marvin Posted October 2, 2004 Share Posted October 2, 2004 A few weeks ago, I had the pleasure of speaking with Scott on the phone. He was kind enough to take some time out of his workday and place the long distance call. For those of you who are not aware, these days Scott drives the airport shuttle bus between Santa Barbara and Los Angeles airport - something that certainly does not appear to be as glamorous as that other job he had all those years ago. When I asked him about this work , Scott's reply was, "I don't report to anybody, and I get to drive alongside the ocean everyday, beautiful view, so what's to complain about?" Scott came across just as I imagined: a real down-to-earth, sincere guy. While we were speaking to each other, I jotted down quick notes, and then sent the interview to Scott to get his permission to post it on the Message Board. He mailed me back hand-written notes (talk about giving it a personal flavor!) which I received today. What follows is the gist of our conversation. Thanks to everyone who sent me suggestions for questions to ask Scott: 1. ARE YOU INVOLVED WITH ANY MUSICAL PROJECTS, WORKING ON ANY MUSIC? - I'm not doing too much musically. In my heart I'd like to do something again, but I don't know if it'll happen because it is such a time and financial commitment. Sometimes when I feel moved, I'll pick up the guitar and I'll write a chorus or a verse, but that doesn't happen often. The last few things I've done have been because someone has come to me (the Shoes project, the Drysdales project). So if someone approached me, then maybe I'd do something. It's always fun doing stuff with other people. Before I did my solo record, I had done music for a living for such a long time and it turned bad on me. I got down to the bottom of the barrel and then re-discovered what it was that first got me excited about "I Want to Hold Your Hand." That's when I approached Tom Sorrells about cutting the solo disc. 2. MANY PEOPLE ON THE EC MESSAGE BOARD HAVE TALKED ABOUT YOUR SOLO DISC, "PLAY ON", AND HOW IT IS A FAVOURITE OF THEIRS. - Yeah that was a fun thing to do, and there were some nice songs on it. I'm glad people liked it. 3. IN MY OPINION, THE SONG "PLAY ON" IS A CLASSIC. THERE'S NO DENYING IT. A FRIEND OF MINE BELIEVES THAT EVEN TODAY, IF "PLAY ON" WAS PRESENTED TO A CURRENT BAND SUCH AS "JET", IT COULD BE A HIT SONG. WAS IT EVER CONSIDERED FOR A SINGLE RELEASE? - Well that's nice of you to say that. It certainly should have been a single, and at 3 minutes in length, it wasn't the opus that "Overnight Sensation" was, even though "Overnight" was ahead of its time and a wonderful song. Why it was never released as a single, only Capitol knows for sure. 4. CAN YOU STILL HIT THOSE HIGH NOTES ON "PLAY ON"? - Yeah (laughs). 5. DO YOU REMEMBER DOING A GIG IN LONG ISLAND TOWARD THE END OF THE '75 LEG OF THE TOUR, WITH ERIC AND MIKE (NO WALLY AND NO BILLY HANNA) - AND DOING BEATLES' COVERS ("NO REPLY", "ANYTIME AT ALL")? YOU DON'T HAVE IT LISTED IN YOUR ITINERARY NOR IS IT IN KEN SHARP'S BOOK, BUT ACCORDING TO MY FRIEND LARRY LANGE, IT DID HAPPEN BECAUSE HE WAS THERE! - Well if he says he was there, I can't argue with that (laughs)! It sounds familiar, but if it's not listed in my itinerary, I'm not sure. I remember doing a show around tax time so it would have been earlier in '75. I remember it 'cos it was an awful experience! (In ScottÃs notes to me, he added: ìI went back to KenÃs book, and there it is: 3 dates in MarchÃ75 labeled ì3-manî, none on Long Island, but we were nearby...couldÃve happened.î) 6. WHAT WAS THAT LIKE - PLAYING A REAL 'SMOKE -FILLED, SLEAZY BAR" WITH A THREE-MAN LINE-UP, AROUND THE TIME THAT "STARTING OVER" WAS VOTED "BEST ALBUM OF THE YEAR" IN ROLLING STONE? WERE THE 'BERRIES DEPRESSED? ANGRY? UPSET? - Ha! It certainly was strange. At that point we threw up our hands, we knew we had done the best we could and no one was listening. 7. DO YOU RECALL YOUR MOST MEMORABLE SHOW? - The one that stands out for me was Central Park. It was the first lovely weekday of spring, early May. There were nearly 100,000 people in the Park. We weren't the only act, I think the Chambers Brothers might have been among the others acts, but it was during the making of "Starting Over", and we were introduced by John Lennon. You sure can't beat that. 8. I'M SURE YOU'VE HEARD THE TALK ABOUT AN UPCOMING REUNION OF THE BAND WITH ERIC, DAVE, WALLY AND JIM. ARE YOU TAKING PART OR PLANNING TO ATTEND? - Nah, it's their day. They're four local heroes and they should enjoy their time. I think Mike (McBride) and I shouldn't go and muddy it up. I kinda think that there'll be something else that will come out of it, maybe here on the West Coast, and then I'll go see that. I hope that when they all get together, it goes well. Sure we had problems years ago, but everyone's different now. I know that Eric is very different from what he used to be. He's really a wonderful family man and a great father. Dave, Wally, Jim... they've all got families and kids, and are in their 50's. There are a lot of old hurts that I figure are probably healed by now, so I would hope that people have let go of the old bad feelings. 9. WHAT WAS THE "REFRESHED' EXPERIENCE LIKE? - The tapings went really well. I wish I had stuck around for the actual mixing, but I left it up to Dave and Wally to do. It was also a great experience doing that Odeon show and a lot of fun getting to know Jim and Dave. 10. WOULD YOU WORK WITH THEM AGAIN? - I'd do something with any Raspberry in a second. I even told Dave that if he needed a high vocal part for his solo disc, that I'd love to help him out, but I think that Dave really wanted to create his own album by himself. I can appreciate that. I still talk to Wally occasionally to see how Jesse is doing and stuff. Wally is a great guy. 11. WHAT WAS IT LIKE LOOKING IN ON THE ERIC-WALLY RELATIONSHIP? IT CERTAINLY MUST HAVE BEEN HARD TO WATCH AT TIMES. - You know all great teams are like water and oil. Simon and Garfunkel, Brian Wilson and Mike Love...Eric and Wally were a great team and their relationship was also very much like that. You know that Beatles film ("Let It Be") where everyone's arguing with everyone? There were times when it was just like that. 12. WOULD YOU WORK WITH ERIC AGAIN? - The last time I saw or spoke to Eric was around 2000 and I talked to him about just that. I said that we should do something together because everything we ever did was pretty good. At that time his kids were very young and time was a factor, so he wasn't very interested. I remember joking with him about his kids, and saying, "hey your kid has great Beatle hair!", and he said, "Ah I'm not into that anymore." Maybe he has more time now that his kids are probably in school. 13. DURING YOUR WORK DAY, HAVE YOU EVER COME ACROSS SOMEONE WHO HAS RECOGNIZED YOU? - Not really, but there have been many conversations with people about music and inevitably I get asked if I ever made a record, which leads to the question about what band I was in. More often than not, when I mention the name "Raspberries", the other person says, "Woah I used to love that band!" That's kinda neat because I would never have thought that all these years later people would still think about the band. 14. DO YOU THINK THAT A SHOW LIKE "BEHIND THE MUSIC" OR "REUNITED" ON VH-1 WOULD EVER DO SOMETHING ON THE 'BERRIES? THERE ARE PEOPLE ON THE EC MESSAGE BOARD WHO HAVE SUGGESTED A LETTER-WRITING CAMPAIGN TO VH-1 ABOUT THE BAND. - It's funny that you should ask that. Many of the kids who used to love our band back then, are now in pretty influential positions, so maybe there's someone like that at VH-1 who'd be interested. I think that there could be a market for it and there's definitely some interesting material about us. I suppose if there was enough demand from the public, they'd probably consider it. 15. I KNOW THAT YOU'VE WORKED WITH KYLE VINCENT IN THE PAST, HAVE YOU CONSIDERED WORKING WITH HIM AGAIN? - I did some recording at his house about 7 years ago. Can't remember the song but maybe it was "On the Beach." Next time you speak with Kyle, ask him what became of that song?! Kyle's a very talented musician and I'm surprised that he hasn't made it big. He should concentrate on pop music because that's what he's best at. 16. ANY POSSIBILITY OF STARTING UP YOUR WEBSITE AGAIN? - I don't know. Maybe if I was doing some music, then I'd resurrect it again. 17. ARE YOU STILL IN CONTACT WITH TOM SORRELLS? - I'm still in contact with Tom regularly. He's my oldest music friend, and in fact tomorrow (September 17th) is the 40th anniversary of when Tom and I saw the Beatles in Kansas City. 18. IS THERE ANY UNRELEASED MATERIAL OR DEMOS HIDING SOMEWHERE? - Ken Sharp has some really cool stuff from the Don Kirschner Rock Concert tapings, stuff that didn't make it to air. I had forgotten that we actually did songs other than what was aired. Also here's an interesting story: Wally has a lot of contacts in New York City, and about six or seven years ago, he got a call from someone who witnessed the demolition of the old Record Plant studio. This person found some tapes in the dumpster with "Raspberries" written on the case. Wally went down to NY and got the case from the guy. I have no idea what was on the tapes but I should give Wally a call and ask him. There were a bunch of them! 19. OTHER MEMORIES, GOOD OR BAD? - I know that this has been re-hashed over and over, but Raspberries wasn't all Eric. There were others but people tend to forget that because Eric was the focus and without a doubt, he certainly deserved to be the focus. My short stay in the band gave me some of the highest highs and the lowest lows I have ever experienced, all in a very short span of time. When you're young, and I was around 22, you're not ready for something like that. I remember the very first night we played some Christian college and we were so good, they wouldn't let us off the stage. Then on the next night we substituted for Iggy Pop and we got booed! They were throwing things at us. Ha! The night after that, I was sick backstage, huddled in a corner, scared to go out! Dear me! What next? But you know what? I had the opportunity to actually play in my favorite band. How many people can say that? 20. WHAT DOES THE FUTURE HOLD FOR SCOTT MCCARL? - Tom Sorrells is putting together a "Best of Titan!" disc; there'll be a couple of 1990's odd sox of mine on that. Stuff you haven't heard! My wife has been pushing me to write a book. She said that some of the stories would make an excellent book, and between Tom and me, we remember everything. Every time I get the urge to do the book thing, I say to myself: "Who do you think you are?" But you know what, heck, John Lennon knew me by name! ------------------------------------------------- There you go. I can't reiterate enough what a wonderful experience it was to have this conversation. So Scott if you're reading, let's do it again soon! Marvin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mannoman Posted October 2, 2004 Share Posted October 2, 2004 What a great post Marvin. I'm sure others will appreciate it as much as I do. Ted Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marvin Posted October 2, 2004 Author Share Posted October 2, 2004 Actually I should have added this to the end: Eric if YOU are reading, give Scott a call!Marvin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kazumi Posted October 2, 2004 Share Posted October 2, 2004 MarvinI really enjoyed reading your post. This is absolutely great!!! Thank you so much.Kazumi Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kirk Posted October 2, 2004 Share Posted October 2, 2004 That was a great read! I travel that same stretch of 101 along the coast from time to time--next time I see the SB shuttle bus I'll have to see if Scott's at the wheel Marvin, you're 100% right about Scott being a down-to-earth, sincere guy; the night I met him at Dragonfly he introduced me to his mom and dad! Good job, you asked some insightful questions. Kirk. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raspbernie Posted October 2, 2004 Share Posted October 2, 2004 On 10/2/2004 at 0:15 AM, marvin said: They're four local heroes and they should enjoy their time. Proof that Scott is not only a GREAT musician/songwriter -- but a CLASS ACT!!! Thanks for sharing, Marvin! Bernie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
okstevens Posted October 2, 2004 Share Posted October 2, 2004 Marvin, Great questions...Scott great answers !!Thanks to both of you. Very enjoyable to read. Speaking of reading I never thanked Bernie for such a great job on the book. The best writtng of any of my hereos since Matthew,Mark, Luke and John ! Looking for part 2 soon ! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gordharris Posted October 2, 2004 Share Posted October 2, 2004 I had just finished reading the questions and answers to Scott from Marvin, Ok, we all know now that No more website from Scott, at least for now.That he says that leave the past behind and get on with the future lives for the rest of the Berries(Wally , Jim, Dave and Eric).That a new Cd with a couple of songs are on the way.But, will he ever see the four again?We will wait and see.Also, More Raspberries songs were recovered from that fire.Well, well, let's hope another Cd with more songs come out.So guys, their's really more songs out there that we all could enjoy and have.Scott, thank you for taking time to have Marvin post your answers up on here, Marvin thank you for sharing.Bernie, thanks for having to post the questions and answers on here.That was sure interesting. Wow!I'm really impressed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gordharris Posted October 2, 2004 Share Posted October 2, 2004 You know, I think The Raspberries are the fab four of the future.Let's hope VH-1 does do something. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Billy Posted October 2, 2004 Share Posted October 2, 2004 What a great interview -- thanks Marvin for sharing that. Good job! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DeanTylerVO Posted October 2, 2004 Share Posted October 2, 2004 Marvin, THANK YOU for sharing a great interview on your part with Scott. It provided some great insight to life during and after the berries. Now I know I have to get Bernies' book very soon.I made the Odeon show, but looks like I'll miss the November reunion. But I gotta believe somehow a video/dvd will come out of it for all of us who want to share that night of history.Job well done Marvin!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aggiesjc Posted October 2, 2004 Share Posted October 2, 2004 Excellent, Marvin and Scott! You've done a wonderful service for those of us who want the inside perspective. Great questions, and honest, down-to-earth answers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gordharris Posted October 2, 2004 Share Posted October 2, 2004 I just talked with ticket master here in Hamilton, Ontario,In order for me to buy a ticket for a collectors item or whatever, I have to wait until the guys if they come to Hamilton, OR New York.I cannot afford to pay double price in the U.S.Well, they will not come to Hamilton, Ontario, I know that for sure.Maybe Toronto, Ontario, you never know, only they do.So their you go. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mymooladi Posted October 2, 2004 Share Posted October 2, 2004 Thanks Marvin and a BIG Thank You to Scott too. (I hope he does read the boards once in a while) I would love to see Eric and Scott team up again. Think about it Eric, it might be fun someday. June Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gordharris Posted October 3, 2004 Share Posted October 3, 2004 I know for a fact, I will not miss out on a dvd on my favorite band.Named, The Raspberries!If one is being made. Cross my fingers X Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JuliaAllByMyself Posted October 3, 2004 Share Posted October 3, 2004 Brilliant post, Marvin! I really enjoyed reading it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matthew C. Clark Posted October 3, 2004 Share Posted October 3, 2004 Absolutely awesome!! Matt Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marlene Posted October 3, 2004 Share Posted October 3, 2004 I don't know how i missed this thread until now.. Thanks for sharing, Marvin. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JPMusic Posted October 4, 2004 Share Posted October 4, 2004 Marvin, great interview..... Scott really shows he is a class guy and very grounded and connected to regular eveyday events.... Jerry Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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