Steve Gorman Interview
By EK
May,  1997
 


Interview
The Black Crowes'
drummer Steve Gorman
by EK

What better band to lead this year's Further Festival than the Black Crowes.
Their style of music taps into the "Dead Head fans" that have been in search
of some direction since their leader, Jerry Garcia, passed on. Not quite the
same, but nonetheless, a vibe that has kept this band from Atlanta, Georgia,
tops in festival draw.

We had a chance to talk to drummer Steve Gorman backstage at this year's
Further Festival at the Coca-Cola Star Lake Amphitheatre.

Strolling out of the tour bus rubbing his eyes and stretching after a long
nights ride, Gorman explains how crazy life can be as a Black Crowe. "We
started out in Europe and returned to the States in March," exhales Gorman.
"We had hoped to take a break because we have been touring since last
summer, but we ended up back in the studio. We recorded about thirteen songs
in five days. I'm not sure when we are going to release the record-- maybe
early next year. The Further Tour ends in August and then we hit the road
with our own tour. We actually like being busy, nothing beats a live show."

Having played both the Horde and now this festival, Gorman and Co. seem
more at home on this tour. "Further Festival is more relaxed and fun,"
explains Gorman. "We wanted to do this tour since we played with the Dead in
'95. They wanted us to keep touring with them, but we had already promised
the Horde. This tour is the closest to doing that. We got to know Bob (Weir)
from bumming tickets to their shows. (Laughs) We actually called them up
over the winter and asked them to do the tour. This tour is more laid back
than the Horde, it's not so business like. Every show has jam sets with
anyone who is on the bill. Each night, someone goes to each band with three
songs and asks if anyone knows any of the songs. If you do, you're elected
to play. It's a blast."

One can only wonder how a band keeps its sanity with all this touring. "Ah,
we haven't," laughs Gorman. "You got to give in, you can't fight it. This
what you'll be doing each day. When you're on tour you're in a bubble...
your own world. The key is to understand that and not shut off the outside
world. We had a lot of inner problems in the band, most of them personal,
strange... uh... (Laughs). You put six guys in a submarine and, sooner or
later, knives will be drawn. It's mostly hard on personal lives...
families. Four of us have families. For me, it's not a problem, we work it
out. Hell, the alternative would be to not get along, and that would suck.
My wife and I love each other, we will always be together. My wife comes out
on weekends. When we aren't touring, I'm home for three months-- everyday,
all day. (Laughs) By then she's going, 'Okay, now go!' (Laughs) 'Don't you
have a tour to go to, bills to pay... go, go, go!' I saw Willie Nelson on
Sixty Minutes and he said, 'If you are going to do this, you need to have an
understanding that there is never going to be a day you aren't a little
sad. When you're on tour, you miss home and when you're at home you miss
touring.' He's right. You can't live two separate lives, one at home and one
on the road. It don't work. Sometime the gravy spills into the corn. You
have to open your eyes and be honest to what you do. When you're young and
daydreaming about being successful in a band you never think that you might
have a headache one day or get hold of a bad burrito and feel like shit.
(Laughs) Life is still life."

Being a successful rock star isn't always a "bad thing." For most it's a
great time. "It is for me," assures Gorman. "The whole thing is great. I
remember the December of 1989. We played a free show in our hometown of
Atlanta. The first beer was free and we drew twenty people. That's how
popular we were in Atlanta, Georgia. (Laughs) We had already made our first
record and released it two months later. A year later, to the week, we
played three sold out shows at the same theater. Now, that was kind of
weird, but way cool."

Sometimes life gives a person a different perception of someone, but there
is a strange little thing that no one knows about them. "Strange... I don't
know. I think that I'm a normal guy, but lead an insane life," laughs
Gorman. What we do isn't normal. We get on a bus, drive seven hours a night,
go to sleep, wake up, and be in a place like this. We see this everyday. It
can destroy one's perception. I wouldn't trade this for anything. (Laughs) I
can't lie, I used to have shit jobs, but it's been about seven years. "I'm
not going to tell anyone, 'Hey, I know how you feel,' because I don't.
(Laughs) I don't have anyone telling me to get my fucking receipts in order
anymore. It's great. My big problems include wondering what fucking city
we're in. (laughs) I can still see us playing in ten years-- it's been that
long now. So, I can say, 'Shit, if that's been ten years, we're just
starting to get going.' If you would have asked me ten years ago if we would
still be playing in ten years, I would have said, 'Get the fuck out!'
(Laughs) 'I'll kill those fuckers before that!' We are still here and trying
to move in a more positive direction."

The Crowes woke up about two years ago and decided it was time to get their shit together, cut back on the wild rock'n'roll style they were leading.
There has also been quiet on the Robinson brothers' home front. There for a
while, the pair almost called it quits. "It was bad a couple of years ago,"
tells Gorman. " When you're in a band, it's a band, not two brothers and the
guys they hire. We are all in the same boat. When two guys have a
relationship like they had, it affects everyone-- no one is immune to it.
You can't go from fighting with your brother, in this case, and turn to the
next guy and go, 'Excuse me, could you pass me the Grey Poupon?' (Laughs)
It's not going to happen. It's more like, 'Pass me the fucking mustard
asshole.' There are no lines with that shit. The fighting did stem from
being brothers and songwriting partners. They sit around with guitars and
writing songs together. That's not easy. I write stuff all the time just for
me. If I showed it to somebody and they said, 'That's great, but if you
change this paragraph here...' I'd be like, 'Get the fuck out of my way.'
(Laughs) So, you see, it can be intense. They have been songwriters and
bandmates for years, but never friends. Finally, one day on the bus, they
decided to have conversations and it was noticeable. (Laughs) They would ask
each other, 'What do you think'...'Why do you want to know?'... 'I guess
because you're twenty-eight and I'm twenty-six and maybe we should be
friends.' Oh yeah! (Laughs) We thought it was a weird Twilight Zone episode,
but I'm glad it worked out. Sometimes you get stuck in a habit and it's hard
to change. I felt that was most of the problem. Who knows, maybe one got
more toys for Christmas and held a grudge. They are brothers. It's nice to
see that we all sort of grew up-- at least as much as you can when you are a
Black Crowe. We have to take care of each other; we are the only family we
have when we're on the road.