American Music

Bellamy Brothers interview

This interview was done in Dusseldorf Germany on october 14 in 1984. I had heard that you always have to put your questions on paper because that's the way it goes. At least if you wanna talk to Johnny Cash, I was told. The brothers laughed about that and told me not with them. If you guess that I was pretty green at that time, you're right. As a matter of facts Howard and David were the first major act I talked to. But it didn't keep me from having this published in country music magazines in  Finland, Holland, Sweden, Austria, Belgium and Germany. But the editor in Germany never returned the pictures taken during the interview.

Your earliest influence was your father?

David: Our father and the Baptist Church were probably our first musical influences.

The name Bellamy is originally a French name I guess?

Howard: We took our father's last name when we were born and it was French. Our ancesters moved from France to South Carolina and during the civil war our great grandfather was injured and moved to Florida.

You once said that the only thing that happened in your youth was going to town to get some groceries and that was about it.

David: We were raised in a remote area in Florida, we lived in the country and the only playmates we had were each other and our sister. And a few kids from the neighbours who lived 2 or 3 miles away and there wasn't much going on We didn't have a TV or a phone. It was pretty remote for Florida at that time and when Mum and Dad put us in the car  to go to town to get some groceries, it was a big event, that's why we remember it so well.

You had a car but no phone, no TV and not even a radio. Is it true that you won the first radio?

Howard: Yeah, that's right. As a matter of facts that was during the time we went to get the groceries. They had a contest and you put your name in there and David did so and he won the radio.

Although you have a very unique and recognizable sound, you will be influenced by someone in singing and songwriting?

Howard: We are probably influenced by a lot of people but at the same time we try not to sound like anyone to have our own sound. But in this business everybody is influenced and inspired by others. We listen to pop and rock 'n' roll as well as country music but we pick out the best of everything.

Who is your favorite act in country music?

David: No doubt, no argument, Merle Haggard. Many try to sound like him but he's still the master of it.

Your first success was when Jim Stafford cut "Spiders and snakes". When did you write the song and how did he get it? And who was Jim Stafford?

David: It was in 1972 that I wrote "Spiders and snakes"  and he recorded it in 1973 or 1974. He had a small regional hit in the States with a song called "Swamp witch" but only in the southern part and then I gave him "Spiders and snakes". It was a big hit and it sold about 3 million copies. It was a hit in the States,Canada and I believe England. So most people in Europe don't know him. Now he's more of a Las Vegas entertainer. He doesn't really have records out now. He's also a comedian and hosts TV shows.

Not so long after your first success as a songwriter you scored a massive hit with "Let your love flow". One of the very few songs you haven't written yourself; where did you find it?

Howard: That song was written by Neil Diamond's roadie by all people. And he is one of the wealthiest roadies in the business now. Neil Diamond's drummer was a good friend of ours and he brought us the song saying it might be something for us. We loved it right away and recorded it. It went so fast it looked almost  like an act of fate.

But he never came up with another song like that?

Howard: We went through his whole catalogue but that was the only song that had something. THat was amazing because he had a lot of songs written but that was the only hit.

You immediately made a name in the U.S. and Europe but as you had management problems you went to Europe. Overhere many people consider you being a countryrock band although your albums are mainly to be found in pop racks. I don't categories are a good idea but what are you? A countryband for country fans, for pop fans a popband,or a rockband for rockfans or maybe just a duo for everybody?

David: All of the above. It's very strange and it confuses people in the States but we do what comes naturally and that's what we are doing. And we don't care in which rack they put us.

Your first 2 albums sounded heavier than for instance" Two and only" "You can't get crazy" ,or "Sons of the sun" but "Strong weakness" and "Restless" sound again like "Plain and fancy" of course more modern. What made you change your style after "Plain and fancy" ? I think only then you started making hardcore country music albums.

David: I think we were going back. When we made our first album we were more in a pop, countryrock groove. I think by the time we got to our third album we were sort of going back to our country roots.We are the type of artists, sort of come and go as far as the music comes to us at the time and what we are feeling in writing and performing. That's why you have so many different styles on an album like "Restless", because we sometimes feel country, then reggae. I think it's a tribute to us, we like to do all that kind of stuff.

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Was that the first time you heard country music on the radio?

Howard: No, we heard country music when we played with our father. It wasn't the first time we heard it on radio it was only the first time we heard it on our own one. It was a portable and I remember when we were cleaning the grass around the orange trees, David hung the radio on his belt and we were listening the whole time when we were working. So we learned a whole lot from that little thing called radio.

Was it at that time you started writing?

David: It was probably a little later than that. I guess our earliest songwriting was making up things in our own head when we were working. But we had interest in songwriting from a long time ago. I can't remember the first time we put things together but most of our lives we tried to write songs.

What made you move to Georgia?

Howard: There was a recording studio up in Atlanta. We knew some friends who worked there. Some guys were in a group called "The Atlanta Rhythm Section" . We met them one day and did some studiowork with them. It was an area where a lot was happening at the time. We had a good agency and we booked our dates out of Atlanta.

Did you  book under the name Bellamy Brothers from the beginning and did you start as a duo or a group and what do you consider yourself to be?

David: We had a lot of bandnames from the beginning. We started as a group and one time we were "The Accidents", one time we were "The Hedrogenious Grouping" because we had a black singer and the last name before we became "The Bellamy Brothers" was "Jericho". When we lived in Atlanta, that was the name we were booked in the clubs. But Howard and I were always the two members left so we decided to call ourselves the Bellamy Brothers so the name of the band would remain the same and we would have a band behind us. And because of all personnal changes we decided to be a duop and we think of ourselves as a duo. But a lot of people in the industry mix us up as a duo and as a group; no one really knows what we are, But we are a do.

1976, Let your love flow (WB Holland).

Picture taken after this interview. In the middle the guy that didn't return my pictures.That's why he has to stay anonymous.

1976, Let your love flow (WB Germany).

1977, Plain & fancy (WB).

1978, beautiful friends (WB).

1979, The two and only (WB).

1970, You can get crazy (WB).

1979, Live recordings from the Lone Star Café, NYC (LSC 8005 and LSC 8034)

1980, Sons of the sun (WB/Curb).

1981, You'e my favorite star (single).

Later on Greatest hits vol. III (MCA/Curb)

1981, They could put me in jail (single).

(WB))

1982, When we were boys (Elektra).

1982, Bellamy Brothers with Glen Campbell,

July 1982 for Country Closeup).

1982, Lonesome cowboys (Greatest hits, WB Germany).

One of the tracks on Lonesome Cowboy is Bound to explode, which was supposed to be on Plain & Fancy, due to be released as a single in june 1977, but never was. Funny enough, it' on the Lonesome Cowboys album as a hit.

1982, Strong weakness (Elektra/Curb)

1985, Howard and David (MCA/Curb)

In 1984, we met Howard and David again in Frankfurt, Germany.

They slept at the CP Hotel on the 32nd floor, and didn't mind to come down when I forgot to ask them something.

This album cover was signed then.

(WB)

(MCA/Curb)

(MCA/Curb)

to continue,

go to:

1986, Country rap (Curb)

1984, Restless (MCA/Curb)

CAN I COME ON

TO YOU

(Bellamy Brothers)

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