Q: I saw you perform in Portland, Me., back in the ’80s when you opened for the Pretenders. I had never experienced anything like it. You actually licked my hand. A: I was just really happy to be in Maine — I’m a travel enthusiast. And I’m glad I got away with a lick. But those were pretty mainstream shows. It was an introduction to another part of the American public. I remember there was one gig on that tour at Penn State, and it looked just like “Children of the Corn” — these penetrating blue Anglo-Saxon eyes staring at...