Posted on 01/30/2022 9:01:10 PM PST by nickcarraway
Huey Lewis named Thin Lizzy classic “The Boys Are Back in Town” as the song that makes him cry in a tribute to his late friend Phil Lynott.
Lewis played harmonica on Lizzy’s 1978 album Live and Dangerous, billed as “Bluesy Huey Lewis” and appearing on the track “Baby Drives Me Crazy.” His band at the time, Clover, opened for Lynott’s group on the subsequent tour.
Asked by Classic Rock to identify the song that reduces him to tears, Lewis made the unexpected selection because of the memories it evoked. “The reason I say that is because I miss my pal Phil Lynott, and that’s what makes me cry," he said. "Phil was important to me. He helped me in many different ways. He taught me what popularity was going to be like, how to be a bandleader, how to deal with press, fans, record companies, the whole bit. He was a mentor to me, and I think about him still. He was one of the greats.”
In 2020 Lewis recalled how the pair became friends after Clover suffered a difficult opening slot ahead of a Lizzy performance, which was witnessed by Lynott. “It was awful,” Lewis said. “Phil was standing there [when we came off], and he said, Let me help you. You gotta go after them.”
Elsewhere in the new interview, Lewis said the most recent album by Huey Lewis and the News, 2020’s Weather, was the best record he's made. He also said the hearing failure he suffered four years ago left him “basing all of this on memory because I can’t hear music.” That meant he wasn’t able to finish a song that he’d like to have played at his funeral. “I think I’m going to go with ‘Sow a Little Kindness,’ which … hasn’t even been recorded yet: 'Sow a little kindness, reap a little love.' I love it, but we somehow never got it right, and then I lost my hearing. I have a demo of it, so we’ll play that at my funeral.”
Just me, but I never could stand huey lewis’ stuff.
Too urban, or something, I suppose.
Phil Lynott is one of the best frontman, ever.
There was a lot more to him than just “The Boys are Back in Town”.
Urban? I doubt you are thinking of it.
Its because the man can’t hold a tune.
.
Sheesh, Huey. Let's not talk like that.
Been working on learning that song the past few weeks. Awesome chord changes. Just getting the sequencing is, uh, interesting. 😂🎸
They don’t actually mention Topeka.
not just you- couldn’t stand their music either
> They don't actually mention Topeka.
The original was "The Heart of Rock and Roll is in Cleveland" (OH). Seriously.
But he changed it to "The Heard of Rock and Roll is Still Beating" for the release recording to make it more general.
Can't blame autocorrect for that one, unfortunately.
I think your overstating it. He said one night after a really good show in CLeveland they thought that, but it wasn’t really the song.
Thin Lizzy is so underrated. It’s a shame that that dumb single kept me away from them so long.
I played bass and sang it live and it was a challenge. Once I had it I had it but it took work.
Could be.
> He said one night after a really good show in CLeveland they thought that, but it wasn’t really the song.
I got the impression that his possibly off-the-cuff remark in Cleveland was what gave him the line for the song. No big deal; inspiration is where you find it. :-)
Jailbreak?
I used to work at Rancho Nicasio when Clover played there regularly. Those were the good old days in Marin County.
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