Much Music

MUCH MUSIC INTERVIEW

WEDNESDAY NOVEMBER 28, 2001 1PM

TORONTO, ONTARIO, CANADA

GEORGE: If Britney Spears were ACDC

AMANDA: Exactly

GEORGE: What is going on with this picture?

AMANDA: I think Britney needs a little ACDC!

GEORGER: (laughing) Well you do sing about your bra underneath your shirt and the wind up your skirt don't you

AMANDA: I do, yes I do

GEORGER: The new album has a concept, has a theme

AMANDA: It does. It's not a hard-core conceptual record but it is-

GEORGE: It's not Floyd

AMANDA: It's not Floyd, but there is definitely a thread that runs through the whole record, and it just kinda happened, everybody's got a story was the first song we wrote for the record, and that became, sort of the thread around which we hung all of these songs

GEORGE: The mantra, for everybody's life, should be everybody does have a story, go right beneath the surface

AMANDA: Yeah

GEORGE: You know, when you made this, and you came up with that, you were going through all of this? Did you start realizing stuff about yourself behind the story?

AMANDA: Yeah, well, I think I realized a genuine desire to sort of share a little bit more of myself. The records I've made, this is my third record, and the records I've made in the past have been reasonably straight-ahead, sort of, serious, and I think I've been probably perceived as a lot more serious than I really am. And I really wanted to give people a chance to have access to a greater chunk of my personality, my sense of humor, my relationships, my experiences, and I wanted to do it in a way that was kind of theatrical and dramatic, and kind of funny. The record is really cool, all of the songs kind of stand out on their own, but they all really hang together well, and they're a great collection of stories.

GEORGE: Didn't you say once that you didn't mind being a singing head? Like you didn't need to write the songs? You just came in and sang them?

AMANDA: (laughing) Okay, don't like you! You know too much! Um, no, actually, you know, I started making records when I was like 19. And when you're 19, and you're making your first record, you're just happy to be there. I started out as a night club singer, and I was just happy to be there. And I put all of my energy into choosing songs that would sort of represent where I was. Every record is just a snapshot of where you are at that point in your life. This record is just sort of where I am now, and I think it takes a couple of shots to find your voice, and you know, we need to give artists, young artists, the opportunity to do that, to find their voice, and to tour, and to sing for people, write songs, and you know, make different kinds of records, 'cause who wants to make the same thing all the time?

GEORGE: Uh, lets play something then, from some time ago--

AMANDA: Oh, you're going to play it?!

GEORGE: A long time ago--

AMANDA: Oh, cool

GEORGE: I was watching Much Music, way before--

AMANDA: I have much bigger eyebrows in this clip

GEORGE: Yeah, she does, and uh, check out this clip, here's Amanda playing on a beach

AMANDA: Oh, my God

---February, 1992, shot of Amanda at Much Music's Spring Break 1992, in Daytona Beach, Florida. Sitting on a beach with a couple of guitarists while singing 'Castles Made Of Sand'--

AMANDA: Look how cute I was

GEORGE: Amanda Marshall, doing Jimi Hendrix, that was what, like 92?

AMANDA: Yeah

GEORGE: So then, I saw you play a free show. I saw a free show that you played there years ago

AMANDA: Oh wow

GEORGE: And we heard the Hendrix, and we heard the Joplin, and everybody was talking about the Joplin, Joe Cocker, all that stuff, and we thought 'okay, here's our next big bluesy rock singer', and then you went down in a completely different road. What happened?

AMANDA: I know. Well, I think, what happened was, um, part of it was I wanted to make a record that was going to fit in with what was getting played on the radio, and blues rock at that time, was kind of, it was hard for me to kind of know what was the right kind of record for me to make. So I tried to make a record that was going to appeal to a wide variety or people. Um, it's funny, cause people, when I first started singing in clubs, that was sort of the comparison. And I used to blow it off, cause everybody hates being compared to somebody else, it always makes you really uncomfortable.

GEORGE: Especially people who O.D.

AMANDA: Yeah, exactly (laughing) I'd like to make it past 27, if that's okay. Um, and I kind of wanted to be, I kind of wanted to stand on my own, so I think I probably did what a lot of people do, which is you go, you run as far away to the other end of the spectrum as you can, and you try and sort of maintain your own thing, you know. I think Everybody's Got A Story is probably the first, I don't know, it's probably the first really independantly minded record I've made. Mainly because I hadn't made a record for a while, and I was off the radar for a while, and I was kind of free to do what I wanted, and it really gave me a chance to sort of decompress and just take a minute and figure out what I wanted to say. So I had a very clear focus about what I wanted to do.

GEORGE: So when you wanted to run away as far as you could, to make the kind of record that would differentiate yourself, did you ever look at the industry and say 'hey, screw you man.' Just didn't want to write rock songs or be a part of something else?

AMANDA: Yeah, oh all the time. But, you know, making, doing this, it's, it's like the greatest gig in the world, and its the most frusturating thing you'll ever do. Because you're constantly bombarded with other people's perceptions of you, and everybody has an opinion about your work, and your look, and your hair, and your clothes, and you know. And you're constantly struggling with how to really come into your own in the midst of this chaos that's working out around you. I found, making this record, the easiest way to do that, for me, was to let the flow of the conversation become the lyric. This record sounds like me, it sounds like the way I talk, it sounds like the way I am, it sounds like the way I think. So I think it's probably the first time I've really done that, and it takes, you know, I think it takes some I guess guts, to kinda do that, because what if nobody likes it? You know, what if nobody likes you?

GEORGE: What do you think of people nowadays? You know, you go back to the Jeff Healy, Elton John, John Mellencamp, you know, the young Amanda that everybody talks about, to the one who's sold a bunch of records, done your thing, had your own personality, and you're an adult. Are you better with people? Or are you worse with people? Do you finally realize "Get away"?

AMANDA: I think I'm better. Cause I think I'm much more, um

GEORGE: Were you worse at one point?

AMANDA: I think I was probably uptight within myself. I think I was probably a little bit scared and a little bit, you know, eager to please, like we all are

GEORGE: And now, look at you all confident--takes out issue of Flare--

AMANDA: Speaking of eager to please

GEORGE: Look at all of that, eh? That's rock and roll

AMANDA: Look at her. She's way cooler than me

GEORGE: What is she doing. Uh, this, you read the liner notes, you see the video, you play a lot of different roles. Is it easy to be a professional schizo as opposed to a normal one?

AMANDA: (laughing) Yes, uh the medication they give me helps a lot

GEORGE: Nice, um, so, you like fashion, you like this whole setup. You like playing the part?

AMANDA: I do, I mean, this is kind of, this is kind of me. This is probably the closest that people have seen of me. Yeah, I'm deep into like clothes, I'm a girl, you know, I like to shop. I'm all over that stuff

GEORGE: And try different stuff like you do in your video, so we'll do that. Amanda, thank you for coming in

AMANDA: Thank you for having me

GEORGE: No problem, Amanda Marshall, here's the video! It's Amanda on Much

AMANDA: Bye!


	MUCH MUSIC INTERVIEW WEDNESDAY NOVEMBER 28, 2001 1PM TORONTO, ONTARIO, CANADA GEORGE: If Britney Spears were ACDC AMANDA: Exactly GEORGE: What is going on with this picture? AMANDA: I think Britney needs a little ACDC! GEORGER: (laughing) Well you do sing about your bra underneath your shirt and the wind up your skirt don't you AMANDA: I do, yes I do GEORGER: The new album has a concept, has a theme AMANDA: It does. It's not a hard-core conceptual record but it is- GEORGE: It's not Floyd AMANDA: It's not Floyd, but there is definitely a thread that runs through the whole record, and it just kinda happened, everybody's got a story was the first song we wrote for the record, and that became, sort of the thread around which we hung all of these songs GEORGE: The mantra, for everybody's life, should be everybody does have a story, go right beneath the surface AMANDA: Yeah GEORGE: You know, when you made this, and you came up with that, you were going through all of this? Did you start realizing stuff about yourself behind the story? AMANDA: Yeah, well, I think I realized a genuine desire to sort of share a little bit more of myself. The records I've made, this is my third record, and the records I've made in the past have been reasonably straight-ahead, sort of, serious, and I think I've been probably perceived as a lot more serious than I really am. And I really wanted to give people a chance to have access to a greater chunk of my personality, my sense of humor, my relationships, my experiences, and I wanted to do it in a way that was kind of theatrical and dramatic, and kind of funny. The record is really cool, all of the songs kind of stand out on their own, but they all really hang together well, and they're a great collection of stories. GEORGE: Didn't you say once that you didn't mind being a singing head? Like you didn't need to write the songs? You just came in and sang them? AMANDA: (laughing) Okay, don't like you! You know too much! Um, no, actually, you know, I started making records when I was like 19. And when you're 19, and you're making your first record, you're just happy to be there. I started out as a night club singer, and I was just happy to be there. And I put all of my energy into choosing songs that would sort of represent where I was. Every record is just a snapshot of where you are at that point in your life. This record is just sort of where I am now, and I think it takes a couple of shots to find your voice, and you know, we need to give artists, young artists, the opportunity to do that, to find their voice, and to tour, and to sing for people, write songs, and you know, make different kinds of records, 'cause who wants to make the same thing all the time? GEORGE: Uh, lets play something then, from some time ago-- AMANDA: Oh, you're going to play it?! GEORGE: A long time ago-- AMANDA: Oh, cool GEORGE: I was watching Much Music, way before-- AMANDA: I have much bigger eyebrows in this clip GEORGE: Yeah, she does, and uh, check out this clip, here's Amanda playing on a beach AMANDA: Oh, my God ---February, 1992, shot of Amanda at Much Music's Spring Break 1992, in Daytona Beach, Florida. Sitting on a beach with a couple of guitarists while singing 'Castles Made Of Sand'-- AMANDA: Look how cute I was GEORGE: Amanda Marshall, doing Jimi Hendrix, that was what, like 92? AMANDA: Yeah GEORGE: So then, I saw you play a free show. I saw a free show that you played there years ago AMANDA: Oh wow GEORGE: And we heard the Hendrix, and we heard the Joplin, and everybody was talking about the Joplin, Joe Cocker, all that stuff, and we thought 'okay, here's our next big bluesy rock singer', and then you went down in a completely different road. What happened? AMANDA: I know. Well, I think, what happened was, um, part of it was I wanted to make a record that was going to fit in with what was getting played on the radio, and blues rock at that time, was kind of, it was hard for me to kind of know what was the right kind of record for me to make. So I tried to make a record that was going to appeal to a wide variety or people. Um, it's funny, cause people, when I first started singing in clubs, that was sort of the comparison. And I used to blow it off, cause everybody hates being compared to somebody else, it always makes you really uncomfortable. GEORGE: Especially people who O.D. AMANDA: Yeah, exactly (laughing) I'd like to make it past 27, if that's okay. Um, and I kind of wanted to be, I kind of wanted to stand on my own, so I think I probably did what a lot of people do, which is you go, you run as far away to the other end of the spectrum as you can, and you try and sort of maintain your own thing, you know. I think Everybody's Got A Story is probably the first, I don't know, it's probably the first really independantly minded record I've made. Mainly because I hadn't made a record for a while, and I was off the radar for a while, and I was kind of free to do what I wanted, and it really gave me a chance to sort of decompress and just take a minute and figure out what I wanted to say. So I had a very clear focus about what I wanted to do. GEORGE: So when you wanted to run away as far as you could, to make the kind of record that would differentiate yourself, did you ever look at the industry and say 'hey, screw you man.' Just didn't want to write rock songs or be a part of something else? AMANDA: Yeah, oh all the time. But, you know, making, doing this, it's, it's like the greatest gig in the world, and its the most frusturating thing you'll ever do. Because you're constantly bombarded with other people's perceptions of you, and everybody has an opinion about your work, and your look, and your hair, and your clothes, and you know. And you're constantly struggling with how to really come into your own in the midst of this chaos that's working out around you. I found, making this record, the easiest way to do that, for me, was to let the flow of the conversation become the lyric. This record sounds like me, it sounds like the way I talk, it sounds like the way I am, it sounds like the way I think. So I think it's probably the first time I've really done that, and it takes, you know, I think it takes some I guess guts, to kinda do that, because what if nobody likes it? You know, what if nobody likes you? GEORGE: What do you think of people nowadays? You know, you go back to the Jeff Healy, Elton John, John Mellencamp, you know, the young Amanda that everybody talks about, to the one who's sold a bunch of records, done your thing, had your own personality, and you're an adult. Are you better with people? Or are you worse with people? Do you finally realize "Get away"? AMANDA: I think I'm better. Cause I think I'm much more, um GEORGE: Were you worse at one point? AMANDA: I think I was probably uptight within myself. I think I was probably a little bit scared and a little bit, you know, eager to please, like we all are GEORGE: And now, look at you all confident--takes out issue of Flare-- AMANDA: Speaking of eager to please GEORGE: Look at all of that, eh? That's rock and roll AMANDA: Look at her. She's way cooler than me GEORGE: What is she doing. Uh, this, you read the liner notes, you see the video, you play a lot of different roles. Is it easy to be a professional schizo as opposed to a normal one? AMANDA: (laughing) Yes, uh the medication they give me helps a lot GEORGE: Nice, um, so, you like fashion, you like this whole setup. You like playing the part? AMANDA: I do, I mean, this is kind of, this is kind of me. This is probably the closest that people have seen of me. Yeah, I'm deep into like clothes, I'm a girl, you know, I like to shop. I'm all over that stuff GEORGE: And try different stuff like you do in your video, so we'll do that. Amanda, thank you for coming in AMANDA: Thank you for having me GEORGE: No problem, Amanda Marshall, here's the video! It's Amanda on Much AMANDA: Bye!