Colin Who?...

by Marc Fri 8 May 2020 - 20:08

I've recently been re-introduced to Colin Hay. I definitely would have sung along to his 80's hits like Land Down Under and Overkill (which made a comeback from a hospital show in the early 2000's I never watched). But I enjoy his 30 years later voice and his writing, accompanied by only his guitar - as it is here. He's got a pretty good sense of humour, and I've enjoyed some of his banter in a few live videos I've checked out.

He wrote this in '98

Written in 2001

I think there's an ease with which he plays now, knowing full well he'll never be as big as he once was with Men at Work.

by Marc Fri 8 May 2020 - 20:25

I decided to check this song out. But I posted it for the bit of banter about the show Scrubs (which I knew he appeared in, singing Overkill), but it's clear that the show's use of his music made a big difference in his ability to draw a crowd and keep his music alive.

by **Hobb** Sun 10 May 2020 - 21:25

Well, I've only seen Hays as a guest on 'Larry Sanders' but even in that very brief bit you could see his charisma - and the song 'Can't Take this Town' he played on that show has stuck with me over the years....

https://filmschoolrejects.com/interview-colin-hay-on-documentary-waiting-for-my-real-life-e3453712eb16/ wrote:
Is there a song you’re particularly proud of from a musical craftsmanship standpoint?

CH: I like a few of the songs, yeah. I like “Overkill” for a few different reasons. When you first start writing you think to yourself “Am I any good at this?” and you keep on going. “Overkill” was the first song where I felt I was getting anywhere, so that’s a special song for me. I wrote “Looking for Jack” which I thought was a good song. Some interesting things in it. “Death Row Conversations” I like.

Was there a particular song that you miss playing with Men At Work?

I miss Greg [Ham, Men At Work flautist/saxophonist who died of a heart attack in 2012]. Greg and I used to get really stoned.

He had a bread van. A bread delivery van that he converted. We’d drive out into the country to a place called West Gippsland with beautiful rolling green hills and we’d take mushrooms. We’d get really stoned and ‐ fuck ‐ I miss those days. I always thought that maybe we’d do that once more. You know? As we got older, just get lost in the countryside. Doesn’t have to be a bread van, but a bread van would be good.

Colin, why did you decide to go along with this [documentary]? Was it self-exploration, confession, a lesson to share?

CH: I thought to myself “why is this interesting?” I’m just a guy that plays music. Nobody dies. There’s no, y’know, child abuse.When I was getting drunk for years with all my drunken friends ‐ who were lovely people, though a bunch of high-functioning alcoholics ‐ my guitar was in the corner gathering dust. When I picked it back up, it was still in tune. I wanted the film to reflect that journey.

It’s just a guy and once he sold millions of records but now he doesn’t anymore. What’s gonna compel people about that? But the more I thought about it, it’s about being addicted to things that can kill you, like alcohol, and things that can save you, like creativity. Creativity won’t let you down if you pay attention to it.

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