From: Holger Wahlen Date: Fri, 21 Jul 1995 02:20:38 +0200 (MET DST) Subject: Another lurker coming out --- with a LONG post [lots of lines deleted] ______________________________________________________________________ Old Tori interview Now if you've read my sometimes really undeep thoughts until here, you deserve a reward --- and you get it. At the end of 1992, Tori came to a German TV show, "elf 99", to be interviewed and to perform SATY. I videotaped this, and now I have tried to take the interview down because I thought some of you might be interested in it, even if it's 2 1/2 years old now. Annotations: "VH" is the interviewer, Victoria Herrmann, "TA", of course, Tori Amos. The questions were asked in German (and translated to Tori by an earphone), thus the English text here is my translation. There was a German translation spoken over Tori' s answers so that I couldn't always understand and provide the original phrasings, but I tried to get as close as possible. Nevertheless, I took the liberty to leave out some "and"'s or "you know"'s etc. VH: Tori, all your fellow musicians go to America to put the finishing touches to their career. With you it's the other way around: You were born in America, grew up there and live in London now. Why? TA: It's not because of the food, that's for sure. The food is ... not so great. I was just having constant negativity for my music in the States. They thought it was too strange; maybe it was because there are a lot of right-wing Christians there having problems with me. So I went to London, and they were much more open to my music. And then everybody in the States seemed to be much more open to it, after things went well in Europe. VH: But you don't regret living in England now? TA: No, no. I mean every time I need a good meal I just go to Italy. VH: At the age of 13 you were live on a stage for the first time; meanwhile you write and produce all your titles yourself, and when you give a concert, you do it always alone at the piano, without a band, according to the motto "too many cooks spoil the broth". Or wouldn't you like to have someone to share the responsibility with? TA: Well, I don't do _everything_ by myself. But ... VH: What is it you don't do by yourself? TA: Cook. VH: You're into food! TA: Yes, but, you know, food means many things. VH: Yes, but you also make good music, apart from the fact that you may be a good cook as well. TA: Well, it's a bit of the same thing, because ... everything you put into your music, has to be about phrasing, almost like spices: You have to be aware of your dynamics and you have to be aware of ... that you're alone up there with all these people. You can really mock it up, and it's a great challenge if you're gonna sing to 1500 people and have them not throwing tomatoes at you. VH: Is there a person that plays a big, big role in your life? TA: My father? VH: Your father? In how far? TA: Well, first he's a minister, and he chaperoned me to bars when I was 13. I started playing clubs when I was 13 because I was kicked out of the conservatory when I was 11. They thought I was too much of a ... up-start. I was really into John Lennon and Jimi Hendrix; in their opinion, they were "not worthy". Unless it was Chopin and Mozart, they didn't wanna know. Then I came and played John Lennon, and they said, this is unacceptable --- and I said, if Mozart were alive today, he'd have listened to John Lennon and Jimi Hendrix; they totally messed up, so I got kicked out. And my father started to take me to clubs to play when I was 13 because there was nowhere else for me to go --- and he got a lot of trouble from the church because they were gay bars; those were the only bars where I could play. VH: Another question: What's your opinion about abortion? TA: It's a woman's choice. VH: Yes, exactly. I ask this because right now in Germany, seven men and one woman [the Federal Constitution Court] decide about the right of abortion. Do you think a man may have the right of co-determination in that at all? TA: When men start having children, then they can be objective. But how can a man possibly be objective when his body is not involved? We as women are not incubators. We must be responsible as women --- I'm very big on responsibility ---; however, we're the ones that have to answer to this very, very, very big commitment. For thousands of years we have been incubators --- think about it, that's what we've been. And now's the time where we must be respected, that it's our body, and that must be it. VH: Your word in God's ear, the decision in Germany is made not before January. Something short finally: Last Friday we had the Ramones here in the studio --- do you like such music as well? TA: Yes! I like all kinds of music. I think you have to be open because you can learn so much from different things. I'm always into ... different stuff.