The ongoing Fan Club interview (email questions here)
01. If you were to have a Love Child with a female musician who would it be ?
Well, if it were about 10 years ago, I probably would have said Suzanna Hoffs of the Bangles. Although I'm sure she still looks great, she's probably married. I might have to say....and forgive me for this all you rock purists….maybe Kelly Clarkson. I don't know, something about her singing "Since you been gone"....
02. Favorite Meal ?
I can't just narrow that down to one. I'll tell you some. "These are a few of my fav-o-rite things" as they say:
Tabouleh-but only made by a certain few people or restaurants
(Note from interviewer..to save you from googling… a popular Middle Eastern salad containing many vegetables, olive oil and spices.)
Sushi-I can't get enough. I'd eat it like 4 times a week if it weren't so damn expensive. Spicy tuna is my favorite.
Grilled tuna
Baked eggplant parmasean/parmagana. It has to be thin, lightly breaded or battered or whatever you call it, with a lot of sauce.
03. Favorite flavor of Ice Cream ?
Well, I have been going fro-yo for the last bunch of years cause its low or non-fat ("anotherroundofstrawberryforallmyfriends!"), but I would definitely have to say, far and away, favorite yogurt or ice cream is chocolate chip…with a ton of jimmies...more jimmies than ice cream..and please do not call them the "s"-word in my presence. I have gotten into fistfights over that.
04. If you could “steal” musicians from another band to play with you who would they be (list all instruments)?
Would i be considered boring if they were all from U2 and the E Street Band??? Well, let me think...
Drums-Max W.-he's so disciplined!
Bass-Adam Clayton-because he knows why he's there and knows that sometimes a song sounds better just pounding the root note of the chord.
Guitar-The Edge
Guitar-Noel Gallagher-every time I've seen oasis live they always sound great
keys-??????
05. What guitars do you use ?
acoustic- Takemine, Fender
electric- Fender Telecaster, Gretsch semi-hollow, Gibson Les Paul studio (but I will probably sell it soon)
06. Preferred brand of strings ?
D'addario light
07. What posters did you have on your wall growing up as a kid ?
Mostly sports, actually. Larry Bird was up there for sure. Jim Rice, Roger Clemens from the Red Sox…other random sports posters that I would pick up in my travels.....I remember I had a Phillies one with Mike Schmidt and Steve Carlton.
08. If Schoolbus Window Paper Heart was redone by superstar bands/musicians, list what artist you would assign for each song. ?
WHITE FEATHER-Bruce (Neil Young a close second choice)
CARNIVAL DAYS-Hootie and the Blowfish
LYING AND STEALING-Howie Day
SCENES FROM AN AMERICAN REST STOP-Radiohead
RIVER TO OCEAN-Matthew Sweet
CINDERELLA AND THE SUBWAY-Oasis
LOW-Radiohead
GOODNIGHT KISS-John Mayer???
NO HEART ACHE-Ryan Adams
IF I WALK DOWN HER PATH-Eddie Vedder (“acoustic Eddie”)
BELIEVE-U2
MOTHER'S DAY (RUN)-Ryan Adams
4TH DISTRICT COURT OF BRISTOL COUNTY-The Killers
09. Favorite Beatles lp ?
Not sure. and if i say Sgt. Pepper it sounds so cliché and lame….(but probably Sgt. Pepper…). I will say that ‘all you need is love’ is in my top few favorite songs of all-time.
10. What is your favorite movie of all time?
"It’s a Wonderful Life." Although it can only be enjoyed for
about 3 weeks out of the year and I’m pissed that its not on 18 times a day
anymore like it used to be when I was a kid. Other favorites include the Back to
the Future series, Shawshank Redemption, Pulp Fiction…
Relatively recent honorable mentions would include Wedding Crashers, Old School, Lost in Translation and Memento (because I’m friend of Sammy Jankus).
And for those of you who are reading this and saying "but where’s ‘Predator’ on this list, Phil??? You watched it every day in College." shhh…….
11. What is your favorite holiday?
None, really. Easter maybe. I think that would be it.
12. What do you think of shows like American Idol &
Nashville Star?
To be honest, I’ve never seen Nashville Star and haven’t seen more than
bits and pieces of American Idol (surprising, considering my teenage crush on
Paula Abdul), so i can’t really say too much about it. I can say that I wish
people would stop asking me "why don’t you go on ‘American Idol,’
Phil???"
13. What is your favorite/lucky number?
3,4,9,24,33
14. Are you superstitious?
Only when it comes to the Boston Red Sox.
15. What do your parents think of your career choice?
Wouldn’t the most "Rock Star" thing to say be "who gives a
s#%t what my parents think of my career choice? Now pass that bottle of ‘jack’
over, its almost 10am…" but no, of course I give a s#%t what they think.
Well, that’s a tough one. I think I’ll say that they’re slowly getting
used to it, but they wouldn’t mind seeing me on tv sometime soon. I think it
helps that their friends seem to like the new record. Of course, they all say
they like it…
16. What has been the highpoint of your career so far?
Actually that’s a really tough one cause even though I’m not
"famous" or anything, there’ve been so many. I mean, the fact that I
found myself making a record with Tim (Bradshaw), who has been a part of some
great, great records and songs was pretty surreal for me. As well as working
with Ed Toth. I would sit there and think to myself "these guys have made
real(!) records!" Watching them work was eye-opening and exciting.
Ok, also, you never forget the first time you see someone dancing and holding hands to one of your songs ("Don’t Run Away" at J. Rags in Tewksbury, Ma.), or someone singing your own song back to you ("Like a Cowboy" at the Times in Boston, Ma.), or someone telling you that they make love to one of your songs ("Don’t Run Away," a staff member at the End Zone in Foxboro, Ma…..and hey, it’s a 7-minute song!!! He’s the man!), or the first time you hear yourself on the radio ("Sign of the Time" on 94 whjy in Providence, R.I.).
I would also have to include the day I was driving back to Boston after a show in New York and having our drummer Jim Vitti call me and say that Peter Gammons, baseball journalist extraordinaire and now hall of famer, mentioned us and our record in his online column on espn.com., and then getting home and seeing how far-reaching his influence really was when we had a whole bunch of cd orders from around the country (and internationally).
Finding out that people actually listen to the music by their own choice has never ceased to be a thrill. Getting emails from people I’ve never met before who have come across the music somehow and send a note along just to say that they’re enjoying it. It's cliché, but one of those literally makes my day (and i don’t mean in the Clint Eastwood way).
And then there are fans who have started to get involved and put an extraordinary amount of their own time and effort into helping get the word out because they believe in the music…that is almost incomprehensible to me but its an amazing thrill. Knowing that certain people or organizations have chosen to include a song of mine in their own work, be it a cd sampler, a stage production, etc is a great honor.
Ok, ok, if i had to pick one…hearing my song followed by a Springsteeen song (Tunnel of Love, no less!) on the radio. ‘All Mixed Up Radio’ on wdha in New Jersey.
Warned you it was a tough question…
17. What is the most spontaneous thing you have ever
done?
I’m gonna change the question…. "craziest thing you ever did…"
Going back to high school for this one. I was a graduating senior and decided to interrupt someone’s classroom and take my shirt off. I have no idea where the idea came from, but I had a good friend named Corinna who has a birthday at the end of April. Now, there was nothing going on between Corinna and I, we were just really good friends. Anyway, for some reason I was insane about working out back then and was in the gym twice a day (before and after school). So I had gotten myself into pretty good shape, but I wore baggy clothes and no one could tell. And Corinna would give me a hard time about how I should get in to better shape. blah blah blah.
So on her birthday I decided to prove her wrong. I knocked on the door of one of her classes and asked to interrupt. I had flowers, a gift, and a little boombox with "I touch myself" playing on it (it was an inside joke between us….honest.). I also had a brand new Tufts sweatshirt on, as I had recently gotten accepted and that’s where I was going to go to school. So I gave her the flowers and the gift and then took the sweatshirt off and gave that to her as well. Of course, I didn’t have anything on underneath (I mean, I had pants on…. I meant nothing on top). I gave her a hug and kiss, wished her a Happy Birthday, and walked out. Found out later that there were 13 kids in that class….12 girls.
That was a long long time ago. hey, not all that crazy, but that’s about as crazy as I’ve gotten (so far…).
Incoming
18. If you were to do a duet with a female who would you choose. ? Both pop & country categories