Don Interviews Ted Nugent

All right. All right, this is Don Ford Empire members. Here from the Clubhouse podcast, I'm interviewing the Motor City Madman himself, Ted Nugins.

Dad, you expect me to believe that this little handheld apparatus will actually accept embrace and convey my spoken word. This is what you expect me to believe. I'm trying.

I'm trying. I'm going to get underclosure. OK, that's not problem.

I've snuggle with you. All right, so we'll get this point across you. Because you know, Dad, that the reason you're here is because every word out of my mouth is life pivotal.

You know that, Don. Yes, I've been following you. I'm almost like a guru.

I'm almost like mother Teresa. And what's the guy sitting in the mountain top? Who are the guys?

Where are those guys? I'm like them, except I have a clock. What do you say, Gandhi?

That's maybe good. Maybe Gandhi. Yes, you have a clock.

Like if Gandhi was a guitar player, he would have wrote Wang Dang Sweet Poong Tang. I promise you this. Well, first off, I want to say you're here for the 40th anniversary, 2017 Dallas International Guitar Festival.

Why are you here? What's the special about that? They want me on that hill.

They need me on that hill. They rise and celebrate their daily lives under the shadow of the sonic bomb best that I provide. And do not ask him question why or how I provide that sonic bomb best.

This is a celebration of the universal communication of music in all of its forms that is driven by, without question, you see, I almost said that we're probably, and I edited myself. That would be edited myself. It is the universal guitar expanded voice that is the driving force in the most important and powerful music in all music lovers' lives.

Yes, the keyboards, yes, the bass, yes, the drums, yes, the stacks, bolt, horn section, all of the above. But the guitar is such a definitive emotional musical expression vehicle that if you were to, did you witness the line I had, yes, yes, I was there. Look in my eyes, what's left of my eyes.

I am stimulatedly fatigued, which is the greatest high of highs because everyone in line, which for eight over eight hours, thousands of people, we shared a celebrated and united love. And obviously it was a Ted Nugent booth, so there were there to meet this guy. So it was focused on my songs and my music and my guitar tone.

And ego be damned, I am a huge fan of excitable dynamic music and every man, woman, child and infant. It's a little baby girl, maybe boys and girls that gave to the lathe, they got kissed some form of authority. Yes, yes, yes, their parents expressed wide eyeed and passionately how my songs, individual songs, the intensity of my performance and the maximum human dynamo of my bandmates have delivered pivotal.

I said pivotal when I first answered your question. Not just great moments, not just really special moments. Hive a little moments in their lives that my songs played, the soundtrack, and I'm sure the stones and the Beatles and the artbirds and the kings and the Who would James Brown, it wasn't big and it was Amadev and Otis Redding and Jimmy Hendrix and Stevie Ray Vaughn, and I could go on for a hundred days and never run out of masters that have provided pivotal soundtrack moments and lifetimes for people.

And the international Dallas guitar festival had to be put on by a guy named Jimmy Wallace. And as you've noticed that the list of musicians and virtuosos that attend this and celebrate this, really are the top dogs in the musical world. So I know that there's a spirit and attitude of fiery passion for the music that describes my love of the music and my shared love of the music.

And for them to mention a song is so fortifying. And there's only one thing more dangerous than a coiled rattlesnake within two feet. And that's Ted Newtwood with more confidence.

And I have my confidence cup continues to overflow because of the love and sincerity that these people express. So Jimmy is putting on an event called the International Dallas Guitar Festival that draws music lovers in to meet Chris Duarte and Derek St. Holmes and Andy Timons and in the past Jeff Beck and Eric Clapton, Stevie Ray Vaughn and Billy Gibbons and again I could go on and on and on.

600 vendors there. Those of us that love the music love to get together and talk the music. And that's when you're, and see the fans.

Yeah, well, you know, you use the word fans. And yes, I'm a fan of the music, but I'm also a music, I use the word blood brother. It's an aboriginal term of deep and spiritual connection where a blood brother will be there for his blood brother and be there for his tribe.

And really, this goes deep into the realm of spirituality. These people's lives, my life, your life, I suspect. Everybody who has a fire at a passion in their belly, it is so moved by the music that we love and the best music in the world just happens to be driven by guitars.

Now, you're curious, James, over the three years, he started off with the 10 Newtions. Well, first it, it goes way back before that. Well, I started in 1955 and Detroit.

I had a band called The Royal High Boys, what was I seven years old, and me and the drummer, we were a combo. We didn't even use the word bands. It was, we have a combo and do that.

But I've been at this all my life. I'm a lifer of rock and roll and rhythm and blues and American music, or people's music. And so to do this at the age of 68.6 and see the, the excitement level, not only has it not diminished, as you can tell from me, not only has not diminished in me, it just keeps escalating every day.

But also with the fans or the people who share this love of the music. So it's really a tribal blood brotherhood primal eruption. It's not background music.

Not blood blood's country music, but this is not background music that we play. And people pivot on the dynamo, the sexuality, the sensuality, the rhythms, the primal scream, the out of body, stress relieving that music represents. And I'm able to articulate that because I've communicated with music lovers all my life, not just the greatest musicians, but the greatest music lovers in the civilian trench.

Like me, I, it's not that I hear it. Am I just grabbing you pretty good? Yes, but you start, you know, you had to create a van, for instance.

You joined the van, damn you. So that's when I started the van, and I saw you, that's the only time I saw you live was in Billings, Montana, where you're touring with that company in the damn me. Oh yeah, you're great, yes, yes.

And the music has changed. What is the future for Ted now? What style do you plan to do?

What do you just want to keep on touring doing the old stuff? Are you got new stuff coming in? Well, I don't really think I have changed.

In fact, I, jam the other night with some guys, the guys that are jamming with me tonight at the guitar festival. His name is John Kootz, KUTZ on drums, and animal. And Johnny Show, and they call him Johnny Big, on bass guitar.

Another example of you expressing the excitement level and the musical believability and authority that the damn Yankees and bad company and all the bands have been around. But Tommy Show, Jack Blake's Michael Cardeloni, my current band Jason Hartliss from Detroit on drums, Greg Smith, all these years on bass guitar. This is an example of the superhuman caliber of talent that I've always been surrounded by.

So I don't really think I want to change that the other night we jammed in a little club and wake up because I can't help myself. Yes. And we played, baby, please don't go.

Which I played for the first time in 1961. So in the, yeah, we played with a little bit more fire. I don't know about more fire, but a little bit more precision, maybe.

I'm not even so sure about precision because the garage band lives in our music. So I don't see changes. I see expansions and developments, but Wang Dang, sweet pun tang, and Wang O'Tango and Fred Bear and Stranglehold and doggy dog, and all my love songs and paralyzed and off his shut up and jam.

I still believe in everything matters. And Johnny, be good forever and a brand new song I wrote last week called, where are you gonna run to get away from yourself? It's still black, soulful, howling wolf muddy waters, Wilson Pickett, James Brown, Bo-Jilly Chuck Berry, Little Richard Jerry Lee Lewis Driven, uninhibited, unlimited, primal expression.

So I don't see it changing at all. What worked in 55 for me? Yeah, it worked in 2017, perfectly.

Well, we're times limited, there's a ton of blood brothers wanting to see it. Yes, I'm sure about that. We have, we have, we're, our podcast loves shameless self promotions, Facebook page website where people can see where you can be.

Come on, I'm a good-turing, you let's know that that's, where, you know, they can come and see it, tell us everything your site said. Well, dot number one, thanks for, you know, as you see the excitement level yesterday to keep me adrenalineized for eight hours. When it got to be six o'clock and my son Toby tapped me on the shoulder, he goes, dad, you're okay.

And I, yeah, sure I'm okay. He goes, you've been here for eight hours. And then, in front, by the way, at 68, it's amazing I didn't have to pee, but the point is, is that I thank you.

And I thank all those people for wanting to talk to me about my music and those gods of thunder who inspired me. So if people would come to my Facebook, we have an Orgy on Facebook. It's an intellectual cosmic maniac intense, unlimited stream of consciousness, primal scream, orgy on my Facebook every day.

And I think I'm the Facebook star. That's what I'm calling myself. Because I get on multiple times every day.

And I think I have perfected Mr. Sucky Burgers, electronic campfire by doing my Facebook live. So I want to thank everybody to come to my Facebook, these are your public dates for giving me a hug.

Yeah, yeah, I'm on tour all summer. I have to tour every summer. I have to tour every summer.

I love to tour every summer. Every gig is the most important gig every song, is the most important song. Every link is the most important link.

So if people would come to my website, Tedneugen.com, or somebody asked me the other day what my website was, and I told him Tom Petty. Oh, but come to Tedneugen.com in my Facebook and celebrate the passion for goodness and positive energy and spirit. And again, I thank everybody for all that positive energy goodwill and decency and celebration of the greatest music in the history of the world that comes from the guts of freedom in America.

I got one last request. My answer is 66 euros old. Love you.

Did you say hi to Antioen and that ramum? Antioen and that ramum. Uncle Ted loves you if you were here right now.

It'd give you a big wet rhythm and blues rock and roll, smooth right on the cheek. Keep rock and girls. All right.

So much for your time. Ben.