Does Rock ‘N’ Roll Kill Braincells?! – Eddy Grant
Which 1970 The Equals song did The Specials cover on their 2019 album ‘Encore’?
“’Black Skin Blue Eyed Boys’. I thought it was a good version.”
CORRECT. The Equals were the first major interracial group in the UK, and Lynval Golding of The Specials said: “I’ve always thought of The Equals as our spiritual ancestors. They were a massive inspiration to all of us, genuine heroes.”
“Well, there’s no doubt about it that we paved the way for them. In the history of British rock ‘n’ roll, The Specials are like my brothers, or children or grandchildren. The Equals are an interesting sociological phenomenon and maybe one day someone will seek to examine it in its minutia. I knew what had come before historically, and I knew what we were doing, and if we got away with it – which of course we did – then it would be something special. The pushback from the music industry was tremendous, and from radio it was unbelievable. It was not an easy door to get into. Everything I did in the music industry was ahead of its time.”
When the Happy Mondays recorded at your Blue Wave studios in Barbados in 1992, frontman Shaun Ryder claims he tried selling the studio furniture and equipment to pay for crack…
“Who else?!”
But what is the name of the album the Salford band were recording at the time?
“God knows! I wasn’t there for all of that legendary stuff, so to speak. I wasn’t witness to it. I’ve heard about Shaun Ryder saying what it is, and people who were around saying what it was, but I wasn’t there.”
WRONG. The record was called ‘Yes Please!’.
“You’re talking to me about Shaun Ryder and his band’s behaviour that is – to put it nicely – extrovert. The Equals wouldn’t have gotten away with that, and that seems to be the common denominator in the whole of pop music itself is this kind of racist behavioural pattern. People might not even be aware they’re doing it [adhering to a double standard]. In the history of music, the common denominator is bad behaviour. And false bad behaviour leads the youth that follows them into bad behaviour and then society complains. Why are they complaining?!”
Which artist has a 2016 track called ‘Love Ya’ which is a reworking of your 1984 solo track ‘Come On Let Me Love You’?
“Oh God, I can’t remember the guy’s name. He’s a Guyanese singer/artist….”
WRONG. It’s Dev Hynes, aka Blood Orange.
“That’s correct! No disrespect to Mr Hynes, but it’s early in the morning!* [Laughs] I thought it was an interesting take on the song and I liked it.”
*It’s 7.30am in Barbados when this quiz takes place. Crikey!
Your 1988 hit single ‘Gimme Hope Jo’anna’ has been used as a Welsh national football team anthem that namechecks which midfielder?
“I remember this from a couple of World Cups ago. Joe…..? No, I wouldn’t waste your time, but the moment you say it, I’ll know!”
WRONG. It’s ‘Give Me Hope Joe Allen’ – referencing the Swansea City player.
“Little Joe Allen! I obviously like it when people cover the songs. There an artist called Lady Linn who scored a Number One in Belgium with a jazz take on ‘I Don’t Wanna Dance’ and it was interesting to hear a totally different take on it.”
Talking of football: there’s footage of you performing with Diego Maradona in 1981…
“Yeah, I played with Diego. I was a lot fitter, younger and stronger – and so was he! Didn’t have a big beer belly on him. He was truly the [Lionel] Messi or [Cristiano] Ronaldo of his time, so he looms very large on my landscape. Diego wouldn’t sing – he just mouthed the words and had a great time!”
For a bonus half-point: Complete the following lyrics: ‘When I wake up in the morning, I’m still asleep / I really don’t want no toast…’?
“‘Well, that’s because in the morning, I don’t feel to boast’?’ [Laughs] I don’t know!”
WRONG. It’s: ‘I want no OJ, no tea, or cereal / Give me a yogurt drink I’m wanting first’ – from the 2004 Yop commercial that adapts it into ‘Gimme Yop, Me Mama’.
“[Laughs] How do you expect me to know that?! Look, there’s been a lot of talk about me allowing the Yop people to use ‘’Gimme Hope Jo’anna’ , but I saw a lot of logic in it. I’m always looking at what’s coming next and there’s always a generation who doesn’t know you and I got the impression that it was going to – as it did – touch a generation that probably didn’t know me.”
Your track ‘Electric Avenue’ was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best R&B song of 1983. Who beat you?
“I think it was Rufus and Chaka Khan’s ‘Ain’t Nobody’.”
WRONG. It was Michael Jackson’s ‘Billie Jean’ – although ‘Ain’t Nobody’ was nominated in the same category. You’re currently celebrating the 40th anniversary of ‘Electric Avenue’ and its attendant album ‘Killer on the Rampage’….
“Time has flown. You make a piece of music and you hope it will last somewhat, because everything disappears in time – even we disappear in time, but you hope that at least along your lifetime, something that you make will continue to bring joy and happiness to people as well as yourself, because you see people enjoying themselves. And that will go on for a few more years hopefully!”
Who hosted the 1983 episode of Saturday Night Live that you performed ‘I Don’t Wanna Dance’, ‘Electric Avenue, and ‘Living on the Frontline’ on?
“Eddie Murphy?”
WRONG. It was Danny DeVito and his then-wife/fellow actor Rhea Perlman.
“I remember [SNL cast member] Eddie Murphy because he and another famous comedian were sitting in the make-up area and they had a bet. Eddie said: ‘I bet you can’t go up and pull Eddy Grant’s hair’. Because my hair was quite long at the time. The other comedian said: ‘Have you seen the size of those guys that are around Eddy Grant? I’d be taking my life in my hands!’”
In 2010, you accused which band of plagiarising your 1982 song ‘Time Warp’?
“That would be Damon Albarn’s band Gorillaz.”
CORRECT. You alleged the Gorillaz song ‘Stylo’ copied ‘Time Warp’.
“I mean, everybody knows where that song came from. It’s just that there comes a time where you say, ‘Enough. Why am I going to go on fighting this case? Over what? Leave it alone’. They know the truth. Even Damon’s strongest fans would know how ubiquitous ‘Time Warp’ has been and still is. It’s a one-off – when you hear it, you know what it is.
“I mean, Jaheim slowed it right down so that I would never be able to notice it, and I noticed, and he gave me credit for the song [‘Like a DJ’]. It’s a sickness in the business. If you like it enough and want to do it, then do it and give the guy the credit.”
Did you ever have a conversation with Damon Albarn about it at all?
“It’s a strange one because Damon’s manager used to be part of the management team for The Equals and we were with the same music publisher, but I feel I was thrown under the bus because Damon was selling a lot more records than I was.”
Who did you present the Best Male Award to at the 2001 MTV Awards?
“Man, I can just about remember! Was it Shaggy?”
WRONG. Shaggy was nominated in the same category, but it was Robbie Williams.
“How the hell did I forget Robbie Williams?! He was all over the place, but obviously I preferred Shaggy at the time. Shaggy’s covered ‘Electric Avenue’, and we’ve toured together and had fantastic fun.”
Speaking of former boyband members: in 2021, you posted an Equals record sleeve on Instagram with the caption: ‘Who wore it better? The Equals in the 1960s or Harry Styles in the 2020s?’
“You would be hard-pressed to find a more glam boyband than us. I think The Equals were possibly the first real boyband out of England and I’d say that in the face of the Beatles, because we were so young – you only need look at our first TV appearance on Play School [in 1965] to see what we were. When I see all the bands that later claimed to be glam, they were the ones all dressed in grey and black suits laughing at the Equals in their bright colours.”
You appeared on 1987’s ill-fated It’s A Royal Knockout. Name three other celebrities on your team.
“Prince Edward, Prince Edward and Prince Edward. [Laughs] How do you follow royalty?”
WRONG. Apart from Prince Edward, among others, you could have had Fawlty Towers star John Cleese, actor Nicholas Lyndhurst, pop star Toyah Willcox, Superman Christopher Reeve and swimmer Duncan Goodhew.
“It sounded fun. And you think: ‘What fun can a Royal person really have in their guise?’ It must be really tough and I admire them for their fortitude. It seemed like a silly idea, and at the time, it was bizarre and funny at the same time.”
When you performed ‘Gimme Hope Jo’anna’ on the National Lottery Stars in 2001, which late light entertainment legend claimed he asked you to make him a pop star in 1976 aged 21?
“Wow! I don’t know. Ich weiss nicht!”
WRONG. It was Dale Winton.
“Dale was a good friend. It was tough to get radio play and I never complained, but as a DJ, Dale was one of those people, along with [fellow DJ] Greg Edwards, who stood up for us and my brothers and helped tremendously. Dale would have asked me to make him a pop star as a joke. He wasn’t serious, but obviously he became a big star in his own right.”
Your back catalogue still isn’t on Spotify or streaming services. Do you worry that it makes it harder for people to discover your music?
“Well, that is true and of course we’re looking at doing that, but it’s not as easy as one would like to think. I’ve been waiting 40 years for the technology to come along where I don’t have to go to beg the radio stations to play my music and where my fans can have access to everything that I’ve made, but then you find out that the Spotifys and the Apples have taken over the music business in a very aggressive way, and sell your music for cheaper than what I think it’s worth as the creator.
“We’ve had talks and I’ve said, ‘No, I don’t think that’s right. It might appear that I’m being truculent – but it’s a question of principle. But unfortunately, I’m looking seriously at having to join this bandwagon because that’s where our fans are.”
The verdict: 2/10
“Oh man! You can’t imagine! My brain cells haven’t started warming up yet! [Laughs]”
– Eddy Grant will be inducted to the Music Walk of Fame in Camden, London on September 7, where he will have a paving stone laid in his honour. He is also celebrating 40 years since the release of his album ‘Killer on The Rampage’, which gave us the hits ‘Electric Avenue’ and ‘I Don’t Wanna to Dance ‘.
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Gary Ryan
NME
