ll never forget.
RIL: In New Jersey, I saw Blackfoot perform many a night at the Show Place
in Dover and the Capitol Theatre in Passaic. Why was the state of New Jersey
such a stronghold for Blackfoot?
RM: At that time, we were kicking ass
while the rock and roll scene in New Jersey was in a transitional time with
glam-rock bands like Twisted
Sister and Another Pretty Face. Blackfoot came out of nowhere, a bunch of
Indian guys wearing cowboy boots and hats, with hair down to our waists.
We had low-slung Les Pauls, Flying Vees, and loud-ass Marshall amps. We gave
the working class people of New Jersey something different to listen to.
Blackfoot played heavy and raw. We played down and dirty.
RIL: All of my friends from northern New Jersey have a Blackfoot
story to tell. Many people ran into your band, or hung out with them, at
a store called
The Music Box. My dear friend, drummer Steve Peer, played in a band that
you’ll remember called T.V. Toy. He still talks about Charlie Hargrett
and you joining him at his mother’s house in Dover for a home-cooked
meal. Please share a special story from your days playing in northern New
Jersey.
RM: We were living in Randolph Township at a place
nicknamed “the
rock and roll hotel.” You could live there, working around the place
to cover your room and board. When we moved away from there into a house,
the owner accused us of stealing the mattresses and curtains. We played after
that at the County College of Morris and following the concert we were arrested
for larceny. The fans attending the show gathered in the police station parking
lot and chipped in money to bail us out.
RIL: When Blackfoot performed in the late 70’s, many of the
clubs you played in were scheduling punk rock bands like The Ramones and
the Dead
Boys. In concert, Blackfoot played so much faster and louder than your studio
records. Was that calculated, as a response to the writing on the wall you
observed first-hand with the breaking punk rock scene?
RM: No, that was
just the way Blackfoot played period. We were bad-ass sons-of-bitches who
loved taking it to the hilt. We tried to be the exact
opposites of some of those bands. It brought all of the hammerheads out of
the woods, the whiskey drinkers, and the working class guys. Blackfoot gave
those people something to come out for on the weekend, and it worked out
well for us.
RIL: Blackfoot has been called the most successful Native American
rock band in history. I know you’re very proud of your heritage,
but does a band getting labeled ethnically open up more doors of opportunity,
or does
it keep more doors shut?
RM: People attending the shows knew what we were
all about and I don’t
think they held it against us. In a few small ways, being labeled probably
shut a few doors. For example, Blackfoot grinded it out year after year,
and we never got the press I thought we deserved.
RIL: Later in its career, Blackfoot made what I considered a curious decision
when it added Ken Hensley, a keyboardist/guitar player from the British band
Uriah Heep. Why? Was it your decision, or were you pressured into it from
management or your record label?
RM: It was our decision to approve adding
him, but it was the beginning of the end when we started listening to the
record label. We should have
told them to take Blackfoot as we were, or don’t take us at all. Ken
Hensley had moved to the United States, we loved British music, and it seemed
like the right thing to do at that time. Looking back now, I’m not
sure that it was the right decision, but hindsight is 20-20.
RIL: There are 24 hours in every day, and a working musician spends two
to three hours of the day on stage. The balance of the day consists of traveling,
trying to get sleep, practicing, songwriting, and interacting with fans and
the media. On stage, or off stage, which part of the day is most challenging
to you and why?
RM: The off-stage part of the day is more challenging.
On the road, you spend 22 hours a day getting ready for those two hours onstage.
Doing
that day after day can be tough, but we love it so much.
RIL: Instead of asking you to name the favorite places in the world where
your bands have played, where on Planet Earth have you never traveled to
play?
RM: South America. I’ve always wanted to rock in Rio. I hear it’s
a blast.
RIL: Today’s music industry is radically different from that of the
1970’s. Would you rather be 20-something years old, trying to break
a band in today’s industry, one that is heavily impacted by computer
technology and the Internet? Or, would you prefer what you experienced trying
the break a band in the 70’s and 80’s?
RM: No way would I
want to be a 20-year-old musician starting out now. When I started, record
labels signed bands to have long-term careers. Nowadays,
labels sign bands to create hit songs that will make money long term for
the record company. I’m glad I did it when I did it.
RIL: Who is the one musician who has had the biggest influence on your playing
style? Who is the one individual who has had the biggest influence on your
life?
RM: I have to name three people who I still listen
to today: Eric Clapton for the soul, Jimi Hendrix for the overall difference
that he made,
and Jeff
Beck for the innovativeness. Shorty Medlocke had the biggest influence on
my life.
RIL: Rickey, you’re also an actor with television and film
credits under your belt. Before I ask you a question or two about that,
which industry
is more cut-throat and ruthless? The film industry, network television, or
the music industry? Why? RM: The film
industry is a lot more ruthless. In Hollywood, so many people are trying
to be actors. At auditions,
people
are ready to cut your
throat right away. Hollywood is so two-faced. They tell you you’re
great and everything is going to work out. Next thing you know, it’s
crickets on the phone. You never hear from them.
RIL: When I hear the name Don Johnson, I think of the fancy suits,
fast cars, and scantily dressed women on the television show that I used
to love, “Miami
Vice.” I’m not familiar, other than by name, with his subsequent
television show “Nash Bridges.” Tell us about your experience
working on an episode of that show.
RM: It was really neat working with
Cheech Marin, what a cool guy to be around. I had no one-on-one interaction
with Don Johnson.
RIL: After “Miami Vice,” Don Johnson turned to pop music and
released an album called “Heartbeat,” and the title song was
a top-5 hit. Don’s never going to read this interview so I want you
to be brutally honest. Are you a better singer turned actor, or is Don a
better actor turned singer?
RM: Don’s a better actor turned singer.
RIL: I’m not a real big television watcher, and I don’t watch
any of the reality TV shows. So many of them touch upon rock and roll; “VH1-Bands
Reunited,” a show called “Rock Star” picking the new
INXS singer, “American Idol,” and Ted Nugent hunting on TV.
I’m creating a fictitious reality TV show called “Survivor-Rock
and Rollers.” If we dumped you, Ted, the new INXS singer, and all
of the “American Idol” winners in the Okefenokee Swamp, why
are you the one that’s going to survive?
RM: Because I can bass
fish like a son-of-a-bitch. I can live off the land in the South. I guarantee
you that Ted and me will walk out ahead of
anybody.
RIL: You also acted in a science fiction film called “Groom Lake” with
William Shatner, and his name is synonymous with outer space and extraterrestrials.
What’s your personal belief about life on other planets?
RM: Our
planet is just a tiny speck of sand in a great big sandbox. There are galaxies
galore and millions of possible worlds. It’s mind-boggling
how big this universe is. We can’t be so closed-minded and conceited
to believe we’re the only planet floating around with some type of
life. We’re not the only ones. I hope we both live long enough to see
the answer.
RIL: Thanks again Rickey for agreeing to do this interview. Best of luck
in the future to you and Lynyrd Skynyrd. Do you have any closing comments
for your fans?
RM: I really appreciate the people who came out to
see my bands and their loyalty buying records. I can’t thank them enough. If it weren’t
for the fans, we wouldn’t be able to be out here doing what we do.
