Oh yeah, and speaking of this weeks news and review and the
Daisy Spot article therein, can we please declare a moratorium on talking about Mike Ferell's past drug use? I know it's an interesting angle but does it have to be discussed in every single article about the band? He's been clean for quite awhile now and I'm sick of hearing about it. I bet he's sick of it, too, but maybe I'm wrong I don't know the dude.
Oddly enough, now you're mimicking Ed Hunter. He posted about that on the Lousy Bums mailing list. Wait, let me find it:
ReplyDeleteDate: Nov 16, 2005 11:45 AM
Subject: [lousybumsed] Fwd: drug use by guitar hero?
Who focken cares? I just got done with the Alive and Kicking story on
th losin streaks. (I posted a blog about this on my space, but since I
don't know who in the group is a "friend" of mine, here goes...
Am I the only person who is sick to death of reading about Mike's past
(and current?) drug use? I am pretty sure the guy is clean, but it
ain't my business any way. I, like many of you have heard all the damn
junky stories I care to. Other rocknroll people have gone through the
same meat grinder as mister farrell and have told the story better.
Was this latest "revelation" Mike's idea (c,mon, man. People will buy
the latest recording on the merits, not because you used to jab
yourself.) or Jerry's, or both?
Are there scenesters who are so desperate to make Sacramento almost as
cool as The City that they will take our most famous drug addict and
beat the dead junky for all the mileage possible, with the music as an
afterthought?
Not quite, but kinda like SammyTown continually bragging about killing
his girlfriend at Fang gigs when he first got paroled.
If that's all there is, to this person, beyond the excellent guitar
histrionics and untouchable stage moves, maybe someone needs to
either quit writing about or stop talking about what is supposed to be
ancient history.
Or, maybe readers of Alive and Kicking love repetition.
August issue: "I saw Sacto Sid and the Scene Suckfish and they rocked!"
September issue: "Sacto Sid and the Scene Suckfish have just completed
work on the new cd and it fucking KILLS!"
October issue: "Solo acoustic gig by Sacto Sid shows that he fucking
kicks Ass!"
November issue: "Benefit for fictional Thalidimide babies to feature
Sacto Sid and the Scene Suckfish, plus guests. Also see our voter guide!"
'...fictional thalidimide babies...'?
ReplyDeleteThis is why ed is a genius.
anyway, RE: the needle and the damage done... well, people love a happy ending.
Not many of us expected anything other than the obvious for Mike, given his history. The addiction stuff is a valid part of the backstory, and it's an easy story to tell: redemption. sure, it gets old for anyone who knows mike or knows the story, but mainstream media (ie the Bee, SNR, A&K) assume that they are writing for Joe Blow who doesn't know the sordid details. Plus, mike is candid about it if asked, so it's easy to get interesting stories out of him.
Interestingly, every in-depth article about Mike talks ad nauseum about the 'glory days' of his needle poking, but not one has ever said a thing about why he became a junkie. Maybe the reporters think it's too personal a question to ask... i guess for me it's the only really interesting one.
Mike told me (years ago) that he first did it because "Sacramento drugs" were boring. By that, he was talking about the usual kid stuff. Acid, pot, booze, crank. You know the stuff we all try when we're into trying stuff. Also, this really cool man who let Mike live with him (was a father to him) kicked the bucket, which sort of sent Mike even more into the toilet. Not much of a reason for starting, but, take it from someone who knows, when it comes to overdoing anything, you don't really need a reason.
ReplyDeleteEd