Devo Recall Being Schooled and Scolded by Neil Young
- Posted on Jun 18th 2009 5:00PM by Steve Baltin
- Comment (1)
When Devo first came upon the scene in the late '70s, the band had a decidedly businesslike sensibility, going so far as to sell replicas of its yellow jumpsuit stagewear via order forms in its albums. It was a policy that didn't sit well with the group's peers. "When it came to marketing and packaging, that was supposedly anti-rock 'n' roll. And they would say as much: 'That's not rock 'n' roll,'" Devo's Gerald Casale tells Spinner.Devo found themselves chastised by the best of them, including one particular rock icon. "I remember people like Neil Young scolding us: 'Why did you have a merchandise catalog inside your record sleeve?'" Mark Mothersbaugh recalls him asking. "'Well, it's kind of like the back page of a comic book.' I was really trying to explain it to him."
Being scolded by the likes of Neil Young could do a number on an up-and-coming band. But Devo received just as much support from other rock heroes. "Certainly, the fact that David Bowie and Brian Eno really liked our music gave you a boost of confidence that you're doing the right thing," Casale says. "It's huge to an artist -- somebody you respect says, 'This is great; you should keep doing that.'"
Mothersbaugh adds, "They were very supportive, they liked what we did, they saw what we did and they got it."











Reader Comments(1 of 1)
sweidemanat 6-18-2009
Keep rockin spuds! It's never straight up and down!