Misssssttttttah Paaaahhhhkah! (as a wise man once said). Hello again! Let's start off by talking about your early days with UFO. How did you get into drumming in the first place, and how did you come to audition for UFO? As long as I can remember I always wanted to be a drummer. Got my first real kit at 12 and played in a variety of different bands. I met the guys in a pub back in 1969. They were looking for somewhere to rehearse. Turns out one of my mates had been at school with Pete. We got chatting and they told me they were looking for a new drummer. The auditions were at the Fishmongers Arms in Wood Green. I remember that they showed up late. Mick Bolton came in carrying a cardboard box which contained a jumble of guitar leads, none of which seemed to work. After about an hour of crackles, hums and assorted other noises, he asked me 'do you know how to solder?' To this day I still don’t know if it was my skill with a soldering iron or my drumming that got me the gig.

Were you the drummer at the 'Fagin's Blues Workshop' gig, which is documented as one of the very first UFO shows? I really don’t remember! But if the band was called UFO then yes, I was playing drums, because we didn’t adopt that name until after I had joined.

Tell us about touring in the early days - the dodgy van, the long drives up the motorway smelling of fish, traveling through Germany, Japan etc. We did have a couple of dodgy vans in the early days, but then again, didn’t everyone? The fish smell was before my time. I believe that was my predecessor. But we did do a lot of drives up the motorway, once again that came with the territory. We played everywhere that we could. Pubs, clubs, Student Unions - you name it we played there!

And then, from those humble beginnings, you went on to play huuuuuuuge stadium gigs, flying in chartered planes, touring with Ozzy, and all that stuff. The first time I remember thinking we were really getting somewhere was when we went to Japan in the early 70s. We left the Transit at Heathrow, got on a plane, flew half way round the world and were met at the other end by limousines and screaming fans. Played a huge stadium in the middle of Tokyo, recorded a live album and were pretty much treated like royalty. Great stuff!

Might sound a daft question, but did you ever prefer the sweaty smelly rawness of the early days to the glitz and glamour of the arena years? I can’t say that I preferred one to the other, you really can’t compare them. In the early days touring around England it was hard work. Doing the gear as well as playing. But you usually ended up back in your own bed at the end of the night. How did you adapt to the new lifestyle, and how easy or difficult was it to watch the other bandmembers 'adapting' to it. Once we progressed to the bigger venues especially in the States it meant weeks if not months away from home. That affects everybody in one way or another, and some people handle it better than others. I don’t think I need to name names... Understood!

What are your memories of being on Top Of The Pops? Plastic cymbals and the BBC bar! Hah!

Practical jokes.... you were on the receiving end of quite a few. Tell us some of the best - or maybe I mean the 'worst' - ones. UFO have always liked a good joke -and still do, I might add. There are way too many to remember, but possibly one of the worst was when we were recording at the Manor with Gary Lyons. I had driven up from London for the day to do some overdubs, and while I was working they secretly attached a frozen kipper fillet to the exhaust pipe of my rental car. Needless to say, about half way back down the M40 the smell became unbearable, and I finally twigged what was going on. I had to pull into a filling station at around 1:30 in the morning, smoke billowing from under the bonnet. The local police constable was leaning on his bike talking to the attendant. They obviously thought the car was on fire and offered me an extinguisher. I got some very strange looks when I told them ‘No thanks, I just need to borrow some wire cutters to remove a kipper from my exhaust manifold'.  Sounds perfectly reasonable to me... but then again, perhaps I've spent too much time in the company of Mr. Way!

How did you get on with all this 'no-neck' ribbing they put you through? Were you secretly (or maybe even not-so-secretly) looking forward to it again? That was a long time ago and it seems to have died of natural causes so I suggest that we let it rest in peace.....  Spoilsport! Oh well, as long as the thought of those jokes doesn't get you hot under the collar... Stop it.....! Hah!

CLICK ON THIS PICTURE FOR A LARGER PHOTO OF ANDY AT THE DRUMS

When you got back with UFO did you feel like you'd come 'home'? And have you any regrets about leaving the family business which stole you away from the UFO drumstool in the first place. Aah, the family business. Let’s just say I’ve been there done that and have the polo shirt with corporate logo to prove it.

So.... tell us about the touring and recording this time around. Recording this album was a very different experience for me. The guys had already come up with the basic tracks by the time I arrived on the scene - Phil had been in Delaware working with Vinnie on their stuff (Drink Too Much being one of them, so I hear) and Pete and Paul both had demos of their songs. We thrashed out the rough arrangements in a rehearsal room in Hanover, then headed for the studio. Initially we had planned to record the drum tracks in analog. Both Phil and I felt it was important to have a “real” drum sound on this album, so we had found a large studio with a 24-track tape machine in which to cut the basic tracks. Not as easy as you might think in this digital age! Unfortunately the aforementioned machine broke down on the first day of recording (no wonder digital has taken over) and with the only service technician who could fix it stuck in Munich, we were forced to abandon the idea and go digital. It was the first time I have worked in a totally digital format. To be perfectly honest I found it very relaxing. When I laid down the drum tracks there was just myself and Tommy Newton in the studio so it was much easier to concentrate on what I was playing. I’m not saying that it will always be this way but in this instance we were kind of tight for time (having just lost a day’s recording) and it really worked to our advantage. And thanks to Tommy’s expertise with Pro Tools I believe the end result is as good as analog. Although I think a track called Smoke Too Much might have been more appropriate in Tommy’s case!
As for the live shows, they were fantastic. I feel so at home on that stool. The band has such a great vibe these days. The tension that I have felt in the past has completely gone. Due in a large part I believe to Vinnie. As well as being an amazing guitar player he is also a rock solid guy. Phil is sounding better than ever and Pete and Paul are just pure rock and roll - and always a pleasure to play with.

How was the reception from the fans? How was the reception from the BAND? Was anybody sick on the tourbus? Was anybody sick on the stage? Hah! We got a great reception everywhere; in my humble opinion our fans are still the best in the business. As for the puking I believe the score is tied at Bassplayer 1 : Batttttty 1 - but I could be wrong. No... you're right.... and a bit of advice here for any SITN readers who might ever feel the need to chuck their dinner back up whilst travelling on a tourbus.... don't do it into a carrier bag. These days, as a 'safety feature', they have holes in them. Delightful.

OK, moving on... which do you feel was/were UFO's best album(s)  - and why? I have always felt that Strangers was possibly our best album, because it really captured the essence of UFO. But ever since we finished Monkey Puzzle I can’t stop playing it - so it could end up as my No.1  And what were your favourite UFO songs to play - and to listen to? Favourite songs.... difficult - Probably 'Love To Love' because of its diversity. I'm also quite fond of 'I'm A Loser'.

Whilst you were working with UFO in the past were you ever head-hunted by other big-name bands? Or even 'neck-hunted'? Sorry, had to get one in! The devil (and Paul Raymond) made me do it! Not really. I did get a couple of interesting offers but my heart always belonged to UFO. During his brief spell with Ozzy, Pete did get Jake E Lee to call me and offer me a job as a wind-up. But I don’t think that really counts...

Have you kept up to speed with the albums that were recorded in the hiatuses (hiati?) when you weren't there? What do you think of them, and why? Not as such. Except for You Are Here and Showtime. We play some of that material in the set. Both worthy efforts - I especially like Baby Blue and Mr. Freeze, also Fighting Man from Sharks.

Walk On Water - how did that come about, how were you approached, and when you went into the studio and started working on the tracks, did you realise that this was something really special? I had just moved back to England from California and started working for my family. I got a phone call from the guys telling me that a Japanese record company had put up the money to make an album. So basically I took my vacation allotment for the whole following year and headed back to Los Angeles. We rehearsed for a couple of weeks and then went into the studio with Ron Nevison. We laid down all the backing tracks in one week, which was really good going considering how long we used to take with Ron. That is one of the reasons I am so proud of that album. Everybody worked very hard to make it come together in the time available. Unfortunately the tension within the band which I spoke of earlier was very much in evidence, so when it came time to tour I declined the offer and went back to my day job. A tough decision but in hindsight definitely the right one for me at the time.

You've had more than your fair share of spandex over the years, and from the worst possible vantage point too. Sittin at the back of the stage night after night, behind a load of poseurs parading and posturing and prancing about ...  It can't have left you mentally unscathed, I'm sure. Is that why you left? Did you need counselling? Incidentally, if you ever feel the need to purge yourself of those disgusting and disturbing spandex-memories, I'm always willing to listen.... it's the least I can do, and I would consider it my solemn duty to hear ALL about the distressing sights you saw - all that firmly-rounded and tightly-contoured spandex.... uuuugggghhhhh. Spandex - I ain't afraid of no spandex! Besides, that big drum kit provided an excellent shield. And no, my leaving had absolutely nothing to do with the spandex. although I do still wake up screaming some nights, visions of Tonka’s spandex-clad backside swirling in my head. Don't we all! But now... every day in every way… Hah!

Hey, talking of things that make us wake up screaming in the middle of the night.... what was it like being in Waysted? What are your memories of playing the Glasgow Apollo?

Waysted was great. I’ve always loved playing with Pete (that’s music, you sickoes) so I jumped at the offer. The Glasgow Apollo was always a mega gig and having a singer from north of the border just enlarged the whole experience. I'll bet! Oh yeh, we have a prawn curry question from Gary, the son of Fin's sister who used to prepare her famous prawn curry recipe whenever you fellas played up in Scotland. What do you remember of those prawn curries? And can you still picture her poppadoms?  Too Hot To Handle on both counts. But seriously, I remember Fin’s family as being really hospitable and great fun.

Would you consider doing a guest-spot on the next Waysted tour, if you were in the area at the time? Absolutely! Have you heard the new Waysted album, Back From The Dead? If so, what do you think of it? If not, I'll send you a copy! No not heard it yet, and yes please send me a copy! OK - it's on its way(sted) to ya, at this very minute.

The initial contact for the 2005 UFO get-together came from a surprising source. When Blackfoot were first booked to play the 2005 Rock And Blues festival in Derbyshire, along with Waysted, Bobby Barth from Blackfoot was checking out the Waysted website and emailed me there and asked if I could put you two fellas back in touch. You'd both set up a band together - Axe - back in 1989 but never got round to recording. Anyway, when I met up with Bobby at the festival, he said he'd made contact and you'd been saying that you were keen to get back on stage again with your old UFO muckers, and blimey, lo and behold, here you are! Pick up the story and tell us how the rest of it went! Yeah, I knew Bobby from L.A. We owned a small recording studio, and also had this great band together. It was sort of a revival of 'Axe' the band that Bobby had fronted in the early 80's, but sadly as you know we never did get around to recording anything. Seems like we were always too busy recording other bands - oh well! He’s an excellent guitar player and has a great voice. I kind of lost touch with him after he left L.A., so I was really glad when we hooked up again. He’s now living in New Orleans and managed to survive Katrina, thank God. I’m hoping to get to see him some time in the future.

The general consensus in the music business is that UFO never realized or fulfilled their true potential. If you agree with that, what do you think the reasons were? What do you think the future is for UFO, and for 'our' kinda music generally? UFO’s day is definitely not over and judging by our latest offering - The Monkey Puzzle - we are going to be around for some time to come. Let’s face it, true class never goes out of style!

Had you heard much of Vinnie's work prior to him joining UFO? No I really hadn’t but I recently acquired The Maze and Defying Gravity (thanks, Vinman!) and there is some awesome stuff on these albums. A must for any guitar fan!

Who influenced you as a drummer and who are some of you favourite drummers, living and dead? Early days, definitely Keith Moon, he was just so out there. Later, drummers like Ian Paice and Cozy Powell, and more recently Vinnie Colaiuta. But my all time Number 1 has to be John Bonham (honest, Jason!). In my opinion there's still nobody who can touch him.

What are your thoughts on the Bolton and Wallis eras? The first Schenker era? The Chapman era? And the Atomik Tommy and Lawrence Archer eras? Bolton era - The birth of UFO - great days, great guy - we are still friends. Wallis era - It never really worked, did it? Sad..... Schenker era - It was the best of times, it was the worst of times. Chapman era - Hard work. Hard play. Hard drugs. As for the other two eras, I can't comment - I wasn't there (or if I was I don't remember!)

OK me ol' mate....- try this for a bit of fun.... Please use three words to describe each of your bandmates..
Phil Mogg - Hard Heavenly Body
Pete Way - Hard Being Me
Paul Raymond - Hard To Beat
Vinnie Moore - Hard To Follow

Wow - excellent!

This interview © Batttttty - September 5th 2006