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Interview by Mike Patterson 6/27/88, during the Sonicly Speaking sessions L7 studio, Miami
Mike Patterson (former guitarist for the Chant) did an interview with Marco Pettit during the rehearsals and recordings for the Psycho Daisies' "Sonicly Speaking" album. It's a brief interview, but it's all we've got, no other interviews with Marco have surfaced. Marco was an important part of the Eggs/MC3 as well as the Psycho Daisies, a talented bassist and vocalist (and drummer). At the time of this interview he had been recording and touring with Pickett, Salton, and Johnny Stix on and off for five years, and had just completed work on Charlie's "The Wilderness" album (grabbing a co-lead vocal with Charlie on the title track). Following the completion of the "Sonicly Speaking" album (Marco sings two songs, co-lead vocals on another, and drums on two songs also); he would tour again with the Daisies as well as playing on Charlie's final tour. He would continue to work with Charlie Pickett and Johnny Salton until his untimely death in 1998.
photo by Jim Johnson
Marco--Well...
MP--Who's gonna put it out?
Marco--Byron Coley suggested a couple labels, one is in the Netherlands (Resonance). I don't remember all the names, two of them are in the States. Those questions, you should talk to Johnny about.
As far as plans for the albums, it's a hard question to answer because...these songs are already old. (laughs) My plans and my feelings for this project is...is just to keep active and uh...keep on doing what we've been doing which is...staying active, as far as composition, writing, and...keep an open mind. We have a very open-minded approach as far as influences. It's an opportunity for me and Johnny, 'cause me and Johnny...we feel strongly about each other's playing, and we trust each other's ideas, as far as influences and stuff. And it's an opportunity for us to do what we've always wanted to do, which is great. And...I don't mean to bring Charlie into this, but the thing is we don't want to be back-up musicians anymore. We just want to keep an open mind about things, and...sorta enjoy our earnings. (laughs)
MP--What about with Charlie? You got any plans to do something?
Marco--Well, our attitude about Charlie, well, my attitude, and I think it's John's attitude too, is that we don't wanna make a lifetime career of backing ANYBODY up. No hard feelings...I'm not into ranking on people...I'm grateful for what we've done with Charlie, I've done with Charlie. And that was a good experience as a whole, but...If we was to back him up, it would only be on a short-term basis, and like an employee-type situation.(laughs) It's not necessarily the money, if it's just...practical within a reasonable time/space, like going on the road or something like that. But I don't even see that. But it all depends on a group decision...
MP--You had some good gigs with Charlie there.
Marco--Which gigs? (laughs)
MP--On the road, with Frosh, on the Route 33 tour. (end of October 1984 to end of February 1985)
Marco--Oh yeah, sure, a lot of good gigs. That was a lot of great playing experience.
photo by Jill Kahn
Marco--Yeah. That was the first time I ever saw snow. (laughs) January in Minneapolis. (laughs)
MP--Man. I've never lived in places where it's BELOW all the time, below zero or below freezing.
Marco--That's the first time I ever saw snow in my life, forget it. It was wonderful, man, it was great visiting, but I can't imagine living in it, that'd be another trip. You'd sorta hafta gear your whole life up for the seasons. I'd never seen seasons.
MP--What was Twin-Tone (records) like?
Marco--Twin-Tone was...uh...it was an experience. They had like three different recording rooms, and....that was Charlie's baby, you know? That was like my first experience recording, so it was all new to me.
MP--They (Charlie?) told me that they didn't pay you for the records, but it was just like a springboard for major labels. Or where you didn't get paid for the records you sold, but you toured, and they supported you for touring. How'd that work out?
Marco--I don't know. I don't know because the thing is, everything fell apart after that tour. We sat around, and we talked commitment, as far as a band, like with the Twin-Tone people there, and after that tour, man, we just like...we were into the Psycho Daisies, that's when we did the first Psycho Daisies album. We wanted to play with John, because John was back in Miami, and we was uh...preoccupied with that. Even by the end of that tour.
photo by Jill Kahn
MP--What happened with Frosh?
Marco--Frosh? Frosh is right here in your hometown. (laughs)
MP--Great singer, great guitar player...jeez!
Marco--Very talented guy, great bass player, great guitar player, great songwriter, great front man. I really don't know what happened, because I was kicked out of the Daisies...
MP--What?
Marco--When I joined the Daisies I was like the saint of the band, and I ended up getting kicked out of the band for...anonymous reasons. (both laugh) And after that, I hadn't been active musically for over a year.
MP--Did you play reggae? Somebody said you played reggae before the Daisies.
Marco--Well, I was always a fanatic of reggae music, since like '71. And I was never in a band, a reggae band, but as far as my bass playing...for not ever being in a reggae band, I got it down for a white boy.
But I did do a project, as a lead singer. I did, I recorded all these tracks...that was never released. It was a very commercial thing, it was outta my control, it was all the songs, and the rhythm tracks and everything, it was all done.
MP--Somebody's gonna make you a star?
Marco--Yeah, yeah, yeah. I was like...I wasn't doing anything, and I was just getting back into the music scene. It was a lot of fun, it was recording experience. But uh...I got to meet a lot of great heavyweights. Reggae heavyweights.
MP--Did you ever meet Jaco? (Pastorius, great jazz bassist from Miami)
Marco--Jaco Pastorius? Yeah, as a matter of fact, I have met him. Jaco Pastorius, I met him one time, before he was popular. He used to...he's been in Miami for years...before he even made it.
MP--I just saw a picture of him, at this deli. With a big gash on his head...
Marco--He used to teach at University of Miami before he even made it. As a matter of fact, I went down to see about him...I hadn't heard him play. His album wasn't out, and I heard all these things about him, and I went down to see if he was still teaching. And it was like his last...actually he was in there working out with another bass player, it was his last...days at University of Miami. He was a real flighty guy and...he didn't even know me, I was like asking him, he asked me to watch his bass for a second. He like, left! (laughs) He goes, "I dunno, I got a wife and I got a kid, and I gotta, I gotta make some money..." and he was real flighty...
And then he put his album out, and he was very popular after that, recognized.
MP--Back to Dave, is he doing anything? Have you heard anything?
Marco--Dave, I've heard things through the grapevine, that he's in L.A., and he's got two people that he's playing with...and they're supposed the be called The Pods, or something like that.
MP--He's not playing with (Richard) Shelter, is he?
Marco--Not that I heard of, as of now. He might have before.