Saturday, September 10, 2011

If I wearied Richman ...

... with my banal questions, he was too gentlemanly to show it.



Yes, that is me in April 1996—during my pre-baptismal years as a rock journalist—interviewing Jonathan Richman backstage at Maxwell's in Hoboken, New Jersey, for the Manhattan public-access cable show "Videowave."

In my defense, the "what is your favorite color" question wasn't my idea. I posed it on the advice of Richman's drummer, Tommy Larkins, who promised me I would get a good answer. He was right!

Watching the clip now, I remember how nervous I was. I felt I had no business doing the interview, as I did not own any of Richman's records, neither did I know much about his history. Thankfully, he was extremely kind and patient.