MANY THANKS ANDY......WHEN AND IF EATER GET BACK
TOGETHER I'M ON THE FIRST PLANE OUTTA OZ TO CATCH
THE SHOW!
You can contact Andy at andyblade4361183@aol.com
==============================================================
June Bird is an animal rights activist, author, cartoonist, ex backing vocalist with Adam & The Ants, drummer, snoop, stand up comedian
and actress.
June lives in Sydney, Australia - Email: icon@zip.com.au
TOGETHER I'M ON THE FIRST PLANE OUTTA OZ TO CATCH
THE SHOW!
You can contact Andy at andyblade4361183@aol.com
==============================================================
June Bird is an animal rights activist, author, cartoonist, ex backing vocalist with Adam & The Ants, drummer, snoop, stand up comedian
and actress.
June lives in Sydney, Australia - Email: icon@zip.com.au
Okay, so here's the questions 'n' answers:
June: Who's your all time favourite punk band?
Andy: My all time favourite punk band.....without doubt, who else, Sex Pistols, but the
Ramones come close.
June: Andy Blade, Is punk relevant in your life anymore or just a phase of your misspent youth?
Andy: It's still relevant in that I can't turn my back on my past. I'm proud of what Eater achieved and find it amazing when fans pop up all
over the place from Henry Rollins and Fugazi to 16 year old kids from Surrey! Punk changed everything, how can it not be relevant?
June: Whatever happened to yer old band 'Gabriel's Hounds'? (Bit of trivia for ya...The name 'Gabriels Hounds' from Andy's short lived outfit
would inspire a Torcha Shed song, which in turn was also pilfered for the name of my Fanzine reviews section in my old zine The Suffragette. It still
resides in the zine reviews section of this site...so cheers Andy. - Peter Don't Care)
Andy: We were together for a couple of years, changed the name to 'Andy Blade Band' when Billy
Duffy joined (Now in The Cult) & released a single on SMS called 'Break The News'. It was a good
band & my songs were getting better and better so too my voice, if a little Peter Perrett-ised. In fact
the songs I wrote in Eater were just warm-ups, babblings. I'd only just picked up a fucking guitar!. In a
way it pisses me off that those songs are the one's that are remembered. It's a little like Picasso being
held in great esteem for his infant scribbles rather than his major works of art! A bit anyway!!!
Oh, whatever! Next......
June: I do know you've done one reformation a few years back with different members - just wondered
how that went?
Andy: It was great fun. We got paid a lot of money too!! That was what clinched it, I have to say. Up
until then there was no way I would have considered it, but my arm was financially twisted. Also it was
in the same year The Pistols reformed, so I thought...well..why not? I used the bass player, Steve
O'Shea, and drummer, Reg-Urgitate, from my regular band and of course Brian Chevette on Guitar.
I had no idea where to start looking for Ian Woodcock or Dee. It was amazing to play to thousands of
people whom all seemed to know the songs back to front. I still don't like being spat at though. The
current fave thing to do with the pissed punks is to throw pint pots of urine at the stage and over each
other. What fun. Filthy retards!!
June: Was there any video footage of your European shows from 77/78
Andy: There's some film of a festival we did at Bell-Vue in Manchester with The Damned,
Slaughter, X-Ray Spex, Wire and so on but our record company boss disappeared with
loads of stuff. There was some footage also from a two night stint in Belgium....and The
Red Cow in Hammersmith, London. Come to think of it, there's also a film we made for
Top Of The Pops, should 'Lock it Up' have gone up instead of down the charts, I'd love to
see that! I remember asking the label boss to bring some booze with him so we could
loosen up a bit (first time filming etc). He bought along two miniatures of whisky! Our label
should've been called 'Cheapskate Hustlers'!
June: I want to know about the time you caught the same plane as Bob Dylan on a trip
returning from Paris . You took some pictures on arrival but Dylan's minders nicked the
film promising to return some signed photos.....did they ever materialise?
Andy: For one thing I never wanted any signed photo's of Dylan. I'd been in Paris
interviewing Sparks (my hero's) and had a load of pics of them on my film that his bouncer
(it was Mr T from the A team, honest) removed from my camera. He'd been on the same
flight as me and I thought, why not take a pic. I even asked politely! They said OK when
we land at Heathrow (he was playing Earls Court or somewhere). So I waited for the plane
to land and took a pic. Somewhere along the line he changed his mind I guess. and that's when he confronted me with Mr T. I was a little
scared, it was quite threatening. I should of screamed and called security!! Dylan told me he would have the pics developed and return my
Sparks pics after removing the shot of him. I never heard from him. Tosser! He even had the nerve to say that 'as a new born christian' (as
he was then) that I could trust him. Double tosser!
June: Would you ever consider reforming with Dee for the money or fun?
Andy: Now I'm in touch with Dee, thanks to you, definitely. Any wealthy punk rockers out there who'd like Eater 'performing' in their
bedrooms, just get in touch! Actually there's an Eater compilation coming out later this year and Dee is gonna be collaborating on it with
me, now I've found him! He looks a bit like Leonardo De Caprio now I think!!
June: Will the forthcoming Eater release add any new tracks not included on the 'Complete Eater' collection?
Andy: There's a different version of The Album recorded on 4 track that sounds great and a couple of new songs we wrote and recorded
for the 'Holidays in The Sun' festival in '96 called 'Going Down' and 'Vegetable Girl'. Probably the best thing any version of Eater have ever
done.
June: I hear you're married with two children? Life sounds good for you!
Andy: Well actually I got divorced last year! So life hasn't been that good lately!! Especially taking into account the fact that I was stabbed
in the back by two of the closest people to me! But my kids are the silver lining really, Max (5) and Imogen (7) are the greatest! I see them a
lot, almost daily and I love em.
June: What are you doing work-wise, to bring in the moola, these days Andy?
Andy: I do a bit of this, and a bit of that!! I still make a little money
out of various music projects. I've been doing a lot of
management stuff and producing too and I'm always writing. I
have a production company set up with my bass player, Steve.
I'm in the process of finishing a book, my biog, that'll be out later
in the year I hope. Some of it (the Eater bit) will be included on
the upcoming Cherry Red comp as spoken word. I also do a bit
of teaching here and there, mainly online teaching for kids that
won't, for whatever reason, go to school. Ironic I guess!! (BTW:
New artiste 'Bleeding Eyes' is a project I'm working on that will be
huge in 2004).
June The Snoop: I know that your real name is Ashie Radwan,
sorry - probably everyone else knows except me, but please tell
me about your family's 'cultural background'?!
Andy: Actually my real name is Andy Radwan but my family call me
Ashie and what's it to you anyway!!? My dad was Egyptian, mum
Irish-English. Which would explain why I like to eat mash potato's
garnished with sheep's eyes.
June: Where do you live now?
Andy: I live in good old Surrey, the multi-cultural hotbed of the universe. A place where poverty and social unrest is banned. Oh, and some
of my near neighbours are Chris Evans, Eric Clapton and Ringo Starr. In fact Chris Evans put a proposal together inviting me, Eric and
Ringo to reform Eater. We rehearsed once but Eric was too unfamiliar with the chord of 'G' and Ringo absolutely refused to have anything
to do with the pig's head I bought along. I'm sure the tapes will surface one day tho!!
June: Ok - wanna plug anything else as the end is nigh...
Andy: Well, I've mentioned the book and the Compilation... let's
see...oh yeh, there's a new Andy Blade album coming out
sometime, prob not til next Feb tho. Clever people can still find
copies of my first solo album 'From Planet Pop to the Mental Shop'
(Trident) around and EP 'Junkie Shooting Star' (Trident). 'Keep
your mind wide open and think for yourself' will be the inscription
on my tombstone. Oh yeh, you didn't ask me but I'll tell you - I listen
obsessively to Luke Haines' stuff, he of The Auteurs, Black Box
Recorder etc. No one else comes near. Peter Perrett could have
if he hadn't chosen smack instead! I would like to strangle all of
Coldplay with a ligament made out of Justin Timberlake's intestines.
might them finish them off by inserting pieces of Robbie Williams
rotting flesh into any available orifices.
June: Who's your all time favourite punk band?
Andy: My all time favourite punk band.....without doubt, who else, Sex Pistols, but the
Ramones come close.
June: Andy Blade, Is punk relevant in your life anymore or just a phase of your misspent youth?
Andy: It's still relevant in that I can't turn my back on my past. I'm proud of what Eater achieved and find it amazing when fans pop up all
over the place from Henry Rollins and Fugazi to 16 year old kids from Surrey! Punk changed everything, how can it not be relevant?
June: Whatever happened to yer old band 'Gabriel's Hounds'? (Bit of trivia for ya...The name 'Gabriels Hounds' from Andy's short lived outfit
would inspire a Torcha Shed song, which in turn was also pilfered for the name of my Fanzine reviews section in my old zine The Suffragette. It still
resides in the zine reviews section of this site...so cheers Andy. - Peter Don't Care)
Andy: We were together for a couple of years, changed the name to 'Andy Blade Band' when Billy
Duffy joined (Now in The Cult) & released a single on SMS called 'Break The News'. It was a good
band & my songs were getting better and better so too my voice, if a little Peter Perrett-ised. In fact
the songs I wrote in Eater were just warm-ups, babblings. I'd only just picked up a fucking guitar!. In a
way it pisses me off that those songs are the one's that are remembered. It's a little like Picasso being
held in great esteem for his infant scribbles rather than his major works of art! A bit anyway!!!
Oh, whatever! Next......
June: I do know you've done one reformation a few years back with different members - just wondered
how that went?
Andy: It was great fun. We got paid a lot of money too!! That was what clinched it, I have to say. Up
until then there was no way I would have considered it, but my arm was financially twisted. Also it was
in the same year The Pistols reformed, so I thought...well..why not? I used the bass player, Steve
O'Shea, and drummer, Reg-Urgitate, from my regular band and of course Brian Chevette on Guitar.
I had no idea where to start looking for Ian Woodcock or Dee. It was amazing to play to thousands of
people whom all seemed to know the songs back to front. I still don't like being spat at though. The
current fave thing to do with the pissed punks is to throw pint pots of urine at the stage and over each
other. What fun. Filthy retards!!
June: Was there any video footage of your European shows from 77/78
Andy: There's some film of a festival we did at Bell-Vue in Manchester with The Damned,
Slaughter, X-Ray Spex, Wire and so on but our record company boss disappeared with
loads of stuff. There was some footage also from a two night stint in Belgium....and The
Red Cow in Hammersmith, London. Come to think of it, there's also a film we made for
Top Of The Pops, should 'Lock it Up' have gone up instead of down the charts, I'd love to
see that! I remember asking the label boss to bring some booze with him so we could
loosen up a bit (first time filming etc). He bought along two miniatures of whisky! Our label
should've been called 'Cheapskate Hustlers'!
June: I want to know about the time you caught the same plane as Bob Dylan on a trip
returning from Paris . You took some pictures on arrival but Dylan's minders nicked the
film promising to return some signed photos.....did they ever materialise?
Andy: For one thing I never wanted any signed photo's of Dylan. I'd been in Paris
interviewing Sparks (my hero's) and had a load of pics of them on my film that his bouncer
(it was Mr T from the A team, honest) removed from my camera. He'd been on the same
flight as me and I thought, why not take a pic. I even asked politely! They said OK when
we land at Heathrow (he was playing Earls Court or somewhere). So I waited for the plane
to land and took a pic. Somewhere along the line he changed his mind I guess. and that's when he confronted me with Mr T. I was a little
scared, it was quite threatening. I should of screamed and called security!! Dylan told me he would have the pics developed and return my
Sparks pics after removing the shot of him. I never heard from him. Tosser! He even had the nerve to say that 'as a new born christian' (as
he was then) that I could trust him. Double tosser!
June: Would you ever consider reforming with Dee for the money or fun?
Andy: Now I'm in touch with Dee, thanks to you, definitely. Any wealthy punk rockers out there who'd like Eater 'performing' in their
bedrooms, just get in touch! Actually there's an Eater compilation coming out later this year and Dee is gonna be collaborating on it with
me, now I've found him! He looks a bit like Leonardo De Caprio now I think!!
June: Will the forthcoming Eater release add any new tracks not included on the 'Complete Eater' collection?
Andy: There's a different version of The Album recorded on 4 track that sounds great and a couple of new songs we wrote and recorded
for the 'Holidays in The Sun' festival in '96 called 'Going Down' and 'Vegetable Girl'. Probably the best thing any version of Eater have ever
done.
June: I hear you're married with two children? Life sounds good for you!
Andy: Well actually I got divorced last year! So life hasn't been that good lately!! Especially taking into account the fact that I was stabbed
in the back by two of the closest people to me! But my kids are the silver lining really, Max (5) and Imogen (7) are the greatest! I see them a
lot, almost daily and I love em.
June: What are you doing work-wise, to bring in the moola, these days Andy?
Andy: I do a bit of this, and a bit of that!! I still make a little money
out of various music projects. I've been doing a lot of
management stuff and producing too and I'm always writing. I
have a production company set up with my bass player, Steve.
I'm in the process of finishing a book, my biog, that'll be out later
in the year I hope. Some of it (the Eater bit) will be included on
the upcoming Cherry Red comp as spoken word. I also do a bit
of teaching here and there, mainly online teaching for kids that
won't, for whatever reason, go to school. Ironic I guess!! (BTW:
New artiste 'Bleeding Eyes' is a project I'm working on that will be
huge in 2004).
June The Snoop: I know that your real name is Ashie Radwan,
sorry - probably everyone else knows except me, but please tell
me about your family's 'cultural background'?!
Andy: Actually my real name is Andy Radwan but my family call me
Ashie and what's it to you anyway!!? My dad was Egyptian, mum
Irish-English. Which would explain why I like to eat mash potato's
garnished with sheep's eyes.
June: Where do you live now?
Andy: I live in good old Surrey, the multi-cultural hotbed of the universe. A place where poverty and social unrest is banned. Oh, and some
of my near neighbours are Chris Evans, Eric Clapton and Ringo Starr. In fact Chris Evans put a proposal together inviting me, Eric and
Ringo to reform Eater. We rehearsed once but Eric was too unfamiliar with the chord of 'G' and Ringo absolutely refused to have anything
to do with the pig's head I bought along. I'm sure the tapes will surface one day tho!!
June: Ok - wanna plug anything else as the end is nigh...
Andy: Well, I've mentioned the book and the Compilation... let's
see...oh yeh, there's a new Andy Blade album coming out
sometime, prob not til next Feb tho. Clever people can still find
copies of my first solo album 'From Planet Pop to the Mental Shop'
(Trident) around and EP 'Junkie Shooting Star' (Trident). 'Keep
your mind wide open and think for yourself' will be the inscription
on my tombstone. Oh yeh, you didn't ask me but I'll tell you - I listen
obsessively to Luke Haines' stuff, he of The Auteurs, Black Box
Recorder etc. No one else comes near. Peter Perrett could have
if he hadn't chosen smack instead! I would like to strangle all of
Coldplay with a ligament made out of Justin Timberlake's intestines.
might them finish them off by inserting pieces of Robbie Williams
rotting flesh into any available orifices.
| AN INSIDE VIEW OF ANDY BLADE (EATER) BY JUNE BIRD May 2003 My claim to fame is that I got Dee Generate and Andy Blade from EATER, one of my favourite 70s punk bands back together via email. I live in Oz and they're both in England - so go figure it! |
1977: "I'd really like people to go and blow up schools, turn on their
parents and slash 'em up with razor blades"
(Andy says in 2003: "I totally agree with the schools bit - though I dunno about
slashing one's parents, a bit harsh!!")
parents and slash 'em up with razor blades"
(Andy says in 2003: "I totally agree with the schools bit - though I dunno about
slashing one's parents, a bit harsh!!")
