Danny Says Page #10

So I don't how you could be a

fast blues player but anyhow...

And the other one

was a keyboard player,

and he wore the piano

around his neck.

It was the most ungainly thing

I've ever seen,

because it was this big, long...

diving board.

And it sort of gets

a life on its own.

When you turn one way,

it goes the other.

Imagine this thing.

(laughs)

And you're...

And you're playing it.

- Guitars are.

- Stupid-looking enough.

That was Steve's dream.

That's okay, but you can see

that was a little dispiriting.

I do wanna take credit for

the Edgar Winter's album

that made Steve Paul rich.

And us rich, which was called,

They Only Come Out at Night,

and it contained

the enchanting hit,

"Frankenstein".

(imitates "Frankenstein" riff)

Eight minutes of one riff.

And it was huge!

(laughs)

Just like you get time

to go to the bathroom,

or you can make a doodie,

you put on a sandwich

to roast in the microwave.

You could do all these things,

while that song was on,

it was very handy.

- Someone had done.

- A shoot of Edgar.

Looking up at the ceiling so his

hair was falling down his back.

Steve asked me to advise him,

- "What do we do.

- With this person?"

"Turn him sideways!"

You know,

he ain't ever gonna be cute.

At least turn him sideways,

and make it look

as if he's blowing in the wind.

That's the little things

I do to make trouble that...

if they happen, no one knows,

so that's my life story.

So what's the name?

What's that career called?

A nudgy?

- ("Roadrunner"

- by The Modern Lovers plays)

Modern Lovers in 1972

were a very hot band.

Steve Paul and I recorded them

and chased them and

- we used to hang out.

- With them and go to.

Saunas at motels and I would

save the towels that.

Jerry and Ernie sat on.

Cute people!

- Jonathan Richman:

- He would come up when.

- The Velvet Underground.

- Would play,

- And they would play.

- n Boston a lot.

We would talk about.

The Stooges a lot.

And Danny brought me

to see them live in Ungano's.

And I had all these drawings

of myself in different positions

- 'cause I was in.

- The center of the world.

I showed Iggy and The Stooges.

Here's a picture of me

up on the roof

of the Howard Johnson's,

- and those are the trees,

- and that's the '57 Thunderbird,

And there's the universe

in relation to myself

and everything.

The Asheton brothers

and Dave Alexander said,

"Let us look at that too."

So they look at

my complicated drawing

- where I was the center.

- Of the world and everything.

- They looked at each other.

- And said,

"Give up, man."

- I say to Iggy, "I've got so much.

- More to say to you!"

And I'm shameless, you know,

and Iggy, bless his heart,

you know...

said, "Oh, I've got a good idea.

I'll talk to you

from the stage!"

And I went, "Okay!"

(laughs)

- I said,

- "You know what I wanna be,

- I wanna be.

- A rock 'n' roll star."

- Danny says,

- "Jonathan, don't say that."

I said, "Why not?"

- He says, "Because people.

- Will laugh at you."

I go, "Yeah, and?"

It's the truth.

And we would argue.

And we'd have fights about

all kinds of things like that.

He was trying to be nice.

He was trying to help me out.

Danny:
One of them albinos was

playing at a high school and.

Steve Paul figured,

"Now we'll see how good

the Modern Lovers are,

so we'll have them

open for either one

of these unappealing artists."

Jonathan:
The audience wasn't

thrilled with us exactly.

It was a mutual lack

of communication.

But that wasn't disheartening,

that was show biz.

Danny:
They wouldn't have liked

the Second Coming

if Jesus had flamed up

on the stage there.

They were waiting for

albino Texas blues guitarist

and nothing,

certainly not The Modern Lovers,

who were quirky and kinky

and Harvardy.

They could have been killed

by projectiles.

And if someone had

a poison dart gun,

all The Modern Lovers

would have been dead.

So to me that's like, "Hooray!"

Must be doing something right.

So that ended our quest

to be associated with them.

- Who knows.

- What would've happened?

Who knows?

- Danny Goldberg:

- I guess when Danny.

Uses the word inventing,

- he means, that through.

- His credibility and enthusiasm,

He puts someone on a map

- that they wouldn't.

- Otherwise be on.

His opinion influenced...

most of the journalists

and PR people.

He just had the best taste,

and a way of expressing it

that made you want

to seek his approval.

- He doesn't think.

- About money as.

The main definition

of success.

He thinks about greatness

as he defines it.

- And if he thinks something.

- s great, it's great,

- And whatever.

- Anybody else thinks,

- They're just idiots.

- f they don't agree with him.

So that's incredibly inspiring

in terms of

- somebody's commitment.

- To their own taste.

And clarity and vision.

It's not the way to get rich.

I never turned down quick money,

but I wasn't looking for it,

and you have to pay for money.

Steve Paul and I were both

asked to see Aerosmith.

He hated them as people,

and I didn't love them

as anything.

Someone could have said,

"Oh, they're gonna be great

and famous and big stars

and sell a gazillion records,

and make millionaires

out of everyone."

- I would've said, "I don't care,

- good, let it happen,

Let someone else do it."

They flew people to Boston

to see them.

Lisa and I were there,

of course.

And afterwards,

there was a big dinner

at a cool restaurant

in Harvard Square.

The band came in,

and the first thing,

she looked at me and said,

"Ew, he's wearing what

he wore on stage to the party!

Ew!

I don't want to get

too near him!"

And...

you know...

It's kinda like that's one way

of saying what I felt.

It's a way of saying

what Steve Paul felt about them.

- Legs McNeil:

- I think what's great about Danny.

s that he's kinda undefinable.

- Danny believes that love is.

- Kind of like art, it's perfect.

And sex is this dirty thing...

It's kinda like

money and sex are down here,

and art and love are up here.

And he has a kind of a...

a real conflict with that.

I mean I look back and...

What am I thrilled by?

- Something I did?

- No.

The best times?

When they were happening,

- I didn't think, "Oh, I'm.

- Living in the best time."

They didn't seem so then.

You don't say that,

on that...

When you think about it,

or look at pictures of it,

"Oh, my god,

what a beautiful place!

"What a beautiful time of day,

what a beautiful person!"

Five important people in my life

died last year!

Five!

I think, I'm losing count now.

In one year.

What?

You know...

My Achilles heel was...

everything

took too long to happen

and I couldn't stick

around for it.

I wasn't gonna stick around.

- Mara Hennessy:
He becomes.

- Overly attached.

To the illusion of self,

his creation,

Danny Fields.

- And I think that that's.

- A lot of pressure,

t's a full-time gig.

So he lives with a...

A kinda sense of inadequacy

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