Michael Damian - Interview

It's Saturday July 6th and we are driving in a rental car to Pensacola, Florida for the final leg of a two-week whirlwind tour. Whirlwind being the operative word, having experienced torrential rain, thunder, lightening, flooding and winds that I swear could have been a tornado! The tour which has included events in Ft Wayne IN, Vero Beach FL and Lafayette LA is my first experience of life on the road with Michael Damian and the unpredictable weather only adds to the excitement of the roller coaster ride I boarded in Indianapolis 10 days ago.
As we seem to have the driving situation under control I decide to take advantage of the "quiet time" and ask Michael a few questions about Shadows, the new album and of course the question everyone wants to know the answer to…. is he or isn't he returning to "Y&R"?

Michael, how is the new album coming along and when will it be available to buy?
Starting Monday we will be going over all the tracks making the final adjustments - tweaking the songs, adding background vocals, doing the final mixing. That should be finished in the next two weeks and then it will be ready for the mastering session. After that it will be delivered to the record company. Then finally we have the photo shoot and the artwork will be designed for the cover and inserts. It should be in shops by the end of August!

So who wrote "Shadows in the Night" and do you play any instruments on the song?
My brother Larry and I wrote the song together. I don't play on Shadows but I did play keyboards on a few of the tracks that will be featured on the new album; "Still Mad About You", "Wild Irish Heart" and "Underwater Sky".

You recently played your first live shows in over four years. How did it feel to be back on the road again?
It's been a thrill being out and meeting the wonderful, supportive fans and great singing on stage again, minus the odd thunderstorm or two (he says with a laugh, referring to that unpredictable weather that I mentioned). It's a lot of work but it's also a lot of fun. The fun outweighs the work.

What has the response been like from the fans?
I've been overwhelmed by their enthusiasm and kindness. I'm surprised to see people singing along to Shadows and even the other new songs such as "Still Mad About You" and "Wild Irish Heart".

Do you intend doing any more live shows in the future?
We have a big show coming up in New York on July 14th and I'll be performing with a

whole band. That's followed by another five shows in California. When the album comes out these shows will continue and escalate and more concert dates will emerge. If people like the album and the follow up single then you can expect to see more live shows.

You have been involved in writing television and movie scripts over the last few years. How does writing a script for a movie or TV show differ from writing song lyrics?
There's a parallel in the writing of a song and a script be it for a movie, TV show or even a book. They are all about telling a story, have a beginning, middle and an end.
When you compose a song the main structure is; first verse, chorus, second verse, double chorus, bridge, final chorus and out. With a movie script you have the beginning, set up, conflict, resolution and finish. An episode for a television show is similar again, an opening followed by three acts and the end tag.
A song really is the most condensed version of storytelling. Following on from there, an album which is made up of 10 / 12 songs can sometimes have a thread that continues through the songs linking them together like a movie.

Although you have released several singles in Europe, over the last few years it's been eight years since your last album, "Time of the Season" was released, have your musical tastes changed since then and is that reflected in the new album?
Musical tastes always change but basically they stay the same.
I think the music we are doing today is more acoustic than computerised. I'm going back more to the basics, less effects in the sounds and the vocals. The sounds are clearer, crisper and more honest than before. Recording technology is now so wonderfully advanced that you can save performances that otherwise may have been lost or unusable. Now we are able to save them to hard drive and you don't have to keep taping over performances that you've made.

Have any of your brothers or sisters been involved in the making of the new single / album?
Both Tom and Larry have been involved in the writing, arranging and producing of the songs, which have been recorded at Tom's Studio, Studio City Sound.
It's a Weir Brothers collaboration!

You have been back in the States for few months now. Are you planning on staying here or will you be going back to live in Paris?
We'll be spending more time in the States but intend on taking a trip to Paris at the end of August and hopefully will visit London too.

What do you think is the main difference between life in L.A. compared to life in Paris and what do you miss most about each place when you're not there?
The main difference is L.A. is the heart of the Entertainment Industry but Paris thrives on art and history - and food, he laughs. Both L.A. and Paris are fast paced and have

tremendous energy but L.A. is always chaotic for me due to meetings, interviews, my music and the fact that all my family live there. Paris has it's own kind of energy - a cultural energy. It has a history and is very inspiring, especially for writing. It slows me down. I don't have the phone calls and faxes coming in all day there that I have when I'm in L.A.
What do I miss about each place? When I'm in Paris I miss the energy of L.A. and my family and friends, although of course we have friends in Paris too and when I'm in L.A. I miss the architecture, the history and the French simplicity towards life. The French have mastered the art of enjoying life and food (hmmm, that's the second time Michael's mentioned the food, I wonder if that's because we've missed lunch?) and are not workaholics (they mean it as a compliment) as they like to call us Americans.

Last by not least - Michael, is there any truth to the rumours you are returning to the Young and the Restless?
As recently reported in magazines, I spoke to one of the head writers a few weeks ago, he's working on a story idea and we'll see what happens and let you know how it's progressing. But as you can tell yourself from the last ten days, my schedule this summer is pretty hectic, so we'd be looking at the Fall / September before I could return.