Interview with Dicky Barrett of The Mighty Mighty Bosstones
4/24/97

Q: Where did the tradition of wearing plaid come from?

That came from Scotland originally from what I understand.

Q: How did it get integrated into the Bosstones?

Oh with us? Sorry, it was actually something we did a long time ago, when there was nobody in the clubs and nobody came to see us. We were just kind of entertaining for our friends and ourselves, we'd dress strangely and show up at the shows, ya know to amuse ourselves. One time I showed up with a lot of plaid on and some people saw that and started wearing plaid so we kind of started making it one of our kind of flags that we wave, and its come to mean a lot more over the years. We definitely consider our music to be plaid. It describes the music really well, it's obnoxious I guess, it's annoying, and it's hard on the ears the way plaid can be tough on the eyes sometimes. If you mix it up the way we do.

Q: I was reading the bio and you also describe yourselves Ska-Core can you define Ska-Core?

Ska music slammed together with Hard Core music. You know, everybody seems to need a label. The Mighty Mighty Bosstones didn't seem to be enough for people, they wanted to know exactly what kind of music it was. We certainly didn't know what we were doing, we were taking all the influences we had, all the things we loved and finally we gave them a label. I came up with the word Ska-Core and there's actually other Ska-Core bands now which is pretty cool.

Q: It's cool to be considered an influence.

It's nice to be considered an innovator, maybe an originator, maybe if there's ever a Ska-Core wing in the Rock-N-Roll Hall Of Fame, maybe there will be a statue of me there.

Q: You would be the first. So you guys have been together for five albums now.

Right. Five full lengths, two smaller ones. It's nice though it doesn't feel like that, it feels like it was all just yesterday.

Q: The only person in your line up that's changed is the drummer, from the first album.

Yeah, we had a different drummer from the first album. One and a half albums he played on and then he decided her wanted to go to college in California and so we got Joe. I met Joe in the smokin' area of the prestigious community college that I attended.

Q: Where did you go to school?

Bunker Hill Community College, and there was Joe. We hung out a little bit, he said he could drum I said we could use ya, and it was a really awesome find, a gem really.

Q: It definitely works for your sound. You know, the drums are the backbone of the music and if it's not solid then the rest will just falter.

Thank you, I'll remember that.

Q: Nate was a baby when he joined you guys.

He's still a big baby. I know I keep hearing that. I remember him and Joe being the same age. I don't remember him being much younger but I'm not sure, I was old then, I'm old now. I was ancient.

Q: How old are you ?

47.

Q: No way.

I'm almost 50, swear to God.

Q: You've been in the business a long time.

Yeah, I used to be in a ragtime band back in the late 20's - early 30's.

Q: How long have you been singing?

Are we calling it singing?

Q: I'm calling it singing.

Well that's nice of you but, uh, do you think that's fair to people that really can sing? Sinatra is a singer.

Q: But we digress. OK, you're first album came out on TAANG!

So did the second.

Q: OK, the first two albums came out on TAANG!

And an EP.

Q: So what made you go to Mercury?

Cause TAANG! sucked. They were the worst. They were the most dishonest... they don't even care about the artists on the label. They don't care about their employees. I worked for them, they don't care about the people that they sell the records to. We were with them too long. They could not be fair, they could not be honest, and they still aren't to this day. They're still fucking with bands.

Q: And Mercury?

It's not personal. It's not like I imagined, you know the Rocky Balboa story with someone that comes out of nowhere, I mean I wanted to be on an independent label all the way through, but I still wanted to make the records. I still wanted to be able to do this. Its not as personal, but we have a lot of friends there and it's FAIR. Everything's honest. TAANG! hides behind this independent label, "I'm the little guy and I'm getting fucked," when in fact it's the exact opposite. Once those guys started making money they didn't care about the art work. They certainly didn't care about the album covers, he changes them and releases them. To this day he changes the cover of Devil's Night Out just to sell more copies. The kids go in and think it's a new product.

Q: That's crazy.

It's insane I know, it's dishonest.

Q: So you're with Mercury now and you're happier with them?

It's fine. It was the toughest decision we ever made, but on the other side of it I'm glad we made it.

Q: And the new album is doing?

Fine by me I guess. People seem to like it. I'm happy with it. If you want me to talk numbers you got the wrong guy.

Q: No I'm asking more about how you feel about it. I know that ya'll normally write just the right amount of songs for an album but this time you wrote thirty and picked the best 12?

No we wrote thirty and recorded twenty, and put twelve on the album.

Q: So what happened to the rest of the songs? Are we going to hear them on tour?

Definitely not on tour. We don't even have time to do all the songs on the album on tour. We don't tour one album, we're still playing songs from Devil's Night Out, you know we mix it up.

Q: Well I know you guys have a lot of hard-core fans and they wanna hear the old stuff.

And we give it to 'em. I think we mix it up fairly well. When you've got five full length albums it's hard to find time to do things that are not even on the new album. It's impossible.

Q: You guys have been labeled Ska-Punk with a social conscience. I'm curious about your political stand.

Political Ambitions? I hope someday to be the Mayor of Boston, I'm glad you asked me 'cause I'm throwing my hat into the ring and...

Q: No, you know what I mean.

Yeah, I'm just kidding ya.

Q: Well you guys are fairly "PC" for the most part.

I don't think we're idiots, but that would be tough to tell from this phone call. We know it's not a perfect world, we know it's all not just beer and plaid, so on some levels we sing about it.

Q: There are a couple references in songs like "Police Beat" and "Question the Answers." Have the authorities been an issue?

Yeah...they lock me up every chance they get.

Q: Really.

Aw sure. I'm trouble from the word go. I hate authority. I don't get along with it. Basically because the people that we give power to are knuckle heads, not every single one. You know, but at my advanced age I'm beginning to wonder if it's me.

Q: So do you guys get out and party a bit?

I'm still having the time of my life, it's still the most enjoyable way to make a living, to exist. If you wanna call that a party you can.

Q: So who's opening for you guys right now?

Great question, this one I'll actually answer seriously. Pie Tasters and H2O, right now and today in fact. We're about to leave and head over there to see those guys cause they're my friends and I like hanging out with them and they are great bands. When we hit LA it will be Pie Tasters and Swingin' Utters.

Q: So you're on tour and...

They never seem to end, they link up one into the other. The only way you can indicate that it ends is that, for some reason, for a day I'm in Boston and I get to see whatever it is that I've left behind there.

Q: Are you married?

No, I would never do that to someone. If I loved somebody enough I would never be that cruel.

Q: Wow, well I'm not gonna keep ya, thanks for the time and we'll see ya soon.

Thank you.

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