Nils Lofgren entered the music business at the age of seventeen as a member of Neil Young’s band. Young helped Lofgren’s first band, Grin, land a major record deal in the early seventies. The band released four albums before disbanding, after which Lofgren began a long and fruitful career as a solo artist and later, a member of Bruce Springsteen’s E Street Band.
Recently, Lofgren released his first new solo album in six years entitled “Old School.” In this interview, Nils talks about the new album, the late Clarence Clemons and his family. His answers were insightful and thought provoking, just what you would expect from an artist of the caliber of Nils Lofgren.
TJ: I was lucky enough to receive an advance copy of your latest album “Old School” and I have been really enjoying it. Can you tell me a little bit more about the title track?
NL: It’s an angry song and an anxiety based song about the current state of affairs. I ease into it a bit with the dark humor about spoiled kids. A lot of people I know complain about their children but we are the ones that spoil them. We are the ones that told them they could be aimless and directionless and not work at age 26. It’s our fault and now we have got to pay for it. I was blessed I came from a generation where that wasn’t even an idea. You couldn’t get to 18 and expect mom and dad to pay for everything and blame them for all of your problems. They were there to help if you were lucky, which I was, and guide you. They encouraged you to grow up, which we don’t now and it’s hurting kids. I use a tongue in cheek example and then I delve into a much more violent topic; predators and how we keep letting them out of jail. I, like millions of other people, scream at my television. It’s become a major epidemic and I didn’t water it down in the song, I took it to the extreme where the parent has lost a child to a predator. It says look, we have this problem and we haven’t figured it out, and that’s a shame. These guys shouldn’t have a second chance. I hate to say it, but now you look at this Penn State tragedy, and it’s men that are the predators. I think maybe if we had women in power we wouldn’t have these problems. I mean everybody agrees these people shouldn’t get second chances but we keep giving them second chances. The character in the song is spewing rage about that.
TJ: I agree, the psychological damage that happens to kids that are victims is terrible, and I think even most experts in the field of child psychology agree that child predators are incurable.
NL: I think that you are absolutely right in what you said Thom, it’s not curable. If people find themselves wanting to do that to little kids they should seek help, we are not going to give them money. If a person finds themselves with those vile thoughts we can offer help and guidance with the understanding that they have to deal with those feelings. If they give in to those feelings there should be no second chance. If we had been doing that all along we might not have had these types of problems. People might have thought that they better not do those things or they go to the island. I love that movie “Escape from New York.” As for the death penalty, I am very torn. What I do believe is that if you commit these crimes you should be sent to an island where you can eat together, pray together and grow vegetables, but there are no camera crews and you don’t get off the island. I mean if you have a problem we can help you, but if you hurt a child you should be gone and I have never heard anybody who doesn’t feel the same way about child predators. I look at Congress and I have to say they really have dropped the ball on this issue and families are devastated every day because of it. It is an unconscionable, shame full state of affairs that could be changed overnight.
TJ: I think that is one thing that I admire about your songwriting, you don’t sugarcoat things. Bruce (Springsteen) is known for biting social commentary but I don’t know that he would have handled theis topic the way you did.
NL: I don’t know about that. There has never been a greater songwriter than Bruce. You have the Beatles, the Stones, Dylan, Sting, Neil Young and Peter Gabriel. Bruce, Bob Dylan and Neil Young have been prolific songwriters for over forty years. Bruce did a whole album about 9/11 and he did it with class and dignity. He’s is a master of his craft and whether he would take the same tack I did, it’s not my place to speak for him.
TJ: Where would you place yourself amongst the greats you mentioned? I think it is fair to say that there is a group of people that are connoisseurs of your music that would put you up there. After all, you have worked closely with Neil Young and Springsteen. Even at a young age you were writing some amazing stuff. Does it frustrate you that you never received the commercial success of a Springsteen or Neil Young? Or are you content with where you are at?
NL: I think a little bit of both. You make music to share. We are making videos for the new album and it would be great if they went viral and I was playing to six thousand people instead of six hundred and have my own stage and lights and explore my own performance more. It would be great to have control of my performance and the staging, which is the dream of every performer. We make music to share but I don’t dwell on the frustration. I’ve made records for the last forty three years and the last sixteen have been without a record company. Thanks to technology I can share music on the Internet, and I’m just excited to be growing as an artist and getting better at what I do. Sure, I hope that it leads to a hit record someday but I am not holding my breath or crying over spilt milk. I just look at myself and try to get better and think maybe that day will come. But working on things that you are proud of is part of the journey, and that should be enough.
TJ: I would like to talk about another song on the album, “60 is the New 18.” I was a little confused by that one. I know that you just turned 60 but the song doesn’t seem to reflect where you are at in your career.
NL: Yeah, I did turn 60 this year. I took some liberties as a songwriter. At 60 people start looking at you as someone who has been around the block, which I have. Hopefully I have acquired some wisdom I can impart on people with class and dignity. At the same time I look at myself with a sense of humor and feel like I am Rodney Dangerfield now. First of all, it’s hard to relate to being that old. We all have the stereotype of the granddad in the 
rocking chair. Of course none of us really get any respect, young kids think we are old farts and swear at us and treat us like crap, but you have got to have a sense of humor about it. But let’s be honest, not all kids are like that. The point is that I find myself at age sixty feeling so blessed, and at the same time dealing with an anxiety about my world and my planet and where I perceive things are going. Sometimes that aggravates me because I feel like at 60 I am supposed to have all the answers. I took some liberties with the character in the song, he is much more anxiety ridden than I am but they are the same feelings I am dealing with. I think sometimes people get older and they are surprised at that sense of hopelessness, and the character in the song is really struggling and abusing everything in front of him. Near the end, instead of 60 being the new 18 because of being confused and making bad mistakes, he’s talking about finding some self-respect and trying to atone for what he has done. He comes to the realization that he doesn’t want to be the 60 year old trying to pick up a twenty something chick in a bar. Sometimes life doesn’t have a happy ending. It’s a reflection of that taken to the extreme. It’s not just a funny song, it speaks to the realization that if he doesn’t turn things around at 60 it’s all over. The character is thinking that he never thought he would make it to 60 and still be screwing up like he is.
TJ: If we could, I would like to spend a moment talking about the recent passing of Clarence Clemons. It seems like nobody is irreplaceable anymore. So many bands replace iconic figures, and on the new album you work with a legend from my hometown, Lou Gramm, who was replaced. Do you envision Bruce trying to replace Clarence with somebody similar or maybe going the direction The Who and finding fill ins that don’t even attempt to replicate the sound.
NL: Clarence and I had a very deep friendship offstage. I stood next to him onstage for twenty seven years, but when we weren’t touring I spoke to him every week. I am friends with all my band mates but Clarence and I were really close and so I am still navigating the heartbreak. One of the advantages of being a band member and not the boss is that I don’t have to make that decision. I don’t even want to think about it now, but whatever Bruce does I am right behind him. It must be painful because as close as I was with Clarence, Bruce had a longer and deeper relationship with him. I still have videos and pictures so I can stroll down memory lane. The song “Miss You Ray” from the new album I have been singing “Miss You C” for the last three months on the road.
TJ: I have taken a lot of your time so I will just ask one more question. I saw Ray Davies recently and was chatting with someone before the show
about the legendary feud between Ray and his brother and the Gallagher brothers. In your case you have what seems to be a great musical camaraderie with your brother Tommy. Why do you think that your relationship with your brother works and yet others are so volatile?
NL: It comes from my mom and dad. I had great parents and everyone we meet thinks we are freaks. So many families have these deep seeded issues. We still have my mom, we lost my dad thirteen years ago but I still have his memory and try to emulate him every day. My three brothers are my best friends. We have had multitudes of disagreements on many issues but we’ve never exchanged a harsh word. I can only attribute that to my mom and dad and feel blessed for that. Tommy and I were in bands, Mike was a roadie in the early days. Mark’s a lawyer and every time I play in D.C all four of us get onstage and sing together. We will be doing that again February 18-19 as the Lofgren brothers. I know I am blessed with a great family that is free of the angst and dysfunction that has become a global epidemic.
TJ: I have to say that “Acoustic Live” is one of my favorite albums of all time. I never get sick of listening to it.
NL: Thanks, that is one of my favorites as well. It was great to play with Tommy on that one, he is the other professional musician in the family. Mike and Mark play as well and are very good at it as well. I always try and get Tommy out when I can. A while ago he made the decision to become a computer graphics specialist so he could support his three girls. It provided him a living that he couldn’t make playing bars with me. I admire Tommy and my other brothers a lot.
We would like to thank Jeff Albright from Rockstar PR for setting up the interview with Nils. For more information on Nils and his latest CD “Old School,” please go to: http://www.nilslofgren.com/.
