Godz Interview

INTERVIEW

The Mind: Catchin' up with New Yorks Godz
(first printed in EUREKA FREAK, 2008)
If you are a fan of trying to capture the perfect musical moment like we are here at the Oregon Street house then you may have gone the full gauntlet of music to find it. We know that the travel can be different for each person but ours has been something along the lines of Journeys Escape to heavy metal to punk rock to hardcore to SST to sixties loser rock to 80s underground to the Shaggs to the realizing that you can play a guitar too to wasting a lot of money to find that first journey escape high. In that journey there is a rest stop along the side of the road called The Godz. It is somewhere between realizing that you will not be Greg Ginn on the guitar and dropping acid for the first time. I actually think that it was the Lester Bangs book that got me on board the ship and it was before I heard them some article that lumped them and the Fugs into the same stew. After tracking down the goods by both I realized that they were two totally different foods. The Fugs were a macrobiotic diet dish at a grass festival and the Godz seemed to be food from a different planet all together. They were on ESP-Disk in the 60s and standing arm in arm with giants like Albert Ayler, Ornette Coleman, Patty Waters, Pharoh Sanders, as well as the Fugs but they seem impossible to throw in to the free-jazz gang or with the mega political (like the Fugs) the Godz were the flagship rock band for ESP-Disk (if there was/is such a thing). I cant begin to go into detail about how much the Godz affected me except to say I am glad I packed a bag to go to Africa and South America because I needed some sort of anchor.
The following is one of the great things about Myspace and their ilk -- now more than ever we can actually get to know people who are doing things and that are making wonderful things our worlds are the size of our neighborhood. The interview took place because I stumbled across the Godz profile and it happened to be the actual band not only that, but they actually were really kind and willing to answer questions and entertain the idea of coming to Humboldt County for a show wow! So if you dont have their stuff go get all four LPs (you can get them on iTunes), they will make you smile for years one last note: dont mistake them for the Godz of the 70s not knocking that band but it's just not who we are talking about.
EF= our questions
J= Jim McCarthy
L= Larry Kessler
P= Paul Thornton
Sadly, Jay Dillon has passed away so we could not have him here.

EF: As far as I can tell, there are only four records by the Godz (on ESP-Disk) and the last one was done in the early 70s. Are you preparing a new record, and if so, why the big gap in time between the last effort?

J - Yes, there are four official Godz releases, though weve all recorded other things before and after The Godz.
L - Individually we have recorded, but united, not until now.
P - Just getting around to it.

EF: What are the Godz doing besides being Godz?

L - Im taking tips and getting stoned as a Baltimore county cab driver. Through the 80s and 90s I owned 2 record stores.
J - And raising state and national racing champions. Pauls been successful as an actor and I as a photographer.

EF - You mentioned that you were parents, and grandparents; what do your children and grandchildren think of your records?

L - I care not what they think about my music history.
J - Ive never asked them.
P - Dont have any.

EF - You mentioned that your are trying to put together a working band. What other musicians will you have play with what yall play?

L - New music.
P - Whatever we dont play.
J - Support players. People who are knowledgeable of their instruments and have good command. as you may know, were lacking in that area. Basically, a solid rhythm section and a brilliant soloist or two.

EF - The shadow of the Godz looms large -- Ive heard you're credited for starting the punk movement; Ive read articles where Thurston Moore (Sonic Youth) has said that at one point all he wanted was his band to be like yours and then there is the famous Lester Bangs piece about you. First off, what were the original intentions of the group (what did you want to achieve) and do you think that after all this time people like Lester Bangs understood what you were trying to do?

P - Our intentions were to just do our thing. Lester? Probably not.
J - We were just trying to express our feelings, which were pretty intense, at that point in time and we were very unorthodox about it which deterred us in acquiring much of a fan club, though the few we had were very loyal. The fact is we were on the scene and in the mix at the same time as the Velvets. We played CBGB before it was CBGB, when it was called Hillys on the Bowery and played host to poets and other writers and acoustic players. I think Lester explained what we were about better than anyone else, because he had the same jones. As for Thurston Moore, Ive heard that said frequently. Though weve never met, Im pleased that we could have been an inspiration to such a fine band.
L - Yes.

EF - There is a whole movement today with groups of kids that love to just put on shows that produce nothing but noise, kinda along the lines of what Lou Reed did with "Metal Machine Music." Was your aim to head more in that direction (with songs like Squeek, Crusade and First Multitude) or did you treat that as sort of a yin to the yang of the folk and pop structured stuff that you did?

J - I think it was just part of the spectrum, our music space. Its all good if you put your soul into it.
L - It was an organic statement of what we felt at the time.
P - My intentions were to, someday, make an album of all Hank Williams.

EF - What direction do you plan on taking the new stuff that you make?

P - Same direction, American music, blues, r & r, country, gospel... let the good times roll.
L - All and many.
J - In whichever direction our lives take us in. This moment came about because of events in the past, just as the first and just as the last. Whichever direction, I hope we can present ourselves with strength and conviction.

EF - What comment would you like to make about the music that you hear coming out today?

J - Im sure people want to hear us say "it sucks, but theres a lot of fine music out there today, you have to seek it out sometimes because the commercial evils of the biz still dominate the airwaves but the internet is open to all.
L - Its OK.
P - People today should not lip sync and not sing to machines.

EF - Do you think that the computers have changed way things are produced (since you were doing things on ESP-Disk) and if so, is it good or bad (and how)?

L - Yes, its changed for the better.
P- Its bad! I dont play with machines.
J - I think Paul may be hung up on karaoke. I think its incredibly wonderful what you can do in studios today, as in other areas, due to digital technology. Sure, its easier for people to create and record their ideas but the proof of the pudding is still in the eating. I believe thats what its really about.

EF - Ive heard a lot of bad things said about the guy who runs ESP Disk. I know that yall worked for him in nonmusician type jobs as well as being the Godz. If the guy was the only guy that put out all this stuff (Albert Ayler, Patty Waters, the Godz, the Fugs, etc.) he cant be all that bad. are you still on good terms with him?

J - Next question.
P - Im not on any terms with him.
L - He is a great producer, a legendary record company owner and a personable, positive fellow who has an aversion to paying The Godz even one dollar.

EF - Were there any other record labels like ESP-Disk at that time? Can you think of any today that parallel what they did?

L - No.
P - There was no other company like ESP-Disk and none now. It was underground.
J - At that time ESP was in a class of its own, which seemed to nurture artists, for awhile.Today and through the years there have been small, dedicated companies that have produced great stuff that might not have been heard otherwise.

EF - Were there any other music groups that you would say were doing similar work to what you were doing in the 60s? i felt like you were the only music group that could make a sincere smile (at least I picture you making one while i listen) - I couldnt see the Velvet Underground or the Mothers of Invention making one.

J - Nobody was doing what we were doing, and nobody wanted to.
L - No one approached music with the same attitude, that is true...

EF - I think maybe I have to add the Fugs in with you as far as smiling but they had (or it seemed) a political agenda. Did the Godz get political as well?

L - Not overtly.
P -The Fugs made me laugh, yet they were really political. Every person living is political. We werent exactly DC5 or Freddy and The Dreamers.
J - We were definitely politically aware, though not very active in the streets. We were more into the revolution of the mind and the creative results which we could then share with others. Or should I say, subject others to?

EF - ill add one more question to make this nought-unlucky: what can we expect from the Godz in the coming year?

P - A new album.
L - Always the unexpected.
J - I think a lot of people are in for a pleasant surprise. The new recordings will be available for download purchase on our Myspace page, and possibly others.

HOME ~ BIOGRAPHY ~ DISCOGRAPHY ~ LYRICS ~ RESOURCES