Hello, My Name Is David
Q&A with The Wedding Present’s David Gedge
IE: The Wedding Present turn 25 this year. Do you ever ask yourself “How did I get here?”
David Gedge: Sure I ask myself, “Where did it all go?” But in some ways it’s like I’ve just started. I feel like I’ve just left the university. When I first started making music, the idea of being in this business for 25 years – performing in a band that carries on and on like The Rolling Stones – didn’t appeal to me. But here I am. It’s almost like I was predestined in a way. From an early age I’ve always wanted to do this. If you had asked me that 25 years ago, and told me I’d still be doing this, I would have laughed out loud.
IE: Two years ago, the band performed your first album, George Best, in its entitrety on a U.K. tour. Now you’re touring the States performing your second album, Bizarro, as a tribute tour. Are you doing this for the fans, or did you enjoy it so much the first time around, you decided to give it a go Stateside?
DG: Both really. It went down so well the first time, we decided to try it again. To be honest, when the George Best tour was first proposed by our label, I was the biggest opponent. I wasn’t into the nostalgia, performing a 20-year-old album. I’m more about looking forward, about doing new things, new albums. But the more I reflected upon it, the more I spoke to my band members, fans, and friends, they all said, “David, you gotta do that. It’s brilliant.” You know, when a new album comes out you usually only hear five songs from it; not the whole record is performed live. So, in the end, I was persuaded. The next logical thing was to do Bizarro, especially here in North America, because it’s so much better known here.
IE: Was it strange to go back and rediscover old songs from that period [circa 1989]?
DG: Yes. I’ve been going back over the old songs. It’s kind of an enforced nostalgia, really. Like looking at an old diary you just kept. It’s incredible how you change as a person, as songwriter. It’s funny, too, how much about the music I wouldn’t change.
The Wedding Present perform April 16th at Double Door in Chicago. David Gedge and IE columnist David Gedge are not related, nor the same person. Q&A by John Vernon.
