tag:littlewretches.com,2005:/blogs/news?p=7News2023-07-27T12:50:13-04:00The Little Wretchesfalsetag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/72483202023-07-27T12:50:13-04:002024-03-25T07:30:57-04:00BURNING LANTERN DROPPED IN STRAW<p>Radio promotion for The Little Wretches' BURNING LANTERN DROPPED IN STRAW is now underway. </p><p>The songs being “pushed” are TELL ME, NEVER IN THIS LIFE, DARK TIMES, and STRAIGHT INTO THE CENTER.</p><p>Please let the hosts of your favorite shows know that you think their listeners would enjoy our songs. </p><p> </p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/70109942022-07-09T09:28:04-04:002023-12-10T11:54:27-05:00THE LITTLE WRETCHES (East) at THE ROYAL (Where Music Lives)--THE FULL SHOW as a PLAYLIST on YouTube<p><a contents="(CLICK HERE TO SEE THE PLAYLIST AT YOUTUBE)" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLk_TF_mzgs0jRBX4nhoWVeEUuVVT7wTDv" target="_blank">(CLICK HERE TO SEE THE PLAYLIST AT YOUTUBE)</a></p>
<p>It's a pretty good night of music. Robert opens with some solo stuff, including powerful renditions of (May You Never Be the) Child of a Realist and I'll Be Your Mirror (Poem). Kim Alexander comes up for a duo-set. Kim and Robert are joined by Bonnie St. Onge for an Emmylou Harris song. Then, we get to the RED BEETS & HORSERADISH material and a second set of "standards."</p>
<p>This playlist documents the night. </p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/70109912022-07-09T09:13:32-04:002022-07-09T09:13:33-04:00WHY PATTI SMITH MATTERS by Caryn Rose, Reviewed by Robert Andrew Wagner of The Little Wretches<p><a contents="(CLICK HERE TO READ THE REVIEW AT THE PITTSBURGH POST-GAZETTE)" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://www.post-gazette.com/ae/books/2022/07/03/why-patti-smith-matters-caryn-rose-review/stories/202206260015?fbclid=IwAR23ZpVQfkaXujZv4DTJPZEHECa7TNhnfWwNJV_vMgJTGJvnZ1vrHaeGSCY" target="_blank">(CLICK HERE TO READ THE REVIEW AT THE PITTSBURGH POST-GAZETTE)</a></p>
<p>WHY PATTI SMITH MATTERS </p>
<p>Caryn Rose </p>
<p>Universtiy of Texas Press, 2022 </p>
<p>WHY PATTI SMITH MATTERS, the book is called. Matters to whom? Matters why? Matters for what? </p>
<p>Caryn Rose comes closest to answering these questions in her Epilogue: </p>
<p>“Patti Smith taught us how to kick the doors in, and she continues to teach us how to live with integrity, to keep our name clean, to take chances, to keep the memories of our loved ones alive, to continue after they’re gone, even when we think we cannot, and how to persevere through it all. </p>
<p>And most importantly, she taught us to do the work, and to just keep doing the work.” </p>
<p>Presumably, Caryn Rose’s “us” is “Patti Smith fans.” And that is part of the problem. If you are reading this, odds are you are already a Patti Smith fan. We fans don’t need to be convinced. </p>
<p>How many of us read Rimbaud because of Patti? How many of us went to libraries and museums to learn about Brancusi, Mondrian, Brecht, Jean Genet, Wilhelm Reich, William Blake, Abyssinia, Sam Shepard, the Twenty-third Psalm and Robert Mapplethorpe? How many of us ordered back-issues of old magazines that featured her poems and record reviews or went to used-record stores to hunt down copies of albums by Edgar Winter’s White Trash or Blue Oyster Cult because Patti’s words were said to be waiting there? </p>
<p>I wish we could talk to YOU who do NOT count yourselves among Caryn Rose’s “us,” you who only casually remember the harshness of Patti’s voice, her calculated-to-affront blending of profane and sacred images, seeking yet rejecting salvation, her hairy armpits on the cover of EASTER, her use of forbidden words, the F-word, the N-word. Oh, sure. You now acknowledge Patti’s place in pop culture because she’s reached a critical mass of acclaim and you, like everybody else on Bob Dylan’s 4th Street, want to be on the side that’s winning. Yeah, you’ve heard Because the Night. “Wasn’t that originally a Springsteen song?” GRRRR!!!!! YOU NEED THIS BOOK! </p>
<p>Caryn Rose focuses almost entirely on Patti’s work—the recordings, the concerts, the books. Patti is a worker, Caryn Rose reiterates, and Patti’s work is spotlighted in mostly chronological order, from her youth in Jersey to her risky move to Manhattan to winning the National Book Award for JUST KIDS to performing at the ceremony to award the Nobel Prize for Literature to Bob Dylan. </p>
<p>With WHY PATTI SMITH MATTERS, Caryn Rose shows how Patti’s work taught us how to Fight the Good Fight outside of society. Why outside? Because inside, there’s THEM, the PISS FACTORY workers, the Dot Hooks and their midwife sweat. They’ve got nothing to hide. Us? We’ve got something to hide called DESIRE. Why on earth would we want to hide our desire? Because the world wants to snuff it out. We can’t let that happen. We have to wrestle the world from fools. We have to create our own world. </p>
<p>That’s what Patti Smith taught us. </p>
<p>Robert Andrew Wagner, 6/11/2022 </p>
<p>robert_andrew_wagner@verizon.net </p>
<p>Robert Andrew Wagner is the leader of The Little Wretches and author of RED BEETS & HORSERADISH.</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/70109902022-07-09T09:03:19-04:002022-07-09T09:03:19-04:00PALMS & CROSSES reviewed at Music Crowns<p><a contents="(CLICK HERE TO SEE THE REVIEW AT MUSIC CROWNS DOT ORG" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://www.musiccrowns.org/new-music/the-little-wretches-craft-a-graphic-visual-on-palms-crosses/?fbclid=IwAR34rYlThw9Gl6jLmVeSYeN0riAEMZKHw7B7-gyKmdvX2WokIaFuC2DwYNk" target="_blank">(CLICK HERE TO SEE THE REVIEW AT MUSIC CROWNS DOT ORG</a></p>
<p>Okay. I don't know if such a person as Mia DeSine actually exists. Does Mia have pronouns? I browsed the internet for somebody named Mia DeSine, but I didn't find anyone. I can't tell if this is a "real" review or something whipped together by the publicist. Either way, here is what the review says:</p>
<p>Crafting a song from scratch is already a difficult, daunting task. Organizing your thoughts enough to write out lyrics that explain what’s in your head is far from easy. However, there are bands and artists who excel at this, even being able to tell a story as good as fiction authors and scriptwriters in less words and time. </p>
<p>The ease of picturing scenes from The Little Wretches’ song “Palms & Crosses” is something that I hardly experience, even with all of the music that I listen to. I can see kids fishing and eating spaghetti off Styrofoam dishes in my head as I listen, along with all the other little details that are dropped in the lyrics. </p>
<p>Each line is punchy, revealing detail after detail with humor tied in. It’s been a while since a song has made me laugh to myself. The Little Wretches’ cleverness is certainly not to be overlooked, and the upbeat, rocking instrumental complements the dynamic delivery of the lyrics, which even has a bit of sarcasm sprinkled in that makes for an amusing listen. </p>
<p>The Little Wretches’ performance is unique and attention-capturing, and I experienced all of that from only one song. They don’t hold back, bringing everything they have to their material, and it pays off. There’s plenty more in store for you, and you certainly won’t be disappointed by their zestful approach to music. </p>
<p>-Mia DeSine</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/70109852022-07-09T08:50:43-04:002022-07-09T08:50:43-04:00CASHBOX MAGAZINE<p><a contents="(CLICK HERE TO GO TO CASHBOX MAGAZINE)" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://www.cashboxmagazine.org/_files/ugd/aa670e_8b678e1416bf4cd2be10fa772a6b9de5.pdf?fbclid=IwAR2Pj5AunPMP952XZyIdI3RkNgMEhlT_wq-bV1x5bq8dr6FUGKapVMCHkxg" target="_blank">(CLICK HERE TO GO TO CASHBOX MAGAZINE)</a></p>
<p>Did you ever see one of those New Wave films in which you're not simply watching a story but a story about telling a story. The filmmakers make sure to remind you that you are watching a movie. It isn't real. They want you to maintain your critical perspective while also appreciating the story. Something about DEMYTHOLOGIZING.</p>
<p>Anyhow, here's a bit of demythologizing about The Little Wretches. I/we hired a publicist a couple of years ago, and he's kept me busy with podcast appearances and interviews, and he's scored us a lot of reviews and coverage on websites that, quite frankly, I wonder if anybody bothers to look at.</p>
<p>Every Monday morning, I get a report from Orchard Enterprises, a subsidiary of Sony, detailing the number of streams our songs and albums have garnered on Spotify, Apple Music, and so on. I can also look at analytics on YouTube to see how many times our videos have been viewed and how long viewers were engaged. If, for example, a video is three-minutes in length but the average view is 45 seconds, I know people are not watching the entire video.</p>
<p>So this thing with CASHBOX. The publicist sends me an email with some questions. I write answers to the questions and return them in an email. A few weeks later, my answers have been crafted into a profile. I'm on Page 50! </p>
<p>CASHBOX is a pretty legit magazine. I used to see it at newsstands in the days when I'd hang out at the magazine rack at record stores, occasionally getting yelled at, "No reading the magazines! If you want to read one, buy one!"</p>
<p>Anyhow, a LIVE audience feels real. All this virtual/digital stuff, it's hard to know if anybody's really out there.</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/70109752022-07-09T08:30:03-04:002023-12-10T13:03:03-05:00A Little Review of ROGER WATERS' Concert at PPG Paints Arena in Pittsburgh<p>Roger Waters </p>
<p>PPG Arena, Pittsburgh, 7/6/22 </p>
<p>F##k Sloganeering. </p>
<p>F##k taking potshots at easy targets. </p>
<p>F##k railing against mind-control tactics by employing those same tactics. </p>
<p>F##k the use of the word f##k as though it adds weight to the slogan. </p>
<p>F##k people conditioned to applaud when their beloved performer invokes the word, F##k. </p>
<p>Is it time for the two-minute hate yet? </p>
<p>All in all…. </p>
<p>He performed “in the round” with a massive projection screen through the middle of the stage. The filmwork and imagery were powerful, full of gravitas, reminiscent of propaganda films and the kind of stuff you see in film-adaptations of Orwell’s 1984 and other dystopian films. Some of the imagery came directly from the film-version of THE WALL. Slogans projected included US GOOD THEM EVIL, F@CK ISLAMOPHOBIA, BLACK LIVES MATTER, numerous anti-gun, anti-police, anti-war, anti-violence, anti-Christianity, and anti-greed f##ks, as well. All done in grandiose propaganda-style. A feast for the eyes and ears, though, and unquestionably a work of tremendous care and passion.</p>
<p>Roger Waters and his team presented a f##fing incredible concert, a production of excellence, built around music that would have been phenomenal without any show at all. </p>
<p>Maybe by embracing the tactics of his targets, Roger Waters is being ironic. Maybe he wants his audience to see the parallels between his imagery and the imagery of Leni Riefenstahl. </p>
<p>I once saw Iggy and The Stooges with NO light show and the house-lights up for the duration of the show. </p>
<p>The unity of opposites. The eye of the beholder. Oh, f##k it.</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/69968722022-06-18T14:08:45-04:002022-07-09T08:24:58-04:00Please Subscribe to The Little Wretches' YouTube Channel<p><a contents="THIS LINK TAKES YOU TO OUR YOUTUBE CHANNEL" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://www.youtube.com/user/unimartspitbulls" target="_blank">THIS LINK TAKES YOU TO OUR YOUTUBE CHANNEL</a></p>
<p>The Little Wretches's showcase of songs from RED BEETS & HORSERADISH at McKeesport Little Theater was streamed on Facebook, and so was The Little Wretches (East)' show in Philadelphia back in April. </p>
<p>I've taken those streams, broken them into individual songs, and I'll be posting those songs on YouTube, one song per day for as long as it takes.</p>
<p>Yesterday, for example, I posted I'LL BE YOUR MIRROR (Poem) from the Philly show.</p>
<p>Today, I posted (May You Never Be the) CHILD OF A REALIST from the Philly show.</p>
<p>If you SUBSCRIBE, you'll be notified as those performances are posted. </p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/69870942022-06-05T10:35:43-04:002022-06-05T10:35:43-04:00COOL EXPLORATIONS, A Podcast<p><a contents="Robert's appearance on COOL EXPLORATIONS on YouTube" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OxfMTXx8JO4" target="_blank">Robert's appearance on COOL EXPLORATIONS on YouTube</a></p>
<p><a contents="Robert's appearance on COOL EXPLORATIONS on Anchor" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://anchor.fm/cool-explorations/episodes/Interview-with-Robert-Andrew-Wagner-of-The-Little-Wretches-Band-e1im3qv/a-a7uq84e" target="_blank">Robert's appearance on COOL EXPLORATIONS on Anchor</a></p>
<p>I am personally a person of faith, but the music of The Little Wretches is not about evangelizing or converting anybody to anything. I try to write songs about people and life. People are religious and turn to religion to get through life. We try to speak with authenticity, precision and elegance about people. And if, as people of faith believe, man is made in the image of God, we need do no more. As they say, seek and ye shall find. You ain't seeking? That's up to you.</p>
<p>COOL EXPLORATIONS, though, is hosted by person of faith, so host Tony Peters and I spend some time talking about faith. If this is a subject that makes you squirm, maybe it's good to squirm from time to time. </p>
<p>I hope you'll give this a listen.</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/69870932022-06-05T10:17:14-04:002022-06-05T10:17:14-04:00CANCER U. THRIVERS--A Podcast<p><a contents="click here to listen to the Robert's appearance on the Cancer U. Thrivers podcast" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://pod.co/canceruthrivers/share-your-story-robert-wagner?fbclid=IwAR282HCHR3v3wZWhd5NKqSSaDMnodJb8Yd4KunM1_GFhbcq62-T-vcyltGo" target="_blank">click here to listen to the Robert's appearance on the Cancer U. Thrivers podcast</a></p>
<p>Thank you to Andrea Wilson-Woods for inviting me to speak about an experience that profoundly affected who I am but is not something I’ve had the chance to talk about. What makes people uneasy? Talking about cancer.</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/69870902022-06-05T10:12:34-04:002022-06-05T10:12:34-04:00Scott Mervis of the PITTSBURGH POST-GAZETTE interviews Robert about RED BEETS & HORSERADISH<p><a contents="Scott Mervis of the PITTSBURGH POST-GAZETTE interviews Robert about RED BEETS & HORSERADISH" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://www.post-gazette.com/ae/music/2022/06/01/pittsburgh-music-news-mixus-brothers-little-wretches/stories/202205300071?fbclid=IwAR3auOWp0zXy3m8u6ibPSHAv2En_5qMrFSZo0_8kr1vQxXqh9TNAnVqIFEA&fs=e&s=cl" target="_blank">Scott Mervis of the PITTSBURGH POST-GAZETTE interviews Robert about RED BEETS & HORSERADISH</a></p>
<p>Even back when he was playing the Electric Banana in the height of the Pittsburgh punk and post-punk era, for Robert Wagner, it was all about the songwriting. </p>
<p>The No Shelter and The Little Wretches frontman had songs to rock the house, but, taking his cues from Bob Dylan, Lou Reed and the like, he also had stories to tell. And they weren’t glamorous. They were stories of working people toiling in difficult circumstances. </p>
<p>“I’ve always been hit with this, ‘Your songs are so negative, your songs are so negative. Oh, that's really good, but nobody wants to hear that stuff.’ Well, I do want to hear this stuff. These are the stories that make me who I am. These are the stories that make my people who they are. And I want to tell them.” </p>
<p>Wagner indulges that side of his craft on the latest album from The Little Wretches, “Red Beets and Horseradish.” It sprung from Wagner seeking out the recipe for a dish that his family served on holidays. </p>
<p>“I went on the internet to find a recipe because every time I tried to make it,” he says, “I wasn't quite getting the flavor, and then I found out the whole dish has religious symbolism, which depends on the ethnicity: Everything from the blood of our people and the bitterness of their sufferings, the blood of our savior and the bitterness of his suffering, to the bitterness of our suffering and bondage, with the red beets just being for flavor.” </p>
<p>The spark for the album, whose songs stretch over a 10-year writing span, was “Duquesne,” a rolling, mid-tempo ballad about his grandmother, at 78, still working to make ends meet. </p>
<p>Wagner sings, “We came halfway around the world to be here/for this?/for what?/somebody’s bright idea/Nobody really believed it would be paved with gold/guess there’s no place on Earth that it’s good to be old…like me.” </p>
<p>“The whole album was built around the song ‘Duquesne,’” Wagner says. “It was sort of the centerpiece and everything kind of fits into it one way or another. It's a song I've been kind of dabbling with forever. In fact, the very first performance of No Shelter,” he says of his original band, “we may have performed a song called ‘Duquesne.’ I was always working on it and was going to record it, but, look, I'm a better writer than I was when I was 18.” </p>
<p>The song wouldn’t have fit in with any of his other projects, but with “Red Beets,” he says, “The songs on here, I think they fit together: old people, sick people, crazy people, working people. There’s a song about my brother, about my grandmother, one from the point of view of a crazy lady I used to see wandering around the North Shore.” </p>
<p>Wagner, who has been teaching in Philadelphia the past few decades, recorded it here with The Little Wretches (including the lovely vocals of his ex-wife Rosa Colucci) in the midst of a tough month during the pandemic. He sent the band demos and then came to Pittsburgh for rehearsals in January 2021. The sonics of the record were dictated to some extent by that separation. </p>
<p>“I live 300 miles away and we're doing this during COVID,” he says, “so there were sessions where nobody showed up because they were either in quarantine or they'd been exposed. So that was a little bit of a challenge. My original audio-vision, I imagined this big grand sound. Some of the harmonic parts, I thought of them as placeholders that would be replayed by another instrument, but what I found out, in the end, is that they were written on the harmonica and they make the most sense on the harmonica. It all kind of came back to its roots and my grandiose ideas, they ended up on the cutting room floor.” </p>
<p>The Little Wretches will perform most of the album, along with other songs from the catalog, at 7:30 p.m. Saturday at McKeesport Little Theater. $12; eventbrite.com. Proceeds from the show will benefit the theater.</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/69870892022-06-05T10:09:36-04:002022-06-05T10:09:36-04:00The Little Wretches are getting spins on the METAPOP Platform<p><a contents="PALMS & CROSSES on MetaPop" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://metapop.com/hugs-shockwave/tracks/palms-38-crosses-the-little-wretches-hugs-shockwave/244482?fbclid=IwAR282HCHR3v3wZWhd5NKqSSaDMnodJb8Yd4KunM1_GFhbcq62-T-vcyltGo" target="_blank">PALMS & CROSSES on MetaPop</a></p>
<p>Ezra Daye reached out, asked for our music, put it on the MetaPop platform, and asked me to share it.</p>
<p>It has been shared!</p>
<p>Thank you, Ezra Daye!</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/69870872022-06-05T10:00:45-04:002022-06-05T10:00:45-04:00THAT POET-WARRIOR THING...An Interview in MUSICNOTEZ<p><a contents="Click Here to Open the MUSICNOTEZ Page" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://muzicnotez.com/magazine/2022/05/interview-with-folk-rock-band-the-little-wretches/?fbclid=IwAR1rbwQE_1Dlgn4RF8BkoEDXAxoRVKwG_T_M-yvkdzmgIIrr5N1RKxhxmeE" target="_blank">Click Here to Open the MUSICNOTEZ Page</a></p>
<p>MuzicNotez: First off, it’s an honor to be doing this interview with you, thanks for taking the time to sit down with us. </p>
<p>What motivated you to start creating music? What age did you begin? </p>
<p>The Little Wretches: When I was a kid, my dad was remodeling the basement of our house, and my cousins and I used to take the scrap wood and try to make guitars. Adults joked that we needed a recording contract, so we used to copy the addresses of record companies from the vinyl records in our parents’ collections and write letters to the companies to ask for a record contract. We never got a reply. Honestly, I live in my own little dreamworld. In the world of modern technology, there’s a lot of what they call “AI” and “virtual reality.” I created my own little virtual reality long ago, and I’m comfortable in that dreamworld. <br>I don’t know how to account for what motivated me. Making music is so much a part of me that it’s like breathing and sleeping. That being said, there have been times when I had to make career-choices and lifestyle-choices, and I chose to see myself first and foremost as a songwriter and performer. </p>
<p>MuzicNotez: Who were your musical influences, idols, or bands growing up that have helped mold you into the musician you are today? Or helped mold the music that you create? </p>
<p>The Little Wretches: At first, I simply loved the sound of music, any kind of music, any style, any genre, any setting. I remember in high school encountering older kids who lorded their superior musical tastes over we ignorant consumers of mass-media. And I, too, went on to develop some pretty discriminating musical tastes. I’ve always been drawn to the lyrical poets–Patti Smith, Lou Reed, Bob Dylan. Poets of the theater like Bertolt Brecht, Eugene O’Neill, Sam Shepard and August Wilson. <br>I’ve always bought into that warrior-poet thing, a songwriter and a guitar battling evil and fighting for truth and justice. <br>Like I said earlier, I live in my own little dreamworld. I’m like Superman, Batman and Captain America, and my superpower is songwriting. </p>
<p>MuzicNotez: What’s the ultimate goal you want your music to achieve, or for you to achieve in your career as a musician? Any particular message you wish to send? </p>
<p>The Little Wretches: It’s all in the songs, whatever message I want to send. If I could say it any other way, I would. But songs are the only way I know. My mission statement comes from Lou Reed and The Velvet Underground, “I’ll be your mirror, reflect what you are, in case you don’t know.” That’s our job as artists. <br>My goal is merely to do my job. Write the songs. Play the concerts. There’s a passage in the Bible that says something like, “Whoever puts his shoulder to the plow and looks back is not worthy to enter the Kingdom of God.” Just do the work. Write the songs. Be a mirror. Reflect the beauty all around you. Reflect the courage, and the love, and the struggle. Do the work, and everything else will take care of itself. <br>I hope that I’ll write something that people will be able to read or listen to in a hundred or five-hundred years. Timeless beauty. </p>
<p>MuzicNotez: What’s the latest release of yours? Tell us about it. </p>
<p>The Little Wretches: The new album by The Little Wretches is called RED BEETS & HORSERADISH. The album is a collection of songs and stories about the indomitable spirit of humor and hope that sustains the sick people, old people, crazy people, working people and people who are alone who reside in the many river towns of Western Pennsylvania. We get to the universal through the particular. The title comes from a dish served by a lot of Eastern European ethnicities. The red of the beets is symbolic of the blood of the people or the blood of their savior. The horseradish is symbolic of the bitterness of their suffering of the suffering of their savior. <br>Red beets and horseradish is kind of like The Little Wretches. Our songs and stories are beet roots. You pull them out of the dirt and eat them. And our songs and stories can be like horseradish, a little too spicy for some tastes. <br>The album has some great songs, but it stands up even better when taken as a whole.</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/69870792022-06-05T09:47:08-04:002022-06-05T09:47:08-04:00MAXIMUM GRATITUDE<p>Maximum gratitude. Steve Earle sings, “I ain’t ever satisfied.” I ain’t satisfied, either, but I know when I’ve been blessed! </p>
<p>Not surprisingly, I was personally acquainted with and had a direct connection to many of the people who attended last night’s show at McKeesport Little Theater. I was thrilled and stunned to see a couple of folks I hadn’t seen in DECADES. </p>
<p>Thank you to all who attended and a special thanks to those who purchased tickets simply to support the theater, though unable to attend. With proms, graduations, festivals, swimming pools, and so many other obligations and things to do or see, we are thankful that people chose to spend the evening with our songs snd stories. </p>
<p>Hopefully, we’ll be doing more of this. </p>
<p>Big thanks to the musicians on stage--Mike Madden, John Carson, Peter King and Emma Ruth ( Golebie). It was the first “ Wretches “ experience for Emma and Peter. I think they can now answer in the affirmative the next time Jimi asks, “Are you experienced?”</p>
<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/425724/1cc3f3142cd5f6f1dfe97cef3d86246f22131675/original/mlt-logo.jpeg/!!/meta:eyJzcmNCdWNrZXQiOiJiemdsZmlsZXMifQ==/b:W10=.jpg" class="size_l justify_center border_" /></p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/69699742022-05-12T21:16:51-04:002022-05-12T21:16:51-04:00The Little Wretches to showcase new album as benefit for McKeesport Little Theater--JUNE 4, 2022<p><a contents="CLICK HERE TO VIEW PURCHASE ADVANCE TICKETS" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://www.eventbrite.com/e/337612978507" target="_blank">CLICK HERE TO VIEW PURCHASE ADVANCE TICKETS</a></p>
<p>This performance will showcase songs from RED BEETS & HORSERADISH, and proceeds from the show will go to McKeesport Little Theater. </p>
<p>This will be the first performance of The Little Wretches in Western Pennsylvania since we lost our dear friend David Alan Flynn. Dave has been with us since before the band had a name. His distinctive scream can be heard on many of our live recordings. It will be weird to look into the audience and not see him, but he'll certainly be with us in spirit. </p>
<p>Peter B. King will be joining us on "lead" guitar. Emma Golebie will be sharing the vocals.</p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/69390292022-04-02T21:44:47-04:002022-05-23T01:52:25-04:00The Philadelphia-area Showcase/Debut of the New Album<p>THE LITTLE WRETCHES (East) featuring Kim Alexander at THE ROYAL, Glenside, Philadelphia, PA. </p>
<p>Friday, April 22, 2022. Doors: 7 PM. Rusty & Jan at 8 PM followed by THE LITTLE WRETCHES, 8:45 - 11 PM.</p>
<p>Kind of The Little Wretches (East) debuting the new album. Rusty and Jan will "open." Kim Alexander and I will will warm up with a few Wretches "standards" like Just Can't Hide It, Born with a Gift and Dark Times. We'll do a whole-band (East) set from RED BEETS & HORSERADISH. Jan Alba will join us on flute. I'll perform an expurgated version of I'LL BE YOUR MIRROR (POEM), then we'll actually plug in some electric guitars and hit some of that UNDESIRABLES & ANARCHISTS material. </p>
<p>If you know anyone in the Philly-area, tell them to catch this show! <br><a contents="Here is the link to the event on Facebook." data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://fb.me/e/1rIu85mY7">Here is the link to the event on Facebook.</a></p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/69390282022-04-02T21:36:14-04:002022-05-24T14:28:20-04:00AUTHORITY MAGAZINE--Causes, Bringing Goodness into the World...an epic interview<p>Causes. Bringing Goodness into the world. This is one of those epic interviews in which I think I succeeded in saying something worth listening to. Authority magazine says it is a twenty-six minute read. I sincerly hope a few people will give it a read and share it with like-minded or contrary-minded folk. You know, LIKE SHARE COMMENT.</p>
<p><a contents="AUTHORITY MAGAZINE interview with Robert Andrew Wagner of The Little Wretches" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://medium.com/authority-magazine/music-stars-making-a-social-impact-how-why-robert-andrew-wagner-of-the-little-wretches-is-82cdfed69043" target="_blank">AUTHORITY MAGAZINE interview with Robert Andrew Wagner of The Little Wretches</a></p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/69273122022-03-20T12:14:34-04:002023-12-10T11:31:30-05:00THE EFFORT TO BE SEEN AND HEARD CONTINUES<p>Below, you will find links to some of the recent propaganda about the release of RED BEETS & HORSERADISH.</p>
<p><a contents="Lyric Video of PALMS & CROSSES at YouTube" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://youtu.be/53PzZDhT3Ho" target="_blank">Lyric Video of PALMS & CROSSES at YouTube</a></p>
<p><a contents="HUMOR, PATHOS and DETAIL...VENTS MAGAZINE reviews RED BEETS & HORSERADISH" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://ventsmagazine.com/2022/05/23/robert-andrew-wagners-little-wretches-release-red-beets-horseradish/?fbclid=IwAR1_JFcdGjmPQl513ITW3IL7puiq1tXUCyhDEpQDckph26rxL4gqPeXBoGc" target="_blank">HUMOR, PATHOS and DETAIL...VENTS MAGAZINE reviews RED BEETS & HORSERADISH</a></p>
<p><a contents="INDIESHARK reviews RED BEETS & HORSERADISH" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://indieshark.com/music-reviews/little-wretches-red-beets-horseradish-lp/?fbclid=IwAR03jw8YqfqINJISGL0_pF0DQwbZrqGNDUVZAO8AtOwbTgoTdrNEzfhsjpc" target="_blank">INDIESHARK reviews RED BEETS & HORSERADISH</a></p>
<p><a contents="MobAngleles reviews RED BEETS & HORSERADISH" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://mobangeles.com/little-wretches-red-beets-horseradish-lp/?fbclid=IwAR3qYsbEKE0unw3FtwtkE-UoL17ArpY_douwe3ZaVzdfwiAppcFO20muAj4" target="_blank">MobAngleles reviews RED BEETS & HORSERADISH</a></p>
<p><a contents="THE HOLLYWOOD DIGEST reviews RED BEETS & HORSERADISH" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://thehollywooddigest.com/red-beets-horseradish-from-the-little-wretches/?fbclid=IwAR02nzpHvQVrF4-B2lJ2ZNxq7FPQf7RT27hGxEGCRzPyJBq3UznPODTl2B8" target="_blank">THE HOLLYWOOD DIGEST reviews RED BEETS & HORSERADISH</a></p>
<p><a contents="MELODY MAKER MAGAZINE reviews RED BEETS & HORSERADISH" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://melodymakermagazine.com/2022/05/21/the-little-wretches-release-new-album/?fbclid=IwAR2RbsjNTtsa7uXx6wfoMNSQI0Ffs_M3uN4WMfFgjqT06_KtQbdfd-MICsM" target="_blank">MELODY MAKER MAGAZINE reviews RED BEETS & HORSERADISH</a></p>
<p><a contents="INDIE O'CLOCK" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://www.indieoclock.com.br/2022/03/the-little-wretches-acaba-de-lancar-seu.html?m=1&fbclid=IwAR0JhmhHLq4p2wdwlI6VIwkLRg3XjmoXeMXI2mYLRBEKQm4x0gwoSNGxepM" target="_blank">INDIE O'CLOCK</a></p>
<p>THE ALOONAE SHOW--The Story of the Overachiever<br><a contents="THE ALOONAE SHOW on SPOTIFY" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://open.spotify.com/episode/3pDU9PnX1e86sankLAg5F9?si=pR4bdhp9QkW6crduIHrI1g&fbclid=IwAR2VNaUGa3R6egoCwZt3ivRXxgYvhPJdZWmw000dlzK_-xd7gh54LvTxt9I&nd=1" target="_blank">THE ALOONAE SHOW on SPOTIFY</a></p>
<p>Roadie-Music <br>This Portuguese-language review begins, according to Google Translate, "The Pittsburgh bard is one of the biggest names in world music.”<br>Highly debatable, but they said it, so I’ll take it.<br><a contents="ROADIE-MUSIC" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://roadie-music.com/little-wretches-lancam-o-grande-album-red-beets-horseradish-confira-e-saiba-mais/?fbclid=IwAR1tmORi4XmgiSOx21jOWTOttDZ5ibXPRvJSs8q3B6HxaBl4mSJ8I93ULyE" target="_blank">ROADIE-MUSIC</a></p>
<p>MUZIC NOTEZ <br>“A lingering melancholy over some very clever and deeply interesting melodies. A bohemian offering for a modern audience.”<br><a contents="MUZIC NOTEZ" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://muzicnotez.com/magazine/2022/03/little-wretches-new-lp-red-beets-horseradish/?fbclid=IwAR3lXQpuw5zon9Q0GTQNHzlPidNVT9NM5wVVbdOyyZB2D-hHAai4YHDgB-Y" target="_blank">MUZIC NOTEZ</a></p>
<p>INDIE ROCK MUSIC BLOG—UK <br>“13 vital and penetrating songs.”<br><a contents="INDIE ROCK MUSIC BLOG UK" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="http://indiedockmusicblog.co.uk/?p=11824&fbclid=IwAR3lXQpuw5zon9Q0GTQNHzlPidNVT9NM5wVVbdOyyZB2D-hHAai4YHDgB-Y" target="_blank">INDIE ROCK MUSIC BLOG UK</a></p>
<p>THE EDGAR ALLAN POETS like The Little Wretches <br>"The straight and honest sound of this band hit me straight away."<br><a contents="Click Here to visit the Edgar Allan Poets website!" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://www.edgarallanpoets.com/little-wretches/?fbclid=IwAR0edzUtRbKveyh3IXXkO9Ljr9r8rL3FPGMOcJyn8RdhA1eSqmj-0iR9LnU" target="_blank">Click Here to visit the Edgar Allan Poets website!</a></p>
<p><a contents="StreamLINE Music Blog" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://streamlinemusicblog.com/2022/03/14/little-wretches-red-beets-and-horseradish/?fbclid=IwAR3X39Hp_DwuGTf-4cIfWqKxmDkSBSXsbez2z-_clG1v7_FvZy6AfhFsoKo" target="_blank">StreamLINE Music Blog</a></p>
<p><a contents="HONK MAGAZINE" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://honkmagazine.com/little-wretches-explore-themes-of-faith-and-struggle-on-red-beets-and-horseradish/" target="_blank">HONK MAGAZINE</a></p>
<p><a contents="DAILY MUSIC ROLL Magazine" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://www.dailymusicroll.com/entertainment/the-little-wretches-the-prolific-band-is-going-to-drop-their-new-album-red-beets-horseradish.html" target="_blank">DAILY MUSIC ROLL Magazine</a></p>
<p><a contents="Radio Castor, French Radio site features LOVINGKINDNESS from UNDESIRABLES & ANARCHISTS by The Little Wretches" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://www.radiocastor.com/index.php/titre-du-jour-little-wretches-lovingkindness/?fbclid=IwAR09mMUP7fBxKWVAXsijRVp4dByaZFcCC328mYKkcFytv7oaFE9ICiexTsY" target="_blank">Radio Castor, French Radio site features LOVINGKINDNESS from UNDESIRABLES & ANARCHISTS by The Little Wretches</a></p>
<p><a contents="THE SOUNDS WON'T STOP" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://www.thesoundswontstop.com/the-little-wretches?fbclid=IwAR27AFs5VbrYMUsdzm0DZDnEKufLdfQx0QL78LsQ1n0WDISTsueDksBtkEw" target="_blank">THE SOUNDS WON'T STOP</a></p>
<p><a contents="BROADWAY WORLD" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://www.broadwayworld.com/bwwmusic/article/Folk-Rockers-Little-Wretches-Release-RED-BEETS-HORSERADISH-20220318?fbclid=IwAR2HJ4r_f4iwyU0qoZ0b0LweMzYjCOeTyumzfXITxsXV1uC5-a8zgnua6Kg" target="_blank">BROADWAY WORLD</a></p>
<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/425724/1b1301274bc6016fdd120526a529934379aa004c/original/tempimageeadrfm.png/!!/meta:eyJzcmNCdWNrZXQiOiJiemdsZmlsZXMifQ==/b:W10=.png" class="size_l justify_center border_" /></p>
<p> </p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/69155082022-03-06T23:02:03-05:002023-12-10T11:54:27-05:00Backstage Pass News...Exceedingly Kind Words<p><a contents="Click here to see the kind words at Back Stage Pass News" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://backstagepassnews.com/hot-topics/robert-wagner-and-the-little-wretches-promised-land?fbclid=IwAR3X4lXT9bdR0tgKuqtqFpmh6wrB0-sN1bls8WJCmNh00MIOkoHxLMtvqeA" target="_blank">Click here to see the kind words at Back Stage Pass News</a></p>
<p>"Promised Land is a song that looks at history and paints a picture for us all. The live acoustic version is real, right in your face and raw. Robert Wagner is a historical troubadour, a truth teller and a lyrical genius."</p>
<p> </p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/68998012022-02-16T20:55:37-05:002022-05-10T11:23:59-04:00FOX 7 AUSTIN, TX--Robert performs PROMISED LAND<p><a contents="CLICK HERE TO SEE ROBERT'S PERFORMANCE OF PROMISED LAND ON FOX 7 in AUSTIN, TX!" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://www.fox7austin.com/video/1028112" target="_blank">CLICK HERE TO SEE ROBERT'S PERFORMANCE OF PROMISED LAND ON FOX 7 in AUSTIN, TX!</a></p>
<p>Okay. These days, you can be anywhere at any time....virtually.</p>
<p>In real life, I was sitting in front of a laptop, NOT in a television studio. But as you can see if you follow the link, the performance was very real.</p>
<p>I played a song I love very much in a key I've never previously tried it in and with a harmonica as a substitute for Dave Maund's amazing upright violin. I think I got my point across. </p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/68998002022-02-16T20:47:12-05:002023-12-10T11:41:19-05:00PHILLY FOLK SCENE with Rusty and Jan, 1-27-2022<p><a contents="THESE WORDS ARE THE LINK TO THE SHOW! CLICK AND HEAR!" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://www.mixcloud.com/RustyAndJan/the-philly-folk-scene-january-27-2022-with-guest-robert-andrew-wagner/?fbclid=IwAR0ElWC1dS7TqHIJVetMP4BNqDEj5cWuU7UzS8nmJ96yzPyNktuH3qYZkvE" target="_blank">THESE WORDS ARE THE LINK TO THE SHOW! CLICK AND HEAR!</a></p>
<p>Rusty and Jan host a very cool radio show in the Philly-area, and Robert Andrew Wagner of The Little Wretches was a guest. In the second hour of the show, Jan, Rusty and Robert discuss music, education, all kinds of stuff. Good people. Good music. Interesting conversation.</p>
<p>Here is what Rusty and Jan say about this week's show:</p>
<p>"Our show this week includes an interview with Robert Andrew Wagner and songs from the following artists: Marc Black. John McCutcheon, Tedeschi Trucks Band, Heather Sarona, Carole King, <br>The Mavericks, Last Chance, Meghan Cary, Meat Loaf, Grace Potter and the Nocturnals, George Mann, <br>Loudon Wainwright III, Sloan Wainwright, Rufus Wainwright, Dan Fogelberg & Tim Weisberg, Eddy Mann, Michael G. Ronstadt. Janis Ian, Avi Wisnia, Paul Simon, Erik Balkey, Chet Atkins & Mark Knopfler"</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/68997842022-02-16T20:40:23-05:002022-05-20T09:27:39-04:00Number Eight on the WNIR List of Best Songs of 2021<p><a contents="CLICK THESE WORDS TO SEE THE LISTING AT BWH MUSIC GROUP" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://www.bwhmusicgroup.com/so/2aNvkqBIZ?languageTag=en&cid=6a9bb1ab-2390-4529-841e-c8755fa35b5b&fbclid=IwAR2kEzRK8SNM92EqGeTJ8PwXxg3Zi8SirRWxAFPO0BzVwIEuNWnl9T4xCPU#/main" target="_blank">CLICK THESE WORDS TO SEE THE LISTING AT BWH MUSIC GROUP</a></p>
<p>In 2021, the live acoustic album got a lot of attention, but UNDESIRABLES & ANARCHISTS wouldn't go away. The Ballad of Johnny Blowtorch, All of My Friends, and Who Is America continued to be noticed.</p>
<p>This list shows WHO IS AMERICA at #8 for the year. We put out the music video right around the Fourth of July. Been awhile since you heard the song? The video is pretty cool, too. Take another look/listen:</p>
<p><a contents="CLICK HERE TO WATCH/LISTEN TO WHO IS AMERICA on YouTube" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://youtu.be/7rxGYr1XD60" target="_blank">CLICK HERE TO WATCH/LISTEN TO WHO IS AMERICA on YouTube</a></p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/68997832022-02-16T20:32:54-05:002022-05-17T09:52:45-04:00THOUGHTS WORDS ACTION<p><a contents="CLICK HERE TO READ THE PIECE ABOUT OUR LYRIC VIDEO FOR ALL OF MY FRIENDS AT THOUGHTS WORDS ACTION" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://thoughtswordsaction.com/2022/01/09/the-little-wretches-released-their-first-lyric-video-for-all-of-my-friends/?fbclid=IwAR3K9U63TdzhdxgdlBXayPsUmBN2Skfi6d7UWliwkG362HHhCZxNZz4iMtU" target="_blank">CLICK HERE TO READ THE PIECE ABOUT OUR LYRIC VIDEO FOR ALL OF MY FRIENDS AT THOUGHTS WORDS ACTION</a></p>
<p>Okay... Let's say you couldn't be bothered to click on the link above. The words below are what you WOULD have read:</p>
<p><em>In a year that was not kind to so many, 2020 proved to be somewhat of a resurgence for one of the 80s and 90s most notable acts to come out of Pittsburgh. The Little Wretches, fronted by wordsmith, poet, lyrical genius Robert Wagner, enjoyed radio airplay on more than 125 North American radio stations. Their album, “Undesirables and Anarchists” included the streaming hits, “Poison” and “The Ballad of Johnny Blowtorch,” which combined for more than 100K Spotify streams. The latter reached #1 on the ITunes Folk Rock charts, too. </em></p>
<p><em>Now, Wagner and the Wretches are releasing their first lyric video for the song, “All Of My Friends.” </em></p>
<p><em>According to Wagner: “ALL OF MY FRIENDS is a celebration of people who don’t even have a voice, much less a voice that can be silenced. Every line and couplet in ALL OF MY FRIENDS speaks specifically about very real people in my past who have resided in a voiceless and silent community. The events that formed us—the experiences that made us who and what we are—are off-limits in polite society….Federico Garcia Lorca. Salvador Allende. Pablo Neruda. Solzhenitsyn. Dostoyevsky’s THE DEVILS. NOTES FROM UNDERGROUND. Nelson Algren. My dad. My mom. The kids on my street. Substance abusers. Cross-dressers. Fugitives from the law. Paranoid schizophrenics playing PICTIONARY in group homes. St. Anne’s School. David Allen Flynn. Sydney Carton. Dickens’ A TALE OF TWO CITIES. Put it all in the blender. Add The Kinks, The Who and The Velvet Underground, and you’ve got ALL OF MY FRIENDS.” </em></p>
<p> </p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/68997762022-02-16T20:28:30-05:002022-05-10T11:28:54-04:00FAN-VOTED ROOTS CHART-Top Songs of 2021<p><a contents="Click Here to See the Top 100 Songs of 2021 on the Fan-Voted Roots Chart" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="http://dcmf.x10.mx/topsongs2021ROOTS.html?fbclid=IwAR2ToRJgcldXDkxskZsswJwwKA42OIdIs7yKsmF4pO7QPL2x0nmyH4VOsxg" target="_blank">Click Here to See the Top 100 Songs of 2021 on the Fan-Voted Roots Chart</a></p>
<p>What's Neil Young say? "Numbers add up to nothing."</p>
<p>Maybe for Neil. And I guess for The Little Wretches, too. Who knows? People sitting and listening when you play, that's real. People buying tickets, buying merchandise, waiting to talk to you after the set, that's real.</p>
<p>Charts numbers? Numbers of streams. Numbers of plays. Is any of that legit? I don't know. </p>
<p>But our songs spent a good number of weeks in the Top 20 and cracked the Top 10 on the Fan-Voted Roots Chart, so much so that ALL OF MY FRIENDS came it at #32 for the entire year.</p>
<p>There's a lot of music out there. That anybody listens at all is kind of a miracle. If I may corrupt my own lyrics, let's just say, "If it all amounts to nothing, well... At least, we made the list."</p>
<p>Thank you to anyone who took the time to cast a vote for The Little Wretches. Thanks to the folks who organize and compile the charts. Thank you for a pretty good 2021. </p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/68978272022-02-14T21:09:09-05:002022-05-10T11:30:12-04:00BLAZING MINDS reviews ALL OF MY FRIENDS <p><a contents="CLICK HERE to read the review at Blazing Minds" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://blazingminds.co.uk/robert-wagner-shares-life-story/?fbclid=IwAR0cTQVsjZ1mFF_mtHS3idoDR7RZT7_JKoz0L_5Sh1mAMraI57K57PDwV0g" target="_blank">CLICK HERE to read the review at Blazing Minds</a></p>
<p>Thank you, Al Geiner. You seem to "get" what we're trying to do. </p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/68977972022-02-14T20:02:23-05:002022-05-10T11:30:31-04:00Indie Pulse Magazine<p>We had a nice-looking ad in the paper edition of Indie Pulse Magazine. Wish I had a copy! </p>
<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/425724/8dd05575ff574f0eb7c97f6e0f8ba8919c3cb81f/original/831d42bd-e757-4651-be69-b327c53fda7e.jpeg/!!/meta:eyJzcmNCdWNrZXQiOiJiemdsZmlsZXMifQ==/b:W10=.jpg" class="size_l justify_center border_" /></p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/68977962022-02-14T19:53:45-05:002022-05-10T11:30:52-04:00She Blurbs<p><a contents="Click Here to visit the Wixsite for SheBlurbs Podcast" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://sheblurbs.wixsite.com/sheblurbs/post/let-s-talk-with-robert-andrew-wagner">Click Here to visit the Wixsite for SheBlurbs Podcast</a></p>
<p>I had a nice time chatting with Brook Wright. Her podcast is on all the platforms. </p>
<p>Podcast Can Be Found On These Platforms: </p>
<p>https://anchor.fm/sheblurbs </p>
<p>https://www.breaker.audio/she-blurbs </p>
<p>https://www.google.com/podcasts?feed=aHR0cHM6Ly9hbmNob3IuZm0vcy8xZWM0MjgxOC9wb2RjYXN0L3Jzcw== </p>
<p>https://overcast.fm/itunes1527010499/she-blurbs </p>
<p>https://pca.st/45tn6vbv </p>
<p>https://radiopublic.com/she-blurbs-WeklOV </p>
<p>https://open.spotify.com/show/3ENVdiDufmUBaZ83PkB9ho </p>
<p>https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCToj51LORwwm-RQx8FCVRlg/videos</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/68260512021-11-30T20:55:30-05:002022-05-10T11:31:20-04:00ROCKS OFF MAGAZINE--The Best Classic Rock Albums of All Time<p><a contents="CLICK THESE WORDS TO READ ROBERT'S PICKS FOR THE THREE GREATEST CLASSIC ROCK ALBUMS" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://www.rocksoffmag.com/the-best-classic-rock-albums/" target="_blank">CLICK THESE WORDS TO READ ROBERT'S PICKS FOR THE THREE GREATEST CLASSIC ROCK ALBUMS</a></p>
<p>How cool is it that the editors of a magazine called ROCKS OFF asked me to name the three greatest "CLASSIC ROCK" albums?</p>
<p>I put a lot of thought into my answers and hope you'll take the time to check out the article. </p>
<p>Let me know what you think. </p>
<p>And as they say, LIKE, SHARE, COMMENT.</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/67672342021-10-05T21:06:40-04:002022-08-15T06:04:18-04:00Podcast--WHAT UP with Rob and Chris<p><a contents="CLICK HERE TO VIEW AND LISTEN TO ROBERT'S APPEARANCE ON WHAT UP WITH ROB AND CHRIS AT YOUTUBE" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://youtu.be/tW0SXinH794" target="_blank">CLICK HERE TO VIEW AND LISTEN TO ROBERT'S APPEARANCE ON WHAT UP WITH ROB AND CHRIS AT YOUTUBE</a></p>
<p>I've been waiting for the guys at WHAT UP, Rob and Chris, to post this interview. I don't remember everything we talked about, but I know that I played a couple of songs, and they said I was the first guest to ever perform music on their show. I had my guitar in my lap, so I suppose they took that as a hint that I wanted to play, so they asked, and I am ever so glad they did.</p>
<p>The other cool thing I remember is that they said my songs reminded them of The Monkees and The Turtles. Ya' know what's cool about that, don't ya? The Monkees performed the songs of the best songwriters of their generation--Neil Diamond, Carole King, Boyce and Hart, Harry Nilsson, and so on. The Turtles turned a Dylan song into a hit, and Flo and Eddie's BLIND DATE column helped to shape my tastes. </p>
<p>So anyhow... I hope you enjoy listening to this interview, and I hope I played and said something worthy of your time.</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/67654022021-10-04T06:12:07-04:002023-12-10T12:53:52-05:00REVIEW—The Little Wretches – “All Of My Friends” (Live)<p><a contents="CLICK HERE TO READ THE REVIEW AT SLEEPING BAG STUDIOS" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://sleepingbagstudios.ca/the-little-wretches-all-of-my-friends-live/?fbclid=IwAR0g6Nn9_HSIgB5Fs665pfvs1d10TvnA3URJKAwBzd-onyE5kwS8tBfZCTw" target="_blank">CLICK HERE TO READ THE REVIEW AT SLEEPING BAG STUDIOS</a></p>
<p>The Little Wretches – “All Of My Friends” (Live) – Single Review </p>
<p>“I have never really done anything to earn the freedoms that we enjoy. But I would like to honor the people who have sacrificed for my freedom by perhaps someday saying something worthy of freedom of speech, writing something worthy of freedom of the press, knowing people worthy of freedom of association…and you know, making freedom at least worth having.” #truthsIcancompletelyrelateto </p>
<p>Couldn’t have said it better myself when it comes right down to it – and those words make for a fantastic introduction into The Little Wretches live-single “All Of My Friends.” You get that immediate sense of Folk music at its best – the counter-culture kind that has a point of view & perspective, and you’ll certainly hear that aspect come alive through the insightful layers of wisdom in the lyricism. A quality tune through & through…it’s built within the comforting framework of a classic approach to Folk music when it comes right down to it, but there’s no doubt that The Little Wretches are completely able to set itself apart from the rest through the lyrical detail you’ll find at work here. Detailing a whole list of people you probably know yourselves – or at the very least, people just like’em – “All Of My Friends” addresses the many people we seem to know that just don’t think like the rest of the kids in the ol’ sandbox, you feel me? </p>
<p>“All of my friends are on somebody’s list of undesirables and anarchists – it’s not even safe to admit that you’re one of my friends” – like – I LOVE this! We’d be here all day long if I kept on quoting from The Little Wretches, that much I can promise ya…there’s a brilliant dose of levity and cleverness combined in a song like “All Of My Friends” that becomes one of those experiences you’ll feel sling its arrows all over a map of targets, yet also seems to find a few of’em drifting closer to home than some of you might wanna admit. </p>
<p>Musically it’s well-played…melodically it’s well-structured…and considering the live-aspect, The Little Wretches make this work perfectly from the stage by adding generous amounts of personality through the vocals you’ll find. Ultimately, all the right boxes are ticked and the skills all check out, even if the music is far removed from what’s going to be the most genuinely memorable aspects of this single, which I’m most certain it is. </p>
<p>Facts are the facts folks…and y’all know I just call it like I hear it – it’s the lyrical aspect of The Little Wretches that is going to separate it out of the sea of sameness when it comes to the genre. Yes, even in that respect, there are still comparisons that could be made and artists/bands that have walked this path of semi-sarcastic humor & insightful lyricism combined via highly poetic means – but we’re talking about the all-star level of that whole deal when it comes to what you’ll find in a track like “All Of My Friends.” Some of it’ll make you laugh…some of it might even make you mad…some of it could very well be the most honest & direct, unfiltered truths you’ve heard in a song – the reality is, polarizing & thought-provoking songs like this always have an audience of listeners out there more than willing to debate the back & forth of it all, and this will greatly satisfy both critics & fans alike in that regard. </p>
<p>I think you have to really factor in the intro that comes along with it to fully understand the real perspective The Little Wretches are coming from – chances are, this song is actually much more on your side than you’d realize, even if it’s accomplished by pointing out the opposite side of the scenario to make its points. At the end of the day, there’s a core value of acceptance at the heart of this song that shouldn’t be missed…that even the wackiest people we know, play a significant role in our lives somewhere along the line…and dammit, we all love’em for that, don’t we? </p>
<p>“All Of My Friends” could just as easily be about your crazy uncle, or the conspiracy theory lovin’ aunt you have – it could be just as easily be about the smartest people you’ve ever known and looked up to in this life – and that’s kind of the real beauty of it all…it’s only the outside perspective that ever really knows which one we truly are. As in, maybe you’re the people being sung about, or maybe you’re the one doing the singing – but unless you’re really sure as to what side of the mirror you’re standing on and 100% sure each and every person you know feels exactly the same way as you do (spoiler alert – they don’t!) – then just remember that the craziness you see within others, is the same way they see you too. </p>
<p>I had a riot listening to the words of “All Of My Friends” – and I’d be willing to bet that you will as well. The craft involved is undeniable from the melody in the music, to the art of the wordsmith being thrust straight into the spotlight on a song like this – “All Of My Friends” makes for a wonderfully thought-provoking experience that you’re not likely to forget any time soon. Plus…I mean…if this is what it would be like to check out a live show from The Little Wretches, I think they just sold a few more tickets.</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/67654012021-10-04T06:07:54-04:002022-05-07T01:28:04-04:00REVIEW--Robert Wagner Of Little Wretches Delivers Classic Live Version Of Current Single<p><a contents="CLICK HERE TO SEE THE REVIEW AT MUSIC CROWNS" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://www.musiccrowns.org/emerging-talent/robert-wagner-of-little-wretches-delivers-classic-live-version-of-current-single/?fbclid=IwAR0QqGhYwlLcb7Swi3CeE3V5YCzLcgERRw3nLdVjU0M5S0y5nTgIZEi-SwI" target="_blank">CLICK HERE TO SEE THE REVIEW AT MUSIC CROWNS</a></p>
<p>Taken from the full-length Little Wretches album, Undesirables and Anarchists, Robert Wagner plays the song “All Of My Friends” on his solo-offering, Live at the Mattress Factory. Meant as a solo performance, Robert is joined by long-time Little Wretches bandmate, David Maund on violin, offering an elegant melody to the acoustic Americana/ Folk strumming from Robert Wagner. All Of My Friends is a clever, and witty song shedding humor, and insight into the lifestyle of Robert Wagner, as his friends are questionable influences on him, (and I believe he is too), as he casts a musical tapestry of life in his inner circle; “All of my friends are on somebody’s list of Undesirables and Anarchists. It’s not even safe to admit that your one of my friends.” </p>
<p>Robert Wagner goes on to tell more interesting character quirks from “All Of My Friends” utilizing rich metaphor and colorful language as he connects with his listener. This track is clever in other ways, as the musicality lends to the overall theme. Instead of using traditional open chords, I hear sixth chords and inverted chords being utilized. Is this a deliberate songwriting strategy or incidental? This use of chords with vibrant overtones helps capture the witticism of Robert Wagner’s subject, giving his friends character and personality. </p>
<p>Like the live version, this track captures the same feel and emotion of the studio release, with the vocals being presented at the forefront of the mix. The guitars are present and ring out nicely, while the violin accompaniment sits back in the mix giving an incidental feel which for the sake of the harmony plays like a fill instead of a main part of the melody. The live performance brings out more of the genre’s true character, as the listener does feel more connected with the artist in this format. I truly enjoyed the Little Wretches studio recording of the track, and feel Robert Wagner has delivered a beautiful rendition of it to grow his ever-expanding listener base. </p>
<p>–Lee Callaghan</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/67653992021-10-04T06:03:05-04:002021-10-04T06:03:05-04:00Exclusive Interview with Music Artist "Robert Wagner of Little Wretches”<p><a contents="CLICK HERE TO SEE THE REVIEW AT THE ISSUU WEBSITE" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://issuu.com/cnfmag/docs/music_artist_robert_wagner_of_little_wretches?fbclid=IwAR1d_QLV2Cl803mguqf4WkNhWl6hiKknXUOTKWF50SCebe6OyUdj0D3_1os" target="_blank">CLICK HERE TO SEE THE REVIEW AT THE ISSUU WEBSITE</a></p>
<p>Hi Robert! How have things been going since the release of your album, "Live At the Mattress Factory?” </p>
<p>Did you ever hear the song by Ray Wylie Hubbard, “Mother’s Blues?” The last line goes something like, “The days I keep my gratitude higher than my expectations, I have really good days.” </p>
<p>I just got back at 3:30 this morning from The Josie Music Awards in Pigeon Forge, Tenessee. The Little Wretches received the award as Multi-Genre Group of the Year. </p>
<p>I just got an email from a Menachem Vinegrad, a dee-jay in the Holy Land, and he’s playing our songs for the people of Israel and Palestine. Juergen Kramer is playing our songs in Germany. We topped the iTunes Folk-Rock charts in South Africa. </p>
<p>I’ve had a chance to play some live-shows for audiences that haven’t already heard me. </p>
<p>I could go on and on. Eternity exists. God is Good. Life is precious. The Little Wretches rock. I’ve got it good, don’t I? </p>
<p>I have so many reasons to feel gratitude. But I also have really high expectations. I have to remind myself to keep those expectations in check and to focus on all the things I have to be thankful for. </p>
<p>2. You've had quite a ride with the a number of singles doing very well on the charts. What has been the most thrilling thing that's happened to you in the past year? </p>
<p>The other day, a kid in the eighth grade watched the ALL OF MY FRIENDS video and told me, “Wagner, you’ve definitely got bars.” That’s a very big compliment. I DO have bars, and it is refreshing that people outside of our old fan-base are noticing. You know what “bars” means, right? Look it up. I got ‘em in spades. </p>
<p>I really like the lyric-videos we made for ALL OF MY FRIENDS and WHO IS AMERICA. Have you seen them? Those videos balance the spirit of fun with the substance and gravitas of our stuff. </p>
<p>I don’t know if you’d call this thrilling, but over the years, a handful of journalists have gone to bat for The Little Wretches, predicting major success for us, and it seemed like maybe that success was never going to materialize. The biggest thrill for me, personally, is that those supporters are able to say, “See? I told you so.” </p>
<p>Our recent success has been the best possible way to say thank you to those who’ve supported us. </p>
<p>3. What do you like to do when you're not making music? </p>
<p>I’m a Renaissance person. I love the outdoors—hiking, biking, fishing, exploring. I like poetry and classic literature. I try to stay abreast of science, archaeology, physics. I’m a church-goer, a person of faith. I go to plays. I go to museums. I swim and exercise daily. I follow a number of sports teams. I teach and counsel at-risk teens. I work with kids with autism. </p>
<p>I had a high school teacher, Dr. Switala, who suggested that Michelangelo was the last person on earth to possess the entire body of knowledge theretofore acquired by mankind. </p>
<p>I want to be like Michelangelo. I’m interested in learning and the pursuit of wisdom. </p>
<p>4. You are originally from Pittsburgh, PA. What is your favorite thing about the city? </p>
<p>I like OLD Pittsburgh. I like driving through all the old wastelands that used to be slag dumps. Slag dumps are these mountains of ash, waste from the steel mills. </p>
<p>Look, Pittsburgh and Western Pennsylvania have a lot of cool history—the French and Indian War, the Whiskey Rebellion, The Homestead Strike of 1892, the Meadowcroft Rock Shelter. </p>
<p>Pick a highway and drive it. Get on Route 50. Get on Route 51, Route 56, Route 28, Route 88. Route 130. Route 8. Route 60. Frankstown Road. Just pick a road and follow it. Follow those roads through the small towns, the river towns, the farm lands. </p>
<p>Follow the Blue Belt, the Orange Belt, the Red Belt, the Yellow Belt. Or get on a bicycle and hop on one of the rails-to-trails systems. Or follow one of the rivers. </p>
<p>And DINOSAURS. The Carnegie Museum of Natural History. The Scaife Gallery at the Carnegie Museum of Art. The Warhol. </p>
<p>I have no favorite thing about Pittsburgh, I guess. I love the TOTALITY of Pittsburgh. </p>
<p>5. If you could perform with anyone in the world, who would that be and why? </p>
<p>I’ve played with some pretty cool and talented people in The Little Wretches. You probably want me to mention somebody famous or some prodigious talent, but I wish the band that recorded UNDESIRABLES & ANARCHISTS could tour that album. Rosa, HK, Mike, John and me. That’s not the answer you were looking for, but that’s it. </p>
<p>And if we couldn’t do the whole band, I’d perform as a duo with Rosa. Rosa Rocks. Rosa Colucci. I love her voice. I love the way she intuitively knows what to sing to make me sound better and the songs more effective. Dylan had Joan Baez, Emmylou Harris, Clydie King. I’ve got Rosa. </p>
<p>Why Rosa? Why Mike, HK, and John? Because we have great songs. We have something to say, and there’s more people whe HAVE NOT heard us than have heard us. Because those guys are a great band. They deserve to be heard, and audiences deserve to hear them. </p>
<p>And if not The Little Wretches, all right, let’s say MICHELLE SHOCKED. </p>
<p>6. Are you political at all? Do you get involved in social media debates? </p>
<p>I’m a working class kid. “Shut up.” “Do your job.” “Do what you’re told.” “Know your place.” Well, you ain’t gonna decide my place for me, thank you very much. </p>
<p>As Neil Diamond sings in his song THE BOAT THAT I ROW, “Ain’t no man alive can tell me what to say.” I speak for myself. Think for myself. I don’t need anybody curating the news for me. I don’t need anybody protecting me from information. I don’t need anybody protecting me from ideas. </p>
<p>My grandparents are from Czechoslovakia, now called the Slovak Republic. I remember eavesdropping on the adults talking about the impact on our family in “the old country”after Russian tanks rolled through the streets in 1968. My great uncle, who I believe was in “The Party,” was imprisoned for a time by the Stalinists. </p>
<p>So yes, I’m political. It would be impossible for a person with my background to NOT be political. I used to be able to quote Lenin and Mao they way Evangelicals quote The Bible. But I can quote The Bible, too. </p>
<p>I refuse to be placed in anybody’s box. I refuse to adopt anybody’s party line. </p>
<p>People in politics are always arguing about systems and policies. What I’ve discovered is that none of that matters. What matters is the cultivation of good people. Good people can make any system work. No system is good if the people are not. </p>
<p>I’m not in the business of persuasion. I’m in the business of touching hearts and souls. </p>
<p>7. What is one thing about yourself that you would change? </p>
<p>I’ve learned the hard way that my default mode is to be defensive. No matter how much encouragement and acceptance is shown to me, I never feel like I fit in. I always feel like an outsider. Now, that may be a quality that contributes to my being a good writer. As an outsider, I’m an observer, a witness. But I tend to isolate myself. My defensiveness became a habit which became a lifestyle. Dave Losi wrote an incredible song for The Little Wretches called I BELONG. Look it up. It’s on our album, JUST ANOTHER NAIL IN MY COFFIN. </p>
<p>If I could change anything, I would change that thing inside me that makes me feel like I don’t belong. </p>
<p>8. If you had any advice for an up and coming artist, what would that be? </p>
<p>If you have any quit in you, quit now and don’t waste your time and money. </p>
<p>The paradox of being a creative artist is that you have to be a sponge for learning, taking everything in, assimilating everything, but you have to hold onto whatever makes you unique. </p>
<p>Everybody has to bring something to the party. You have to bring something that nobody else is bringing. In the words of the Wright Brothers, you have to possess “DAUNTLESS RESOLUTION AND UNCONQUERABLE FAITH.” </p>
<p>Most people don’t have the stomach for it. </p>
<p>Scripture says, “Many are called but few are chosen.” Only YOU know if you’ve been called. If you’ve gotten the calling, ANSWER that call. How dare you NOT answer. </p>
<p>9. Any plans for a new single? </p>
<p>Singles, huh? As a listener, I pay attention to albums, to bodies of work. It’s usually a single, that tips you off to the body of work behind it. And if there is nothing behind it, you’ve still got a cool song. A lot of one-hit wonders can pack a considerable punch. </p>
<p>Our next release hinges on Rosa. We’ve recorded an incredible album. If you’ve heard UNDESIRABLES & ANARCHISTS or WHEN IT SNOWS or THIS TIME THE REBELLION WEEPS, you’ve heard how her voice and presence transforms my songs. </p>
<p>Whatever song she cuts first is likely to be our first single. Whatever song she cuts secone is likely to be our second single. </p>
<p>Rosa has had a hellish year and has been under tremendous pressure. She hasn’t had the peace of mind to sing. When she adds her vocals, we’ll be ready to mix the album. I thought it would have been completed by now, but it will be done when it’s done, and there are several potential singles on it. </p>
<p>So let’s say the singles are yet to be determined, but they’re on there. </p>
<p>Any budding young filmmakers out there wanna step up and make the videos? </p>
<p>10. Will you be releasing a follow up album? </p>
<p>It’s going to be called RED BEETS & HORSERADISH. Red like our blood. Beets like the earthy, edible roots. Horseradish like the firey and pungent root that can overpower a dish. The writing is the best work of my career. It’s folkier than UNDESIRABLES & ANARCHISTS, more narratives, more monologues, very character-based. Songs about sick people, old people, crazy people. Very real. </p>
<p>11. Any last shout outs or words for your fans? </p>
<p>After RED BEETS & HORSERADISH comes out, we’ve got a few more in us. But all the good stuff that is happening now and all the good stuff to come has been made possible by those who’ve supported and encouraged us The Little Wretches. My rattling off the names of fifty people isn’t going to mean anything to your readers, but suffice it to say that there are some people out there who’ve done more for me than I’ve done for myself. I hope the quality of our albums-in-the-pipeline justifies your support and encouragement. I hope we live up to and exceed your expectations. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/67653882021-10-04T05:59:17-04:002021-12-14T10:23:03-05:00REVIEW—BEACH SLOTH<p><a contents="CLICK HERE TO READ THE REVIEW AT BEACH SLOTH" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="http://www.beachsloth.com/little-wretches-all-of-my-friends-live.html?fbclid=IwAR1d_QLV2Cl803mguqf4WkNhWl6hiKknXUOTKWF50SCebe6OyUdj0D3_1os" target="_blank">CLICK HERE TO READ THE REVIEW AT BEACH SLOTH</a></p>
<p><em><strong>“Everything goes for the heart…Done with ever so much dignity, the word choice here proves to be profound, with many of the verses cutting right to the very bone.”—Beach Sloth</strong></em></p>
<p>Little Wretches – All of My Friends (Live) </p>
<p> Little Wretches features a vibrant, chamber folk spirit with “All of My Friends (Live)”. The arrangement has a simplicity to it, one that has a heartiness to it. Many layers of it feature have a grandeur to it. Instrumentally vibrant the way of the work has a genteel stateliness to it. Everything goes for the heart with the entirety of the piece having a degree of heart to it. The nods to a sort of unique folk punk hybrid emerge, for the restrained arrangement alongside the far more biting lyrics adds to this duality. </p>
<p> The song starts off with a hushed quality to it. Full of a tremendous energy there is a communal presence to all of it. Interplay happens in a very amicable fashion for it appears that each member has a sense of what the others will do. Thanks in large part to their ability to play off each other the song unfurls at its own speed. Done with ever so much dignity the word choice here proves to be profound, with many of the verses cutting right to the very bone. Melodically rich the rest of the sound seems to wash over the listener, as the intimate live setting adds to the welcoming presence of it all. For the finale they let it expand a bit, ever so slowly bringing the whole thing to a glorious conclusion. </p>
<p> “All of My Friends (Live)” lays into the playfulness of storytelling, for Little Wretches has a restraint that feels absolutely lovely.</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/67653872021-10-04T05:55:34-04:002021-12-14T13:50:11-05:00REVIEW—INDEPENDENT MUSIC AND ARTISTS, INC.<p><a contents="CLICK HERE TO SEE THE REVIEW AT IMAAI DOT ORG" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://www.imaai.org/little-wretches-all-of-my-friends.../" target="_blank">CLICK HERE TO SEE THE REVIEW AT IMAAI DOT ORG</a></p>
<p><em><strong>“It (ALL OF MY FRIENDS) plants a seed of inspiration for a better future, one that sticks to the listener, and for that we give it a hearty commendation. Little Wretches hit their mark again, and we’re eager for more from them.” </strong></em></p>
<p>A brand new single has just been released by Little Wretches, a new version of “All Of My Friends” that comes to us live from The Mattress Factory. This means it’s time to take a closer look at the new single, as we always do. </p>
<p>The new single is a live track, which means the instruments are stripped back but more raw, and this works well for the song. A simple violin and guitar pair lead the song through its lyrical bends, sounding nice and light. They bely the darker underbelly of the song however. </p>
<p>“All Of My Friends” quickly peels back its layers, revealing itself to be a tune about how the lead singer’s friends are all rebels and undesirables as deemed by society. Dark moments and dingy back alleys are all they know, but they’re still doing their best to get through the day and live their lives. It’s a mirror to the actual living conditions of many people in the modern world, though one that’s not often given a spotlight. </p>
<p>Glamorous living and fresh clothes aren’t a common occurrence around these parts, and anarchy reigns supreme, and even the lead singer, Robert Wagner bemoans how “it’s not even safe to admit that you’re one of my friends”. There’s no shielding from the dark and sorrowful places and situations these people get into, and the singer lays out bare just how serious these issues can get. </p>
<p>It’s even more destitute when you realize a lot of the people involved aren’t even bad. Some of them are simply individuals trying to express themselves, or unlucky fellows born into terrible circumstances that they can’t dig themselves out of. It’s a grim reflection of the real world, as we’re sure was exactly the intention. </p>
<p>In all the gloom, doom and darkness however, lead vocalist, Wagner finds ways to insert some hope for a better future. Don’t get it twisted, it’s a dark song that doesn’t sugarcoat any of the dingy details whatsoever, but it’s still an optimistic song about how things can get better, and how a desperate situation doesn’t make for a bad person as the singer wails about how they’re the best people he’s ever known. </p>
<p>It plants a seed of inspiration for a better future, one that sticks to the listener, and for that we give it a hearty commendation. Little Wretches hit their mark again, and we’re eager for more from them. <br>–Jason Airy</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/67523192021-09-20T19:59:57-04:002022-03-16T07:58:44-04:00The Mike Wagner Show...Robert delivers a live performance of The Remains of Joe Magarac<p><a contents="Click here to watch/view THE MIKE WAGNER SHOW on YouTube" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://youtu.be/nq9NGgZaX0M" target="_blank">Click here to watch/view THE MIKE WAGNER SHOW on YouTube</a></p>
<p>"From Pittsburgh, it's Robert Wagner from Little Wretches back with a new live acoustic release album "Live at the Mattress Factory-Songs From the Land of Pit Bulls and Poker Machines" and how he came up with the name plus he performs live from the release!"</p>
<p>Mike Wagner, no relation to me (Robert), is an enthusiastic and encouraging person. Yes, he mispronounces "CALLIOPE" (he says cal--ee-o-pee with an accent on the O), but it is obvious that Mike tried to do his homework and very much wanted his listeners to share his enthusiasm.</p>
<p>As for my part, I perform THE REMAINS OF JOE MAGARAC. I knew Mike was going to ask me to play a song. I can't always get away with playing MAGARAC. It's a long song and rather specific to the history of river towns in Western Pennsylvania, but I was feeling it. If I correctly interpreted Mike's response, I'd say he was pretty much blown away by the song. </p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/67239372021-08-22T14:48:23-04:002023-12-10T11:33:25-05:00LIVING AND THRIVING WITH RUSTIE<p><a contents="CLICK HERE TO WATCH THE PODCAST APPEARANCE WITH RUSTIE MACDONALD AT YOUTUBE" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://youtu.be/v_eo4gZb2Zk" target="_blank">CLICK HERE TO WATCH THE PODCAST APPEARANCE WITH RUSTIE MACDONALD AT YOUTUBE</a></p>
<p><strong>LIVING AND THRIVING WITH RUSTIE</strong> </p>
<p>As you will see if you view this interview, I am seated in a classroom, wearing my ESSENTIAL SERVICES tee-shirt. Rustie MacDonald and I engage in a free-flowing conversation. She hits me with the old, "Tell me about yourself," and I go into the whole teaching-through-stories-and-telling-stories-through-songs thing that is probably pretty familiar to folks who've listened to or read some of my other interviews. We talk CHOICE THEORY, TRAUMA THEORY, PEACE THROUGH FREEDOM, basic economics, and what it means to have a purpose-driven life. Among other things.</p>
<p>I drop names like <strong>August Wilson, Michelle Shocked, Jonathan Richman, Peter Himmelman, Ian Hunter, Garland Jeffreys, Leon Russell and Mick Ronson.</strong> I did an interview with Rustie MacDonald a long, long time ago, and it finally appeared. We covered, but it looks like I’m in a classroom, so we probably talked trauma-theory, choice-theory, learning, grit and resilience, and a thing or two about the songs of The Little Wretches.</p>
<p>I've watched it twice. I don't always listen to my own interviews, but I liked this one a lot. I hope you do, also.</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/67239202021-08-22T14:37:42-04:002022-09-15T12:24:38-04:001 in Music-- An Interview with Robert Andrew Wagner of The Little Wretches<p><a contents="CLICK HERE TO READ THE INTERVIEW AT 1 IN MUSIC DOT COM" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://1inmusic.com/an-interview-with-robert-wagner-songwriter-musician-and-frontman-of-little-wretches/?fbclid=IwAR3W9sHgdD890cbv0WkF_ur6DFC8Pv9AoMkNIvsCokHHvMsZrdlTfZHKuik" target="_blank">CLICK HERE TO READ THE INTERVIEW AT 1 IN MUSIC DOT COM</a></p>
<p><span class="font_regular"><strong>An interview with Robert Wagner, songwriter, musician, and frontman of Little Wretches </strong></span></p>
<p>As frontman and chief songwriter/lyricist for 80s/90s seminal Pittsburgh rock band, Little Wretches, Robert Wagner rode a wave of local notoriety that led the band to the forefront of the underground music scene. He has also recorded and released two new albums in 2020: Undesirables and Anarchists and Burning Lantern Dropped In Straw. The former spawned an iTunes chart-topping single and received airplay on over 115 North American AM/FM radio stations. </p>
<p><strong>1 In Music: Hi Robert, and thank you so much for giving us a bit of your time. Tell us a little more about you and your band Little Wretches. What is unique about you and your music? </strong></p>
<p><strong>Robert Wagner [RW]</strong>: Did you ever go to a party that has a sign-up list for who is going to bring what? I always want to be able to bring something that nobody else is going to bring. What could I possibly bring that is unique, especially given all the talent out there? Well, the music of The Little Wretches will introduce you to people you’ve never met, people you will love and care about, people that you will not meet except through our songs. Our songs are portraits and landscapes and parables. You will someday wake up from a dream, asking yourself where you first encountered that person in your dreams, and you’ll have an “AHA” moment–That was a character from a song by The Little Wretches. You’ll find yourself humming, and “AHA,” that’s a melody from The Little Wretches. </p>
<p><strong>1 In Music</strong>: So, what or who shaped you and your music to become what you have ust described and who supports you? </p>
<p><strong>RW: </strong>There’s a line in one of our songs, “I am what I’ve been through.” </p>
<p>We descend from people who risked and sacrificed everything to leave their homes, cross the ocean, and seek opportunity in America. We descend from immigrants–Hunkies and Dagos and Polaks. We were taught to believe that we are supposed to do something with our lives, to make something of ourselves, to reach, to climb, and to reach back and pull others up with us. I made the mistake of telling my grandmother I wanted to be happy. “HAPPY?,” she said. “Cows in a pasture are happy. Do you want to be a cow? God gave you talent. If you don’t do something with it, your life is a waste.” Or something like that. I’m paraphrasing. Maybe being overly dramatic. But we’re The Little Wretches, as in “blessed are the meek,” as in, “how sweet the sound that saved a wretch like me.” Get it? </p>
<p><strong>1 In Music: </strong>I like your grandmother and how you came to name your band! But give us the missing link here… How did you get from your gran’s wisdom to choosing to make music professionally? </p>
<p><strong>RW:</strong> Things turn into their opposites. I ALWAYS wanted to play music. When I was in my late teens, I was diagnosed with a rare form of cancer. The night before my big surgery, I had a little conversation with God. I said that if I lived, I would NEVER do anything other than what I want to do. I would never SAY anything that I did not believe in. As it turned out, the punk music scene had just gotten off the ground in my hometown, and punk gave people like me license to get up on stage and gave us a couple of years to tread water and discover what we’re good at. What I’m good at is teaching through stories and telling stories through songs. </p>
<p><strong>1 In Music: </strong>So, you are into punk music. What other type of music do you listen to? </p>
<p><strong>RW: </strong> I listen to everything except popular music on the radio. I discover an artist and then dive deeply and get everything they ever recorded:<strong> Skip James, Muddy Waters, John Coltrane, Johnny Cash. Woody Guthrie. Oliver “Tuku” Mtukudzi. Lou Reed. Patti Smith. Emmylou Harris. Frank Lowe. George Harrison.</strong> Of course, as a songwriter with an ear for storytelling, I study <strong>Ray Davies of The Kinks, Pete Townshend of The Who, Phil Ochs</strong>, people like that. <strong>Michelle Shocked and Jonathan Richman</strong>, they are the artists that gave me the template for what I do live. </p>
<p><strong>1 In Music:</strong> Who, to you, is the most undervalued music artist? </p>
<p><strong>RW: </strong>Undervalued? Undervalued by whom? Some who come to mind are <strong>John Cale, Mick Ronson, and Leon Russell. Ian Hunter and Garland Jeffreys.</strong> See? They are known and loved by those who know them. I wish they were better known, but they’ve had a huge impact on music. And as I said earlier, <strong>Michelle Shocked, Jonathan Richman, and I’ll add Peter Himmelman. </strong></p>
<p><strong>1 In Music:</strong> How do you prepare for your performances?: I spend the whole day in preparation. I need to exercise to prepare my lungs and tighten up my vocal cords. I need to run through some of the figures and changes on my guitar. I keep my spirit open to inspiration. There is a balance between giving people what they want and giving them something they don’t already have. What am I bringing to the table that is not already there? What knowledge and experience can I share that is not already common knowledge? This is kind of weird, kind of religious, I suppose, but there’s something in the Bible where disciples are sent out, and they ask, “What are we supposed to say?” Don’t worry. When it’s time for you to speak, the words will be given to you. That’s what I want to do. </p>
<p>I want to prepare, but I want what happens to be be spontaneous. </p>
<p><strong>1 In Music:</strong> What do you do when you don’t do music (creative or otherwise) and that you are passionate about? </p>
<p><strong>RW:</strong> I have a Master’s degree in Instruction and Learning. I hate schooling, but I love learning. I work with at-risk and court-adjudicated teens. I am very interested in alternative education–homeschooling, unschooling, free schools, democratic schools, self-directed learning. I also work with kids on the autism spectrum. They say, “If you’ve met one person with autism, you’ve met one person with autism.” The magic and miracle of communication really comes alive when you are communicating with someone on the autism spectrum. I also love the outdoors. What the heck? I’m a Renaissance Person. I’m on a quest for the Unified Field Theory, the mind of God. I’m a fanatic, I guess. </p>
<p><strong>1 In Music:</strong> Success to you is…? </p>
<p><strong>RW: </strong>Success is getting in front of people who’ve never heard me before and watching them drop their conversations, set down their drinks, turn and face the stage, and tune in to my songs. </p>
<p><strong>1 In Music: </strong>What do you wish you were told when you started out and that you think would help anyone who starts out? </p>
<p><strong>RW: </strong>There is no blueprint. I wish I’d had some entrepreneurial skills. I wish I’d understood how to “network” and how to build relationships. But there are two kinds of people who try to help you: those who push you to be a realist, to modify what you do, to cut off your edges so that you’ll fit in. And then there are those who encourage you to cultivate what makes you unique and outstanding. I’m a working class kid. People from the working class are terrified of ending up with nothing. They’re very good at doing their jobs and following orders. </p>
<p><strong><span class="font_large">I wish my people had just understood that I’m not cut out to fit in. <br>I’m a Little Wretch, and that is that. </span></strong></p>
<p><strong>1 In Music: Any upcoming projects?</strong> </p>
<p><strong>RW:</strong> We’re recording a collection of songs called RED BEETS & HORSERADISH. Red like the color of our blood. Beets like the earthy roots we eat. Horseradish like the powerful flavor that might be a little too strong for a lot of people. These songs are really good, and they’re the kind of thing you’re not going to get from anybody other than The Little Wretches. </p>
<p><strong>1 In Music:</strong> Thank you so much for your time and candor. Tell us where we can find your music? </p>
<p><strong>RW: </strong>The Little Wretches are all over YouTube, with hours and hours of live footage. We’re on all the streaming and downloading sources. Look up The Little Wretches on Facebook. Visit our website, www.littlewretches.com. I’m working out of Philadelphia and Pittsburgh. Kinda weird. I’m outside of Philly, but my partners are outside of Pittsburgh. I bleed Black and Gold.</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/67142852021-08-12T10:29:54-04:002021-08-12T10:29:54-04:00ON PART EN LIVE AVEC L’ALBUM DE LITTLE WRETCHES « LIVE AT THE MATTRESS FACTORY »<p><a contents="CLICK HERE TO READ THE REVIEW AT THE INDIECHRONIQUE WEBSITE" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="http://indiechronique.fr/on-part-en-live-avec-lalbum-de-little-wretches-live-at-the-mattress-factory?fbclid=IwAR2pFSaPyz0lTDyt4cmSD0OZqLkXtnYfb-mBVS-3Rprf61SCxAHWzerPzvc" target="_blank">CLICK HERE TO READ THE REVIEW AT THE INDIECHRONIQUE WEBSITE</a></p>
<p><strong>ON PART EN LIVE AVEC L’ALBUM DE LITTLE WRETCHES « LIVE AT THE MATTRESS FACTORY » </strong></p>
<p>By Indiechroniquedaily / août 8, 2021 </p>
<p>Malgré la levée de certaines restrictions en France, la vie culturelle n’a toujours pas repris pleinement son cours. En particulier la scène musicale. Loin de nous les temps où nous pouvions aller voir des concerts, sans tracas ou peur. Car oui, même s’ils sont autorisés, la possibilité de pouvoir en profiter librement est assez restreinte. Il y a des artistes qui nous ont permis de nous emporter dans leur live. C’est le cas de Little Wretches, de son vrai nom Robert Wagner. </p>
<p>Celui qui jouit d’une notoriété notoire en raison de sa forte expérience dans la région de Pittsburgh nous rappelle sans effort le sentiment que procure le fait d’écouter de la vraie musique, dans un monde où beaucoup la néglige. </p>
<p>Sa générosité musicale l’a poussé à sortir un bel album « Live At the Mattress Factory » dont le titre parle de lui-même. On y retrouve 24 morceaux enregistrés live, et d’une telle beauté qu’ils vous feront oublier les temps présents. </p>
<p>De « Dark Times », aux bonus tracks qui clôturent le projet, Little Wretches nous bénit de mélodies pures, de guitares agréables, et d’histoires que l’on aimerait écouter encore et encore. </p>
<p>« Mes chansons sont des miroirs, et je commence ou termine souvent mes performances en jouant une version de « I’ll Be Your Mirror » de The Velvet Underground prolongée sur plus de dix minutes pour inclure certaines des images qui ont le plus façonné ma vision du monde en tant que jeune homme – des hommes et des femmes qui travaillent asservis à la poursuite du dollar, le vide désormais vacant d’où l’esprit s’est enfui rempli de la distraction des divertissements insensés, de l’alcool et de diverses drogues, des gens si engourdis que la violence autodestructrice a perdu son impact et la seule façon pour eux d’espérer ressentir quoi que ce soit est de blesser les gens qu’ils aiment… Dieu a voulu que je grandisse pour défendre les faibles et vaincre les malfaiteurs en écrivant des chansons et en racontant des histoires. Et si je me trompe, j’ai gâché ma vie. » Robert Wagner</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/67135182021-08-11T15:08:30-04:002021-08-11T15:08:30-04:00Podcast Appearance--LIVING THE DREAM with CURVEBALL<p><a contents="CLICK HERE TO LISTEN AT APPLE PODCASTS" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/living-dream-frontman-chief-songwriter-for-80s-90s/id1531485905?i=1000531671876" target="_blank">CLICK HERE TO LISTEN AT APPLE PODCASTS</a></p>
<p>As frontman and chief songwriter for 80s/90s seminal Pittsburgh rock band, Little Wretches, Robert Wagner rode a wave of local notoriety that led the band to the forefront of the underground music scene. The Little Wretches were founded as a folk/punk band by Robert (guitar) and his brother, Chuckie (violin). The “classic” Mach 2 era of Little Wretches included Ed Heidel (bass), Chris Bruckhoff (percussion, wind instruments, backing vocals) and Bob Goetz (guitar), rounded out by Dave Mitchell (drums), Mike Michalski (bass) and Ellen Hildebrand (electric guitar.) This rock edition of the band performed regularly and helped the band build its massive following in Pittsburgh. Michalski, Mitchell and Chuckie Wagner left the band, effectively ending Mach 2.Mach 3 began with the addition of David Losi (keyboards) and Mike Madden (drums.) When Madden couldn’t tour, drum programmer Gregg Bielski took over. When Ellen switched to bass guitar, this version of The Little Wretches entered the studio. They recorded two albums, with Angelo George playing drums and Jon Paul Leone playing guitar on a third. National press, attorneys, managers, and publicists came calling, as did life’s obligations, and the Little Wretches disbanded in the late 90s.Robert Wagner continues to perform at coffeehouses and small clubs. A Master’s Degree holder, Wagner also counsels abused, neglected, traumetized and court-adjudicated youth. He is the co-founder of The Calliope Acoustic Open Stage, an event that has lasted 15+ years. He has also recorded and released two new albums in 2020: Undesirables and Anarchists and Burning Lantern Dropped In Straw. The former having spawned an itunes chart-topping single and having received airplay on more than 115 North American AM/FM radio stations.</p>
<p>https://www.facebook.com/thelittlewretcheshttps://littlewretches.com</p>
<p>https://open.spotify.com/artist/28Ue5Dx2uO60U7MMKJ3waD?si=QuExwCFLQ32ld9GcJ83vvw</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/67135172021-08-11T15:04:32-04:002022-04-06T17:07:07-04:00INDIE SHARK MAGAZINE-- A Nomination for Album of the Year<p><a contents="CLICK HERE TO READ THE REVIEW AT INDIE SHARK MAGAZINE" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://indieshark.com/music-reviews/little-wretches-live-at-the-mattress-factory/?fbclid=IwAR0JXuadRvZpO3phKkV_ROOaRHsqDZ8DnDRI22fT5TP8YpjuBn8GCdRg010" target="_blank">CLICK HERE TO READ THE REVIEW AT INDIE SHARK MAGAZINE</a></p>
<p><strong>The Little Wretches “Live at the Mattress Factory” </strong></p>
<p>MUSIC REVIEWS </p>
<p>In Live at the Mattress Factory by southern twang-infused folk singer Robert Andrew Wagner, operating under the band title Little Wretches, we find the man wrestling deeply with plenty of complexities that give way to a clearer picture of desire. </p>
<p>Right off the bat, I’ll say there’s something almost nostalgic about even hearing a live album, this being recorded with a live audience of whom some get to actually interact with Robert in some very enlightening ways. Whether they’re correcting him, agreeing with him, or just acknowledging his points, you get this electric sense of audience presence easily invested in his tired, world-weary persona. For an album that aims to evoke feelings of a simpler time, the lyrics are notably complex and wordy. Some of the songs border on the 9-minute mark and I won’t lie, the whole preceding is a little exhausting. Not in a bad way, more like you’ve gone on a specific journey with someone, and no stone is left untouched. Plenty of live alums run on the long side if only because it’s a victory lap of sorts and a chance to flex musical talents away from any kind of artificiality, and instead of doing a typical single acoustic performance, Wagner has smartly brought along violinist David Maund, who brings an added texture and personality even when the songs get on the more morbid side. </p>
<p>An interesting thing about the structural choices of the album is that each song, for the most part, pairs back to back incredibly well building off of established themes and sometimes offering a different perspective on the same idea. Opener “Dark Times” for example is a moody harmonica heavy rumination on the past year and the reflections of doubt that even our artists haven’t risen up to the notion of exposing injustice. It’s something he even doubles down in in the subsequent track “Whether or Not You Like It”, which covers the growing ennui and tension many feels, with a strong need for an outlet or voice. A strong thesis that carries is a sense of moral justice and expression of freedom. </p>
<p>Even in conversation with the audience, references to Baldwin and Nieshce flow through the air and turn what could have been a simple-minded act into something sharply dense and about the human experience. Many of the songs in the middle portion from a deeply personal place, such as a ballad ruminating on the experiences of Wagner’s sister becoming a new mother and the emphasis on responsibilities to uphold, and this is sharply contrasted with the seemingly easy-going if not darker undertone driven sounds of “Father’s Day”. </p>
<p>Wagner certainly has a way with words and many times, even simple phrases like a retelling of his father saying “Don’t You Give Me No Looks”, has this almost violent undertone. Wagner knows that people and the human experience aren’t perfect, and I think the title of the Mattress Factory is perfectly apt because Wagner wants us to feel the bumps on the way down, even if we’re caught seemingly safely. </p>
<p>Mark Druery</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/67134972021-08-11T14:58:33-04:002021-08-11T14:58:33-04:00VENTS MAGAZINE reviews LIVE AT THE MATTRESS FACTORY; Songs from the Land of Pit Bulls + Poker Machines<p><a contents="CLICK HERE TO READ THE REVIEW AT VENTS MAGAZINE" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://ventsmagazine.com/2021/07/17/little-wretches-release-acoustic-live-album/?fbclid=IwAR3vHjYRj7rzt2WeQkLewj0mdwcCfSh-rBTpjaWs0djR-EZSnoiksg1usVI" target="_blank">CLICK HERE TO READ THE REVIEW AT VENTS MAGAZINE</a></p>
<p><strong>Little Wretches Release Acoustic Live Album</strong></p>
<p>Live at the Mattress Factory is one of the latest records by Little Wretches, a fascinating performer with plenty to say. Kicking off with the deceptively inviting Dark Times, it’s a song that looks forward by judging the present. Maintaining a critical eye on specifically political pundits and the shortcoming of artists and everyday people to stand up for what’s right, lead singer Robert Andrew Wagner’s voice really sells the disheartened tones, wonderfully punctuated by some astounding violin playing from David Maund. Each track has an intro that varies from half a minute to sometimes three minutes recounting a story, or an interaction between Wagner and the audience that helps enrich the experience. It removes some of the mystique for me personally as I like being able to unpack songs on my own, but plenty will find it interesting to hear what Wagner’s sources of inspiration were. </p>
<p>Follow up track “Whether or Not you Like it” is an exploration of frustration with lines like “You feel like a ghost” and “You don’t even know what you’re doing”. Despite being an older gentleman, it’s the kind of accessible song for any age that I think will strike a chord most with younger listeners. It’s also a lengthy song with a lot to unpack, but luckily Wagner never wastes any breath and is in perfect control of the whole proceedings. There’s even a great nod to NBC that I won’t spoil and the ending emphasizes the existential terror of repetition that matches the dread of feeling stuck in place. Some of the best banter between Wagner and his audience comes from the set up to “Promised Land”. </p>
<p>That track maintains a softer sound and brings back the strings that were absent after the opener. Using the initial framework of the 40-year parable of slaves escaping Egypt, the song becomes an almost Russian nesting doll on the effects of intergenerational trauma. Explorations of manhood, responsibilities, and how now the idea of the Promised Land lies in capitalistic gain. It carries a heavy-hearted sound that is rich, but it fumbles a little bit in its obvious comparison of work to slavery. </p>
<p>The longest track, “The Remains of Magaroc” clocking in at eight minutes gets the most mileage out of recontextualizing a parable and continues on its themes of anti-capitalism. It argues that no matter how hard you work, the world can still be unrewarding and the disconnect between fellow men all trying to achieve the same thing only gets stronger and harder with time. The back half of the album staring around the track “Father’s Day” is where the record really starts to lighten up, and for good reason. It’s a joy to hear Wagner’s magnetic presence shift from the darker themes and tones to something more reminiscent of a chill hangout with friends. Ultimately, the album is a triumph of the integrity of humankind, and while long is an epic-length update of parables that we could use some reminding of these days, as we lose sight of empathy we desperately need. </p>
<p>by Clay Burton</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/67134962021-08-11T14:51:44-04:002021-08-11T14:51:44-04:00Podcast Appearance--THE CURE with Aimee Cabo: THE UNDESIRABLES<p><a contents="CLICK HERE TO LISTEN at APPLE PODCASTS" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-undesirables/id1479987357?i=1000530118524" target="_blank">CLICK HERE TO LISTEN at APPLE PODCASTS</a></p>
<p><a contents="CLICK HERE to WATCH/LISTEN on Facebook" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://fb.watch/7jRoUOudr2/" target="_blank">CLICK HERE to WATCH/LISTEN on Facebook</a></p>
<p>The UndesirablesThe Cure with Aimee Cabo </p>
<p>Christianity </p>
<p>Listen on Apple Podcasts </p>
<p>Discussing the life of the forgotten suburban America and the evil around us with musician Robert Wagner on this episode of The Cure with Aimee Cabo. </p>
<p>Robert Wagner is the lead singer of Little Wretches band and now counsels abused, neglected, traumatized and court adjudicated youth. https://littlewretches.com </p>
<p>Aimee Cabo is the host of syndicated live radio show The Cure, an inspirational speaker, a nurse, and an award winning author. Latest book available now - Inspired by the Holy Ghost. </p>
<p>https://GodisTheCure.com</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/67134942021-08-11T14:46:43-04:002022-02-17T12:54:01-05:00BEHIND THE SONG--Interview (9 minute read)<p><a contents="CLICK HERE TO READ THE INTERVIEW AT BEHIND THE SONG" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://www.behind-the-song.com/post/the-little-wretches?fbclid=IwAR3na6wAS_LYpMpHGWPpNr5IbqhTOMbhGoA5dd3Z8uRPnZfc1eptKSKEZn8" target="_blank">CLICK HERE TO READ THE INTERVIEW AT BEHIND THE SONG</a></p>
<p><strong>Behind the Song </strong><br>Feb 15. 9 min read </p>
<p>The Little Wretches </p>
<p>As Front-man and chief songwriter and lyricist for 80s/90s seminal Pittsburgh rock band, Little Wretches, Robert Wagner rode a wave of local notoriety that led the band to the forefront of the underground music scene. The Little Wretches were founded as a folk/punk band by Robert (guitar) and his brother, Chuckie (violin). The band had various lineups. Little Wrenches recorded two albums, with Angelo George playing drums and Jon Paul Leone playing guitar on a third. National press, attorneys, managers, and publicists came calling, as did life’s obligations, and the Little Wretches disbanded in the late 90s. Robert Wagner continues to perform at coffeehouses and small clubs. A Master’s Degree holder, Wagner also counsels abused, neglected, traumatized and court-adjudicated youth. He is the co-founder of The Calliope Acoustic Open Stage, an event that has lasted 15+ years. He has also recorded and released two new albums in 2020: Undesirables and Anarchists and Burning Lantern Dropped In Straw. </p>
<p><strong>For fans who have never heard your music, can you pick three words to describe it?! If three words just aren't enough then tell us more!! </strong></p>
<p>RED BEETS & HORSERADISH Red like the color of our blood. Beets like the life-sustaining edible roots we pull from the earth. "Ooh, but sometimes they taste like dirt." Yep, they do. A taste I've learned to love. Horseradish like a flavor that carries fire that may be too hot for some to handle. That's The Little Wretches. </p>
<p>What is your favorite part about being an artist? Is it songwriting, performing, recording, something else?) Tell us why. </p>
<p>That’s kind of like asking me what is my favorite part about breathing. It is so much a part of me, I don’t know any other way. One of the sensations that most sustains me, and the memories that I most often return to when I need sustenance, is the feeling of a oneness of spirit with the occasional person in the audience or fellow musician. </p>
<p>How do I explain this? The things that have made me who I am are often things you do not talk about in public, in polite society, things you mask and keep hidden. I walk around 99% of my life in a “normal” mask. In my songs, I have the liberty and responsibility to tell the truth. The Taste of Dirt. Thanks for Saving My Life. May You Never Be the Child of a Realist. These are songs that some find very moving, but they could very well wreck the party, too. </p>
<p>The people I wrote these songs for, I know they are out there. When I know that we have shared the spirit, that we have recognized each other through these songs, that feeling is my favorite part. Or when I’m performing for a new audience that doesn’t know me from Adam, and I watch from the stage as they all stop what they are doing and decide, “Hey, this guy is saying something I want to hear.” </p>
<p>It’s more than just an ego-thing. It’s a sharing of spirit. </p>
<p><strong>Can you tell us what being in the recording studio is like for you? </strong></p>
<p>First of all, TIME in a professional studio is exceedingly expensive, and I’ve been around since before the days of automated-mixing, back to when knobs and sliders had to be manually pushed, pulled and turned. I need to work fast, come in with a plan, and implement it. Doodling and “what if we tried this” or “I have a great idea”…That’s for rehearsals. When I get in the studio, it’s game time. </p>
<p>I’m a DIY artist, but I’ve spent so much time listening to bootlegs and unauthorized recordings made by fans with covert recording devices that I cannot trust my own ears. Plus, studio sound is so phenomenally good, so much better than what I am used to hearing, that it is disorienting. </p>
<p>I can’t have an engineer who says, “Do you prefer THIS or do you prefer THAT?” Either one sounds superior to what I am used to. I need an engineer I can trust to dial things into something resembling “industry standards.” </p>
<p>But the other thing I can’t stomach is when the playback doesn’t resemble what I played. That sound I’m hearing in the room when I’m recording the track? That’s the sound I want to hear on the tape. Why can’t you make my guitar sound like my guitar? Why can’t you make my voice sound like my voice? </p>
<p>Most time in the studio is wasted on set-up. You spend six hours getting yourself ready to record, then it’s time for the next band to come in. Nope. Once we get stuff dialed in, we’re recording it all and not stopping till the mission is accomplished. </p>
<p>Let’s say I’m doing a sixteen song project. I’m not recording one song at a time. I’m laying down the drums, bass and rhythm guitars on all sixteen songs in that first session. No way am I going to risk having to break down the gear and start all over again. </p>
<p>My formula is to get the drums, bass and electric rhythm guitars and maybe an electronic piano recorded live, maybe the amps in separate booths, but the players able to make eye-contact and follow visual cues. If time remains, double all the electric guitars with acoustic guitars before you finish, and leave with a rough mix. </p>
<p>Next session, lay down the lead vocals and instrumental solos. Next session after that, lay down the coloring, the background vocals, the percussion, the oohs and the aahs. </p>
<p>If you recorded it well, it mixes itself. Begin with the end in mind, as Stephen Covey says in the Seven Habits. People are going to like it or they are not. Your obsessive tweaks are not going to be what makes the difference. The soul and spirit of the music and performance is what is going to connect with the audience. </p>
<p><strong>Okay, this a fun question. When you are not doing music, what else do you enjoy doing? </strong></p>
<p>I’m a lifelong learner. My greatest love is learning about learning, understanding the process. Nobody had to teach you how to talk. Nobody had to teach you how to walk. The things that empower you and bring you freedom and fun, you learn how to do those things. Schooling can beat the love of learning out of kids in the school-setting, but in real life, all human beings are engineered by nature and God to be powerful learners. </p>
<p>My favorite things to learn about don’t cost me money, except maybe a tank of gas. I like to hike, to ride my bicycle on mountain roads and rails-to-trails systems. I like to exercise. There have been years of my life when I saw both the sunrise and the sunset every single day of the year. </p>
<p>In high school, a teacher I admired said Michelangelo was the last human being to possess all of the knowledge as yet acquired by his civilization. After him, there was simply too much information for one person to know. Well, I’ve taken that as a challenge. </p>
<p>A friend who is a great songwriter, Phil Harris, used to have a band called, “Experts on Everything.” I’ll never be an expert on everything, but I want that unified field theory, that theory of everything. I’m striving to know the mind of God, careful not to lean on my own understanding. </p>
<p>And did I mention I’m great with kids? </p>
<p><strong>Who do you admire most in the music scene today and why? </strong></p>
<p>I admire artists like Ian Hunter and Garland Jeffreys who’ve amassed a body of work that stands the test of time. They’ve weathered the ups and downs of the entertainment business, and their recent work, their “master” work, shall we say, is superior stuff. Ian Hunter and Garland Jeffreys. </p>
<p>Jonathan Richman is another one. A phenomenal body of work spanning styles and genres, but it’s always unmistakably Jonathan. And have you ever seen the movie, SEARCHING FOR BOBBY FISCHER? It’s about a kid who becomes a chess champion. It opens with him reading a school report about the life of Bobby Fischer. Well, I’m searching for Michelle Shocked. </p>
<p>Like Bobby Fischer, Michelle Shocked has kind of gone off the social-media grid. She is, for me, the artist with the most integrity and courage. I once heard her do a show that began with a set of previously unreleased material. Talk about challenging her audience. She said some controversial things on stage, things calculated to provoke, things calculated to outrage. It got her locked out and shut down. But Michelle Shocked is to contemporary folksingers what Lenny Bruce once was to standup comedians. Drugs and censorship took down Lenny Bruce. May Michelle Shocked someday come out of wherever she is and reclaim her throne. </p>
<p><strong>Can you tell us what song you've written that is the most emotional and describe the meaning behind it? </strong></p>
<p>A song that will be on the next album by The Little Wretches is called TIGER PAJAMAS. It is explicitly about my younger brother, co-founder of The Little Wretches, Charles John Wagner, also known as Chuck-O, also known as Chuckie and Chaz. The song speaks for itself. I ought to just recite the lyrics for you. </p>
<p>Chuckie was a few years behind me. When I was growing up, I was the favored son. I could do no wrong. I was good at school, good at sports, clearly held in higher esteem than my sister. It isn’t fair. My sister told me it was hard growing up with me as a brother. </p>
<p>But for Chuckie, by the time he was born, our parents’ marriage was a wreck. Each was spiraling into alcohol or substance-abuse. Both were workaholics, which was good because when they were home together, they’d get drunk and try to kill each other. </p>
<p>It was very hard for my brother. He never knew the love and security I’d known. Yes, I LOST it, but I knew what I’d lost. He never knew the feeling of love and security. </p>
<p>He was a wild kid, reckless, fearless, fun-loving. </p>
<p>It is widely known that I am a cancer-survivor. My brother attended an alternative high school down the street from the hospital I was in. I couldn’t eat when I was on chemo, so my brother would visit me on school days and eat my hospital lunches. Well, a decade later, it turns out that he got a form of cancer similar to what I got. But after having seen what I had gone through, instead of going to a surgeon to get a biopsy, he stole two-thousand dollars from my dad and ran off to Atlantic City to go on a cocaine-binge. </p>
<p>He was a gifted artist, a painter, a sculptor, a poet. Through the recommendation of his high school art teacher, Chuckie was given the opportunity to enter an arts program at Carnegie-Mellon University. CMU is an elite school with an extensive “good old boy” network. He’d have been set. But he passed on the opportunity. Why? God only knows. </p>
<p>Chuckie played violin and sang with The Little Wretches. He could sing Patti Smith note-for-note. He’d wait till I’d leave the house, then he’d blast HORSES or RADIO ETHIOPIA or EASTER at full-volume so he could sing out. </p>
<p>He died in a hospital in Florida, but there was a massive snowstorm up here in Pennsylvania, so there was no way to bury him properly. PLUS, the newspapers (remember newspapers?) were on strike. So a lot of people didn’t learn of my brother’s passing till long after he was gone. </p>
<p>TIGER PAJAMAS doesn’t go into all that. It’s a very focused, tight portrait. Some people who have heard it have let me know it’s effective. Wait’ll you hear it. Emotional? I think you’ll find it so. </p>
<p><strong>Are you working on any new material right now or what's in the works for the upcoming year? </strong></p>
<p>The Little Wretches are in rehearsals to begin recording our next album, RED BEETS & HORSERADISH. There are some complications, though. I tested positive for Covid two days ago. I’m relatively asymptomatic, but I’m still locked down for another two weeks. </p>
<p>We can’t even hold live rehearsals. I’m running through the tunes in Zoom meetings one-on-one with Mike Madden, our drummer, and John Carson, our bassist. Rosa Colucci is going to do some singing and percussion. I have parts for strings and flutes, and hopefully, Steve Sciulli (or someone equally gifted) will be available. Gregg Bielski was working on some drum-programs, but he’s under a lot of pressure. Not sure how things will roll out. </p>
<p>The lockdowns and quarantines are the big variable. A lot of people are rightfully concerned about getting sick. Pray for me. I have no symptoms, but there is no guarantee any of us will wake up tomorrow. </p>
<p>I can’t stand sitting in front of a laptop and playing to the camera. I want to wake up in the morning thinking about where I’m playing tonight. </p>
<p>The material on RED BEETS & HORSERADISH is stuff I can play very well solo and also with accompanists or the full band. So I’m set to promote the album with live shows. I do not have a formal booking-agent. </p>
<p>At the moment, though, venues aren’t booking or they are making it clear that they are honoring LAST year’s bookings before doing anything new. Last year, I wasn’t on 115 radio stations and getting positive reviews all over the place. This year, I have something to build on. </p>
<p>So how can you help, you might ask? Find us. Follow us. Click like. Click share. Leave comments. Play our music for your friends. Download our stuff. Invite us to your town. I’ll play on your porch, your lawn, your stage, your yacht. Invite me to play. I’m there. </p>
<p>Remember what I told you. Red like the color of our blood. Beets like the life-sustaining edible roots we pull from the ground. Horseradish that burns like a fire. That’s The Little Wretches.</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/67134812021-08-11T14:36:04-04:002021-08-11T14:36:04-04:00MobAngeles reviews LIVE AT THE MATTRESS FACTORY; Songs from the Land of Pit Bulls + Poker Machines<p><a contents="CLICK HERE TO READ THE REVIEW AT THE MOBANGELES WEBSITE" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://mobangeles.com/live-at-the-mattress-factory-from-little-wretches/?fbclid=IwAR1jWxmIHbXJTgt0ruK2EOXMsmM_zadHgS7JYuq0oWSUCJfvphYADUsUldo" target="_blank">CLICK HERE TO READ THE REVIEW AT THE MOBANGELES WEBSITE</a></p>
<p>“LIVE AT THE MATTRESS FACTORY” FROM LITTLE WRETCHES <br>Michael Rand July 16, 2021 </p>
<p>In an album jam-packed with some fantastic original songs, one of the best standouts for the record Live at the Mattress Factory from Little Wretches is a cover of Phil Oaks’ “Cops of the World”. Its placement in his setlist is very interesting as it follows the complex exploration of public perception and the nature vs nurture effect with youth and crime track “No Witnesses”, that it almost tricks you into thinking it might be pro lack of nuance. Sometimes it’s hard to pick up what exactly is Robert Andrew Wagner’s (lead vocalist) MO, but by the time “Cops of the World” kicks in with its, in the words of Wagner “Beatles style” rearrangement, he believes that art and the duty of artists are the fairest and just law of them all, regardless of sex, race, or any other societal boundary. </p>
<p>Wagner’s voice is deeply affecting and rich, even though sometimes he’s unable to hit certain notes, and by virtue of it being a live album some hiccups in the presentation are very noticeable, but it adds to the charm of hearing someone with such a passion for life and the critical lens he points at society. Kicking off with the harmonica laden, dramatic and angry despite not even having a raised vocal tone, “Dark Times”. Wagner’s shaky but passionate voice channels a seeming frustration at the lack of ownership that people, artists, and politicians have taken in the past few years, it transforms into something quite different as the focus switches to the seeming implosion of a romantic relationship. </p>
<p>When it switches to that perspective in the back half of the song, you wonder if the frustration felt by the protagonist of the song was truly angry at the world, or for themselves and what led to this heartache. This arc comes full circle by the end with “Be Somebody”, a final statement on growth in the face and fear of new love. It ranks among the most narratively straightforward and intimate songs on the entire album. Wagner goes through the motions of exploring cycles within familial and romantic relationships, growing and changing times and the similarities, and even the whole album starts from a seeming end and the frustration of a world that doesn’t care about what you want, to the lovely and inspiring “May You Never Be the Child of a Realist”. </p>
<p>A song that more than any of the aforementioned tracks feels the most personal, and like a letter Wagner wrote to his past self. Wagner seems like the type to not look backward with the most optimistic eye unless discussing his father and mother in which during an intro to the song “Father’s Day”, he recollects on the passion shared by the two and the impact it had on him that can be heard on his views on love on other tracks. In places, it feels like less of an album, and almost like a diary that we as an audience are lucky enough to read. </p>
<p>Michael Rand</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/67134772021-08-11T14:30:09-04:002021-08-11T14:30:09-04:00HOLLYWOOD DIGEST Reviews LIVE AT THE MATTRESS FACTORY; Songs from the Land of Pit Bulls + Poker Machines<p><a contents="CLICK HERE TO GO TO THE HOLLYWOOD DIGEST SITE TO READ THE REVIEW" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://thehollywooddigest.com/live-at-the-mattress-factory-by-robert-andrew-wagners-the-little-wretches/?fbclid=IwAR1kXY_0w-gA6wu8J4z2U4wh9_GYVe6NEVtc602DWgYvmkLGoH3USWXcW6k" target="_blank">CLICK HERE TO GO TO THE HOLLYWOOD DIGEST SITE TO READ THE REVIEW</a></p>
<p>“LIVE AT THE MATTRESS FACTORY” BY ROBERT ANDREW WAGNER’S THE LITTLE WRETCHES </p>
<p>GARTH THOMAS </p>
<p>There’s a part of Live at the Mattress Factory from Robert Andrew Wagner’s Little Wretches that will stick with me for some time. After several tracks that act as critical lenses towards modern society, Wagner shifts gears to look back at his own life with a more intimate lens. He tells a story involving his father’s loss of virginity, and while I don’t want to say the specifics here, the live audience he stated it in front of fell to a hushed palpable silence. </p>
<p>Wagner attempts to recover with a deliberate joke to help ease the tensions, but it’s complex and initially, I was appalled to hear it and wondered why it was included in the release. Prior to this, the album with tracks like “Dark Times”, “Whether or Not You Like It” and Promised Land”, captured the frustrations of the modern working man, and the lack of freedom life forces you under a work-life regime and as the album made the turn inwards to Wagner and how seemingly matter of fact he put this admission, it suddenly hit me. Wagner isn’t making light of it, he’s exposing the trivial nature of the past. Wagner is existential in nature and asks a lot of dense questions. He knows how to effortlessly trick you into thinking a song is about one subject before twisting the knife and showing you it’s really about something else. </p>
<p>The story of his father comes right before the song Preacher Girl, a kind of morally gray song I can see some not clicking with, but when you take into account it’s from the perspective of a horny stupid teenage boy, things seem a little different. Wagner is being critical of himself for holding the same complacency as his father and that theme of breaking cycles set by society and family is all over this album. Something I want to give a big shout-out to is how great this album sounds for a live recording. Even with the minimal setup, the whole thing sounds clean and tight especially with the accompanying harmonics and violin that helps elevate plenty of the songs from mere coffee shop ditties they could have been in lesser hands. By the time I got to the end of the album, I realized it was already ranking amongst my favorite releases this year. Wagner doesn’t preoccupy himself with coming across as “pretty”. </p>
<p>His voice is harsh in spots and the subject matter can get pitch black dark, but he’s not trying to burden you, he’s trying to open your mind. In ways, it’s an almost spiritual affair asking us to remind ourselves of our own humanity. Towards the end, there’s an outro that’s a violin rendition of Aloha, a word that as many knows can mean hello or goodbye and in this case, I’m electing to consider it Wagner’s grand hello to us all, and the harsh but welcome awakening he’s come to bless us with. It’s an imperfect listen, from an artist who aims to show we’re not perfect, we’re merely human and that’s all we can hope to be. </p>
<p>Garth Thomas</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/67134752021-08-11T14:24:02-04:002021-08-11T14:24:02-04:00BALLYHOO MAGAZINE reviews LIVE AT THE MATTRESS FACTORY; Songs from the Land of Pit Bulls + Poker Machines<p><a contents="CLICK HERE TO VISIT THE BALLYHOO MAGAZINE WEBSITE TO READ THE REVIEW" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://ballyhoomagazine.com/2021/07/17/little-wretches-robert-andrew-wagner-release-acoustic-live-lp/?fbclid=IwAR2A5PNafr_aBdtHV27Ruwuk_HooYtDq-IcfhqnDj8b6BlxkkbZHyvqYDtY" target="_blank">CLICK HERE TO VISIT THE BALLYHOO MAGAZINE WEBSITE TO READ THE REVIEW</a></p>
<p><strong>The Little Wretches (Robert Andrew Wagner) Release Acoustic Live LP </strong></p>
<p><strong>July 17, 2021 by Claire Uebelacker</strong></p>
<p><strong>Culture, Music </strong></p>
<p>As we hum along this year and we’re inundated with releases from the past year and some odd months, we’re still seeing a wave of reactionary music for the past pandemic, and the years leading up to it. Division amongst people is incredibly high, and those who seemingly don’t even take a side just find themselves frustrated in the world we’re living in today. Robert Andrew Wagner of Little Wretches is firmly aware of this, and he also knows that despite being a vocal advocate for the arts, and on this live album Live at the Mattress Store that it is ultimately artists who are the ones fighting to make the world better by exposing injustice, he doesn’t have all the answers and we can’t look to any one person or organization for them. </p>
<p>I can see some writing the album off as being a little too “liberal” in its sensibilities and that even though it is a very humanistic experience with only lip service to leaning on any one side, even with the song “All of My Friends”, he sees the division growing and how seemingly no one can voice anything without fear of cancellation, even by mere association. You get the sense in his performance and deliberate wording that Wagner is very tired of walking around eggshells. He argues through his music that every person needs a clear moral code, one built off of human empathy and respect and that we can’t be idle witnesses that almost feel like non-witnesses as heard in the aptly titled “No Witnesses”. It’s not quite on the level of “I’m mad as hell and I’m not taking it anymore”, but it’s certainly close, even if Wagner plays along with more dulcet tones to juxtapose how sharp and hard-hitting his words are. </p>
<p>At times it can be a genuinely uncomfortable listen with how real it gets, and I think those who want more fanciful and escapist style music should look elsewhere, but to even those people, I really implore you to open your mind and give this album a shot. I’ve listened to it three times and each time I need some time to firmly sit in the experiences it bestows, but also just how lengthy it is. Some songs go on for quite some time, and while they never grow tiring, they can definitely be exhausting. Luckily, Wagner knows to front-load his set with the longer tracks which is what makes the latter half which is by virtue a more uplifting second act, feel sweeter and lighter on the soul. </p>
<p>Wagner’s voice is sometimes aiming for a little out of his vocal range, but he still gets points for aiming and it never loses his sense of passion or righteousness that is for once in a musician, rightly placed. It’s hard to get a read ultimately on what his crowd thought of his set, many times it felt like a conversation between performer and audience, and I think we need more of that today. </p>
<p>Claire Uebelacker</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/66920382021-07-19T08:47:04-04:002021-07-22T19:20:27-04:00TOO MUCH LOVE MAGAZINE review LIVE AT THE MATTRESS FACTORY<p><a contents="Click Here to visit TOO MUCH LOVE MAGAZINE to read John McCall's review" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://toomuchlovemagazine.com/little-wretches-release-live-at-the-mattress-factory/?fbclid=IwAR3aDavbrkblJvSwaiOcChyXDF0lpkzIwmADC6McpEFSFV1yrjG7Z_9nQjk" target="_blank">Click Here to visit TOO MUCH LOVE MAGAZINE to read John McCall's review</a></p>
<p>July 17, 2021 </p>
<p>Music, Reviews </p>
<p>THE LITTLE WRETCHES RELEASE NEW FULL LENGTH LIVE ALBUM </p>
<p>I think sometimes the worse mark and album can carry is that it can be too impersonal. In the country margin of things, we’re used to the “I love blondes and beer” methodology that’s become commonplace in pop culture, but it ends up not saying anything about the human experience beyond surface-level terms, but it also doesn’t tell us anything about the artist. </p>
<p>Robert Andrew Wagner of Little Wretches, and his latest release, Live at the Mattress Factory, is one of the most personal glimpses you can into an artist this year, and whether you agree or disagree with his points of view, you can’t deny the vision on display. Boasting a seemingly gargantuan 24 tracks, although half of them are intros comprised of stories by Wagner or interactions between him and his audience, this densely packed up starts off incredibly disillusioned and somewhat cynical, and over the course of its run time becomes almost a desperate plea to future generations. One of Wagner’s strengths is that he’s never overly precious about the past. </p>
<p>Whether he’s talking about his family, youth, money, anything really, he doesn’t coddle it or hold it up to some pedestal level value. He also comes across as someone who’s incredibly cynical about capitalism and the work/working-class relationship as heard in tracks like Promised Land and its follows up The Remains of Joe Magarac. Both of these songs hide behind more contemporary parables, even Promed Land starting off with reference to the Jews escaping Egypt, before translating to modern-day and looking at how, even with modern sensibilities and resources, it’s easy to feel trapped and questions how free is anyone when money seems to be the bare minimum of what can be considered “freedom”. Yeah, needless to say, if you’re looking for some “light” listening, you’ll most likely have to turn elsewhere. Wagner is charismatic and his voice is cut from the cloth of 60s philosophical types like Bob Dylan and the late Lou Reed. </p>
<p>His vocabulary is his biggest asset which is what leads me to assume why he chose such a stripped-down aesthetic for the album with only his guitar, the fantastic David Maund on Violin, and the occasional harmonica outburst as heard in the album opener. Some might grow a bit uncomfortable in the over-familiarity on display. There’s a story involving Wagner’s father that I think was intended to highlight the trivial nature men take with something as seemingly precious as the virginity of women that kind of falls painfully flat and leaves a bitter taste as it enters into the track “Preacher Girl”. </p>
<p>Luckily it’s the only noticeable blemish on an otherwise progressive and inward thinking album that wants us to challenge ourselves and notions of what makes us truly happy. There’s a reason why the album ends with a song about chasing your dreams, regardless of risk. This album was a risky venture and it won’t pay off for everyone, but for someone like me and for others, Wagner is a new sharp voice we need in a seemingly ambivalent world. </p>
<p>John McCall</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/66920362021-07-19T08:34:50-04:002021-07-19T08:34:50-04:00Cool Review in NEUFUTUR MAGAZINE<p><a contents="Click Here to read Kim Muncie's review of LIVE AT THE MATTRESS FACTORY in NeuFutur Magazine" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://neufutur.com/2021/07/little-wretches-live-at-the-mattress-factory-lp/?fbclid=IwAR20AL-ax0GtyfTvUWSngJT_6_bnKoFzL336MnOytUNZIkOJniFbN6mhNT4" target="_blank">Click Here to read Kim Muncie's review of LIVE AT THE MATTRESS FACTORY in NeuFutur Magazine</a></p>
<p>Little Wretches – Live at the Mattress Factory (LP) </p>
<p>Posted on: July 17, 2021 Posted by: Kim Muncie</p>
<p>Live at the Mattress Factory from act Little Wretches is one of the most complex and complicated listens I’ve had in a long time, and for those reasons, the album is all the better for it. It’s an album I don’t know if it’ll be for everyone. It’s almost deceptive in nature as a wolf in sheep’s clothing, covering topics from love, loss, lust, and anger, but all in deeply rich and subversive ways all wrapped in a country/folk bow. </p>
<p>Take for example the seemingly indifferent ballad “No Witnesses” which starts with a preamble (since it’s a live album, there are intros to every song) about the seemingly tragic violent end to a child who was written off as being another statistic that represents the potential crime and pain in the world. Wagner, the lead performer seemingly endorses these views about justice, before pulling the rug from underneath you and challenging you that by taking these things at face value, you’re actually a part of the problem. It’s very aggressive in many ways despite how seemingly laid back and deeply intelligent and multi-faceted that Wagner comes across. </p>
<p>Sonically, it’s pretty straightforward. A combination of guitar, violin, and harmonica contribute to its “gee-whiz” apple pie aesthetic, which is what makes it hit so much harder when he dishes out uncomfortable ruminations on the end of nostalgia and rose-tinted glasses with the track “Cherry Tree”. Because of how emotionally and musically dense this album is, even for a live performance, you can kind of hear Wagner lose steam by the end of it. He never phones it in, and the passion is still there and very rich, but you can feel that even he feels the weight of his own powerful words. </p>
<p>Speaking of words, this album is stacked with clever wordplay and observation, many of them having dual meanings. It’s what’s almost shocking about the three most relatively straightforward songs of the bunch; “Father’s Day” which sees Wagner look on past almost “Leave it to Beaver” style antics of his father, “Preacher Girl” which sees Wagner inhabit the body of his younger self lusting after the proverbial forbidden fruit stuck behind a wall of religion, and closer “May you Never be the Child of a Realist”, which as the title implies covers the limitations placed on many youths by their parents to take up more safe and “traditional” paths. </p>
<p>For an album like this with references to philosophy and religion, you’d think it would have the power to come across as pretentious or impenetrable, but more realistically, it feels like that one friend at the coffee shop you know, who reads Sartre for fun, but he also like Marvel movies. Affable and ponderous, but never naval gazing and well-rounded. Some points of view I can see some take umbrage with, and it’s a personal performance that doesn’t feel like Wagner is yelling his opinions at you, but he’s very outspoken in what he believes is right. If you want a musical experience that’s ear protein for the soul, this is it.</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/66920352021-07-19T08:20:41-04:002021-07-19T08:27:39-04:00MADLUH / QSJ RADIO<p><a contents="Click Here to Listen/View the Podcast on SPOTIFY" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://qsjradio.libsyn.com/spotify" target="_blank">Click Here to Listen/View the Podcast on SPOTIFY</a></p>
<p><a contents="Click Here to Listen/View the Podcast at YouTube" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://youtu.be/DuoX37ymq68" target="_blank">Click Here to Listen/View the Podcast at YouTube</a></p>
<p>David, the host, had really done his homework, listening to our music and reading up on our history. He was encouraging and enthusiastic. I try not to say the same things over and over again when I appear on these shows. David made it easy for me by prefacing and setting up some of the anecdotes he thought his audience might enjoy. It was weird sitting there and listening to my own performances. Hopefully, a few people were introduced to our music.</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/66779712021-07-04T07:00:00-04:002021-07-04T07:00:12-04:00HAPPY INDEPENDENCE DAY, AMERICA!<p><a contents="Click here to view and listen to the video for WHO IS AMERICA (In America, They Call It Fear)" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://youtu.be/7rxGYr1XD60" target="_blank">Click here to view and listen to the video for WHO IS AMERICA (In America, They Call It Fear)</a></p>
<p>The Fourth of July!</p>
<p>Fireworks, hot dogs, hamburgers, swimming pools, sun screen, baseball, frisbee, lawn darts, music blasting....</p>
<p>Try blasting some WHO IS AMERICA by The Little Wretches. </p>
<p>The song was first performed as "Ashes to Dust" by No Shelter. A version was recorded and released on the BORN WITH A GIFT album. Another version appears on BURNING LANTERN DROPPED IN STRAW, kind of the band's last gasp while Dave Losi was playing regularly with us. The UNDESIRABLES & ANARCHISTS version is my personal favorite. </p>
<p>Insist on independence. Insist on freedom. Insist on liberty and justice for all.</p>
<p>Fear nothing. Or fight through the fear. Live free or die.</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/66779692021-07-03T07:30:53-04:002021-07-03T07:30:53-04:00INDIE PULSE discovers THE LITTLE WRETCHES<p><a contents="CLICK HERE TO READ THE FULL REVIEW AT THE INDIE PULSE WEBSITE" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://indiepulsemusic.com/2021/06/25/discovering-the-little-wretches-undesirables-and-anarchists/?fbclid=IwAR0XTWfld2WciIKflvkb60HsAP0LIzLssG8PgAGnHehkBXTcmRTXVuOoEko" target="_blank">CLICK HERE TO READ THE FULL REVIEW AT THE INDIE PULSE WEBSITE</a></p>
<p><strong>Discovering The Little Wretches’ “Undesirables And Anarchists” </strong></p>
<p>Writing this kind of articles makes me happy for two reasons: I get to write about what I love, and I get to find some new, good music. </p>
<p>This time around, I listened to The Little Wretches’ album Undesirables and Anarchists that was released in 2020, and it really made me remember those old-school rock albums and rock songs that do not have any computerized or fabricated sounds. Just rock…pure rock. This Pittsburgh-based rock band is not new on the scene, but this is the first time I listened to them, and it is safe to say that this album sold me on the band. </p>
<p>The Little Wretches are a rock band with loud and melodic guitars, subtle percussion, while the bass and piano complement each other, and the vocals are astonishing; it is almost like they are saying: “We are here, and we are here to stay!” We will let them stay… Robert Wagner, leader of the band, says that they sound like “The Replacements meets The Lemonheads,” so now you know what to expect. </p>
<p>We all know that the definition of “wretched” is an unhappy person, and with songs like I Rather Would Go or Give the Knife a Twist, which are both cynical and edgy (the phrase “every broken dream gives the knife another twist” sounds like something The Amity Affliction or Nirvana would write) will make you think they write depressing music, but that is not necessarily the case. They can also produce fast-paced guitar riffs, dual-tone vocals and both killer bass lines and drumming parts. </p>
<p>Why did I say dual-tone vocals? Because Robert is not the only vocalist in the band; some of the songs have Rosa Colucci on vocals, and she is great. Almost Nightfall is one of my favorite songs on the album, mainly because of the its mellow tone and for the dual vocal work in this one; the phrase “I ain’t going home and I’m not gonna back up” keeps repeating in my mind every time, after I listen to the song. Colucci also sings the last song, Running (Was the Only Thing to Do), which is a great song to end an album like this one; a song full of groove and a really good tempo. Colucci carries the song. </p>
<p>Silence (Has Made a Liar Out of Me), All of My Friends, and Don’t You Ever Mention My Name were songs that I wanted to listen to, just because of their titles; they are eye-catching and make the listener curious. Silence (Has Made a Liar Out of Me) is the first track of the album, and it is a great opener; a song with a good rock tone with an almost poppy drum beat. It is a song that will make you want to listen to the whole album in one sitting; “All of My Friends”, is one of the last songs and what I believe, the song that represents the band the most. Also, the album title comes from this song (all of my friends are on some list of undesirables and anarchists). The musicianship in this song should be acclaimed, because it will make you smile. Don’t You Ever Mention My Name continues with the band’s rock sound, and in this song, Wagner expresses that when there is an opportunity around, you should take it no matter what; a clever message. </p>
<p>Listening to this album from start to finish was very entertaining, and it was a very good experience. If you are one of those who loves to search and experience new music, I recommend The Little Wretches 100%! </p>
<p>–Kevin Tanza</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/66779632021-07-03T07:28:06-04:002021-07-03T07:28:06-04:00THE STATIC DIVE review of ALL OF MY FRIENDS from UNDESIRABLES & ANARCHISTS<p><a contents="CLICK HERE to read the review of ALL OF MY FRIENDS at THE STATIC DIVE website" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://staticdive.com/2021/06/28/the-little-wretches-all-of-my-friends/?fbclid=IwAR1L4EFx8LPl2RhM6CbUk4qbJwuOLiHAEq0uXmpADpHlMJtJ1EflohdocSE" target="_blank">CLICK HERE to read the review of ALL OF MY FRIENDS at THE STATIC DIVE website</a></p>
<p>The following is from THE STATIC DIVE website:</p>
<p>The Little Wretches – All Of My Friends </p>
<p>by Bob Smith <br>June 28, 2021 </p>
<p>The Little Wretches </p>
<p>Little Wretches is the creative vehicle for veteran singer/songwriter Robert Wagner and all of his friends. Throughout the 80’s and 90’s the band was a standard bearer of the Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania independent music scene. Defined by Wagner’s biting wit, social commentary and keen ear for a hook, the band survived multiple line-up changes and made an enduring impression on fans and musicians alike. </p>
<p>A self-fashioned Folk/Punk crusader, Robert Wagner writes songs to give voice to those that do not have one and to shine a light on the hypocrisy he sees around him. Woody Guthrie famously etched “This machine kills fascists,” on his guitar in the 1940s. That same humanist/populist mentality fuels Wagner’s creative drive. He sees a world full of people numbed by alcohol, drugs and violence, and he wants to wake them up. His music is his mission, and it is deadly serious. </p>
<p>"God wanted me to grow up to defend the weak and vanquish the evil- doers by writing songs and telling stories. And if I’m wrong, I’ve wasted my life." --Robert Wagner </p>
<p>“All of My Friends” is the most recent single from The Little Wretches album “Undesirables & Anarchists.” The track is a rollicking, jangly guitar anthem for any and all hippies, weirdos and artists who call Robert Wagner their friend. With the Alt-Rock bounce and Pop hooks of the legendary Paul Westerberg and a sound that lands somewhere between Robyn Hitchcock and Hoodoo Gurus, the singer delivers a fun, often tongue-in-cheek roll call of his associates. Throughout the song he uses a series of clever and often hilarious metaphors to describe a roster of colorful characters and bohemian rabble who, “never approach the foot of the throne.” </p>
<p>Check out “All of My Friends” below. You can also hear the track on the Deep Indie Dive playlist. Robert Wagner continues to perform at coffeehouses and small clubs. Follow the links below the song to connect and stay in the loop on all past, current and future projects from The Little Wretches. </p>
<p>Connect with Little Wretches: </p>
<p>Facebook </p>
<p>LittleWretches.com </p>
<p>Spotify</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/66779622021-07-03T07:24:47-04:002022-01-08T02:38:55-05:00Press Release for LIVE AT THE MATTRESS FACTORY; Songs from the Land of Pit Bulls & Poker Machines<p><a contents="click here to view the press-release at the MTS Management site" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://www.mtsmanagementgroup.com/2021/07/frontman-for-itunes-chart-topping-little-wretches-releases-live-acoustic-set-and-new-lyric-video/?fbclid=IwAR0wCTrON_VEYUZGj_A7RYr3DnvOACu8Ruv3e2rT2cxdVI_bxV6QRwnazQo" target="_blank">click here to view the press-release at the MTS Management site</a></p>
<p>Frontman For iTunes Chart-Topping Little Wretches Releases Live Acoustic Set And New Lyric Video </p>
<p>“Live At The Mattress Factory – Songs From The Land Of Pit Bulls & Poker Machines” is out now. It follows their 2020 album, “Undesirables and Anarchists. </p>
<p>“I really want listeners to be drawn to the detailed lyrics (about) the lives of people in post-industrial river towns, turning the folklore of Joe Magarac on its head, to portray REAL life…””— Robert Wagner of Little Wretches </p>
<p>Following the international success of their 2020 album release, “Undesirables and Anarchists,” The Little Wretches’frontman Robert Wagner will release a live, acoustic album. ‘LIVE AT THE MATTRESS FACTORY – SONGS FROM THE LAND OF PIT BULLS & POKER MACHINES is set to be released this July, with three previously unreleased bonus tracks. The original, acoustic set was recorded amongst an intimate gathering of friends and fans, as a way to showcase what Wagner’s solo shows are all about—audience interaction and connection. </p>
<p>“I really want listeners to be drawn to the detailed lyrics and the themes of the songs,” says Wagner. “How they evoke the lives of people in post-industrial river towns, turning the folklore of Joe Magarac on its head, to portray REAL life in a working-class ghetto, honoring the faithful resilience of people tough enough to survive in such locales.” </p>
<p>For the recording, Robert was joined by Dave Maund, an extremely skilled and dexterous cellist, who had played with the Little Wretches in the past. The Little Wretches have also just released the official lyric video for “Who Is America” from their “Undesirables & Anarchists” album.<br><a contents="CLICK HERE TO VIEW and LISTEN TO THE VIDEO ON YOUTUBE" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7rxGYr1XD60" target="_blank">CLICK HERE TO VIEW and LISTEN TO THE VIDEO ON YOUTUBE</a></p>
<p> <br>ABOUT ROBERT WAGNER/LITTLE WRETCHES: The Little Wretches earned their stripes during the indie heyday of the 80s and 90s in Pittsburgh. In 2020, frontman Robert Wagner issued two new albums, including “Undesirables And Anarchists,” which featured a #1 international iTunes chart hit and received airplay on more than 100 AM/FM stations across North America. Wagner continues to perform at coffeehouses and small clubs. A Master’s Degree holder, Wagner also counsels abused, neglected, traumatized and court-adjudicated youth. He is the co-founder of The Calliope Acoustic Open Stage, an event that has lasted 15+ years. Wagner is also a long-term cancer survivor.</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/66779612021-07-03T07:19:08-04:002021-07-03T07:19:08-04:00LIVE AT THE MATTRESS FACTORY; Songs from the Land of Pit Bulls & Poker Machines.<p>It's out. Not only is it out, but the day it was released, the acoustic performance of ALL OF MY FRIENDS reached #1 on the Folk Rock Chart and #21 on the overall singles chart on iTunes in South Africa.</p>
<p>What's that mean? Nothing, I suppose, except that now I can say I've had two songs reach #1 on the iTunes Folk Rock Chart in South Africa. </p>
<p>Mark Pinto asked about the title, pointing out that we'd previously released something called "songs from the land of unimarts, pit bulls + karaoke machines." Here's what happened: That title would not appear alongside the rest of The Little Wretches' catalogue when searched for in iTunes. It COULD be found with a couple of additional clicks, but upon closer inspection, iTunes had placed the title under the category of KARAOKE. It was a CONCERT album, NOT a karaoke album. I tried for over a year to have the issue addressed and the problem corrected but to no avail. So I had the album pulled, revised, remastered, and re-issued under the new title.</p>
<p>I deleted the cover-versions of The Beatles' GOOD MORNING GOOD MORNING and Ewan MacColl's BALLAD OF A CARPENTER and my original SOMETHING HAPPENED. That brought the length of the concert down to a manageable length. (The original concert had been two-hours and also included Bowie's 1984!) I added live-performances of BE SOMEBODY, THE TASTE OF DIRT, and (MAY YOU NEVER BE THE) CHILD OF A REALIST. These are among my most-requested songs at live shows, and I really wanted to get them out.</p>
<p>I NEED this album to be available because it represents precisely what I do live. I almost always perform solo, but almost all of my recordings feature the full-band. Venues and bookers demand something that represents the show I want them to book. Well, here it is. This is me. This is what I do. I'm Popeye. I wish I looked sang and played like a young Glen Campbell, but I YAM WHAT I YAM. I write these songs, play them and tell some of the stories about the world that induced them.</p>
<p>I hope it builds and expands upon what we accomplished with UNDESIRABLES & ANARCHISTS. And we're hard at work on RED BEETS & HORSERADISH, so our follow up might be out by the holidays. </p>
<p>Lemme know what you think. You know how to reach me.</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/66693852021-06-24T16:07:31-04:002021-06-29T12:59:34-04:00THE INDIE SOURCE reviews UNDESIRABLES & ANARCHISTS<p><a contents="CLICK HERE to go to THE INDIE SOURCE to read the review of The Little Wretches' UNDESIRABLES & ANARCHISTS" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://www.theindiesource.com/c/dc2cbf3f-9ee9-48db-af99-3e65b2d12796/?fbclid=IwAR2zGTSBt3V3-EWXfaqif-_xsOAn7KBh3EpNwcF6kGr2FbheZcU5CbTKSzk" target="_blank">CLICK HERE to go to THE INDIE SOURCE to read the review of The Little Wretches' UNDESIRABLES & ANARCHISTS</a></p>
<p><strong>Little Wretches "Undesirables & Anarchists" </strong></p>
<p>With their latest album, Pittsburgh rockers The Little Wretches aren’t exactly being coy about who they are and what they’re all about. The album, Undesirables and Anarchists, is all about punk rock energy. Musically however, it’s an interesting blend of rock & roll, rockabilly and some punk, which makes for a very energetic album. </p>
<p>The Little Wretches are an interesting band, mainly thanks to their nature as a revolving door band. Lead singer and songwriter/composer Robert Wagner is joined this time by Rosa Colucci (vocals), Mike Madden (drums), John Carson (bass guitar) and HK Hilner (piano) for Undesirables and Anarchists. Together, they do an incredible job putting together a cohesive and quality album. </p>
<p>Undesirables and Anarchists manages to maintain its energy for the entire album, only making a brief stop on track nine, "Some Day." Outside of that, it’s a non-stop romp of rock and punk sensibilities that does not let up even for a brief moment. "Who Is America" is a highlight of the album, with Wagner’s vocal delivery mirroring that of a rock star on a stage addressing a crowd. It’s all very good stuff. </p>
<p>Another big highlight is the album closer, "Running (Was The Only Thing To Do)." Rosa Colucci takes over the vocals on the track, and she performs it beautifully, showcasing excellent control and experience. It paints a very vivid image of a person who needs help and wants to escape from their situation very well, down to even the most cold and grisly details. This all makes for a really satisfying and intriguing listen. </p>
<p>As of this writing, the The Little Wretches have ten albums that are currently available in their online discography, including Undesirables and Anarchists which is tenth on the list. The track "Poison" off of the album is already a pretty big hit with plenty of listens on Spotify, and it’s well deserved. There’s a lot here that is very much worth listening to. </p>
<p>By all accounts, Undesirables and Anarchists is an album that fires on all cylinders and exceeds all its expectations. Every song on the album is well thought out, expertly crafted and performed excellently by the band who do no let up even once during the album’s play time. The Little Wretches have a gem of an album here, one that should be listened to and enjoyed by many people. It gets a hearty recommendation, and we can’t wait for what’s next. </p>
<p>--Jason Airy</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/66691742021-06-24T13:04:01-04:002021-06-24T13:04:01-04:00CARRY ON HARRY<p><a contents="CLICK HERE to visit the CARRY ON HARRY website to read the interview with Robert Andrew Wagner of The Little Wretches" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://www.carryonharry.com/robert-andrew-wagner-new-song-release/?fbclid=IwAR1IJ3vsg1l3iN1QYw-1oeyXpnX-NciNqKav-E5vrviUi0ObqheqqI5kbQI" target="_blank">CLICK HERE to visit the CARRY ON HARRY website to read the interview with Robert Andrew Wagner of The Little Wretches</a></p>
<p><strong>Studio Carry On Harry : New Song Release UNDESIRABLES & ANARCHISTS is out now and on this occasion we have Teacher Writer Performer Robert Andrew Wagner , to share with his new song making experiences and chapters from his life to seek wisdom from. </strong></p>
<p><em>“A song on UNDESIRABLES & ANARCHISTS that I wish more people would notice is called ALMOST NIGHTFALL”</em> – Robert Andrew Wagner </p>
<p><strong>In Conversation with Robert Andrew Wagner </strong></p>
<p><strong>Tell us about yourself ? </strong></p>
<p>I’m a teacher, writer and performer. I teach through stories and tell stories through songs, and I prefer to deliver the songs LIVE, though more people will hear my recordings than will hear me in-person. My catalogue, my body of work, so to speak, is under the banner of THE LITTLE WRETCHES. Why THE LITTLE WRETCHES? “Blessed are the meek…” Jean Valjean and Javert in the sewers of Paris. Oliver Twist among the pickpockets of London. “Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound, that saved a wretch like me…” Get it? As Patti Smith sings, “Outside of society, if you’re looking, that’s where you’ll find me.” </p>
<p><strong>How long you been in performing arts ? </strong></p>
<p>I got a guitar for my ninth birthday, and my cousin and I performed for the family that same night. I didn’t even know how to make a chord. I just banged on the strings, and if I remember correctly, my cousin pounded on a giant can of potato chips. My first “professional” show was in 1979 at a punk rock club in Pittsburgh called PHASE III. Some of the songs I played that night continue to be part of my sets today. This is 2021. How many years is that? </p>
<p><strong>What was most attractive part for you to be in this industry ? </strong></p>
<p>I’m not part of an industry. I understand what you’re asking, though. I am competing within and against an industry. This is a feel-good culture, and the industry revolves around providing people with diversion, distraction and mood-regulation. Go to a convenience store to grab a cup of coffee for the road, music is playing. Run to the grocery store, music is playing. Music to perk you up. Music to calm you down. Music for romance. Music for dancing. Music for working out. And then there’s me. I’m here to celebrate the lives of my people, to document their stories, to celebrate their beauty, their resolve, their resilience. The most attractive part of the industry is that it provides me a medium, a platform for reaching people I might not otherwise be able to reach. I could be a preacher in a pulpit, but who wants to preach to the converted? I could be a professor in a lecture hall, but that’s deadly. I’m here to get in the trenches, what Jack Kerouac called “the pit and prune juice of poor beat life on the God-awful streets of man.” </p>
<p><strong>Share some experiences ( good or bad ) any that made you grow in life or profession ? </strong></p>
<p>My experiences are well-documented in my songs, I’d like to think, and as much as I’m flattered to be asked about my experiences, my reason for answering these questions is to direct you to my songs. A song on UNDESIRABLES & ANARCHISTS that I wish more people would notice is called ALMOST NIGHTFALL. It’s about wandering the streets all night because there is too much fighting at home. Eventually, they’ll fight themselves out, fall asleep, and it will be safe to come indoors. Till then, I’m out here on the rat’s maze of roads. The future is made by those with no stake in the present. If you are comfortable, if all your needs are being met, why would you ever change or try something new? For some of us, the way things are is unbearable. The world you feel comfortable in has chewed us up and spat us out. We have to find a way. We refuse to quit. In the movie RUNAWAY TRAIN, the character played by Jon Voight, John Manheim, says, “Whatever doesn’t kill me makes me stronger.” I figure if God hasn’t taken me, He still has a plan for me. I’m not sure I answered your question. I hope I wasn’t too far off-base. </p>
<p><strong>Who inspired you ? How do you work on creating your own signature style ? </strong></p>
<p>A lot of my lyrics are pulled from conversations I’ve overheard in the course of ordinary life. I’m inspired by playwrights like August Wilson and Sam Shepard. I like rappers like Ice-T and poets who preceded hip hop like Gil Scott-Heron. I like lyricists like Lou Reed, Pete Townshend, Ray Davies, Michelle Shocked, and Patti Smith. Phil Ochs. Bob Dylan. Bruce Springsteen. John Mellencamp. Bob Seger. Paul Simon. I could go on and on. As for having my own signature style, I’m like Popeye the Sailor Man. I am what I am. I’m not good enough to imitate other people. I can’t sing well enough to sound like anybody but myself. I can’t play guitar well enough to sound like anybody but myself. And I write from experience and imagination. Who else has my experience? </p>
<p><strong>What do you want to convey through your music? </strong></p>
<p>There was a pastor, Rev. John Stanko, at a church I used to attend back in Pittsburgh who did a series of seminars on finding your purpose. He suggested we have ‘MISSION STATEMENTS.” A lot of businesses have mission statements, vision statements, and a statement of their target audience. My mission statement comes from Lou Reed, “I’ll be your mirror, reflect what you are, in case you don’t know.” My vision statement is from Ian Hunter, “I want to leave you in someone else’s dreams.” And my target-audience is found in Isaiah the Prophet, “The Lord God hath given me the tongue of the learned that I may be able to speak a word in season to him who is weary.” If you are weary, if you’ve forgotten how beautiful you really are, if you feel alone and forgotten, I’m got something for you. Look up the music of The Little Wretches. </p>
<p><strong>Story behind making of your new track / Album? </strong></p>
<p>When I was in college, before I had a band, I used to send poems to little magazines. Some were published, among them something called OLD LILLIAN’S STORY. It was a transcription of a monologue by an old woman who lived next door. Her apartment had no heat. She had no food. She’d visit us just so she could be out of the cold and maybe get a couple slices of bread. I’ve set the poem to music, and we’re recording it for the next album. It’s more like an in-character reading atop a bed of music. It might not be the kind of song you put on repeat and dance to while you’re cleaning your house, but I guarantee you’ll be moved when you hear it. </p>
<p><strong>Any interesting trivia about making of song ? </strong></p>
<p>The song that is the thematic cornerstone of The Little Wretches is called BORN WITH A GIFT. I wrote it about the loss of a former bandmate, John Creighton. He was the most powerfully talented and personally humble person I’ve known. He was an organic firebrand when he performed, nothing stagey or showy. Listening to John was like watching a wild animal in its natural habitat. Captivating. John wrote a song called LAWRENCEVILLE. The instrumental bridge to BORN WITH A GIFT is an homage to the musical chorus of LAWRENCEVILLE. Now, that might be rather uninteresting to most people. LAWRENCEVILLE has never been released. I think I’ll be recording it in the future, though. But if you get a chance to hear BORN WITH A GIFT, I hope the spirit of John Creighton resonates with you. </p>
<p><strong>People who you would like to thank ? </strong></p>
<p>Without intending to sound maudlin, I owe a lot to people who aren’t around anymore, friends and musicians like my brother, Charles John Wagner, former bandmates like John Creighton, Dale Nelson, Ed Heidel, David L. Mitchell, Jon Paul Leone, Don Polito, and friends like David Allen Flynn and Brian Longo. There are people who’ve done more for me than I’ve done for myself. Gregg Bielski, Chuck Parish, and Mark Pinto documented many of our early shows. had no idea how precious those videos and recordings would be to me now. Keith and Mark Golebie. Mike and Tammy Flynn. Dan Serafini. Dave Losi. Ellen and Jon Hildebrand. Darrell Jackson. Dan and Gerry Wasson. George Kazalas. Steve Sciulli. Tony Norman. Rosa Colucci. Rosa’s dad, Cesare Colucci. H.K. Hilner. John Carson. Mike Madden. Gregg Vizza. These are just names to you. There is a story behind each of those names. </p>
<p><strong>People who you would like to work with and people you idolize to be like professionally ? </strong></p>
<p>I don’t really idolize anybody. I wish I could have known Phil Ochs. I wish I could have guitarists like Ivan Julian, Richard Lloyd, Matt Langone or Joey Pinter play on my songs. Ivan’s name you might recognize from RICHARD HELL AND THE VOIDOIDS. Richard Lloyd you might recognize from TELEVISION. Matt Langone and Joey Pinter played for The Waldos, the band Walter Lure led after the demise of JOHNNY THUNDERS AND THE HEARTBREAKERS. The Heartbreakers might be the best rock’n’roll band to have ever stepped on a stage, and I got to hear Matt Langone and Joey Pinter at some memorial shows for Johnny Thunders. Those guys can play guitar. </p>
<p><strong>Where do you see your music 3 years from now ? </strong></p>
<p>In three years, I want to be in the conversation when people talk about great American songwriters. Steve Earle? Ray Wylie Hubbard? I want people to be talking about THE LITTLE WRETCHES. I have about three albums’ worth of songs waiting to be recorded. I also have a lot of in-progress fragments waiting to be developed into songs. As Johnny Cash sang, “The good Lord willing and the creeks don’t rise,” I ain’t going away. </p>
<p><strong>How would you like to stretch your boundaries of gener in future projects ? </strong></p>
<p>I’m like the Three Little Pigs. If I have straw, I build a house with straw. Sticks? I build a stick house. Bricks? Okay, then, I’ll build a house of bricks. So much of what I do depends on the tools and resources at my disposal. I’d love to be doing more expansive, poetic, impressionistic stuff, but I’m also drawn to the very simple and traditional folksong forms. I’m not necessarily interested in stretching the boundaries of the genre. I’m interested in challenging myself and my audiences, feeling the mood of the moment and answering the call of the spirit. Mostly, I want to wake up in the morning thinking about where I’m playing tonight. </p>
<p><strong>Message for Fans and listeners </strong></p>
<p>I was once asked by a potential manager if I wanted to be a rock star. I must have answered incorrectly. I think I was supposed to say that I would do whatever it takes to be famous. But that’s not what I said. I said I wish I had an audience of a couple hundred people in every major city in the world, that I could go from town to town from night to night and do my thing. I want people leaving my shows with the feeling that they just spent a couple of hours with a beloved friend. I am very accessible. Wherever you are, I want to play for you. Reach out to me. I want to play a show in your theater, club, bookstore, living room, and so on.</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/66691552021-06-24T12:58:49-04:002021-06-24T12:58:49-04:00BIG INTERVIEW at CRASH BANG WALLOP ZINE<p><a contents="CLICK HERE to read the full interview at CRASH BANG WALLOP ZINE" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://cbwzine.com/robert-wagner-of-little-wretches-opens-up-about-all-of-his-friends-and-more/?fbclid=IwAR1vjdkq7cP2Thj66hOAwz8EwaDuktopc8qWylmnu_gWqT0o25CMGXJmzR0" target="_blank">CLICK HERE to read the full interview at CRASH BANG WALLOP ZINE</a></p>
<p><strong>ROBERT WAGNER OF LITTLE WRETCHES OPENS UP ABOUT ALL OF HIS FRIENDS AND MORE!</strong></p>
<p>One thing you can never say about Robert Wagner of The Little Wretches, is that he’s at a loss for words. The verbose and outspoken frontman for the Pittsburgh-based indie darlings of the 80s/90s has had alot to say lately. With his music finding a larger audience than ever, thanks to international radio airplay and countless features, the singer-songwriter and guitarist finds himself unimpressed by fame and fortune. Instead, he opts for the quiet moments, alone, when he feels what God has intended for him. Read about this, the upcoming music releases he has planned and about some “skeletons in the closet” in this exclusive one and one… </p>
<p><strong>CBW: Congratulations on the release of your latest single, “All Of My Friends.” What inspired you to write and record that particular song?</strong> </p>
<p>Robert Wagner: What inspired me to write ALL OF MY FRIENDS? Or are you asking about the stories behind it. There’s a story behind just about every line or couplet in that song. If I really broke that down for you, I don’t know if you could handle it. Are you ready for that tidal wave? </p>
<p>For me, a song usually begins with a lyric line or a guitar phrase, a series of chords, or maybe a bass-line. For ALL OF MY FRIENDS, I just kind of sat down, picked up my guitar, and those chords played themselves while I sang, “All of my friends turned into fanatics.” </p>
<p>The experiences that made me who I am have separated me from the so-called normal world. And, as they say, “birds of a feather flock together.” When you’re outside of society, you tend to connect with others who are outside of society. </p>
<p>I found a photo from my third birthday party. Pictured in that photo are a morphine addict and three lesbians along with me and my cousins standing around my birthday cake. </p>
<p>I had a lot of older cousins. I heard one of them say that my aunt and my grandmother had skeletons in their closet. They lived in the same house, by the way. </p>
<p>Skeletons in their closet? I wanna see those skeletons! So the next time I was at my grandmother’s house, I demanded to see the skeletons. They let me rummage through their closets, but I discovered nothing but old coats and shoes. No skeletons. And believe me, I was thorough. If there was a skeleton in there, I would have found it. </p>
<p>Of course, I eventually came to understand that “skeletons in the closet” is a figure of speech, and my cousins were referring to the fact that my aunt was a lesbian. </p>
<p>I grew up around a lot of secrets. When people keep secrets, you fill the void with stories invented in your imagination. </p>
<p>ALL OF MY FRIENDS alludes to but does not describe in detail the people around me who’ve found a way to blend in when they, in fact, are absolute outsiders. They’ve turned their crutches into weapons. They’ve turned their vulnerabilities into strengths. </p>
<p>Like I say in the song, “It’s not even safe to admit that you’re one of my friends.” </p>
<p>Think I’m joking? Stay tuned. The good Lord willing, all of those stories will be told. </p>
<p><strong>Are you a self-taught guitarist, or did you take lessons? If you took lessons, tell us about your first guitar teacher. If not, how did you go about learning to play? </strong></p>
<p>My ninth birthday present was a guitar and a guitar-lesson. </p>
<p>I used to take tumbling lessons on Saturday mornings. A forty-five minute lesson for a dollar. Me and some other kids from my neighborhood went to a show put on by a local dance studio, and the finale was a teenager somersaulting over something like sixteen kneeling girls. I could somersault over six kneeling girls. I never worked my way into the teens. But on my ninth birthday, my mom said, “After your lesson this morning, make sure you wash your hands, then go across the street to Victor Lawrence Music and tell them your name.” </p>
<p>I got off the mat, washed my hands, followed my mom’s instructions, and a guy named Walt Cooper took a guitar off the display, took me back into a little room, and gave me my first guitar-lesson. </p>
<p>My teachers were Walt Cooper, Dan Kent and Joe Colosimo. Joe was the guy who made the most impact. The other guys were brilliant players, but Joe was a working musician. He was the guy you called if you had a gig and needed somebody to sit in because your regular guy had to cancel. </p>
<p>Joe Colosimo taught me a workman like approach. Keep your pinky finger free when you make a chord so you can add notes and play a melody while holding the chord. He tuned a banjo like a guitar and used to blow people away with his banjo playing. </p>
<p>The sad thing is that when I saw Joe Colosimo on a trolley when I was in college, I assumed he didn’t remember me and didn’t greet him. Now, looking back, I know that he recognized me and was an elderly guy whose best days had passed him. Had I said hello to Joe, it would have meant a lot to him. Now, I know better, but I can’t go back in time and change my behavior. Joe was a great teacher, and when I could have given something back, I failed. </p>
<p>I’ll try to do better in the future. </p>
<p><strong>Were you involved with music as a teenager? Did you play in any bands back then? How did you get started? </strong></p>
<p>See, I hated everybody and everything. The cool kids who played in bands? I was jealous of them, but I wasn’t in their league. </p>
<p>A buddy of mine hooked me up with a dude who was in a band. I’d sawed off a piece of metal from a fence and was using it as a slide. I was listening to a lot of Mick Taylor of The Rolling Stones. I’d seen some videos of Mick Taylor playing slide with The Stones,and I used to play along with my favorite records, me playing slide guitar with a hunk of metal. </p>
<p>The dude kind of scoffed at me. He had a huge amp. I had a ten-watt amp. He said his amp probably wouldn’t be big enough to gig with. He treated me like an upstart, which is what I was. </p>
<p>But I’ll promise you this: I’m still playing, and he’s not. </p>
<p>I came away from that experience believing that I’d have to be a writer. I wasn’t cut out to be a real musician, but I could write as well as anybody who walks the earth. </p>
<p>When I went to college, that itself being a miraculous thing, my roommate was an incredible musician, the most powerful musician I’ve ever met. He died young. He and I started a band called NO SHELTER. We released a song called BROOKS ROBINSON’S CAMP. If there’s a more powerful song from the punk-era, show me. </p>
<p>Punk rock gave me a license to get on stage. </p>
<p>How would you describe your brand of music to someone who has never heard of Little Wretches? </p>
<p>A reviewer said we play “the kind of music to win a jaded-girl’s heart.” You jaded? Turn to The Little Wretches. </p>
<p>Look, we’re not about hair styles and clothes. We have “a thing,” a thing you can get into. I can only hope you hear enough till you connect, because once you connect, you’ll find yourself buying or downloading more and more from our catalogue. </p>
<p>Like John Lennon? Like Neil Young? Like Lou Reed? Like Michelle Shocked? The Kinks? </p>
<p>I don’t know. I call us, “Musical portraits and cinematography of the soul.” But that sounds kind of pompous. </p>
<p><strong>How would you describe a Little Wretches fan? </strong></p>
<p>You’re going to make me cry. You’ve got me reminiscing about fans of The Little Wretches who no longer walk this earth. Our fans run the gamut from crack-addicts to former crack-addicts to VP’s of major companies to teachers of at-risk teens to dudes who work in warehouses to welfare-mothers to painters and writers and other musicians. </p>
<p>My target-audience is described in the writings of the prophet Isaiah, “The lord God hath given me the tongue of the learned that I may be able to speak a word in season to him that is weary.” </p>
<p>You weary? You might find The Little Wretches a source of renewed strength. </p>
<p><strong>What gives you the most joy when you are on stage? </strong></p>
<p>I experience joy when a person who is not in the venue specifically to hear me—a person who is in the middle of a conversation or just returning to their table after going to the bar to buy a drink—and that person looks up, forgets about whatever they were thinking about or doing and tunes in to my song. </p>
<p>It’s happened a thousand times. </p>
<p>“Who is this guy and why should I give a crap about him? What did he just say? What? Hey, wait, this guy is really good.” </p>
<p>Turning haters into lovers. That’s what it’s all about. </p>
<p><strong>Tell us about your best performance you’ve ever had? How about the worst? </strong></p>
<p>See, there is no way you can possibly appreciate this. But I went to a music conference, and one of the hosts of a workshop proposed that genius emerges from community. He talked about the Impressionists, the Dadaists, the Surrealists, the Cubists, how the synergy of their work allowed individuals in their respective communities to win acclaim and attention. After the first artist breaks through to wider acclaim and public recognition, other artists are discovered and break through, too. </p>
<p>So I came back from this conference thinking that I had to get something started in my hometown, something to cultivate community. </p>
<p>I convinced a long-standing songwriters’ circle to move from a private venue in the basement of a library to a public venue in a busy bar. Right? My argument was that their work was too good and too valuable to be kept in private. </p>
<p>But in this public venue, there was a lot of distraction, background noise, a lot of people who had absolutely no interest in the music. In fact, a lot of people might have preferred that NO live music be present because our music was a distraction from their personal conversations. </p>
<p>Under such difficult circumstances, I couldn’t expect these songwriters to compete with all the background noise, so I opened the shows. In “show biz,” the opener is like a sacrificial lamb. You’re there to “warm up,” to get the audience ready for the featured performers. Ain’t nobody listening to you, fool. </p>
<p>So anyhow, I stepped up and did my little three or four song set. Of course, I’m used to this challenge. I’m not going to shrink. I step up and do my thing, and when I step off the stage, Sam Flesher (may he rest in peace), who was like the dean of songwriters at the time in this region, he shakes my hand and says, “May you always be as strong as you are at this moment.” </p>
<p>You probably don’t get it, do you? But in Sam’s eyes, and I admired Sam Flesher tremendously, I had just exhibited a level of strength most people will never know. If you don’t get it, I can’t explain it. I guess that’s why I write songs instead of essays. </p>
<p>As for my worst performance, I’ve had a few. There have been times when I held back, when instead of hitting people with the stuff that makes me unique, I performed safe material, middle of the road material, stuff that would blend right into the background. I mean, if that’s what you’re going to do, why bother? </p>
<p>You’ve got your moment. Seize it. Afraid of offending people? Screw them! Maybe they need to be offended. </p>
<p>Go hard. Don’t back down. </p>
<p><strong>What is the highlight of your music career, so far? </strong></p>
<p>See, this whole business revolves around fame and numbers. How many sales? How many dollars? </p>
<p>Fame doesn’t impress me. Fame is an illusion. Imagine being remembered for something that you never really intended. Think of that song by Eric Burdon and The Animals, “DON’T LET ME BE MISUNDERSTOOD.” </p>
<p>I have a song that’s going to be on the album we’re currently recording. The song is called “It’s All Between Me and God.” I’m sorry, but the highlights of my music career are a whole lot of moments between me and God, moments when I understood that I was exactly where I was supposed to be, doing exactly what I was meant to do. </p>
<p>These moments, they can be a distraction. I can get choked up with emotion. I’ll have to concentrate to simply get my voice to work. </p>
<p>On one of the songs we’re working on, the bass player commented that he didn’t like the way I sang a particular line. He thought I should give it a more powerful delivery. The truth is, I’d given it a dispassionate delivery because if I let my emotions get involved, I’d have been unable to sing at all. But I instantly understood what he meant, so I did another take of the song. </p>
<p>Of course, the song is still unfinished, but when I listen to the rough mix, I can hear my voice cracking. I was on the verge of tears. </p>
<p>The song at the cornerstone of The Little Wretches’ catalogue is BORN WITH A GIFT. </p>
<p>Find BORN WITH A GIFT. Listen to BORN WITH A GIFT. There are moments when I just kind of know, again, it’s between me and God, but I just kind of know that I am honoring my gift. </p>
<p>May you have that feeling. Till then, I probably sound like I’m talking a bunch of spiritual hocus focus. But it’s not hocus focus. It’s very real. You were born with a gift. Use it. </p>
<p><strong>What does Robert Wagner like to do when he’s not making music? </strong></p>
<p>I like the outdoors. I like to hike, to explore. Here’s the bad news. Compared to extreme athletes, I’m a wimp. But compared to the average person, I’m an extremist. </p>
<p>When I go hiking with friends, I often feel like I’m on a leash. They tire so quickly. They shy away from hardship and fatigue. So I spend a lot of time out on the trails alone. And that is NOT a smart thing to do. </p>
<p>Alone? What if you fall? What if you have an encounter with a wild animal? What if you lose the trail and get lost? </p>
<p>I had a high school teacher who taught us that Michelangelo was probably the last person who ever lived who possessed the entire body of knowledge known to mankind at the time. After Michelangelo, there was simply too much information for any individual to be able to process it all. </p>
<p>But I want to be like Michelangelo. I want to know. I want to learn, I want to understand. </p>
<p>When I was younger, I wanted to read at least one new book every week, see one play every week, and so on. </p>
<p>I read an interview with Allen Ginsberg where Ginsberg said he wanted to become a saint. He wanted enlightenment, holiness. I don’t know. I guess I’m a nutcase, but I, too, want enlightenment and holiness. I want to be a true Renaissance person. </p>
<p>And, of course, I have a master’s degree in Instruction and Learning. I am very interested in the free school movement, the democratic school movement, schools like The Circle School in Harrisburg, The Philly Free School, The Sudbury Valley School. </p>
<p><strong>What is up next for you in 2021? </strong></p>
<p>The lineup of the band that recorded UNDESIRABLES & ANARCHISTS is working on a collection of songs called RED BEETS & HORSERADISH. Roots. Earthy. Organic. Spicy. That’s taking longer than I’d hoped. </p>
<p>I also had a live acoustic concert re-mastered. It was originally called SONGS FROM THE LAND OF UNIMARTS, PIT BULLS + KARAOKE MACHINES.” It was recorded straight to disc at a major art gallery called The Mattress Factory. Installation art. They call it, “Art you can get into,” because you walk into a room, and the entire room is the exhibit. Anyhow, The Mattress Factory allowed me to record a concert there in a room with such perfect acoustics that we didn’t even use amplification. </p>
<p>I sang and played guitar and harmonica, and I was accompanies by a true little wretch, David Maund. Dave was a symphony-quality cellist till he had a bicycle accident and shattered his wrist. To my ear, he was still an incredible cellist, but he moved from the region. I’d lost all contact with him. </p>
<p>A week or so before I did the concert, Dave rolled into town. His cello had been stolen, but someone felt sorry for him and gave him a violin. He played the violin like a cello, upright, mounted in a belt-pouch. He plays no single-notes. Every thing he plays is a double-stop, a partial chord. </p>
<p>So he and I did this amazing concert together, and I’m in the process of preparing the concert for release through The Orchard Enterprises, a subsidiary of Sony. It’ll be everywhere, Apple, Amazon, Spotify, YouTube. everywhere. </p>
<p>Look, this concert-album is as authentic as it gets. If you don’t like it, you don’t like what I do. It is a DOCUMENT. It is ME. </p>
<p>And then when RED BEETS is finished, look out. </p>
<p>I have two goals. I want to wake up in the morning, thinking about where I’m playing tonight. And I want to be in the conversation when people talk about great American songwriters. Steve Earle? Ray Wylie Hubbard? I want in. I want people to say, “Did you ever hear The Little Wretches? That Wagner dude, he’s got something to say.” </p>
<p>So there you have it. I’ve talked a good game. Now, I have to deliver. </p>
<p><strong>Thanks Robert! We appreciate the time…</strong></p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/66691532021-06-24T12:54:32-04:002021-06-24T12:54:32-04:00From the HIGHLANDS of SCOTLAND, It's HORIZON TALK RADIO<p><a contents="CLICK HERE to listen to Andy Peacher's interview with Robert Andrew Wagner of The Little Wretches at HORIZON TALK RADIO" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://www.spreaker.com/user/hori/robertawagnerthelittlewretches?fbclid=IwAR0LXnP1oR4XzerYBE7eNIdnS9Lop0-ZiGLTBb7nB5SeAMrfygwSIjjHRR8" target="_blank">CLICK HERE to listen to Andy Peacher's interview with Robert Andrew Wagner of The Little Wretches at HORIZON TALK RADIO</a></p>
<p>I think this was a good one. Being a dude in the States, I love the musicality of voices from other parts of the world. Even if you're sick of me and my blah blah blah, you've got to love listening to Andy Peacher.</p>
<p>Andy mentions a big festival he's putting together. I'd love to be part of that! Wouldn't you?</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/66691512021-06-24T12:48:19-04:002021-06-24T12:48:19-04:00MY INDEPENDENCE REPORT with Kevin McDonald<p><a contents="CLICK HERE to watch/listen to the interview conducted by Kevin McDonald for MY INDEPENDENCE REPORT" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N_G7HTNiEK0" target="_blank">CLICK HERE to watch/listen to the interview conducted by Kevin McDonald for MY INDEPENDENCE REPORT</a></p>
<p>A new podcaster trying to reach out and build an audience. </p>
<p>I just wing these interviews, but the interviewers tend to ask the same questions all the time. I try NOT to give the same answers every time. I don't want it to become rote or shtick. </p>
<p>Did I say anything interesting on this one? I hope so.</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/66691132021-06-24T12:41:00-04:002021-06-24T12:41:00-04:00Review by Tucker Cash in CRASH BANG WALLOP<p><a contents="CLICK HERE TO READ THE REVIEW AT THE CRASH BANG WALLOP ZINE WEBSITE" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://cbwzine.com/album-review-little-wretches-undesirables-and-anarchists/?fbclid=IwAR1MOqG2P7s19ktZvEf-z65eh4MiEH1QSZSw5mmVhntn-hh1Bpe41nvUMbk" target="_blank">CLICK HERE TO READ THE REVIEW AT THE CRASH BANG WALLOP ZINE WEBSITE</a></p>
<p>ALBUM REVIEW: LITTLE WRETCHES “UNDESIRABLES AND ANARCHISTS”</p>
<p>Trying to come up with a genre/style to describe Undesirables and Anarchists by Little Wretches is proving <br>difficult. The Indie grunge sound draws influence from modern Emo, Punk, Pop and Folk undertones yet <br>presents itself as a fresh approach to a Contemporary Rock. Leader Robert Wagner leads this four-piece <br>band into their exploration of chaos, freedoms, and independence with this offering as he tackles political, <br>spiritual and social issues with a mad-twist to offer unique perspectives. Opening track; Silence (Has Made <br>a Liar Out of Me) captures this stand on social values as the harmonizing vocals proclaim; they will speak <br>their mind an offer any truths regardless of consequence. “The harsh words came but I held my tongue, <br>and I should have said something but I stood there dumb”. Exploring this nihilist thought pattern even <br>further; Who Is America is a counterpoint to the established model of behaviour; “Asthmatic parasites <br>squealing and choking”. The imagery of the institution which governs us is portrayed in a juxtaposition of <br>values. Pay special attention as the Little Wretches use the down-beat on the snare to simulate a militant <br>representation of the American character. </p>
<p>I love the feel of this album, as each of the twelve tracks are presented as a simple rock number with <br>hooks and melodies. Coupled with sing-along choruses and catchy harmonies, the underlying tone is contrasted by the thought-provoking lyricism and delivered prose. Multiple listens are required to fully <br>appreciate the nuances hidden between the lines. Of course, this is also an album you crank up past eleven as you are driving down the freeway as you rock out to the instrumentation and effective song structures. Just be careful of the establishment as you put the foot down and drive with the intensity of the music. When referring to the Little Wretches bio, a quote sticks out which best describes Undesirables and Anarchists; “If you sell your soul for money, don’t come crying that you got a bad deal.” </p>
<p>–Tucker Cash</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/66583712021-06-13T16:22:19-04:002021-09-13T05:03:16-04:00(MAY YOU NEVER BE THE) CHILD OF A REALIST<p><a contents="CLICK HERE TO VISIT YOUTUBE TO VIEW AND LISTEN TO THE PERFORMANCE" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://youtu.be/l9fpsh0JY9Q" target="_blank"><span style="color:#c0392b;">CLICK HERE TO VISIT YOUTUBE TO VIEW AND LISTEN TO THE PERFORMANCE</span></a></p>
<p>Audio of this performance will appear as a "bonus track" on the re-mastered reissue of LIVE AT THE MATTRESS FACTORY--SONGS FROM THE LAND OF UNIMARTS & PIT BULLS. When is the album coming out? </p>
<p><span style="color:#000000;"><span class="font_regular"><strong>(MAY YOU NEVER BE THE) CHILD OF A REALIST </strong></span></span></p>
<p><span style="color:#000000;"><span class="font_regular">Words and Music by Robert Andrew Wagner </span></span><br><span style="color:#000000;"><span class="font_regular">May you never be the child of a realist. </span></span><br><span style="color:#000000;"><span class="font_regular">May you never learn to calculate the odds. </span></span><br><span style="color:#000000;"><span class="font_regular">May you never need apologize to your mother or your father </span></span><br><span style="color:#000000;"><span class="font_regular">for honoring the gifts bestowed by God. </span></span></p>
<p><span style="color:#000000;"><span class="font_regular">May you never be a play-it-safe apprentice </span></span><br><span style="color:#000000;"><span class="font_regular">'cause they've told you since you're born, "Dreams never pay." </span></span><br><span style="color:#000000;"><span class="font_regular">May you never be the shining little namesake of a realist. </span></span><br><span style="color:#000000;"><span class="font_regular">May you never think you're better off that way. </span></span><br><span style="color:#000000;"><span class="font_regular">May you never think you're better off that way. </span></span></p>
<p><span style="color:#000000;"><span class="font_regular">May you never walk the altar with a realist </span></span><br><span style="color:#000000;"><span class="font_regular">Who decides that childish things be put away. </span></span><br><span style="color:#000000;"><span class="font_regular">A second car, a second job, a second mortgage, second thoughts— </span></span><br><span style="color:#000000;"><span class="font_regular">The bills will be the least of what you'll pay. </span></span><br><span style="color:#000000;"><span class="font_regular">May you never wake to realize you've grown up, </span></span><br><span style="color:#000000;"><span class="font_regular">slightly overworked and overweight. </span></span><br><span style="color:#000000;"><span class="font_regular">May you never slide that ring upon the finger of a realist, </span></span><br><span style="color:#000000;"><span class="font_regular">A realist who believes that dreams can wait. </span></span><br><span style="color:#000000;"><span class="font_regular">A realist who believes that dreams can wait. </span></span></p>
<p><span style="color:#000000;"><span class="font_regular">May your mirror never show to you a realist, </span></span><br><span style="color:#000000;"><span class="font_regular">Always level-headed, always sane, </span></span><br><span style="color:#000000;"><span class="font_regular">Who knows the dollar-value of a hard day's work </span></span><br><span style="color:#000000;"><span class="font_regular">And carries an umbrella if it rains. </span></span><br><span style="color:#000000;"><span class="font_regular">May you never trust the doubters who advise you, </span></span><br><span style="color:#000000;"><span class="font_regular">Who say it's wise to give yourself an out. </span></span><br><span style="color:#000000;"><span class="font_regular">May you never tell your children you're a realist </span></span><br><span style="color:#000000;"><span class="font_regular">When you're just a broken-hearted fool who sold yourself to doubt. </span></span><br><span style="color:#000000;"><span class="font_regular">You're just a broken-hearted fool who sold yourself to doubt. </span></span></p>
<p><span style="color:#000000;"><span class="font_regular">May you never feel alone and isolated. </span></span><br><span style="color:#000000;"><span class="font_regular">May you someday take a worthy lover's hand </span></span><br><span style="color:#000000;"><span class="font_regular">Who will stand with you and lift you up and share with you </span></span><br><span style="color:#000000;"><span class="font_regular">The happiness that only other dreamers understand </span></span><br><span style="color:#000000;"><span class="font_regular">That only other dreamers understand </span></span><br><span style="color:#000000;"><span class="font_regular">That only other dreamers understand </span></span></p>
<p><span style="color:#000000;"><span class="font_regular">That only other dreamers understand</span></span></p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/66441182021-05-30T10:17:15-04:002022-08-16T07:11:07-04:00SUMMER IS HERE AND THE TIME IS RIGHT<p>Most of my shows are solo acoustic shows, but almost all of my recordings involve a band. You'd be stunned at the number of times I've approached listening-rooms and cafes for gigs, only to be told that they're afraid I'd be too loud. I thought the UNIMARTS album would be my springboard to performing at acoustic clubs around the world. </p>
<p>I recorded the concert that became SONGS FROM THE LAND OF UNIMARTS, PITBULLS + KARAOKE MACHINES specifically for the purpose of having a product representative of my solo acoustic shows.</p>
<p><a contents="click here to listen to SONGS FROM THE LAND OF UNIMARTS, PITBULS + KARAOKE MACHINES at YouTube" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_mGB6Us5c6G0yiK0Sh22DkMlrq6-5wS5Fo" target="_blank">click here to listen to SONGS FROM THE LAND OF UNIMARTS, PITBULS + KARAOKE MACHINES at YouTube</a></p>
<p>I wish I could find the original recording from that evening at The Mattress Factory. I recorded it straight to disc. I've got HUNDREDS of unlabeled discs. It's gotta be somewhere in that pile! </p>
<p>That night, stringman Dave Maund and I did a very cool version of David Bowie's 1984, but when we were preparing the recording for release, the concert-length exceeded the space available on a disc, and we had to cut a song. Those closest to me said 1984 didn't really belong. Something had to be cut, and 1984 was it.</p>
<p>In retrospect, it DID belong. Very much so. I intuitively knew that America's commitment to freedom and self-sacrifice was waning. The world depicted in George Orwell's novel was right around the corner. That was then. It is no longer around the corner. It has arrived. Newspeak is here. Those who monitor channels of communication can render you an UNPERSON if you express a contrary idea. But I digress... </p>
<p>For the re-issue, I'm thinking of removing a couple of other tracks from the original UNIMARTS release and adding some bonus tracks.</p>
<p>What will I cut?</p>
<p>Originally inspired by Phil Ochs, I did Ewan MacColl's BALLAD OF A CARPENTER. Why listen to my version when you can hear Phil's? The same can be said of my version of John Lennon's GOOD MORNING GOOD MORNING. I had my reasons for recording it, of course, but who cares? I almost never perform SOMETHING HAPPENED and can't recall anyone ever requesting it, so that's probably going to be cut, too.</p>
<p>I want to narrow the focus and shorten the duration of the set. Originally, I'd conceived of the show as consisting of three sub-sets--Family, Faith, and Work. The "family" songs like MOTHER OF THREE, HAPPY FATHER'S DAY, and CHERRY TREES are, for me, the thematic centerpieces of the album. The theme of faith is already embedded in the other songs, so why not shorten the album to include only the themes of Work and Family? I dunno.</p>
<p>As for "bonus tracks," I've never issued SCATTERED SEEDS, FRUITLESS TREES, AND GRANDMA'S HAT. From that album, I've got SEVENTY YEARS, DEATH SHADOW BLUES, CANCER WARD BLUES, and PET SHOP DOG. Plus, I've got a few very strong live versions of (May You Never Be) THE CHILD OF A REALIST. And wouldn't it be wild to include my live solo version of John Creighton's/NO SHELTER's LAWRENCEVILLE?</p>
<p>As Lou Reed sings, "Between thought and expression lies a lifetime." I've got the thought. Am I going to talk about it? Or am I going to do it? Thomas Dimuzio of Gench Mastering said he'll do the mastering for me. I suppose the rest is up to me. </p>
<p>Stay tuned.</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/66409572021-05-26T18:16:19-04:002022-09-10T06:50:16-04:00Click-Bait or Not, I'm Glad I Bought Van Morrison's New Album<p>I wonder if I was the victim of click-bait. Maybe the guys accusing Van Morrison were actually WORKING FOR Van Morrison. </p>
<p>Nah. </p>
<p>Probably not. </p>
<p>I look at and occasionally post on a Bob Dylan fan-site on Facebook. (I belong to Patti Smith, Phil Ochs, Nico, Johnny Thunders and a few other fan-pages, too.) I saw a post that included a link to a news-source that claimed Van Morrison was engaging in ultra right wing “dog-whistles” and using blatantly anti-Semitic tropes. </p>
<p>(I had to look up “trope,” one of those words like “meme” that I think I understand but don’t want to misuse and make myself look uneducated.) </p>
<p>In any case, I clicked the link to the news-source, and the source did not post the actual song-lyrics or links to the songs on YouTube. Instead, it stated unequivocally that Van Morrison had gone off the deep end and was espousing racist and anti-Semitic conspiracy theories. </p>
<p>I’M NOT KIDDING!!!! </p>
<p>So I looked up the songs in question at Genius dot com. Nope. Nothing objectionable in the actual lyrics. Then I looked up and listened to one of the songs on You Tube and actually liked it. </p>
<p>Guess what I did next? I downloaded the entire album. </p>
<p>The album is titled, “LATEST RECORD PROJECT, Volume 1,” and consists of twenty-eight cuts. 28. Yes, TWENTY-EIGHT. Kinda like Chuck Berry’s Great Twenty-Eight. The first song, the title-song, asks, “Have you heard my latest record project?” You might think that’s kind of cheap joke, but you have to hear it. It’s perfect. It’s so perfect that it isn’t even ironic. </p>
<p>Each song has its roots in doo-wop, early rock’n’roll and soul. Short and economical. Tasty guitar. Tasty Hammond B-3. Groovy bass and drums. Sax. Harmonies and call-and-response vocals. Hooks galore. </p>
<p>These songs do not sound like anybody agonized over them for five sleepless days at the Chelsea Hotel. They sound like Van and his band started hitting grooves they dug, whipped quick little arrangements together, and didn’t second-guess themselves. Play it like you feel it. Did that feel good? Yes, it did. Let’s try another one. </p>
<p>There are people for whom Van Morrison is a defining influence. I’m not one of them. In The Little Wretches, Dave Losi would bust into a song at a rehearsal, and I’d struggle to find my way, thinking, “Damn, Dave wrote this? This is a really good song!” Of course, not having grown up on Van Morrison, I was unable to recognize songs like INTO THE MYSTIC, MADAME GEORGE, and CARAVAN. I studied up on Van Morrison, read a Lester Bangs review of ASTRAL WEEKS, bought it and SAINT DOMINIC’S PREVIEW, and I was converted. </p>
<p>One of my all-time favorite moments at live concert was when Van Morrison had released THE HEALING GAME, Bob Dylan had released TIME OUT OF MIND, and the two were doing a double-bill at the Madison Square Garden Theater in New York City. (The Rolling Stones were at Madison Square Garden. Imagine having to choose between the Stones and the Dylan/Morrison show!) </p>
<p>Near the end of Van’s sent, after having performed THE HEALING GAME album in its entirety, Van did a few old hits, including TUPELO HONEY. At the end of Tupelo Honey, he started ripping through vocal lines with riveting lyrics that I presumed were being improvised on the spot. Later, I learned that he’d segued from Tupelo Honey into WHY MUST I ALWAYS EXPLAIN. His delivery on Why Must I Always Explain was as powerful and impassioned as anything I’ve ever heard. </p>
<p>I’m ashamed to say that THE HEALING GAME, and album I love, was the last Van Morrison album I bought till now. That’s over twenty years. What kind of fan blows off a seminal artist for over twenty years? Well, I wonder what else I missed? </p>
<p>Van Morrison’s LATEST RECORD PROJECT, Volume 1 is really good, really fun. I don’t know. Those knuckleheads accused him of being a right wing nut. Are you kidding? But that’s what it took to get me to pay attention. </p>
<p>My attention has been rewarded. Thank you, Van Morrison. I have heard your latest record project. Great music. Hope everyone gets to hear it.</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/66191032021-05-01T15:48:40-04:002022-04-15T06:54:08-04:00DASH IT OUT<p><a contents="Click Here to the DASH IT OUT conversation between VIK - TOR and Robert" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://youtu.be/egtZsEjucCs">Click Here to the DASH IT OUT conversation between VIK - TOR and Robert</a></p>
<p>VIK - TOR and I had quite a conversation for his DASH IT OUT podcast. I repped Pittsburgh, of course, talked some Hill District and August Wilson, some shoplifting and survival skills, some Jonathan Richman and Michelle Shocked, and marveled at how he and I, though superficially different, share the same mission, the same positive attitude, resilience and faithfulness. If you never listen to another of my interviews, I hope you’ll give a listen to this one. Thank you, Dash Tor.</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/66136062021-04-25T20:22:39-04:002024-03-25T07:30:57-04:00RAISE THE JOLLY ROGER!<p>A few years ago, I was in the coffee shop at the main branch of the Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh, eavesdropping on a conversation between the barista and a tattooed hipster revolutionary as they discussed a book one of them had read about Pirate Democracy. There is something romantic about the thought of living outside of society, preying on merchant vessels loaded with some king's treasures, taking as your own as much as you can carry of the conquered ships's cargo. </p>
<p>Imagine, these collegiate dandies who wouldn't steal so much as a paper clip fantasizing about the noble life of a pirate. And they think they could hang in a community of cut-throats? I highly doubt it. </p>
<p>What's all this have to do with The Little Wretches?</p>
<p>A friend who moved from Philadelphia to my hometown of Pittsburgh announced in a text message that she bought a Pittsburgh Pirates jersey and suggested we go to a game at PNC Park the next time I'm in town. </p>
<p>I texted in reply, "The Battlin' Bucs." </p>
<p>She was incredulous. I had to explain that when people from Pittsburgh speak of the Bucs, they are talking baseball. Pirates = Buccaneers. Get it? </p>
<p>Oh, I get it now!</p>
<p>In any case, The Pittsburgh Pirates won their opener this year then proceeded to drop seven or eight consecutive games. Today, they came away with another victory to even their record at 11 wins and 11 losses. </p>
<p>The Battlin' Bucs. They never surrender. They play till the last out. They hang in there and stick together. </p>
<p>Coincidentally, I had been thinking about The Jolly Roger all week, ever since Mike Madden and I were listening to rough mixes of some tracks we'd recorded, and Mike mentioned that one of the songs reminded him of The Byrds. The guitar parts I'd laid down were supposed to sound like Mick Ronson. Mick Ronson produced Roger McGuinn's (the leader of The Byrds) CARDIFF ROSE album. The second tune on CARDIFF ROSE is aptly titled JOLLY ROGER, McGuinn singing of the happy day he became a scurvy buccaneer. "Pull away, me lads of the Cardiff Rose, and hoist the Jolly Roger."</p>
<p>See how it all connects?</p>
<p>Tattooed hipster chicks, baristas, Pittsburgh Pirates jerseys, struggling to fight your way back to zero, skull-and-crossbones flags and The Little Wretches in a recording studio.</p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/66105662021-04-21T21:59:01-04:002022-03-07T06:02:39-05:00Beach Sloth<p><a contents="Click here to see the BEACH SLOTH review." data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="http://www.beachsloth.com/little-wretches-all-my-friends-2.html?fbclid=IwAR1uoPsm4JiJfjo7DNIkPUjakgmbMDm8HUaV3cduZvFJoBf7cMvJ2jJxBSg" target="_blank">Click here to see the BEACH SLOTH review.</a></p>
<p>" Little Wretches offers a poignant piece of beautiful balladry on the bombastic “All My Friends”. Giddy with energy they race through the track length with gleeful abandon. Instrumentally dense they incorporate so much into the mix..."</p>
<p>I dunno. My first poetry mentor at the University of Pittsburgh taught me that if you want to publish in small magazines, you should READ small magazines; It is your responsibility to support the community you hope to be a part of. Extrapolating, I should be listening to the stations and shows that I'd like my songs to be played on.</p>
<p>I try but mostly fail in that arena. For example, it pisses me off that I'm not getting airplay on WXPN or WYEP, the two best known radio stations in the regions where I've spent almost my entire life. But who am I? I ain't nobody. What do I deserve? Nothing.</p>
<p>I know damn well that the business revolves around relationship-building, that I should be schmoozing the DJs, flattering them, listening to their shows, dropping them the occasional comment about how their show enlightens my life. WXPN and WYEP don't owe me squat. If I want their support, I have to court them and seduce them. Sales Rule #101--THE CUSTOMER WILL NOT BUY FROM YOU IF THE CUSTOMER DOES NOT LIKE YOU. Willie Loman in Arthur Miller;s DEATH OF A SALESMAN... "You have to be liked."</p>
<p>I've been told by more than one person that I exhibit a "f### you" attitude. Nobody likes to be told, "F### you.' By the same token, I don't want you to dig my songs because you like me. I want you to dig my songs because THEY SAY SOMETHING.</p>
<p>Okay, I'm done rambling. What I really wanted to say is that I should be following more closely the writers and outlets that have been supporting The Little Wretches.</p>
<p>Thank you, Beach Sloth. Thank you, Beach Sloth. Thank you, Beach Sloth. Click on that link at the top to see what BEACH SLOTH had to say about ALL OF MY FRIENDS.</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/66086352021-04-19T19:22:34-04:002022-05-30T00:09:41-04:00Billboard World Music Interview<p><a contents="Click HERE to read the interview with Robert of The Little Wretches at Billboard World Music" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://billboardworldmusic.com/billboard-world-music-interview-with-robert-andrew-wagner-of-the-little-wretches/" target="_blank">Click HERE to read the interview with Robert of The Little Wretches at Billboard World Music</a></p>
<p>Billboard, huh?</p>
<p>Isn't Billboard some kind of big deal in the entertainment business?</p>
<p>Whatever it is, I like what I said in this interview. Given that a lot of interviews involve questions answered previously, often and elsewhere, I try to refrain from lapsing into schtick and always try to say something I haven't said before or, at least, to say it differently.</p>
<p>This interview is pretty cool. Or maybe I just like listening to myself talk.</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/66074932021-04-18T13:48:28-04:002022-02-14T01:11:37-05:00BORN WITH A GIFT<p><a contents="CLICK HERE TO CHECK OUT BIZCATALYST 360's piece on one of our best songs." data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://www.bizcatalyst360.com/born-with-a-gift/" target="_blank">CLICK HERE TO CHECK OUT BIZCATALYST 360's piece on one of our best songs.</a></p>
<p>BORN WITH A GIFT maybe the cornerstone of the entire LITTLE WRETCHES' catalogue. It means a lot to me, and a few people have let me know that it mean a lot to them, too. </p>
<p> </p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/66012412021-04-11T20:56:52-04:002021-08-02T16:16:40-04:00CONVO EX NIHILO<p><a contents="CLICK HERE to go to the episode of CONVO EX NIHILO featuring a conversation with Robert Andrew Wagner of The Little Wretches" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://www.convoexnihilo.com/episodes/episode-066-a-wretch-like-me-with-robert-wagner?fbclid=IwAR0rvv-9bN-cFm9BnzmE28UwLVjU2Chhh1X5rGJDAY9Y5KyYbl0b8SmdxSo" target="_blank">CLICK HERE to go to the episode of CONVO EX NIHILO featuring a conversation with Robert Andrew Wagner of The Little Wretches</a></p>
<p>CONVO EX NIHILO is a very cool podcast: </p>
<p>“Robert Wagner is a musician from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. His band The Little Wretches is a folk act with a punk rock spirit. Their 2020 album Undesirables and Anarchists gives soulful life to the stories of the songs' protagonists. They are the down-trodden and destitute, the forgotten wretches of society and Robert joins Billy via zoom to talk about his background and how he weaves some of the overheard stories of the people in his community into his music. </p>
<p>Robert talks about life in Pittsburgh, his parents' immigrant backgrounds and the trauma that has informed his art and outlook.”</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/66012402021-04-11T20:54:42-04:002021-09-02T14:50:23-04:00Robert Wagner and His Music from the Heart...<p><a contents="Click this link to go to THE ARTISTS CENTRAL " data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://www.theartistscentral.com/post/robert-wagner-and-his-music-from-the-heart?fbclid=IwAR0tzYF9lPdMn6zit80etHNm2zEO994vimwztE0yT07Bt6ijQpbPqz8BFMU" target="_blank">Click this link to go to THE ARTISTS CENTRAL </a></p>
<p>Honestly, this looks like the work of our publicist. Propaganda, as they say. Then again, propaganda usually blends a lot of truth with some crucial lies. I don't think this piece contains any falsehoods, but it does feel like a gratuitous piece of self-promotion. Oh, go ahead. Keep that flattery coming!</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/66012382021-04-11T20:47:32-04:002021-09-02T14:30:39-04:00CRASH! BANG! WALLOP! The Podcast<p><a contents="Click here to go to the episode of CRASH! BANG! WALLOP! The Podcast featuring The Little Wretches" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://open.spotify.com/episode/7Fxqwv4PQdlPA5ll5GkVeM?si=y7ZdVsApTY2jAHgaokXDCw" target="_blank">Click here to go to the episode of CRASH! BANG! WALLOP! The Podcast featuring The Little Wretches</a></p>
<p>Hi, this is Robert Andrew Wagner of The Little Wretches, and this is CRASH BANG WALLOP, the podcast. </p>
<p>Anyone who’s familiar with our band knows that THE LITTLE WRETCHES is the perfect name for us. I got the idea for the name when I watching a movie with subtitles. The movie was THE 400 BLOWS by Francois Truffaut, a movie about kids—you know, petty delinquency, oblivious and oppressive adults. Right around the one-hour mark, a couple of kids who’ve just committed a robbery are fleeing the scene of the crime, running down the stone steps outside a magnificent cathedral and they cross pass with a priest who is walking up the steps. The kids say, “Good day, ma’am,” and keep running. The priest, angry at being called “ma’am,” turns around and yells, “LITTLE WRETCH.” </p>
<p>As soon as I saw that, I turned to my friends and said, “That’s the name of our band. We are THE LITTLE WRETCHES.” </p>
<p>We have a long, glorious history, you know. I was part of the the first wave of punk bands in Pittsburgh, but we were never really punks. We were outsiders even in the world of punk. In our region, Punk was already three years behind the times, and it was really all about clothes and hairstyles for college kids at Carnegie-Mellon and the University of Pittsburgh. I’m a REAL working class punk. I’ve been in fistfights. I’ve spent nights on the streets. I’ve had to shoplift food to eat. I’m never going to fit in anywhere. But PUNK gave me a place to start. But I’m really a writer. I see myself as being in the tradition of fellow Pittsburgher, the playwright AUGUST WILSON. I’m telling the stories of my people. I started THE LITTLE WRETCHES as a vehicle for telling my stories through my preferred medium, the song. </p>
<p>My song, ALL OF MY FRIENDS, is an attempt to pay my respects the the people who’ve populated the world around The Little Wretches—the outcasts, people with secrets, people who’ve learned to use their handicaps as weapons, people who never seem to win but never stop fighting and hoping. So I hope you CRASH BANG WALLOPERS enjoy hearing ALL OF MY FRIENDS.</p>
<p>Second Segment </p>
<p>Of all the songs on our album UNDESIRABLES & ANARCHISTS, the song called THE BALLAD OF JOHNNY BLOWTORCH seems to consistently grab peoples’ attention. I mean, it’s kind of calculated to grab your attention. The opening line is, ALL YOU EVER WANTED WAS TO HANG ON A CROSS, and right away you get the image of the crucifixion of Jesus Christ. One sure way to get attention is to take potshots at easy targets and say something guaranteed to offend. The risk you run with something like that is that you might alienate people or create such a knee-jerk reaction that they never really consider what you are saying. </p>
<p>One of my favorite artists, Patti Smith, opens one of her best-known songs GLORIA IN EXCELSIS DEO with the line JESUS DIED FOR SOMEBODY’S SINS BUT NOT MINE. Right? She opens by renouncing salvation, insisting on taking responsibility for her own words and actions, then she follows that path to see where it leads. Her third album is called EASTER, right? The resurrection. But a lot of people don’t follow the entire story-arc. They’re focused on her opening line. They think its this bold, sacrilegious statement. I’m with you, Patti, I renounce Jesus, too! Well, I think they miss the point. I’m all about the resurrection theme. </p>
<p>The Ballad of Johnny Blowtorch is, first of all, not a ballad. It’s written around a riff worthy of the early Kinks. When I wrote the lyrics, I was spending a lot of time around kids into hip hop and rap, and I was listening to a lot of PUBLIC ENEMY and ICE-T. So I wanted some lyrics that were direct and kind of staccato, more rhythmic than melodic. And I’m not so much telling a story as presenting a series of snapshots of a friend of mine, the most Christ-like person I even knew. He lived somewhat of an ascetic lifestyle. He was on a path to find enlightenment, rejecting the pleasures of the world, and really paying the price. You’d see him looking like he hadn’t eaten, his clothes worn to the threads, you’d talk to him, and he’d obviously gone mad. But he was going for it. Think I’m a fool? Think I’m crazy? Think I’ve lost my mind? Well, IF I EVER GET LUCKY AND SCORE, YOU’LL WANT TO BE ME! The Ballad of Johnny Blowtorch is, for me, about having the courage to take a stand, rejecting everything false in the world, and being willing to pay the price for it. But you have to make up your own mind. </p>
<p>That’s the thing with The Little Wretches. We’re not trying to convince you or persuade you about anything. We want to touch your heart, and then you can follow your heart. Hopefully, you Crash Bang Wallopers will have a heart for The Little Wretches.</p>
<p>Third Segment </p>
<p>When THE LITTLE WRETCHES release UNDESIRABLES & ANARCHISTS in the summer on 2020, the song, WHO IS AMERICA was timely, though it was one of the songs first performed by the band back in the mid-eighties, strangely prophetic. Images of broken bottles, people being tear-gassed. </p>
<p>The song opens with the lines COUNTING THE BOTTLES, ALL EMPTY AND BROKEN, ASTHMATIC PARASITES SQUEALING AND CHOKING. So there you’ve got Molotov cocktails and teargas, but the next morning, the protagonist has to go to work. She does her best to paint on some make-up, she’s running late, she gets hassled by her boss, docked a half-hour, and suffers the indignities of a working person who has to sell her time to pay her bills. Dispassionate. Disaffected. Alienated. Who knows that the company produces. She’s just very small part in a very big machine. And some people start doing that when they’re in their early twenties, then next thing you know, they wake up and they’re in their fifties. Where did my life go? I didn’t know what I wanted then, and I still don’t know what I want now, but I sure know I didn’t want THIS. </p>
<p>The last part of the song has a few lines I love—WHEN ONE MAN STRIKES IT RICH, NINETY-NINE OTHERS FIND DEPRIVATION. FOR EVERY BEAST OF BURDEN WHO IS UNLEASHED FROM THE YOKE, NINETY-NINE OTHERS WORK TWICE AS HARD, BELIEVING THEY’VE GOT A HOPE. Right? Work all your life and you still end up with nothing. So what are you working for? What is the point of this life? The song ends on a wharf, along the river, walking at dawn, just as a storm is beginning to break. </p>
<p>Hey, here’s the worldview of The Little Wretches right here: ETERNITY EXISTS, LIFE IS PRECIOUS, and GOD IS GOOD. But your life is what you make of it.You were born with a gift. Honor that gift of life. Don’t get lost on the treadmill that goes nowhere. LIVE. </p>
<p>So this is WHO IS AMERICA with the original No Shelter lyrics, shall we say “the unexpurgated version” with the Molotov cocktails, the tear gas, and the reminder to treat your life like it is a sacred gift. Hope you Crash Bang Wallopers dig it.</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/65859982021-03-26T17:44:28-04:002021-03-26T17:44:28-04:00MY MOTHER SAID JOAN BAEZ SHOULD BE STRUNG UP BY HER TOES<p>THE NIGHT THEY DROVE OLD DIXIE DOWN was a hit on the radio, Joan Baez was the singer, and I wanted to buy the 45 rpm disc. I may have been a kid but recognized a good song. (At that age, I probably would not have appreciated hearing The Band’s version.) Catchy melody. Interesting story. Good singalong part. A hit. Something that should be part of my growing collection, right? </p>
<p>What would the record have cost, a dollar or thereabouts? Would my mom give me a dollar to buy THE NIGHT THEY DROVE OLD DIXIE DOWN? </p>
<p>“Joan Baez should be strung up by her toes!” </p>
<p>Why would you want to string somebody up by their toes? It wouldn’t kill them. It probably wouldn’t even hurt too bad. More of a humiliation than anything else. Why would you want to humiliate a lady for singing a song? </p>
<p>Apparently, my mom did not appreciate Joan Baez’s anti-war activism. (My mom supported Lt. William Calley in the aftermath of the My Lai Massacre…) I didn’t know nothing about any of that. I just wanted to buy a record. </p>
<p>I don’t recall where I got the dollar, but I managed, and my mom never complained when I played the record. (Her love of music trumped her political objections.) Anyhow, it was the song I liked, not the singer, and Joan Baez rarely crossed my mind in the years that followed. </p>
<p>Then I “discovered” Bob Dylan. When I bought my copy of HIGHWAY 61 REVISITED, I was the only person I knew who was the least bit interested in him. Nobody I knew owned his records, though one of my cousins did express a liking for LAY LADY LAY. I’d heard LIKE A ROLLING STONE on the radio, and when I held the album jacket in my hands at the National Record Mart at South Hills Village Mall, the prose-poem on the back cover and the cool song titles—FROM A BUICK SIX, JUST LIKE TOM THUMB’S BLUES—convinced me that I was missing out on something important. </p>
<p>Two phrases into TOMBSTONE BLUES, I knew that I’d be studying this this Dylan guy’s work and picking up each of his albums. BLOOD ON THE TRACKS. BLONDE ON BLONDE. DESIRE. BRINGING IT ALL BACK HOME… </p>
<p>I saw RENALDO AND CLARA and DON’T LOOK BACK in a movie theater, heard the ALL HALLOW’S EVE and ROYAL ALBERT HALL concerts on a bootleg LPs, and came to think of THE ROLLING THUNDER REVIEW as one of the high points of Dylan’s creative output. </p>
<p>Joan Baez was all over this stuff, but as far as I was concerned, she was a mere player in Dylan’s story. I was too young to be sentimental about the failed revolution of the sixties, and seventies singer-songwriter soft-rock wasn’t for me. I was ready for the SEX PISTOLS and THE CLASH. Those bands seemed to be carrying the torch first raised by Bob Dylan and The Hawks. </p>
<p>In the decades that followed, I did buy a Joan Baez album for Rosa Colucci, my bandmate in THE LITTLE WRETCHES, but the album turned out to be warped, warbled on the turntable, and there is no evidence that Rosa listened to it a single time. For my own enjoyment, I downloaded a collection of Joan Baez singing Dylan songs, but I continued to be disinterested in her or her original music. </p>
<p>A few days ago, I was looking for Dylan-stuff on YouTube and found the channel of the late Peter Stone Brown (a person said to have played an important role in the folk music scene in Philadelphia). The channel was loaded with cool material. In one of the interviews, Dylan speaks with awe and reverence about Joan Baez as a person and as a musician, and he makes specific mention of DIAMONDS AND RUST. </p>
<p>Well… Maybe I have been missing out on something. If Dylan himself endorses it, maybe I should look into it. </p>
<p>I’ve listened to the album a few dozen times since I downloaded it a few days ago.The title track is everything Dylan said it was. Maybe I’m too heavily invested in the mythology of Bob Dylan, but every time I hear DIAMONDS AND RUST, it has me on the verge of tears. Add songs by John Prine, Janis Ian, The Allman Brothers, Jackson Browne, Stephen Foster, and Joan’s voice, and what can I say? </p>
<p>DIAMONDS AND RUST feels like a missing piece to a puzzle I’ve been assembling my entire life. How did I manage to miss it? No matter. I found it now. And it fits perfectly. Yep, right there. See? I knew I’d find that piece one of these days. </p>
<p>I wasn’t ready for it before. But I’m ready for it how. And I’m very glad to have found it. Thank you, Joan Baez. If anybody comes at your toes with string, I’ll defend you.</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/65733842021-03-14T12:00:13-04:002023-12-10T12:16:22-05:00RED BEETS & HORSERADISH, BEGGARS BANQUET, and the MARTIN D-35<p>Mike Madden, John Carson, Rosa and I have been trying to learn the batch of songs I call RED BEETS & HORSERADISH. We've rehearsed in-person five times and via Zoom meetings once or twice a week. We made a commitment to each other to spend an hour a day practicing the songs on our own. I can't speak for the other guys, but I've missed a day or two but made up for it by playing twice as long on other days.</p>
<p>It looks like we'll be committing this stuff to tape (imaginary tape, zeroes and ones in digital reality) on March 30 and March 31. I'm still not sure how to proceed. I've been playing some of these songs acoustically for over a decade and still can't get from start to finish without flubbing and stumbling. </p>
<p>Given the likelihood of our making a multitude of errors, I'm thinking we'll have to play as an ensemble while we record the drums then go back and record each instrument, one section at a time. It'll take time and cost money, but it will hopefully be worth it. Worth it or not, we're going to do it.</p>
<p>I've been listening to a lot of music for reference. How do we want the acoustic guitars to sound? The drums? The bass? I keep wavering. I'm leaning toward the BEGGARS BANQUET and LET IT BLEED by The Rolling Stones sounds. I read that Keith Richards maintains that JUMPIN' JACK FLASH has only acoustic guitars. I read that STREET FIGHTING MAN uses an acoustic guitar recorded with a slightly overdriven microphone on a portable cassette-recorder. Then, of course, there's that bass-heavy sound of Marc Bolan on ELECTRIC WARRIOR by T. Rex. </p>
<p>When I lay down the parts I imagined for violin (if only Chuckie were alive to play the parts), I'm going to try to get the sound Mick Ralphs had on ALL THE YOUNG DUDES on the Mott the Hoople album of the same name, Mick Ronson on Ian Hunter's CENTRAL PARK WEST, and my own sound on UNDESIRABLES & ANARCHISTS. </p>
<p>My landlady lives below me, and I can't even rehearse with my amp at full-volume. How am I going to be prepared for recording if I haven't tweaked my amp and guitar settings? All the more reason to rely on the Martin D-35. </p>
<p>If things go as planned, we'll be cutting WINTER'S GRACE based on the poem by Annette Dietz, RISE by Jack Erdie and augmented by lyrics from SWANAGE in the Christian Science Hymnal, and OLD HUNDREDTH aka The Doxology, with lyrics copped from various traditional hymns. </p>
<p>Who knows how things will take shape? The project will be done when it is done or when I run out of money.</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/65733802021-03-14T11:35:59-04:002022-03-07T05:59:30-05:00Big Interview at PLANET SINGER<p><a contents="CLICK THESE WORDS TO VISIT PLANET SINGER DOT NET TO READ THE INTERVIEW" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://www.planetsinger.net/robert-wagner-the-little-wretches-more-exclusive-interview/?fbclid=IwAR2_or5Hk-mcrcOWuwMlQA73dQCY0ZxAjyua_CFOsYn4YvVIcoX_zc53haw" target="_blank">CLICK THESE WORDS TO VISIT PLANET SINGER DOT NET TO READ THE INTERVIEW</a></p>
<p>I managed to squeeze in some references to Henry Miller, the Muses of Greek Mythology, William Shakespeare's ROMEO AND JULIET, and the vows of marriage. Every now and then, I say something I'm proud to have said, and that happens a couple of times in this interview.</p>
<p><span class="font_large"><strong>Robert Wagner – The Little Wretches and Much More! Exclusive Interview! </strong></span></p>
<p>Artists like Robert Wagner make our job as music editors worth it. Strong of a long and exciting music career, Wagner shaped his sound during the decades, incorporating the best vibes of authentic Rock Music, evolving during the decades. Today, at Planet Singer, we have the great pleasure of discovering more about this talented artist with an exclusive interview! </p>
<p><strong>Hi Robert, it is such a pleasure having you with us today at Planet Singer. Let’s start from the beginning; how did you discover your love for music? </strong></p>
<p>I need to take a roundabout approach to answering this question. What is love? I was working with some young people on William Shakespeare’s ROMEO AND JULIET, and we consulted a PSYCHOLOGY TODAY article on the various types of love. Parental love. Erotic love. Fraternal love. And so on. </p>
<p>Surely, you’re not asking me when I fell in love with a Muse from Greek mythology, right? No. But what does it mean to love music? How is it possible to love music? </p>
<p>There is something special about falling in love with music. There’s the joy of listening and dancing for the first time as a child. There’s the joy of discovering what it feels like to put your fingers on the keys of a piano, the strings of a guitar, the intricate machinery of a saxophone. There is the trepidation at performing in front of an audience. The anguish of being ignored or spurned by an audience. </p>
<p>For me and people like me, our love of music is a marriage. We are wed to music. We exchanged vows. For better or worse. For richer or poorer. In sickness and in health. A lot of people enjoy music and are passionate about it. But people like me are wed to music. TILL DEATH DO US PART. </p>
<p>So are you asking me when I discovered that I had to get on my knees and ask her father’s permission to marry her? Or are you asking about my love-at-first-sight moment? </p>
<p>The love-at-first-sight moment was probably when I was playing with my cousins. We had a little turntable and boxes of old, scratched up records, our parents’ records. </p>
<p>Not to be overly dramatic, but I decided to pursue marriage with music when I was undergoing chemotherapy treatments for a rare form of cancer at the age of nineteen. All I ever wanted was to write and play music, and here I was, facing eternity, not having done what I most loved. I made a little deal with God. If I lived, I would never do or say anything that I did not believe in. And I would ONLY do what I DO believe in. </p>
<p>So I’ve courted music in sickness and health, for better or worse, till death do us part. I can’t say with certainty that she accepted my proposal. Sometimes I wonder? Has she accepted my proposal? Or am I still trying to win her heart? </p>
<p><strong>What are your main influences? </strong></p>
<p>My main influences are the contents of those boxes of scratchy records I mentioned earlier. I WANT TO HOLD YOUR HAND, SHE LOVES YOU, A HARD DAY’S NIGHT, ROLL OVER BEETHOVEN by The Beatles. The Platters. The Mills Brothers. The Sons of the Pioneers. Marty Robbins. The Beach Boys. Johnny Cash. The Smothers Brothers. Roy Clark and Buck Owens. Tammy Wynette. The Fifth Dimension. Petula Clark. Tom Jones. Bobby Darin. The Hollies. The Ames Brothers. </p>
<p>Later, after discovering what I am good at, what I do, I saw myself aligned with Phil Ochs, Lou Reed, Sam Shepard, Patti Smith, Michelle Shocked and Bob Dylan. </p>
<p><strong>In 2020, you recorded and released two new albums, “Undesirables and Anarchists” and “Burning Lantern Dropped In Straw.” They both sound great, yet they are very different releases. Can you tell us what’s behind these two records? </strong></p>
<p>“Burning Lantern Dropped in Straw” consists of songs The Little Wretches were working on before Dave Losi had to step away from the band. We’d really hit our stride and come up with a way of working in the studio in which we knew how to get our”thing” on tape. Management companies were interested in us. We were being offered gigs in venues that had previously rejected us. We had a batch of awesome new songs and a batch of old songs that had been recorded in the early days of the band, staples of our set that we knew we could re-record in our new style. </p>
<p>Then Dave called and said, “I’m out.” He had family responsibilities that superseded his life in music. The recording project that involved the songs that appear as BURNING LANTERN DROPPED IN STRAW were abandoned. </p>
<p>At the end of 2019, I moved. In the process of packing and unpacking, I found a box of old, unlabeled cassette tapes, and decided to go through them. I had forgotten that these recordings existed. I made copies for old bandmates Dave and Ellen, thinking they’d want to return to the studio to finish them off, add some drums and percussion, then Dave’s son went and uploaded them to for-sale on a website. I’d regarded the project as unfinished, but I really think those recordings are amazing as-is. Okay, then. If young Losi thinks the stuff is good as-is, who am I to doubt him. </p>
<p>After Losi left the Wretches, I recruited Rosa Colucci, and she and I were performing as an acoustic duo. You didn’t mention WHEN IT SNOWS, but it was also released last year, an acoustic album in the tradition of Simon and Garfunkel’s WEDNESDAY MORNING 3 A.M. </p>
<p>As Rosa and I performed, we attracted pianist HK Hilner. HK said Rosa was the best singer in Western Pennsylvania, and he wanted to play behind her. He kind of insisted that we rebuild The Little Wretches, and UNDESIRABLES & ANARCHISTS is the culmination of that rebuilding. </p>
<p>Whereas UNDESIRABLES & ANARCHISTS was pretty much captured live in the studio, BURNING LANTERN DROPPED IN STRAW was built around Dave Losi sitting at the grand piano and me sitting on a stool with my acoustic guitar. We played the songs as a duo and layered the other instruments. </p>
<p>The thing about The Little Wretches is that we’re not locked into a genre. We’re like The Beatles’ WHITE ALBUM or Neil Young’s catalogue. There is a consistent thread that runs through our catalogue, a spirit, a world-view, an intelligence, but we work with the tools at our disposal and we play it like we feel it. </p>
<p>What do you think about the music industry’s contemporary twists, the playlist jungle, the digital algorithm? Do you think it helps artists, or it makes music every day a little bit more sterile? </p>
<p>I’m the wrong person to ask that question. I give no thought to any of that. All of the music I love, I was either turned onto it by a friend or I stumbled across it as if by Divine Intervention. When I was first listening to Dylan, I was the only person I knew who listened to Dylan. When I listened to Patti Smith and The Velvet Underground, I was the only person I knew who knew and liked their music. </p>
<p>Seek and ye shall find. I sought. I found. I just kind of assume that there are kids out there looking for what THE LITTLE WRETCHES have to offer, and they’ll find it. Just like I found what I was looking for, they’ll find us. </p>
<p><strong>Your songwriting style is unique! Can you reveal your artistic process when it comes to creating your music? </strong></p>
<p>I try to keep my tools sharp, my mind and soul open for inspiration, and I keep things simple. </p>
<p>I met producer Lenny Kaye at a music conference, and I asked him if he sees making a record as creating an illusion or documenting a moment. He said definitively that he sees making a record as a process of creating an illusion. </p>
<p>But that’s not me. Lou Reed has fifty different versions of SWEET JANE. Bob Dylan has fifty different versions of LIKE A ROLLING STONE. I’ve got fifty versions of WHO IS AMERICA and BORN WITH A GIFT. I haven’t the resources to craft an illusion. I’m a DIY folk-rock punk. I have no choice but to play it like I feel it. I’m not good enough to do anything else. If I was Pavarotti or G. E. Smith, I’d have decisions to make, but my decisions are made for me by my limited range. What can I do with what I’ve got? </p>
<p>I’ve internalized a sense of what my music is supposed to sound like. What I hear in my head is NOT what you hear on the recording. Everything you hear is modified and adapted based on the tools and resources at my disposal. Acoustic or electric? Cafe or roadhouse? Listening room or party. Living room or garage. </p>
<p>I do not want to sound rote or formulaic, but I do want to sound timeless and part of a tradition. I want you to simultaneously be surprised by a turn of phrase or a chord-change, but at the same time I want you to feel that those are the perfect words and that was the perfect change. </p>
<p>I’ve got words. I’ve got melodic phrases. I’ve got chord changes. I imagine my brother on violin. I imagine Ed Heidel on bass. </p>
<p>I’ve studied up on the playwright August Wilson, and I realize that he and I have a lot in common. I’m assembling scraps of poetry and melody and guitar chords, and those scraps tell me where they want to go. </p>
<p><strong>What inspires you? </strong></p>
<p>I live in my own little dreamworld. I’m inspired when the faithful prevail, when people who seemed to be without a hope refuse to surrender. </p>
<p>On the album we’re getting ready to record, I have a song called PALMS AND CROSSES. Imagine the day after the crucifixion, and the Apostles and disciples have scattered and gone into hiding. Their teacher and hero is dead. Everything they believed in is gone. Poof. Total and absolute defeat. And a few days later, the very same people are willing to come out swinging, willing to die for what they believe. The faith of the martyrs swiftly won the hearts of people throughout Europe, North Africa and the Middle East. THAT inspires me. </p>
<p>PALMS AND CROSSES is set on the day between Good Friday and Easter Sunday. That day of defeat. Its refrains says, “Tomorrow will decide what yesterday means.” </p>
<p>I am inspired by crazy people who stick to their guns and turn out to be right. Amazing Grace. The Beatitudes. I probably sound like a religious nut, but that’s what inspires me. You asked. </p>
<p><strong>Among the song of your discography, is there a special one? </strong></p>
<p>BORN WITH A GIFT is kind of our theme song. Are you familiar with the novelist Henry Miller, author of TROPIC OF CANCER, TROPIC OF CAPRICORN and many others. Novel-length poems more than actual novels, if you ask me. But I read where he said TROPIC OF CANCER was his discovery of self, and TROPIC OF CAPRICORN was his discovery of purpose. For me, BORN WITH A GIFT was my discovery of purpose. The parable of the talents. This little light of mine, I’m gonna let it shine. You were born with a gift. Honor that gift. </p>
<p><strong>If you could collaborate with one or more of your idols, who would you like to share the stage with? </strong></p>
<p>I don’t have any idols. I’d resurrect John Creighton and play with him. I’d brainwash Dave Losi and have him play full-time with The Little Wretches. I’d resurrect my brother, apologize for all the wrongs I’ve ever done him, and hand him his violin. </p>
<p>It’s funny, other people have asked me this question. I don’t think I answer like I’m supposed to. But really, I don’t have any idols. </p>
<p><strong>What are your plans for the future? </strong></p>
<p>Me, Mike Madden, John Carson and Rosa Colucci are rehearsing to cut a collection of twelve songs plus an instrumental fragment. HK Hilner may play some piano, too. The album is going to be called RED BEETS & HORSERADISH. Red beets and horseradish is an ethnic dish with a lot of symbolism attached that involves enduring and triumphing over suffering. Each song is a vignette. Sick people. Old people. Crazy people. Working people. It’s like an August Wilson play, except it’s not a play; it’s a collection of songs. </p>
<p>I hoped to have it out by Easter, but it’ll be done when it’s done. I can perform all of these songs solo, as a duo, trio, or with a full band. I want to release the album, perform every night for a different audience, and burn this candle till it runs out. </p>
<p>I need a booking agent. I want to wake up in the morning, thinking about where I’m playing tonight. </p>
<p>I also have a screenplay for THE BALLAD OF JOHNNY BLOWTORCH. The song has been pretty successful. Know any producers interested in backing a great little movie? </p>
<p>I have no idea how things are going to unfold. But I’ve got this amazing catalogue of songs and a whole world that has yet to hear them. </p>
<p><strong>Robert, it was such a pleasure chatting with you and having the chance to discover more about your music. Is there anything you would like to say to our readers? </strong></p>
<p>The interview started with a question about love. Go back to the top and consider what I said. Ask yourself. What do you love enough to stick with it through sickness and health, for richer or poorer, till death do you part? Every minute of your life spent doing what you don’t love is a minute of your life wasted. Search. You will find your purpose. Or your purpose will find you. And when that happens, take a knee, make the proposal, and make the commitment. Till death do you part. <br>And, of course, I want to say thank you. I wish I could do more, but this is all I can do. </p>
<p>So I’ve courted music in sickness and health, for better or worse, till death do us part. I can’t say with certainty that she accepted my proposal. Sometimes I wonder? Has she accepted my proposal? Or am I still trying to win her heart?</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/65613512021-02-28T21:08:08-05:002023-12-10T11:49:06-05:00Remembering Chuck Sullivan<p>One fateful night while I was in college, I got into a fistfight with my dad. I stuffed a few clothes into a backpack, and disappeared into the night. Surely, I could have called upon a friend for a temporary place to stay, but I'm a pretty stubborn dude and didn't think I should have to ask for a place to stay. If I couldn't stay in my own home, then f### it all--I'd be homeless.</p>
<p>As it turned out, I'd been awarded a work-study job as a janitor at McKee Place School (an alternative school in the tradition of Summerhill, possibly comparable to democratic schools like Sudbury Valley School or The Circle School) and had been given a key to the building. So long as I entered the building after 10 PM and got my butt out of there by 7 AM, I could crash there and nobody would know the difference.</p>
<p>Founding member of The Little Wretches, CHARLES JOHN WAGNER, attended McKee Place School, as did later member of The Little Wretches, Rosa Colucci. Chuck Sullivan, Mark Gibson, Anne Gallagher and numerous other very creative people passed through McKee Place.</p>
<p>While I was crashing at the school, I heard a strange noise one night. I'm not sure who all was part of the group, but Mark Gibson and a few others were busting into the school through a window well, presumably to get high and party. They didn't expect to encounter me. I played it off as though I was cleaning the school, burning some midnight oil, so to speak, and the kids apologized and found somewhere else to party. Little did they know I was living there.</p>
<p>I remember Chuck Sullivan from McKee Place, but I didn't know him at that time. I got to know him a bit when he started to drum for bands in Pittsburgh's "punk" scene. I thought he was a great drummer. He played in a few really good bands, but most notably, he was part of the rhythm section of STICK AGAINST STONE. In tandem with Dick Vitale, Chuck helped to put a driving pulse behind a band that anticipated RUSTED ROOT by a solid decade. I mean, Rusted Root was a great band, but after having heard STICK AGAINST STONE, it was difficult for me to hear them without comparing the two. For me, there really was no comparison. I was and remain a STICK AGAINST STONE fan.</p>
<p>Anyhow, Chuck Sullivan eventually settled in Portland. He and I jousted a bit on Facebook, he being a staunch atheist and me being a Christian. Though he and I disagreed on matters of faith and eternity, we were very much aligned when it came to values. Chuck Sullivan never failed to challenge me, to force me to be consistent, to think and write clearly. Chuck became one of those people whose words I looked forward to reading and whose approval I sought.</p>
<p>Today is Chuck Sullivan's birthday, and I miss him.</p>
<p> </p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/65550132021-02-21T21:23:39-05:002021-06-26T10:10:23-04:00THE LYRIC VIDEO for ALL OF MY FRIENDS<p>Funny. I see artists who get like 1.6 million views the day they release something. We got about a thousand views. Not bad. But here's the part that hurts. I get these analytics and statistics from YouTube. The song is about four minutes in length. Guess what is the average view-time for the video?</p>
<p>Twenty-eight seconds. </p>
<p>I guess that means people click on the song, listen for the first half-minute, then click on. </p>
<p>Reminds me of Elliott Murphy's liner-notes for 1969 THE VELVET UNDERGROUND LIVE WITH Lou Reed:</p>
<p>"Van Gogh cuts of his ear, and parents sign permission slips for field trips to museums."</p>
<p><a contents="Click here to watch the lyric-video of ALL OF MY FRIENDS" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://youtu.be/P-pcEGNodmc">Click here to watch the lyric-video of ALL OF MY FRIENDS</a></p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/65550002021-02-21T21:15:03-05:002021-06-26T10:10:12-04:00SKOPE MAGAZINE--#1 iTunes Band Little Wretches Release First Lyric Video “All Of My Friends”<p><a contents="Click here to see the story about the debut of the lyric-video for ALL OF MY FRIENDS" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://skopemag.com/2021/02/18/1-itunes-band-little-wretches-release-first-lyric-video-all-of-my-friends?fbclid=IwAR3GZcIqRJvsUYlwXjtzjftI_NCeA-qQqZM3tPntsYxdIVO2X3t_C6zQMgY" target="_blank">Click here to see the story about the debut of the lyric-video for ALL OF MY FRIENDS</a></p>
<p>by Skope • February 18, 2021 </p>
<p>The seminal 80s/90s indie rock band from Pittsburgh received am/fm airplay on more than 125 North American radio stations in 2020. </p>
<p>All of my friends are on somebody’s list <br>of Undesirables and Anarchists <br>It’s not even safe to admit that you’re one of my friends. <br>–Robert Wagner, “All Of My Friends” </p>
<p>In a year that was not kind to so many, 2020 proved to be somewhat of a resurgence for one of the 80s and 90s most notable acts to come out of Pittsburgh. The Little Wretches, fronted by wordsmith, poet, lyrical genius Robert Wagner, enjoyed radio airplay on more than 125 North American radio stations. Their album, “Undesirables and Anarchists” included the streaming hits, “Poison” and “The Ballad of Johnny Blowtorch,” which combined for more than 100K Spotify streams. The latter reached #1 on the ITunes Folk Rock charts, too. </p>
<p>Now, Wagner and the Wretches are releasing their first lyric video for the song, “All Of My Friends.” </p>
<p>According to Wagner: “ALL OF MY FRIENDS is a celebration of people who don’t even have a voice, much less a voice that can be silenced. Every line and couplet in ALL OF MY FRIENDS speaks specifically about very real people in my past who have resided in a voiceless and silent community. The events that formed us—the experiences that made us who and what we are—are off-limits in polite society….Federico Garcia Lorca. Salvador Allende. Pablo Neruda. Solzhenitsyn. Dostoyevsky’s THE DEVILS. NOTES FROM UNDERGROUND. Nelson Algren. My dad. My mom. The kids on my street. Substance abusers. Cross-dressers. Fugitives from the law. Paranoid schizophrenics playing PICTIONARY in group homes. St. Anne’s School. David Allen Flynn. Sydney Carton. Dickens’ A TALE OF TWO CITIES. Put it all in the blender. Add The Kinks, The Who and The Velvet Underground, and you’ve got ALL OF MY FRIENDS.” </p>
<p>ABOUT ROBERT WAGNER: Robert Wagner continues to perform at coffeehouses and small clubs. A Master’s Degree holder, Wagner also counsels abused, neglected, traumatized and court-adjudicated youth. He is the co-founder of The Calliope Acoustic Open Stage, an event that has lasted 15+ years. Wagner is also a long-term cancer survivor.</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/65549992021-02-21T21:12:49-05:002021-02-21T21:12:49-05:00BEHIND THE SONG--Another Substantial Interview<p><a contents="Click Here to read the interview with Robert at BEHIND THE SONG" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://www.behind-the-song.com/post/the-little-wretches?fbclid=IwAR2lHZ_xI8e8IWJdswnFbUp2OTEElRoGQ1KwzxMTquMusUr5tpC5HOzRKRM" target="_blank">Click Here to read the interview with Robert at BEHIND THE SONG</a></p>
<p>Behind the Song </p>
<p>9 min read </p>
<p><em>The Little Wretches </em></p>
<p><em>As Front-man and chief songwriter and lyricist for 80s/90s seminal Pittsburgh rock band, Little Wretches, Robert Wagner rode a wave of local notoriety that led the band to the forefront of the underground music scene. The Little Wretches were founded as a folk/punk band by Robert (guitar) and his brother, Chuckie (violin). The band had various lineups. Little Wrenches recorded two albums, with Angelo George playing drums and Jon Paul Leone playing guitar on a third. National press, attorneys, managers, and publicists came calling, as did life’s obligations, and the Little Wretches disbanded in the late 90s. Robert Wagner continues to perform at coffeehouses and small clubs. A Master’s Degree holder, Wagner also counsels abused, neglected, traumatized and court-adjudicated youth. He is the co-founder of The Calliope Acoustic Open Stage, an event that has lasted 15+ years. He has also recorded and released two new albums in 2020: Undesirables and Anarchists and Burning Lantern Dropped In Straw. </em></p>
<p><strong>For fans who have never heard your music, can you pick three words to describe it?! If three words just aren't enough then tell us more!! </strong></p>
<p>RED BEETS & HORSERADISH Red like the color of our blood. Beets like the life-sustaining edible roots we pull from the earth. "Ooh, but sometimes they taste like dirt." Yep, they do. A taste I've learned to love. Horseradish like a flavor that carries fire that may be too hot for some to handle. That's The Little Wretches. </p>
<p><strong>What is your favorite part about being an artist? Is it songwriting, performing, recording, something else?) Tell us why. </strong></p>
<p>That’s kind of like asking me what is my favorite part about breathing. It is so much a part of me, I don’t know any other way. One of the sensations that most sustains me, and the memories that I most often return to when I need sustenance, is the feeling of a oneness of spirit with the occasional person in the audience or fellow musician. </p>
<p>How do I explain this? The things that have made me who I am are often things you do not talk about in public, in polite society, things you mask and keep hidden. I walk around 99% of my life in a “normal” mask. In my songs, I have the liberty and responsibility to tell the truth. The Taste of Dirt. Thanks for Saving My Life. May You Never Be the Child of a Realist. These are songs that some find very moving, but they could very well wreck the party, too. </p>
<p>The people I wrote these songs for, I know they are out there. When I know that we have shared the spirit, that we have recognized each other through these songs, that feeling is my favorite part. Or when I’m performing for a new audience that doesn’t know me from Adam, and I watch from the stage as they all stop what they are doing and decide, “Hey, this guy is saying something I want to hear.” </p>
<p>It’s more than just an ego-thing. It’s a sharing of spirit. </p>
<p><strong>Can you tell us what being in the recording studio is like for you? </strong></p>
<p>First of all, TIME in a professional studio is exceedingly expensive, and I’ve been around since before the days of automated-mixing, back to when knobs and sliders had to be manually pushed, pulled and turned. I need to work fast, come in with a plan, and implement it. Doodling and “what if we tried this” or “I have a great idea”…That’s for rehearsals. When I get in the studio, it’s game time. </p>
<p>I’m a DIY artist, but I’ve spent so much time listening to bootlegs and unauthorized recordings made by fans with covert recording devices that I cannot trust my own ears. Plus, studio sound is so phenomenally good, so much better than what I am used to hearing, that it is disorienting. </p>
<p>I can’t have an engineer who says, “Do you prefer THIS or do you prefer THAT?” Either one sounds superior to what I am used to. I need an engineer I can trust to dial things into something resembling “industry standards.” </p>
<p>But the other thing I can’t stomach is when the playback doesn’t resemble what I played. That sound I’m hearing in the room when I’m recording the track? That’s the sound I want to hear on the tape. Why can’t you make my guitar sound like my guitar? Why can’t you make my voice sound like my voice? </p>
<p>Most time in the studio is wasted on set-up. You spend six hours getting yourself ready to record, then it’s time for the next band to come in. Nope. Once we get stuff dialed in, we’re recording it all and not stopping till the mission is accomplished. </p>
<p>Let’s say I’m doing a sixteen song project. I’m not recording one song at a time. I’m laying down the drums, bass and rhythm guitars on all sixteen songs in that first session. No way am I going to risk having to break down the gear and start all over again. </p>
<p>My formula is to get the drums, bass and electric rhythm guitars and maybe an electronic piano recorded live, maybe the amps in separate booths, but the players able to make eye-contact and follow visual cues. If time remains, double all the electric guitars with acoustic guitars before you finish, and leave with a rough mix. </p>
<p>Next session, lay down the lead vocals and instrumental solos. Next session after that, lay down the coloring, the background vocals, the percussion, the oohs and the aahs. </p>
<p>If you recorded it well, it mixes itself. Begin with the end in mind, as Stephen Covey says in the Seven Habits. People are going to like it or they are not. Your obsessive tweaks are not going to be what makes the difference. The soul and spirit of the music and performance is what is going to connect with the audience. </p>
<p><strong>Okay, this a fun question. When you are not doing music, what else do you enjoy doing? </strong></p>
<p>I’m a lifelong learner. My greatest love is learning about learning, understanding the process. Nobody had to teach you how to talk. Nobody had to teach you how to walk. The things that empower you and bring you freedom and fun, you learn how to do those things. Schooling can beat the love of learning out of kids in the school-setting, but in real life, all human beings are engineered by nature and God to be powerful learners. </p>
<p>My favorite things to learn about don’t cost me money, except maybe a tank of gas. I like to hike, to ride my bicycle on mountain roads and rails-to-trails systems. I like to exercise. There have been years of my life when I saw both the sunrise and the sunset every single day of the year. </p>
<p>In high school, a teacher I admired said Michelangelo was the last human being to possess all of the knowledge as yet acquired by his civilization. After him, there was simply too much information for one person to know. Well, I’ve taken that as a challenge. </p>
<p>A friend who is a great songwriter, Phil Harris, used to have a band called, “Experts on Everything.” I’ll never be an expert on everything, but I want that unified field theory, that theory of everything. I’m striving to know the mind of God, careful not to lean on my own understanding. </p>
<p>And did I mention I’m great with kids? </p>
<p><strong>Who do you admire most in the music scene today and why? </strong></p>
<p>I admire artists like Ian Hunter and Garland Jeffreys who’ve amassed a body of work that stands the test of time. They’ve weathered the ups and downs of the entertainment business, and their recent work, their “master” work, shall we say, is superior stuff. Ian Hunter and Garland Jeffreys. </p>
<p>Jonathan Richman is another one. A phenomenal body of work spanning styles and genres, but it’s always unmistakably Jonathan. And have you ever seen the movie, SEARCHING FOR BOBBY FISCHER? It’s about a kid who becomes a chess champion. It opens with him reading a school report about the life of Bobby Fischer. Well, I’m searching for Michelle Shocked. </p>
<p>Like Bobby Fischer, Michelle Shocked has kind of gone off the social-media grid. She is, for me, the artist with the most integrity and courage. I once heard her do a show that began with a set of previously unreleased material. Talk about challenging her audience. She said some controversial things on stage, things calculated to provoke, things calculated to outrage. It got her locked out and shut down. But Michelle Shocked is to contemporary folksingers what Lenny Bruce once was to standup comedians. Drugs and censorship took down Lenny Bruce. May Michelle Shocked someday come out of wherever she is and reclaim her throne. </p>
<p><strong>Can you tell us what song you've written that is the most emotional and describe the meaning behind it? </strong></p>
<p>A song that will be on the next album by The Little Wretches is called TIGER PAJAMAS. It is explicitly about my younger brother, co-founder of The Little Wretches, Charles John Wagner, also known as Chuck-O, also known as Chuckie and Chaz. The song speaks for itself. I ought to just recite the lyrics for you. </p>
<p>Chuckie was a few years behind me. When I was growing up, I was the favored son. I could do no wrong. I was good at school, good at sports, clearly held in higher esteem than my sister. It isn’t fair. My sister told me it was hard growing up with me as a brother. </p>
<p>But for Chuckie, by the time he was born, our parents’ marriage was a wreck. Each was spiraling into alcohol or substance-abuse. Both were workaholics, which was good because when they were home together, they’d get drunk and try to kill each other. </p>
<p>It was very hard for my brother. He never knew the love and security I’d known. Yes, I LOST it, but I knew what I’d lost. He never knew the feeling of love and security. </p>
<p>He was a wild kid, reckless, fearless, fun-loving. </p>
<p>It is widely known that I am a cancer-survivor. My brother attended an alternative high school down the street from the hospital I was in. I couldn’t eat when I was on chemo, so my brother would visit me on school days and eat my hospital lunches. Well, a decade later, it turns out that he got a form of cancer similar to what I got. But after having seen what I had gone through, instead of going to a surgeon to get a biopsy, he stole two-thousand dollars from my dad and ran off to Atlantic City to go on a cocaine-binge. </p>
<p>He was a gifted artist, a painter, a sculptor, a poet. Through the recommendation of his high school art teacher, Chuckie was given the opportunity to enter an arts program at Carnegie-Mellon University. CMU is an elite school with an extensive “good old boy” network. He’d have been set. But he passed on the opportunity. Why? God only knows. </p>
<p>Chuckie played violin and sang with The Little Wretches. He could sing Patti Smith note-for-note. He’d wait till I’d leave the house, then he’d blast HORSES or RADIO ETHIOPIA or EASTER at full-volume so he could sing out. </p>
<p>He died in a hospital in Florida, but there was a massive snowstorm up here in Pennsylvania, so there was no way to bury him properly. PLUS, the newspapers (remember newspapers?) were on strike. So a lot of people didn’t learn of my brother’s passing till long after he was gone. TIGER PAJAMAS doesn’t go into all that. It’s a very focused, tight portrait. Some people who have heard it have let me know it’s effective. Wait’ll you hear it. Emotional? I think you’ll find it so. </p>
<p><strong>Are you working on any new material right now or what's in the works for the upcoming year? </strong></p>
<p>The Little Wretches are in rehearsals to begin recording our next album, RED BEETS & HORSERADISH. There are some complications, though. I tested positive for Covid two days ago. I’m relatively asymptomatic, but I’m still locked down for another two weeks. </p>
<p>We can’t even hold live rehearsals. I’m running through the tunes in Zoom meetings one-on-one with Mike Madden, our drummer, and John Carson, our bassist. Rosa Colucci is going to do some singing and percussion. I have parts for strings and flutes, and hopefully, Steve Sciulli (or someone equally gifted) will be available. Gregg Bielski was working on some drum-programs, but he’s under a lot of pressure. Not sure how things will roll out. </p>
<p>The lockdowns and quarantines are the big variable. A lot of people are rightfully concerned about getting sick. Pray for me. I have no symptoms, but there is no guarantee any of us will wake up tomorrow. </p>
<p>I can’t stand sitting in front of a laptop and playing to the camera. I want to wake up in the morning thinking about where I’m playing tonight. </p>
<p>The material on RED BEETS & HORSERADISH is stuff I can play very well solo and also with accompanists or the full band. So I’m set to promote the album with live shows. I do not have a formal booking-agent. </p>
<p>At the moment, though, venues aren’t booking or they are making it clear that they are honoring LAST year’s bookings before doing anything new. Last year, I wasn’t on 115 radio stations and getting positive reviews all over the place. This year, I have something to build on. </p>
<p>So how can you help, you might ask? Find us. Follow us. Click like. Click share. Leave comments. Play our music for your friends. Download our stuff. Invite us to your town. I’ll play on your porch, your lawn, your stage, your yacht. Invite me to play. I’m there. </p>
<p>Remember what I told you. Red like the color of our blood. Beets like the life-sustaining edible roots we pull from the ground. Horseradish that burns like a fire. That’s The Little Wretches.</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/65549972021-02-21T21:07:33-05:002021-07-25T02:45:26-04:00COFFEE TALK WITH SANDRA<p><a contents="Click these words to go to YouTube to watch or listen to the conversation between Sandra and Robert" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?fbclid=IwAR1wkPpOHHI0QCFAYH92vM7EJ25_4KWJ1WlnkSXtwb3HhJbcv-tYjB18rb0&v=u1vausciQuI&feature=youtu.be" target="_blank">Click these words to go to YouTube to watch or listen to the conversation between Sandra and Robert</a></p>
<p>Robert made his second appearance on COFFEE TALK WITH SANDRA. Conversation ranged from education and homeschooling to parenting, testosterone, The Bill of Rights and US Constitution and who knows what else. </p>
<p> </p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/65549962021-02-21T21:03:24-05:002021-02-21T21:03:24-05:00PROPAGANDA about the release of ALL OF MY FRIENDS as a "single"<p><a contents="Click these words to go to WHICH COAST to read the propaganda about the single, ALL OF MY FRIENDS" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://www.whichcoast.com/reviews/the-little-wretches-all-of-my-friends?fbclid=IwAR3oHNGzDiNJWYZFqUlL-dWz6IgYlBUVKA0O8JWYfI15p9B8eJ8l6TuXUcE" target="_blank">Click these words to go to WHICH COAST to read the propaganda about the single, ALL OF MY FRIENDS</a></p>
<p>Feb 8 </p>
<p>Written By Which Coast </p>
<p>The Little Wretches is an American band from Pittsburgh formed by brothers Robert and Charles (Chuckie) Wagner. Through many different eras of the band - involving lineup changes where the sound would change - the group still stands strong, releasing high quality music Today we dive straight into Little Wretches’ track, “All of My Friends”, from their Undesirables and Anarchists album. </p>
<p>“All of My Friends” comes in at four minutes and thirty-six seconds. Instrumentally, the track fuses elements reminiscent of 90’s pop rock with a Violent Femmes-ish folk rock approach. Lyrically, the song comes through like a story with easily understood meaning. Throughout the song, we are treated to well-crafted moments of melody that make the track exceptionally enjoyable. My favorite parts of this track were the superb bassline and vocal harmonies; the harmonies especially served to carry the track forward and were richly enjoyable as someone who likes to listen to vocal interplay. </p>
<p>In summary, “All of My Friends” is a very strong and enjoyable track. In its folky nature, we find some of the band’s roots in terms of sound and I feel as though this track encapsulates a modernized sound that feels like a natural progression for a genre that the Violent Femmes made famous; The Little Wretches really own this sound and “All of My Friends” is a stirring track. You can find The Little Wretches on Facebook and their website with their music on Spotify. Check out “All of My Friends” embedded below!</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/65549942021-02-21T21:00:02-05:002021-09-14T07:29:47-04:00Rehearsals for New Album<p>Hanging on the door of Mike Madden's music room at his home in Washington, PA is a coyote pelt with a big, bushy tail and the-better-to-eat-you-with teeth.</p>
<p>May such wildness somehow make its way onto this record we're hoping to make.</p>
<p>Mike, John, Rosa and Bob managed to get together on two consecutive days to run through the songs, though Rosa wasn't physically present. It's amazing what you can do with a phone these days.</p>
<p>Some of the songs are a bit tricky, and the creative-process has a life of its own, each person taking in and processing the sounds through his or her own sensibilities and trying to create musical parts that feel right. But what feels right to you might conflict with the thing I was going to play. Hey, that doesn't work. Hey, how does that part go again. Wait, I thought it was A, D, then E. What's that chord? </p>
<p>Who knows. The plan to get the project done by Easter may not be realistic. One step at a time.</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/65419042021-02-07T09:48:28-05:002021-11-29T12:56:19-05:00A NEW SINGLE? A little write-up about ALL OF MY FRIENDS. <p><a contents="Click HERE to go to SKOPE MAGAZINE to read the review of the new single, ALL OF MY FRIENDS" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://skopemag.com/2021/02/06/new-single-by-little-wretches-all-my-friends" target="_blank">Click HERE to go to SKOPE MAGAZINE to read the review of the new single, ALL OF MY FRIENDS</a></p>
<p>A new single? What does that even mean? </p>
<p>When I was a kid, I’d hear a song on the radio, and the next time I’d go to South Hills Village Mall or Murphy’s Mart or The Lebanon Shops, if I had sufficient spare change in my pocket, I’d seek out the record department and buy the 7”, 45-rpm record. If I liked the song so much that I simply HAD to have it, I’d break down and ask my mom or dad for the money. </p>
<p>Albums were for grown ups. Singles were for kids. </p>
<p>I have no idea what “a single” is to today’s listeners. But here is what SKOPE says about ALL OF MY FRIENDS:</p>
<p><span class="font_large"><strong>New Single By Little Wretches “All My Friends” </strong></span></p>
<p>by Skope • February 6, 2021 </p>
<p>Little Wretches offers a poignant piece of beautiful balladry on the bombastic “All My Friends”. Giddy with energy they race through the track length with gleeful abandon. Instrumentally dense they incorporate so much into the mix. Nods to groups like the Decemberists feels perhaps unavoidable for they possess that same level of skill with storytelling. Best of all, the interplay amongst the bandmembers has a joy to it, for they each listen to each other resulting in a vast sea of sound, one easy to get lost in. </p>
<p><a contents="Click here to listen to the song at SPOTIFY" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://open.spotify.com/track/3fySs1DuHpSMKSwOtlsFvV" target="_blank">Click here to listen to the song at SPOTIFY</a></p>
<p>Right from the beginning the song virtually bursts at the seams. Layer upon layer comes into the fray resulting in an energetic, lively approach. By incorporating so many styles they bring up pieces of folk, chamber pop, classical, and rock all into their own worldview. The lyrical flow feels wonderful for they make sure to hold absolutely nothing back as it all cascades into a wonderful churning sea of sound from which it is impossible to escape. Nor why would anybody, for the way they draw the listener into their own careful universe has such a complexity to it, for the melodies and the rhythms move in unison to deliver something straight from the very soul. Such depth reigns supreme for they offer a vision that is so pastoral in its lovely kind spirit. </p>
<p>“All My Friends” shows off Little Wretches’ deft skill for they sculpt a distinct world that feels uniquely their own.</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/65419032021-02-07T09:37:10-05:002023-12-10T11:32:54-05:00KIND WORDS FROM A FRIEND<p>I saw OUT OF THE FURNACE something like eight times, Jack Erdie up there on the Big Screen with heavyweights like Sam Shepard, Christian Bale, Forest Whitaker, Woody Harrelson, Willem Dafoe, Casey Affleck, appearing to be every bit their equal. </p>
<p>But I became friends with Jack Erdie through contact with his music. </p>
<p>WHEN THE HURRICANE HIT, PUMPKIN and MYSTERY SANDWICH—those are his album titles. When I get a chance to hear him, I almost always request “Battered Umbrella.” “Speed of Darkness.” “I’m a Walker.” “Let Their Heads Roll.” </p>
<p>The new album The Little Wretches are working on (if a lot of things go right) will close with a version of Jack’s RISE combined with an old hymn, called, “SWANAGE.” </p>
<p>I tagged Jack Erdie in a Facebook post recently, and this is what he wrote: </p>
<p>“As far as I'm concerned, Robert A. Wagner is Pittsburgh's musical poet laureate. Punk, roots and rock in the most authentic sense. His body of work contains the aspirations, toil, triumphs, bittersweet revelations, disillusionment and not a little of the mystery of humanity, of the folk. </p>
<p>I've done interviews and come away embarrassed at my meandering and lack of meaningful focus. THIS is a primer for how serious artists ought to conduct themselves in an interview. Robert's responses are as lucid, evocative, honest and occasionally discomfiting as his songs. </p>
<p>For me, Robert's words in this interview blaze off the page with all the startling immediacy, candor and urgency of a poet caught up in the life and death struggle of some resistance against the hostile takeover of his homeland. </p>
<p>He has earned a much wider listening audience. And some of them have earned his music. But he's put it out there for everybody, like the salvation in which I know him to believe. </p>
<p>Please give him a read and a listen. And may his music be the motivational challenge, nourishment and mirror for you that it has been for me.”</p>
<p>Thank you, my friend.</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/65347902021-01-30T06:44:41-05:002022-02-21T05:57:59-05:00"MUSIC SAVED MY LIFE. MAYBE MINE WILL SAVE SOMEONE ELSE'S"<p><a contents="http://jamsphere.com/twentyquestions/interview-robert-wagner-music-saved-my-life-maybe-mine-will-save-someone-elses" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="http://jamsphere.com/twentyquestions/interview-robert-wagner-music-saved-my-life-maybe-mine-will-save-someone-elses" target="_blank">CLICK HERE to visit JAMSPHERE and read the "Twenty Questions" interview with Robert about THE LITTLE WRETCHES</a></p>
<p>Jamsphere. Twenty Questions. Some, I’ve answered a few times, but I try to avoid letting this stuff turn into shtick. I put some thought and care into these answers. Hopefully, it will matter to someone. </p>
<p><strong>INTERVIEW: Robert Wagner – “Music saved my life. Maybe mine will save someone else’s.” </strong></p>
<p><strong>Posted By: Rick JammPosted date: January 29, 2021</strong> </p>
<p>As frontman and chief songwriter/lyricist for 80s/90s seminal Pittsburgh rock band, Little Wretches, Robert Wagner rode a wave of local notoriety that led the band to the forefront of the underground music scene. The Little Wretches were founded as a folk/punk band by Robert (guitar) and his brother, Chuckie (violin). The “classic” Mach 2 era of Little Wretches included Ed Heidel (bass), Chris Bruckhoff (percussion, wind instruments, backing vocals) and Bob Goetz (guitar), rounded out by Dave Mitchell (drums), Mike Michalski (bass) and Ellen Hildebrand (electric guitar.) This rock edition of the band performed regularly and helped the band build its massive following in Pittsburgh. Michalski, Mitchell and Chuckie Wagner left the band, effectively ending. </p>
<p>Mach 3 began with the addition of David Losi (keyboards) and Mike Madden (drums.) When Madden couldn’t tour, drum programmer Gregg Bielski took over. When Ellen switched to bass guitar, this version of The Little Wretches entered the studio. They recorded two albums, with Angelo George playing drums and Jon Paul Leone playing guitar on a third. National press, attorneys, managers, and publicists came calling, as did life’s obligations, and the Little Wretches disbanded in the late 90s.Robert Wagner continues to perform at coffeehouses and small clubs. A Master’s Degree holder, Wagner also counsels abused, neglected, traumatized and court-adjudicated youth. He is the co-founder of The Calliope Acoustic Open Stage, an event that has lasted 15+ years. He has also recorded and released two new albums in 2020: Undesirables and Anarchists and Burning Lantern Dropped In Straw. </p>
<p><strong>Can you tell us a little bit about where you come from and how you got started making music? </strong></p>
<p>Robert Andrew Wagner: I represent the Eighth Most Important City in the History of the World—PITTSBURGH, Pennsylvania. Historians and anthropologists debate the top seven, a lot of controversy there, you know, Jerusalem, Athens, Rome. </p>
<p>That academic community, they get into some contentious spats over the topic, but the weird thing is that there is consensus on Pittsburgh’s position. It is universally agreed that Pittsburgh is the eighth most important city in the history of the world, and I’m proud to be able to say that I grew up in a housing plan on a hill above a long-closed coal mine outside of Pittsburgh. </p>
<p>The Lewis and Clark Expedition. The French and Indian War. The Whiskey Rebellion. The Pittsburgh Crawfords. The Homestead Grays. Carnegie Steel. George Westinghouse. KDKA Radio. Billy Strayhorn. August Wilson. Billy Conn. Gene Kelly. The Little Wretches. Need I continue? </p>
<p>I started making music by taking scraps of plywood, pieces of two-by-fours, tacks and rubber bands and trying to make a guitar. My ninth birthday present was a Harmony acoustic guitar and a guitar-lesson, and my thirteenth birthday present was a Gibson Melody Maker that cost my mom fifty dollars. I play that guitar to this day. </p>
<p>Flash forward. </p>
<p>When I was in college, I was diagnosed with what was at the time a deadly form of cancer. I was lucky to be under the care of Doctors Samuel Jacobs and Ronald Stoller, two guys in tune with the latest research. They got me onto an experimental chemotherapy regimen that proved to be successful. </p>
<p>All I had ever wanted to do was write and play music. Imagine having to face eternity with the knowledge that you hadn’t pursued your greatest love. </p>
<p>John Creighton, my best friend and roommate, visited me every single day while I was in the hospital. We’d become friends through radical politics, but it turned out that he was the best musician I would ever know. One night, we looked at each other and said, “We need to start a band.” </p>
<p><strong>Have you had formal training or are you self-taught? </strong></p>
<p>Robert Andrew Wagner: I don’t think there is such a thing as formal training for what I do. I took guitar lessons. For writing, I went to the University of Pittsburgh, a school with a powerful writing program. In that regard, I learned how to critique myself. I learned the protocols of practice, revision, woodshedding, workshopping, that kind of thing. </p>
<p>The band that John Creighton and I started, NO SHELTER, was kind of like an apprenticeship without a master. It was an apprenticeship based on self-directed learning. When I finally came to understand what I’m good at, what I’m capable of, I started The Little Wretches. </p>
<p>The Little Wretches, though, has always been a very “outsider” type of thing, and the keys to our success as a band and my personal success has more to do with survival skills than with instruction. Refusing to quit. Belief. Faith. Grit. Perseverance. </p>
<p>Dave Losi sings a song on our BEYOND THE STORMY BLAST album called FIVE TROUBLE. He quotes an inscription from the Wright Brothers Memorial in Kill Devil Hills, “Dauntless Resolution and Unconquerable Faith.” </p>
<p>Ain’t nobody I know can give lessons on dauntless resolution and unconquerable faith. I can’t even claim to be self-taught. Where that comes from, who knows? But I thank God for it. </p>
<p><strong>Who were your first and strongest musical influences that you can remember? </strong></p>
<p>Robert Andrew Wagner: Me, my sister, and our cousins, were very close. We spent a lot of time in each other’s homes, and our playrooms always included a little turntable and boxes of 45 rpm records. We were always listening to music. </p>
<p>We listened to The Beatles. The Monkees. Petula Clark. The Mills Brothers. Herb Alpert and the Tijuana Brass. The Platters. Tom Jones. Glen Campbell. Lawrence Welk. Johnny Cash. Hee Haw. The Smothers Brothers. The Ames Brothers. The Sons of the Pioneers. The Doors. The Beach Boys. The Hollies. The Kinks. The Sonny and Cher Show. The Sound of Music. South Pacific. Jimmy Pol’s Polka Party. Nat King Cole. Perry Como. Dean Martin. Dolly Parton and Porter Wagoner. Simon and Garfunkel. </p>
<p>For us, music was beyond genre, beyond generation. Catchy beats. Catchy melodies. Memorable lyrics. </p>
<p><strong>What do you feel are the key elements in your music that should resonate with listeners? </strong></p>
<p>Robert Andrew Wagner: I can’t allow myself to think about that. Obviously, I have no idea what resonates with listeners. I know what resonates with me. </p>
<p>I don’t want to alienate or freak people out, but I hate when church-people and artists use the language of marketing and sales, but I attended a “purpose-finding” seminar led by Reverend John Stanko, and he suggested that people should have a “personal mission statement.” You know how nonprofits have mission statements? He suggested that we do the same. </p>
<p>Over the years, I’ve come up with three. </p>
<p>Number one is from Lou Reed, “I’ll be your mirror, reflect what you are, in case you don’t know.” That line should be every artist’s mission statement. I want you to see yourself in my songs. Maybe that will resonate. </p>
<p>Another comes from Ian Hunter, “I want to weave you in words, I want to paint you in verse, I want to leave you in someone else’s dreams.” I want my songs to create characters so impactful that you feel like you have known them all your life. I want you to wake up thinking about somebody, and the more you think about it, you realize that person you were dreaming about was someone from one of my songs. Maybe that will resonate. </p>
<p>Lastly, I came across this line from the Prophet Isaiah, “The Lord God has given me the tongue of a teacher that I may be able to speak a word in season to him that is weary.” I want those who are weary to hear my songs and know that they are not alone. And knowing they are not alone will give them renewed strength, grit. </p>
<p>Look, I want to have a hit as much as any other songwriter, but mostly I want to reach those desperately broken people who, like me, have had their lives saved through music. Music saved my life. Maybe mine will save someone else’s. </p>
<p><strong>For most artists, originality is first preceded by a phase of learning and, often, emulating others. What was this like for you? How would you describe your own development as an artist and music maker, and the transition towards your own style? </strong></p>
<p>Robert Andrew Wagner: I didn’t have sufficient musical or social skills to emulate anybody. I was a loner. I wasn’t good enough to be in a cover band. I got the whole process backwards. Eventually, I got good enough to interpret other peoples’ songs by writing and playing my own. </p>
<p>I understand what you’re asking though. </p>
<p>When I was fifteen, living in a room above my grandmother’s garage (she called it “the cold room), I used to scribble lyrics in pencil on a piece of cardboard. I didn’t even have paper. And I’d make little notes that this section should be sung in the voice of Marc Bolan of T. Rex, another section in the voice of John Lennon, another section in the voice of Bowie from the HUNKY DORY album. </p>
<p>When I heard Lou Reed, Bob Dylan and Patti Smith, it wasn’t that I wanted to emulate them as much as I recognized that it is indeed possible for someone like me to sing in a rock’n’roll band. If they can do it, so can I. </p>
<p>In my corner of the Punk scene, emulating people was anathema. Find your own voice. Create your own vehicle. The Little Wretches was my vehicle. </p>
<p>Fast forward. I’m singing in a rock’n’roll band, but I keep feeling like I’m not getting my point across. Whatever I’m doing is getting swallowed up in the noise. I’m a conversational lyricist singing through p.a. systems set up for screaming hardcore singers. People can’t understand a word I’m saying. </p>
<p>How can I make music that rocks but also gets my story across? Jonathan Richman. Michelle Shocked. Peter Himmelman. The earliest version of The Little Wretches was modeled after Jonathan Richman from his “Jonathan Sings.” After seeing Michelle Shocked and Peter Himmelman, I had a model for doing solo-shows and acoustic shows. </p>
<p><strong>What’s your view on the role and function of music as political, cultural, spiritual, and/or social vehicles – and do you affront any of these themes in your work, or are you purely interested in music as an expression of technical artistry, personal narrative and entertainment? </strong></p>
<p>Robert Andrew Wagner: I have a background in radical political activism also religious evangelism. The bad news is that they are identical in their psychology. The browbeating. The guilt. The Us-versus-Them scenario. Marxism is Catholicism. The REVOLUTION is HEAVEN. The Maoist practice of Criticism/Self-Criticism is the Catholic sacrament of Reconciliation. </p>
<p>I love hymns. I love Pete Seeger, Woody Guthrie and Phil Ochs, but otherwise, I absolutely DETEST “message” music. I absolutely DETEST the practice of preaching to the already converted. I absolutely DETEST the practice of telling people what they already believe. In the church, there is a place for praise-and-worship music. In politics, there is a place for propaganda and agitation around specific issues. I get it. But call it for what it is. It is praise-and-worship. It is agit-prop. It is the art of rhetoric, but it is not the art of poetry, music or songwriting. </p>
<p>Your real message is the way you live your life. </p>
<p>I detest the arrogance of people who think they are engaging in “consciousness-raising.” Who are YOU to think YOUR CONSCIOUSNESS is higher than MINE? What makes you think so highly of yourself? What makes you think you are enlightened and others are in the dark? </p>
<p>That being said, I am a teacher. In my tradition, we teach through stories. I tell stories through songs. I have a master’s degree in Instruction and Learning. I am a proponent of self-directed learning, voluntary learning, non-compulsory learning, unschooling. I understand that what I think I am teaching may have nothing at all to do with what you are learning. </p>
<p>I ain’t no preacher. I ain’t selling you nothing. I ain’t trying to convince you of anything. But I am trying to act in accordance with my beliefs. </p>
<p>I believe that eternity exists, God is good, and life is precious. In my tradition, we believe that people are made in the image of God. In my songs, I try to honor my father and mother, to love my neighbor as myself, and to reflect as honestly as I can the lives of the people I love. And in the process, I sometimes put the spotlight on things the religious and political activists would rather you not notice. </p>
<p><strong>Do you ever specifically write a song with musical trends, formulas or listener satisfaction in mind, or do you simply focus on your own personal vision and trust that it will be appreciated by a specific audience? </strong></p>
<p>Robert Andrew Wagner: I’m from Pittsburgh. In my lifetime, we’ve always been five to seven years behind the trends. Trend-chasing is futile in Pittsburgh unless you enjoy being a big fish in a small pond. </p>
<p>I look at what is timeless, what is enduring. </p>
<p>I study the form. Think of it as the “grammar” of song. There is an aesthetic, a sensibility, a feeling that this belongs but that doesn’t belong, a sense of proportion, a sense that if we get it right, it will sound timeless. That’s what I want—music that will sound fresh twenty years from now. And if you listen to stuff I recorded twenty years ago, you will concede that I was successful. </p>
<p>But I also focus on being productive. What can I create with the tools at my disposal? What if I don’t have the ingredients the recipe calls for? What? Should I go hungry? No. I will figure out how to make something tasty with the ingredients I have. </p>
<p>Let’s face it. For most people, music is like a cigarette, a cup of coffee, a blunt or a beer. People use music to regulate their moods. That’s the brutal truth. It’s a self-medicating feel-good culture. </p>
<p>But where I’m from and what I’ve been through, your drugs don’t work on me. Your feel-good music makes me feel bad. Your uplifting music leaves me feeling like an ugly freak of nature because it doesn’t lift me up, it beats me down. </p>
<p>If you’re a musician, you have to choose. You’re either a healer or a dealer. And even if you think you’re a healer – that which can heal can also be abused. </p>
<p>So if my answer hasn’t been sufficiently evasive, let me add one more level of weirdness. There’s a story in the Bible about disciples being sent out to spread the message. “But what are we supposed to say?” Don’t worry what you’re supposed to say. When it’s time for you to speak, the words will be given to you. </p>
<p>So I guess the short answer is that I write for a very specific, highly critical and discerning audience that exists only in my imagination. I’m striving for an ideal. When I get close to it, it doesn’t much matter to me how people respond. It’s like watching gymnastics in the Olympics. I know when I nailed it. I know when I stuck the landing. </p>
<p><strong>Could you describe your creative processes? How do you most often start, and go about shaping ideas into a completed musical piece? Do you usually start with a beat, a narrative in your head, or a melody? </strong></p>
<p>Robert Andrew Wagner: I’ve got a wheel over here. I’ve got something that might serve as an axle over there. Here’s a gear. There’s a lever. I use the analogy of the songs being vehicles. I suppose the world is my junkyard, and I find pieces of machinery everywhere. </p>
<p>The truth is, I rarely have the tools I need to articulate what exists in my imagination. I modify what I imagine to the design made possible by my resources. </p>
<p>I may start with a lyric or a chord-pattern, or a bass-line, or a melody. </p>
<p>This is going to sound nasty, but when I’m listening to my peers, I ask, “If that idea had occurred to me, what would I have done with it?” Often, forgive me, I say, “If I’d have had that idea, I’d have discarded it.” </p>
<p>I don’t know where the ideas come from. And yes, I have on occasion sat down thinking, “I need to write a song,” but nothing is there. And other times, the ideas just flow, and songs emerge in almost finished form. </p>
<p><strong>What has been the most difficult thing you’ve had to endure in your musical career, or life, so far? And how did you overcome that event? </strong></p>
<p>Robert Andrew Wagner: I’ve often had the feeling that I’m running out of time, that there is something I am meant to do, haven’t done it yet, and what if I don’t accomplish whatever it is? </p>
<p>I was an abandoned kid. So I have trust and attachment issues, shall we say. Then to compound that, I know a lot of dead people. You don’t want to hear the list. </p>
<p>I mentioned earlier that before John Creighton and I started No Shelter, I was diagnosed with cancer. My mom, the mom who’d abandoned me and had not seen me in years, learned of my condition and came to see me every single day in the hospital. She spent 24-hours a day running from hospital to hospital, caring for loved ones, totally selfless. I’d been so angry with her and felt like I needed to punish her. No matter what she did to let me know that she loved me, I had to brush it off and extract my pound of flesh. </p>
<p>Unless it served me somehow. For example, she invited No Shelter to use her garage as a practice space. She came to our first gig, got embarrassingly drunk, and I think I saw her one more time before she died later that summer. We’ll never know for sure if it was suicide, murder or an accidental death. </p>
<p>I coped with it mainly through denial. I’d tell myself that every day was just like any other day, and this would be one of those days in which I wouldn’t see my mother. And tomorrow would be another one of those days. And the day after that. </p>
<p>That’s the pattern of my life. And I’ve lost a lot of people. It’s one of the reasons I have a good memory. As I’m experiencing something, I’m not really feeling anything. I’m observing myself, storing away all the sensations to be processed later. I need a lot of alone-time for processing. And some experiences, I’ll stash them away for months and years before allowing myself to feel them. </p>
<p>It can make for some pretty powerful songs, all that pent up sensation. Your readers are going to find this all kind of heavy and ponderous, but for me it’s just a fact of life. </p>
<p>The most difficult thing for me to endure is that the experiences that have made me who and what I am are experiences that are not polite to talk about, experiences that sometimes make others uncomfortable. So I have to choose between being who I am or walking around in some kind of disguise, pretending to be just another person, just like you. But I ain’t just like you. </p>
<p>I haven’t overcome anything. I’ve endured and pushed forward. Put your shoulder to the plough and don’t look back. </p>
<p><strong>On the other hand what would you consider a successful, proud or significant point in your career so far? </strong></p>
<p>Robert Andrew Wagner: Well, what I just told you IS my most successful thing. The unity of opposites. I try to put my shoulder to the plough and don’t look back. The people I’ve lost, I try to honor them through my songs. </p>
<p>I was talking earlier about mission statements. I quoted Lou Reed, “I’ll be your mirror, reflect what you are.” The thing about images and reflections is that every picture needs a frame and every story needs a context. </p>
<p>What is my context? I feel like I exist in some kind of anomaly of time. Eternity is unfathomable, but I’m trying to see things from the point of view of eternity. John, Ed, Chuckie, David, my mom, my dad, my grandmother, the people I’ve lost, remember what I said about denial? It’s like they’re not really gone. They’re here with me at all times. Kinda deep. I hope it isn’t too creepy for you. </p>
<p><strong>How would you describe the sound and style of your project “Undesirables & Anarchists” to any potential new fan? </strong></p>
<p>Robert Andrew Wagner: I’m surprised and flattered by what has been written about UNDESIRABLES & ANARCHISTS. Today, I saw a review that compared The Little Wretches to The Who. It said one of our songs sounded like a long-lost classic. </p>
<p>We’re generally called “folk rock,” but we sound nothing like what you hear on your public-radio Sunday morning folk show. Nothing against Puff, the Magic Dragon, but I got no time for Peter, Paul and Mary. The Little Wretches are as folk as a Lomax field-recording. We are telling the stories of our people. Real rap, as they used to say. </p>
<p>One person said we sounded like a cross between The Clash and The B-52s. A few folks have tossed around Paul Westerberg’s name. Mott the Hoople. </p>
<p>UNDESIRABLES & ANARCHISTS was pretty much a live-recording. But on our next album, I’m going to be playing mostly acoustic guitar. </p>
<p>It’s possible that new fans will be disappointed when they dig into our catalogue and discover that our albums have such a wide range of sounds and styles. Oh, well. </p>
<p>But what I really think will happen is that a few people will dip into the catalogue and, over time, find themselves acquiring everything we’ve ever done. </p>
<p>As a fan, that’s how I am. I have everything ever done by my favorite artists. </p>
<p><strong>Where did the original idea and inspiration behind the compilation of “Undesirables & Anarchists” come from, and is there an overarching theme and message you’re trying to send out via the project? </strong></p>
<p>Robert Andrew Wagner: The title comes from the song, ALL OF MY FRIENDS, the lines, “All of my friends are on somebody’s list of undesirables and anarchists / It’s not even safe to admit that you’re one of my friends.” So far in this interview, I’ve said a lot about my life, my beliefs, but I think I also said that what people hear may have nothing at all to do with what I think I am saying. </p>
<p>It’s not like we started with a title or a theme and built around it. We started with a batch of songs that seemed to form a coherent whole. It sounded right. It felt right. After the fact, we can look at it, examine it, and see how and why the pieces work together. </p>
<p>I’ve got a background story for every line of every song. But that’s just a conceit for me. For you, who knows? I wish I knew what it would be like to hear this album for the first time. </p>
<p>But picking it apart now, I see how the songs are consistent with the name of the band. We’re The Little Wretches, right? As in, “Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound, to save a wretch like me.” As in The Beatitudes, “Blessed are the meek, the poor in spirit, the reviled and persecuted.” As in wandering all night in a rat’s maze of roads because they’re fighting at home. As in, “If this is good enough for everybody else, how come I feel so defiled?” </p>
<p>“Carving a niche between the dust and the ether.” That’s us. That’s The Little Wretches. We ain’t got a home in this world. We didn’t choose it. We didn’t ask for it. That’s just the way it is. </p>
<p>The songs are loaded with faith, grace, and hope. </p>
<p><strong>Did you use any particular sounds and/or recording techniques on these songs, and what were the main compositional, performance or production challenges you came across in completing this recording? </strong></p>
<p>Robert Andrew Wagner: We won a small amount of studio time for participating in an event that I will not mention that was sponsored by a number of recording studios in the Pittsburgh-area. I made appointments with the studios. </p>
<p>I had never met Dave Granati, the owner of the studio, but I liked him immediately. He and his brothers had toured as the opening act for Van Halen, for crying out loud. I explained to Dave how I like to work, and he got it immediately. </p>
<p>See, when you go into a studio, it takes an eternity to tweak the sounds. You spend six hours setting up, then you do some recording, then you gotta tear down for the next band to come in. Next session, six more hours of set up. </p>
<p>My thing is, once you got the stuff set up, once you got the sound you’re looking for, KILL IT. GO FOR IT. DO IT. The Beatles recorded two years’ worth of releases in one big session. Dylan. </p>
<p>Record the rhythm tracks live. Overdub the vocals. Double the electric guitars with acoustic guitars. Lay down the solos. Lay down the percussion. If you played it right, it mixes itself. </p>
<p>Dave Granati grasped the concept. If he was skeptical, he didn’t let it show. He said that if we could record without a headphone mix, just set up like a live show, he could be recording us by the time we were finished setting up. </p>
<p>Most studios mic each piece of the drum kit separately and spend hours pound-pound-pound, tap-tap-tap. Dave started with the room sound. He used overhead mics. Yes, he put a mic on each drum and each amp, but he used those mics to fill out and lend definition to the sound. Mostly, he captured a very hot band playing exactly the way it played live. </p>
<p>We intended to “punch-in” to correct mistakes. But we didn’t make any mistakes. We may never again play as well. </p>
<p><strong>Where do you record, produce and master most of your work? And do you outsource any of these processes or are you totally self-sufficient? </strong></p>
<p>Robert Andrew Wagner: Gregg Bielski, former member of The Little Wretches and an incredibly prolific noise, ambient and industrial artist, pointed me to Tom Dimuzio for mastering. Tom’s company is called Gench. I’ve heard Tom as a “noise artist” at places like the Philadelphia Museum of Art. Tom had seen and heard The Little Wretches in the very early days. He’s just one of those amazing people that we were fortunate to be able to work with. </p>
<p>I can make demos at home, but I’ve spent so much time listening to bootlegs and unauthorized recordings that I don’t trust myself. I work very fast, and I need to be able to trust a highly competent engineer to dial us into something in the ballpark of industry standards. And in my haste, every now and then, I need someone to say, “I know you can do better. Please do another take.” </p>
<p>I recorded a lot at Gregg Vizza’s Audiomation in Pittsburgh, but Audiomation isn’t around anymore. I did a few projects with Tom Hitt at Cycling Troll Studio in Erie. (Tom is in Idaho now. Tom’s brother, Jay Hitt, is one of my three favorite songwriters.) Rosa Colucci and I did WHEN IT SNOWS at Complex Variables, Michael Ketter’s studio, but Michael is in eternity now. </p>
<p>For the project we’re getting ready to undertake, we may go back to Dave Granati. Maybe not. Depends on how our rehearsals unfold. </p>
<p><strong>How essential do you think video and visual media is, in relation to your songs, and music in general? And do you have a video you’d like to suggest to fans watch? </strong></p>
<p>Robert Andrew Wagner: Are you trying to hurt my feelings? I’ve been able to recruit great musicians to play with The Little Wretches, but we’re totally lacking when it comes to video. These professional visual artists are such mercenaries. We used to have to spend as much on the artwork as we spent on the recording. We released one album without a cover, the eponymously titled THE LITTLE WRETCHES, a.k.a “The Nude Album.” </p>
<p>I am NOT a visual artist. I hate bad videos. I hate stupid videos. I hate band photos. But I appreciate beautiful imagery. I appreciate striking imagery. I appreciate montage and editing. Eisenstein. Vertov. Alekan. Orson Welles. Spike Lee. </p>
<p>PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE. If you are or know of a talented filmmaker who does with the camera what we do with songs, send that person our way. </p>
<p>Our songs are cinematic. We NEED a real filmmaker. We need a down-and dirty, bubblegum and cellphone-wielding kid with something to prove. Or Spike Lee. </p>
<p>That being said, if you go on YouTube and do a search for The Little Wretches, there are some very good live shows. Chuck Parish used to set up a video camera at gigs. I didn’t understand the value of what he was doing at the time, but I am now so grateful he captured that stuff. The Little Wretches at The Decade. The Little Wretches at Moondog’s. The Little Wretches at the El Dorado. One stationary camera, like a Warhol film. </p>
<p><strong>Do you have a favorite motto, phrase or piece of advice, you try to live or inspire yourself by? </strong></p>
<p>Robert Andrew Wagner: Ouch. Now that you’re putting me on the spot, I can’t think of any. </p>
<p>Peter Fonda’s Captain America in EASY RIDER, “You do your own thing in your own time. You should be proud.” </p>
<p>The Rolling Stones’ Ruby Tuesday, “Lose your dreams and you will lose your mind. </p>
<p>Popeye the Sailor Man, “I yam what I yam.” </p>
<p>Romans, 8:31, “If God is for us, who can be against us?” </p>
<p>Viv Savage in THIS IS SPINAL TAP, “Have a good time ALL the time.” </p>
<p><strong>Studio work and music creation, or performing and interacting with a live audience, which do you prefer? </strong></p>
<p>Robert Andrew Wagner: LIVE. I wanna play in your living room. I wanna play on your porch. I wanna sit on your bedroom floor and play for you. I want to come to your town, your church, your school, your abandoned warehouse, your folk club, your punk club, your gallery. </p>
<p>I might say otherwise if I could step outside of time and space and get John Creighton, Dave Losi, Ellen Hildebrand, Ed Heidel, Chuck Wagner, Rosa Colucci and Jon Paul Leone together with unlimited studio time. Put Mike Madden behind the drum kit. Have David Flynn mixing the drinks. Mark Pinto and Gregg Bielski in the next room with portable cassette recorders. </p>
<p><strong>If the name ‘Robert Wagner’ came up in a conversation among music fans, alongside which other artists would most you like to be associated with in that conversation? </strong></p>
<p>Robert Andrew Wagner: Steve Earle. Phil Ochs. Ray Davies. The Dream Syndicate. Ian Hunter. Ray Wylie Hubbard. And my homies, Jack Erdie, Jay Hitt and Nate Gates. </p>
<p><strong>Do you have a personal favorite track amongst your compositions that has a specific backstory and/or message and meaning very special to you? </strong></p>
<p>Robert Wagner: I have quite a few, actually, and several of them are going to be on RED BEETS & HORSERADISH, the album we’re getting ready to record. The songs generally involve characters that are old, crazy, sick, but full of humor, grit and resilience. </p>
<p>I have a song called DUQUESNE. My mother graduated from Duquesne High School. Every corner in Duquesne is occupied by a building that used to be a church, each for a different ethnicity. When the steel industry in the region closed, everybody in Duquesne who could afford to relocate moved to greener pastures. The people who remained were either too sick, too poor or too stubborn to leave. Those, and the predators who know how to siphon money from the sick, poor and stubborn. </p>
<p>No Shelter performed a version of DUQUESNE at our very first show, and I’ve been revising and reworking the song all of my adult life. </p>
<p>The narrator slips back and forth from the third to the first person. The central character is a retired woman, an immigrant from what had been known as Czechoslovakia. She lives in Duquesne but still gets up and rides the bus into downtown Pittsburgh every day as though she still has a job. Instead of going to work, she sits in a church all day, then takes the bus home. A portrait. A character-study. A landscape. A lot of history and life embedded in a song. </p>
<p><strong>What do you find most rewarding about what you do? And do you have a specific vision or goal set in your mind that you would like to achieve in the near future? </strong></p>
<p>Robert Andrew Wagner: When I was a kid, I heard a song called “DOMINIQUE” sung in French by “The Singing Nun.” The English translation said, “Never asking for reward, he just talks about the Lord.” I suppose I took the song too literally. Somehow, it processed in my young mind as, “It is wrong to ask for reward.” Kind of like the Christmas carol, The Little Drummer Boy. The only gift I have to offer you is this. Please, let me play for you. </p>
<p>Doesn’t that sound so arrogantly lofty and pompous. Don’t you think you’re something, too good to think about rewards. Punk. Get real about yourself. But really, all I want is to wake up in the morning, thinking about where I am playing tonight. I have a lifetime of really good songs, and a whole world full of people that haven’t heard me. </p>
<p>So. What stands between me and that goal? I could use a good filmmaker. I need a booking agent. What I need to do, I cannot do alone. I dig it. There are artists who cut out the middle man and manage themselves, book themselves, the whole deal. And every penny they earn, they get to keep. That isn’t me. </p>
<p>The cool thing is that I know there are people that I haven’t met yet who will play pivotal roles in the story I’ve yet to live. A lot to be thankful for, and a lot to look forward to.</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/65312822021-01-26T18:24:49-05:002021-01-26T18:24:49-05:00"A LONG-LOST CLASSIC"--Skope Magazine<p><a contents="Click these words to follow the link to Skope Magazine's review of The Little Wretches' THE BALLAD OF JOHNNY BLOWTORCH" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://skopemag.com/2021/01/25/new-single-by-little-wretches-ballad-of-johnny-blowtorch" target="_blank">Click these words to follow the link to Skope Magazine's review of The Little Wretches' THE BALLAD OF JOHNNY BLOWTORCH</a></p>
<p>The unnamed reviewer says The Ballad of Johnny Blowtorch sounds like a long-lost classic. I wonder if (s)he is alluding to the line, "To be famous as a martyr for a long-lost cause." Very cool. You have to know the song pretty well to make an allusion like that. (S)he mentions The Who, a band that I love, but I was thinking more of The Kinks. (You may know that The Who emulated the style of The Kinks on a few occasions.) </p>
<p>The Little Wretches have two tunes that are outright attempts at building a song around a riff that might have been played by The Kinks. The other is IT WAS OVER LIKE THAT from JUST ANOTHER NAIL IN MY COFFIN. Now, there may be some overprotective Kinks Kultists out there who will find a way to take offense at the comparison. </p>
<p>Comparisons can be deadly. I've often been compared to Lou Reed, but as a Lou Reed fan I know that people who seek out Reed-ish material are likely to be disappointed in The Little Wretches. Looking for Lou? You ain't gonna find him here.</p>
<p>On the other hand, I wish more people saw the Ray Davies connection. What Ray is doing on his AMERICANA album and its Part II is much like I'll be doing on RED BEETS & HORSERADISH, the album we are rehearsing right now. </p>
<p>Anyhow, much thanks to the person who wrote this review at Skope. The Who? That's a quite a comparison. Know any who fans? Know any fans of The Kinks? Tell 'em about UNDESIRABLES & ANARCHISTS.</p>
<p><strong>New Single By Little Wretches “Ballad Of Johnny Blowtorch”</strong></p>
<p>The Little Wretches go for a big, bombastic classic rock flair with “Ballad Of Johnny Blowtorch – Ambridge Version”. Everything about the sound is truly massive, from the sheer infectious quality of the guitar riffs to the riotous rhythms that underpin the whole thing. With clear nods to the Who’s best works, they leave the listener absolutely stunned while they strut about in a defiant, blissful air. Lyrically there is almost a folklore quality to their storytelling, drawing parallels to the highly ornate tales told by the Decemberists in terms of the sheerly exquisite detail that flows flawlessly through.</p>
<p>Immediately they jump right into it – no buildup or anything they go for broke right at the forefront. Tempo is a suggestion for they shout it at the top of their lungs in staccato. Every verse gets carefully clipped for precision for the way that let the sound grow feels particularly reassuring. Volume is a must for theirs is a sound that needs to be felt. Deeply soulful, they spin out in delirious ways featuring such bright bursts of energy. Guiding the whole of the track along are those gorgeous lyrics that have a truly timeless air about them, for they tie together everything in a swirling, churning sort of groove, one that drives the point home. </p>
<p>“Ballad Of Johnny Blowtorch” shows off the Little Wretches uncanny ability to craft something so beautiful that it feels like a long-lost classic.</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/65285022021-01-23T07:21:19-05:002021-01-23T07:21:19-05:00Single Review: Little Wretches “Ballad Of Johnny Blowtorch”<p><a contents="Click this link to visit ORIGINALROCK dot NET to read Al Geiner's review of THE BALLAD OF JOHNNY BLOWTORCH" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://bandzoogle.com/controlpanel/visual_editor#/pages/3078302/features/blog-feature-336186/https://bandzoogle.com/controlpanel/blogs/news/posts/new?blog_feature_id=336186" target="_blank">Click this link to visit ORIGINALROCK dot NET to read Al Geiner's review of THE BALLAD OF JOHNNY BLOWTORCH</a></p>
<p>When a new blurb, review or profile appears, I experience a moment of dread. In this review, Al Geiner says that the lyrics are fun and quotable. Thank you, Mr. Al. I, too, think they are fun and quotable. </p>
<p>But…. There is a little problem. Some of the words he quotes are NOT the words we sang. </p>
<p>If you take a few moments to read the review, please be advised that what I actually say is: </p>
<p>“Your knees are threadbare, and your ass is showing, <br>And when you last slept in a bed, there’s no knowing. <br>You’re eating garbage. Your complexion is spotty, <br>And your chiseled physique now hangs off of your body.” </p>
<p>Maybe I should have issued a lyric sheet with the album, not that it matters too much. Like the dots and dabs in an Impressionist painting, the words add up in the eye of the beholder or, as Dewey Redman said, “The Ear of the BeHearer.”</p>
<p>Here is the review:</p>
<p><strong>Single Review: Little Wretches “Ballad Of Johnny Blowtorch” </strong></p>
<p>Posted on January 22, 2021 by Al Geiner </p>
<p>Taken off their album ‘Undesirables & Anarchists’, the Little Wretches’ song ‘Ballad of Johnny Blowtorch’ is an all-out, guns blazing affair that will get you off your feet. Get ready to dance, sing at the top of your lungs and rock out all night long, because the ‘Ballad of Johnny Blowtorch’ is an undiluted slice of guilty pleasure fun, perfect for a night out or a road trip with your friends. </p>
<p>Electrifying guitars, a thumping drum line and emphatic rock-and-roll vocals takes this song to all new soaring levels – but the best part of ‘Ballad of Johnny Blowtorch’ is actually the cheekily unapologetic lyrics. Here are just some gems taken from the song – </p>
<p>“Your knees are crooked/When you’ve last slept in a bed/There’s no knowing…Your chiselled physique now hangs over your body”. </p>
<p>Filled with fun, quotable lyrics, the Little Wretches have really delivered one of their best works with their newest effort. Clocking in at just 2 minutes and 42 seconds, the ‘Ballad of Johnny Blowtorch’ may be short, but it’s one hell of a ride – and one that you’re unlikely to forget any time soon. “Well if you ever I get lucky and score you wanna be me” – well, the Little Wretches have certainly scored with this one.</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/65252132021-01-19T18:17:21-05:002021-11-09T23:56:01-05:00GLOBAL EMERGING ARTISTS--Interview with Robert Wagner of The Little Wretches<p><a contents="Click this link to go to GLOBAL EMERGING ARTISTS page with the interview." data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://globalemergingartists.com/interview-with-robert-wagner/?fbclid=IwAR2bKVJ_5kJ-2oR7wWH8AKRW0wnLq4FEw20WAa_XLjJ3MebEoRx3mJUqUg4" target="_blank">Click this link to go to GLOBAL EMERGING ARTISTS page with the interview.</a></p>
<p><span class="font_large"><strong>Interview with Robert Wagner of The Little Wretches </strong></span></p>
<p><strong><span class="font_regular">Thanks for taking the time, Robert. How has the 2020-21 pandemic affected you on both a personal and professional level? </span></strong></p>
<p>I live in the States, in Pennsylvania, outside of Philadelphia, and a few days after the lockdown/quarantine/whatever started in March, I was of two minds, like there was a little angel-me watching the material-me in action. </p>
<p>Part of me was just perturbed. What an inconvenience! How dare anyone ask me to change my precious plans! Right? A selfish response. I’m a cancer-survivor. I’ve been treated for latent tuberculosis. I’ve survived a violent, substance-abusing, rife-with-mental-illness family. And now you want me to stay home and hide because I might catch a cold? I sneer at the suggestion! </p>
<p>“Yes, but it’s a cold that can kill you.” </p>
<p>Sure, but the pathogen is not going anywhere. You can hide, but when you come out of hiding, it is going to be waiting for you. When I am eventually exposed to it, I will either catch it or I won’t. I’ll be symptomatic or I won’t. The symptoms will be severe or they won’t. The disease will kill me or it won’t. </p>
<p>I am not going to live in fear. But I will do my part to stop the spread of the disease. Wear a mask in public? Absolutely. Anything that puts my neighbors at ease and helps to protect them, I do it gladly. </p>
<p>In some ways, the protocols of the pandemic work to my advantage. </p>
<p>It’s not hard for me to maintain social distance. I prefer social distance. Even before the pandemic, if I was entering an aisle in a grocery store and another person was already in the aisle, I’d turn around and shop in an empty aisle. Am I a weirdo? I actively avoid people. I enjoy solitude. </p>
<p>The first time I ventured out to go mountain biking in the middle of nowhere, I was thrilled to have the roads to myself, the trails to myself. The new normal? I’ll take it. “Hey, you, get off of my cloud!” </p>
<p>Isn’t that horrible? </p>
<p>I work very hard to bolster my immune system and keep my body strong. </p>
<p>I was hiking at Seneca Rocks in West Virginia. When you arrive at the observation deck at the top of the trail, a sign warns against scrambling out on the rocks. To your left, doom awaits. To your right, doom awaits. But unspeakable beauty and the glory of God’s earth awaits for those who dare to climb out there. </p>
<p>The sign says, “YOU ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR YOUR OWN SAFETY!” Exactly. Not just atop Seneca Rocks. Everywhere. At all times. You are responsible for your own safety. </p>
<p>Now, I’m also one of those people who also feels responsible for the safety of those around him. But I respect your right to choose. I am honored to help you, but I do not presume you want or need my help. So I am not going to tell you how to live, where to go or what to wear. </p>
<p>Personally, I have worked, shopped and exercised outdoors every single day throughout the so-called lockdown. Financially, I’ve been fine. </p>
<p>Professionally, the pandemic has leveled the proverbial playing field. I had to cancel my little tour, but so did the giants of the industry. It hurt me, but it hurt them even more. How sinister. The misfortune that befalls others moves me closer to where I want to be. </p>
<p>I used circumstance of the pandemic to take the time to have recordings that I’d been sitting on re-mastered and released. UNDESIRABLES & ANARCHISTS. WHEN IT SNOWS. BORN WITH A GIFT. BURNING LANTERN DROPPED IN STRAW. WHY WERE THEIR POETS SILENT? </p>
<p>Listen to those five albums, and tell me I’m not in the game. </p>
<p>Whatever the future holds, I am very well positioned. I can perform solo. I can perform with members of the band. My goal is to wake up in the morning, thinking about where I am playing tonight. My goal is that in three years, people who know a lot about great American songwriters also know about me and regard me as one of them. </p>
<p><strong>Is there another musician you’ve mentored or trained? Describe what you’ve done to help them? </strong></p>
<p>That’s not really my story to tell. </p>
<p>It’s funny that I should be asked this question today, of all days. Just this morning, I used my sleuthing and creeping skills to get in contact with the person who owned the first professional studio used by The Little Wretches. If you know our band, you’ll know who I’m talking about, but I don’t want to drop his name. </p>
<p>Anyhow, I wanted to thank him for having played a pivotal role in the success and growth of The Little Wretches. He replied with something like, “I don’t think anybody interacts with Robert Wagner without a permanent effect.” </p>
<p>I want to be able to say that I passed something along that helped somebody else. </p>
<p>I have had people tell me they started writing because of me. I’ve had people who played and recorded with me go on to start their own bands. I’ve started little concert-series and showcase-series and open-mics that gained a little bit of traction and were kept alive by others after I’d moved on to other things. </p>
<p>Really, though, I’d be flattering myself to say that I’ve mentored or trained anyone. It is possible that they saw me and thought, “If that guy can do it, so can I.” </p>
<p><strong>What’s the best piece of advice another musician ever gave you? </strong></p>
<p>Advice? Who takes advice from musicians? </p>
<p>You mean, “TURN DOWN,” right? Or, “Why do you play with so much distortion?” </p>
<p>I was a loner as a teenager. I never hung out with people in bands. I didn’t jam with other players. I didn’t know anybody in the music business. I had no idea how to do what I was imagining and was incapable of describing what I was imagining. I had to find it through a process of discovery. </p>
<p>That studio I was talking about? Let me tell you how we ended up recording there. I made appointments with all the major studios in Pittsburgh, visited them, sat in the booths with the engineers. They’d ask, “What do you want to sound like?” Then they’d play a clip, “You wanna sound like this, I can make you sound like this. You wanna sound like that, I can make you sound like that. Wanna sound like Prince? Wanna sound like Madonna? Bruce? U2?” </p>
<p>What I want is to SOUND LIKE ME!!!!! That’s what I want to sound like. The studio I chose for our project was the studio that got the simple concept of me sounding like me. </p>
<p>So the best advice I ever got was not from a musician but from a movie about a musician, TENDER MERCIES, starring Robert Duvall as a once-successful Country music star, Mac Sledge, now living in obscurity. Some local musicians discover his identity, ask for his help and his advice. He says, “Play it like you feel it.” </p>
<p>I mean, why do anything else? Play it like you feel it. </p>
<p>Why would you write lyrics only to drown them out with drums and guitars? Why would you even bother trying to be like somebody else? Just find your voice, and use it. Play within your abilities, then reach a little. Sing within your range, then reach a little. </p>
<p>I don’t think I really answered your question. I don’t take advice from musicians. I take advice from friends, some of whom play music. </p>
<p><strong>When you’ve been on the road, how did you handle traveling and being away from your home for an extended time period while you were on tour? </strong></p>
<p>Handle being away from home? What home? Where I live now, I don’t even have a kitchen. I have a little microwave oven and the kind of refrigerator college kids have in dorm rooms. I wash my dishes in the bathroom sink. All I need is a few changes of clothes, my laptop, an internet connection and my guitar. </p>
<p>Was it George Carlin who had a routine about home being where you keep your stuff? I’ve accumulated a lot of stuff, mostly books, records and musical gear. I need a place to keep my stuff. But I can sleep in a car. I can sleep on floor. I can sleep in a tent. And I can go without sleep. </p>
<p>When I travel, I manage to find a way to stick to my ordinary routines. I need to exercise every day, and most big towns have a YMCA. Most hotels have a fitness room. I’ll get to the gym, swim some laps, maybe get to a trail and go for a little jog. </p>
<p>And I need to practice a little every day. I’m not one of those fluent players who can think a musical thought and it comes flying out of his fingers. I’m capable of flubbing things I’ve played for twenty years. I like to run through my repertoire and rehearse my lines. </p>
<p>I love being on the road. Driving. Looking out the window. Pressing the search-button on the radio. </p>
<p>Best thing in the world is playing for people who’ve never heard you before, watching their faces when they drop whatever they were doing and focus on the song you’re playing. </p>
<p>Only thing I don’t like on the road is worrying about somebody stealing my guitar. Right? I want to go for a run. How can I be sure my guitar is going to be safe? Then again, Charlie Parker played concerts on borrowed plastic saxophones. </p>
<p>Oh, and parking. You locate and arrive at the venue, but there is no place to park. You mean I have to PAY to park? Big stars don’t suffer such indignities. </p>
<p><strong>Tell me what your first music teacher was like. What lessons did you learn from them that you still use today? </strong></p>
<p>I went through a couple of teachers. My best teacher was Joe Colosimo, a real working musician. Gave lessons by day. Gigged by night. A freelancer. Need a guitarist or a banjo? Call Joe. </p>
<p>Joe tuned his banjo like a guitar and played in a style called “full harmony.” People loved it. He’d strum the chords furiously and play the melody by adding his pinky finger. </p>
<p>Joe Colosimo taught me how to keep my pinky-finger free when making a chord so that I could reach and add a note. And I’ll never forget these little diagrams he made to teach me “bass walks.” A lot of rockabilly and old rock’n’roll songs are built upon these bass-lines. </p>
<p>I think I knew intuitively but Joe really reinforced that the rhythm and timing is the most important thing. You can’t play with people who can’t count. You can’t play with people who can’t keep time. </p>
<p>Main thing I learned from Joe, though, is that hard work is more important than talent. Perspiration, not inspiration. Some people are blessed with talent and do nothing with it. Hard work ensures that I will get the most out of the talent I have. </p>
<p><strong>How would your previous band-mates describe you and your work ethic? </strong></p>
<p>Ask Dan Wasson. I went to elementary school, played football and wrestled with Dan. He is a superior musician who plays bass in the jazz scene in Pittsburgh. Dan played electric guitar on one of The Little Wretches’ epics, WALKING AMONG THE BUILDINGS. Our sixth grade English teacher used to call him, “Dangerous Dan.” Mr. Duff always praised Dan for his lethal, cynical wit. Dan and his brother, Gerry, used to call me “Coach.” </p>
<p>Dan would sit in for gigs with The Little Wretches and say, “Tomorrow, I’ll be able to tell everybody I got my ass kicked by Bobby Wagner for four hours.” It’s that Ken Kesey thing. “I’m sorry if you got hurt, but I’m not sorry I kicked your ass because that’s what I do. I’m an ass-kicker.” </p>
<p>If I’m leading a rehearsal, we’re going to be playing solid for three hours. We are getting our reps in. We will know our starts, stops, our endings. We will not be pausing to smoke or drink or take breaks. We’re here to work. </p>
<p>Ellen Hildebrand played college basketball. She used to say, “You will play like you practice.” So we practiced hard. We drilled. We prepared. She’d quote Abraham Lincoln, “I will prepare, and perhaps my chance will come.” </p>
<p>We’ll warm up with something familiar, something to get us loosened up and confident. Then we’ll focus on works-in-progress. Get our reps in. Repeat. Repeat. Turn it into muscle-memory. We’ll finish off with a refresher of stuff we want to keep sharp. End the way we started, play something that leaves us feeling confident. </p>
<p>You’d have to ask them. I’ve heard people around the band say I can be a bastard and a son of a bitch. One friend tried to describe how I was “brutal” when it came to music. Brutal? Bastard? Son of a bitch? Those do not sound like flattering words, but nobody is going to say The Little Wretches didn’t put in the work. </p>
<p>Dave Losi and I played a private party in our hometown of Castle Shannon a few years ago. I think we played for five hours, took a break, and played three more. </p>
<p>Boot camp with Bobby and the Bastards. </p>
<p><strong>Tell us about your most recent single release, “Ballad of Johnny Blowtorch.” </strong></p>
<p>How close do you want me to zoom in? There is a story behind almost every line and every image in that song. I have a screenplay called THE BALLAD OF JOHNNY BLOWTORCH. Ninety-minutes to two hours it would be if it ever makes it to the big screen. I wish I could read the screenplay to you. </p>
<p>The character behind The Ballad of Johnny Blowtorch is a composite. My friend and first bandmate, John Creighton, the most talented musician I’ve ever known and possibly the most Christ-like person I’ve ever known, is the source of some of the imagery. My song BORN WITH A GIFT was a response to John’s passing and entering eternity. THE BALLAD OF JOHNNY BLOWTORCH is more a snapshot of a moment in his life. </p>
<p>John lived somewhat of an ascetic lifestyle, self-denial, seeking something. He had a song that said, “I will endure all of the necessary havoc for the single clear moment.” He suffered from migraine headaches and became addicted to prescription drugs. He was an organic firebrand on stage, it was like you plugged him in. He was not a showman. It was not a show. When he performed, the fire surged through him and it was riveting to see. </p>
<p>The opening line, “All you ever wanted was to hang on a cross,” may be misconstrued as sacrilegious. It’s about somebody who is martyring himself, putting himself through what everybody else would see as an unnecessary hell. Why are you doing that to yourself? And he says, “If I ever get lucky and score, you’ll want to be me.” If the wisdom or enlightenment I seek is on the other side of this firestorm, it will have been worth it. </p>
<p>Chaos. Eating garbage. Getting so skinny your clothes are falling off. The ass of your jeans is worn through. The song also alludes to a guy snuffing a cigarette out on the back of his hand. My friend, former member of The Little Wretches and ongoing collaborator, Gregg Bielski once did that while fronting his band, Shrinkwrap. </p>
<p>Gregg is among the few who can claim to have been a close personal friend of G. G. Allin. I never met G.G. personally, but have learned a lot about him through Gregg. </p>
<p>G.G. died of a drug overdose, but his plan had been to commit suicide on stage. How awful, right? Was G.G demon-possessed? I look at it as though he had a Jesus-complex, and that’s even where the name G.G. comes from. His mom named him Jesus and his brother couldn’t pronounce it and called him G.G. He was taking the sins of the world upon himself, sacrificing himself. Dude, Jesus did that for you already. Accept His salvation, why don’t you? Too prideful? </p>
<p>Consider Patti Smith’s poem, OATH, the basis of her song GLORIA, “Jesus died for somebody’s sins but not mine.” She and artists like Prince and Madonna got some mileage out of straddling the line between the sacred and the profane. It’s an edge, all right. Very romantic till it’s cut you in half. </p>
<p>Is Johnny Blowtorch seeking enlightenment or merely abusing himself? Wouldn’t you like to know? But you’ll never know because you aren’t willing to take the risk or make the sacrifice. </p>
<p>People see him and turn away: “Here comes a face from the past. Don’t pretend you don’t see me.” </p>
<p>But Johnny Blowtorch gets in the last word: “If I ever get lucky and score, you’ll want to be me.” </p>
<p>Musically, I was listening to a lot of Gangsta Rap, which I love. And the guitar riff is kind of an early Kinks thing. </p>
<p>I’m glad people are responding to the song. I wish I could get THEM to tell me what THEY think it’s about. </p>
<p><strong>When can we expect your next album? </strong></p>
<p>Late March, early April, 2021. Funny you should ask, again, because I’ve spent all day preparing for our first rehearsal for the project. I’ve got the edition of The Little Wretches that created UNDESIRABLES & ANARCHISTS—HK Hilner on piano, Rosa Colucci on vocals and percussion, John Carson on bass, and Mike Madden on drums. Gregg Bielski is working on drum-programs and rhythm tracks. I hope to bring Steve Sciulli in for some flute and accordion. Depending on how the rehearsals go, we’ll decide which studio to use, but I believe very strongly in the material. </p>
<p>The title, RED BEETS AND HORSERADISH, is inspired by a concoction served as a relish or side-dish, usually on the holidays of Easter or Passover. For the Serbs, the red of the beets is symbolic of the blood of their people, and the horseradish the bitterness of their suffering. In my tradition, the symbolism involves the blood of our savior and the bitterness of His suffering. People in the Jewish tradition also enjoy the dish, but there is no blood involved—the beets are merely for flavor—but the horseradish represents the memory of bitter suffering in bondage. </p>
<p>We’ve got 13 songs, a couple built around spoken-word pieces placed atop musical arrangements and maybe three or four tracks that rock like the last album. People call us folk rock? Well, there will be some REAL folk on this album, serious character-portraits and vignettes, the best writing I’ve ever done from a literary standpoint, organically and explicitly built around the themes of family, self-sacrifice and resilience and implicitly unified by themes of faith and man’s personal relationship with God. </p>
<p>Sounds heavy, right? Not exactly the kind of thing you’re going to get from anybody else except The Little Wretches. </p>
<p><strong>What accomplishments do you see yourself achieving in the next five to 10 years? </strong></p>
<p>I think this is turning into a mantra: I want to wake up in the morning, thinking about where I am playing tonight. I want my name to be mentioned when the topic of formidable American songwriters comes up and The Little Wretches to be mentioned when the topic of great American rock’n’roll bands comes up. </p>
<p>I want to be in demand. I want to be able to go from town to town, country to country, continent to continent, knowing that a few hundred people are waiting for something they aren’t able to get from anybody else and a few hundred more tagging along to find out what the big deal is. </p>
<p><strong>Do you have any hobbies or interests outside of music? </strong></p>
<p>I am interested in learning. I am a great supporter of unschooling, homeschooling and free schooling, the concepts of school-choice, self-directed learning, and brain-plasticity. The Highland School in West Virginia. The Circle School in Harrisburg. The Philly Free School. John Taylor Gatto’s THE UNDERGROUND HISTORY OF AMERICAN EDUCATION. A. S. Neill’s SUMMERHILL. John Holt. </p>
<p>I am very interested in politics and history, but that’s not even fun to talk about anymore. Gotta be careful. I try to bring things back to the question, “What are you for?” Describe the world you want to live in. Tell me what you can do to get there. Does the path to your utopia involve the temporary cessation of the protections in the Bill of Rights? Ooops. Better find a new utopia. </p>
<p>I love the outdoors. Nature is free. Air. Water. Mountains. Streams. Trails. Wildlife. I like to ride my bicycle and explore. I also love a good urban hike. I enjoy riding my bike in the city as much as in the country, but in the city you have to worry about being hit by a car. That, I would prefer to avoid. </p>
<p><strong>What is it about music that makes you feel passionate? </strong></p>
<p>In the beginning was the Word, right? That is more than a religious concept. It is also part of natural history. The word makes us human. The word separates us from the animals. The word allows us to store information and pass it from mouth to mouth, brain to brain, generation to generation. The word allows humans to steward the planet and go to the stars. </p>
<p>So if I couldn’t be a musician, I would be a poet and was resigned at one point to having to settle for being a poet. But when I was a first-year student at the University of Pittsburgh, my writing teacher had just returned from Naropa Institute’s Jack Kerouac School of Disembodied Poetics. At Naropa, he’d encountered a writer named Michael Brownstein and his book, STRANGE DAYS AHEAD. </p>
<p>My teacher knew that I liked the songs of Lou Reed, and STRANGE DAYS AHEAD concludes with an essay that mentions Lou Reed, so my teacher lent it to me. </p>
<p>The essay argues that poetry has no economic value and therefore cannot be corrupted. Brownstein argued that poetry is the only art capable of speaking the truth without compromise. So that made me feel pretty good about being a poet, a truth-teller, incapable of being corrupted. </p>
<p>But let’s be honest. As soon as Bob Dylan started writing things like A HARD RAIN and IT’S ALRIGHT MA and MISTER TAMBOURINE MAN, poetry became a cottage industry for college professors. Music says what words cannot. Put the truth of music with the truth of the Word, and you’ve really got something. And when Dylan plugged in that electric guitar, he opened the door for kids like me. </p>
<p>Maybe I feel passionate about music because I am in its debt. When I had nobody and nothing, I had my guitar. When I hated everybody and everything, I had my guitar. My guitar and my writing gave me a reason to be alive. </p>
<p>I had a dream. In the dream, a very pale woman elected to kiss me before going off to die. She wanted one last kiss, and I was honored to have been there for her. As she walked away, I asked how she knew she was going to die. She said, “All that has to happen for a person to die is for the part that fights to keep living to stop fighting.” </p>
<p>I like being alive. As long as I have music, I’ll have the ways and means to keep fighting. </p>
<p><strong>Thanks so much Robert. We appreciate your time and wish you all the best in 2021 and beyond! </strong></p>
<p><strong>Thank you very much for reading the article, please show your support to the artist and take a look at our previous independent emerging featured artists or artists interviews on the roster and show your support to the artists you like. It’s pretty simple, really. </strong></p>
<p><strong>Affiliate Disclosure: Some of the links are affiliate links, meaning, at no additional cost to you, I/We will earn a commission if you click through and make a purchase. These appear in my blog sidebar, header and footer and in posts on my site.</strong></p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/65231522021-01-17T05:46:31-05:002022-02-11T08:27:32-05:00Robert Wagner talks to DJ Altra<p><a contents="https://musicpromotionpr.com/uncategorized/robert-wagner-talks-to-dj-altra/?fbclid=IwAR3j6Gg7NfvQ-WH6HFeAdkhowhraF7owVWbf7u6RT6ohzCPjBZ8odT8KqHk" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="http://Click%20this%20link%20to%20go%20the%20the%20audio%20player%20at%20DJ%20Altra's%20Music%20Promotion%20Website" target="_blank">https://musicpromotionpr.com/uncategorized/robert-wagner-talks-to-dj-altra/?fbclid=IwAR3j6Gg7NfvQ-WH6HFeAdkhowhraF7owVWbf7u6RT6ohzCPjBZ8odT8KqHk</a></p>
<p>He introduced himself to me as Jermaine, but when the podcast started, he became DJ Altra. I'm not sure how much of the conversation was edited, but Jermaine is a Baltimore Ravens fan, and the conversation began with banter about the Pittsburgh Steelers recent blowout loss to the Cleveland Browns. </p>
<p>It turned out to be a good conversation, I think. Maybe. I mean, I've been doing these interviews with people who treat me with respect but clearly know nothing about me except what they've read from a press-release or quickly gleaned from looking at the website. They haven't really listened to the music. Kind of like interviewing an author without having read the book. </p>
<p>That's the reality of being interviewed. Their words tell their audience you are important, but their unfamiliarity with your music tells something else. You are a product. A brand. And this is your big chance to promote yourself.</p>
<p>"Go ahead, sir. Speak right into the microphone and tell everybody why people should care about your music."</p>
<p>And I ramble on about this and that, hoping I'll say something that will give the listener a reason to want to hear the music.</p>
<p>Anyhow, here is the text of what appears at Jermaine's website: </p>
<p>Robert Wagner talks to DJ Altra </p>
<p>It looks like we had another great interview here on Music Promotion Pr. Our DJ (DJ Altra) spoke to Robert A. Wagner and had a fantastic conversation. These two talked about the music that he released and plans for the future. It also seems like Roberts fans are looking for more. Make sure to take a listen to get a little closer to Robert and what makes him a good musician. </p>
<p>As frontman and chief songwriter/lyricist for 80s/90s seminal Pittsburgh rock band, Little Wretches, Robert Wagner rode a wave of local notoriety that led the band to the forefront of the underground music scene. The Little Wretches were founded as a folk/punk band by Robert (guitar) and his brother, Chuckie (violin). The “classic” Mach 2 era of Little Wretches included Ed Heidel (bass), Chris Bruckhoff (percussion, wind instruments, backing vocals) and Bob Goetz (guitar), rounded out by Dave Mitchell (drums), Mike Michalski (bass) and Ellen Hildebrand (electric guitar.) This rock edition of the band performed regularly and helped the band build its massive following in Pittsburgh. Michalski, Mitchell and Chuckie Wagner left the band, effectively ending. </p>
<p>Mach 3 began with the addition of David Losi (keyboards) and Mike Madden (drums.) When Madden couldn’t tour, drum programmer Gregg Bielski took over. When Ellen switched to bass guitar, this version of The Little Wretches entered the studio. They recorded two albums, with Angelo George playing drums and Jon Paul Leone playing guitar on a third. National press, attorneys, managers, and publicists came calling, as did life’s obligations, and the Little Wretches disbanded in the late 90s. </p>
<p>Robert Wagner continues to perform at coffeehouses and small clubs. A Master’s Degree holder, Wagner also counsels abused, neglected, traumatized and court-adjudicated youth. He is the co-founder of The Calliope Acoustic Open Stage, an event that has lasted 15+ years. He has also recorded and released two new albums in 2020: Undesirables and Anarchists and Burning Lantern Dropped In Straw.</p>
<p> </p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/65226762021-01-16T10:01:22-05:002021-01-16T14:24:22-05:00Receiving Compliments and Getting Back to Work<p>I looked up a person who was instrumental in first professionally recording The Little Wretches, and so as not to breech confidentiality or violate a trust, I will keep that person's name out of this post. But....</p>
<p>I thanked that person for having had a profound impact on what was then my future course, and the reply was something like, "I don't think anybody interacts with Robert Wagner without a permanent effect." That is comforting to hear/read because, having no children of my own, I often wonder if I am doing what I am supposed to be doing. You know, one of the songs central to The Little Wretches' ethos is BORN WITH A GIFT, and though the song is ostensibly about John Creighton, I sometimes wonder if I wasn't writing prophetically about myself. Am I squandering my gift? Am I deluding myself with the belief that I possess a gift?</p>
<p>Doubt....Faith....Doubt....Faith....</p>
<p>The words that I received this morning bolster my faith. Thank you, _______.</p>
<p>Today, I am returning to Pittsburgh to convene the first rehearsal for the recording of our next album. Back to work.</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/65205192021-01-14T06:06:37-05:002021-06-14T13:26:10-04:00What's the word? JOHANNESBURG<p>Well, the story is that THE LITTLE WRETCHES have the #1 Folk Rock song on the iTunes Charts in South Africa and the #20 song across all genres.</p>
<p>I'm not making this up. Here's proof!</p>
<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/425724/ca7a0c4f916f5587b0d24720715e7043e089563b/original/06077fa3-678e-47be-bdf3-c9431c9e1210.png/!!/b:W10=.png" class="size_l justify_center border_" /></p>
<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/425724/3e24aefd98fd34857a2485daafe1455c96c340a7/original/537f7ecf-2fab-4287-bd9a-060a8e126a68.png/!!/b:W10=.png" class="size_l justify_center border_" /></p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/65204902021-01-14T05:59:34-05:002021-06-29T09:35:39-04:00BANDS ON THE RADAR, Rock and Blues Muse<p><a contents="Click here to see our little feature in Rock and Blues Muse" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://www.rockandbluesmuse.com/bands-on-the-radar/?fbclid=IwAR2c6-KyRp8qS67bRS7QF_RBza1G-n8YJNZhhKsxvHVoBo6pRylZB_M4b0M" target="_blank">Click here to see our little feature in Rock and Blues Muse</a></p>
<p>A long time ago, The Little Wretches were considered a "band on the radar." We are once again so. </p>
<p>I hear an increasing number of artists talk about "building their brand," and though I understand what they mean, I just want you to know that The Little Wretches are NOT a brand, YOU are NOT a customer/consumer. We are living, breathing, flesh and blood and souls. </p>
<p>Reminds me of the scene in THE GREAT DEBATERS:</p>
<p>"Who is the Judge?"</p>
<p>"The Judge is God!"</p>
<p>"Why is the judge God?</p>
<p>"Because he decides who wins and loses, not my opponent."</p>
<p>"Who is your opponent?"</p>
<p>"My opponent does not exist. He is merely a dissenting voice to the truth I speak."</p>
<p>That's me and our little band. We ain't nobody's brand. We try to speak the truth about who and what we see and know. If you listen to our songs, I thank you!</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/65204862021-01-14T05:48:56-05:002022-05-03T06:17:43-04:00Cool Talk with Edwin Douglas, Christian Comedian<p>I was a guest on Edwin Douglas' podcast. </p>
<p>Edwin is a Christian comedian, and it is refreshing to chat with a person of faith. I have a song on our forthcoming album called IT'S ALL BETWEEN ME & GOD, and Edwin has a book on Amazon with almost an identical title.</p>
<p><a contents="CLICK HERE TO VISIT THE SPOTIFY LINK FOR THE PODCAST" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://open.spotify.com/episode/4LdcfhxmdfFj9WtK71LKcT?si=FuUXHcd8S1Wg1Wlmw-joGQ" target="_blank">CLICK HERE TO VISIT THE SPOTIFY LINK FOR THE PODCAST</a></p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/65174812021-01-10T08:07:38-05:002021-01-10T08:07:38-05:00Coming Soon: A NEW ALBUM<p>Richard Hell once sang, "LOVE COMES IN SPURTS." </p>
<p>Unfortunately for me, that is how I work. It is wise to work incrementally, to make a little progress every day. But that has never been my style. This morning, I updated this website for the first time since the Thanksgiving holiday. I posted most of the podcasts, reviews and interviews that have appeared between then and now. If you follow The Little Wretches on Facebook, you've seen most of this stuff.</p>
<p>But what I really want to tell you is that I am going to record a new album in the coming months and will have it out by Easter.</p>
<p>Anyhow, here is what I’m working on: </p>
<p>I have a collection of 13 songs and spoken-word with music pieces organically and explicitly built around the themes of family, self-sacrifice and resilience and implicitly unified by themes of faith and man’s personal relationship with God. The title, RED BEETS AND HORSERADISH, is inspired by a concoction served as a relish or side-dish, usually on the holidays of Easter or Passover. For the Serbs, the red of the beets is symbolic of the blood of their people, and the horseradish the bitterness of their suffering. In my family tradition, the symbolism involves the blood of our savior and the bitterness of His suffering. People in the Jewish tradition also enjoy the dish, but there is no blood involved—the beets are merely for flavor—but the horseradish represents the memory of bitter suffering in bondage.</p>
<p>Demos of the stuff are already on YouTube if you search. </p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/65174802021-01-10T07:56:20-05:002021-01-10T07:56:20-05:00INTERVIEW-- INDIE MIX<p><a contents="https://indiemix.org/the-little-wretches?fbclid=IwAR1Ym_-gEJwTqGyatFo-CNdPVljr2E8KSjUhWcdD-t8JjN8aKoEX_yeNLFA" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="http://CLICK%20HERE%20to%20read%20the%20interview%20at%20Indie%20Mix" target="_blank">https://indiemix.org/the-little-wretches?fbclid=IwAR1Ym_-gEJwTqGyatFo-CNdPVljr2E8KSjUhWcdD-t8JjN8aKoEX_yeNLFA</a></p>
<p>Dec 29, 2020 </p>
<p>What does your band name "The Little Wretches" mean? </p>
<p>The Little Wretches. What does the name mean? It's a convergence. When the band was coming together, I lived near the University of Pittsburgh, and we had access to a lot of inexpensive movie-series within walking distance. One night, we saw Francois Truffaut's THE 400 BLOWS at Carnegie Museum of Art. I recently downloaded the movie to look up the exact moment. In THE 400 BLOWS, the subtitle at the 1:00:09 mark reads, LITTLE WRETCH. </p>
<p>Combine that with John Newton’s hymn, AMAZING GRACE, composed as he renounced the slave trade. </p>
<p>Combine that with Fritz Fanon’s 1961 THE WRETCHED OF THE EARTH, an analysis of the effects of colonialism. </p>
<p>Combine that with Victor Hugo’s LES MISERABLES, Jean Valjean, Fantine, and the sewers of Paris. </p>
<p>Combine that with Matthew’s telling of the Sermon on the Mount, the Beatitudes. </p>
<p>Put it all together, and it was the only name for our band. That's what I am, and what we are--THE LITTLE WRETCHES. </p>
<p>Who would you consider to be a non-musical influence? </p>
<p>Well, the story behind the name of the band says a lot about my non-music influences. I'm a Hunky. I descend from people who came halfway around the world for the possibility of a better life. My grandparents were not destitute in Europe. My distant relatives in the Slovak Republic are doing well. But my grandparents were not satisfied with good. They wanted BETTER. </p>
<p>And that's the question that drives me. How can today be better than tomorrow? And how can tomorrow be better than today? </p>
<p>I'm part of history. Am I going to float along, or am I going to navigate? I'm not content to be a product of circumstance. </p>
<p>I'm a transformer, a creator, an explorer. </p>
<p>I had a high school teacher who speculated that Michelangelo was the last person to possess all the knowledge of his age. But that's what I aspire to. What does that make me, a Renaissance Man? </p>
<p>Who do you sound like? </p>
<p>My favorite description of the band said, "The Little Wretches play the kind of music to win a jaded girl's heart." The same writer compared us to Mott the Hoople. Somebody else said we sound like Lou Reed and Paul Westerberg meeting in a car crash. What do we sound like? We sound like John the Baptist camped out in the desert, singing around the campfire, keeping an eye out for wolves and lions. Sometimes we have amps. Sometimes we have pounding drums. Sometimes we have furiously strumming guitars. Or sometimes we're in a quiet room. You have to listen for yourself, then you can tell me what we sound like. </p>
<p>Are you currently earning a comfortable living from your music? </p>
<p>Talk about opening a can of worms. Our album, UNDESIRABLES & ANARCHISTS was added at something like 115 radio stations. Under ordinary circumstances, I'd be booking gigs in every town where I'm getting airplay. At each of those gigs, I'd be selling CDs or some kind of merchandise. As it is, I'm locked down. My only income is from downloads and streaming, and I don't make anything from streaming. But you said COMFORTABLE living. What you have to understand about me is that I'm not in the least bit concerned about comfort. I'll always find a way to survive. I'll always find a way to create. Who said artists deserve a comfortable living? Comfort is your worst enemy. The future is created by those with no stake in the present. If the present is killing you, your fight for survival will make a better tomorrow. </p>
<p>What is the most useless talent you have? </p>
<p>I can argue about anything. I can rationalize or justify anything. I'm one of those kids who believed professional wrestling was real combat. You could not convince me that it was an act with a predetermined outcome. Whatever you said, I had a counter-argument. I have a song called THE TASTE OF DIRT with the line, "You can't talk to an idiot without sounding like an idiot." I'm afraid that I have a talent for getting into arguments with idiots. I think that if I present them with sufficient information and logic, I can convince them of something. Then I look at myself. You can't tell me nothing. I have an answer for everything. I can't quit and I can't be wrong. That's a deadly combination. I lead the league in stubbornness. </p>
<p>What is one of your favorite albums? </p>
<p>I'm trying to think of a good answer that isn't obvious. Okay, how about KIND HEARTED WOMAN by Michelle Shocked? It's very stark, mostly just her voice and guitar. A lot of albums that sound like they are just voice and guitar, when you listen more closely, you hear a lot of very subtle production in the background. This album came out right after Michelle had split from her record label. It's like she recorded it, pressed a truckload of copies, and hit the road. She was touring, playing these previously unheard songs for audiences who wanted to hear her hits. Michelle Shocked is a warrior. KIND HEARTED WOMAN is not going to be everybody's cup of tea, but it is as powerful a collection of songs as you are going to find.</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/65174792021-01-10T07:54:22-05:002022-06-01T05:01:20-04:00My Christmas Gift--Hanging out and Singing with Rosa<p>This was my Christmas Present. I got to hang out and do some playing with Rosa Colucci, star of WHEN IT SNOWS and UNDESIRABLES & ANARCHISTS. </p>
<p>Rosa and I tried out some new technology she’d picked up. I played her thin-bodied Fender acoustic. We played Cold Star Night, Let Me Play Your Guitar, Be Somebody, and Just Can’t Hide It. </p>
<p><a contents="https://www.facebook.com/rosa.colucci.12/videos/3892980327380903/" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="http://Click%20Here%20and%20maybe%20you'll%20go%20to%20Rosa's%20Link%20on%20Facebook.%20Privacy%20Settings%20might%20get%20in%20your%20way." target="_blank">https://www.facebook.com/rosa.colucci.12/videos/3892980327380903/</a></p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/65174782021-01-10T07:51:33-05:002021-01-10T07:51:33-05:00A Tribute to Heidi Wolfson<p>I tried to play ANOTHER LINK IN THE CHAIN as if I was the song's author, but the song was written by Heidi Wolfson of Cubizm, a powerful and encouraging force in the Philadelphia music and songwriting communities. I know that Heidi digs Patti Smith, and the first time I performed it, I threw in a few bars of Patti's AIN'T IT STRANGE. Here, I don't play anything attributable to Patti. I hope it honors Heidi and she gets a kick out of it.</p>
<p><a contents="https://youtu.be/4l1D4asqOZc" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="http://Click%20Here%20to%20WATCH%20/%20SEE%20Robert's%20performance%20of%20Heidi's%20song,%20ANOTHER%20LINK%20IN%20THE%20CHAIN" target="_blank">https://youtu.be/4l1D4asqOZc</a></p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/65174772021-01-10T07:48:05-05:002021-01-10T07:48:05-05:00Podcast--COFFEE TALK WITH SANDRA —MUSIC MONDAY<p><a contents="Click Here to listen to my conversation with Sandra" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://youtu.be/iFkhOBp0hoI" target="_blank">Click Here to listen to my conversation with Sandra</a></p>
<p>On this podcast, conversation roamed across the topics of teaching, learning, family, aging and the treatment of the elderly. I perform DUQUESNE and ALL OF MY FRIENDS. </p>
<p>The host, Sandra, said the songs made her feel bad. She asked for a POSITIVE song. If these are not POSITIVE—songs about grit, faith and resilience—then I can’t help you. Wanna feel good? Take drugs. Wanna BE good, get to work.</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/65174762021-01-10T07:45:54-05:002021-01-10T07:45:54-05:00Review--BEACH SLOTH<p><a contents="http://www.beachsloth.com/little-wretches-undesirables-and-anarchists.html?fbclid=IwAR3HNdsi8chEz44msLj00lCiVyWUVOhX7Qf6uxwx3K32Opty9sC9biBat7U" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="http://click%20here%20to%20see%20the%20review%20at%20BEACH%20SLOTH" target="_blank">http://www.beachsloth.com/little-wretches-undesirables-and-anarchists.html?fbclid=IwAR3HNdsi8chEz44msLj00lCiVyWUVOhX7Qf6uxwx3K32Opty9sC9biBat7U</a></p>
<p> A ragged, roughshod approach to garage rock, Little Wretches delivers a classic sound with “Undesirables and Anarchists”. Within this album they prove to be exceptional storytellers featuring lyrical flourishes that have a great power behind them. They take a page from the disoriented experience of Thee Oh Sees approach and add a little bit of haze to it. Layer upon layer wraps the sound up in beautiful fuzzed-out lo-fi splendor. Best of all the vocals seem aptly suited for the tasks tying the whole of the album together as if on some staggering late-night journey. </p>
<p> Opening things up on a high note and setting the tone for what follows is the swagger of “Silence (has made a liar out of me)”. Nimble acoustic guitar weaves in perfectly with the jagged electric edges to make “Poison” a folk punk piece of perfection. With “I Rather Would Go” recalls Beat Happening’s communal spirit, alongside its fondness for twee pop melodies. The clear-eyed focus comes into the fray with the intimate presence of “Morning”. Building itself up into a force to be reckoned with is the colossal take of “All of My Friends” where a tenderness rests at the very center of it all. Fiery passion defines the album highlight, the incredible narrative of “Ballad of Johnny Blowtorch” which embodies the best of seventies punk rock. Neatly bringing it home is the soothing scope of “Running (was the only thing to do)”. </p>
<p> “Undesirables and Anarchists” shows off the impressive chops of Little Wretches as they explore the seedier, gritter side of garage rock with such undeniable flair.</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/65174752021-01-10T07:43:34-05:002021-01-10T07:43:34-05:00BUILD THE SCENE--Podcast<p>I really enjoyed this conversation!</p>
<p><a contents="Click Here to listen to our conversation with BUILD THE SCENE" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://www.buildthescene.com/robert-wagner/" target="_blank">Click Here to listen to our conversation with BUILD THE SCENE</a></p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/65174742021-01-10T07:41:40-05:002021-01-10T07:41:40-05:00Review--Little Wretches Ride Fast In Their Own Lane On “Ballad Of Johnny Blowtorch”<p><a contents="Click Here to read Michael Stover's review at MEDIUM" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://michaelstover-9775.medium.com/little-wretches-ride-fast-in-their-own-lane-on-ballad-of-johnny-blowtorch-36d2509a8230" target="_blank">Click Here to read this review at MEDIUM</a></p>
<p>Coming off fresh from the release of their album ‘Undesirables and Anarchists’, The Little Wretches are back, releasing one of the album’s fan favourites, ‘Ballad of Johnny Blowtorch’. When listening to The Little Wretches, don’t expect this group to follow pop trends of the radio — they’re clearly riding fast in their own lane, following their own musical compass. With a sound that’s a little similar to the heyday of UK Rock (The Strokes, Artic Monkeys, Oasis, The Killers), ‘Ballad of Johnny Blowtorch’ is a sonic experiment gone right. With a consistently irreverent vocal delivery, head-banging guitars and fun background vocals, this track is just straight up, pure fun. With lyrics like “The things you’re looking for/Nobody’s got ‘em/Here comes a face from your past/Don’t pretend you don’t see me” and “They say I’m a sucker because I waited for you/But I ain’t giving up because I know you’ll come through”, it’s clear that The Little Wretches aren’t taking themselves too seriously on this cheeky track. The Little Wretches state, “Well if I ever get lucky and score, you wanna be me” — and, true to form, I think they might have just scored with this one. Listen to ‘Ballad of Johnny Blowtorch’ for an entertaining listen now. </p>
<p>-Fred Effendi</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/65174732021-01-10T07:37:35-05:002021-08-01T12:48:12-04:00Review--THE LITTLE WRETCHES DON'T PLAY BY THE RULES<p><a contents="CLICK HERE to read the review at EURO INDIE MUSIC" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="http://euroindiemusic.info/2020/12/09/the-little-wretches-dont-play-by-the-rules-on-undesirables-anarchists/?fbclid=IwAR3GcjC8OEuAl1F6Ys_kGfcTSYCpOYmI7VBvf3A4_Tezgmks75i3HGi8fpY" target="_blank">CLICK HERE to read the review at EURO INDIE MUSIC</a></p>
<p>The Little Wretches do not play by the rules or conform to the norms. They are adventurous with their sound and are always trying to break the mold with every new release they put out. The Rock collective from Pittsburgh has always worn with pride the label of rebellious, musical misfits, and their most recent album Undesirables and Anarchists is consistent with that perception of the band. </p>
<p>A collection of twelve songs of the Alternative Rock genre, Undesirables And Anarchists is a high-energy, adrenaline-rushing body of work that has that wild, raucous element that appeals to Rock fans music all over the world. HK Hilner, Mike Madden, and John Carson deliver the acoustics and percussions for the album’s instrumentals with Madden on the drums, Hilner on the piano, and Carson on the bass. Robert Wagner and Rosa Rocks provide their irresistibly powerful vocals on the songs. </p>
<p>“When I don’t know what to do, I do nothing.” The brusquely reckless statement on the album’s opening song Silence embodies the band’s Laissez-faire approach to music. They also display some capacity for sentiment and vulnerability with “Harsh words cut me easily.” There are moments of reflection and self-assessment on songs such as Nightfall when Wagner sings, “I’m counting my quarters to see if I stack up, Hate to squander my wishes that way.” </p>
<p>On the harmonica accentuated I Rather Would Go, The Little Wretches explore much more thought-provoking and serious themes of bondage such as in “You’re born into captivity, you don’t know you’re a slave” and “You learn to love your captor/and captivity you crave.” The song Who is America is also laden with themes of national identity and socio-economic truths. </p>
<p>The song Morning finds Wagner in a more tender and sentimental state as he passionately belts out the words “I fell under your spell, I was beguiled/ What came along to wake me…morning…morning.” The lyrics in All My Friends allude to the band’s outcast classification; “All my friends are on some list of undesirables and anarchists, it’s not even safe to admit you’re one of my friends…oh what a story we will tell, someday from jail.” Other songs such as Give The Knife A Twist and the album’s closing track Running both have their individual moments of creative brilliance. Undesirables And Anarchists is a body of work whose musical and thematic depth fans of rock music will without a doubt get to indulge and delight in. </p>
<p>–Keith Dujour</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/65174722021-01-10T07:34:30-05:002021-01-10T07:34:30-05:00Review at TUNED LOUD--“UNDESIRABLES AND ANARCHISTS will make your head spin...<p><a contents="Click here to go to TUNED LOUD to read the review" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="http://www.tunedloud.com/.../the-little-wretches.../" target="_blank">Click here to go to TUNED LOUD to read the review</a></p>
<p>Robert Wagner and the The Little Wretches built a strong cult-like fan-base in their prime years while going through diverse member changes and musical phases. The highly active collective flirted with national press, publicists and managers, before finally calling it quits. Assisted by the MTS Management Group, the freshly resurrected Robert Wagner and The Little Wretches are back with “Undesirables And Anarchists”, which now becomes their tenth official album release. </p>
<p>A long-term cancer survivor, Robert Wagner – frontman, chief songwriter and lyricist for 80’s-90’s seminal Pittsburgh rock band, The Little Wretches – continues to perform at coffeehouses and small clubs. A Master’s Degree holder, Wagner also counsels abused, neglected, traumatized and court-adjudicated youth. He is the co-founder of The Calliope Acoustic Open Stage, an event that has lasted 15+ years. </p>
<p>“Undesirables And Anarchists” sees Robert Wagner joined by Rosa Rocks (vocals) Mike Madden (drums), John Carson (bass) and HK Hilner (piano). The result is a collection of hard-hitting alternative rock songs, some of which were originally written all the way back in the late seventies and early eighties. The album itself was originally recorded in 2001 with producer Dave Granati (of The Granati Brothers). </p>
<p>2021, which is all but upon us, will mark the 2oth anniversary of “Undesirables And Anarchists”, since it was first recorded, but five years short of a quarter-century hasn’t resulted in the album sounding aged at all, both in terms of relevance and production value. </p>
<p>The album opens nonchalantly with the mellifluous tune “Silence (Has Made a Liar out of Me)”, which is just as indescribable as The Little Wretches’ artistic identity – languid yet rock steady, nostalgic and poignant, yet blunt and to the point. “When I don’t know what to do, I do nothing,” sings Wagner here. If you think rock n roll is music simply to pump your fist to with beer bottle in your hand, this stuff will make your head spin. </p>
<p>Throughout this album, Robert Wagner’s every-man vocal anchors the soundscape, as it blends with Rosa Rocks harmonizing voice, to deliver choruses that are as supremely sing-along-able as anything you hear on rock radio right now…except the lyrics cut deeper, the guitars ring louder, and the arrangements are more expansive. </p>
<p>From the opening track, The Little Wretches takes us through eleven more songs that go up and down effortlessly both in terms of momentum and intensity, with not a single weak spot in sight. The crunchy down strums of “Poison” steadfastly drives us towards the upbeat bounce of “Give the Knife a Twist (Early Lyrics Version)”, which eventually give in to mid-tempo shimmer of “(It Was) Almost Nightfall (Full Band Version)”. </p>
<p>If you’re not a The Little Wretches fan by this point, your heart is probably locked into another genre. For the rest of us, there is still plenty to chew on. The soaring “I Rather Would Go”, the even faster “Don’t You Ever Mention My Name”, or the richly layered “Morning”. </p>
<p>Song after song it becomes clearer that Robert Wagner and The Little Wretches had the freedom to do whatever they wanted in the studio, to let their creative process play itself out without the worry of corporate big shots stalking them. And things get even better, and busier on “Who is America (No Shelter Lyric Version)”, a little quaint on “Some Day (Vocal Fragment)”, and totally rocking on “All of My Friends (Full Band Version)” and “The Ballad of Johnny Blowtorch (Ambridge Version)”. </p>
<p>The album closes with a gorgeous Chrissie Hynde-styled vocal on “Running (Rosa Rocks Version)”. Somehow this album flew under the radar on its initial release, but it is here that the true raw talent of Robert Wagner and The Little Wretches is most evident. Could it be that love is better the second time around? </p>
<p> </p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/65174712021-01-10T07:31:45-05:002021-01-10T07:31:45-05:0088 MORE WAYS MUSIC CAN CHANGE YOUR LIFE<p>88 MORE WAYS MUSIC CAN CHANGE YOUR LIFE </p>
<p>I have an entry in this book, a little anecdote about David Allen Flynn, a trolley and a sack of laundry. I could personally tell you 88 ways music has SAVED my life, but the editors only asked for one. </p>
<p>I encourage you to pick up a copy. </p>
<p><a contents="Click here to see the product on Amazon" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://www.amazon.com/dp/0998363715" target="_blank">Click here to see the paperback on Amazon</a></p>
<p><a contents="Click here to see the Kindle Edition on Amazon" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="http://www.amazon.com/MORE-Ways-Music.../dp/B08RRW6L57" target="_blank">Click here to see the Kindle Edition on Amazon</a></p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/64791822020-11-16T18:54:22-05:002023-12-10T13:41:05-05:00“Undesirables And Anarchists” – Timeless and Endlessly Relatable!<p><a contents="http://jamsphere.com/newreleases/the-little-wretches-undesirables-and-anarchists-timeless-and-endlessly-relatable" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="http://Click%20this%20link%20to%20see%20the%20full%20review%20by%20Jacob%20Aidan%20at%20Jamsphere" target="_blank">http://jamsphere.com/newreleases/the-little-wretches-undesirables-and-anarchists-timeless-and-endlessly-relatable</a></p>
<p> </p>
<p>The Little Wretches – “Undesirables And Anarchists” – Timeless and Endlessly Relatable! </p>
<p>Posted By: Jacob AidenPosted date: November 15, 2020 in: New Releases</p>
<p>A long-term cancer survivor, Robert Wagner – frontman and chief songwriter and lyricist for 80’s-90’s seminal Pittsburgh rock band, The Little Wretches, continues to perform at coffeehouses and small clubs. A Master’s Degree holder, Wagner also counsels abused, neglected, traumatized and court-adjudicated youth. He is the co-founder of The Calliope Acoustic Open Stage, an event that has lasted 15+ years. Now that we have the mighty measure of the man, let’s look at the music. </p>
<p>Robert Wagner and the The Little Wretches built a strong cult-like fan-base in their prime while going through a few member changes and musical phases. The highly active collective flirted with national press, publicists and managers, before finally calling it quits. Until now. Assisted in its promotion by the MTS Management Group, “Undesirables And Anarchists”becomes the tenth album release by the freshly resurrected, The Little Wretches. </p>
<p>Times of love, times of discontent and all the intersections in-between these dichotomous times comes the narratives of The Little Wretches’ “Undesirables And Anarchists”, itself straddling musical boundaries – the idylls of folk, rock and punk, as well as the ominous darker chords of psychedelia. All throughout Robert Wagner remains songwriter of formidable smarts. This is one of those groups that didn’t clearly quite get all of the recognition that they deserved in their heyday. </p>
<p>The music on “Undesirables And Anarchists” is so accomplished, and so varied, that it sounds like a wonderful montage of a collection of past eras. The Little Wretcheshave an ear for dynamics that most modern bands have yet to expose, which enhances Robert Wagner’s songwriting no end. Ringing guitars, rolling basslines and steamrolling drums sit tightly under male-female vocal combinations that are simply exhilarating. </p>
<p>The blend of Robert Wagner and Rosa Colucci’s vocal performances are absolutely astonishing, and make a stunning impact on these songs. Their voices are storming, and integral to The Little Wretches overall aura. Each track is well formed and developed, and does what it’s set out to achieve. No hanging about, and never outstaying their welcome. Over and above the vocals and songwriting, most notable is the great guitar work across the entire album. </p>
<p>It’s almost superfluous to handpick standout tracks, as in their own way, they all are. If only for the simple reason that the organic sounds of the guitars, bass and drums, together with the raw and vibrant production is so far removed from the today’s usual, sterile digital mixes that produce pristine but flat, ascetic soundscapes. </p>
<p>The Little Wretches kick the album off with the jangling guitar-driven crunch of “Silence (Has Made a Liar out of Me)”, and just build the momentum from there onward. Forced to choose my favorites, I’d have to go with the steady American groove of “(It Was) Almost Nightfall”; the rock n’ roll drive of “Don’t You Ever Mention My Name”; the mellifluous soar of “Morning”; the pertinent “Who is America”, and the guitar crunch of “The Ballad of Johnny Blowtorch”. </p>
<p>I’m not sure when any of the songs on this album were written and recorded, but lyrically they surely can belong anywhere on history’s musical timeline. They reflect emotions, experiences and visions that are timeless and endlessly relatable. “Undesirables And Anarchists” sounds like an album from a band at the very top of their game. In fact, you’d be forgiven for mistaking this release as The Little Wretches “Best of” compilation album…or is it?</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/64772842020-11-13T19:52:56-05:002023-12-26T02:41:00-05:00LIKE, SHARE, COMMENT--Musical Interlude, CSB Television<p><a contents="This link takes you to the YouTube video of Robert Andrew Wagner on Musical Interlude, CSB Television" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://youtu.be/ZwA6LKMz-tc" target="_blank">This link takes you to the YouTube video of Robert Andrew Wagner on Musical Interlude, CSB Television</a></p>
<p>When invited to appear on this podcast with Casey Bell, I saw that he also has a program featuring writers. I've got feet in each camp, music and writing, but I ended up on his Musical Interlude series. Casey asked which song I would like to feature, and though we are currently promoting THE BALLAD OF JOHNNY BLOWTORCH, I decided to go with WHO'S AMERICA. </p>
<p>I was holding my guitar as we talked, mostly as a security blanket, but Casey asked if I wanted to play. I hadn't even tuned the guitar, but how could I refuse? Let me know what you think.</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/64722882020-11-07T13:45:29-05:002020-11-13T01:37:39-05:00SKOPE MAGAZINE review of The Ballad of Johnny Blowtorch<p><a contents="Here is the link to SKOPE MAGAZINE--Little Wretches Present “The Ballad of Johnny Blowtorch”" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://skopemag.com/2020/11/06/little-wretches-present-the-ballad-of-johnny-blowtorch?fbclid=IwAR2Z6d8222aR6eDsWXtbrVv0KAxkyT-oki7UsJs6zqxlTpzg396uptOxR3Q" target="_blank">Here is the link to SKOPE MAGAZINE--Little Wretches Present “The Ballad of Johnny Blowtorch”</a></p>
<p>Little Wretches Present “The Ballad of Johnny Blowtorch” </p>
<p>by Skope • November 6, 2020 </p>
<p>A pure shot of adrenaline, the Little Wretches’ “The Ballad of Johnny Blowtorch (Ambridge Version)” races forward at a blistering pace. The volume demands to be played at maximum volume for it is an intense piece. Sounding like an instant classic the production has a flawless, gritty take to it which accurately captures its visceral impact. Firmly rooted in rock’s very essence, they bring together pieces of garage rock, the blues and lo-fi in a way that has an intimacy to it. Vocals further go for this take as they embody a living, breathing sound. </p>
<p>With a singular drum hit they get started in style. The groove wastes no time in establishing itself as a pulsing driving rhythm begins to take form. Vocals enter into the fray accurately matching the quick pace of the tempo. Singing with a sense of urgency they prove to be exceptional storytellers. Word choice reveals a unique sort of poetry, one that delves into an urban folklore tradition. By going for this seemingly timeless take, they sing for the underdog, those who are so often overlooked. Arrangements further emphasize this point as they have a shaggy dog disposition with catchy riffs and a great deal of fuzz brought into the fray for maximum impact. </p>
<p>“The Ballad of Johnny Blowtorch (Ambridge Version)” shows the Little Wretches uncanny ability to tap into the very heart n’ soul of rock n’ roll.</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/64722832020-11-07T13:41:38-05:002021-02-20T08:00:17-05:00IN THE ZONE Magazine<p><a contents="Here is the link to IN THE ZONE MAGAZINE" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="http://www.hipe.co.za/Vol%208%20November%202020.pdf?fbclid=IwAR1IS3p9_CWAdHhxo5huR2_GPYeblQaGYUsXJmgMNcwO5b8m2icUIwiXsdg" target="_blank">Here is the link to IN THE ZONE MAGAZINE</a></p>
<p>Hi Robert! Little Wretches is a very unique name for a band. How did you </p>
<p>come up with it? </p>
<p>There are layers to it. My first band was called NO SHELTER, and the lyrics to our single, BROOKS ROBINSON’S CAMP, is a monologue delivered to us by a homeless veteran in an all-night coffeeshop off the campus of the University of Pittsburgh. We were involved in political activism, and we were consciously trying to draw attention to people in need, outsiders, the dispossessed. We subscribed to the belief that a people are to be judged by their treatment of the least among us, a religious belief, really. </p>
<p>NO SHELTER was kind of like an apprenticeship, a dress-rehearsal, a process of discovering what I am, my capabilities, how to and how NOT to do this music-making songwriting thing. </p>
<p>I started THE LITTLE WRETCHES with my brother, Chuckie. He agreed to play violin with me, and I tried to build a band around my songwriting. I had this batch of songs and a small circle of true believers. Everything was coming together, all we needed was a name. </p>
<p>I grew up and went to college in Pittsburgh. Every college in town had a film series. The University of Pittsburgh, Carnegie-Mellon University, Point Park University, Carnegie Museums of Pittsburgh—Where I lived, I could walk to a screening every night of the week, something classic. </p>
<p>Carnegie Museums had a series featuring the films of Francois Truffaut. The movie was THE 400 BLOWS. That’s the movie that gave us THE LITTLE WRETCHES. </p>
<p>The movie has subtitles, right? The story revolves around this young kid who gets involved in mischief, something my brother and I know very well, and I forget the specific scene, but I think the kids had just stolen or shoplifted something, and as they run away, their victim yells, “Come back, you little wretches! Come back, you little wretches!” And I looked over at my future bandmates and said, “That’s the name of our band—THE LITTLE WRETCHES.” </p>
<p>Of course, the name appealed to us because of our worldview, you know, The Beatitudes, “Blessed are the meek,” “Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound to save a wretch like me.” </p>
<p>Sorry if that’s a bit much, but that’s the story. I love the name. Sometimes, the name reminds me of who I am and what I’m supposed to be doing. </p>
<p>You've got a great new album out, "Undesirables and Anarchists." Tell us about the album, the recording process, the writing process, what the title means, etc. </p>
<p>UNDESIRABLES & ANARCHISTS gets its title from a line in the song, “All of My Friends.” It says, “All of my friends are on somebody’s list of undesirables and anarchists / It’s not even safe to admit that you’re one of my friends.” </p>
<p>I was trying to write a song that evoked my world—me, my family, my friends, and our position in society, the world, eternity, groping along for purpose, as the song says, “Carving a niche between the dust and the ether / Walking in circles / Limping along /Stuck in a ditch, but I’m a Believer.” Trying to use a little humor, trying to keep it light and not too ponderous. </p>
<p>There is not time to tell you about the full cast of characters behind that song, but let’s just say that I’m alluding to people who, in their own ways, have learned how to weaponize their disabilities and weaknesses. </p>
<p>Did you ever come across the Sam Shepard play, THE TOOTH OF CRIME? It’s kind of like a generation war between a rising rock star and the king at the top, kind of like Johnny Rotten versus Elvis Presley in a rap battle. Amazing play. Fun. </p>
<p>I was lucky enough to be the music director and bandleader for a production of THE TOOTH OF CRIME at Pittsburgh Laboratory Theater. The founder of the company, Bill Royston, told me he saw a production in which the rising character, a character named Crow, walks with a crutch and uses the crutch in his battle with Hoss, the kingpin. Royston was talking about how people use their crutches as weapons. Once that idea manifests itself to you, you see it everywhere. </p>
<p>So anyhow, The Little Wretches had been on the verge of wider success on a few occasions, but each time, some cataclysmic life-event snuffed it out. I’d all but given up hope. Then the band that recorded UNDESIRABLES & ANARCHISTS just kind of threw itself at me. John Carson, Mike Madden, Rosa Colucci, H.K. Hilner. There’s a story behind each of them becoming part of my life and part of the band. </p>
<p>Dave Granati, the engineer and studio-owner, from G-FORCE, an amazing band that toured with VAN HALEN, he knew as soon as he heard us how he was going to record the project. </p>
<p>I had this killer batch of songs that had yet to be heard by the world— woodshedded, workshopped and road-tested. We set up in the studio like we were doing a live show. Dave miked each amp, hung some overheads, and said if we could go without a headphone mix and just played like we did in our rehearsal space, he’s be ready to record as fast as we could set up. </p>
<p>We did the impossible, really. We nailed every single one of those songs on the first take. We were ON. Nobody does that. I’ve used the analogy of testing for your Black Belt. We’d spent our entire lives till that point acquiring the skills, and this was us putting on a clinic. </p>
<p>You’d think, “One take? Has to be a compromise. Nobody does that.” Listen for yourself. We did it. No compromise. </p>
<p>Of course, we overdubbed the vocals, some percussion, and doubled and added some guitars. It isn’t a “live” album. </p>
<p>Dave Granati said afterwards that he wished some younger bands he was working with could have seen us at work. </p>
<p>That might never happen again. And I hope UNDESIRABLES & ANARCHISTS serves as a testament to all the people whose support and encouragement made the band possible, people who gave me food, gave me cars, kept a roof over my head, allowed me to live like a useless parasite, all in the hope that my songs would amount to something. </p>
<p>Any plans for a music video? </p>
<p>Our band takes its name from a classic film, right? We have DREAMS of a music video, but no plans. What we need is a filmmaker, a visual artist who hears our songs and recognizes a vehicle for making a sympathetic statement. I personally think the songs are cinematic. But I’m not a filmmaker. </p>
<p>With all that has been going on in the world as of late, what is your </p>
<p>take on how it has affected the music industry? </p>
<p>Well, I’m not going to complain about the weather. If it snows, I’m making a snowman. If it freezes, I’m skating. </p>
<p>I’m stunned that people have gone into shells in the USA. I don’t enjoy sitting in front of a laptop and playing to a picture of myself. I did my first live-show in what felt like an eternity a couple of weeks ago. I see people are starting to do outdoors shows. </p>
<p>But for me, personally, the lockdown-response to the pandemic has leveled the playing field. I want to wake up in the morning thinking about where I’m playing tonight. Right now, nobody is performing live. So that’s how it goes. </p>
<p>Wreck at the Indy 500. Circle the track a few times under the caution flag and restart the race. Go. </p>
<p>I’ve got this great album, but the people who recorded it with me are in no position to tour. I, however, can perform almost every one of those songs solo, me and my guitar. The songs hold up across genres. </p>
<p>As for the political climate, I’m opposed to censorship. What’s that classic rock song by YES? “Don’t surround yourself with yourself.” I’m opposed to tribalism. I refuse to be stuck in a box. I refuse to be judged by my skin color, my class background, my ethnic heritage. </p>
<p>In the words of Bobby Darin, “I just want to be someone known to you as me, and I will bet my life you want the same.” </p>
<p>I’m an old DIY punk-rocker. I don’t need a music industry. Give me straw, I build with straw. Give me sticks, I build with sticks. Give me mud, I’ll take my straw and sticks, mix ‘em with the mud and make bricks. Take my guitar, I’ll rap. Shut my mouth, I’ll dance. I’m going to say what I’ve got to say to whoever will listen in any setting made available to me. </p>
<p>Have you ever been to South Africa? Where have you traveled in the </p>
<p>world, and where is your favorite place? </p>
<p>Closest I’ve ever been to South Africa was a house outside of Pittsburgh owned by Gary Anderson, once the kicker for the Pittsburgh Steelers, our American football team. He was from South Africa ,and his rooms and halls were adorned with artwork and artifacts from South Africa. </p>
<p>But no, I’ve never been to the real South Africa. Put me in contact with somebody who can set up a tour for me, and I’m there. </p>
<p>I’ve mostly traveled the USA. I’ve got some Jack Kerouac in me. I once jumped in a truck with a buddy, and we drove from Pittsburgh to San Francisco in forty-three hours. Made the return trip in forty-one. </p>
<p>There’s a natural area in West Virginia called The Canaan Valley, a place that as recent as a hundred years ago was so densely forested that it hadn’t been completely explored, winters sometimes so severe that the snowfall is immeasurable. In the Canaan Valley, you’ll find several amazing wilderness-areas: Seneca Rocks, Spruce Nob, Dolly Sods, and Blackwater Falls. </p>
<p>Internationally, I love London. Shakespeare. Ray Davies. Pete Townshend. The Sex Pistols. The Clash. Winston Churchill. </p>
<p>Here’s a cool London story. A group of us went to London just for fun, planned on seeing all the museums, Westminster Abbey, Churchill’s wartime bunker. I wanted to see some of the places I’d heard about in songs by The Kinks, The Stones, The Who, Waterloo Bridge, Carnaby Street, all that Mods and Rockers stuff. </p>
<p>A buddy and I went to a legendary punk club, I think it was called the Hope and Anchor. All the seminal the bands from 1977 are said to have played there. We saw an up-and-coming band with a guy who tried to break his guitar like Pete Townshend. Not too good. Bought a CD from the headliners, a band with a frantic Keith Moon-style drummer. </p>
<p>When we left the club, we discovered that the subway trains in London do not run overnight. We were stranded. Rather than hail a taxi, we walked all the way across London to the bed and breakfast where we were staying. We had no map. No GPS. All we had was a subway map. We arrived at 6 AM. </p>
<p>I don’t think you could do that in a city like New York or Detroit. Sooner or later, you’d unwittingly walk into some kind of danger. And I’m sure London has some dangerous spots. But we were two broad-shouldered Yanks, kind of brash and stupid, and by the grace of God, we made it safely to the angry arms of our worried spouses. </p>
<p>Any plans to tour, or is it mainly a studio project? </p>
<p>I hope to tour as a solo-artist. Low-to-no overhead. I can rough it. Like I said earlier, I’ve got some Jack Kerouac in me. But my bandmates have families. We’re a working class band, not in the romantic Bruce Springsteen and Tom Joad sense, but real work-to-feed-your-family working class. My bandmates are in no position to tour. I’m the front man. I’m the guy with the mouth and the guitar. I’m good to go. </p>
<p>In the states right now, though, nobody is booking. I’m ready. </p>
<p>What is most important to you: sales/streams, critical praise, industry </p>
<p>awards? </p>
<p>Whatever introduces new listeners to my catalogue is what’s important to me. </p>
<p>What is important to me is the synergy of critical praise, industry recognition and bookings. THE LITTLE WRETCHES have “a thing.” I think that anybody who buys or downloads one of our albums will eventually end up getting six or seven others. </p>
<p>If you could work with one musician, dead or alive, who would that be </p>
<p>and why? </p>
<p>That’s tough. See, at heart, I’m a teacher. I teach through stories. And I tell stories through songs. I’d want to work with a musician who could help to bring the songs alive. I think of musicians who’ve also served as producers and session-men. Leon Russell. Mick Ronson. John Cale. </p>
<p>John Cale produced Patti Smith, The Stooges, Jonathan Richman, Nico. </p>
<p>And Mick Ronson? He produced timeless recordings with Bowie. Lou Reed. Ian Hunter. John Mellencamp. David Johansen. Morrissey. </p>
<p>And did you hear Elton John induct Leon Russell into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame? Did you hear Leon’s litany of credits? </p>
<p>One? Mick Ronson. </p>
<p>Any parting words for our readers? </p>
<p>I wish I could introduce you to all the amazing and beautiful people whose lives gave my songs a reason to exist. I wish I could bring them to life for you. I wish I could hang out with you, sit in your living room and play my songs for you and your friends. </p>
<p>I hope I’ve said something that makes you want to explore the catalogue of The Little Wretches and that somehow our songs help you think about people with more compassion. Eternity exists. God is good. Life is precious. You were born with a gift. Honor it. </p>
<p>Thank you for taking the time Robert! Best of luck!</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/64722822020-11-07T13:38:45-05:002020-11-07T13:38:45-05:00MY HEYDAY IS RIGHT NOW--Indie Pulse Interview<p><a contents="Click here to see the full interview at Indie Pulse." data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://indiepulsemusic.com/2020/11/02/the-little-wretches-robert-wagner-my-heyday-is-right-now/?fbclid=IwAR2KnyvXOMA2DohXe92F_Pmr6WB4BsQHBDbiA4dvgsJ5kgZ6M6vQXKczfPc" target="_blank">Click here to see the full interview at Indie Pulse.</a></p>
<p>Hi Robert! Thank you for taking the time to speak with us. We're a great admirer of your work, most notably your latest release, "Undesirables and Anarchists." Tell us the inspiration behind the title. </p>
<p>Thank you for your thank you. As you probably know, I’m trying to promote the album, and artists traditionally tour to promote their albums. Nobody’s touring right now, so an opportunity to get the word out about UNDESIRABLES & ANARCHISTS is pretty important to me. Plus, I love talking about it. </p>
<p>So the album title, UNDESIRABLES & ANARCHISTS, pretty much sums up the totality of the people I’ve come to know and love. I’ve known people in the world of radical politics. I’ve known people in the punk rock and underground music scenes. I’ve known people in devout religious circle who speak in tongues. And in my personal life, I know a lot of troubled people who feel like they don’t fit in anywhere, outsiders who’ve learned how to survive in a world that has no place for them. </p>
<p>The title comes directly from the lyrics of one of the songs, ALL OF MY FRIENDS. </p>
<p>It says: </p>
<p>“All of my friends are on somebody’s list </p>
<p> of undesirables and anarchists </p>
<p>It’s not even safe to admit </p>
<p> that you’re one of my friends.” </p>
<p>There’s a story behind every image in every line of that song. I’m not sure how deep you want me to get. But let me frame it for you, at least. </p>
<p>I’d lived through some pretty harrowing moments when I was a teenager. When I needed them, my family wasn’t there. My school wasn’t there. My church wasn’t there. It was me against everything that exists. I trusted nobody and hated everything. </p>
<p>I’d come to assume that everything I’d ever been told was a lie, so I had an open mind for anything that ran counter to the myths that seem to be accepted by whoever or whatever is the general public. I was looking for answers. You’re all blind, but my eyes are open. That’s what I thought. </p>
<p>The summer between finishing high school and starting college, I spent a lot of time walking and loitering in downtown Pittsburgh. That’s where I worked, and when I got off work, I’d wander through town. </p>
<p>I was just a lurker. But if there was a street preacher, I’d stop and listen. If there was a political protest, I’d stop and listen. Jehovah’s Witnesses. Radical Muslims. Weirdos ranting. Anything. People like that are used to being ignored, so if they notice that you’re paying attention, they sometimes address you directly. </p>
<p>There was some kind of communist group selling a newspaper, and they gave me a free copy. It had articles saying there were slave-camps in Ohio, crazy stuff like that. I read it and thought, “These people are nuts. They’re going too far. They say they’re trying to eliminate poverty, create equality, feed the hungry, stuff like that, but their extremism is going to stop anyone from taking them seriously.” </p>
<p>Rube that I was, I called the phone number from the newspaper to tell them what I thought. Totally sincere. Totally naive. What did I know? These weirdos wanted to change the world. They asked me to read their stupid newspaper, and I called to offer my sincere opinion. </p>
<p>So a couple of months later, I’m a freshman at the University of Pittsburgh, and I’m enrolled in this experimental program based on self-directed and cooperative learning, one of the most positive experiences in my life. Some students, professors and teaching-assistants were unabashed socialists. Having just met these folks, I’m looking for common experiences, common ground, you know, laying the foundation for building a relationship, so I told them about the newspaper and my phone call, and one dude says, “You shouldn’t have done that. Those people work for the CIA. Now, you’re on their list.” </p>
<p>Ooops. Kind of creepy, right? Me? On a watch-list? Because I read a newspaper and made a phone call? You’ve got to be exaggerating. </p>
<p>A few years later, one of my professors, Dr. David B. Houston, economics department, Dave told me that he’d sent away for his FBI file under the Freedom of Information Act. He said that in addition to the file being thick and having a lot of stuff blacked out, it had transcripts of dinner conversations he’d had at restaurants. </p>
<p>Had the FBI been spying on his table? Or was one of his dinner companions working covertly for the FBI? </p>
<p>Federico Garcia Lorca. Salvador Allende. Pablo Neruda. Solzhenitsyn. Dostoyevsky’s THE DEVILS. NOTES FROM UNDERGROUND. Nelson Algren. My dad. My mom. The kids on my street. St. Anne’s School. David Allen Flynn. Dickens’ A TALE OF TWO CITIES. Put it all in the blender of my mind. Add The Kinks, The Who and The Velvet Underground, and you’ve got UNDESIRABLES & ANARCHISTS. </p>
<p>How does a kid from Pittsburgh wind up in a band called The Little Wretches? And how does that band go on to be one of the biggest bands in the city, during the 80s and 90s? </p>
<p>The Little Wretches, right? “Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound that saved a wretch like me.” John Newton, slave-trading sailor that changes his character in a moment of desperation. Victor Hugo’s LES MISERABLES. The ex-convict heroes escape through the sewers of Paris as a revolution unfolds above, except that our Paris was Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, the Paris of Appalachia, as it was so aptly described by Brian O’Neill. </p>
<p>I don’t know how I got on these literary allusions. Sorry ‘bout that. I’ll try to restrain myself. </p>
<p>Are you up for a long story? I’ll tell you the whole story, how the band got started, and I guess you can edit out the parts that don’t matter to you. </p>
<p>It’s like, there are three story-threads that weave together to explain the origin of The Little Wretches—being in proximity with the punk and underground music scenes, enrolling in an experimental learning program at the University of Pittsburgh, being diagnosed with a rare form of cancer that was usually fatal, and my family falling apart under the weight of mental illness and substance abuse. So that’s four threads, I guess. </p>
<p>After my family fell apart, my only friend was my guitar and the imaginary world behind all the music I was listening to. If Patti said, “Rock’n’roll is the highest form of expression known to man,” I believed her. I needed something to believe in, and I believed in rock’n’roll. </p>
<p>Things happen pretty fast when you’re young. When I got to Pitt, I’d already come to think of myself as a writer. I wanted to do is play in a band like Patti and Lou, Pete and Ray, but I was too shy to sing and too anti-social to hang out with musicians. So I was resigned to being a writer. </p>
<p>My first week at Pitt, my very first writing teacher had returned from a summer at Naropa Institute’s Jack Kerouac School of Disembodied Poetics. Todd Jailer was his name. He turned me on to all the Beat writers, the famous ones and lesser-known writers, too. I don’t know if Todd really liked my stuff or if it was just his job to encourage me, but his encouragement gave me the confidence to seek a broader platform. </p>
<p>I went to a couple of open readings, seemed to get a pretty strong reaction. The school literary magazine solicited some of my poems for publication. Some of my other writing teachers gave me the sense that I had a little bit of whatever “it” is, you know, that intangible quality that makes you stand out. Let’s just say I was sufficiently encouraged. </p>
<p>Well, around the same time, punk rock emerged in Pittsburgh, and I knew a couple of guys in one of the first bands, The Cuts. If they can do it, I can do it. Right? </p>
<p>Another weird coincidence, my roommate, John Creighton, turned out to be a musician. When we became roommates, our friendship was based on radical politics. My songs BORN WITH A GIVE and THE BALLAD OF JOHNNY BLOWTORCH are inspired by John Creighton. </p>
<p>Anyhow, on top of all this, I was diagnosed with cancer and was undergoing chemo. I expected to live, but who knows? Right? So John and I were sitting in a bar, both of us miserable, angry at God, and I said, “We need to start a band.” And John said, “Yes, we do.” </p>
<p>In retrospect, it’s like the whole thing was designed to put me on this path. </p>
<p>John and I called our band NO SHELTER, kind of a rebuttal to Bob Dylan’s SHELTER FROM THE STORM. Sorry, there ain’t no shelter. You’re gonna have to stand right in the middle of it and weather the storm. If you haven’t heard it, our single, BROOKS ROBINSON’S CAMP and SOLDIER BOY, speaks for itself. It’s the best thing that scene produced. Look it up. Buy it. Stream it. It’s required listening. </p>
<p>The scene that produced NO SHELTER ran its course as all things do. The AC Program was cut from the University. The punk-scene gave way to the music-video thing. Suddenly, bands wanted to be Duran Duran instead of The Clash. </p>
<p>But the biggest change was that my cancer-treatments ended. After about two-and-a-half years of chemo, it took about six months for that chemo-feeling to go away. I woke up feeling good one morning. And the next morning. And the next. Each day, I felt better than the day before. I felt like I could see around corners, like I was one step ahead of everything. </p>
<p>NO SHELTER had been like an apprenticeship, a discovery of what it is that I can “bring to the table” as a songwriter and musician.And now that I’d beaten cancer, I was ready to begin my life’s work. </p>
<p>Similar to my thing with John Creighton, I looked at my little brother, Chuckie, and said, “We need to start a band.” Chuckie played violin. Just like me, he loved Patti Smith, Lou Reed, Iggy Pop, Johnny Thunders. Like me, life had been rough on him. </p>
<p>Every story needs a context. Every picture needs a frame. The Little Wretches was going to provide the context and frame for my songs. In addition to my original songs, we played a bunch of folk songs we’d learned from a book in the Castle Shannon Public Library. We did songs by Patti Smith, The Velvet Underground, The Kinks, The Rolling Stones. </p>
<p>Instead of playing punk clubs and underground clubs, we tried to get into the venues that that so-called “mainstream” bands were playing. We were going into clubs where cover-bands and top-forty bands were playing. We had to be ten times as good or ten times as tough because those audiences sure hadn’t heard anything like us before. </p>
<p>When we started, I’d get comments like,“You’re really good, but your band sucks.” As the band evolved, I started to hear, “Your band is really good, but nobody wants to hear that stuff.” But once we started making recordings, nobody could hear THE LITTLE WRETCHES and deny us. We might not have been everybody’s cup of tea. We still didn’t fit in. But we put ourselves in the ring, so to speak. </p>
<p>If you look at the press we generated, people may have gone overboard gushing about us. I wonder if some of those writers aren’t embarrassed about what they wrote. But taken as a whole, I’ll put our eleven albums up against anybody’s. The material holds up. </p>
<p>That was a pretty long-winded, roundabout answer. You asked a “how” question, didn’t you? How? Put your shoulder to the plow and don’t look back, that’s how. </p>
<p>Tell us about your heyday in The Little Wretches. What was your experience like? Was it parties, sex, drugs & rock n roll? </p>
<p>“Heyday?” My heyday is right now. What is you tryna say? But I get what you’re asking, I think. Tell me about the fun times, the wild times. </p>
<p>Let me put this in context. Me and my brother, our family was destroyed by drugs and alcohol, so there is absolutely nothing glamorous to me about parties, sex and drugs. Hedonism. Feel-good culture. I’ve seen way more of it and the damage it does than most people. Drugs destroyed my family and stole my childhood. </p>
<p>I also do a lot of work with at-risk teens. In almost 100% of the cases, these kids’ families were destroyed by the irresponsibility of their parents combined with substance-abuse. </p>
<p>But let’s pull back the wet blanket, and I’ll describe a couple of glorious nights in the life of The Little Wretches, a rehearsal night and a gig night. </p>
<p>There was a long stretch when we rehearsed on Ellen and Jon Hildebrand’s farm in Clarksville, PA. Coal-mining region at the time, fracking, now. Farming. Sheep. Beef. Small, family farms. </p>
<p>Ellen and Jon were city kids that rented for a while in a semi-rural setting, enjoyed the privacy, and discovered they could purchase a sixty-acre farm in Greene County for the cost of a tenement house in the city. Some two-by-fours, drywall, and some elbow grease, and they turned part of one of the structures into a rehearsal studio. </p>
<p>Ellen, of course, switched between bass and rhythm guitar in The Little Wretches and she lived on-site, but keyboardist Dave Losi, me, and Gregg Bielski, our drummer, we lived in the South Hills of Pittsburgh, the neighborhoods of Castle Shannon and Bethel Park. </p>
<p>Our thing was, we play every night. What are we doing tonight? We’re playing. We are either performing or rehearsing. If something comes up and you need to cancel a rehearsal, everybody knows that it is rescheduled for tomorrow. </p>
<p>On the nights we rehearsed, I’d get to Losi’s house, and we’d head out in Losi’s Wretch-mobile— a white van with a black-and-white decal of our logo on the side— and we’d pick up Gregg. It would take us 30 to 45 minutes to get to the farm. We often stopped at a little market in a town called Ruff Creek to get some snacks and drinks. By the time we arrived at the farm, we’d had enough time to shed the outside world. We’d be in a “Wretch-State-of-Mind,” ready to play. </p>
<p>Ellen, having been a basketball player in college, subscribed to the belief that you will play like you practice, so we practiced like we meant business. No smoke-breaks, no pee-breaks, no drink-breaks. No outsiders. No hangers-on. We’d go two, two-and-a-half hours without a break. We’d run through old stuff, experiment with new stuff, drill, drill, drill. We weren’t a “showcase” band. When we had a gig, we usually played from about 10:30 PM till 2 AM. Our rehearsals were like training for the Olympics. </p>
<p>On rehearsal nights, that 45-minute ride home allowed us to decompress, let all that adrenaline and intensity subside. I don’t know what the other guys did when they got home, but for me, I was ready to crash. </p>
<p>After a gig, it was a different story. We probably had an hour’s ride back to the farm. So, let’s say the show ends at 2:15. We have to break down, load out, we might be leaving the club around 3 AM. We might be getting back to the farm at 4 AM. Soon as we arrive, we load out—quick job, no more than fifteen minutes. </p>
<p>But we’re still too wired to call it a night. Many gigs, it’s just us in the band. We didn’t have “roadies,” but we had a few friends and girlfriends that would have been considered part of our entourage. Sometimes, friends visiting from out-of-town would be invited. </p>
<p>So imagine this. Summer night. 4:30 AM. Farm. Privacy. No need to worry about bothering or offending neighbors. No need to shush or keep your voice down. While we’re unloading the gear, David Flynn is firing up the grill, ready to throw some ribs or steaks over the coals. Maybe a bonfire has been set in advance. </p>
<p>So there we are, The Little Wretches, our husbands, our girlfriends, our closest and most cherished friends, standing around a bonfire, feasting, have a drink or a smoke, watching the moonlight, loving life. </p>
<p>Uh, oh. Do you hear birds? Is that birds I hear? What? Is that light on the horizon? Is the sun coming up? Is this night over? </p>
<p>One by one or two by two, people start to crash. </p>
<p>I was usually among the first to rise. I’d drive down to Clarksville, pick up five or six large coffees, bring them back to the farm, but nobody else drinks coffee so I’d drink all six myself, and we spend the rest of the day getting ready for the next rehearsal or gig. </p>
<p>Did you ever see BUTCH CASSIDY AND THE SUNDANCE KID or any of those old western/buddy movies with outlaws and a hide-out? THE WILD BUNCH? THE MAGNIFICENT SEVEN? </p>
<p>I don’t want to overly romanticize it, and the way I remember it may not be how it was for everybody else, but we were like a band of raiders for a rebel army. We’d roll into town, set up our gear, play our gig—that Springsteen line from JUNGLELAND, “The hungry and the hunted explode into rock’n’roll bands that face off each other tonight out in the street down in Jungeland.”—That’s how it felt. </p>
<p>You bleeding? No, I ain’t bleeding. You get hit? No, I didn’t get hit. </p>
<p>I mean, that’s what it felt like. Marauders. Crusaders. Pirates. Living to fight another day. </p>
<p>Stepping on that stage with those people, you cannot imagine the purity and the fierceness of it. When THE LITTLE WRETCHES were on stage, we totally had each others’ backs. We could do anything. We had totally washed our hands of all the bullshit in the world. </p>
<p>Better than sex. Better than drugs. It was a party, all right. But it was a very private, very exclusive party. I don’t think it’s something you can understand if you haven’t been part of it. </p>
<p>So, you bring the band "back to life" with the new music releases you're putting out. How has the music been received? Has the reaction surprised you at all? </p>
<p>I really don’t know how the music has been received. I can speak to airplay, reviews, and comments from people at live-performances. </p>
<p>Airplay, I guess, includes streaming. Does it? What surprises me is that the song POISON has gotten the greatest number of spins and streams. That surprises me. As a fan, I’ve often preferred the album-cuts and B-sides to the hits. So I don’t know. Please, please, please listen to the whole album. </p>
<p>Reviews? They’ve been good to gushing. Effusive praise. I’m not a stranger to good reviews. Writers tend to recognize good writing, and we’ve got good writing. Writers tend to be attracted to a good story, and we’ve got a good story. So I’m happy with the attention so far. Let’s see where it leads. </p>
<p>As for live performances, most of the shows I’ve done since the lockdown have been solo, sitting in front of a laptop. The few shows for in-person audiences have been a joy. </p>
<p>I can’t allow myself to worry about any of that. I managed to get the music recorded. It exists. It has a permanence. I pray that it is meaningful to some who manage to find it. </p>
<p>As for bringing the band back to life, you asked earlier about our so-called heyday. There isn’t a song in our catalogue that couldn’t have been written and recorded yesterday. I’ve got a lifetime of really good songs and two or three albums’ worth of unreleased and unrecorded songs that have been woodshedded and road-tested. </p>
<p>From that standpoint, the heyday is right now. </p>
<p>There are still a few pieces missing. I do not have a booking agent, and nobody is booking. And I have not been good about follow-up with the airplay and positive press we are getting. If I had everything in place from a business-team standpoint, I’d be doing in a show in every town or on every campus that is playing our music. I’d be hustling to solidify and cultivate the new relationships we’ve established. I could be doing more than I am doing, I think. </p>
<p>My goal is to wake up in the morning, thinking about where I am playing tonight. I’d better get to work. </p>
<p>Who would you say is your single greatest musical influence, and why do you think you gravitated towards that person's music? </p>
<p>When you think about it, really, you might not even be aware of your greatest influence. Right? Think of lineages. The Rolling Stones are influenced by Chicago-style and Delta Blues. The Beatles are influenced by Buddy Holly, The Everly Brothers, Chuck Berry, Smokey Robinson, the girl groups, Motown. </p>
<p>You think you’ve been influenced by The Sex Pistols, then you discover The New York Dolls and Johnny Thunders and The Heartbreakers. Then you see that those bands are influenced by Eddie Cochran and Gene Vincent. </p>
<p>I’m not trying to evade your question, but my greatest musical influences stem from lineages, not individuals— seeds from fruits from blossoms on branches of trees with roots that grew from seeds— the big mysterious cycle of creation. </p>
<p>I would never have thought it feasible that I could sing in a band had I not come across Lou Reed and The Velvet Underground, and I’ve said a thousand times that their song I’LL BE YOUR MIRROR articulates what should be every artist’s mission-statement: “I’ll be your mirror, reflect what you are, in case you don’t know.” </p>
<p>But before I ever heard of The Velvet Underground, I’d heard The Beatles’ WHITE ALBUM. Take The Velvets’ output as a whole and The White Album as a whole, and you have the same elements, the same seeds. You have a range of sounds, musical styles, everything from old folk melodies to early rock’n’roll to garage rock to children’s songs to sound-experiments. Lyrically, you have poetry, humor, character-portraits. </p>
<p>The master, though, the person who’s gone the deepest and furthest is Bob Dylan. But ask me tomorrow, and I’ll say Ray Davies. </p>
<p>Do you have a personal motto or creed? </p>
<p>Patti Smith has a song called PEOPLE HAVE THE POWER, and obviously, I’m a Patti fan. In the song, there’s a section where she sings, “I believe,” followed by her manifesto. </p>
<p>As a writer, I’m sometimes tempted to inject my beliefs into my songs, but who cares what I believe? I’m better off keeping my beliefs out of things. Paint the picture. Tell the story. But I heard that song by Patti and thought, “Maybe I should write one song that just comes out and boldly declares my beliefs.” </p>
<p>So I wrote a song, still officially unreleased but you can find performances of it on YouTube, called LOVINGKINDNESS. One word. Apparently, the Jews have an untranslatable word in their scripture that appears a lot in Psalms and is translated as, one word, LOVINGKINDNESS. </p>
<p>Here’s my Patti Smith-style bold declaration: </p>
<p>“I live by the precepts of a poem that survives, </p>
<p>Spoken by the murdered King of history’s hated tribe. </p>
<p>I believe in the impossible, in things I cannot prove: </p>
<p>That oceans can be parted and the hearts of haters moved, </p>
<p>Lovingkindness.” </p>
<p>That’s my creed. If only I could live up to it. </p>
<p>You hold a master's degree in English, correct? So, it's obvious that you're an intelligent guy. You're also a teacher. Do you find that kids today don't take education as seriously as they should? What is the single piece of advice you offer your students, that will lead them down the path of success? </p>
<p>Let’s reconsider what is meant by “education.” Let’s separate schooling from learning. They are two different things. </p>
<p>I was talking earlier about The Alternative Curriculum, a self-directed and cooperative learning program at the University of Pittsburgh. Between the AC Program, political activism, punk rock and battling cancer, I received the most intensive and extensive education you can imagine. </p>
<p>My Master’s degree is not in English. My Master’s comes from Pitt’s Department of Instruction and Learning. I am certified to teach English and Social Studies, but most of what I know about Social Studies was acquired through “real life” study related to political activism, studying the issues and the history behind the issues, and most of what I know about English comes from my love of music. As ridiculous as this sounds, I’ve studied Bertolt Brecht because of The Doors. I’ve studied Shakespeare because of Lou Reed. I’ve studied Rimbaud because of Patti Smith. </p>
<p>When I originally took my certification tests to be licensed to teach, NATIONAL tests, I scored in the 99th, 98th and 96th percentiles in communication skills, general knowledge, and professional knowledge. Those scores are NOT the product of my schooling. They are the product of my pursuit and exploration of my own interests. </p>
<p>As an institution, school is a mechanism for social-control, mass production, sorting and sifting people into boxes and bins, courses of study, majors, career-paths. Education is supposed to be a means of empowerment, a means to equal opportunity, but schooling is a system that prepares you to assume a role within a hierarchy. </p>
<p>Compulsory schooling is evil. Imagine handing your children over to complete strangers for six to eight hours every day for programming and indoctrination. But that is the law. Most families don’t know that they have a choice. </p>
<p>Look at Frederick Douglass. Benjamin Franklin. George Washington. They didn’t need public schools, did they? </p>
<p>Children are born learning-machines, hard-wired to seek empowerment in the world. How did you learn to walk? School? No, How did you learn to talk? School? No. Learning begins with natural curiosity, the interests and questions of the child, and you proceed from there. A school should be defined as “a community of learners.” </p>
<p>Compulsory schooling? Read this, or else. Sit here, or else. Hear that bell? Time to stop in the middle of whatever you’re doing and do something else. It is antithetical to the type of learning children are hard-wired to do. </p>
<p>For my entire life, the “experts” in the field of education have been trying to narrow the so-called “achievement gap,” but the gap has widened. Why? Because the system is based on control instead of empowerment. Carrots and sticks. Rewards and consequences. </p>
<p>Children cannot be programmed. Your brain is not a computer, and you will resist being treated like a cog in a machine or a brick in the wall. </p>
<p>My single piece of advice to steer students to the path of success is this: You are responsible for your own learning. LEARN HOW TO LEARN. Learn to understand yourself as a learner. </p>
<p>If you are young, you are in the phase of your life in which you should be exploring the possibilities, opening doors, discovering what you are capable of, what you love, keeping your options open. </p>
<p>Your life is your own. Take ownership. You are not a victim. You are more than the product of your environment. You are responsible for creating yourself, for turning yourself into the person that you want to be. </p>
<p>What's next for Robert Wagner and Little Wretches? Any plans on getting the performing band back together, post-COVID? </p>
<p>Some friends say there will be no post-Covid. Covid isn’t going anywhere. Learn to live with it. Life goes on. Covid. Climate-change. Wars and rumors of wars. Don’t matter to me. I have a job to do. </p>
<p>I prefer playing with a band to playing solo, and I prefer playing to a live-audience. I can’t stand sitting in front of a laptop and playing to a picture of myself. Right before the lockdown started, I did a full-band show with Losi, Ellen Hildebrand and Mike Madden, and it KILLED. Recently, I did a duo show with Rosa Colucci for an in-person audience, and it KILLED. </p>
<p>I hope I can generate enough interest in our music to warrant a real, full-blooded reunion. But till then, I’m prepared to perform solo. </p>
<p>I’ll play anywhere, any time. My answer-in-advance to any invitation to perform is YES. I’ve said a thousand times, I want to wake up in the morning, thinking about where I’m playing tonight. </p>
<p>I’m kind of back to where I started. I have guitar and my songs. If God is with me, who can be against me? </p>
<p>Thanks again, Robert. Much luck in the future! Please come back anytime.</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/64722812020-11-07T13:35:08-05:002024-01-13T07:22:02-05:00SOMEWHERE IN VEGAS Podcast<p><a contents="This link takes you to an appearance by Robert Andrew Wagner on the SOMEWHERE IN VEGAS podcast." data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://www.spreaker.com/user/somewhereinvegas/robert-wagner-interview" target="_blank">This link takes you to an appearance by Robert Andrew Wagner on the SOMEWHERE IN VEGAS podcast.</a></p>
<p>Songwriter and Recording Artist Robert Wagner </p>
<p>From: Somewhere in Vegas </p>
<p>Having produced over 11 albums with his band Little Wretches, Robert Wagner has grown as an artist. </p>
<p>An icon in indie folk rock, his lyrics are a glimpse into the emotional history of humanity and uses characters and storytelling to pull at your heart strings and put a smile on your face. </p>
<p>We talked to Wagner about his journey into music, his evolution as a songwriters, and graces us with a live performance.</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/64722802020-11-07T13:30:47-05:002020-11-07T13:30:47-05:00Long Interview at ORIGINAL ROCK Magazine<p><a contents="Follow this link to the interview at Original Rock dot Net" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://originalrock.net/2020/10/26/robert-wagner-of-little-wretches/?fbclid=IwAR2XyuBVSshwQXWinFnKjQed6gJPq_JYnSJPcMd077UK_9NohzLIoHSseo0" target="_blank">Follow this link to the interview at Original Rock dot Net</a></p>
<p>What first got you into music? </p>
<p>Thanks. I love telling this story. </p>
<p>My mother and my aunt had a lot of vinyl records. Me and my sister, Lynda, and our cousins, Mickey and Nancy, when we would visit each others’ homes—I’m talking three, four, five years old—we had these little children’s turntables with tinny little speakers and boxes of records. </p>
<p>Go play! </p>
<p>And as we played, we took turns playing vinyl records. Nowadays, gaming systems are the babysitter. I was lucky to grow up with a turntable. </p>
<p>Some records, we weren’t allowed to handle. They could only be played on the grown up’s record player, and only they were allowed to place them on the turntable. </p>
<p>When you’re a kid, that’s impressive: Something so precious that you aren’t even allowed to touch it. Something sacred. Something holy. </p>
<p>The first song I can remember hearing was The Beatles’ I WANT TO HOLD YOUR HAND. </p>
<p>I’m just going to call out a few artists I can recall from the stack: Tom Jones, Herb Alpert and The Tijuana Brass, Englebert Humperdinck, Johnny Cash, Glen Campbell, Petula Clark, Tammy Wynette, The Mills Brothers, Ed Ames, Smokey Robinson, The Platters, Nat King Cole. </p>
<p>I had a copy of The Kinks’ LOLA, and I played it so many times that mother yelled down the stairs, “If you play that record one more time, I’m going to come down there and break it.” </p>
<p>My cousins and I knew every song on the charts. If we saw mention of a song we hadn’t heard, we went on a mission to find it and hear it. All styles. All genres. Pure joy. </p>
<p>Who inspired you to make music? </p>
<p>Where I grew up—a working class Catholic town called Castle Shannon that started out as a coal mining village and grew into a suburb—all kids were expected to take up a musical instrument at the age of nine, usually an instrument for the school band. My sister picked the clarinet. My cousin picked the trombone. I wanted drums. </p>
<p>My mom shopped for drums, but drums were too expensive, so she asked if I would be happy with a guitar. That was my ninth birthday present—an acoustic guitar and a guitar lesson. My thirteenth birthday present was a $50 electric guitar and a little ten-watt amp. </p>
<p>I was one of those kids who spent a lot of time living in his own little dream world, and that turned out to be the thing that saved me. </p>
<p>My family disintegrated. My mom ran off to whereabouts unknown. She took my sister and brother but left me. My dad was a violent drunk, and he and I would get into serious fistfights. I ended up living above the garage at my grandmother’s house. </p>
<p>I hated everyone and everything. I totally isolated myself, had no friends, and I would sit in my little room with my guitar. I had a pencil and piece of cardboard, not even a tablet of paper. And I started writing songs. </p>
<p>I had the lyrics written out on the piece of cardboard, a concept-album of some kind, and I made notes about the intended vocal style. I never sang out loud, but I imagined singing some parts in the style of John Lennon, other parts in the style of Marc Bolan from T. Rex, other parts in the voice of David Bowie. </p>
<p>There were kids at school who actually got together to jam, and they had bands, played at school dances. I don’t think any of those kids knew I existed, much less that I played guitar. </p>
<p>But that loneliness, the isolation and the anger that it produced, serious anger, you can’t underestimate the revenge-motive. I wanted revenge, and words and sounds were my weapons. </p>
<p>I totally bought into the mythology of rock’n’roll. I read a statement by Patti Smith where she says something like, “Rock’n’roll is the highest form of communication known to man.” </p>
<p>What did I know? It HAD to be true. </p>
<p>STREET FIGHTING MAN by The Rolling Stones—“What can a poor boy do except sing for a rock’n’roll band.” </p>
<p>JUNGLE LAND by Bruce Springsteen—“Kids flash guitars just like switchblades, hustling for the record machine.” </p>
<p>PISS FACTORY by Patti Smith—“I will get out of here and I will go to New York City and I’m going to be so big and I will never return to burn out in this Piss Factory.” </p>
<p>This music-thing was like being part of an invisible army. Me and my imaginary friends in a fantasy a war against every asshole in the whole wide world. To the death! </p>
<p>Music was the only thing I didn’t hate. It saved my life. </p>
<p>How would you describe the music that you typically create? </p>
<p>My music cuts across genres. I have a writer’s voice. I have a world view. I have a “thing,’ something people can get into. The Little Wretches are a vehicle for my stories and songs. </p>
<p>I teach through stories and I tell stories through songs. </p>
<p>Now, who the f### am I to think I have anything to teach anybody else? Imagine the arrogance of thinking yourself a teacher! </p>
<p>I am teaching are the stories of the people I’ve known. I am honoring the people I’ve loved by keeping their flames burning. </p>
<p>If there are kids out there today as angry and hurt as I was, I’m sure they’ll find in my songs what I found in the stuff that kept me alive. </p>
<p>I’ve been performing solo with an acoustic guitar for about a decade, so you might think I’m some kind of folkie. But I don’t play no Peter, Paul and Mary. I’m REAL folk. I’m handing down the stories of my people. I pray there is a next generation to do the same. </p>
<p>When The Little Wretches were coming up, hardcore punk was the big thing with all the cool kids. Cool kids? I hate cool kids. I’m more hardcore—just me and my guitar—than your entire hardcore scene and all its spikes and leather. The Little Wretches versus Black Flag. They are louder and more blatant, but go beneath the surface, and is Black Flag more hardcore than me? </p>
<p>What people really want to know when they ask what kind of music you play is what kind of clothes should they wear. What drinks should they drink? What drugs should they take? What should they smoke? How should they cut their hair? Right? People are looking to belong to something. </p>
<p>Bob Dylan’s LIKE A ROLLING STONE, that’s everybody’s biggest fear—having nothing an no one and discovering your friends are frauds and parasites. “How does it feel?” </p>
<p>Somebody told me the marketing companies can extrapolate based on what kind of music you listened to when you were twelve and predict what kind of beer you’ll drink when you’re thirty. </p>
<p>Well, I ain’t gonna change what I am to fit in anywhere, and if that puts me on the outs, so be it. I don’t want to belong to anything that makes me deny any part of who and what I am. I don’t want to be stuck in anybody’s box, limited to anybody’s categories. </p>
<p>I describe my music as, “Musical Portraits and Cinematography of the Soul.” That’s kind of ponderous, isn’t it? La-de-da-de-da. Ain’t you something? </p>
<p>Yeah, but what’s it sound like? </p>
<p>Tony Norman, one of the best columnists in America, said we’re a cross between Nelson Algren, Rimbaud and Grimm’s Fairy Tales. He’s a writer, so it figures he’d frame us in literary terms. </p>
<p>Another critic said, “The Little Wretches play the kind of music to win a jaded girl’s heart.” That’s about the best description I can think of. </p>
<p>Where’s the jaded girls? I got some songs for them. How about their moms? How about their grandmoms? Or their little sisters. </p>
<p>What is your creative process like? </p>
<p>A line will come to me, a phrase—lyrical or musical—and one idea leads to another. I’ve had songs that just come to me in almost finished form. </p>
<p>I’ll pull a lot of my lyrics out of everyday conversation. I’ll eavesdrop, take what I heard, and make it rhyme. Set it over a rhythm. The color of the words tell you what chords and melody you need. </p>
<p>I’ve spent so much time immersed in this stuff that some things just “sound right” to me. </p>
<p>This is going to sound off-topic, but I promise, it relates: </p>
<p>I studied poetry-writing for a time under a guy who’d grown up near Bruce Springsteen and used to spy on Springsteen’s rehearsals. So now he’s a college teacher, and Springsteen has a new album out, and my teacher wanted to borrow my copy. He doesn’t want to risk wasting his own money, but he really wants to hear what his homie is playing these days. </p>
<p>When he returned it to me, he said he was disappointed. He said every note was predictable. Every rhyme was predictable. He said that the most amazing thing about Springsteen when he was coming up was that you never knew where he was going next. Everything felt like a surprise, but everything also felt perfect. Kind of a paradox. </p>
<p>(I do NOT agree with the dude’s assessment of Springsteen, by the way.) </p>
<p>When I’m writing a song, I understand that I need to make that paradox happen. I want to give the listener something simultaneously surprising and perfect, like every note and syllable is exactly where it needs to be, but you didn’t anticipate its coming till it happened. And I like to throw in lines calculated to snap you to attention, re-set your focus. </p>
<p>What did he just say? Did he say what I think he said? </p>
<p>This is so difficult to explain. It really falls into the Socratic “Beauty is Divine” thing. An idea comes to me from out of nowhere, then I sculpt it a little. I just kind of know when I get it right. And when I know it’s right, it doesn’t matter who likes it or who gets it. I know I nailed it. It’s between me and God. </p>
<p>Who would you most like to collaborate with? </p>
<p>What kind of collaboration are you talking about? </p>
<p>I’d love to collaborate with filmmakers and choreographers. I’d love for my songs to be part of a curated exhibit in a gallery or staged with actors and dancers. </p>
<p>Strictly in the field of music, though, Tony Norman suggested I get in touch with T-BONE BURNETT. He thinks T-Bone Burnett would be a great producer for The Little Wretches. </p>
<p>The Irish supergroup THE CHIEFTAINS, I’d love to collaborate with them, have their sound as the musical backdrop for my songs. </p>
<p>There’s a band from my hometown, DEVILISH MERRY, that has a lot of the qualities I admire in The Chieftains. If I could hire Devilish Merry to be my backing band for an album and a tour, that would be cool. </p>
<p>I have no desire to chase down my musical heroes, and I’m too old to waste my time. If I could choose collaborators, I’d choose an all-star team of people I’ve already worked with. </p>
<p>You know about Bob Dylan and The Band making THE BASEMENT TAPES, right? Holed up, making music every day with no particular audience or end in mind, but Dylan’s songs being the nucleus of the project. I’d like to do a Basement Tapes thing. </p>
<p>If I could be holed up in a Big Pink House with musicians willing to work with my songs, I’d stick with Rosa Colucci of The Little Wretches on vocals and percussion. There might be singers more famous, but none better or more creative and sympathetic. </p>
<p>For piano, I’d pull Dave Losi of The Little Wretches out of his self-imposed retirement. Or H.K. Hilner. H.K has two musical idols—The Rolling Stones and Gustav Mahler. He “gets it.” Maybe we’d stick H.K. on the grand piano and have Losi do organ. </p>
<p>My Garth Hudson, the guy who adds sweetness, beauty and texture to the sound, would be Steve Sciulli. Steve is a multi-instrumentalist with great musical instincts and a broad vocabulary. He’s played traditional Irish music, punk rock, classical rock, traditional Japanese music, ambient music, meditation music. </p>
<p>On bass, I’d take Dan Wasson. Dan is a fixture in Pittsburgh’s jazz scene, but he’s played all kinds of music. Dan and I went to St. Anne’s School together. We played football and wrestled together. He knows Hendrix inside and out. He knows Coltrane, Ornette Coleman, all the Free Jazz stuff. John Carson of The Little Wretches is not to be sold short as a bassist, either. I’d pick Dan because of his musical vocabulary, but John Carson “gets it.” We could always have John on bass and give Danny an electric guitar. </p>
<p>Speaking of guitar, I wish to God I could bring Jon Paul Leone out of eternity and back to this world. Jon Paul Leone. Oh, to play with him again. He was an encyclopedia. He could play as fluently as I write. </p>
<p>Mike Madden on drums, no doubt. Mike rocks. And Ellen Hildebrand on rhythm guitar. Ellen is not a virtuoso musician, but she’s another one of those people who “gets it.” She knows what the music is supposed to sound and feel like. She’s got soul. </p>
<p>And the guy who founded The Little Wretches with me, my brother, Charles John Wagner. In fact, I am so much in his debt, if I could collaborate with him, I’d want to devote a few years to playing HIS songs, setting HIS poetry to music. </p>
<p>I wish you could have known my brother. </p>
<p>If you could go open a show for any artist who would it be? </p>
<p>A lot of the artists I most admire have such devoted followings that the opening act gets in the way. It ain’t no fun trying to entertain people who want your set to end so they can see their heroes. </p>
<p>If my motive was to possibly poach some fans, turn the stars’ audience on to MY music, if I’m playing solo, I’d go with Steve Earle or Richard Thompson. If I have the whole band, I’d love to open for The Dream Syndicate. Or Steve Earle with his band. Or Richard Thompson with his band. </p>
<p>The three solo-performers I most admire are Michelle Shocked, Peter Himmelman and Jonathan Richman. I’ve seen each of them do shows WITHOUT openers. Would they even have me? I would want to open for them just so I could get into the show for free. </p>
<p>What is one message you would give to your fans? </p>
<p>Thank you. I hope I have not been a disappointment to you. I love doing this. I look at what I’ve done, what I am doing, and what I hope to do, and I want you to know that your support and encouragement helps to sustain me and gives me added reason to keep fighting. </p>
<p>Do you sing in the shower? What songs? </p>
<p>I do my shower-singing in the car. You might pull up next to me at a traffic light and see me rocking in my seat and wailing along with some Patti Smith. Maybe The Kinks. </p>
<p>Music in the car. LOUD music in the car. Hardly ever in the shower. One of my favorite things when I have a day with nothing to do is to just head out, find a road I’ve never traveled before and see where it goes. Just get lost in the maze of roads knowing that all roads eventually lead back home. </p>
<p>John Doe has a song, “Beer! Gas! Ride forever!” I can go without the beer, but I can’t go without the music. </p>
<p>Mott the Hoople. Garland Jeffreys. Jackson Browne. Glen Campbell. The Everly Brothers. Dusty Springfield. Linda Ronstadt. Emmylou Harris. Buddy Holly. The Sex Pistols. Elliot Murphy. David Johansen. </p>
<p>Dang, you shouldn’t have got me started. </p>
<p>Oooh, ooh. I forgot PROMISES, PROMISES by Generation X. </p>
<p>What would you be doing right now, if it wasn't for your music career? </p>
<p>A couple of things, for sure. I’m pretty sure I’d be writing, and I’d be working with at-risk teens. </p>
<p>As a writer, I could be in politics, writing speeches, writing position papers for a think tank. God forbid that I’d be a college professor doing poetry as a cottage industry. Bob Dylan put poetry out of business. </p>
<p>I’d definitely be working with kids, which is something I actually do now. I work well with the angriest of kids. I don’t know what it is, but I have a knack. I come around, and babies stop crying, dogs stop barking, and angry kids see me as a friend. </p>
<p>Where have you performed? What are your favourite and least favourite venues? Do you have any upcoming shows? </p>
<p>Well, everything is still locked down where I am, so I don’t really have any upcoming shows. Like a lot of people, I do these Zoom and Facebook Live things, just sit in front of a laptop and play to a picture of yourself. Not satisfying at all. </p>
<p>When it comes to favorite and least favorite venues, you might be surprised. The venues I prefer are venues where we can come in and totally be ourselves. It feels like a living room, and the audience is like a group of family friends. It has nothing to do with the actual size of the place. It has more to do with the spirit of hospitality and community, and that usually starts with the owners. </p>
<p>There’s a legendary blues club in Pittsburgh, MOONDOG’S, run by Ron “Moondog” Esser. There’s a place called The Oddity Bar in Wilmington, Delaware. The Oddity Bar has a sci-fi movie feel. You can be on stage and MAD MAX or THE ROAD WARRIOR can be playing on the TV’s. Places like that, you are welcomed when you get there and thanked when you leave. </p>
<p>I love playing art galleries. There’s a big installation-art gallery in Pittsburgh called THE MATTRESS FACTORY. I recorded a live acoustic album in a room there. Hardwood floors. Brick walls. The sound was so perfect we didn’t even need amplification. And the entire place is imbued with the spirit of beauty and creativity. </p>
<p>Also in Pittsburgh, I’ve played at THE WARHOL a couple times. (If you go to Pittsburgh and don’t visit The Warhol, your trip was incomplete.) And smaller galleries, too. A dear friend who passed away recently, DAVID ALLEN FLYNN, just about every time he had an art-opening, he asked me to play. </p>
<p>I can’t forget small “black box” theaters, too. When a show is running, you know, a play, a couple of nights a week are going to be “dark.” Usually Sunday and Monday nights. Some theaters will have music on the dark nights. The stage-sets for the show-in-progress are usually more interesting that the rinky-dink lights at a club. Great circumstances for doing a show. Atmosphere. Props. Formal seating. Gravitas. Yes, this is how Shakespeare did it. And Bugs Bunny. </p>
<p>“Overture! Turn the lights! This is it! We’ll hit the heights!…” </p>
<p>How do you feel the Internet has impacted the music business? </p>
<p>I don’t really feel like I’m a part of the music business. </p>
<p>I have always subscribed to the DIY/punk ethic. I’ve spent a great portion of my life listening to unauthorized bootleg recordings. My favorite bands were regarded as “underground,” and they forged ahead in obscurity for much of their “careers.” </p>
<p>For the indie/outsider artist, the internet is a wonderful thing. </p>
<p>The internet allows the artist to connect directly with the listener, the viewer, the buyer, whatever. Lower the overhead costs and cut out the middle-man. </p>
<p>Shakespeare said, “All the world’s a stage.” Thanks to the internet, all the world is an open-stage. The internet allows every knucklehead with a laptop to make a Grammy-quality recording. Every grandpa who went to law school instead of spending his student loans on a Les Paul can now pretend to be a musician in his semi-retirement. </p>
<p>More than ever, I’m a needle in a haystack. </p>
<p>But the internet allows a person in South Africa, New Zealand or Hungary to find The Little Wretches. And that’s all I can ask for. If I can find a way to make the music, I can be assured that audiences will be able to find it. </p>
<p>I’ve got to tough it out and give them a reason to want to find it, which is why I’m so grateful to be doing this interview. If I neglected to thank you previously, allow me to thank you now. </p>
<p>Thank you! </p>
<p>And as a fan, the most satisfying thing is discovering a new artist to “get into.” The Little Wretches might not be everybody’s cup of tea, but there are people out there who are seeking exactly what we are doing. I have this goldmine of music just waiting to be discovered by people who aren’t going to find what I’m offering anywhere else. </p>
<p>What is your favourite song to perform? </p>
<p>Did you ever see the move, SOPHIE’S CHOICE? With Meryl Streep? That’s what you’re asking me to do. I love all of my songs like children. If one hasn’t been played in a while, I perform it so it doesn’t start to feel unloved and unappreciated. </p>
<p>Pick a favorite? </p>
<p>For covers, I like playing Buddy Holly’s EVERY DAY and Glen Campbell’s LESS OF ME. Of course, I have a version of I’LL BE YOUR MIRROR, the Lou Reed and The Velvet Underground song, and I infuse it with original poetry. I love playing that. </p>
<p>I have an unreleased song called DUQUESNE about a woman who is forced to retire but who gets up and goes to work every morning anyhow. Instead of working, she sits in church all day then goes home when the day is done. She says, “There’s no place on earth where it’s good to be old.” My finest writing, I think. DUQUESNE might be my favorite, and it’s still on the to-do list. </p>
<p>Great music yet to come from The Little Wretches, believe me. </p>
<p>What is the most trouble you've ever gotten into? </p>
<p>Trouble? Are you asking if I ever did time for manslaughter? Snoop? Ice T? Did I ever steal a car? Rob a liquor store? Shoot a man in Reno just to watch him die? Get rich or die trying? </p>
<p>Did you ever follow professional wrestling, The Road Warriors? “We snack on danger, we dine on death!” Or something like that. </p>
<p>I’m a cancer-survivor. I’m from a broken home with two violent, substance-abusing parents. You’re asking me about trouble? </p>
<p>I’ll tell you about trouble, and mine is minuscule compared to what a lot of other people face, but I mentioned earlier that my dad was a violent drunk, and my mom had to go into hiding. </p>
<p>My best friend when I was a teenager, I can’t say his name, but he was a mixed-race kid in an otherwise all-white neighborhood. His own dad died when we were nine or ten years old, and my dad, who’d grown up without a father, treated my friend a son. </p>
<p>My friend wanted a gun, but the sporting goods store wouldn’t sell him a gun because he was under age. So he begged my dad to buy this gun for him. </p>
<p>Now, this was prior to my mother going underground. Here’s the context. My mom and dad had split up, and my dad used to come to my mom’s house every day to either kill her or convince her to take him back. My job was to fight him off, which I was able to do because he was drunk. I was a tough kid, but my dad was legendary. But he was drunk, so I could take him. Lord have mercy if he’d ever been sober. </p>
<p>Well, my dad bought this 22-calibre pellet-gun for my friend, “the gat,” he called it, with the understanding that my friend would let my dad use it whenever my dad wanted it. One time, my dad came to my mother’s house and said he was going to shoot her eyes out. Fun times. </p>
<p>So anyhow, my mom disappears, and I end up living with my grandmother. But I still felt like my father’s house was rightfully MY house, and whenever he wasn’t home, I knew how to break in through one of the windows. I’d go there when he wasn’t home, listen to records, watch TV. </p>
<p>He had an envelope in the closet where he kept all his cash. I used to take a ten or twenty-dollar bill when I wanted cash. He was a drunk, right? He couldn’t keep track of his money. I’d take it, and he’d just assume he’d drunk it up. </p>
<p>What I’d do is wait till he got home. I’d watch him back the car down the driveway, and when he’d open the garage door, I’d sneak out the front door. If he sensed that I’d been there, too bad. There was nothing he could do about it. </p>
<p>Well, one time, me and my friends were in my dad’s house, and my dad came home. No problem. I have a system. Wait till he comes in the garage. But this time, he parked the car at the top of the driveway and entered through the front door. We were trapped. </p>
<p>Now, the three of us could have jumped him, but he was a tough man, and my friends weren’t up for that. I’d invited them in, after all. It was my responsibility to get them out of the house safely. </p>
<p>I herded them into the back room with the idea that they could crawl out the window, but we must have made too much noise because he started yelling at us, at me, in particular. “I was a no good, lazy, so-and-so,” every vulgarity you can imagine. </p>
<p>As fate would have it, my friend had “the gat.” So I said, give it here. I’ll face off my dad while you guys get out of the house. </p>
<p>Now, as a sidebar, I should mention that my dad and I had been in a bunch of fistfights previously. I’m a very good wrestler. If I could evade his first punch, I could take him down and punch him out. Ugly. Also, my uncle, my Godfather, had suggested that the next time my dad and I tangled, I should break my dad’s leg. My dad was a mailman. If I broke his leg, he’d probably have to go into rehab, and when he’s sober, my dad is just as good as any many alive. According to my uncle, I’d be doing my dad a favor if I broke his leg. </p>
<p>So I go out into the main room, and my dad has already retrieved two big knives from the kitchen. (I actually have a scar along one of my eyebrows from a time he got me with a little pocket knife.) He knew I was there. He remembered our recent encounters, and he didn’t plan on losing this round. But he also didn’t plan on me having “the gat.” </p>
<p>So while my friends ran out of the house, I pointed the gun at my dad and told him to drop the knives or I’d shoot. He dropped the knives. He was really drunk, too, so I took him down with a basic wrestling move, and I was going to break his leg, but I couldn’t get myself to do it. </p>
<p>I’d visualized the move a hundred times, but when it came time, I couldn’t do it. Instead, I stomped my heel right into his solar plexus. I can still hear the sound he made, the face he made. Horrible. Then I followed my friends, and I have no recollection of what we did next. Probably went out for pizza or ice cream. </p>
<p>Just another night for a teenager in Castle Shannon, Pennsylvania. </p>
<p>Does that sound like trouble? </p>
<p>I have a couple of songs about my dad. I hope he forgives me, God rest his soul, for talking about him like this. My dad was a great man. He overcame more than I ever had to overcome. He was a father to the fatherless, a hardworking, selfless, humble man. But he drank. “Honor thy father and mother.” I hope that, taken as a whole, my body of work serves as a testament to the goodness of my mother and father. </p>
<p>Evil won the battle but lost the war. </p>
<p>What is the best advice you've been given? </p>
<p>My Uncle Jimmy, Jimmy Humes, my godfather, the guy who suggested that I break my dad’s leg, he didn’t give me good advice so much as he modeled for me how to enjoy life. </p>
<p>Jimmy Humes had been one of the top musicians, an accordionist, in Western Pennsylvania, but he’d gotten hooked on drugs and had to quit music in order to quit the drugs. Imagine being among the best at something but having to walk away from it. </p>
<p>There is so much I could tell you about him, but he was interested in hunting and fishing. He liked the outdoors, but he was a music dude. He didn’t know any hunters or fishermen. So he read up on it, invested in a little equipment, and while he taught himself how to be an outdoorsman, he brought me along for the trip. </p>
<p>My Uncle Jim, the best advice he ever gave me was, “I’m going to have a good time no matter what happens.” Kind of like that character in THIS IS SPINAL TAP, Viv, whose motto is, “Have a good time all the time.” My mom and dad were not happy people. They worked, they drank, and they fought. They were missing something. But my Uncle Jim taught me how to simply enjoy life. </p>
<p>“I’m going to have a good time no matter what happens.” </p>
<p>Easier said than done? Not really. It’s all in how you approach things. Time on earth is short. Life is precious. Savor it. </p>
<p>If you could change anything about the industry, what would it be? · </p>
<p>Industry? In broad terms, industry involves mass production for mass consumption for the sake of commerce. I’m not really part of that. I’m more like an artisan than an industrial worker. </p>
<p>What you find is that there is a lot of conflict-of-interest in parts of the business that are supposed to be separate, a lot of people wearing multiple hats. It’s like the judge, the lawyer, the jury are in cahoots with each other. Really, I don’t know or understand it. </p>
<p>People do business with people they like. People like to help their friends. When you’re on the outside, it feels like the whole thing is corrupt. But that isn’t just the music business. It’s how business works. </p>
<p>My relationship to the music industry is like my relationship to the weather. I get up and do my thing, rain or shine. I deliver the mail. </p>
<p>I wouldn’t change the music industry. I’d change the culture. People use music—something sacred to me—like a cigarette, a beer, or a cup of coffee. We live in a feel-good culture. Music is a mood-regulator for people who self-medicate. Walk into a grocery store, music is playing Walk into a convenience store, music is playing. Take a shower at the YMCA, music is playing. You are being drugged against your will. You are being conditioned to treat music—sacred and holy music—as something to be ignored. </p>
<p>It’s insidious. You are being drugged against your will by music that, in many cases, is amazing. I’ve heard The New York Dolls playing in convenience stores. Never got played on the radio in their day, but now they’re background music when you have to pee on a road trip. </p>
<p>Nothing against the New York Dolls, but what do I have to do to get The Little Wretches played at rest stops on the Pennsylvania Turnpike? </p>
<p>What's next for you? </p>
<p>I’ve been telling everyone who asks that I want to wake up in the morning thinking about where I am playing tonight. I want LIVE music to come back. </p>
<p>Right now, I am working without a booking agent, and nobody is booking, anyhow. But I need to find somebody to handle the booking. </p>
<p>If I never wrote another song, I have enough material waiting to be recorded to get me through another two or three albums. </p>
<p>I’m scheming. What I want, though, is a booking agent who can keep me busy. Every night, another audience. Drive. Do it again. </p>
<p>How important is the current climate crisis to you and how do you think you could help? </p>
<p>The fact that you’ve asked that question, worded as it is, suggests that “the current climate crisis” is important to you, and you believe it should be important to me. Am I correct? Yes? </p>
<p>And if that is the case, I feel like I should be turning the question back to you: YOU tell ME how you think I could help. </p>
<p>But we have to be careful with this. </p>
<p>I do a lot of work with at-risk and court-adjudicated teens. I learned a valuable lesson from a kid whose name I cannot share. We were watching a reality TV show with a segment about cosmetic surgery. I asked his opinion, and he said, “I ain’t nobody to tell another person what to do.” </p>
<p>I ain’t nobody to tell another person what to do. </p>
<p>That’s a sentence I keep with me every day of my life. </p>
<p>But back to the current climate crisis. </p>
<p>We have to define our terms. What do you mean “current?” The phenomena of climate is measured over time, is it not? So the words “current” and “climate” don’t really go together. </p>
<p>We also have to define “crisis.” As I understand it, climate-activists anticipate a chain of events with potentially catastrophic consequences and propose that action be taken now to defuse the ticking time-bomb of climate. </p>
<p>What we want, I believe, is to PREVENT a crisis. </p>
<p>I suggest you go back to the 1970s, books like LIMITS TO GROWTH. Go back to the turn of the century and Al Gore’s INCONVENIENT TRUTH. </p>
<p>Those apocalyptic predictions simply haven’t borne out, have they? </p>
<p>These points I’m making, people pull them out to “debunk” the notion that there is a current climate crisis, and that is not my intent. But I do think we need to broaden the discussion. Re-define the terms. </p>
<p>I’m going to go even further off-topic, but I’ll bring it around, I promise. </p>
<p>Let me ask you this. If I invite you to my home for dinner, do I ask you to do the dishes? No, I don’t. Now, on the other hand, if I give you permission to use my yard for YOUR party and you make a mess, do you have an obligation to clean your mess? Yes, you do. </p>
<p>It’s a question of stewardship. If you make a mess, you clean it up. If you deplete the supply, you replace it. </p>
<p>What we have is people in the business world who profit from depleting the planet of its supplies, and nobody holds them accountable to clean up the mess they made or to replace the resources they’ve used or restore the ecosystems they’ve disturbed. </p>
<p>It’s simple, isn’t it? You broke it, you bought it. You messed it up, you clean it up. </p>
<p>On the other hand, activists have this notion that nature was beautiful and harmonious till human beings came along and messed it up. To them, humans are termites. Humans are parasites. </p>
<p>I don’t buy that. Nature is nasty. Volcanoes. Earthquakes. Wildfires. The food-chain. Eat or be eaten. Ask tyrannosaurus rex. Ask triceratops. </p>
<p>Through human ingenuity, nature has been transformed so that a greater number of people can live in comfort and safety than at any time in history. Imagine, there was a time when the human population numbered in the thousands. Now, the planet can sustain billions. </p>
<p>Climate-change may be the reason humans migrated out of Africa. Climate-change may be the reason people migrated out of Mesopotamia. No water in Ur. We better go find some water. Next thing you know, we’re crossing from Siberia to Alaska, and the Mayans, Incas and Aztecs are transforming the Western Hemisphere, creating what we now call the Amazon Rainforest. </p>
<p>The Amazon Rainforest? Yes. It is the product of human stewardship. </p>
<p>So, back to the climate crisis. The crisis is that we project that people will be unable to adapt and adjust to the coming changes. Make no mistake, change is coming. </p>
<p>Me, I do not fear change. I was born for chaos. I was born for change. The future is created by people with no stake in the present. I’ve got no stake. I can afford to revert to the Bronze Age. If tomorrow, musicians had to go back to the days of the troubadours, just me and my guitar, on the road, unplugged, candlelight and torches, I’m on board. </p>
<p>Do it. I was MADE for that. </p>
<p>But I like my fossil-fueled car. I like driving three-hundred miles to play a gig for little more than gas-money. I’ll give up driving my car when Hollywood stops spending tens of millions to produce stupid movies, activists stop jet-setting around the world to give speeches at dinners where they throw out food more valuable than I’ll eat in a month, and China pays its workers a fifteen-dollar an hour minimum wage. </p>
<p>So, it looks like I’ve gone on a rant. I apologize. All politics is local. Clean your mess. Try not to waste stuff. Insist that the green spaces around you remain green. Insist that the polluters around you be held accountable. Protect wildlife. Conserve. Learn how to farm. Even if you live in a city, plant tomatoes, broccoli and peppers. </p>
<p>At the end of the day, ask yourself: Did I produce more calories than I consumed? Odds are, you did not. If you take more than you give, you are a parasite. Don’t be a parasite. Create. Produce. Give more than you take. </p>
<p>I don’t think that’s what you wanted, but that’s my two-cents on the current climate crisis.</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/64722702020-11-07T13:10:21-05:002020-11-07T13:25:41-05:00ABOUT INSIDER--All His Friends Are “Undesirables And Anarchists”<p><a contents="This link will take you to the full interview in ABOUT INSIDER Magazine" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://www.aboutinsider.com/robert-wagner-of-little-wretches-all-his-friends-are-undesirables-and-anarchists/amp/?fbclid=IwAR1IS3p9_CWAdHhxo5huR2_GPYeblQaGYUsXJmgMNcwO5b8m2icUIwiXsdg" target="_blank">This link will take you to the full interview in ABOUT INSIDER Magazine</a></p>
<p>Hey Robert Wagner! It’s an honour to have you chit chat with us and we are really grateful to you for making time for this interview despite your busy schedule. Thank you once again, let’s begin with the interview: </p>
<p>What drew you to the music industry? <br>I’m drawn to music. I love to play it, listen to it, lay on my bed holding an LP cover in front of my face while I daydream. I’m a fan, a fanatic. I’m one of those people who can listen to The Velvet Underground song, ROCK AND ROLL—“Her life was saved by rock and roll”—and I can say, ME, TOO! They’re singing about me! </p>
<p>Music industry? <br>The emergence of punk rock and the DIY scene gave me the license to get involved, to think that I could step on a stage—Hey, if THEY can do it, then I can do it. I managed to find a way to get involved with writing, performing and recording, and by sheer stubbornness and tenacity, I got good at it, or at least good enough to keep doing it. </p>
<p>I have something to say, a story to tell, a light to shine, and my songs are the vehicles for doing so. A recording of your song allows you to reach people across time and space. People fifty or.a hundred years from now will have access to your recordings. So if you’re serious about telling your story, you find a way to make a record. </p>
<p>When your band makes a record, that’s when you discover there is such a thing as a music industry. And thank God there is such a thing. In another time, I’d have been painting antelopes on the walls of caves or chiseling pictures into the sides of pyramids. The music industry allows me to tell the stories and shine the light, but in the end, I’m just a caveman drawing an antelope on the wall. </p>
<p>Who are you inspired by? <br>If you pick up a copy of Allen Ginsberg’s HOWL, the book, not the poem, you’ll see a dedication page where Ginsberg mentions Jack Kerouac, William Burroughs, Neal Cassady, and some others now known as “the Beat Generation.” </p>
<p>When HOWL came out, the spotlight shone on that whole scene. Now, there’s a whole cult built up around them. They’re part of the canon, sacred cows in their own way, I suppose. But when HOWL hit for Ginsberg, Jack Kerouac had already written six or seven novels, as Ginsberg said, “published in Heaven.” ON THE ROAD. THE SUBTERRANEANS. MEXICO CITY BLUES. Ginsberg lists a bunch of the titles. </p>
<p>But imagine you’re Jack Kerouac. You know you’ve created something of lasting beauty, and maybe ten of your closest friends get it. Everybody else either thinks you’re crazy or simply doesn’t care at all. But you know you’ve got it. And your ten friends know you’ve got it. And finally, it gets through. </p>
<p>There’s an inscription at the Wright Brothers’ memorial in Kill Devil Hills about “dauntless resolution and unconquerable faith.” That’s what inspires me. Jack Kerouac. The Wright Brothers. And all those artists of every form and genre out there right now pouring their hearts and souls into their work, doing the work with no promise of recognition or reward. </p>
<p>On a personal level, a former bandmate from The Little Wretches, Gregg Bielski, who also performs and records as SHRINKWRAP and EASY BAKE OVEN and runs a noise/ambient music label, Rorer 714, Gregg is as devoted, prolific and productive as any artist you’ll ever meet. </p>
<p>I went to Catholic school, you know. There’s a song that people make fun of now but it once went to number one, Dominique by The Singing Nun. Have you heard it? “Never asking for reward, he just talks about the Lord.” </p>
<p>I’m inspired by people who do what they do without calculating risk and reward, people possessed and driven, people on fire for what they are doing. </p>
<p>Please explain your creative process <br>The creative process for me has changed over time. </p>
<p>People who provide instruction in the arts talk about discipline and practice to refine technique, to hone the tools, practice and preparation. You can learn how to do X, Y and Z. You can improve how you do X, Y and Z. You can master doing X, Y and Z. </p>
<p>But skill and competence can’t do much without inspiration. </p>
<p>My creative process involves preparing myself to be open to inspiration, keeping my eyes and ears open, seeing things others don’t bother to notice, hearing things that others are filtering out. </p>
<p>I’m blessed insomuch as the world makes no sense to me. I’m always walking around with the feeling that everybody else knows something that has eluded me. I can be hypersensitive because I’m looking for that secret bit of knowledge that will unlock the invisible barrier that stands between me and what the rest of the world has kept hidden from me. </p>
<p>When inspiration strikes, for me, since I’ve been doing this for many years, it’s like a visitation from a friendly angel. I recognize the feeling, the sound inside my head, the call. When I was younger, I wrote and played all the time, every waking hour. Now, I spend a lot of time refining stuff I’ve been working on, some of it for years, some for decades. And when inspiration calls, I answer. </p>
<p>I’m sure that sound like a bunch of hocus pocus. </p>
<p>What’s an average day like for you? <br>If I have a show, the day revolves around being prepared for the show. If I have a rehearsal, the day revolves around being prepared for the rehearsal. </p>
<p>When The Little Wretches were based in a house in Castle Shannon, I’d get up pretty early, walk down the hill to a convenience store for a cup of coffee and the morning paper. I’d walk back up the hill, reading the sports, the comics and the daily horoscope—for amusement only, of course. </p>
<p>Then I’d hop on my ten-speed and ride out to the South Park Fairgrounds, used to be the site of the Allegheny County Fair. I’d chain my bike to a tree, go for a run up and down Corrigan Drive, then hop on the bike and pedal home. By then, our drummer Angelo George would have gotten up. He’d either have been to the store or we’d walk down to the store to pick up some cheap ingredients for lunch. George’s family were restauranteurs, so George knew how to cook. </p>
<p>Then I’d take a nap and spend the afternoon studying, writing, practicing my guitar. I’m not one of those fluent guitarists who can think a musical idea and make it come out my fingers. I have to craft parts that are within my abilities and practice them over and over. </p>
<p>When evening approaches, it’s getting to be game-time. Load the truck, let’s go. This is what I’ve been waiting for all day. Ellen Hildebrand says that you will play like you practice, so we bring the same intensity and preparation to a rehearsal that we’ll bring to a show. </p>
<p>Now, I mostly perform solo. No truck to load. Just me and my guitar. But the layout of the day is the same. The whole day is devoted to being mentally and physically prepared. </p>
<p>Is there a hidden meaning in any of your music? <br>Every story needs a context. Every picture needs a frame. My songs are loaded with imagery related to experience, fragments from conversation, snapshots of moments. A lot of my songs are inhabited by characters, semi-fictional in that they are composites. I can take three people and combine them into one. </p>
<p>There is a story behind just about every line of every song. Nothing is hidden, but people see what they are looking for. I’m trying to give people a reason to want to get inside the song. </p>
<p>When I’m performing, I feel like the character in BLADE RUNNER, Roy, the little monologue he does, the “Tears in the Rain” speech. You can find the clip on YouTube if you haven’t watched the movie a thousand times. </p>
<p>Before my time is up, I want to tell you about the amazing things I’ve seen, the amazing people I’ve known, the appreciation and thankfulness I have for this gift of life. Eternity exists. God is good. Life is precious. Hidden? Why would I want to hide it? </p>
<p>Do you collaborate with others? What is that process? <br>These days, I mostly perform solo, but in my head, I’m still hearing vocal harmonies, drums, bass lines, counterpoint melodic lines in the upper register. Historically, I’ve been able to attract really good musicians. My songs are vehicles for their musicianship. I need people with a broad musical vocabulary who intuitively know what the song needs. I often use the metaphor, “bringing something to the table.” Is the musician bringing something to the table? We are presenting a feast. What are you bringing? What are you adding? Too much spice can destroy the dish. The right amount can make it delicious. </p>
<p>I’ve played with a few people who bring nothing to the table. They are just playing along, saying nothing, occupying space. You speak through your instrument. I speak through mine. If you ain’t got nothing to say, I don’t want you in my band. </p>
<p>I’ve had people ask, “What do you want?” They’ll say, “I can do this. Or I can do this. Or I can do this. What do you prefer?” And I’ll say, that’s your department. The art is in the decision-making. If I have to make the decision for you, you got on the wrong bus. </p>
<p>If I have the right people, all I have to say is, “Play it like you feel it.” I want my collaborators to feel a sense of investment and ownership. If I don’t like what you’re doing, I’ll ask you to try something else. But mostly, I play my part and sing my lines, and you decide for yourself what and how you are going to play. All I have to do is a little bit of conducting. Here, we drop out. Here, we pull back. Here, we build. Here, we hit a peak. </p>
<p>Gregg Bielski. Rosa Colucci. Jon Paul Leone. David Losi. My brother, Charles John Wagner. John Creighton. Chris Bruckhoff. Ed Heidel. Ellen Hildebrand. John Carson. Mike Madden. H.K. Hilner. David L. Mitchell. These people brought something to the table. </p>
<p>Please discuss how you interact with and respond to fans <br>I’m not sure how to answer that. I am deeply grateful to anyone who cares to listen. You said fans, as opposed to casual listeners. I don’t think I have any casual listeners. </p>
<p>My songs can be pretty demanding, pretty challenging. I’m throwing a lot of information at you, evoking a world of experience and emotion that might be pretty troubling or upsetting. So when the show is over, anybody who sticks around to interact with me is instantly a friend. </p>
<p>As a fan, I don’t feel any desire to fawn or gush over the artist. At the most, I might want to say thank you. What can I say? I bought your record. I bought a ticket to your show. Thank you for enriching my life with your music. </p>
<p>If my songs have been part your life, you have given me the greatest reward I can imagine. I’m the one who owes you. I am in your debt. You have affirmed my life, my work. You have given me a reason to get up and do it again tomorrow. </p>
<p>What is your favorite part about this line of work? Your least favorite? Why? <br>My favorite part about this line of work is that it is not work. It is often a struggle, a challenge, but it is an honor, a blessing to be able to do it. </p>
<p>My least favorite part? That’s a Pandora’s Box. As an artist, you’re working with some powerful stuff involving the mind and the soul. You have to ask yourself: Are you a Healer? Or are you a Dealer? </p>
<p>For a lot of listeners, music is just a decoration, just a way to set a mood or a tone. Music is like a cup of coffee, a cigarette, or a cocktail or beer. I listen to this to pick me up. I listen to that to calm me down. We live in a feel-good culture in which people are constantly medicating themselves, and music is one of the preferred drugs. </p>
<p>Nothing against the musical drug-dealers. Do what you do. But I’m doing something else. </p>
<p>Am I deluding myself? All I can say is music saved my life. Music has the power to save lives. And I’m a medicine-maker. How you use it is up to you. </p>
<p>Have you ever dealt with performance anxiety? <br>I get butterflies. But mostly, I know that I have something to say, and I’ve been preparing my entire life to say it. My anxiety comes AFTER the show. I was living for that moment, for that time on stage, and now that time is over. How sad. What do I do now? </p>
<p>Tell me about your favorite performance venues <br>Are you asking about the qualities of the ideal venue? Or are you asking about specific places? I could tell you some stories about actual venues. </p>
<p>I came up playing in a lot of punk clubs with p.a. systems set up for hardcore bands with vocalists that screamed. Me, with my conversational singing voice—audiences couldn’t understand a word I was saying. You come off stage and people say, “I couldn’t hear you.” What? And you waited till AFTER the show to make me aware of that? </p>
<p>And what about the sound person? Are they hard-of-hearing? They allowed me to play an entire set with the vocals muddy and buried? What’s that tell you? It tells you THEY DON’T CARE. They assume you’re like every other band coming through: YOU AIN’T GOING NOWHERE. </p>
<p>Well, I DO care. And I AM going somewhere. </p>
<p>The more you climb the ladder, the more you realize that SUCCESSFUL PEOPLE CARE. They understand that all business depends on the customer, and you have to give the customer a good value and a reason to return. If the customer feels valued and appreciated, they might come back. </p>
<p>This might shock you if you’re not part of the business. A lot of small “showcase” clubs with studio-quality sound, they ain’t paying you. You’re selling tickets. You are an entrepreneur trying to turn a profit, and the venue is part of your overhead. Money comes off the top to pay their sound person. Want lights? They’ll turn them on, but you have to pay to have someone run them. Want access to the dressing room? That’ll cost you. They are totally mercenary. Some of these places won’t even give you a complimentary drink. </p>
<p>The best venues make you feel welcome and supported. They booked you because they want to be able to say they supported and encouraged you. They believe in you and want to you to know that. Whatever you want, it’s yours. Whatever you need, consider it done. You’re on a first-name basis. They greet you when you arrive and thank you when it’s time to load out. </p>
<p>It’s the art of hospitality. It’s an attitude, a belief-system. When I’m performing, I want to feel like a guest in your home, and I’m in your living room playing for your closest friends. You’re not my customer; you are my friend. </p>
<p>MOONDOG’S and THE STARLITE LOUNGE and any other festival or event run by Ron “Moondog” Esser, that’s going to be a place where you are treated well. There’s a club in Wilmington, Delaware called THE ODDITY BAR. Great beer selections, all kinds of sci-fi and spooky decor, classic sci-fi and B-movies playing on the television screens—Pat McCutcheon runs it, and his staff his friendly, encouraging and supportive. </p>
<p>There was a place in a small town in Western Pennsylvania run by a campus cop from the University of Pittsburgh. His name was Jesse Long. Mr. Long invited us down to play. Such a rickety joint that our p.a. system blew their fuses. Rickety old place, a shot and a beer type place with a pool table and a juke box. But when we showed up, they asked us what we wanted to drink. Some of the girls with the drummer ordered some kind of la-de-da cocktails, and Mr. Long sent one of his waitresses out to the liquor store to pick up the ingredients. </p>
<p>That’s hospitality. </p>
<p>As it turns out, I ended up working with Mr. Long’s nephew, also named Jesse. Jesse told me a story about the night his uncle booked Ray Charles. Jesse said Ray had a drug-problem and missed the gig. He showed up at closing time, and Mr. Long took a swing at him. He said Ray Charles ducked. Jesse said this was proof that Ray Charles could see! </p>
<p>What advice would you have for someone wanting to follow in your footsteps? <br>Footsteps? Footsteps lead somewhere. MY footsteps? If you’re following in my footsteps, that means you are going to be doing this for the rest of your life, trying to create something that will last. </p>
<p>A good sheet-metal worker doesn’t get to put his name on his work, but his work will stand as long as the building he is working on stands. A good cement worker can build a wall or lay a sidewalk that will be there a hundred or two hundred years from now. </p>
<p>As a writer and musician, I understand that I am on a playing field in which the game is driven by the pursuit of fame and the “hit record.” But that is not the game I am playing. We may play on the same field, but we are playing different games. </p>
<p>In the music business, I try to walk through doors that open for me. I might pound on doors that won’t open or move on to the next door. I try to find my way around obstacles. But I don’t want to make the mistake of forgetting that I write songs for the same reason Walt Whitman and Emily Dickinson wrote poetry. </p>
<p>When I was a young person dreaming about this life, I wanted to know how and where to start, how and where to get in the door. Where’s the door? What do I have to do to get in? I have no footsteps to follow. I have no hand reaching down to pull me up. I am ON THE OUTSIDE. </p>
<p>Do the work and don’t look back. Ellen Hildebrand, a bandmate in The Little Wretches, quotes Abraham Lincoln, “I will prepare, and perhaps my chance will come.” When your chance comes, be prepared. </p>
<p>In the meantime, use the tools and materials at your disposal to create what you are able to create. Today’s technology allows any kid with a good lap top to produce a Grammy-quality or Oscar-quality product. But whatever you have to work with, do the work. </p>
<p>Write the poetry. Write the songs. Put your shoulder to the plow and don’t look back.</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/64722682020-11-07T13:05:03-05:002020-11-07T13:05:03-05:00YA JAGOFF!<p><a contents="Follow this link to the Ya Jagoff Podcast" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://www.yajagoff.com/2020/10/13/yajagoffpodcast-touching-base-with-new-endeavors/?fbclid=IwAR3boPk5Vd4JURCQwvi-9lxU1mo9-xLovgYdf1zyq0HWoTECteNRN84PRkA" target="_blank">Follow this link to the Ya Jagoff Podcast</a></p>
<p>Summary: There is no crying in baseball, so the jags suck it up and learn a few things from Tim Jones at Rawlings Tigers baseball as well as Henry Seifried, owner of BackYard Indoor Training. They touch base with William Brandstetter, attorney and author, Ray Petelin and his more famous than he daughter, Elizabeth, about his new gig at KDKA, and catch up with Robert Andrew Wagner about Pgh punk/folk sounds. </p>
<p>MUSIC: Robert Andrew Wagner</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/64722662020-11-07T13:02:01-05:002020-11-07T13:02:01-05:00SUNDAY CHURCH with Keith and Elaine<p><iframe class="justify_inline" data-video-type="youtube" data-video-id="1xb8m2FxknU" data-video-thumb-url="https://img.youtube.com/vi/1xb8m2FxknU/mqdefault.jpg" type="text/html" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/1xb8m2FxknU?rel=0&wmode=transparent&enablejsapi=1" frameborder="0" height="180" width="320" allowfullscreen="true"></iframe></p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/64722622020-11-07T12:57:11-05:002020-11-07T12:57:11-05:00Review in MUSIC EXISTENCE<p><a contents="Click the link to read the full review in MUSIC EXISTENCE" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://musicexistence.com/blog/2020/10/06/album-review-little-wretches-undesirables-anarchists/?fbclid=IwAR0tZNt8L8u66bSEuiZtFtrHv1gQAVvRveO3E_M-j-DkWHCFlACRz4a-cJI" target="_blank">Click the link to read the full review in MUSIC EXISTENCE</a></p>
<p>Album Review: Little Wretches “Undesirables & Anarchists” </p>
<p>By Fred E </p>
<p>Few artists these days go against the grain to follow their musical compass, but with their new album, ‘Undesirables and Anarchists’, the Little Wretches prove that sometimes, sticking with your sound and fully executing is a reward in itself. It’s fitting the new record is titled the way it is, because the spirit of the underdog, the misfit, the outcast is championed throughout the album. In the album opener, ‘Silence (Has Made a Liar Out Of Me)’, the Little Wretches sing ‘harsh words cut me easily’ in a punky, rebellious way that only the best Alt-Rock acts can pull off. There are shades of almost British-sounding influences of Oasis, Artic Monkeys and The Who, while still retaining a distinct, carefree sound that is so original to the Little Wretches’ style. Not lacking in creativity and outrageousness, the album is scattered with unexpected little surprises to keep listeners on their toes. In the harmonica-infused ‘I Rather Would Go’, the Wretches sing “You’re born into captivity, you don’t know you’re a slave” – a pretty bold statement to make – but it works for the Little Wretches’ brand of edgy, irreverent music. ‘Undesirable and Anarchists’ is slightly bratty and chic, but also undeniably cool. Don’t miss out on listening to ‘Some Day’, a harmony-heavy Enya-like chant interlude that further showcases the Little Wretches’ risk-taking attitude. In colouring outside the lines, the Little Wretches have struck a sweet spot between indie-pop-rock gold and a unique originality that is true to them. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Fred E</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/64722602020-11-07T12:54:16-05:002020-11-07T12:54:16-05:00"Thirsty Thursday" Featuring Robert Wagner/Little Wretches<p><a contents="Click this link to see the complete GRUBS AND GROOVES Interview" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://www.grubsandgrooves.com/post/thirsty-thursday-featuring-robert-wagner-little-wretches?fbclid=IwAR1r0mshpo_QDEk7qK5_hV6YVMvBuV6VGgnqTz4LvIpYQZ8Vltjcyw6ZQ8E" target="_blank">Click this link to see the complete GRUBS AND GROOVES Interview</a></p>
<p>Thank you for talking with us! What was the best piece of advice you've ever been given about pursuing a career in music? </p>
<p>My mother, God rest her soul, knew how much I loved music, and for my ninth birthday, she got me a guitar and my first guitar-lesson. After I’d been studying for a few months, she asked the instructor, right in front of me, if he thought I had any talent. My teacher, Joe Colosimo, told her straight out that I have a very good sense of timing and rhythm, something most kids don’t have, something that really can’t be taught. He said aside from that, success in music is more about hard work than talent, the old adage about inspiration and perspiration. The most talented people I know have no stomach for the rejection, the indignities of working for people who see music as nothing more than a draw for an audience that spends heavily. Joe Colosimo affirmed that I had sufficient talent, and the rest was up to me. </p>
<p>What song that you have recorded means the most to you and why? </p>
<p>I loved what Patti Smith did with songs like GLORIA and LAND OF A THOUSAND DANCES, weaving her own poetry into those songs, so I decided to do the same with Lou Reed and The Velvet Underground’s I’LL BE YOUR MIRROR. The Little Wretches recorded a version of the song interwoven with my original spoken-word poetry. The song contains what should be any artist’s mission statement: “I’ll be your mirror, reflect what you are, in case you don’t know.” The actual poem and the way I perform it has continued to evolve over time, but one of my writing mentors, the poet Peter Oresick, described it as a “working class love poem.” It is a love poem, but not in the romantic sense about a woman. It is about love for family, ancestry, community. </p>
<p>Looking back, what was the first album or "Vinyl" you bought? </p>
<p>When I was very young, I bought seven-inch 45s of HEROES AND VILLAINS by The Beach Boys, CARRIE ANN by The Hollies, SILENCE IS GOLDEN by The Tremeloes, and the shortened, edited version of LIGHT MY FIRE by The Doors. But that money was given to me by my parents. </p>
<p>I saved up a sock full of pennies and trod a mile in the snow on a day that school was cancelled to buy SGT. PEPPER’S LONELY HEARTS CLUB BAND by The Beatles. I recall the store workers looking at me like I was insane. What is this kid doing here? How can we help you. I pointed to the album, part of a display, and they brought down The Rolling Stones’ THEIR SATANIC MAJESTIES REQUEST. I was appalled. </p>
<p>No! No! Not that one. THAT one. </p>
<p>They got Sgt. Pepper’s for me. They made me spill out my sock onto the counter and count the pennies for them. I didn’t know about sales-tax, and I came up nine cents short. They were torturing me a little, making me squirm. But a guy who was in the store kicked in the extra nine cents. </p>
<p>When I got home, having now trudged two miles in the snow, my mother wouldn’t allow me to bring the album into the house because she heard that the album was full of allusions to the glories of psychedlic drugs, and she didn’t approve. </p>
<p>I trudged to my cousin’s house to listen to the album there. He already had his own copy, but we listened to mine. </p>
<p>If you could only perform one of your songs for someone who has never heard of you, what song would that be? </p>
<p>Have you seen the movie WALK THE LINE? Joaquin Phoenix as Johnny Cash? There is a scene when Johnny Cash is auditioning for the record company. He’s playing what he thinks they want to hear. I’m going to get the dialogue wrong, but the producer basically says, “I can get this stuff from anybody. If you had one song to play that would decide whether or not you get into heaven, that’s the song I want you to play for me.” Again, I might have this wrong, but I think that’s when Cash whips out Folsom Prison Blues. </p>
<p>I think about that all the time. What’s my ONE song? </p>
<p>Well, I have about three or four that I love to introduce to new listeners. DUQUESNE. THE REMAINS OF JOE MAGARAC. THE TASTE OF DIRT. I’m talking about solo acoustic performances. It would be different with the full band. But I think I’d have to go with MAY YOU NEVER BE THE CHILD OF A REALIST. </p>
<p>That song, especially to an unsuspecting audience, it’s like an ambush. Oh, yeah. Here’s another guy with a guitar. Okay. What’s he got? And I hit them with REALIST. It’s not even fair. It’s like a sucker punch. </p>
<p>The recorded version has a straight back beat, kind of an Americana or Country feel. But solo acoustic, I slow it down a little, and there is a tangible gravitas. The title is the opening line, “May you never be the child of a realist / May you never learn to calculate the odds.” It’s really a song about faith, a song about purpose. </p>
<p>There’s a moment in life when young people feel like they have to “get real.” Whatever dreams you had, it’s time to accept that those are dreams. Now, it’s time to make money, pay that mortgage, pay those school loans, whatever. And my song says, No. Follow your dreams and the blessings will come. What fate could be worse than to look at yourself and see a broken old fool who sold himself to doubt. You don’t want to be on your death-bed wishing you’d gone for it. Go for it. And if you fall down, get back up and go for it again. </p>
<p>And if you do have children, you will find a way to provide for them as you make your dream a reality. They will learn more from your faithfulness and courage than from whatever niceties your job-of-compromise can afford. </p>
<p>At the end of the day, what do you hope is the message of your music? What do you hope people take away from your songs? </p>
<p>I said that my mission statement comes from Lou Reed’s I’LL BE YOUR MIRROR. I want you to see yourself in my songs, your beauty, your strength, your reasons for being hopeful. I believe eternity exists, God is good, and life is hard but precious. I believe that each person is born in the image of God. Hopefully, when you see yourself in my songs, you also see a little bit of God’s light shining back at you. I don’t preach. I don’t play church music. I’m not trying to convert anybody to anything. But I do want you to know that you are loved. I do want you to know the beauty you are. Much thanks to Lou Reed. </p>
<p>Now for some fun! What is your favorite sandwich? </p>
<p>A little town outside of Pittsburgh along the Allegheny River called Aspinwall has a place called The Aspinwall Grille. Their menu may have changed, but they used to have great burgers. The Grille Burger. The Virginia Avenue Burger. The Gorgonzola Burger. I forget the name of the one I used to order, but their burgers came on onion rolls, and the meat was fresh, not overcooked, and maybe 1/3 of a pound. Definitely larger than four ounces. I always ordered the one with caramelized onions, sun-dried tomatoes, and gorgonzola cheese. Best burger I ever had. Best sandwich I ever had. </p>
<p>There was also Kelly’s in the East Liberty section of Pittsburgh, on the stretch of urban mall called Penn Circle. Kelly’s is still there in name, but it isn’t what it was. The old Kelly’s had a fried fish sandwich with bacon and peanut butter. Bet you never had one of those! </p>
<p>Where is your favorite place to eat in your hometown? </p>
<p>Any musician from Western Pennsylvania who doesn’t say The Starlite Lounge has no gratitude. The Starlite has been featured on TV, Drive Ins, Diners and Dives, shows like that. Big, Pittsburgh-sized portions. Old time Pittsburgh. Steelworker Pittsburgh. Don’t give me no small food. </p>
<p>You cannot go wrong with anything on the menu, but The Starlite is famous for its pierogies, its jumbo fish sandwich, its chicken wings. I like to order one of the salads with all the fixings and have it topped with the portion of fried fish that goes on the sandwiches. It’s not on the menu, but they’ll make it if you ask. </p>
<p>The Starlite Lounge has great acoustic music—bluegrass jam, open-mic, songwriter showcases. And two doors up the street is Moondog’s, the legendary blues club. Before you catch the show at Moondog’s, you have dinner at The Starlite. </p>
<p>What's on your pizza? Do you fold your pizza or eat it straight on? Ranch or no ranch? </p>
<p>There used to be a place called Annette’s Pizza near Allegheny River Boulevard outside of Pittsburgh. They had a specialty pie called, “Annette’s Special.” It was a white pizza, you know, olive oil and garlic instead of tomato sauce. Its toppings were GREEN olives, RED onion, FRESH spinach, and FRESH sliced tomato, and a real, high quality sharp cheese. Romano? Parmesan? Not your typical mozzarella. </p>
<p>The crust, if done right, is too crispy to fold. And you don’t need ranch with this pie. </p>
<p>Annette’s didn’t last long. My last visit, they used CANNED spinach, and the crust was soggy. They closed. I think there is a cigar store in its place. </p>
<p>When I go to a pizza place, I describe the Annette’s Special. You know how hard it is to get a pizza joint to put GREEN OLIVES and RED ONIONS on your pie? Come on, I know you have green olives for your salads. Take some of them, slice ‘em up and put ‘em on my pie! </p>
<p>Won’t make it for me? All right, then. I’ll just eat somewhere else. </p>
<p>If I was a bartender, what would you order? </p>
<p>My mother drank high balls when I was a kid. That was the “Rat Pack” drink, I believe, Frank Sinatra, Sammy Davis Jr, those guys. Whiskey and ginger ale and ice. It’s a flavor I really love. </p>
<p>If I have a bartender who is generous, I’ll order whiskey and ginger ale. But first the bartender has to pass a little test. </p>
<p>I look at what’s on the shelf. Do I see Old Grandad? Do I see Wild Turkey? Do I see Jamison’s? Jim Beam? For me, whiskey’s got to be Irish or made in Kentucky. </p>
<p>I don’t ask for doubles anymore. I’ll say, “I’d like a glass of…” Usually, the bartender will ask for clarification. How much? I make a gesture or hand-sign, maybe two-and-a-half inches deep, something like that. </p>
<p>Then I look at what I’m going to be charged. I insist on paying the first one in cash. I want to see how much change they are going to give me. I pay with a twenty. It they take care of me portion-wise, and I get more than ten in change, I will tip generously. </p>
<p>Truth is, I can purchase a full bottle for what some places charge for a double-shot. What? I’m paying for atmosphere? I’m paying for the privilege of being in the company of your esteemed clientele? Forget that. I want good music, good times, and strong drinks. </p>
<p>Finally, if you could be sponsored by one food/drink brand who would it be and why? </p>
<p>Jim Beam Whiskey is essential to the lore of The Little Wretches. Our band hails from the working class suburb of Castle Shannon, Pennsylvania, once a coal mining town called, Mollenauer Mine #3. I don’t know how it made the transformation to Castle Shannon, but the kids on our hill liked to drink and listen to music. Southern Comfort was popular, but it was too sweet. Jack Daniels was popular. We drank JIM BEAM because it was good sipping whiskey. </p>
<p>We used to say that the Official Drink of The Little Wretches was a DOUBLE JIM BEAM and GINGER ALE. </p>
<p>Recently, I got a bottle of Jim Beam that was 100 proof, I think it was called, JIM BEAM BONDED. It may have been a limited edition. THAT’s what I’m talking about. I’d want the be associated with the 100 proof stuff. </p>
<p>I once attended a country music concert and came home with a box of boot-shaped Jim Beam shot-glasses, a huge, inflatable Jim Beam boot, and a Jim Beam mirror, suitable for mounting. The Jim Beam rep had consumed a healthy portion of his own product and didn’t feel like carrying all that stuff out of the club. You want it? Yes, I do. </p>
<p>“My songs are mirrors, and I often begin or end my performances by playing a version of The Velvet Underground’s “I’ll Be Your Mirror” extended to more than ten-minutes in length to include some of the images that most shaped my view of the world as a young man—working men and women enslaved in pursuit of the dollar, the now-vacant void from whence the spirit fled filled with the distraction of mindless entertainment, alcohol and assorted drugs, people so numb that self-destructive violence has lost its impact and the only way they can hope to feel anything is to hurt the people they love...God wanted me to grow up to defend the weak and vanquish the evil- doers by writing songs and telling stories. And if I’m wrong, I’ve wasted my life.” - Robert Wagner </p>
<p>As frontman and chief songwriter/lyricist for 80s/90s seminal Pittsburgh rock band, Little Wretches, Robert Wagner rode a wave of local notoriety that led the band to the forefront of the underground music scene. The Little Wretches were founded as a folk/punk band by Robert (guitar) and his brother, Chuckie (violin). The “classic” Mach 2 era of Little Wretches included Ed Heidel (bass), Chris Bruckhoff (percussion, wind instruments, backing vocals) and Bob Goetz (guitar), rounded out by Dave Mitchell (drums), Mike Michalski (bass) and Ellen Hildebrand (electric guitar.) This rock edition of the band performed regularly and helped the band build its massive following in Pittsburgh. Michalski, Mitchell and Chuckie Wagner left the band, effectively ending. </p>
<p>Mach 3 began with the addition of David Losi (keyboards) and Mike Madden (drums.) When Madden couldn’t tour, drum programmer Gregg Bielski took over. When Ellen switched to bass guitar, this version of The Little Wretches entered the studio. They recorded two albums, with Angelo George playing drums and Jon Paul Leone playing guitar on a third. National press, attorneys, managers, and publicists came calling, as did life’s obligations, and the Little Wretches disbanded in the late 90s. </p>
<p>Robert Wagner continues to perform at coffeehouses and small clubs. A Master’s Degree holder, Wagner also counsels abused, neglected, traumetized and court-adjudicated youth. He is the co-founder of The Calliope Acoustic Open Stage, an event that has lasted 15+ years. He has also recorded and released two new albums in 2020: Undesirables and Anarchists and Burning Lantern Dropped In Straw.</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/64722582020-11-07T12:50:33-05:002021-09-23T13:44:03-04:00COUNTRY MUSIC? I mean, I think it is, but....<p><a contents="Click this link to see the full review" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://www.dailymusicroll.com/review/robert-a-wagner-roots-for-the-native-sound-of-country-rock-through-the-song-poison-of-little-wretches.html?fbclid=IwAR2-VerP_IzL9DXhju6WaXA6v8pB580-K7Hd7BZ4Ka0NTn5_724HuJMrL-w" target="_blank">Click this link to see the full review</a></p>
<p>Robert A. Wagner roots for the native sound of country-rock through the song ‘Poison’ of Little Wretches </p>
<p>Playing on a classic theme of love, Robert A. Wagner, the vocalist and lyricist of Little Wretches sings with melodic country-rock symphonies in the new song ‘Poison’. </p>
<p>Robert A. Wagner might be a new name to many of the millennial music enthusiasts but his journey to rock the stage with a powerful voice stared many years ago. He formed a band called Little Wretches and that grew bigger day by day with new band-mates and popular shows. At the end of the 90s’, when a new era was preparing to emerge on the horizon of the music industry, Robert decided to go solo and share his music with parables that have been influencing people even now. He released a new album in 2020 titled ‘Undesirable and Anarchists’ and created a wave with its fresh songs and amazing guitar tunes. ‘Poison’ is sung with the most impactful verses that will grow more affection towards his musical perception. </p>
<p>Robert A. Wagner is a lyricist and a musician who tries to teach people the lessons of love and affection through his lovely rock music. He blends the sweetness of country music and the raw essence of rock shuffles in the new song ‘Poison’ that defines the worth of passion in life. It is crafted with impressive notes and words that are forged from experience and lots of traveling. His music flows smoothly like a brook made of memories. He holds the mirror of reality through the traditional formula of rock.</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/64722572020-11-07T12:46:47-05:002020-11-07T12:46:47-05:00CD REVIEW: Undesirables and Anarchists by The Little Wretches By Bethany Page<p><a contents="Click this link to go to the review by Bethany Page in Vents Magazine" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://ventsmagazine.com/2020/08/29/cd-review-undesirables-and-anarchists-by-the-little-wretches/?fbclid=IwAR1og_ehLcUCpXGh9kuaT5_hg89W-uMXL4xU1pSb47KjjnhF0Ds-lCl1F34" target="_blank">Click this link to go to the review by Bethany Page in Vents Magazine</a></p>
<p>Home/Music/CD Reviews/CD REVIEW: Undesirables and Anarchists by The Little Wretches </p>
<p>CD REVIEW: Undesirables and Anarchists by The Little Wretches </p>
<p>By Bethany Page </p>
<p>The Little Wretches can tell you exactly who their friends are in the new album, Undesirables and Anarchists. Much to the chagrin of the listener, their friends are exactly the kind that end up with the best stories, and sometimes come from the other side of the tracks. I don’t know about you, but they sound like the type of people for which I’d drop previous plans. The same goes for these Pittsburgh, Penn., rockers – The Little Wretches have the moxie and the stamina to give listeners’ a 12-track, no fast-forwarding allowed, album. </p>
<p>This album plays all the way through with no speed bumps or hiccups. The only hesitation to this remark is the ninth track, “Some Day.” It’s more of a water break, than anything. From start to finish, this rock band powers through a charming potpourri of rockabilly, rock & roll, rock and punk. Since the 1980s, Pittsburgh has been holding this fan favorite for itself, with interest from major record labels calling here and there. Lead singer and songwriter/composer, Robert Wagner has wrestled through the surprising amount of rotating band members. His work in this new album is incredibly witty. Joining Wagner on the record are Rosa “Rosa Rocks” Colucci (vocals), Mike Madden (drums), John Carson (bass guitar) and HK Hilner (piano). Undesirables and Anarchists is the 10th The Little Wretches album. </p>
<p>“I Rather Would Go” is a major highlight. My adrenaline sat shotgun to the downbeat. The freeing, extra movement created from the rhythm section and Wagner’s earnest tales is cause for celebration, albeit, the darker lyrics. You learn to love your captor / and captivity you crave / your chains you think are jewelry / your comfort is your gauge / it this is good enough for everybody else / to me it’s still a cage, Wagner drills. </p>
<p>“Who Is America” also spoke to me. Wagner throws out the lyrics like he’s up on stage, hovering over a mass of teenagers ready to rock. It’s not the angst you’d expect, but a bit of a finger to the man. He points the mirror in front of us and asks if we’re willing to recognize the poor just the same way we elevate the wealthy. </p>
<p>And in a delicious twist, “All of My Friends” has a dizzying spell of tightly wound prose. All of my friends know cause and effect / we’re notably known for abuse and neglect / we’re natural targets, we’re perfect to blame / none of my friends ever runs out of shame, sings Wagner. Not all listeners want to hear happy-go-lucky lyrics nonstop and while Wagner seems like a perfectly charm of a fellow, there is a gruff to him that is positively delightful. </p>
<p>Other nods go out to “Running (Was The Only Thing To Do)”. Colucci takes the mic on this track and it’s a nice, album send off. She sings with heart and experience. All I really needed was some breathing room / until my hiding place slowly became my tomb / had me down so long I started to assume / that I would never see the light of day, she poignantly delivers. Her voice and the band’s words definitely need to hit the masses – Undesirables and Anarchists exceeds expectations. </p>
<p>by Bethany Page</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/64722452020-11-07T12:42:41-05:002020-11-07T12:42:41-05:00Review: TOO MUCH LOVE MAGAZINE<p><a contents="Click this link to go to the review of UNDESIRABLES & ANARCHISTS in TOO MUCH LOVE MAGAZINE" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://toomuchlovemagazine.com/undesirables-and-anarchists-by-the-little-wretches/?fbclid=IwAR0tZNt8L8u66bSEuiZtFtrHv1gQAVvRveO3E_M-j-DkWHCFlACRz4a-cJI" target="_blank">Click this link to go to the review of UNDESIRABLES & ANARCHISTS in TOO MUCH LOVE MAGAZINE</a></p>
<p>TOO MUCH LOVE MAGAZINE </p>
<p>August 29, 2020 Music, Reviews </p>
<p>“UNDESIRABLES AND ANARCHISTS” BY THE LITTLE WRETCHES’ </p>
<p>Running wild within the lyrics of The Little Wretches’ Undesirables and Anarchists new album are trains and train tracks. Popping up here and there in the 12-track album, the Pittsburgh rock outfit pay tribute to mankind and the dreamers within all of us in their rock and roll flavored testaments. More than just a mode of transportation, these songs capture the often tense and inward debates life in a city creates. Just as easily, they switch stations and create intimate yet rumbling rock tunes that sojourners sticking out their thumb might enjoy the ride. </p>
<p>Robert Wagner, the visionary behind The Little Wretches, stretches his worldview to beyond Steel City, one can’t help but feel entrenched in his punk rock footprints. Calling to mind the sound of The Replacements meets The Lemonheads, The Little Wretches have been slaying their heavy guitars and throbbing rhythms since the 80s. The band’s history includes revolving members and accruing a large following in their beloved Pittsburgh. Wagner continues to perform in coffeehouses and various stages today, still sharing his folk – rock tunes aimed at stirring conversation. </p>
<p>When Wagner isn’t singing, it’s the guitars and music bed that really does the talking. From the first track “Silence (Has Made A Liar Out Of Me)” to the last track, “Running (Was The Only Thing To Do)” the music base thrusts itself upon the listener with a profound sense of movement. It’s not enough to play the guitar, it’s another to really move the song along and create natural harmonies and warmth. These songs are rock and roll at their finest – shaped in a way that the listener feels like they are the at the start of something before the patina has erased the imperfections. A beautiful female vocalist, Rosa Colucci, joins him in most tracks – taking the lead in “Running (Was The Only Thing To Do)” and gives a genuine, heartfelt balance to Wagner’s edgier voice. </p>
<p>In the standout “Almost Nightfall” a subtle harmonica layer adds a different coloring to an already astute sound. I’m counting my quarters to see if I stack up, sings Wagner. Hate to squander my wishes that way, he continues. It’s the time of night, where the mind starts to wander and we tend to critique the day. Sometimes we dream just as wild at the moment in time where the sun hasn’t quite set. The guitar and the percussion work is solid, never straying too far into the punk realm, but gradually stepping in-and-out. </p>
<p>It’s a few songs later, but “Morning” gave me a similar reaction. I fell under your spell, I was beguiled sings a more subdued Wagner. What came along to wake me…morning….morning, he sings with more zest. I liked the dynamic between his voice and the guitar, again, and the tempo is crisp. His guitar sounds crunchy, with just the prime amount of reverb catching the listener’s attention. Another song worth mentioning is the hyper “Don’t You Ever Mention My Name”. Wagner heads this rock and roll brigade, where he exclaims you better get off the tracks here comes the train. Such prophetic words – the train is rearing down the track and that sound is The Little Wretches. Undesirables and Anarchists is an odyssey of rock and roll that with each listen gains steam. </p>
<p>John McCall</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/64324742020-09-13T09:25:02-04:002023-12-10T11:32:18-05:00Michael Rand of MOBANGELES reviews UNDESIRABLES & ANARCHISTS<p><a contents="Click this link to see the review by Michael Rand at MOBANGELES.COM" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://mobangeles.com/the-little-wretches-release-new-lp/?fbclid=IwAR1273R4Jl5Nwyii-ytJwanxXH01ZO0Fhp8Mu7nrPwHTtQV8VRyAQvoJCNI" target="_blank">Click this link to see the review by Michael Rand at MOBANGELES.COM</a></p>
<p>The Little Wretches release new LP </p>
<p> Michael Rand </p>
<p> August 28, 2020 </p>
<p> Music, Reviews </p>
<p>The decades-long career of Pittsburgh’s Little Wretches comes into play in their new album Undesirables and Anarchists. Not very many bands can claim the longevity and binding lyrics like this band can – and the man behind the lyrics and at the helm is Robert Wagner. Ferocious with his guitar, the lyrical content on the 12-tracks balance the line between inward poems and tall tales. Craving some good honey-dipped guitar riffs and punk-like delivery? Look no further than Undesirables and Anarchists. </p>
<p><a contents="FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/thelittlewretches/ " data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="FACEBOOK:%C2%A0https://www.facebook.com/thelittlewretches/">FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/thelittlewretches/ </a></p>
<p>Zig zagging the listener through a myriad of themes and symbolism, Wagner fetches songs that are heavily guitar driven. In the opening track, “Silence (Has Made A Liar Out Of Me)” the punchy guitar opens the listener to a horizon stretched with Wagner’s every-man voice. He might just be Pittsburgh’s version of Bruce Springsteen. The fluidity in his lyrics aren’t the same on the surface, but after a few listens, the doors seem to creek wider and wider. He sings from the heart and in songs like “I Rather Would go” he scatters a common phrase. At first he sounds askew. If you grow up in the shadow, he sings with pride and a life lesson learned. He sounds more frenzied in this track, more on a mission. </p>
<p>In the song “Morning” Wagner sounds more virtuous. He’s vulnerable. I was beguiled, dreams never so wild, he aches. The guitar crunches under his voice, like the snow under boots on a winter’s day. There are a bit bright pops – like synth keys. The guitar arrangement and bass shapes create a nod to the R.E.M. sound. The rumbling percussion and fast-tempo guitar continues with the catchy “Who Is America”. The guitar hook is just as memorable, taking a cue from Modern English (“Melt With You”) this song is hard to hold on…it just goes! The drum work really catches fire, and the tap-along guitar sparks. You’re up in the morning and down in the dirt, you’re five minutes late and they don’t want to hear it, Wagner sings. When he draws out the who in the chorus, it’s eerily infectious. </p>
<p><a contents="APPLE MUSIC: https://music.apple.com/us/album/undesirables-anarchists/1513791402?ign-gact=3&ls=1 " data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="APPLE%20MUSIC:%C2%A0https://music.apple.com/us/album/undesirables-anarchists/1513791402?ign-gact=3&ls=1" target="_blank">APPLE MUSIC: https://music.apple.com/us/album/undesirables-anarchists/1513791402?ign-gact=3&ls=1 </a></p>
<p>Serving as an intermission, “Someday” features looping harmonies of Wagner and a female vocalist, Rosa Colucci. It’s quick, but head turning. Then, the bass-heavy “All Of My Friends” is a bit of tall tale and finally features the line all of my friends are on lists of undesirables and anarchists, giving the listener an extra reason to cheer for discovering the album’s title source. It’s a fun track, and the guitar pops with folk heavy riffs. In the wah-wah-wah guitar kicker “Ballad of Johnny Blowtorch” Wagner sings of a legend. You want to be me, he sings with a bit more angst. Finally, in a spaghetti-western guitar toned ballad, “Running (Was The Only Thing To Do), a Colucci (the band calls her Rosa Rocks) closes out the album. I wasn’t made of steel….running was the only thing to do, so I ran, she sings. Her voice is like a marigold and scarlet – fire and ice. She sings with sensitivity and can belt it out like it’s her last night on stage. That’s the thing about Undesirables and Anarchists – these songs are the Little Wretches giving it their all. </p>
<p>Michael Rand</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/64324722020-09-13T09:21:37-04:002022-04-02T16:33:30-04:00An In-Depth Interview at MusicExistence.com<p><a contents="Click this link to visit Music Existence to see the in-depth interview with The Little Wretches' Robert Andrew Wagner" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://musicexistence.com/blog/2020/09/11/exclusive-interview-with-robert-wagner-of-little-wretches/?fbclid=IwAR1273R4Jl5Nwyii-ytJwanxXH01ZO0Fhp8Mu7nrPwHTtQV8VRyAQvoJCNI" target="_blank">Click this link to visit Music Existence to see the in-depth interview with The Little Wretches' Robert Andrew Wagner</a></p>
<p>As frontman and chief songwriter/lyricist for 80s/90s seminal Pittsburgh rock band, Little <br>Wretches, Robert Wagner rode a wave of local notoriety that led the band to the forefront of the <br>underground music scene. Robert Wagner continues to perform at coffeehouses and small clubs. A Master’s Degree holder, Wagner also counsels abused, neglected, traumatized and court-adjudicated youth. In 2020, Robert released the epic album, Undesirables & Anarchists, which is garnering critical acclaim and college radio attention. </p>
<p>Robert looks back at his more than 30 years in the business, from beginning to end, in this in-depth, exclusive interview… </p>
<p><em><strong>Thanks for taking the time for an interview! We are honored to be speaking with such an incredible songwriter and musician. What inspired you to follow your chosen career path as a musician? </strong></em></p>
<p>Wow. Your question has a powerful compliment embedded in it, and I thank you for that. I accept the compliment. Very cool. I’ve put a lot of effort into writing and performing, and there have been long stretches of time when I was not being recognized and I wondered, “What else can I do? Am I doing something wrong? What am I lacking?” And the truth is, you have to do the work and not look back. Focus on the work. </p>
<p>When I started down this path, I wasn’t sure what to expect or where it would lead. You used the word, “chosen.” And that’s an interesting word. I did CHOOSE this path. But there was also an element of inevitability. But let’s focus on the “choice” part. </p>
<p>Did you ever take an acting class? Uta Hagen. Stanislavsky. Method acting. You know what I’m talking about? I know, this is kind of roundabout, but this will make sense. </p>
<p>At the University of Pittsburgh, I started taking theater-arts classes. As electives. I thought it would help me feel more at ease on stage with my band. These actors, they really had to go through the wringer. You’d do a little role-play or improv, and the professor would watch you like a hawk and question you about every little move and gesture you made. </p>
<p>It’s a paradox, these actors are trying to “live the role,” to totally become the character they’re playing, totally in the moment, feeling what that character feels, smelling what that character smells, totally immersed in the moment as that character, but the paradox is that everything the actor does is a choice. And the “art” is the process of making choices. And the acting teacher hammers the acting student to make her or him aware of the choices. </p>
<p>A lot of us—I’m not talking about actors now, I’m talking about regular people in our daily lives—aren’t really aware of the choices we make or, even worse, we’re content to accept the choices others have made for us. You didn’t get to choose, and by the time you figure out that you had a choice, it’s too late. You can’t go back. You’re too far down the road to go back. </p>
<p>In my case, horrible circumstances when I was a teenager forced me to wake up and take control of the choices of my life. The negative turns into the positive. </p>
<p>I was abandoned for a time. Both parents gone. Neither parent to blame. A huge, unfortunate inevitability. I just had to deal with it. I was unsupervised, living alone, trying to get my butt to school, keep my grades up, and shoplifting to keep food in my belly. </p>
<p>When the people who are responsible for loving and caring for you abandon you, you begin to question everything they ever taught you. You’re quick to conclude that everything you’ve ever been told is a lie. </p>
<p>And you look around at all the happy kids with happy families, and you listen to them talk about their parties on the weekends, and who is dating who and all that, and you think, “These people may think they are happy, but they’re living a lie.” </p>
<p>I, on the other hand, though I hate everyone and everything and am totally miserable, have seen the light. More like seeing the dark, actually. </p>
<p>In that mindset, having rejected everything I’d ever been taught, I had to reinvent myself. I had to figure out how to make a life for myself. </p>
<p>My band is called, “The Little Wretches.” Right? You know the old hymn, “I once was lost, but now I’m found.” One of the reasons that band-name appealed to me is because I know what it means to be lost. </p>
<p>So let me ask you. Let’s say you’re lost. Literally. In the woods. On a trail. Or driving around in a strange city. What do you do when you are lost? Really. What do you do? </p>
<p>I’ll tell you what you do. You backtrack. You retrace your steps till you find the place where you weren’t lost, the place where you knew where you were. </p>
<p>The last time I could remember being happy was when I was immersed in music. When I was younger, music had been such a source of joy. Listening to my parents’ vinyl LPs. Singing along to the radio. Singing in church. Singing in the car with the radio on. </p>
<p>I went to an enormous high school, set up like a college campus with a bunch of buildings and outdoor walkways, and there were so many kids, like 1,000 kids per class, maybe 4,000 kids on campus. I could walk out and not be missed. </p>
<p>I clearly remember the day that I walked off campus. That’s it. I hate this. I’m leaving. And I walked over to the mall and spent the afternoon looking at rock’n’roll magazines at the newsstand and through the vinyl record bins in a discount store. </p>
<p>In one of the magazines, I saw a picture of Miles Davis talking with Lou Reed at a party or at some backstage event. The caption said something like, “Jazz legend Miles Davis with underground legend Lou Reed.” Lou Reed. Hmmm. Yeah, WALK ON THE WILD SIDE. Well, maybe there’s something to this. I was more than intrigued. </p>
<p>See? To me, this was proof! Proof that the world had been lying to me all along. All my sucker friends were into mainstream pop, hard rock and commercial music. But Miles Davis and Lou Reed? Without ever having really heard them, I just knew these guys were the REAL thing. The other three-thousand and ninety-nine kids back on campus may have been swallowing the big lie, but I was onto the truth. </p>
<p>It’s so crazy to think about now. A picture in a magazine of two artists I hadn’t even heard yet. </p>
<p>So now there was this whole previously undiscovered universe for me to explore. </p>
<p>The record bin in the discount store had copies of THE WHO SELL OUT by The Who and UNICORN by Tyrannosaurus Rex. Those were the first two albums I bought. Then a compilation album by The Kinks. Next thing you know, I’m buying every album every made by Lou Reed, David Bowie, The Rolling Stones, Bob Dylan. </p>
<p>Was this a choice? Or was it chance? Maybe I was just lucky. </p>
<p>All I know is that I was lost. I was drowning. I was desperate. And rock’n’roll music gave me something to cling to. It wasn’t really a career path. It was a LIFE. It was a path to rebuilding myself from scratch. I don’t need no mother and father. I don’t need nothing. All I need is a guitar. </p>
<p><em><strong>Was there any one event in your life that led you to record your latest project, Undesirables and Anarchists? </strong></em></p>
<p>More like a series of events. Hopefully, people who discover UNDESIRABLES & ANARCHISTS will do a little exploring. They’ll find that the earlier albums by The Little Wretches were not widely promoted or distributed, but they had a pretty big impact on those they reached. Our earlier albums received very high praise. And we expected that praise to lead to greater opportunity. </p>
<p>Before we had the time to take advantage of those opportunities, my bandmates Dave Losi and Ellen Hildebrand left the band suddenly to raise their respective families. Each had a powerful presence in the band. Losing them was pretty devastating. </p>
<p>But I know how to write songs. And I know how to whip a band into shape. And I’d established a track record of success that was bound to be attractive to musicians hoping to latch on to a winner. </p>
<p>So the first big victory was meeting Rosa Colucci. She’d previously only sung in a Gospel choir. She loved the singing of Barbra Streisand and Karen Carpenter. Rosa’d been the only White soloist in a Black Gospel choir. Rosa has a great ear. You don’t have to tell her what to sing. I play the song to her, she comes up with the perfect harmony or vocal counterpoint. </p>
<p>She and I started playing as an acoustic duo. Most of the old fans of the band seemed disappointed. This wasn’t what they’d come to love. But their preconceived notions aside, there was no denying that Rosa was a force. She and I began building an entirely new audience. We called ourselves The Mercenes, wanderers from the Land of Mercy. </p>
<p>The next big victory was the acquisition of John Carson on bass. John had returned from Los Angeles where he’d spent the previous year with his band, Robespierre. Their drummer, Ed Ussack, had also returned. Rosa and I had a duo gig lined up, and we asked John and Ed to join us for the gig. John and Ed agreed to play, and when I asked them what we should call it—this certainly wasn’t going to be The Mercenes anymore— they said they wanted to be in The Little Wretches. </p>
<p>So The Little Wretches lived. A new edition. </p>
<p>Then we were joined by H.K. Hilner, a piano genius. He had two loves—Gustav Mahler and The Rolling Stones. When he heard Rosa and I playing together, H.K. was not bashful about claiming Rosa was the best singer in the region and that the third CD by The Little Wretches was our equivalent of EXILE ON MAIN STREET. </p>
<p>H.K. believed in us. John Carson believed in us. H.K. signed us up for some Battle of the Bands thing, and we won some studio-time. I would have thought being in a battle of the bands was beneath us. But H.K. insisted. His enthusiasm was irresistible. </p>
<p>Mike Madden, the drummer, had played with The Little Wretches on and off for years. He couldn’t tour, so every time we went to promote a new album, Mike would have to opt out. But the soundman at a club called The Decade, a club that had hosted the likes of The Pretenders, U2, and The Police, once asked us, “Where’d you find that drummer? He’s the best drummer to come through here in months.” Mike was THAT strong on drums. </p>
<p>So I had a band of relatively unknown musicians, but this band was a self-selected supergroup. They wanted to be in The Little Wretches. </p>
<p>How blessed was I? </p>
<p>I had the songs. I had the band. I had the studio experience. Good seeds. Good soil. UNDESIRABLES & ANARCHISTS just sprouted like an apple tree in the middle of the woods. It just grew. And the fruit could have fallen to the ground, uneaten, but we’ve been very fortunate that people have been finding it. </p>
<p>“What’s this? The Little Wretches? Undesirables & Anarchists? I wonder what it sounds like? Hey, this is good. I like this.” </p>
<p>As for album’s title, I had a friend and mentor in college, Professor David B. Houston from the Economics Department of The University of Pittsburgh. He is said to have developed the calculations and computations that formed the basis of the insurance industry when he was at the University of Pennsylvania as a much younger man. I don’t know. But he became a Marxist and was part of a lot of radical activities. </p>
<p>Dave Houston sent away for his FBI file under the Freedom of Information Act. When he finally received the file, it was a mile thick and heavily blacked out. He said the file had reports on conversations he’d had at dinner in restaurants with close friends. So…That’s kind of creepy, isn’t it? The FBI recording dinner conversations? </p>
<p>Hmmm. As the song says, “All of my friends are on somebody’s list of undesirables and anarchists / It’s not even safe to admit that you’re one of my friends.” Every line in every song has a deeper story behind it, but let’s allow the songs to speak for themselves. </p>
<p><strong><em>Who has been your single biggest influence, musically? </em></strong></p>
<p>You probably want me to name an artist. See, I can’t do that. </p>
<p>My biggest influence was listening to vinyl LPs and 7” singles with my cousins. Our parents had all kinds of records. Ed Ames singing “They Call the Wind Mariah” and “John Henry.” The Mills Brothers singing “Cab Driver.” A saxophone-driven instrumental called “The Atcheson Topeka and the Santa Fe Rock.” The Beatles’ White Album. Variety shows on television like Sonny and Cher, Ed Sullivan, The Smothers Brothers, Laugh In, Hee Haw, The Glen Campbell Show, The Johnny Cash Show, Lawrence Welk, Andy Williams, Soul Train, Don Kirshner’s Rock Concert, The Midnight Special. </p>
<p>Movie soundtracks. American Graffiti. Easy Rider. The Sound of Music. South Pacific. Hair. Jesus Christ Superstar. </p>
<p>Whatever common thread holds all that music together, that’s my biggest influence. </p>
<p><em><strong>How about personally? Who influences you in your daily life? </strong></em></p>
<p>I’m afraid this is going to sound kind of heavy. </p>
<p>Did you ever hear the Jim Carroll song, People Who Died? Each line is about another of his friends who died. But it is a triumphant song. </p>
<p>I’m going to list the names of former bandmates who died, people who devoted hours, weeks, days, months and years of their lives to helping me make this music but are no longer here on earth with us. I started The Little Wretches with my brother, Charles John Wagner. Chuckie died. John Creighton. Ed Heidel. David L. Mitchell. Jon Paul Leone. Don Polito. Dale Nelson. Friend and fan, David Allen Flynn. </p>
<p>There is a deep and beautiful story to go with each of those names. My indebtedness to them. My gratitude for them. My gratitude that I am still here, writing songs, making music. The spirits of my departed bandmates influence me every day. I’m not just living for me. I want to achieve the success they hoped for, tell the stories they didn’t get a chance to tell. When I join them in eternity, I want them to be able to say I didn’t let them down. </p>
<p><em><strong>Tell us about the album, the recording process for it, and what you hope your fans will get from it? </strong></em></p>
<p>I spoke earlier about how the band came together. It’s insane. Making UNDESIRABLES & ANARCHISTS was the perfect storm of talent and preparation. We’d been playing these songs live. The songs had been woodshedded, workshopped and road-tested. </p>
<p>Dave Granati, the engineer, knows rock’n’roll, and he knew intuitively what we were supposed to sound like. We were supposed to sound like The Little Wretches. That thing we do? Get it on tape. The album will produce itself. Nothing to it. </p>
<p>Dave used mostly overhead microphones on the drums, and we set the band up like a live show. Just set up and play the core parts of the songs, everybody standing in the room together, making eye-contact. We recorded without headphones. I mouthed the lyrics to help us nail the cues. </p>
<p>You’ve heard it, right? Every song on there is a first-take. That means we performed it perfectly on the first attempt. I’m sorry, but NOBODY does that. If they do, it usually sounds like quality was compromised. But this album is without compromise. I don’t think there is a note that I would want to re-do. </p>
<p>We were ninjas. We were Green Berets. We were Navy Seals. We prepped but were not over-prepped. We had the perfect balance of preparation and spontaneity. Play within your abilities, but hold nothing back. </p>
<p>We overdubbed the vocals, some percussion parts, and I doubled most of the guitar parts. And Dave Granati didn’t have to fuss too much to mix it. </p>
<p>What do I hope our fans will get from it? </p>
<p>I hope our fans come away energized, revitalized and inspired. Eternity exists. Life is precious. While we have the time, while we have the opportunity, let’s go. Get it. Hit it. Fear not. Speak the truth. Get off the track, here comes the train, and the train is us. </p>
<p>I don’t know. I love this album. I don’t know how you could hear it and NOT love it. </p>
<p><em><strong>What’s most important to you: Sales/streams, Awards, or Critical Praise? </strong></em></p>
<p>What’s important to me is feeding the fire, spreading the fire. </p>
<p>What’s important to me is The Little Wretches doing for a listener what music did for me when I was a lost and desperate kid in need of a reason to live. What’s important to me is that the kid who feels like he or she is drowning can grab onto our music like a life raft. What’s important to me is that the person who feels anonymous, invisible and without worth hears one of our songs and says, “I am not alone.” </p>
<p>I’m blessed in that I’ve received some small acclaim for our previous albums, but I know that critical praise does not necessarily lead to sales or streams. I can’t allow myself to be distracted by any of that. </p>
<p>What’s important to me is anything that introduces NEW listeners to our songs, giving venues a reason to want to book me, writers a reason to want to write about us, and radio a reason to want to play us. Anything that gives people who haven’t heard us a chance to hear us is what is important to me. </p>
<p>What do you enjoy doing, outside of the spotlight? Any hobbies? </p>
<p>Would it be too pretentious to call myself a Renaissance person? </p>
<p>I follow alternative education—Free Schooling, Un-schooling, Home Schooling, a movement known as Democratic Schooling. </p>
<p>I love going to museums. I love the outdoors, hiking, bicycling. You’ll find me at Hawk Mountain Sanctuary pretty regularly. </p>
<p><em><strong>What is next for you? Any new releases, singles or videos coming up? </strong></em></p>
<p>That’s hard to say. This Covid-thing, this lockdown, these quarantine efforts, to some extent, they’ve leveled the playing field. I want to lay the groundwork so that I can perform to a new audience every night of the week, not through a laptop or some Zoom meeting, but LIVE and IN PERSON. </p>
<p><em><strong>What has been your biggest musical accomplishment of the past year? </strong></em></p>
<p>Well, it looks like UNDESIRABLES & ANARCHISTS is getting some attention. My biggest accomplishment has more to do with the business side of things than the music. I had a portion of The Little Wretches’ back catalogue remastered and released. </p>
<p><em><strong>Do you ever get stage fright? Any place you’d love to perform that you haven’t? </strong></em></p>
<p>I get butterflies, but not stage fright. There were times when I was younger when I felt pressure to put on some kind of show, and I wasn’t sure how to do that. </p>
<p>At the top of our conversation, I was talking about actors and the theater arts. Actors hate to be on stage with animals and they hate to be on stage with children. Why? Because children and animals are perfectly natural and without pretense, and without even trying, they upstage the actors. Everybody in the audience watches the animals and the children. </p>
<p>When I’m on stage, I want to be like an animal or a child. I want you to look at me and listen to me because of what I am, not because of something I’m pretending to be. </p>
<p>I’d like to do a house-concert for the President of the United States. Just me and my guitar and maybe thirty or forty listeners. Intimate. Playing songs, telling some of the stories behind them. </p>
<p><em><strong>How about some parting words for your fans? </strong></em></p>
<p>The thing I want to say is THANK YOU, and the only way I know how to say it is to try to validate the support they’ve given me by being true to the vision and to see the mission through to its conclusion. I’ve spent many an hour performing for the spiders in the corner of my bedroom, dreaming of the day I’d be in the room with a live audience. I can only thank people for being there to listen.</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/64324712020-09-13T09:14:56-04:002020-09-13T09:14:56-04:00The (abridged) Story behind THE BALLAD OF JOHNNY BLOWTORCH <p><a contents="Click this link to see the abridged story behind THE BALLAD OF JOHNNY BLOWTORCH at ANTIMUSIC.COM" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://www.antimusic.com/news/20/September/08Singled_Out-_The_Little_Wretches_The_Ballad_Of_Johnny_Blowtorch.shtml?fbclid=IwAR1273R4Jl5Nwyii-ytJwanxXH01ZO0Fhp8Mu7nrPwHTtQV8VRyAQvoJCNI" target="_blank">Click this link to see the abridged story behind THE BALLAD OF JOHNNY BLOWTORCH at ANTIMUSIC.COM</a></p>
<p>The Little Wretches' founder and songwriter Robert Andrew Wagner tells the story behind "The Ballad Of Johnny Blowtorch" from their latest album, "Undesirables & Anarchists." Here is the story: </p>
<p>The real Johnny Blowtorch was named John H. Creighton, and virtually all who knew him regard him as the most talented person they ever met, as humble and soft-spoken as Buddha or Jesus Christ off-stage and as dynamic and explosive as Iggy or Jimi or Elvis when he stood at the microphone. </p>
<p>The real Johnny Blowtorch could work miracles. Ever seen one? </p>
<p>This one time, it was one of the first warm nights of spring, and the streets around the University of Pittsburgh were overflowing. Every kid from the dorms was walking the streets, ghetto kids on the corners, cars circling the blocks, radios blaring. </p>
<p>When people are out in huge numbers, the cops are always ready to tune somebody up to show they're in control. Look at them cross-eyed, there'd be a dog straining at his leash to get at you, and every night, some poor dark-skinned bastard had to be chewed to pieces. </p>
<p>Outside The Original Hot Dog Shop, this Cadillac pulls up and double-parks. The driver is some dapper old dude, at least sixty years old, dinner suit, fedora, alligator shoes. He's gonna pick up a nine-pack, probably thinking that the cops won't write him a ticket as long as he keeps the engine running. </p>
<p>As soon as the dude steps on the sidewalk, a campus cop has his nightstick around the dude's throat. The dogs are loosed, and two German Shepherds, get a grip and start shaking their heads as though they're trying to rip off a chunk. <br>The other cops have brandished their clubs, wailing on the dude. He's limp and flopping like a rag doll, reduced to red pudding held into shape by the remaining shreds of his dinner suit. Two police vans pull up, and they toss what's left of the old guy into the back of a van. </p>
<p>One cop looks at us, "Get moving now or we're taking you all in!" </p>
<p>Our friend Julie mutters under her breath, "You're a racist motherf***er." </p>
<p>"What did you say?" <br>"I said you're a racist." <br>"That's what I thought you said." </p>
<p>He drags her and tosses her into the van with the remains of the old dude, and the cops are whipped back into a frenzy. They're swinging their clubs at invisible bodies as if to show the crowd what will happen if you don't get the f*** out of here right this very second. </p>
<p>I'm obediently backing off with the rest of our friends, and we're nearly a half block away when I look up and see Johnny Blowtorch in his red ski cap. He's a tall dude, and you could see his red hat above the crowd. That red cap goes straight into the circle of cops. </p>
<p>You know what has to happen. They spared Julie, but the cops cannot allow themselves to be challenged a second-time, and John is going to suffer for this. But instead of beating on him, the cops just kind of gaze at each other. Puzzled. "You gonna hit him? I ain't hitting him, you hit him." </p>
<p>John says, "You can't do that, can you?" </p>
<p>Me and my crew are a half block away. There is no way we should have been able to hear him so clearly at that great a distance. He had an almost whisper-in-your-ear tone of voice. </p>
<p>"You can't do that, can you?" <br>The cops, simultaneously, relax their battle stances. Their arms go to their sides. Their weapons return to their belts. </p>
<p>"You can't do that, can you?" </p>
<p>Cop says, "Is she with you?" </p>
<p>John says, "Yes, she is." </p>
<p>"Take her home and tell her to watch her mouth." </p>
<p>Cop opens the hatch. Julie climbs out, wiping the old dude's blood from her hands to the legs of her jeans. Johnny hugs her, and they turn and walk away. Everybody's looking around. It's over. It can't be over just like that, can it? Did you see that dude in the red hat? Even the cops are wondering what happened. </p>
<p>Nobody who saw it will ever forget. If this wasn't an actual miracle, then it was, at a minimum, the most courageous thing I've ever seen. But that was Johnny Blowtorch, the guy in the red hat. I wish you could have known him. I hope you like the song. </p>
<p>Hearing is believing. Now that you know the story behind the song, listen and watch for yourself below and learn more about the album here</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/64324702020-09-13T09:11:08-04:002022-04-04T17:54:39-04:00Review by Heather Savage at Razorfish<p><a contents="Click on this link to see the review of UNDESIRABLES & ANARCHISTS at Razorfish " data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://razorfishreviews.blogspot.com/2020/08/the-little-wretches.html?fbclid=IwAR1273R4Jl5Nwyii-ytJwanxXH01ZO0Fhp8Mu7nrPwHTtQV8VRyAQvoJCNI" target="_blank">Click on this link to see the review of UNDESIRABLES & ANARCHISTS at Razorfish </a></p>
<p>Undesirables and Anarchists seems like the perfect title for anything this year. It just happens to be the name of the new 12-track album from The Little Wretches, a Pittsburgh-based rock outfit. Slamming together guitar-driven licks and dream-big lyrics, these rockers should expect to glean many new comrades in their musical battle. From the swift “Someday” to the fists-clenched “I Rather Would Go”, there’s no stopping this band. </p>
<p>Various band members have played in The Little Wretches for nearly 40 years, but the only constant has been singer and songwriter, Robert Wagner. His sharp songwriting skills come into play with each track. The one exception might be “Someday” as it comes across as a filler song, and just harmonizes the word ‘someday’. His storytelling is often reflective, and outward focused. Some of the common themes and tropes he uses involve looking forward, on in the case of the second track, “Poison”, picking up pieces, against the faint piano keys. Like John Cougar Mellencamp, I get the sense that Wagner’s Pittsburgh surroundings influence him a great deal. </p>
<p><a contents="FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/thelittlewretches/ " data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="FACEBOOK:%C2%A0https://www.facebook.com/thelittlewretches/" target="_blank">FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/thelittlewretches/ </a></p>
<p>In the song “I Rather Would Go” he sings learn how to hop a freight. The next song, “Do You Ever Mention My Name” the train or escape subject pops up again with the lines you better get off the tracks, here comes the train. In the final track, “Running (Was The Only Thing To Do) female vocalist Rosa Colucci takes the lead and sings all I wanted to do was heal…I wasn’t made of steel. Pittsburgh is nicknamed Steel City, of course, and Colucci’s voice and the accompanying wall-of-sound is another depiction of the band’s resilient feverish sound. </p>
<p>Wagner also touches on insecurities and missed opportunities. In “Almost Nightfall”, the lines I’m counting my quarters to see if I stack up…squander my wishes that way, the listener gets a closer look at Wagner. While his voice and delivery stays within the rock front man attitude, and the guitars and rhythm section smacks right into each other. A whisper of a harmonica threads itself through the song’s core. In “Give The Knife A Twist”, Wagner grumbles every broken dream gives the knife another twist. Wagner’s relentless guitar, constantly mirroring the punk and rock genres, consistently bolsters his words. As the songs progress, a greater sense of comradery emerges. Wagner’s sensitive side unfolds in the lovely “Morning”. I fell under your spell, I was beguiled, he sings, with a little less brash and more warmth. </p>
<p><a contents="APPLE MUSIC: https://music.apple.com/us/album/undesirables-anarchists/1513791402 " data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="APPLE%20MUSIC:%C2%A0https://music.apple.com/us/album/undesirables-anarchists/1513791402" target="_blank">APPLE MUSIC: https://music.apple.com/us/album/undesirables-anarchists/1513791402 </a></p>
<p>The tale of hardworking and easy to picture subjects in “Who Is America” draws even more comparisons to Mellencamp and even folk rock. I like what Wagner and his brand of storytelling does – he keeps the listener guessing. Most of the songs capture a strong sense of a live show, a fiery gut punch. But songs like “Who Is America” and “Silence (Has Made A Liar Out Of Me)” sway the listener into different waters, and different types of stages. I think the band still captures that live sound in the studio, but it creates yet another dynamic destination. </p>
<p>Heather Savage</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/64249622020-09-04T13:40:43-04:002020-09-04T13:40:43-04:00AMERICANA HIGHWAYS PODCAST hosts Robert Andrew Wagner of The Little Wretches for a solo set<p><a contents="CLICK HERE to follow the link to YouTube for a solo performance by Robert Andrew Wagner on AMERICANA HIGHWAYS " data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://youtu.be/JM0O7Sdh0EY" target="_blank">CLICK HERE to follow the link to YouTube for a solo performance by Robert Andrew Wagner on AMERICANA HIGHWAYS </a></p>
<p>You know that song NO EXPECTATIONS by The Rolling Stones on the BEGGARS BANQUET album? <br> "Our love is like our music <br> It's here <br> and then <br> It's gone." (Jagger / Richards) </p>
<p>That's how I feel about these podcasts, these sit-in-front-of-a-laptop-and-play-to-a-mirror-image-of-yourself concerts. Like most people, I'm leery of the sound of my own voice. I want people to find this interesting or enjoyable, but it sure isn't the same thing as being in a room with me. </p>
<p>In this set, I mostly play tunes from UNDESIRABLES & ANARCHISTS. I open with WHO IS AMERICA and close with BROOKS ROBINSON'S CAMP. In between, I hit THE TASTE OF DIRT, THE BALLAD OF JOHNNY BLOWTORCH, ALMOST NIGHTFALL, ALL OF MY FRIENDS, and I even take a stab at RUNNING. </p>
<p>I wish I was better looking. I wish I had a more resonant voice. But I like the songs a lot.</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/64249452020-09-04T13:03:52-04:002022-05-10T06:44:18-04:00THRIVE GLOBAL interview with Robert Andrew Wagner of The Little Wretches by Ben Ari<p><a contents="CLICK HERE to follow the link to THRIVE GLOBAL to read the interview of Robert Andrew Wagner of The Little Wretches by Ben Ari" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://thriveglobal.com/stories/robert-andrew-wagner-do-everything-you-do-like-it-matters/?fbclid=IwAR3ITnA-Q72WjIgh3B7Zbvw9kH9Cd1B7ZdGV6-xWMKX-vbRjISprd6pVGH0" target="_blank">CLICK HERE to follow the link to THRIVE GLOBAL to read the interview of Robert Andrew Wagner of The Little Wretches by Ben Ari</a></p>
<p>September 1, 2020 </p>
<p><strong>Robert Andrew Wagner : “Do everything you do like it matters”</strong> </p>
<p>By Ben Ari </p>
<p><em>My movement? Be better tomorrow than you are today. Do everything you do with all of your might. Do everything you do like it matters, like the future of the universe hinges on your doing it well. Do it with love. Do it with care. The cumulative effect will be overwhelming. </em></p>
<p>As a part of our series about pop culture’s rising stars, I had the distinct pleasure of interviewing Robert Andrew Wagner of The Little Wretches. </p>
<p>As frontman and chief songwriter/lyricist for 80s/90s seminal Pittsburgh rock band, Little Wretches, Robert Wagner rode a wave of local notoriety that led the band to the forefront of the underground music scene. The Little Wretches were founded as a folk/punk band by Robert (guitar) and his brother, Chuckie (violin). The “classic” Mach 2 era of Little Wretches included Ed Heidel (bass), Chris Bruckhoff (percussion, wind instruments, backing vocals) and Bob Goetz (guitar), rounded out by Dave Mitchell (drums), Mike Michalski (bass) and Ellen Hildebrand (electric guitar.) This rock edition of the band performed regularly and helped the band build its massive following in Pittsburgh. Michalski, Mitchell and Chuckie Wagner left the band, effectively ending. </p>
<p>Mach 3 began with the addition of David Losi (keyboards) and Mike Madden (drums.) When Madden couldn’t tour, drum programmer Gregg Bielski took over. When Ellen switched to bass guitar, this version of The Little Wretches entered the studio. They recorded two albums, with Angelo George playing drums and Jon Paul Leone playing guitar on a third. National press, attorneys, managers, and publicists came calling, as did life’s obligations, and the Little Wretches disbanded in the late 90s. Robert Wagner continues to perform at coffeehouses and small clubs. A Master’s Degree holder, Wagner also counsels abused, neglected, traumatized and court-adjudicated youth. He is the co-founder of The Calliope Acoustic Open Stage, an event that has lasted 15+ years. He has also recorded and released two new albums in 2020: Undesirables and Anarchists and Burning Lantern Dropped In Straw. </p>
<p><strong>Thank you so much for doing this with us Robert! Can you tell us the story of how you grew up? </strong></p>
<p><em>You know what a HUNKY is, don’t you? The word is regarded as a slur by many people of Eastern European descent. There are some people in my extended family who would scold me for using it. They equate it with “the N-word.” </em></p>
<p><em>But my mother taught us to be proud of being hunkies. </em></p>
<p><em>The hunky understands that our world consists of a hierarchy, a pecking order, a class structure. We are born on the bottom — workers and peasants. We came to America for the promise of class mobility. As we ascend, we bring others along. I climb a rung, then I lift you up. </em></p>
<p><em>You’re not living for you. You’re living to vindicate the sacrifices of all the generations that came before you. </em></p>
<p><em>My mom’s father came from what is now the Slovak Republic. He tried to open and operate a gas station but ended up working for US Steel, lost his leg in a work-related accident, and the medal he received when he retired is now mounted on his grave marker. </em></p>
<p><em>My mom’s mother had been the smartest girl in her Slovakian village, and when she was sent to the USA, she thought it was for the purpose of going to college. Nobody told her a marriage had been arranged. She had the mind of an engineer, the mind of a philosopher. She was the most intelligent person I’ve ever known but went to her grave unable to read English, the mother of three kids with a man she couldn’t really love. Talk about having your life stolen from you. </em></p>
<p><em>Not a word of English was spoken in my mother’s home till her older sister started school. My aunt Sue, my godmother, learned how to speak English from a Black kid she befriended. </em></p>
<p><em>On my dad’s side, his mother raised five kids by herself. Her husband died “suddenly,” as the euphemism goes. All we were ever told about him was, “He couldn’t take the pressure.” That might mean suicide, overdose, who knows? </em></p>
<p><em>My dad went the route of delinquency, reform school, the whole bit, the proverbial “Black Sheep.” He grew up in the Lower Hill District of Pittsburgh. The Hill is one of America’s legendary Black communities. </em></p>
<p><em>People used to ask about my dad’s dialect. They said he had a Mississippi accent. That’s because many of the people he grew up with had moved north as part of the Great Migration for job opportunities in Pittsburgh. </em></p>
<p><em>My dad was said to be quite a street fighter. A lot of people say he was the toughest guy they ever knew. </em></p>
<p><em>The streetfighter marries the hunky girl. That’s the zeitgeist I was born into. </em></p>
<p><em>A cousin told me that the day I was born, everybody moved one step down the family hierarchy. I went straight to the top. Who knows why? I was favored. My sister, Lynda, told me it was hard to have me as a brother because I could do no wrong, and by comparison, she could do no right. </em></p>
<p><em>My mom purchased an ornate, deluxe edition of THE HOLY BIBLE, and we were required to wash our hands before touching it. Our bedtime stories were stories from The Bible. One of my earliest memories is running around my cousin’s house and saying, “God always was and always will be! God always was and always will be. God knows what you’re thinking! God sees everything!” </em></p>
<p><em>I loved Popeye the Sailor Man, Mighty Mouse, and Bruno Sammartino, the professional wrestler. What do they have in common? They come to the rescue of the weak and fight the bad guys. </em></p>
<p><em>My aunts got me a little sailor’s cap and a corncob pipe, and my mother would give me an empty spinach can, and I’d walk around the neighborhood NOT pretending to be Popeye, I WAS Popeye. </em></p>
<p><em>My mother finally had to put an end to it, “Popeye is a cartoon! Popeye is made of paper! Do you want to be made of paper?” </em></p>
<p><em>Our parents and older cousins had pretty good collections of vinyl records. I loved music. Wanna know the first records I ever bought with my own money? 45 rpm’s of HEROES & VILLAINS by The Beach Boys, LIGHT MY FIRE, the shortened/edited version by The Doors, and CARRIE ANN by The Hollies. </em></p>
<p><em>Me and my cousins knew every song in the Hit Parade. We fabricated musical instruments out of scraps from a home-construction project my dad was doing, and we even copied the addresses of record companies from the labels of our albums to send letters asking for a recording contract. </em></p>
<p><em>For my ninth birthday, I received an acoustic guitar and my first lesson. I wanted drums, but drums cost too much. For my thirteenth birthday, I got an electric guitar. Cost my mom $50. Best investment she ever made. </em></p>
<p><em>Until I turned fourteen or fifteen, my childhood was everything you could wish upon a kid, then things started to go sour. </em></p>
<p><em>I’ll spare you the gory details, but my dad was an alcoholic. My mom suffered from mood swings and also drank. Bad mixture. It got to where there were nightly fights, serious stuff, the kind that would make us kids have to call the police, and the whole thing disintegrated. </em></p>
<p><em>My mom started taking classes at the University of Pittsburgh, got involved in a lesbian relationship, weirdness ensued, and my dad moved out. </em></p>
<p><em>Every day, my dad would get drunk and come to the house with a mission. He was going to convince my mom to take him back or he was going to kill her. He’d bring leather straps to strangle her, BB-guns, knives, and it was my job to fend him off, meet him as he got out of the car and not allow him to make it to the house. </em></p>
<p><em>My mom eventually had to flee. </em></p>
<p><em>“What you doing?” </em></p>
<p><em>“Packing.” </em></p>
<p><em>“Where you going?” </em></p>
<p><em>“Nowhere.” </em></p>
<p><em>She drove off in the family car with my brother and sister. What? I’m supposed to be your favorite? Why are you leaving ME? No forwarding number. Gone. </em></p>
<p><em>Oddly enough, the day she fled was the day the cops confronted my dad and told him they’d throw him in jail if he didn’t leave her alone. So he stopped coming around, and she was gone, and I was basically an abandoned teenager, living in the house I’d grown up in, unsupervised. </em></p>
<p><em>When I ran out of food, it didn’t occur to me to ask for help. I felt like I needed to keep everything a big secret. I survived by making a daily visit to the General Nutrition Center at the mall to eat free samples of roasted soybeans. And I’d go to a different grocery store every day so as to not arouse suspicion, and I’d shoplift a package of cheese and a package of lunchmeat. I did this every day for what seemed like months. Never got caught. Lost a lot of weight, but people at school assumed I was cutting weight for the wrestling team. </em></p>
<p><em>I managed to keep my grades up at school, but I think my hygiene wasn’t too good. Somebody told me the teachers were joking in the teachers’ lounge that I was raised in a dog house. The authorities got involved and I had to move in with my grandmother. </em></p>
<p><em>From that point forward, I hated everyone and everything. Hate, Anger, and Resentment. Who is the most hardened and hateful kid in the South Hills of Pittsburgh? Bobby Wagner! </em></p>
<p><em>When I started at the University of Pittsburgh, I met and aligned myself with activists and revolutionaries. It took me about five minutes to be radicalized. What did I want to change about the world? EVERYTHING. How do you do that? I was still seventeen when I started studying Marx and Engels, Lenin and Mao. I was like an evangelist. Born Again Christians want to convert you to belief in Jesus; I wanted to convert you to the Proletarian Revolution. </em></p>
<p><em>In the same way that I had a hard time accepting that Popeye was a cartoon, I had a hard time accepting that Mao and Stalin presided over the cruel murder of millions. </em></p>
<p><em>A friend versed in trauma-theory told me a person under stress reverts emotionally to whatever age she or he was when the trauma occurred. Me, I’m forever fifteen. Me, I’m still looking for someone to love me as much as the mother that left me. </em></p>
<p><em>Is that too melodramatic? </em></p>
<p><em>I’m still growing up. </em></p>
<p><strong>Can you share a story with us about what brought you to this specific career path? </strong></p>
<p><em>Well, as I told you, I hated everyone and everything. The only thing I didn’t hate was playing my guitar and writing songs. I had a fantasy of being in a band, but in order to play in a band, you have to be able to communicate and cooperate with others, and that was out of the question. </em></p>
<p><em>Hey, pleased to meet you. My mom’s a lesbian, my dad’s a drunk, and I haven’t changed my clothes in a month. Wanna be friends? </em></p>
<p><em>I spent a lot of time loitering. I’d take the trolley into town and lurk in the parks, coffee shops, fast-food restaurants. I’d come to recognize other people like myself who apparently had nowhere to go. </em></p>
<p><em>Writing became a substitute for actual conversation. I got good at eavesdropping. </em></p>
<p><em>I had an ear for the language, the cadence and flavor of the words, a knack for creating characters by capturing the voices. The few people I did succeed in conversing with were homeless people or schizophrenics in coffee shops who’d try to strike up a conversation and then ask you for spare change. </em></p>
<p><em>I scribbled these conversations and overheard fragments in my notebook and wrote constantly. Resigned to the likelihood that I could never play in a band, I saw myself becoming a poet, the poet of the damned. Isn’t that romantic? </em></p>
<p><em>At the University of Pittsburgh, professors and other students gave me a lot of encouragement for my writing. Mark Harris, author of BANG THE DRUM SLOWLY and the Henry Wiggins baseball stories, tried to get me to write longer pieces, to take a character and maybe develop a novel, but when he saw that I wasn’t inclined to do so, he suggested that I publish my stuff as a collection of vignettes. A number of songs I currently perform are based on the vignettes I wrote under Mark Harris. </em></p>
<p><em>I got a summer job delivering pizzas and every time I got in and out of the vehicle, I felt like I’d been punched in the stomach. Not having a family doctor, I went to the emergency room. It happened so fast. I was examined, admitted, prepped for surgery and immediately underwent a biopsy for a lump in my groin. I was diagnosed with a rare form of cancer that, at the time, was usually fatal. </em></p>
<p><em>The night before my big surgery, I found myself talking to God. Me. The most hateful, resentful and angry kid on earth. Me, the atheist Marxist. I don’t want to overdramatize it, but I told myself that if I lived, I would spend my life writing songs and playing music, and I would never — not a single time ever — do or say anything I did not believe in. </em></p>
<p><em>I shared an off-campus apartment with John Creighton, the most talented musician I’ve ever known. He and I were sitting in a bar, The Squirrel Hill Cafe, miserable, trying to come to grips with the idea that I might die, and I turned to him and said, “We need to start a band.” </em></p>
<p><em>Playing in a band saved my life. It wasn’t a career path. </em></p>
<p><strong>Can you tell us the most interesting story that happened to you since you began your career? </strong></p>
<p><em>There was a kid in my neighborhood, five or six years younger than me, a very troubled person, already battling mental illness and substance use as a teenager. David Allen Flynn was his name. He passed away recently. </em></p>
<p><em>My first band, NO SHELTER, performed at David’s older brother’s high school graduation party. That was the first time David heard us. A few months later, he came to hear us at a public park, Market Square in downtown Pittsburgh, and we let David come up on stage for our encore, a version of Lou Reed’s SWEET JANE. </em></p>
<p><em>The day of his eighteenth birthday — and this is NOT a coincidence, this is DIVINE — I took a trolley back to the old neighborhood, and Dave’s mother, who was a crossing-guard, stopped me at the intersection and told me that she and her husband had placed David in a psychiatric hospital for observation. They could not in good conscience let him become a legal-aged adult without getting to the bottom of whatever it was that was disturbing him. </em></p>
<p><em>Mrs. Flynn said, “We asked him if there was anybody on earth he admired and might want to be like, and he said YOU. Bobby, he looks up to you so much.” </em></p>
<p><em>He went on to become a brilliant, self-taught painter. Mental breakdown after mental breakdown. Crash after crash. Always got back up and started over. Never once complained. His name is David Allen Flynn. Beautiful and tortured paintings. </em></p>
<p><em>There are quite a few live-recordings of The Little Wretches, and you can hear David’s inimitable scream on just about all of them. </em></p>
<p><em>I get it that I’m a grown man living the life of a teenager, living in his own little dream world, writing what will be heard by few and cared about by less. But music saved my life, and my music helped to save David’s. </em></p>
<p><strong>Can you share a story about the funniest mistake you made when you were first starting? Can you tell us what lesson you learned from that? </strong></p>
<p><em>Oh, dear. I’m kind of a serious person, and I agonize and have flashbacks about some of my mistakes. Funny? Okay, but this is painful. A fashion faux pas. </em></p>
<p><em>The first band I was in was part of Pittsburgh’s early punk scene, and the most charismatic scene-makers were these beautiful rich kids from Carnegie-Mellon University. Many of these people were a few years my senior, they’d been to CBGB’s and Max’s Kansas City, London and LA. And some of these people were gorgeous in punk fashion. There’s a real pipeline from Carnegie-Mellon to Hollywood, so you may have seen some of them in the movies. </em></p>
<p><em>One element of punk fashion was ripped clothes. I was more or less estranged from my family and was still wearing tee-shirts I’d had since I was twelve years old. I remember a girl looking at me, “Wow! You really look like a punk, not in a bad way but in a good way, like Marlon Brando.” Without even trying, I had “a look.” Unfortunately for me, it was unintentional, and I had no fashion sense. </em></p>
<p><em>Our band was invited to play at a big punk event, and I decided to dress up. I put on a nice sweater and slacks, something I might have been able to wear to church. One of the most recognizable scene-makers asked to have his picture taken with me. Later, I heard him speaking venomously about the kinds of people who dress in plaid bellbottoms and sweaters, exactly what I was wearing. </em></p>
<p><em>“He’s talking about me,” I thought, “He hates me! He’s mocking me! I’m a laughing stock!” </em></p>
<p><em>I’m not sure about this, but I think I looked so bad that it was a good thing. I apparently passed as “camp.” My clothes were seen as ironic, a comment, a gesture, lampooning all the uncool kids of the world. Maybe. </em></p>
<p><em>I have flashbacks about that event. I still wonder. Am I sure I wasn’t being laughed at? </em></p>
<p><em>What I learned? Well, the experience reinforced what I already believed about the snobbery of the rich and entitled. </em></p>
<p><strong>What are some of the most interesting or exciting projects you are working on now? </strong></p>
<p><em>I have a collection of songs and monologues set in the river towns of Western Pennsylvania, people too tough or stubborn to change no matter how bad conditions become. I’ve been workshopping it as a theater-piece, a song-cycle. Its title is RED BEETS AND HORSERADISH. </em></p>
<p><em>Red beets and horseradish is a dish served by many ethnicities of Eastern European descent. The ingredients are symbolic, the symbolism varies. For my people, the Carpatho-Rusyns, the dish has religious significance. The red of the beets represents the blood of our Savior, and the horseradish represents the bitterness of His suffering. I’m told that for the Serbs, the dish represents the blood of their people and the bitterness of their suffering, dating back to a war in the middle ages. In the Judaic tradition, the beets are merely for flavoring and have nothing to do with blood, but the horseradish represents the bitterness of their suffering in bondage. </em></p>
<p><em>I also have a screenplay called THE BALLAD OF JOHNNY BLOWTORCH, co-written with John Elerick. My current album, UNDESIRABLES & ANARCHISTS, includes the title-song. The screenplay is an adaptation of a bunch of vignettes I wrote about the person who inspired the song. </em></p>
<p><em>And I’m imagining the recording and production of the follow-up to UNDESIRABLES & ANARCHISTS. I have GREAT songs waiting to go. </em></p>
<p><strong>We are very interested in diversity in the entertainment industry. Can you share three reasons with our readers about why you think it’s important to have diversity represented in film and television? How can that potentially affect our culture? </strong></p>
<p><em>I often open or close my shows with a version of Lou Reed’s I’LL BE YOUR MIRROR, inserting my own poetry in the way that Patti Smith adapted GLORIA and LAND OF A THOUSAND DANCES with her poetry on her groundbreaking HORSES album. </em></p>
<p><em>That song, I’LL BE YOUR MIRROR, should be the definitive mission statement for every artist. What do I do? I reflect what you are. I show you your own beauty. I show you your own flaws. What you do with it is up to you, but my job is to be a mirror for the world around me. </em></p>
<p><em>The world IS diverse. It’s reflection, if portrayed honestly, should be diverse. </em></p>
<p><em>The problem is that the marketplace or the smart people who make decisions about what the public will see and hear have historically AIRBRUSHED entire communities and realms of experience out of the picture. </em></p>
<p><em>To answer the question of diversity, we have to look at what has been covered up and deleted, and though I could write a dissertation on the subject, you asked me to share three reasons, so I’ll speak of three things that have historically been airbrushed — Gender and Sexuality, Racial and Ethnic Identity, and Economic and Social Class. </em></p>
<p><em>I mentioned earlier that my mother came out as a lesbian when I was in high school, decades before such a thing was acceptable or encouraged. When my sister graduated from high school, my mother took her to a drag show to celebrate. Lou Reed was singing about these things. John Rechy was writing about these things — CITY OF NIGHT and THE SEXUAL OUTLAW — but it was not the kind of thing I could even whisper about in my real life. In my real life, it would have opened a can of worms, something to be kept secret or underground, something shameful. </em></p>
<p><em>Imagine being unable to modestly express affection in public for the person you love and share your life with. Imagine being unable to acknowledge who you really are because what you are is regarded as lesser, an aberration, a defect. </em></p>
<p><em>Times and mores have changed in regard to gender and sexuality, thank goodness. There seems to be an attempt to “normalize” or desensitize audiences through familiarity, but I’m not sure the real story is being told. </em></p>
<p><em>As for racial and ethnic identity, I think we should look to August Wilson as a model. His language is lifted straight out of real conversation in real settings with real people through the filter of Wilson’s gifted poet’s ear. In music and recorded poetry, I could say the same of Gil Scott-Heron. </em></p>
<p><em>Most of their characters are Black. Should their work be decried because it lacks diversity? Of course not! </em></p>
<p><em>Wilson tells the story of his communities with insight and compassion. I tell the stories of my communities with insight and compassion. You tell your stories. As a culture, our separate works come together to form a composite that is organically and gloriously diverse. </em></p>
<p><em>My first real job was working with my Slovak grandmother in a basement tailor shop, a sweatshop, surrounded by immigrants from Greece, Italy, Hungary, Venezuela, Slovakia, and native Pittsburghers, too, Blacks and Whites, all paid in cash under the table. At night in their homes, they watched public television, “educational TV,” and as they worked the next day, they’d argue about what they’d seen on TV, a big pidgin English symposium. Somehow, they managed to communicate. And I got to partake in it. THAT was diversity in action! </em></p>
<p><em>Let’s talk about diversity in regard to class. Working-class people have historically been portrayed as foils for comic relief, something menacing or to be feared — Oh no! Here come the thugs! Here come the brutes! We’re ignorant, uneducated and judgmental. That, or we are “the noble savage,” the John Steinbeck and Bruce Springsteen shtick about Tom Joad, for example. </em></p>
<p><em>Our culture likes “overcomer” stories, and the working life is portrayed as something to be overcome, something lesser, something to be pitied. What if I love my family and work hard to support them, and I do my best at my job every day, regardless of what that job requires me to do? The most important thing you will ever do is support your family and children. Is that lesser? Is that something to be pitied? Why would you want to overcome that? Isn’t that something that should be celebrated? </em></p>
<p><em>I ain’t your comic relief. I ain’t your noble savage. I ain’t nobody’s triumphant victim. I ain’t nobody’s experiment in social engineering. I’m just a kid raised to believe in and fight for peoples’ right to have a voice. I’m going to use mine, do my best to have it amplified and heard, but the rest is out of my control. </em></p>
<p><em>In the words of Lou Reed, “I’ll be your mirror, reflect what you are, in case you don’t know.” It is my responsibility to reflect my experience in the world. It is your responsibility to reflect your experience in the world. Writers, musicians, painters, dancers, artists in any and every form: Please express truthfully the world in which you live. Do the work. Tell the stories. And don’t look back. The composite — the culture — will be naturally and gloriously diverse. </em></p>
<p><strong>What are your “5 things I wish someone told me when I first started” and why. Please share a story or example for each. </strong></p>
<p><em>Bob Dylan has a song with a line about people disappearing like smoke. Patti Smith has a song that says, “Paths that cross will cross again.” Who is right, Dylan or Patti? </em></p>
<p><em>They are BOTH right. Paths WILL cross again, but those crossings are likely to be meaningless if you have not valued the relationships you’ve established. </em></p>
<p><em>My five pieces of advice involve maintaining relationships and building community. </em></p>
<p><em>Number One: Don’t let your people disappear. Do your best to stay in touch with friends and acquaintances. Save phone numbers, email addresses and residential addresses. Send holiday cards, birthday cards and friendly notes. </em></p>
<p><em>Number Two: Don’t let your audience disappear, and don’t disappear on your audience. Even during periods of inactivity, make an effort to reach out and let them know you value and appreciate them. Keep them abreast of your activities. When you’re young, your followers might partake of your work weekly, monthly or maybe a few times a year. When they have families of their own, they might go five years, maybe a decade without checking in, but they still consider themselves part of your community. </em></p>
<p><em>Number Three: Don’t let your business contacts and collaborators disappear. They will go on to other projects. Your collaboration may have included some disagreements and misunderstandings. You may have tried to close a deal that did not come through. Stay positive. Someone who may have been preoccupied or unable to help you may be disappointed in themselves for having let you down. Or maybe they didn’t think you were going to stick with it and become as good as you eventually became. Whatever the reasons and circumstances, smile, say thank you, and you may be surprised when you discover old adversaries now in your corner. </em></p>
<p><em>Number Four: Know what you want. If you do not know what you are trying to accomplish, people cannot help you. People may be rooting for you to get it together, but you have to have specific goals. </em></p>
<p><em>Number Five: SUPPORT YOUR FELLOW ARTISTS AND ENTREPRENEURS! </em></p>
<p><em>I read somewhere that Andy Warhol went out seven nights a week with an entourage, often hitting several places per night, and he did this for decades. It is part of the job. You have to be out there, seeing what’s going on, observing, learning, supporting the work of your peers. If you’re a poet, you should be reading other poets. If you are a songwriter, you should be going to hear your peers as often as possible. If you work on engines, you should be going to the races and taking a walk through the pits, shaking the hands of the drivers. </em></p>
<p><em>Genius emerges from a community. Build community. </em></p>
<p><em>Which tips would you recommend to your colleagues in your industry to help them to thrive and not “burn out”? </em></p>
<p><em>This is really a question of purpose. If you’ve a calling, if you are doing what you are meant to be doing, you will be recharged and refreshed by doing it. You will forget to get hungry. You will forget to get tired. You will NOT burn out. You will be blessed with all the energy you need. </em></p>
<p><em>But what if I need money? What if I have to work a day job or a side job? </em></p>
<p><em>My advice is to do everything, even those deadly side-jobs, like the future of the universe depends on it. Give it your all. Don’t do it with resentment and bitterness. Do it with passion and love. And guess what? This will be its own reward. You will be refreshed and energized. And if you CAN’T do it with passion and love, QUIT IMMEDIATELY. </em></p>
<p><em>You have a purpose. You have a gift. Every minute of your life spent doing anything else is a minute of your life wasted. </em></p>
<p><em>Your purpose may shift or evolve with time. It may be that your purpose is to teach and raise your children. Don’t see that as a sacrifice. Embrace it. Honor the gift of that blessed opportunity. But it is written that you can only serve one master. Know your purpose and serve it. Everything else will take care of itself. </em></p>
<p><strong>You are a person of enormous influence. If you could inspire a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the most amount of people, what would that be? You never know what your idea can trigger. 🙂 </strong></p>
<p><em>I’m from Pittsburgh, so please accept my apology, but I am going to answer this question with an anecdote about our football team, the Pittsburgh Steelers, and our legendary coach, the Emperor, Chuck Noll. I might get some of the details wrong, but you’ll get the point. </em></p>
<p><em>The team once started the season with two embarrassing and lopsided defeats. Coach Noll is said to have addressed the team, saying each player had a choice. He could respond like a rat, you know, jump overboard and drown in the process, or he could respond like a man and get to work. (Okay, this is a football thing, but this will apply to all genders.) Coach Noll is said to have told the players to stop pointing fingers, looking for explanations and answers. He told them that if each person on the team improved just a little bit, the cumulative result would be overwhelming. The season turned around for the Steelers, and the team made the playoffs. </em></p>
<p><em>My movement? </em></p>
<p><em>Be better tomorrow than you are today. Do everything you do with all of your might. Do everything you do like it matters, like the future of the universe hinges on your doing it well. Do it with love. Do it with care. </em></p>
<p><em>The cumulative effect will be overwhelming. </em></p>
<p><strong>None of us are able to achieve success without some help along the way. Is there a particular person who you are grateful towards who helped get you to where you are? Can you share a story about that? </strong></p>
<p><em>Jimmy Humes. My Uncle Jim. Uncle Jimmy. My Godfather. </em></p>
<p><em>Jimmy Humes married my dad’s little sister, Essie. Jimmy stood as my Godfather when I was Christened as a baby, which is odd because, as far as I know, he was not a practicing Catholic. When I was a kid, I overheard that he believed in reincarnation and that my Uncle Jimmy was sick. Sick? That was a euphemism for “drug addict.” </em></p>
<p><em>Did you ever see the children’s television show, Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood? There’s a character named Handyman Negri. In real life, Handyman Negri was the top guitarist in the region, Joe Negri. My Uncle Jim was to the accordion what Joe Negri was to the guitar. They were well acquainted and played many gigs together. </em></p>
<p><em>Drugs are often easily accessible to working musicians, and Uncle Jim got hooked on morphine. He told me there were times when, as far as he knew, he was on the moon. He had to give up music to get away from the lifestyle and contacts that led to his addiction. </em></p>
<p><em>When my dad got messed up with alcohol, my Uncle Jim stood by his vow as my Godfather and took me under his wing, so to speak. Like my dad, Uncle Jim became a mailman, a letter-carrier, and his daily route was in Pittsburgh’s Hill District. As I mentioned earlier, The Hill District is a legendary Black community. </em></p>
<p><em>Without seeming to make a conscious attempt to school me on race-relations, Jimmy Humes took me to visit his friends in the Hill. Walter Brown. Mr. Banksey. Fried fish. Hard cider. Plates of pepperoni and sharp cheese. Music. Sports. Workingmen’s philosophy. I didn’t ever say much. I just took it all in. </em></p>
<p><em>Uncle Jim loved the outdoors — hunting and fishing — and joined a sportsmen’s club. He invited his Black friends from the Hill to the club. Did it make waves? Damn right, it made waves. Some members of that club were said to be klansmen. Whether it made waves or not, he and they were going to do it. Likewise, his is friends from the Hill would invite Uncle Jim to bring me along on trips to private fishing lakes frequented only by Black people. What are these White folk doing here? These White folk are friends of mine. Okay, then. </em></p>
<p><em>When you asked about a person who helped me get where I am, you were probably asking for something career-related. I don’t know if this qualifies. But I learned as much about life from Jimmy Humes as anybody, and I never got the chance to properly thank or acknowledge him, so thank you for asking. I think Jimmy would be proud of me. </em></p>
<p><strong>Can you please give us your favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Can you share how that was relevant to you in your life? </strong></p>
<p><em>I have some Brecht quotes I like to throw around, a few lines from Shakespeare. </em></p>
<p><em>When I was a world-hating teenager, I would ink what I believed to be profound song lyrics onto the rubber parts of my sneakers. The one quote I most recall is the line from The Rolling Stones’ RUBY TUESDAY, “Lose your dreams and you will lose your mind.” On the occasions I’ve tried to play that song, I’ve gotten choked up at that lyric. When I hear the song — and I listen a lot to The Rolling Stones plus I have two powerful versions recorded by Melanie — I get choked up. </em></p>
<p><em>In the movie, RUNAWAY TRAIN, Manny, the character portrayed by Jon Voight, says, “Whatever doesn’t kill me makes me stronger.” </em></p>
<p><em>How about, “Quitters never win!” The kids in my neighborhood used to throw that one around during kickball games or whiffle ball games. </em></p>
<p><em>Or maybe Cool Hand Luke when Luke is fighting Dragline in the yard, and Drag says, “Stay down, you’re beat,” and Luke says, “You’re going to have to kill me.” </em></p>
<p><em>Is there a theme emerging? Something about grit and resilience. </em></p>
<p><em>Hebrew scripture, the foundation for my belief-system, is loaded with stories of people assigned a task by God, only to stop one day, one mile, one step short. Don’t stop. Don’t quit. </em></p>
<p><em>David DeMichael, the campus chaplain back at Holy Family Institute in Pittsburgh, once a residential program for at-risk and court-adjudicated teens, had a greeting on his voicemail, “If God is with me, who can be against me?” </em></p>
<p><em>Sorry if I seem to be repeating myself, but do everything you do like the future of the universe hinges on it. No pressure, though. </em></p>
<p><strong>Is there a person in the world, or in the US whom you would love to have a private breakfast or lunch with, and why? He or she might just see this, especially if we tag them. 🙂 </strong></p>
<p><em>Wait a second here. Is this business, pleasure, or both? Is this supposed to be my big chance to pitch my screenplay? Or is this my chance to ask the hermit at the mountaintop for the meaning of life? </em></p>
<p><em>There is no magic that rubs off on you when you are in the presence of gifted or successful people. They’re not going to be able to hand you the key or the treasure map. Whatever advice they can share is probably advice you’ve already heard. </em></p>
<p><em>I know you asked for only one, but I’ve got no name my “honorable mentions” In music, maybe Steve Earle, Jim Lauderdale or T-Bone Burnett. Michelle Shocked. I could ask Doug Yule or Maureen Tucker a few questions about The Velvet Underground’s live sound. </em></p>
<p><em>I admire the writing of essayist and columnist Meghan Daum. I reviewed THE UNSPEAKABLE for the PITTSBURGH POST-GAZETTE. Insight, humor, focus. Kindness. Decency. Respect for her subjects. Respect for her readers. I hope that I can do for my audience what her writing does for me. </em></p>
<p><em>For her and the musical artists I mentioned, I suppose I would want to explore to what extent they are natural talents and what they have to work at. I’d want to ask about mistakes THEY’VE made, lessons THEY’VE learned, some of the same questions you’ve asked me. There are probably published interviews in which they’ve already discussed these things. </em></p>
<p><em>Would they think I’m lazy for not having done my homework? </em></p>
<p><strong>How can our readers follow you online? </strong></p>
<p><em>Our website is www.littlewretches.com The Little Wretches have a page on Facebook. Many hours of live performances are available on YouTube. Our albums and songs are available on seventy-something digital stores around the world, outlets like Apple Music, Amazon Digital, and so on. I sincerely hope people will make a few clicks to find us. </em></p>
<p><strong>This was very meaningful, thank you so much! We wish you continued success! </strong></p>
<p>— Published on September 1, 2020</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/64249282020-09-04T12:55:11-04:002021-10-20T07:02:36-04:00Garth Thomas of THE HOLLYWOOD DIGEST reviews UNDESIRABLES & ANARCHISTS<p><a contents="CLICK HERE to follow the link to The Hollywood Digest review by Garth Thomas of The Little Wretches' UNDESIRABLES & ANARCHISTS" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="http://thehollywooddigest.com/undesirables-and-anarchists-from-alt-rockers-the-little-wretches/?fbclid=IwAR0LSa6p__THi0DQdfnhb7NelwqKOVEvSVqvWyoqKZTpUHvbIZFxnHyEQQM" target="_blank">CLICK HERE to follow the link to The Hollywood Digest review by Garth Thomas of The Little Wretches' UNDESIRABLES & ANARCHISTS</a></p>
<p>“UNDESIRABLES AND ANARCHISTS” FROM ALT-ROCKERS THE LITTLE WRETCHES </p>
<p>GARTH THOMAS </p>
<p>MUSICNEWSREVIEWS </p>
<p>Listening to the new album Undesirables and Anarchists from rockers The Little Wretches is a lot like re-living the excitement of a rock show through a modern lens. Completely devoid of fabricated tracks or computerized sounds, the collection of songs makes a dream playlist. The only thing missing is getting beer spilled on her shoulder, or getting nudged a few extra times from the fans sardine-smashed next to you in the town’s rock club. Okay, okay, it’s cleaner than that. But, it does have some grime. </p>
<p>By definition a wretch is an unhappy person. Sure, some of the songs, like “Give The Knife A Twist” has a bit of a cynical view (every broken dream gives the knife another twist, sings lead singer/songwriter Robert Wagner). Or the get me out of this town toned “I Rather Would Go” (Wagner exerts learn how to hop a freight) and the always pleasant phrase (and song title) “Don’t You Ever Mention My Name”. Through it all, mire and all, The Little Wretches have an incredibly fast paced and often sunshine-like guitar riffs. Just when you’re trying to really be turned-off by the cynicism, Wagner and company go and do a silly thing like blow the song out of the water with a killer riff, amazing percussion arrangement and a dual-tone vocals. </p>
<p>Many of the songs have a female vocalist – a Rosy The Riveter-esque, Rosa Colucci. She’s a hurricane of fun – sounding like a siren call in the “Almost Nightfall” charmer and even top billing in the swanky “Running (Was The Only Think To Do)”. Wagner, too, can spark that same endearment vocally. His “Some Day” has looping vocals and the song, while it’s quick as a whip, is likely a vocal warm-up, it shows a different side to his artistry. </p>
<p>My favorite song, “Who Is America”, in my eyes encapsulated The Little Wretches. He sings of the struggles of working class (down in the dirt) set to the tone of a late 80s/early 90s mashup of New Wave and early grunge. This song could be written at any point in American history, and one doesn’t have to be a history to nerd to view “Who Is America” and reflect upon its truths. The percussion and rhythm section might take second chair to the spellbinding guitar in this one, but the lyrics and storyline grabbed me and didn’t let go. Days later I’m still wading in those waters. </p>
<p>Special nod, too, to the opening track “Silence (Has Made A Liar Out of Me)” and the cool-named “Ballad Of Johnny Blowtorch”, as well as another round of applause to the hyper “I Rather Would Go”. While this Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania-based rock band years of jumping the rails and escaping, there’s no escaping the full sound and entertaining experience of the album Undesirables and Anarchists. It would be my pleasure to hang out with The Little Wretches, even if they think the glass is half empty. Fellow sufferers and life-long fans of Lou Reed, The Jim Carroll Band, Southside Johnny, Bruce Springsteen and even Patti Smith should take a listen. </p>
<p>Garth Thomas</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/64249252020-09-04T12:51:47-04:002020-09-04T12:51:47-04:00UNDESIRABLES & ANARCHISTS reviewed at DAILY POP NEWS by Jodi Marxbury<p><a contents="Click Here to follow the link to the review at Daily Pop News" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://dailypopnews.com/2020/08/29/the-little-wretches-release-new-album/?fbclid=IwAR0NIE9iBcpZEquPl0YeO5KKcNxwTzk-xv_jQ1HDNO4Or4Cr4zzAgQprSpk" target="_blank">Click Here to follow the link to the review at Daily Pop News</a></p>
<p>The Little Wretches Release New Album </p>
<p>August 29, 2020 by Jodi Marxbury </p>
<p>The characters in The Little Wretches’ songs are so real, so close to the listener it’s like you can almost picture them crossing the train tracks. They’re putting out a smoke, chucking a pebble or looking up at the Pittsburgh sky trying to see the stars beyond the airplane lights. Robert Wagner, lyricist and lead singer for the misfit band that has been rocking The Steel City stages since the 80</p>
<p>Proving that he’s a furnace of wisdom, Wagner enlists the help of band members Rosa Colucci (you can call her Rosa Rocks, the band does) on backing vocals and lead on the last track, “Running (Was The Only Thing To Do)”, drummer Mike Madden, bassist John Carson and pianist HIK Hilner. A breeding ground for tight orchestration and pure alchemy, Undesirables and Anarchists is a nonstop treasure trove. </p>
<p>Proving to never judge an album by its title, there is a lot excitement and pure, fun energy happening in the album. Wagner’s a realist. Many of his songs paint the perfect picture of life in Pittsburgh as a backdrop and the songs’ movements create a current of amber guitars; Wagner and company construct bridges between the sounds of INXS-era riffs with Bob Dylan-like lyrics and Americana roots rock. Sounding like rockers who’ve done some of the dirty jobs, in the track “Who Is America”, dirt is indeed a place to be in all day, but it’s also under the fingernails. Sharing that story, with a bright guitar and happy-go-lucky music canvas sets it apart. </p>
<p>“All Of My Friends” might come across as nostalgic to some, but the wispy guitars and prevalent drum shapes keep up just fine with Wagner’s astute lyrics. He sings, it’s not ever safe to admit you’re one of my friends…all of my friends are on some list of undesirables and anarchists. Song after song, Wagner draws the listener into this tale-of-tales and invites you to have a beer with him. It’s easy to take a swig at songs like “All Of My Friends” and the equally sing-along “Ballad Of Johnny Blowtorch” in one swig. </p>
<p>Overall there are lots of favorites to mention – including the vulnerable “Morning” and frank “Don You Ever Mention My Name”. “Give The Knife A Trist” is a special track, too. I ain’t going home and I’m not gonna back up, Wagner declares, letting the listener know that every broken dream is the knife. Discovering The Little Wretches is like finding a new favorite author. You want to start devouring all of their work, and connect the characters in each chapter. I think one way to look at a band like this is to put yourself in the place of someone that is still dreaming, still just trying to do their best to make the day count. It’s not rocket science and it’s not glam rock. The Little Wretches pull together all that is great about indie music. Everyone’s invited to the party. </p>
<p>Jodi Marxbury</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/64215412020-08-31T22:48:36-04:002020-08-31T22:48:36-04:00INDIESHARK Review of UNDESIRABLES & ANARCHISTS<p><a contents="CLICK HERE to read the review of UNDESIRABLES & ANARCHISTS at INDIESHARK" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://indieshark.com/music-reviews/the-little-wretches-release-undesirables-and-anarchists/?fbclid=IwAR22AN0Ii5e6CE0y2qG-8zKSuhQ_IYYoaGUgDET9FIw8T5X8UdTOONhHMAI" target="_blank">CLICK HERE to read the review of UNDESIRABLES & ANARCHISTS at INDIESHARK</a></p>
<p><strong>The Little Wretches release “Undesirables and Anarchists” (LP) </strong></p>
<p>3 days ago MUSIC REVIEWS </p>
<p>I’m not sure The Little Wretches find the specters of living in Pittsburgh to their dismay, or if it’s life in general that causes their angst? Either way, be it the hundreds of bridges that can lead them away from their city, or the dismal Pirates, The Little Wretches still find time to rock and extract some inspiration in their excellent collection Undesirables and Anarchists. </p>
<p>If I had to cast my vote for the standout songs on the album, I would start with “Give The Knife A Twist”, a kicker of a tune. The guitar is mixed at a higher level than the drums and hovers just slightly over the bass guitar. Lead singer (and songwriter) Robert Wagner sings like he’s been singing in clubs for years, and has complete control of the captain’s chair. While the guitar is crushing, Wagner’s doing his thing and slaying words (every broken dream gives the knife another twist). </p>
<p>The next track, “Almost Nightfall” has an even more robust music bed. This time a soothing harmonica, almost like a whistling wind in the winter’s night, sweeps through the song’s middle. Wagner is joined by female vocalist (the Janis Joplin-like Rosa Colucci) and the song breathes a sense of wonder, wrapped in a rock jacket. </p>
<p>The song that really grabbed me, “All Of My Friends” comes near the end of album, and it really personified the gregariousness and personality, I believe, found in Wagner and his band. It also mentions the album’s title ever-so slyly (all of my friends are on some list of undesirables and anarchists, it’s not even safe to admit you’re one of my friends…oh what a story we will tell, someday from jail). Once again the backing music is ripe with strong percussion and bass lines, as well as a honey-dipped guitar. It’s another blue-collar rock track that gives the listener a few grins, but should be applauded for its musicianship. </p>
<p>Colucci closes out the album with the gripping story, “Running (Was The Only Thing To Do)”. So much of this song reminded me of the film, Eddie & The Cruisers. It’s not that Colucci sounds like John Cafferty from the Beaver Brown Band, and this song is missing a saxophone, but it’s a great tempo and groove. Colucci carries the song with the same confidence and spark as Patti Scialfa (E Street Band). She colors t</p>
<p>Wagner, who outside of music is a counselor, co-founded The Calliope Acoustic Open Stage event. Undesirables and Anarchists is his second release in 2020, joining Burning Lantern Dropped In Straw. As he continues to crank out new material and new lyrics this year and beyond, I’m certain listeners can expect more shake-the-system rock tunes. I think it’s safe to say that The Little Wretches have a big sound and big picture echoes. They aren’t as misfit as they claim to be, but they sure do play by their own, winning rules. The Little Wretches’ Undesirables and Anarchists is a must listen. </p>
<p>Mark Druery</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/64215332020-08-31T22:45:05-04:002020-08-31T22:45:05-04:00Review of UNDESIRABLES & ANARCHISTS as MEDIUM.COM<p><a contents="Click here to read the review of UNDESIRABLES & ANARCHISTS at MEDIUM.COM" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://medium.com/@colin.jordan524/review-the-little-wretches-releases-undesirables-and-anarchists-lp-200cada38c1c" target="_blank">Click here to read the review of UNDESIRABLES & ANARCHISTS at MEDIUM.COM</a></p>
<p><strong>REVIEW: The Little Wretches releases “Undesirables and Anarchists” (LP) </strong></p>
<p>Colin Jordan </p>
<p>Aug 28 · 3 min read </p>
<p>Choosing some new music to listen, and stick with, just got easier. Slick guitars and great story lines, the new album Undesirables and Anarchists from long-time Pittsburgh, Penn., rockers, The Little Wretches, begs to be listened to quite often. Loud, melodic guitars and even better vocals, these Steel City stalwarts have ridden the musical waves since the 1980s. Blending the New Wave tone with Lou Reed stylings, over the years founder Robert Wagner has captained this band through several lineup changes. Undesirables and Anarchists plays like a band hungry for its first hit…like no time has passed. </p>
<p>Blinded by the sunny, sweltering guitar riffs even out of the gate in track one, “Silence (Has Made A Liar Out Of Me)”, Wagner and the merry-band-of misfits sets the rock tone immediately. The percussion is subtle, with high hats feeling the heat typical of a steady rock pop track. You can hear the full music bed — tones of guitar, bass, drums and echoing piano. It’s a full sound. The Little Wretches continue to be in the zone in track two, “Poison” and by the time track three, “Give The Knife A Twist”, hits the listener has a solid foundation for the band’s sonic pallet, as well as Wagner’s clever wording. </p>
<p>“Almost Nightfall” features more mellow tone, and an abundance of harmonica. “I ain’t going home and I’m not gonna back up,” Wagner sings. Of all the songs on the album, this song struck me the most as something you might year from an east coast rocker. I think it’s tattooed I the working class poets. Wagner tells a tale of the street scene before nightfall — the fisherman packing it in; the streetwalker looking for clients. I loved the scenery he depicted and looking up to wish up on a star only to discover it was an airplane. Adding an even lighter tone, and harmony, is vocalist Rosa Colucci. The synergy between their voice is perfect. </p>
<p>“I Rather Would Go” struck me as interesting for the wording alone. I think I’m used to this phrase as being “I would rather”. Wagner and the band pick up the pace in this one and tell a wild tale of wanting to get out. Colucci lends her voice in this one, too, and furthers the experience. </p>
<p>“Don’t You Ever Mention My Name” continues this band’s core sound, and brings back into play the idea of living in the shadows. Wagner also explores the idea of knowing when an opportunity comes around, well, you better take it. In track seven, “Morning”, he lightens the mood. His voice sings with more smile to it, he’s relaxed. In track eight, “Who Is America”, one could imagine this being the sequel to “Almost Nightfall”. Again, Wagner explores different characters, differing individuals that make up the American workforce, and our community. While his lyrics suggest a struggle — “you’ve five minutes late….who in America,” Wagner coos. The guitar sounds like its swarming around his vocals. The bass guitar and the drum work is tight. </p>
<p>“Some Day” is a vocal fragment, and a nice seventh-inning stretch (even though it’s track nine). The last three tracks “All Of My Friends”, “Ballad of Johnny Blowtorch” and “Running (Was The Only Thing To Do)” cement The Little Wretches as having solid songs. Undesirables and Anarchists is an all-around excellent album. </p>
<p>Colin Jordan</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/64215322020-08-31T22:41:09-04:002022-07-25T16:09:42-04:00INDIE MUSIC SPOTLIGHT Interview<p><a contents="Click here to read the Interview with The Little Wretches in INDIE MUSIC DISCOVERY" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://www.indiemusicdiscovery.com/interview-little-wretches/?fbclid=IwAR0EAScuZlgEoqDNi49rcGkqB_j7JNUha2A_eSgbr6EHLHAi6-NS5RtMU9U" target="_blank">Click here to read the Interview with The Little Wretches in INDIE MUSIC DISCOVERY</a></p>
<p>Interview with The Little Wretches – Undesirables & Anarchists </p>
<p>by Joshua (J.Smo) Smotherman August 24, 2020 9:17 amTagged With: Folk, folk rock, pennsylvania, pittsburgh, Rock, singer, songwriter </p>
<p>In this interview spotlight, I chat with Robert Andrew Wagner of The Little Wretches about the nuances of genre labels, technology, challenges and, of course, the latest music. </p>
<p>Full Q&A along with links and music below. </p>
<p><strong>You’re from Pittsburgh, PA and record folk rock music. Are the two related in some way? Has your locale influenced the type of music you make? </strong></p>
<p>How deep do you want to go, because I’ve spent a lifetime thinking about and studying this question. The answer to Part Two, the influence of the locale on the music, will be obvious to a person who listens to The Little Wretches and easy for me to talk about. </p>
<p>The first part of the question is the sticking point. What is folk music? </p>
<p>“Rock music” is easy to define. Let’s define “rock music” as music born of Elvis Presley and The Beatles, and that music, of course, was born of recording technology, electricity, juke boxes and radio, blues and other traditional “peoples’ music.” </p>
<p>You might define “folk music” as traditional peoples’ music, and I wish people actually DID define it as such. But what is generally called “folk music” today is woven from a few different strands. A lot of it is just acoustic pop. Let’s not even talk about acoustic pop. </p>
<p>Okay, you have the traditional peoples’ music thing, the pure music uncorrupted by commerce, the kind of music created for its own sake within the family, within the community, children’s songs, church songs, dance songs, like the musical equivalent of Grimm’s Fairy Tales, and this music varies from region to region, Celtic music, Appalachian music, and so on down the line, music from another time and place that, like an ancient language, has an entire world embedded in it, like ancient Canaanite and Semitic languages. What’s it all mean? It’s deep, mysterious, undefinable yet has the ring of truth. </p>
<p>This is a bit of an aside, but a lot of what I hear today is not authentic at all but seems to be an attempt to capture the feel and vibe of those old and ancient sounds. Billie Holiday’s STRANGE FRUIT was written as propaganda. LONG BLACK VEIL was written on Tin Pan Alley. All these kids pretending they shot a man in Reno just to watch him die when they probably never held a gun, much less pointed it as someone, much less pulled the trigger. </p>
<p>Then, you have researchers, documentarians and ethnomusicologists that have an agenda—the Lomax recordings, the Harry Smith anthology, Ken Burns, stuff like that. What these researchers selectively shared with the world tended to bolster their respective agendas or hypotheses about the fabric of the human spirit. </p>
<p>That trajectory may have culminated in the Greenwich Village scene of the late ‘fifties and early ‘sixties, and it has its own sub-genre in the form of stuff that comes under the banner of Pete Seeger, Woody Guthrie, Sing Out Magazine, stuff very much connected to the United Front Against Fascism, the “old” Left. These are the people who booed Dylan when he went electric at Newport and slow-clapped him in the UK when he was playing the greatest concerts ever performed by anybody in folk or rock music. </p>
<p>If you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em, as they say, so even the orthodox Lefties found themselves embracing the power of electric instruments. In addition to electric Dylan, you get The Byrds, Buffalo Springfield, and on down the line. </p>
<p>To tie it all together, I guess what is called folk-rock today traces back to the popular music listened do by young people in the Civil Rights and Anti-War Movements or to the middle-of-the-road soft-rock of the early ‘seventies—Seals and Crofts, Carole King, John Denver, Jim Croce. But it’s not really folk. It’s a marketing niche, a label on a bin. </p>
<p>For me, folk is very much a conscious attempt to preserve the stories of my people, my family, my community, people I’ve been fortunate to know and learn from. I’ve been a religious fanatic. I’ve been a political fanatic. Whatever I do, I’m going to be a fanatic. </p>
<p>Frankly, my folk music comes from Moses in ancient Hebrew writing and The Beatitudes in early Christian writing. Take “Honor thy father and mother” and stir it together with “Blessed are the meek, the reviled, the poor in spirit,” add my personal observations and experiences growing up around Western Pennsylvania, and out comes the catalogue of The Little Wretches. </p>
<p>Stylistically, I’m like the Three Little Pigs. When I have straw to work with, I work with straw. When I have sticks, I build with sticks. Sometimes, I’m smart enough to scrape up some mud, mix it with the bricks, and make some bricks to build with. But I use the tools and materials available to me. </p>
<p>If you don’t listen to the lyrics and go only off the audio, you’ll hear obvious allusions to The Beatles, The Kinks, The Velvet Underground, Mott the Hoople, Phil Ochs, The Clash and Bob Dylan. </p>
<p>My most serious “folk” songs have not been officially released yet. I made an album called SCATTERED SEEDS, FRUITLESS TREES & GRANDMA’S HAT that is not available for download, and I’ve seen copies going for $199 on Amazon. No kidding. That album has an epic song called SEVENTY YEARS about my maternal grandparents coming to and building their lives in America from what is now the Slovak Republic. </p>
<p>I have a song called THE REMAINS OF JOE MAGARAC, an acoustic performance available on a concert-recording called SONGS FROM THE LAND OF UNIMARTS, PITBULLS & KARAOKE MACHINES. Each verse of the song deals with a different character or different relationship in the river towns of Western Pennsylvania. </p>
<p>I write about what I know. And I don’t really know anything except what I’ve seen and heard. So I have a lot of songs based on fragments of conversation, rants I’ve overheard, stories told to me that I kind of felt were being told to me so I could record them and pass them along. </p>
<p>I told somebody recently that I am the product of a marriage between a street fighter and a Hunky girl. Yes, I know there are people who object to the word Hunky, but I was raised to be proud of being a hunky. </p>
<p>I’m not living for me. I’m living to carry forward the dreams and sacrifices of all the generations that came before me. </p>
<p>That’s probably way more than you wanted. But I take folk music very seriously. I wish the “folk community” would recognize that all of my stuff is folk music. Punk Rock was my Woody Guthrie. </p>
<p><strong>What led you down this path of music and what motivates you to keep going? </strong></p>
<p>What came first, the chicken or the egg? I came down this path as one of the most angry and hurt kids you could ever meet. One of the classic albums in rock’n’roll music is The Rolling Stones’ EXILE ON MAIN STREET. That was me, or at least that’s how I felt. Outside of society. Right in the middle of it, but not part of it. Rock’n’roll music and Beat Literature were two areas in which a exiled and outcast person like me could at least imagine fitting in. </p>
<p>I’d like to think my academic bona fides are pretty substantial. I’m well-educated. But attending college was really an excuse for me to tread water long enough to figure out how to get my band started. </p>
<p>I was a mere college-boy poet lacking the courage to start and lead a band till I was diagnosed with cancer when I was 19. I didn’t want to spend eternity knowing I’d never done what I most wanted to do. If God allows me to live, there must be a reason. So I started a band. Why compromise? Want to go to your grave having said and done what you didn’t really believe in? </p>
<p>What motivates me to keep going? There’s a couplet in one of my songs, WALKING AMONG THE BUILDINGS, “I’m walking and shedding the slow, restless agony / Buckling under the weight of my ancestry.” I play to honor the sacrifices of those who came before me. Delusional? You do you, I’ll do me. </p>
<p>This may be totally pretentious or a product of self-deception, but here are the names of former band-members who’ve entered eternity: Charles John Wagner, John Creighton, Dale Nelson, Ed Heidel, Jon Paul Leone, Don Polito, and we recently lost dear friends and supporters Brian Longo and David Allen Flynn. These are people who invested many hours, months and years in making music with me, people who could have done many other things with their lives, but they believed in my songs and devoted a slice of their lives into recording and performing with me. </p>
<p>Like I said earlier, I’m a fanatic. Keep going? It’s hardly even a choice. It’s what I feel called to do. This little light of mine, I’m gonna let it shine. </p>
<p><strong>How is “Undesirables and Anarchists” different than previous releases? Were you trying to accomplish anything specific? </strong></p>
<p>UNDESIRABLES & ANARCHISTS is like, and forgive me if you don’t like sports, but here comes a sports analogy, the album is like a martial artist who has tested for his or her Black Belt. </p>
<p>You want your Black Belt? Fight your way through this column of killers. If you make it out the other side, you have succeeded. </p>
<p>I’m being overly dramatic. But we earned our rock’n’roll Black Belts on this one. The band had trained, prepared, put in the time, effort and sacrifice. The songs on the album were workshopped, revised, and road-tested for years. We discovered the best arrangements possible for that batch of songs. Every syllable is in place. </p>
<p>The basic band was recorded live in Dave Granati’s studio, almost everything in a single take. Like I said, these songs had been stage-tested and road-tested, but we played for keeps. The performances are hot and spontaneous. </p>
<p>That’s a paradox, isn’t it? Spontaneous yet well-crafted. That’s the power of being prepared. We aren’t prepared to play this note or that note as much as we are prepared to explode when the drummer counts us in. 1-2-3-4 Bang! Stay within your abilities, but make something exciting happen. Be bold. Be brief. Be beautiful. </p>
<p>The album has a unifying sound in that all the songs use piano, acoustic and electric guitars, percussion, drums, bass and vocals, and it has a kind of post-punk urgency and punch, but it also covers a range of emotional territory. </p>
<p>I have it in me to write nine-minute epics, but one of the things I love about this album is that the songs are very economical. SILENCE, POISON, RUNNING, MORNING SONG. I imagine that if you did not understand the English language, the sounds of the vowels and consonants, the rhythm and cadence, all the para-verbals of the language would still get the point across. </p>
<p>And let’s face it, Rosa Rocks, aka Rosa Colucci, is a phenomenal voice. HK Hilner on piano. John Carson on bass. Mike Madden on drums. This line up is no joke. </p>
<p><strong>Name one or two challenges you face as an indie musician in this over saturated, digital music age? How has technology helped you (since we know it does help)? </strong></p>
<p>So we’re all needles in a haystack, and the haystack has grown. When I started, a band that actually went into a recording studio to cut a 7” single had shown a measure of commitment that separated them from their peers. Booking gigs out of town separated you from your peers and showed your commitment. </p>
<p>I read somewhere that Roger McGuinn made a Grammy-winning album that was produced 100% on his laptop. You can produce an Oscar-winning movie on your laptop. </p>
<p>I saw a Reid Paley concert a few years ago, and Reid said something like, “It’s either this or some kid in his bedroom with a laptop.” </p>
<p>That laptop allows beginners to sound like masters. People appear on stage with pre-recorded backing tracks. That would have been regarded as an abomination at one time. </p>
<p>I see solo performers using looping-devices. Here’s my percussion beat. Here’s my bass line. Here’s my chord change. And now I jam over it. Aren’t you impressed? I’m being sarcastic, if you can’t tell. I am not impressed by that stuff. </p>
<p>There were always the bands full of good-looking boys and girls who looked and sounded just right that sold more tickets than we did, but I just knew that they’d all be working in a bank in a few years. You ain’t no lifer. Playing this music is not what keeps you alive. </p>
<p>For me, the technology serves one purpose, one end. Thanks to the technology, the person who seeks the music of The Little Wretches can find it. That’s all I can ask. Do the work and don’t look back. </p>
<p><strong>What was the last song you listened to? </strong></p>
<p>This morning, I made a little playlist on my phone. When you make a playlist, you can give it a title and a description. I titled it, “Are You Feeling Lucky, Punk?” And the description says, “Well, are you?” Kind of a riff on Clint Eastwood’s DIRTY HARRY movies. </p>
<p>The very last song I heard was I NEED YOU by The Kinks. </p>
<p>Do you know the song? </p>
<p>It’s one of the last tracks they did in that primal style that created hits like YOU REALLY GOT ME and ALL DAY AND ALL OF THE NIGHT. I NEED YOU by The Kinks. </p>
<p><strong>Which do you prefer? Vinyl? CDs? MP3s? </strong></p>
<p>I listen mostly to stuff I’ve purchased and either ripped or downloaded onto my phone. I spend a ridiculous amount of time in moving vehicles, and I prefer driving while listening to loud music. As for digital stuff, I really CAN hear that MP3s are not as good as WAV files. </p>
<p>But let me tell you why vinyl albums are the best. Vinyl albums are the best because you can lay on your bed or couch or floor, gazing at the artwork and daydreaming or following along with the lyric sheets. You can invite friends over, and each person takes a turn picking an album side. The average album side is about twenty-minutes in length. In the span of a couple of hours, you and your friends have heard album-sides by six different bands. </p>
<p>The other great thing about a vinyl album is that each side has an opener and a closer, a beginning, a middle and an end. With digital recordings, you lose the drama. Digital is like eating at a buffet. Might be a great buffet, but it’s kind of artless. And album is like a meal prepared by a master chef. Appetizer. Entree. Something sweet. Something creamy. </p>
<p>Vinyl. </p>
<p><strong>How about this one…. Do you prefer Spotify? Apple Music? Bandcamp? Or something else? Why? </strong></p>
<p>I have an iPhone, and that has shaped my habits. I purchase albums from the iTunes Store. Old fashioned. When kids see my collection, they’re like, “YOU PAID FOR ALL THAT? YOU CAN GET IT ALL FOR FREE, YA KNOW!” Sorry. I’m the curator of a fine collection. Vinyl. CD. Cassette. Digital downloads. And most of my digital is Apple by way of iTunes. </p>
<p><strong>Where is the best place to connect with you online and discover more music? </strong></p>
<p>I wish people would visit the website, www.littlewretches.com, and just devour the bios, the photos, all the old blog posts. The Little Wretches have a Facebook page. YouTube has hours and hours of live shows recorded and posted by friends and supporters of the band. Go to the search-engine of your choice, type THE LITTLE WRETCHES, and click as you’re led. </p>
<p>If you go to the website, submit your email address. If you go to the Facebook page, like it and follow it. </p>
<p><strong>Anything else before we sign off? </strong></p>
<p>There’s a documentary called DON’T LOOK BACK with a lot of footage from an acoustic tour Dylan did in England prior to going electric. If you haven’t seen it, see it. If you’re serious about music, you must see it. </p>
<p>There’s a segment backstage where a young guy in a band is explaining to young Bob Dylan that his band plays Dylan songs but has a hard time getting the audience to listen to the lyrics. I think the guy asks for advice or is looking for encouragement. Dylan says something like, “I just play the songs. I don’t even think about trying to get people to listen.” </p>
<p>Okay, so all these years later, Bob Dylan has a Nobel Prize to his credit. But his advice, as well as the movie title, hearkens back to the opening lines of his song, SHE BELONGS TO ME, “She’s got everything she needs / She’s an artist / She don’t look back.” </p>
<p>If you’re an indie musician, be an artist. You’ve got everything you need. Do the work. Don’t look back. Do your work with the tools and materials you can get your hands on, but do the work. Create. Let everything else take care of itself. The creating part is why you’re here.</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/64215312020-08-31T22:34:01-04:002020-08-31T22:34:01-04:00LONG-STASHED LITTLE WRETCHES ALBUMS FINALLY SEE THE LIGHT OF DAY<p><a contents="CLICK HERE TO READ/SEE THE INTERVIEW BETWEEN SCOTT MERVIS AND THE LITTLE WRETCHES' ROBERT ANDREW WAGNER" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://www.post-gazette.com/ae/music/2020/08/17/The-Little-Wretches-Robert-Wagner-Undesirables-Anarchists-When-It-Snows/stories/202008170087?fbclid=IwAR0JD1FOIG-48PmofN9_T-rx2Nnmz7qmEMQ2kYcKpyuNOJDPo326wp-Ip0w" target="_blank">CLICK HERE TO READ/SEE THE INTERVIEW BETWEEN SCOTT MERVIS AND THE LITTLE WRETCHES' ROBERT ANDREW WAGNER</a></p>
<p>Robert Wagner has been holding out on us. </p>
<p>For almost 20 years, the singer-songwriter-guitarist has been sitting on a long-stashed studio album from The Little Wretches, which he recently released with two companion projects. </p>
<p>“Undesirables & Anarchists” was recorded in 2001 with producer Dave Granati (of The Granati Brothers) with a lineup that featured Wagner’s now ex-wife Rosa Colucci on vocals. If released, it would have come out two decades into the run of The Little Wretches, which evolved out of No Shelter, the band with which Wagner first hit the Pittsburgh punk/indie scene in the late ’70s. </p>
<p>The timely named album has held up well in that the poetic frontman never gave into trends, choosing to hold the line with a driving guitar sound influenced by The Velvet Underground and such disciples as The Dream Syndicate. As Wagner explains, the impassioned album went unreleased because the Wretches were in no position to promote it. </p>
<p>Wagner, now based outside of Philadelphia, has released it along with “When It Snows,” an intimate indie-folk acoustic record he recorded around 1996 with Colucci (who works part-time at the Post-Gazette) that shows off their lovely harmonies. </p>
<p>The third project is “Burning Lantern Dropped in Straw,” an album that found the Wretches in 1994 rerecording some of its staples and a few new songs for a possible deal with an Atlanta management company. That fell through when Dave Losi left the band to start a family. </p>
<p>All three records are available on streaming sites. Here’s what Wagner had to say about them in a phone interview this week. </p>
<p><strong>Let’s start with “Undesirables and Anarchists,” which has a very timely name. This album was just sitting there all this time? </strong></p>
<p>Yeah. Well, you know, we have a lot of stuff that was just sitting there. There was a time, you know, when you had to make a decision: Are we gonna put this out on vinyl? We gonna put this out on cassette? Then, later, you had to make the decision: Are we gonna put this out on CD? When I started, the dream was not to be an indie band, the dream was to be signed by a label that would do all that promotion and distribution for you and all you would have to worry about it was the creative side. But when we recorded “Undesirables and Anarchists,” the question was, if we manufacture a CD, how in the world are we gonna promote it? Whatever following we might have managed to attract, most of them have moved on to the next phase of their lives, where they’re more focused on raising families and stuff, so they’re not really coming out much. Older people are not going to attract younger audiences, and the stations that in Western Pennsylvania that we might have hoped would support us never really did, so we have this great recording, and we’re gonna make some CDs that are basically gonna sit in boxes. What’s the point of that? You’re not going to be able to tour or promote it. That’s how bands do it. You make money off the ticket sales and merchandise sales, and, you know, then you go back home and live in your grandmother’s basement. That’s not where we were in our lives. People had families and houses and mortgages and stuff like that. </p>
<p><strong>How did you come to work with Dave Granati, who was in a different scene than you? </strong></p>
<p>We used to play a lot of gigs with The Cynics, when they were more of a psych band, and their bass player [knew] Dave Granati. We had won some studio time, and I’d gone around to the different studios, and his approach to recording was my approach to recording: It doesn’t have to take, uh, 30 takes, isolating every single instrument. You know, work fast. His thing for us was if you could record without headphones, if you knew the material well enough to record without headphones, just set up in the studio like you’re setting up for a live show, except we’ll move the drums, position the drums a little differently than they would be in a live show. He said, by the time you’re done setting up, I’ll be ready to track. So, basically, he worked fast and just intuitively knew what we were going for. And Rosa and Dave had that Italian thing. So, you know, they could trade tomatoes and talk. It was a very, very cool thing. </p>
<p><strong>And now here it is, and it doesn’t sound dated because your influences don’t sound dated. </strong></p>
<p>It sounds pretty contemporary. It sounds great. And it’s like, the line from the song, “all of my friends are undesirables and anarchists,” little did we know that would be the two camps in American society in 2020. And “Who is America?” a lot of the songs on there, I think, thematically fit the zeitgeist of the times. Yeah, we made it and never did anything with it, except for wishing we had a way of putting it out and promoting it. </p>
<p><strong>So this was fully finished, you didn’t have to do a single thing to this when you loaded it up on Spotify? </strong></p>
<p>I had several albums that had been unreleased, and I had them remastered because even if you go through your CD collection and you take, say, “Blonde on Blonde” from 1990, then “Blonde on Blonde” remastered in 2016, or whenever they would have done it, the one thing that really changes is the newer stuff is louder and has more presence. So I didn’t want our stuff to come on and then you have to reach for the volume. </p>
<p><strong>So were these “Undesirables” songs ones that you’d been playing in your live set? </strong></p>
<p>Yeah, some of them go back all the way to, like, 1979 or 1980, some of the first ones I wrote. Some of those songs have their origins in No Shelter. And then in the original version of The Little Wretches, we were playing “Don’t You Ever Mention My Name” and “I Rather Would Go.” Some of the lyrics were updated, but some of the songs went way back. And from my point of view, they’re new songs because the world hasn’t heard them yet. </p>
<p><strong>What were the circumstances of working on “When It Snows” with Rosa, which is very intimate? </strong></p>
<p>At that point, I was going to just personally travel as a solo artist to every musical mecca in the United States, like maybe spend a year in Kansas City, spend a year in Memphis, spend a year in Nashville and move from place to place, and be a solo artist. And as it happens, I was visiting a friend in San Francisco, and it looked like, OK, it’s gonna be three or four months before I move. So I put an ad in In Pittsburgh for a singer, because, like, what am I going to do for three or four months? And Rosa responded to the ad, and then all of a sudden, things got good again, so what’s the point of moving? So, the songs on “When It Snows” started off as just me, and then when Rosa became available, then it was me and her, and some of the songs on there Bob Banerjee plays a little bit of violin and mandolin. But, basically, it was just me and Rosa singing. And the model at that point was Simon and Garfunkel’s “Wednesday Morning, Three AM” album — that was in my head, what we were trying to accomplish. </p>
<p><strong>How was your duo stuff with her received? </strong></p>
<p>I was always surprised why there’d be people who loved it and then the people who liked The Little Wretches, they were very lukewarm towards it. It wasn’t what they wanted from me, anyhow. I burned 20 copies at [producer] Michael Ketter’s studio, and we had a little private party down at an art gallery in the Strip District. That was as far as we went with it. </p>
<p><strong>But, by ’96, a lot of the people that were part of the Electric Banana scene were moving on to more acoustic, folkier kind of stuff. </strong></p>
<p>For me, Angelo George, the bass player for The Little Wretches, was playing in New Jersey with Norman Nardini, and when he came back from the trip, he wanted me to listen to this duet of Willie Nelson and Emmylou Harris, which then led me to discover the duet on “Love Hurts” of Emmylou Harris and Graham Parsons, and that’s where the idea came for me and Rosa singing together — that male and female voice together with kind of simple country-ish songs underneath them. That’s how I got into it. I didn’t really have any relationship with the Electric Banana people, except Steve Sciulli, whose music cuts across everything. </p>
<p><strong>Rosa is very versatile. She does “When It Snows” in the more Emmylou way, and then she brings an almost B-52s style to the rock stuff. </strong></p>
<p>Yeah, and I don’t know where her connection to any of this stuff comes from. When we met, she had sung karaoke, and she sang in the gospel choir. Her taste in music leaned very much towards pop. The things that are my biggest influences, she doesn’t like them at all or has no affinity for. </p>
<p><strong>So you had these great records sitting there? Why do you think you couldn’t get label interest? </strong></p>
<p>Well, we didn’t even shop it. Anyway, at that point, there was nothing even to shop. If you’re not gonna be able to tour or promote it, at that point in our lives there was nothing to sell. Rosa wanted me to sell songs to Nashville or maybe try to get the songs licensed to movies or something, but the traditional indie thing of making a record and supporting it, that wasn’t it. And from shopping the band, shopping the tape, who’s going to invest in a bunch of 40-year-old guys that have day jobs? The last Little Wretches CD where we tried to get people interested was “Beyond the Stormy Blast” or the third Little Wretches CD. We were trying to get people in the music industry interested. We would get feedback. We’d make changes based on the feedback we got, and we were hopeful of getting signed. But from ’94 on, I was done. </p>
<p><strong>You had a day job at that point? </strong></p>
<p>I’ve had a teaching certificate since 1988, and I never worked a full-time job until I met Rosa. My understanding when we married was that we’re going to do music full time, she was gonna follow my lead, because the only way you even have a sliver of a chance is if you go for it 100%. You might have to supplement your income working here, working there, but if you insist on having a full-time job with benefits, who’s going to invest in you, you know? Really? So, for me, I worked a bunch of part-time jobs, sometimes had no job at all. I look back on people who basically let me live like a parasite, people who gave me cars, people who gave me enough food to last me for the summer. It’s ridiculous the generosity that was poured out on me when I was younger. </p>
<p><strong>People saw that talent in you. It was undeniable. </strong></p>
<p>Well, if only I could find a way to pay them back. For me, when we started making the first Little Wretches CDs that I made with Dave Losi and Ellen Hildebrand, it was with an understanding that it’s gonna take about a three-year process. First, we’re gonna introduce ourselves to people, and then we’re gonna build off of that. And probably after three years, we will improve in ourselves to be a worthwhile commodity. And so that’s my attitude towards this stuff now is, uh, you know, we’re gonna promote “Undesirables and Anarchists.” When it runs its course, we’ll probably do “Burning Lantern Dropped in Straw,” unless I record something completely new. But follow this one up, and who knows where it leads? I just want to be in the game. When someone mentions Steve Wynn of The Dream Syndicate or Steve Earle, I’d like for some people who know about them to know about Robert Wagner and The Little Wretches. </p>
<p>First Published August 18, 2020, 10:49am</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/64215302020-08-31T22:25:43-04:002020-08-31T22:25:43-04:00Hometown Love? The Tribune-Review Article<p><a contents="Click here to see Patrick Varine's piece at the Crib." data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://neighborhoods.triblive.com/content-page/?p=southhillsrecord&body_id=ab85a3f9e0de7c072e08dc436ef67077&fbclid=IwAR09JxjjaxL2fvp2LgZhYfyJL17JjeX2yM9sMfk-ADsP85eBAbnz0eEEKqU" target="_blank">Click here to see Patrick Varine's piece at the Trib.</a></p>
<p>Early Pittsburgh punk band Little Wretches release album recorded in 2001 </p>
<p>Friday, August 21, 2020 2:54 p.m. </p>
<p> PATRICK VARINE | TRIBUNE-REVIEW </p>
<p>When Robert Wagner got into the music business, he didn’t know how to hook up a microphone. He hadn’t even been to a live concert. </p>
<p>But he knew it was something he wanted to continue for the rest of his life. </p>
<p>“I know some of these people are going get more airplay than we get, but I will be doing this until the day I die,” said Wagner, 60, lead singer for The Little Wretches, once a member of Pittsburgh’s early punk scene in the late 1970s. </p>
<p>Wagner, who grew up in Castle Shannon, recently released a long-shelved album the band recorded in 2001, “Undesirables & Anarchists,” that includes new tunes and songs from an old Little Wretches cassette called “Born with a Gift.” </p>
<p>Wagner got his start when he and college friend John Creighton formed a group called No Shelter and released a single, “Brooks Robinson’s Camp,” that Wagner described as “John’s refrain and then verses that were basically transcribed from a guy who was a homeless veteran, probably schizophrenic.” </p>
<p>Spending late nights at the 24-hour coffee shops near the University of Pittsburgh campus in the early ‘80s, Wagner absorbed stories and conversations from “the outcasts and oddballs that have been my community,” he said, winding his way toward several decades of crafting melodic, driving tunes and working-class lyrics as No Shelter evolved into The Little Wretches. </p>
<p>“I would always tell people we’re a working-class band,” Wagner said. “And I love Bruce Springsteen, but I hate that Tom Joad stuff. When I say we’re a working-class band, I mean we have families, we have kids. We’re not in a position of being able to go out on tour, sleeping on floors.” </p>
<p>Wagner’s initial dream was to be signed to a major label, “but by the middle period, no one’s going to invest in you if you can’t make a full-time sacrifice,” he said. “And no one in the band could do that.” </p>
<p>That hasn’t stopped Wagner from writing material, and his potent socio-political subject matter is just as relevant today as it was in 2001, evidenced by the lines of the album’s opener, “Silence”: </p>
<p>“I didn’t want to speak what I couldn’t take back/But I couldn’t say nothing, not after that/So I waited for the right words, they never came/And the hard, hard truth is I watched in shame/Silence has made a liar out of me.” </p>
<p>“It’s not like we were anticipating the great divide in America in 2020,” Wagner said. “But I do kind of feel like the album might be right for now.” </p>
<p>These days, Wagner lives in Perkiomenville outside Philadelphia, where he works as a teacher for at-risk children at New Life Youth and Family Services. He still plays original material at solo acoustic shows. But the way he sees it, the covid-19 pandemic has leveled the musical playing field, and an album The Little Wretches weren’t able to properly promote in 2001 can be a bridge to new fans today. </p>
<p>“No one’s touring,” he said. “I have as much access to the audience as anyone else. And I have a body of work that people can get into.” </p>
<p>Hear “Undesirables & Anarchists,” and another Little Wretches project Wagner recently released to streaming services, 1996’s “When It Snows,” on Spotify. </p>
<p>Patrick Varine is a Tribune-Review staff writer. You can contact Patrick at 724-850-2862, pvarine@triblive.com or via Twitter .</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/64086022020-08-13T11:48:00-04:002022-03-14T00:49:26-04:00This little light of mine, I'm gonna let it shine...<p>We're trying to broaden our reach, meet new people, and find new ears, so every time the new album is reviewed or I get the chance to talk about the band, I want to tell the whole world. The problem is, of course, our "whole world" has usually been a devoted few. Mark, Cindy, Keith and Elaine Golebie, Dave, Mike and Tammy Flynn, Mark Pinto, Pat and Katie, Chuck Parish, Mark and Lisa Gramm, Tony Norman, Ron and June Esser, Mary Kay, Cheryl and Don Polito...all the former members of the band...all the bands and songwriters we've worked with... I really don't want to exhaust the patience of those who support The Little Wretches.</p>
<p>I played at a cookout at Mark Golebie's once, and our friend Mike Fahey said, unsolicited, "I wish you had a broader platform." That's what i wish for, too. </p>
<p>Last night, I finished a pretty lengthy interview that I hope makes its way to the public, and tonight, I'm appearing on a podcast. </p>
<p>Just now, I posted links to reviews and interviews that appeared in WOKE CHIMP, DANCING ABOUT ARCHITECTURE, and VENTS MAGAZINE. You can see them by scrolling below. </p>
<p>You can help by sharing, liking, re-posting... You can help by continuing to enjoy our music! Stream it! Download it! </p>
<p>I already shared these links on The Little Wretches' Facebook page, so I hope I won't be too obnoxiously repetitive when I share THIS post on Facebook.</p>
<p>But this, for the moment, is all I can do...</p>
<p> </p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/64085762020-08-13T11:17:32-04:002020-08-13T11:17:32-04:00VENTS MAGAZINE--an interview with Robert Andrew Wagner<p><a contents="Click here to see the VENTS MAGAZINE interview with Robert Andrew Wagner of The Little Wretches" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://ventsmagazine.com/2020/08/05/interview-robert-wagner-of-the-little-wretches/?fbclid=IwAR1MKOgXdDJAHrmrlgWRx7tNy0yCjSDM1vwmG8ZH-1tBproyQy41sXobrcI" target="_blank">Click here to see the VENTS MAGAZINE interview with Robert Andrew Wagner of The Little Wretches</a></p>
<p><em><strong>How would you classify your music? </strong></em></p>
<p>What box does it go in? What shelf does it go on? Is it a chick flick or an action film? The Little Wretches’ music cuts across genres, but UNDESIRABLES & ANARCHISTS is solidly in pop/punk territory. I call what we do “Musical Portraits and Cinematography of the Soul.” Almost every one of our songs works as well acoustically as with a full roaring band. We just so happened to record this with a full roaring band. Mostly, I perform solo with an acoustic guitar, so that puts me in the box people call acoustic, folk or singer-songwriter. Really, though, I’m a teacher. I teach through stories, and I tell stories through songs. If you look at the bands previously mentioned by writers as a comparison, you’ll see mention of The Velvet Underground, The Beatles, and Mott the Hoople. You’ll also see words like, LITERATE and POETIC. One of my favorite reviews said, “The Little Wretches play the kind of music to win a jaded girl’s heart.” So please put us on whatever shelf is frequented by jaded girls. </p>
<p><em><strong>Who are some of your top 5 musical influences? </strong></em></p>
<p>The rock poets like Bob Dylan, Lou Reed, Patti Smith, Ian Hunter, Leonard Cohen. </p>
<p>The British Invasion groups like The Beatles, The Kinks and The Who. </p>
<p>The political revolutionaries like Gil Scott-Heron, Phil Ochs and Woody Guthrie. </p>
<p>Singer-songwriters like Michelle Shocked, Peter Himmelman, and Jonathan Richman. </p>
<p>From a vision standpoint, I feel a kinship with The Velvet Underground inasmuch as Lou Reed spoke of the band’s work as a whole, each album like the chapter of a book. That’s how I feel about The Little Wretches. Take us as a whole, like Victor Hugo’s LES MISERABLES. Each album is a section, and each song a chapter within that section. </p>
<p><em><strong>What do you want fans to take from your music? </strong></em></p>
<p>I want you to see yourself in my songs, to recognize yourself, to see your own beauty, your strength, your reasons to be hopeful. I want you to leave my shows thinking about people you’ve never met but feeling like you’ve known them all your life. I want you to wake up in the morning with one of my songs in your head, “Hey, that’s a Wretches’ song!” I want you to be energized, inspired, more aware of your inner strength. Look, I’m a fanatic. I get it that I’m just some guy who writes songs, but I’m here to save your life. </p>
<p><em><strong>How’s the music scene in your locale? </strong></em></p>
<p>I can’t offer an honest assessment of the local scene, especially now that every thing is in lock-down for the quarantine. I’ve heard some amazing writers, singers and players in the region, but I came up during the Punk Era, and we were very ambitious. We wanted to change everything about everything, little Davids who were completely serious about going head-to-head with Goliath. A lot of the artists I encounter these days seem to be happy in a niche, a safe space. I prefer a warrior spirit, artists foolish and courageous enough to think they can turn the course of history with a song. One thing I’ve learned about myself is that I’m never going to feel like I fit in. No matter how much praise or encouragement I receive, I’m always going to feel like an outsider. Locale? My locale is eternity. </p>
<p><em><strong>What is the best concert you have been to? What do you like most about playing live? </strong></em></p>
<p>I saw Iggy and the Stooges on their reunion tour at the Electric Factory in Philadelphia, maybe 2006. They played the first two Stooges albums. The band just stood in front of their amps and played. No light show. No special effects. House lights up. And Iggy showed why he is a legend. </p>
<p>As for me, my favorite thing when I’m playing live is when I can see an entire room move from distraction to focus. Conversations stop mid-sentence. Pool cues and beer glasses are set on the table. Everybody in the house turns at once to watch the stage. And there’s really nothing to watch, just some people standing there, singing and playing their instruments, but everybody seems to sense that there is something special going on, and they don’t want to miss it. </p>
<p><em><strong>Is there a song on your latest CD release here that stands out as your personal favorite, and why? </strong></em></p>
<p>Just one? That’s like choosing your favorite son or daughter. But I like RUNNING (is the only thing to do) because I was asked by Rosa to write a song for her to sing. Rosa left home at the age of 15 and managed to support herself. She graduated #2 in her class from Point Park University without ever having finished high school. I wrote the song from the point of view of a girl who sees her chance to run and follows her heart. She does her best to honor her father and mother, but she’s out of there. I was thinking about what it would have been like to be with the Hebrews escaping Egypt. Bad odds. Impossible odds. Nothing but faith to go on. I love listening to he sing that song. Very simple lyrics. Not too wordy. Nice melody. And I think I nailed what I was going for. </p>
<p><em><strong>How have you evolved as an artist over the last year?</strong></em> </p>
<p>I had a writing teacher at the University of Pittsburgh named Maggie Anderson. Maggie assigned us to purchase and read her book of poetry, YEARS THAT ANSWER. The “title poem” said something like, “There are years that ask questions and years that answer.” I didn’t grasp the idea when I was younger. But I came out of my first band, NO SHELTER, having answered the questions, “What am I, and what am I trying to do?” I am a writer, a teacher and a performer. I teach through stories. I tell stories through songs. THE LITTLE WRETCHES is my vehicel. I’m ready to build a new audience, trying to figure out how to do what I do in this new post-pandemic world. It’s like the time-lapse between the flash of lightning and the sound of thunder. </p>
<p>If you could meet, play a gig, co-write a song, have dinner, have a drink with any band or artist (dead or alive) who would it be? </p>
<p>I wish I could have traveled with, talked with and shared the stage with Phil Ochs, maybe a little songwriters-in-the-round with me, Phil Ochs, Michelle Shocked and Peter Himmelman, sharing songs, exchanging banter. Phil was at once a revolutionary and a true believer in the promise of America. I’d love to be able to say I’d earned Phil Ochs’ approval. I strongly encourage people to see the documentary, PHIL OCHS: THERE BUT FOR FORTUNE, or to pick up a copy of DEATH OF A REBEL: A Biography of Phil Ochs, by Marc Eliot. </p>
<p><em><strong>What’s next for you? </strong></em></p>
<p>I want to wake up in the morning with the knowledge that I will be taking the stage somewhere tonight, opening eyes, changing minds, warming hearts, stirring souls and shining my little light. I have about three albums worth of songs waiting to be recorded, songs that have been woodshedded, workshopped and stage-tested. But the foreseeable future is dedicated to creating opportunity, introducing my music to new audiences, giving people a reason to want to see and hear me.</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/64085722020-08-13T11:14:30-04:002021-04-21T13:06:33-04:00WOKE CHIMP--A review of the new album<p><a contents="Click here to see the Woke Chimp review of Undesirables & Anarchists by The Little Wretches" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://www.wokechimp.com/the-little-wretches-undesirables-and-anarchists?fbclid=IwAR0IREdKyhUmXksXSXBGRH3uP61qfiAlScpvY9_eBSHYFLkz1sb4j6HHw50" target="_blank">Click here to see the Woke Chimp review of Undesirables & Anarchists by The Little Wretches</a></p>
<p>WOKE CHIMP wrote:</p>
<p>OUR FEATURED ALBUM, ‘UNDESIRABLES AND ANARCHISTS’ BY THE LITTLE WRETCHES, IS OUT NOW AND AVAILABLE TO STREAM ON ALL MAJOR STREAMING PLATFORMS! </p>
<p>ABOUT THE ARTIST </p>
<p>The Little Wretches were originally founded as a folk/punk band by Robert Wagner and his brother Chuckie. The band have underwent numerous transformations over the years, with their most recent iteration seeing the compositional responsibilities for their latest album falling on the shoulders of Robert. </p>
<p>In addition to his musical talent, Wagner is a Master’s Degree holder who counsels abused, neglected, traumatised and court-adjudicated youth. He is also the co-founder of The Calliope Acoustic Open Stage; an event that has lasted over fifteen years. </p>
<p>To date, The Little Wretches have ten albums that are currently available on their online discography. One of their most successful tracks of late, ‘Poison’, comes from our featured album and has amassed almost seven and a half thousand streams on Spotify alone. </p>
<p>FEATURED RELEASE </p>
<p>Our featured album, ‘Undesirables and Anarchists’ by The Little Wretches, is out now and available to stream on all major streaming platforms! The album consists of twelve songs and lasts around forty-two minutes. A stand out feature from the album is the combination of the male/female vocal layers that systematically compliment each other seamlessly. </p>
<p>From the memorable harmonica and melodic harmony in ‘(It Was) Almost Nightfall’, the powerful piano and dominant electric guitar in ‘Poison’, to the eclectic and creative inclusion of the vocal-track ‘Some Day (Vocal Fragment)’, fans of The Little Wretches, as well as those who appreciate new music, will definitely want to hear this album. Make sure you follow The Little Wretches on social media to keep up to date with upcoming releases and performances!</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/64085712020-08-13T11:11:34-04:002020-08-13T11:11:34-04:00DANCING WITH ARCHITECTURE, a review of the new album<p><a contents="Click Here to go to the DANCING ABOUT ARCHITECTURE review by Dave Franklin" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://dancing-about-architecture.com/2020/08/09/undesirables-anarchists-the-little-wretches-reviewed-by-dave-franklin/?fbclid=IwAR3NIYndRy59g7CzRlQ2i4yQIx2w7P92mHmthEAKaBgaYmPQxrlX3GsW6aA" target="_blank">Click Here to go to the DANCING ABOUT ARCHITECTURE review by Dave Franklin</a></p>
<p>Dave Franklin wrote:</p>
<p>Perhaps one line out of all of the things I have read about Robert A. Wagner, the co-founder and mainstay of The Little Wretches, tells you everything you need to know about the man and the band that he leads. “Personally, I’m sick of Tom Joad.” As the son of Slovakian immigrants who came to America to make their fortune in the mining towns of Pennsylvania, he writes about the people he has lived his life surrounded by but rejects the traditional idea of the noble savage, the blameless, struggling victim who is always let down, always betrayed. </p>
<p>And such deeper and more realistic characters and creations, scenes and scenarios have always peopled The Little Wretches music as they evolved from folk-punk poeticism to low-slung rock and roll groovers. And the time has come for new life to be breathed into such people once more as Wagner raises a new version of the band for a tenth album, Undesirables & Anarchists. </p>
<p>Musically the album is a weave of their earlier punk urges and later more mature rock and roll moves, Robert’s great skill as a narrator of lives, not least of all his own, wit and wisdom, some cool musical moves and an addictive sense of pop-awareness. </p>
<p>Give The Knife A Twist is that blend of new wave pop and stadium ready rock, a place where brash guitars entwine around infectious melodies, Morning is a gorgeous cascade of deft electric-folk and pop gloss and All Of My Friends is a riot of attitude, swagger and lyrical outsiderness, a humorous side-swipe at the pit falls of non-conformity and a life-long membership to the odd-ball gang. </p>
<p>And proving that the fire still burns, Ballad of Johnny Blowtorch is one of those nostalgic back-street anthems which you might have heard emanating out of the back window of a trashy Lower East Side club in about 1978, 50% attitude, 40% punky, rock and roll and 20% school-skipping delinquency! </p>
<p>The Little Wretches’ fortunes have ebbed and flowed as time, tide and the natural changes and responsibilities of life took their toll. And whilst it was hardly the most unexpected idea that there might still be more musical chapters tone added to the story, few expected the latest plot twist to deliver an album so sparky, so full of attitude and energy and, perhaps most importantly, so bursting at the seams with great songs.</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/63977742020-07-30T17:48:18-04:002022-04-06T13:54:10-04:00Flashback: A Candidate Announces His Running Mate at Market Square<p><em><strong>Friedrich Nietzsche Meets Langston Hughes </strong></em><br><em><strong><a contents="(Click here to listen to Friedrich Nietzsche Meets Langston Hughes on YouTube)" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://youtu.be/yZbzMT0R1xg" target="_blank">(Click here to listen to Friedrich Nietzsche Meets Langston Hughes on YouTube)</a></strong></em></p>
<p>Wagner: <br> Okay, did anybody go down? One of our political candidates announced his running mate down at Market Square. I don’t want to mention his name. </p>
<p>Audience Member: <br> Why? </p>
<p>Wagner: <br> Because Dave says we should stand above the fray of politics, and I, um… </p>
<p>Dave Maund: <br> Friedrich Nietzsche said that. </p>
<p>Wagner: <br> Oh, Friedrich Nietzsche said that. Oh, oh, it wasn’t “the fray of politics.” </p>
<p>Dave Maund: <br> He said to rise above the ephemeral babble of politics. </p>
<p>Wagner: <br> The ephemeral babble, that’s right. Yeah! <br> Well, uh, when he was down there, this, this candidate, he read a Langston Hughes poem.<br> Did ya happen to catch that? </p>
<p> Now, I happen to know, being, you know, a college guy, that Langston Hughes subscribed to an unusual political philosophy which,<br> again, we want to stay above the ephemeral babble of politics<br> so I’m not gonna talk about his political philosophy, except that my favorite Langston Hughes poem is called, “Good Morning, Revolution.” </p>
<p> I’m lucky I was born too late to be drafted, and I was old early enough to not have to fight in any of this Persian Gulf stuff,<br> so I have never really done anything to earn the freedoms that we enjoy.<br> But I would like to honor the people who have sacrificed for my freedom by perhaps someday<br> saying something worthy of Freedom of Speech,<br> writing something worthy of Freedom of the Press,<br> knowing people worthy of Freedom of Association,<br> and, uh, you know, making freedom at least worth having. </p>
<p><em><strong>ALL OF MY FRIENDS <br><a contents="(Click here to listen to ALL OF MY FRIENDS on YouTube)" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://youtu.be/CSgJcfVM3EQ" target="_blank">(Click here to listen to ALL OF MY FRIENDS on YouTube)</a></strong></em></p>
<p>All of my friends turned into fanatics <br>With terrible secrets hidden up in their attics, <br>Closets full of skeletons and old bones <br>They only bring out to play with when nobody’s home. <br>All of my friends are on somebody’s list <br>of Undesirables and Anarchists <br>It’s not even safe to admit that you’re one of my friends. </p>
<p>All of my friends know cause and effect. <br>We’re notably known for abuse and neglect. <br>We’re natural targets. We’re perfect to blame. <br>None of my friends ever runs out of shame. <br>All of my friends have taken some kind of rap, <br>But your biggest weapon is your handicap. <br>Nothing much good ever happens to none of my friends. </p>
<p>Carving a niche between dust and the ether. <br>Walking in circles, we’re limping along. <br>Stuck in a ditch, but I’m a believer. <br>I don’t know much except right and wrong. <br>Oh, what comedy. Oh, what torture. <br>Oh, what stories we will tell someday someday. </p>
<p>None of my friends ever has to lose face. <br>We’re walking in beauty, walking in grace, <br>Marching like sheep to the slaughterhouse blade. <br>We’re the prize-winning herd at the Macy’s Parade. <br>None of my friends ever made the first team. <br>If you’re going to hell, why not go to extremes? <br>Gently down the stream go none of my friends. <br>A vanguard of vultures in rarified air, <br>With the high-priest of culture, we kneel down for a prayer <br>For the lesbian couples with their turkey-basters <br>And the amateur, connoisseur cyanide-tasters. <br>All of my friends, wind-scattered and blown <br>Never get too close to the foot of the throne <br>But they’re the best people I’ve ever known. </p>
<p>Carving a niche between dust and the ether… </p>
<p>Someday, someday, <br>Someday, someday.</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/63758302020-07-04T12:28:58-04:002021-07-01T21:02:08-04:00Better Get Off the Tracks, Here Comes a Train <p>Train tracks mostly follow a straight line, the shortest distance between two points, so as much as our parents told us to stay off the tracks, if we had to walk somewhere, the tracks were the quickest way to get there. </p>
<p><a contents="Click here to hear DON'T YOU EVER MENTION MY NAME by The Little Wretches from the album UNDESIRABLES & ANARCHISTS on YouTube." data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://youtu.be/QNhSPjnLi38" target="_blank">Click here to hear DON'T YOU EVER MENTION MY NAME by The Little Wretches from the album UNDESIRABLES & ANARCHISTS on YouTube.</a></p>
<p>The tracks were also the place to go if you wanted to evade the watchful eyes of adult authority.The forbidden-ness of the tracks puts you in outlaw territory.<br>I’m a hobo. I’m a runaway. I’m a fugitive.<br>Fugitive from what? Fugitive from every asshole that ever lived. <br>Leave me alone, for Chrissakes. </p>
<p>Most of the time, you’d be profoundly alone, counting the ties, matching your stride to the slightly irregular spaces between them, or balancing on the rail, pretending to be one of the Flying Wallenda Brothers. </p>
<p>Every now and then, you’d cross the path of a fellow traveler, a kid from somewhere else and bound for somewhere else, a kid you recognized from school, maybe a kid with a reputation, maybe a kid more scared of you than you’re scared of them. </p>
<p>Neither of you wanted to see the other. </p>
<p>There is no home-field advantage on the tracks. This is not mine. This is not yours. You go your way. I’ll go mine. We might say hello or exchange a nod. We might not. Mind your own business, and there is less likelihood for trouble to start. </p>
<p>And what is trouble, anyhow? You deal with what you have to deal with. </p>
<p>But what are you going to do when a train comes along?<br>What do you mean, What am I going to do when a train comes along? I’m going to get out of the way.<br>But what if there’s no place to go? What if you’re stuck, trapped? <br>You hear that?<br>Put your foot on the rail. Feel anything?<br>Put your ear to the rail. Hear anything?<br>Yep, one’s coming.<br>How far off?<br>I can’t tell. Does it matter? </p>
<p>There is nothing quite like being trapped in a narrow little canyon cut through solid rock when a train is coming. </p>
<p>You scramble for place to lay or stand, maybe with your back pressed against the wall of rock. If the engineer sees you, he’ll lean on that whistle. What are you doing here? Get off the tracks! Where am I supposed to go? </p>
<p>You feel the rattle and rumble in your stomach and up your spine, and if you get scared and want to panic, too bad. You ain’t going nowhere till that train has passed. </p>
<p>And after the roar has faded, wow, that was kind of cool.</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/63622592020-06-22T13:08:56-04:002021-06-29T10:58:42-04:00How My Brother Got Me Kicked Out of the House<p><a contents="Click Here to hear/see Robert Andrew Wagner perform three songs for Father's Day" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://youtu.be/zXukMCLJUo4" target="_blank">Click Here to hear/see Robert Andrew Wagner perform three songs for Father's Day</a></p>
<p>My dad didn’t ask for much. Somewhere, he learned that you’re entitled to nothing and you should be grateful for whatever you get. He didn’t mind telling me that I was the laziest, most ungrateful boy he’d ever met. Nothing had been given to him. Everything had been given to me.</p>
<p>He enjoyed feasting on a few delicacies. Olives, pepperoncini, anchovies, he’d eat those straight out of the jar. He liked fancy cashews, pizza with everything on it. And whatever portion was available, he’d eat until nothing remained. </p>
<p>On the eve of one particular Father’s Day, I went to Stover’s or some other purveyor of fancy nuts and candies at South Hills Village Mall and bought my dad a pound of fancy cashews. Cost me a good $15. </p>
<p>After my dad had gone to bed, I left the box of cashews on the television set in the living room. He’d be the first to rise, and he’d probably have eaten those cashews before I even awoke. </p>
<p>As it turned out, my little brother had stumbled in drunk and high at around four in the morning with a case of the munchies, saw the box of cashews and helped himself. </p>
<p>Next day, the cashews were indeed gone. </p>
<p>My dad kind of grumbled at me for a couple of days then threw me out of the house. I was the laziest, most ungrateful boy he’d ever met, and I hadn’t even shown him the respect of getting him a card for Father’s Day. </p>
<p>Rather than rat out my brother and beg my dad for understanding, I took my lumps and moved out.</p>
<p> </p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/63602562020-06-20T09:12:11-04:002021-11-17T10:00:15-05:00I RATHER WOULD GO<p><a contents="Click Here to Hear I RATHER WOULD GO by The Little Wretches on YouTube" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://youtu.be/RTkSWK0klwU" target="_blank">Click Here to Hear I RATHER WOULD GO by The Little Wretches on YouTube</a></p>
<p>I RATHER WOULD GO was debuted all the way back in The Little Wretches’ early shows at The New Group Theater. The original edition of the band was very much modeled after the “Rockin’ Robins” edition of Jonathan Richman and The Modern Lovers. John Creighton and Chris Bruckhoff were The Little Wretches’ “Rockin’ Robins.” </p>
<p>At the New Group Theater, we were very much anti-rock. Our contemporaries were evoking The Stooges, and “hard core” was the “new thing” for the kids who wanted to be ahead of the curve. The Little Wretches swung in the opposite direction. </p>
<p>On this recording of the song (and on the entire album), The Little Wretches are unapologetically loud and direct. Rosa Rocks manages to cover the territory once occupied by John and Chris. </p>
<p>I have always been proud of the lyrics, again as timely today as the moment they were imagined: </p>
<p>You’re born into captivity. <br>You don’t know you’re a slave. <br>You learn to love your captor, <br>And captivity you crave. <br>Your chains you think are jewelry. <br>Your comfort is your gauge. <br>If this is good enough for everybody else, <br>To me, it’s still a cage. <br>I rather would go. </p>
<p>When you grow up by the train tracks, <br>You learn how to hop a freight. <br>And if you grow up by the slag dumps, <br>You learn how to tap a keg. <br>But if you grow up in the shadows, <br>You learn how to force a smile. <br>If this is good enough for everybody else, <br>How come I feel so defiled? <br>I rather would go.</p>
<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/425724/a34eafdb54dac22ebfbbe5fbc7a96d88be813d03/original/undesirables-and-anarchists-cover.jpeg/!!/b:W10=.jpg" class="size_l justify_center border_" /></p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/63558632020-06-17T12:55:00-04:002020-06-18T06:58:57-04:00WHO IS AMERICA? -- A Battle of the Bands<p>Three different versions of WHO IS AMERICA have been released on three different albums, all within the span of weeks. <br>Listening to all three versions will cost you twelve minutes of your life, but it’ll be twelve GOOD minutes. </p>
<p>When the link to this post appears on Facebook, I hope you'll consider posting a comment with your answers to the questions below. Why? I'm thinking about contracting someone to promote the catalogue to radio programmers and dee jays, and I really want to know what you think.</p>
<p>You've got the BORN WITH A GIFT version which is the original recording with Chuckie on violin. <br><a contents="(Click here to hear the version from BORN WITH A GIFT on YouTube)" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3CluuasFEMI" target="_blank">(Click here to hear the version from BORN WITH A GIFT on YouTube)</a></p>
<p>You got the BURNING LANTERN DROPPED IN STRAW version with a time-tested arrangement and Losi and me exacting all the call-and-response vocal things like Brian Wilson was producing. <br><a contents="(Click here to hear the version on BURNING LANTERN DROPPED IN STRAW on YouTube)" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=who+is+america+the+little+wretches" target="_blank">(Click here to hear the version on BURNING LANTERN DROPPED IN STRAW on YouTube)</a></p>
<p>You got the UNDESIRABLES & ANARCHISTS version with the original lyrics written for but never recorded by NO SHELTER, the tempo nice and urgent, Mike Madden and John Carson doing like Bill and Charlie in the classic Stones, and the one and only Rosa Rocks singing with me. <br><a contents="( Click here to hear the UNDESIRABLES & ANARCHISTS version on YouTube )" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u3G6fr322uY" target="_blank">( Click here to hear the UNDESIRABLES & ANARCHISTS version on YouTube )</a></p>
<p>Were the lyrics ever more timely than they are now? </p>
<p>Q #1: If you ran a radio station, which version would you play?</p>
<p> <br>Q #2: Which version do you personally dig the most? And why?<br> </p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/63540972020-06-15T14:45:26-04:002021-07-05T23:01:04-04:00JUNETEENTH and News that Travels Slowly<p>This is me, Robert Andrew Wagner, founder of The Little Wretches, talking.<br>I am going to tell you some background about the three albums released today.<br>Consider these the liner-notes for albums you've yet to purchase.</p>
<p> <a contents='Click here to purchase BORN WITH A GIFT (plus live tracks and rare 7" singles)' data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://music.apple.com/us/album/born-with-a-gift-plus-live-tracks-and-rare-7-singles/1514602358" target="_blank">Click here to purchase BORN WITH A GIFT (plus live tracks and rare 7" singles)</a> </p>
<p><a contents="Click here to purchase WHEN IT SNOWS" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://music.apple.com/us/album/when-it-snows/1514472645" target="_blank">Click here to purchase WHEN IT SNOWS</a> </p>
<p><a contents="Click here to purchase UNDESIRABLES & ANARCHISTS" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://music.apple.com/us/album/undesirables-anarchists/1513791402" target="_blank">Click here to purchase UNDESIRABLES & ANARCHISTS</a> </p>
<p>First,<strong> BORN WITH A GIFT </strong></p>
<p>The title song was, for me, very specifically a reflection on the death of John Creighton. John Creighton appeared in the first series of shows The Little Wretches performed and was both a key part of the sound and the stage-presentation. You can read more about the early days of the band on this website’s BIO page. </p>
<p>John Creighton and I founded NO SHELTER. Between the break-up of No Shelter and the formation of The Little Wretches, I led an aggressively improvisational band called ICU (Intensive Care Unit) and co-led a cover-band called RIP IT UP with Bill Oliver. </p>
<p>During this time, the chemotherapy treatments I had been undergoing for a rare form on non-hodgkin’s lymphoma ended. I went from feeling poorly every day to suddenly feeling a vibrancy that grew daily. This changed everything. </p>
<p>I'd always been serious about being a band-leader and songwriter. Recognizing that it would take a lifetime to become a master of improvisational music--and even then, I would be at best an imitator--I let go of the ICU project. I knew that I had both something to say as a writer and a natural power with words, and I had an intuitive sense that I was first and foremost a teacher. I teach through stories, and I tell stories through songs. So I thanked Bill Oliver and resigned from RIP IT UP.</p>
<p>I took the lyrics and song-structures I’d created for No Shelter and began to rework them, recruiting my brother to join me with his violin. Joined by Little Ed Heidel and John Creighton from No Shelter and Chris Bruckhoff from a church-group, we were The Little Wretches. Our early shows, I’m told, were pretty cool. But John died, and my brother and I wanted more gigs and a broader audience, so we got louder and rockier in the hope of playing rock clubs. </p>
<p>People in the audience used to approach me after shows with comments like, “You are really good, but your band sucks.” Seriously, I heard this after almost every show and took it to heart. So I went about building a band that was as good as the songs. I found Ellen Hildebrand, Mike Michalski and David L. Mitchell. </p>
<p>Chris Bruckhoff, through his church-group, had become acquainted with Gregg Vizza of Audiomation, a professional recording studio in Belle Vernon, PA. I bought a block of time, and we recorded the BORN WITH A GIFT album in a single session, two-hours for tracking, and we returned a week later for one hour of mixing. All tracks were first takes with punch-ins where one of us had flubbed a note, and mixing consisted of setting the board up like a live show and riding the sliders for vocals and instrumental solos.</p>
<p>That’s how Dylan is said to have done it. That’s how the early Beatles are said to have done it. Live in the studio. Chuckie, Ellen, Mike, Dave and I prepared, played both boldly and within our abilities, and the BORN WITH A GIFT album was created. Lacking the cash to press an album and the CD format yet to be on the landscape, we released a CASSETTE. </p>
<p>Till now, this material has been unavailable except on hand-made/home-burned CDs through friends and fans of The Little Wretches. </p>
<p>The rare and live tracks are courtesy the personal collections of Mark Pinto, Chuck Parish and Gregg Bielski. </p>
<p><strong>WHEN IT SNOWS</strong> </p>
<p>WHEN IT SNOWS did not originally appear as a product of The Little Wretches. </p>
<p>After a decade of line-up changes, The Little Wretches was basically kaput. Losi and Ellen leaving the band to raise families put me back where I’d started—a catalogue of great songs but nowhere to play and nobody to play with. Poof. It was all gone. </p>
<p>So now I was a solo artist. </p>
<p>I am kind of limited as a singer and guitarist, but I used what was left of my network of musician friends and the good reputation I’d established as a bandleader to begin moving forward. </p>
<p>My friend, the late Don Polito, had a notepad with the scripture-verses from Micah 6:8 about justice, mercy and humbleness. That’s where I got the name, “The Mercenes.” The Mercenes was going to be my fresh start without all the baggage and expectations associated with The Little Wretches. </p>
<p>Steve Sciulli introduced me to Michael Ketter and Complex Variables Studio, and I started working on my new songs with Michael at the board, Angelo George on percussion, and Kevin Kilp on bass. </p>
<p>I placed an ad for a singer and met Rosa Colucci. She'd attended McKee Place School with my brother, Chuckie, as it turned out. Ain’t nobody (except for Losi) could sing and improvise harmonies like Rosa. She liked the songs but had previously only performed in gospel choirs and karaoke bars. She had no idea what she was in for. And she brought along Andy Hoke to play bass and guitar. </p>
<p>The thing started growing again. At one point, we were gigging with Jon Paul Leone on lead-guitar, Bob Banerjee on violin, and Dave Maund on Cello. James Hovan replaced Jon Paul on guitar. Jim Skal replaced Angelo George behind the kit. Not to use the Lord’s name in vain, but my God, this was an enormously talented group. </p>
<p>WHEN IT SNOWS was assembled from songs I cut at Complex Variables Studio. Downloading/streaming didn’t yet exist. We had insufficient cash to press a CD. Few owned laptops, and few owned CD-burners. But with Michael Ketter’s help, I handmade twenty CD copies of WHEN IT SNOWS on the Complex Variables CD-burner, had a hundred cassettes made at George Heid Productions, and we had a little “release party” as “The Mercenes” at an African American Art Gallery in the Strip District, NOIR GALLERY.</p>
<p>The proprietor of the gallery was so pleased at the end of the evening that our event-fee was returned to us. </p>
<p><strong>UNDESIRABLES & ANARCHISTS </strong></p>
<p>The Mercenes kept growing, and Rosa and I eventually found John Carson and Ed Ussack on our team. We met John and Ed through their band with Will Postell, ROBESPIERRE. They'd gone to L.A. for a year to promote their band, and returned without Postell. Did they want to play with Rosa and me? We had a gig booked, offered John and Ed the slot as our rhythm section, and John and Ed went and told us that they wanted to be in The Little Wretches.</p>
<p>Okay, then. We’re The Little Wretches again. </p>
<p>I was still trying to recapture the original vision I had for The Little Wretches. John Creighton, Ed Heidel, and Chuckie Wagner no longer walked the earth, but every one of the songs we’d played together remained current. Talk about aging well. Plus, I’d grown so much as a songwriter, arranger and producer. How could we NOT finally break through? </p>
<p>THE LITTLE WRETCHES found itself with H.K. Hilner on piano, Mike Madden behind the kit (Mike had played with me on and off for about a decade), Rosa on vocals and percussion, and John Carson on bass. </p>
<p>HK Hilner insisted that we enter some kind of battle of the bands, and we won studio-time with Dave Granati. </p>
<p>Dave Granati, he of G-Force, The Granati Brothers, Mulberry Street Studios, touring as an opener for Van Halen, etc, knew instinctively what we were going for. He said that if we could set up like we were going to do a live-show and record just the instrumental tracks without a headphone mix, he’d be ready to track us as quickly as we could set up our amps. Capture the band live and hot, overdub the solos and vocals, and BAMM! The songs and music will speak for themselves.</p>
<p>Did we really do all this in five hours? Yes, I think so, and it didn’t cost us a penny. No, that’s not true. I think I paid extra for mastering and some duplication. But five-hours. Okay, so I’d done BORN WITH A GIFT in three. Maybe I was slowing down with age. </p>
<p>Some of the songs on UNDESIRABLES & ANARCHISTS were newly written, and others dated back to the John Creighton/Chuck Wagner/Ed Heidel days. I still missed the sound of Chuckie’s violin, but this was the driving rock’n’roll sound I’d always imagined for these songs. I recall one person hearing this and saying, “People told me you were a folk-rock group. This is like a cross between The Clash and The B-52s.” </p>
<p>Unfortunately, we’d become, as David Bowie sang in WATCH THAT MAN, “an old-fashioned band of married men.” This band was not going to tour. Our friends couldn’t come out to gigs anymore. Everybody was busy raising children and working jobs to feed them.</p>
<p>No local gigs. No airplay. Downloading did not yet exist, and I could not justify the expense of pressing a CD for a band that was not in a position to tour. What was the point? </p>
<p>So that was that. The album was never released.</p>
<p>UNDESIRABLES & ANARCHISTS was my last attempt at claiming ownership of and “fronting” a rock band. </p>
<p>In the time that has elapsed since this collection was committed to tape, I’ve mostly performed solo with an acoustic guitar. I’ve done the occasional “reunion” gig with Losi and Ellen. I recorded a live-concert album, SONGS FROM THE LAND OF UNIMARTS, PITBULLS + KARAOKE MACHINES. I’ve written a lot of sketches, monologues, and stuff for the stage. I’ve got a bunch of unreleased songs. </p>
<p>But these three albums—BORN WITH A GIFT, WHEN IT SNOWS, and UNDESIRABLES & ANARCHISTS—are kind of like the beginning, middle and end of a movie. I believe in this material and want to give people a chance to hear it, to expand the audience beyond a small circle of aging friends. </p>
<p>How can you help? </p>
<p>Share it. Post it. Message me if you know of a potential contact-point. I can and do still play each of these songs. If you heard me on stage with Rosa or Losi, you might be disappointed in hearing me solo. But my solo shows are no joke.</p>
<p>House-concerts, private parties, coffehouses, clubs…. Ask me to play. PLEASE. The answer in advance is YES.</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/63490622020-06-10T16:31:56-04:002022-04-08T14:26:21-04:00International Musicians of Quarantined Origins Guild<p><a contents="Click here to go the the Facebook Page of International Quarantined Origins Guild" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://www.facebook.com/IMQOG/?eid=ARDxhVcNwXms0cE9x3R1tjZoA9B7fx3o-vz4dDP7qlvxBy092mZnmdsInDXHW-w5S9Sw9msoFa0ekU95" target="_blank">Click here to go the the Facebook Page of International Quarantined Origins Guild</a></p>
<p><a contents="Click Here to Purchase I'LL BE YOUR MIRROR (POEM) at iTunes / Apple Music" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://music.apple.com/us/album/just-another-nail-in-my-coffin/1063865210" target="_blank">Click Here to Purchase I'LL BE YOUR MIRROR (POEM) at iTunes / Apple Music</a></p>
<p>Yes, I’ve scripted my performance. </p>
<p><strong>Intro to I’ll Be Your Mirror </strong></p>
<p>Three of the best and most influential albums ever recorded are The Velvet Underground and Nico by, of course, The Velvet Underground, Village Green Preservation Society by The Kinks, and Horses by Patti Smith. </p>
<p>With HORSES, Patti takes classic, primal, foundational rock’n’roll songs— G-L-O-R-I-A. Land of a Thousand Dances—and layes her own poetry over top of them. Taking the old and making it new. The oral tradition. The folk tradition. </p>
<p>And The Velvet Underground’s I’ll Be Your Mirror, that’s the mission statement for any artist: "I will be your mirror. I will reflect what you are, in case you don’t know. I will show you the beauty are." </p>
<p>So in the spirit Patti Smith, I’ve placed my own poetry atop Lou Reed’s I’LL BE YOUR MIRROR, and I’ve held that mirror up to the little village green of Castle Shannon, Pennsylvania, a little coal mining town that worked its way into suburbia. </p>
<p>I play this song in memory of the Claude Monet of Castle Shannon, the late <strong>David Allen Flynn</strong>.</p>
<p><strong>I’LL BE YOUR MIRROR</strong> </p>
<p>song lyrics by Lou Reed, additional imagery by Robert Andrew Wagner </p>
<p><strong>I'll be your mirror, reflect what you are, in case you don't know. <br>I'll be the wind, the rain and the sunset,<br>a light on your door, to show that you're home. </strong></p>
<p>I'll be the bark of a dog <br>at seven a.m. <br>as you return home <br>from the night shift. </p>
<p>I'll be a spinster <br>who's been on barbiturates <br>since 1950. </p>
<p>I'll be a seventy-two year old woman <br>who goes to mass every morning. </p>
<p>I'll be saying to everyone who asks, <br>"Hey, buddy, spare a quarter,” <br>”No, man, spare a dime,” <br>while paging through the help-wanted section <br>of the Pittsburgh Press <br>at a newsstand <br>on Smithfield Street. </p>
<p><strong>I'll be your mirror, reflect what you are, in case you don't know. </strong></p>
<p>I'll be a bent cola can <br>rattling down the street. </p>
<p>I'll be minimum wage <br>and unpaid dinner <br>to dishwashers <br>who still can't get the crust <br>off the pots and pans <br>no matter how hard they scrub </p>
<p>I'll be rollers, belts and rails <br>that transport slammed <br>packages marked FRAGILE <br>that rattle all the way <br>from Oakland, California. </p>
<p>I'll be the sweat-dripping bandana, <br>on a teamster’s head<br>facing certain unemployment <br>in an airless breathless freight truck in August </p>
<p>I'll be the daily quota of beer that pacifies the United Parcel Service </p>
<p>I'll be the broken windshield of a stolen Ford, <br>stripped and abandoned in the parking lot. </p>
<p>I'll be walking home. </p>
<p><strong>I'll be your mirror, reflect what you are, in case you don't know. </strong></p>
<p>I'll be drunk over the toilet <br>in the women's room <br>on the thirteenth floor <br>of a college dormitory. </p>
<p>I'll be spitting off bridges till the day I die. </p>
<p>I'll be a never ending collection of defective messiahs. <br>Phil Ochs, Bob Dylan, Lou Reed, Patti Smith, <br>John Lennon, Karl Marx and Bruno Sammartino. </p>
<p>I'll be the man who stashes empty beer cases <br>in his neighbor's trash <br>because he's ashamed <br>of what the garbage man might think. </p>
<p>I'll be the fly in the funeral parlor, <br>spilled milk in an infant's crib, <br>and misspelled graffiti <br>on the playground shelter wall. </p>
<p><strong>I'll be the wind, the rain and the sunset, a light on your door, to show that you're home. <br>When you think the night has seen your mind, that inside you're twisted and unkind, <br>Let me stand to show that you are blind. <br>Please put down your hands. <br>'Cause I see you. </strong></p>
<p><strong>I find it hard to believe that you don't know the beauty you are. <br>I find it hard to believe that you don't know the beauty you are. <br>I find it hard to believe that you don't know the beauty </strong></p>
<p>You are three-hundred couples <br>of best friends <br>in the City Park, <br>kicking debris in the river <br>on the first sunny day of spring. </p>
<p>You are a baby chewed apart<br>by an ill-bred dog<br>while mother's locked in the hallway<br>banging on the door<br>You are all the news that's fit to print. </p>
<p>You are what I am, <br>and I am what I've been through, <br>and I've been through hell. </p>
<p>You are the muddy path behind the school <br>where truants smoke tobacco <br>and make suicide pacts. </p>
<p>You are blood-stained sheets and pillowcases <br>where high school girls slit their wrists <br>and live to regret it. </p>
<p>You are three bottles <br>of half-digested sleeping pills <br>puked onto the bathroom floor. </p>
<p>You are ninety days of observation on the wards of St. Francis, <br>Six weeks of recovery in the lock up at St. Johns, <br>Forty-two days of withdrawal and contrition in the dorms of Greenbriar. </p>
<p>Now you're doubling-out, <br>three to eleven, <br>eleven to seven, <br>three times a week <br>for minimum wage. </p>
<p><strong>I find it hard to believe that you don't know the beauty you are. </strong></p>
<p>You are a broken record of nine-to-five <br>that repeats six days a week, <br>fifty weeks a year <br>for too long now. </p>
<p>You are three months in America, <br>can't speak English, <br>and already lost <br>your tailoring business <br>in Ambridge. </p>
<p>You are sewing ripped underarms <br>hemming pants <br>and reattaching buttons <br>in a dry cleaning store<br>under-the-table. </p>
<p>You are long lines waiting <br>for an application <br>to J&L Steel. </p>
<p>You are capitalism, <br>May God strike you dead <br>if you're not democratic. </p>
<p>You are in love, Charlie Brown. </p>
<p>You are a shivering stumble bum <br>huddled beneath a pile of rags <br>on a warehouse dock. </p>
<p>You are an empty soap-dispenser <br>and soggy paper towels <br>in the bus station lavatory. </p>
<p>You are a truant junky’s blood <br>on the Burger King Wall <br>Three blocks from Westinghouse High School. </p>
<p><strong>I find it hard to believe that you don't know the beauty you are. </strong></p>
<p>Let me be your car radio <br>playing feel-good AM pop music <br>as you sit in the rush hour traffic. </p>
<p>Let me be the jelly donut <br>drying on the passenger seat <br>on the interminable journey home <br>from the night shift. </p>
<p>Let me be the burns on your arms <br>from creasing pants <br>in a cage of hot steam pipes. </p>
<p>Let me be the splinters in your hands <br>from climbing a wooden fence <br>in a neighborhood playground <br>on a drunk Spring night. </p>
<p>Let me be the CIA <br>so I can turn half your neighborhood <br>into a bunch of mindless junkies. </p>
<p>Let me be alone—You can be a pain sometimes. </p>
<p>Let me be the soup cans and brushes on the Warhola grave <br>on the hill across from the slag dumps. </p>
<p>Let me be the unspoken words of friendship <br>between a man and a woman <br>who will never become lovers. </p>
<p>Let me be the imprints on your face <br>when you wake up on the floor <br>in front of the t.v. <br>with your jacket as a pillow. </p>
<p>Let me be the burnt-out bulb on the broken lamp, <br>The broken lamp on the crooked coffee-table <br>The crooked coffee-table on the dirty throw-rug <br>The dirty throw-rug on the spotted on the floor. <br>The spot where the blood dried. <br>The blood when mom stabbed dad <br>He hit her once too often </p>
<p>Let me be your friend. </p>
<p><strong>Let me be your eyes, a hand to your darkness, so you won't be afraid. <br>When you think the night has seen your mind, that inside you're twisted and unkind, <br>let me stand to show that you are blind. Please put down your hands. <br>'Cause I see you. </strong></p>
<p><strong>I'll be your mirror. Reflect what you are. In case you don’t know. </strong><br> </p>
<p><strong>'Cause I find it hard <br>To believe you don't know <br>The beauty you are.</strong></p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/63432502020-06-05T07:49:51-04:002021-07-09T07:59:36-04:00Streaming Live on Facebook<p>Keith Golebie (who currently pastors a church, teaches media-production at a public school in Western Pennsylvania, played bass on the SLAVE & BRAVES tape and ran sound for The Little Wretches for a significant stretch in the band's early days) helped me with the step-by-steps involved in sitting in front of a laptop and streaming live on Facebook.</p>
<p>On Tuesday evening, I did a little test. <a contents="Click here to see/hear Robert Andrew Wagner perform a test-take of WHO IS AMERICA on Facebook Live, 6-2-2020" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://www.facebook.com/robert.wagner.littlewretch/videos/3115273055201186/?t=26" target="_blank">Click here to see/hear Robert Andrew Wagner perform a test-take of WHO IS AMERICA on Facebook Live, 6-2-2020</a></p>
<p>On Wednesday evening, I played a twelve-song set. <a contents="Click here to see/hear Robert Andrew Wagner's twelve-song set on Facebook Live on 6-3-2020" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://www.facebook.com/robert.wagner.littlewretch/videos/3118119298249895/?t=2" target="_blank">Click here to see/hear Robert Andrew Wagner's twelve-song set on Facebook Live on 6-3-2020</a></p>
<p>I've been invited to do a 15-minute set at a FB Live event on June 10. I plan on filling the entire fifteen minutes with I'LL BE YOUR MIRROR and a verbal tribute to my recently departed friend, David Allen Flynn.<br>Here is the link to the event <a contents="Click here for the link to the June 10 Facebook Event" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://www.facebook.com/events/857975954687857/" target="_blank">Click here for the link to the June 10 Facebook Event</a> </p>
<p>If you do not have a Facebook account, these videos will eventually appear on YouTube.</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/63385932020-06-01T17:50:51-04:002021-02-20T08:11:39-05:00Chuck Yeager, Francois Truffaut and a Stick of Beemans<p>The name of our/my band, you may know, comes from a scene in Francois Truffaut’s THE 400 BLOWS. </p>
<p>I became acquainted with film as an artform by way of Bob Goetz, leader of a film workshop in the University of Pittsburgh’s ALTERNATIVE CURRICULUM Program. Goetz introduced me/us to films by Frederick Wiseman, Stan Brakhage, Rene Clare, Fritz Lang, Dziga Vertov, Sergei Eisenstein, Bunuel and Dali, and Jean Cocteau. Goetz was also a huge fan of The Velvet Underground, helped to school me on rock’n’roll, and played some great gigs as a guitarist of The Little Wretches. </p>
<p>Goetz was a student of Professor Marcia Landy, and Marcia Landy was some kind of curator of a film-series (I think). Professor Landy introduced a screening of a film described as Wim Wenders’ masters thesis at the Carnegie Lecture Hall. I attended specifically because the poster indicated an appearance by The Kinks. </p>
<p>I remember little about the film except that Dave Davies played a Flying V on the footage of The Kinks performing “Days,” and the film was about a guy getting out of jail and being taken aback about the cultural changes during his absence. According to Wikipedia, the movie was called SUMMER IN THE CITY. Wikipedia mentions The Lovin’ Spoonful, but I remember The Kinks. God Save The Kinks! </p>
<p>In the early days of The Little Wretches, I was living near the campus of the University of Pittsburgh, sharing an apartment with (or mooching off of) Deena, and a classic film was showing within walking distance for as little as fifty-cents every night of the week. Deena and I saw Truffaut’s THE 400 BLOWS at the Carnegie Lecture Hall, and as soon as I saw the caption, “Come back, you little wretches,” I announced the name of the band. Deena and I also took our bassist, Mike Michalski, to see REBEL WITHOUT A CAUSE at the Ballroom in the Schenley Hall of the University of Pittsburgh, an event he reported to be life-changing at the time. </p>
<p>Fast forward a few years, and there was a stretch when I’d arrive home from a gig at 3:00 or 3:30 in the morning, too wired to fall asleep. My brother, Chuckie, had climbed the telephone pole to illegally connect our TV-cable so many times that the cable company finally removed the line to our house altogether. All we had for viewing was an old console TV with the bottom portion of the screen appearing upside-down, a VHS player, and our tape-collection consisted of THE GODFATHER II, GOODFELLAS and ENTER THE DRAGON. </p>
<p>Across Connor Road and up the hill a bit, Dave Losi’s dad had an extensive collection of VHS tapes. On nights we didn’t rehearse or have a gig, we’d sometimes go to Losi’s. Los has an amazing auditory memory and can mimick film-dialogue with perfect timing, cadence and intonation. </p>
<p>Los was particularly fond of quoting from RUNAWAY TRAIN and THE RIGHT STUFF. Dave’s dad had been a navigator in the USAF, and the lyrics to our third and eponymous album, THE LITTLE WRETCHES, are loaded with direct quotes and references from those movies. MAGIC FIRE. GRAVITY. Listen for yourself. </p>
<p>When at a loss for stage-banter, I often fall back on film-trivia. One of my favorite bits is to challenge members of the audience to name the original seven astronauts in the MERCURY program. Can you? </p>
<p>The hero-among-heroes of the THE RIGHT STUFF, of course, is CHUCK YEAGER. Though it doesn’t appear in the movie, Tom Wolfe’s book describes Yeager as saying, “Shut up and die like an aviator,” to a test-pilot having run out of troubleshooting options. </p>
<p>SHUT UP AND DIE LIKE AN AVIATOR is also the title of a STEVE EARLE album. He beat us to it. </p>
<p>In the movie, Sam Shepard (we recorded one of his songs, ROLLING DOWN) portrays Yeager, and he asks for a stick of Beemans before getting on board for a record-breaking flight. Not a stick of gum. Specifically, a stick of BEEMANS. </p>
<p>While working in Atlanta, Losi became acquainted with a person who became the road manager for ZZ Top, and when the band appeared at the Civic Arena in Pittsburgh, Dave delivered a little package including some Beemans. </p>
<p>Last weekend, Memorial Day Weekend, the weekend The Little Wretches' gig at Moondog's was cancelled due to the quarantine-efforts, I stopped at a little country store in Western Pennsylvania I saw Beemans on display at the register and picked up a pack for Dave Losi. I texted Dave, and he replied: </p>
<p>“Hey, Riddly, got any Beemans?” <br>“I think I might have a stick.” <br>“Well, loan me one. I’ll pay you back later.”</p>
<p><a contents="Click here to see/hear a YouTube clip of The Little Wretches' recording of ROLLING DOWN by Sam Shepard." data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CKclEc4E0m0&t=2s" target="_blank">Click here to see/hear a YouTube clip of The Little Wretches' recording of ROLLING DOWN by Sam Shepard.</a></p>
<p><a contents="Click here to view a LIVE PERFORMANCE of The Little Wretches' ROLLING DOWN by Sam Shepard." data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tWDPwswXVkk" target="_blank">Click here to view a LIVE PERFORMANCE of The Little Wretches' ROLLING DOWN by Sam Shepard.</a></p>
<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/425724/aa8da9bb2067bf0f332b7f68c2b542c1844b3b59/original/img-e2491.jpg/!!/b:W10=.jpg" class="size_l justify_center border_" /></p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/63339862020-05-28T21:48:38-04:002020-05-28T21:55:01-04:00Let's Do Something Gigantic<p><a contents="click here to hear the song (Let's Do) Something Romantic by The Little Wretches" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://music.apple.com/us/album/lets-do-something-romantic-feat-john-creighton-chris/1046676059?i=1046676620" target="_blank">Click here to hear the song (Let's Do) Something Romantic by The Little Wretches</a></p>
<p>Upon learning of the passing of David Allen Flynn, artist and long-time friend of The Little Wretches, drummer Angelo George said without pause, "He and Chuckie are having a reunion in Heaven."</p>
<p>George shared the following anecdote:</p>
<p>At an early rehearsal, we were in the basement on Middleboro Road, maybe even before the band had a name. This was WAY back at the beginning. David, Chuckie and Ed Heidel (original bassist for The Little Wretches) were doing shots of Jim Beam between songs. You called the tune, "(Let's Do) Something Romantic," and David Flynn made a wisecrack like, "Let's do Something Gigantic."</p>
<p>Let's do something gigantic? (Who knows what they were thinking?) </p>
<p>But Ed Heidel cracked up and laughed so hard his glasses went crooked on his face, and Chuckie laughed so hard that he kind of hiccuped, and the Jim Beam came out his nose. And the three of them were laughing so hard, we just had to wait. And they couldn't stop laughing.</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/63217182020-05-18T21:38:06-04:002020-05-18T21:38:06-04:00Bookends, kind of.<p><a contents="click here to see/hear WHY WERE THEIR POETS SILENT" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://music.apple.com/us/album/why-were-their-poets-silent/1513097965" target="_blank">click here to see/hear WHY WERE THEIR POETS SILENT</a></p>
<p><a contents="click here to see/hear BURNING LANTERN DROPPED IN STRAW by The Little Wretches" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://music.apple.com/us/album/burning-lantern-dropped-in-straw/1513094054" target="_blank">click here to see/hear BURNING LANTERN DROPPED IN STRAW by The Little Wretches</a></p>
<p>Today, two albums by The Little Wretches, WHY WERE THEIR POETS SILENT and BURNING LANTERN DROPPED IN STRAW, became available at iTunes/Apple Music. The former marks the debut of David Losi on piano, though he had not yet joined the band, and the latter consists of the songs Losi and Wagner were working on when circumstances led Dave to leave the band. The former never made it to vinyl or CD and was available on cassette-tape only directly from the band at gigs. The latter never even made it that far. </p>
<p>The devil chews on the back of my skull with what-ifs, should-haves and maybes, regrets, doubts, and resentments. But we managed to make this music, and it seems to have aged well. And now, it is available to whoever manages to stumble across it.</p>
<p>If you like this music enough to care about it, please share it, post it, comment on it. Know a cool radio show? Recommend it to the deejay. Know a cool little club? Tell them about The Little Wretches. <img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/425724/7d05c213356b4ca86e649ad6c9062da422010e60/original/burning-lantern-dropped-in-straw.jpeg/!!/b:W10=.jpg" class="size_l justify_center border_" /></p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/63084842020-05-07T21:45:20-04:002021-07-05T22:55:17-04:00UNDESIRABLES & ANARCHISTS<p>UNDESIRABLES & ANARCHISTS is the name of a collection of songs performed by Mike Madden, HK Hilner, John Carson, Rosa and Robert Andrew Wagner and recorded and mixed in 2001 at Dave Granati's studio in Ambridge. </p>
<p>Its working title all those years ago was "Born to Crash." The new title is from a line in the song, ALL OF MY FRIENDS: <br>"All of my friends are on somebody's list <br>Of undesirables and anarchists. <br>It's not even safe to admit that you're one of my friends." </p>
<p>The project came back from mastering yesterday and goes out to distribution tomorrow. You could be hearing it by mid-June. </p>
<p>Killer set. All one-takers. Overdubbed vocals. Overdubbed lead and acoustic guitars. </p>
<p>Dave Granati said, "Set up like you're doing a live-show, except move the drum kit forward. If you can play without headphones and go with your natural room-mix, I'll have you dialed-in and ready to track by the time you're done setting up." </p>
<p>One down. Let's do another. Nailed that one. Let's do another. Nailed that one, and so on. </p>
<p>When we finished, David Granati paid us a very high compliment, "I'm working with eight or nine bands that I wish could have seen you at work." He said we probably listened to a lot of the same records growing up. </p>
<p>The project was not released on CD because I could not justify spending money on a product by a band that could not tour, could not build a local following and, in spite of creating some very catchy and rocking tunes, was guaranteed to be shut out of the rotation at WDVE, WYEP and WRCT. </p>
<p>Wait till you hear this. I have since revised the lyrics to a couple of the songs, but this album is no joke.</p>
<p><a contents="Here is a link to the unmastered version of Rosa singing RUNNING (was the only thing to do)." data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T81BMRWfqnA" target="_blank">These words are a link to the unmastered version of Rosa singing RUNNING (was the only thing to do). Click and hear!</a></p>
<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/425724/4b6be5a62038280c720242b68279efb0bfd0d66d/original/rostambresize.jpg/!!/b:W10=.jpg" class="size_l justify_center border_" /></p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/63005522020-04-30T19:56:38-04:002021-07-05T19:46:44-04:00Look, Ma! Ellen's in the Papers!!<p>Ellen Hildebrand was recently described as "the soul of The Little Wretches."</p>
<p>Here is a link to a profile of her solo-effort, SHIPWRECKED, published in the PITTSBURGH POST-GAZETTE and authored by longtime enthusiast for the band, Tony Norman:</p>
<p><a contents="" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://www.post-gazette.com/business/career-workplace/2020/04/26/Ellen-Hildebrand-Little-Wretches-singer-songwriter/stories/202004260020">https://www.post-gazette.com/business/career-workplace/2020/04/26/Ellen-Hildebrand-Little-Wretches-singer-songwriter/stories/202004260020</a></p>
<p> </p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/62659592020-03-29T22:13:04-04:002022-04-26T07:32:13-04:00Philadelphia Area Songwriters Alliance Event, Sunday, April 5<p>I have been invited to play at a Philadelphia Area Songwriters Alliance event. It was going to be held at a place in Swarthmore called The War3Hous3, but the quarantine-efforts have iced the prospect of a live-show. It is now going to be streamed, accessible apparently via Facebook and maybe the venue website. I'm really not sure.</p>
<p>As usual, it feels like every performer at the PASA events has a sweeter voice and can play with more dexterity than me. I've got these songs, though, so I can hold my own. At my first PASA house concert, I played DUQUESNE. At the second, I played NEVER BE THE CHILD OF A REALIST. At a third, I selected BIRTHDAY PARTY.</p>
<p>I'm invited to play three songs on April 5.</p>
<p>Part of me wants to go for the jugular with CALL A SPADE A SPADE, THANKS FOR SAVING MY LIFE and something gentler like BE SOMEBODY, WINTER'S GRACE or REALIST. But I haven't played MAGARAC or SEVENTY YEARS for these people. Then again, I have all this new stuff, too. </p>
<p>Given that I may be playing for a number of listeners for the very first time, I want to do something worth remembering, something that will grab people's attention but not result in my being pigeon-holed for all eternity.</p>
<p>Decisions. Decisions. What do you think? I really do value the opinion of the people who care enough to express one. What three songs should I play?</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/62658802020-03-29T20:09:03-04:002020-03-29T20:09:03-04:00Northwest Tour Cancelled, blah blah blah<p>Robert Andrew Wagner had a handful of little gigs lined up in the Portland and Seattle areas in April. Those gigs are cancelled for obvious reasons.</p>
<p>Ellen Hildebrand and Robert Andrew Wagner were going to collaborate on a show to benefit First Baptist Church in historic Duquesne, Pennsylvania, but that event had to be re-scheduled for a date as yet to be determined.</p>
<p>Out in the Philly/Phoenixville-area, some house-concerts had to be canned.</p>
<p>Everybody out here in Philly is into these live-stream shows, Facebook Live, YouTube Live, whatever.... I wanna smell the soap the performer showered with when he or she walks past me on the way to the stage. I want to worry about little gobs of spit straying from the singer's tongue as I listen from the first row. I want to feel like I need to duck when the singer passionately reaches for a high note.</p>
<p>Go play with your phones. I want LIVE music in the company of friends.</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/61358182020-01-20T11:50:48-05:002020-01-20T13:29:49-05:00The Threepenny Opry House Concert Series<p>Sunday, January 26, 4 - 6 PM</p>
<p>House Concert in the Mont Clare / Phoenixville-area.</p>
<p>Robert Andrew Wagner, Jessica Graae and Bevan McShea. Looks like we may also be joined by Labella & Poole!</p>
<p>contact-- threepennyopry@yahoo.com for address.</p>The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/61345262020-01-20T07:56:39-05:002020-01-16T11:11:30-05:00Devilish Merry and The Little Wretches at Moondog's
<p style='margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: "American Typewriter"; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;'><span style="font-kerning:none"><strong>THE LITTLE WRETCHES and DEVILISH MERRY at MOONDOG’S.</strong></span></p>
<p style='margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 10px; line-height: normal; font-family: "American Typewriter"; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;'><span style="font-kerning:none">378 Freeport Rd, Blawnox PA 15238</span></p>
<p style='margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 10px; line-height: normal; font-family: "American Typewriter"; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;'><span style="font-kerning:none">412-828-2040</span></p>
<p style='margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: "American Typewriter"; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;'><span style="font-kerning:none"><strong>Date: Saturday, February 1, 2020</strong></span></p>
<p style='margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: "American Typewriter"; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;'><span style="font-kerning:none"><strong>Doors Open: 7 PM</strong></span></p>
<p style='margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: "American Typewriter"; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;'><span style="font-kerning:none"><strong>Showtime: 8 - 11:30 PM.</strong></span></p>
<p style='margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: "American Typewriter"; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;'><span style="font-kerning:none"><strong>Tickets: $10</strong></span></p>
<p style='margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: "American Typewriter"; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;'><span style="text-decoration:underline; font-kerning:none"><a href="https://www.moondogs.us" data-imported="1">https://www.moondogs.us</a></span></p>
<p style='margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: "American Typewriter"; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;'><span style="font-kerning:none">https://www.facebook.com/moondogspub/</span></p>
<p style='margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: "American Typewriter"; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;'><span style="text-decoration:underline; font-kerning:none"><a href="/files/762254/home.html" data-imported="1">http://littlewretches.com/home.html</a></span></p>
<p style='margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: "American Typewriter"; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;'><span style="text-decoration:underline; font-kerning:none"><a href="https://www.facebook.com/thelittlewretches/" data-imported="1">https://www.facebook.com/thelittlewretches/</a></span></p>
<p style='margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: "American Typewriter"; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;'><span style="text-decoration:underline; font-kerning:none"><a href="https://www.devilishmerry.com" data-imported="1">https://www.devilishmerry.com</a></span></p>
<p style='margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: "American Typewriter"; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;'><span style="text-decoration:underline; font-kerning:none"><a href="https://www.facebook.com/Devilish-Merry-299197817798/" data-imported="1">https://www.facebook.com/Devilish-Merry-299197817798/</a></span></p>
<p style='margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: "American Typewriter"; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000; min-height: 17px;'><span style="font-kerning:none"><strong> </strong></span></p>
<p style='margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: "American Typewriter"; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;'><span style="font-kerning:none"><strong>The Story:</strong></span></p>
<p style='margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: "American Typewriter"; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000; min-height: 17px;'><span style="font-kerning:none"> </span></p>
<p style='margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: "American Typewriter"; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;'><span style="font-kerning:none">On the eve of the Super Bowl in 1979, the Steelers versus the Cowboys, I (Robert Andrew Wagner) made the life-changing decision to start a band with my friend and apartment mate, John Creighton. I was undergoing an experimental regimen of chemotherapy for a rare form of cancer, and given that all I’d ever really wanted to do was be in a band, it was the proverbial case of now-or-never.</span></p>
<p style='margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: "American Typewriter"; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000; min-height: 17px;'><span style="font-kerning:none"> </span></p>
<p style='margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: "American Typewriter"; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;'><span style="font-kerning:none">The band we formed was NO SHELTER, and the indie-single we created, BROOKS ROBINSON’S CAMP b/w SOLDIER BOY, has aged well. In the wake of No Shelter, John helped me launch THE LITTLE WRETCHES, and John went on to form STICK AGAINST STONE. </span></p>
<p style='margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: "American Typewriter"; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000; min-height: 17px;'><span style="font-kerning:none"> </span></p>
<p style='margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: "American Typewriter"; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;'><span style="font-kerning:none">When I have the means and opportunity, I try to schedule gigs on the eve of the Super Bowl to commemorate the anniversary and maybe refresh a few songs that John and I played together. </span></p>
<p style='margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: "American Typewriter"; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000; min-height: 17px;'><span style="font-kerning:none"> </span></p>
<p style='margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: "American Typewriter"; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;'><span style="font-kerning:none">This year’s gig is at Moondog’s, a reunion of sorts of THE LITTLE WRETCHES, joined by co-headliners DEVILISH MERRY and maybe some special guests like Steve Sciulli.</span></p>
<p style='margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: "American Typewriter"; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000; min-height: 17px;'><span style="font-kerning:none"> </span></p>
<p style='margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: "American Typewriter"; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;'><span style="font-kerning:none">The connection between THE LITTLE WRETCHES and DEVILISH MERRY goes way back. Before I was old enough to get into bars, I'd walk past Frankie Gustine's in Oakland and see the name, DEVILISH MERRY. Their name seemed to be everywhere, and I was jealous. </span></p>
<p style='margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: "American Typewriter"; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000; min-height: 17px;'><span style="font-kerning:none"> </span></p>
<p style='margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: "American Typewriter"; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;'><span style="font-kerning:none">What's this? Why do people think THIS is cool? One day, my band’s name is going to be all over the place....if I ever have a band.</span></p>
<p style='margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: "American Typewriter"; color: #1c1e21; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #1c1e21; min-height: 17px;'><span style="font-kerning:none"> </span></p>
<p style='margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: "American Typewriter"; color: #1c1e21; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #1c1e21;'><span style="font-kerning:none">Of course, I thought like a kid. I assumed Devilish Merry had been around forever. It never occurred to me that they were just a few steps ahead of us, still new, still finding their way. </span></p>
<p style='margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: "American Typewriter"; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000; min-height: 17px;'><span style="font-kerning:none"> </span></p>
<p style='margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: "American Typewriter"; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;'><span style="font-kerning:none">John and I were deeply involved in radical politics and saw our songs as part of “the revolution.” One of the culture centers for lefty musicians at that time was WOBBLIE JOE’S on the South Side. DEVILISH MERRY played there all the time. ANNE FEENEY hosted the open-stage. </span></p>
<p style='margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: "American Typewriter"; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000; min-height: 17px;'><span style="font-kerning:none"> </span></p>
<p style='margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: "American Typewriter"; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;'><span style="font-kerning:none">A friend, neighbor and bartender at WOBBLIE JOE’S tried to persuade the owners that punk rock was the new music of the working class, and NO SHELTER was invited to audition for a gig at WOBBLIE JOE’s by playing a set at Anne Feeney’s open-stage. </span></p>
<p style='margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: "American Typewriter"; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000; min-height: 17px;'><span style="font-kerning:none"> </span></p>
<p style='margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: "American Typewriter"; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;'><span style="font-kerning:none">Afterwards, Anne said she liked us, but the owners apparently did not. The sarcastic message that was relayed to us was, “How much would they pay us to let them play here?” Bluegrass was the true music of the working class, we were told.</span></p>
<p style='margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: "American Typewriter"; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000; min-height: 17px;'><span style="font-kerning:none"> </span></p>
<p style='margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: "American Typewriter"; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;'><span style="font-kerning:none">When John Creighton passed away, a memorial show was held in the space that had been Wobblie Joe’s, it’s ownership having changed, it’s new name being WILD SISTERS COFFEEHOUSE. </span></p>
<p style='margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: "American Typewriter"; color: #1c1e21; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #1c1e21; min-height: 17px;'><span style="font-kerning:none"> </span></p>
<p style='margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: "American Typewriter"; color: #1c1e21; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #1c1e21;'><span style="font-kerning:none">Though DEVILISH MERRY and THE LITTLE WRETCHES worked in different genres, we eventually crossed paths in the late '90s by way of CALLIOPE, THE PITTSBURGH FOLK MUSIC SOCIETY. </span></p>
<p style='margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: "American Typewriter"; color: #1c1e21; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #1c1e21; min-height: 17px;'><span style="font-kerning:none"> </span></p>
<p style='margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: "American Typewriter"; color: #1c1e21; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #1c1e21;'><span style="font-kerning:none">DEVILISH MERRY is still going strong, and the labor-history songs Sue Powers has been working are an inspiration. I want to write songs that tell stories that need to be told, too. I, too, want to be surrounded by sympathetic warriors for peace and beauty.</span></p>
<p style='margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: "American Typewriter"; color: #1c1e21; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #1c1e21;'><span style="font-kerning:none">So anyhow, on February 1 at Moondog’s, I hope we’ll have a good show.</span></p>
<p style='margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: "American Typewriter"; color: #1c1e21; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #1c1e21; min-height: 17px;'><span style="font-kerning:none"> </span></p>
<p style='margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: "American Typewriter"; color: #1c1e21; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #1c1e21;'><span style="font-kerning:none">I’ll open at 8 PM with a short set of tunes John Creighton and I played with NO SHELTER, then we’ll hand the stage over to DEVILISH MERRY and THE LITTLE WRETCHES. </span></p>
<p style='margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: "American Typewriter"; color: #1c1e21; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #1c1e21; min-height: 17px;'><span style="font-kerning:none"> </span></p>
<p style='margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: "American Typewriter"; color: #1c1e21; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #1c1e21;'><span style="font-kerning:none">If you can make it to the show, we hope to see you there. And we’d appreciate your sharing news of the event with anyone you know who loves music, Pittsburgh labor history, and the folk tradition. </span></p>
<p style='margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: "American Typewriter"; color: #1c1e21; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #1c1e21; min-height: 17px;'><span style="font-kerning:none"> </span></p>
<p style='margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: "American Typewriter"; color: #1c1e21; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #1c1e21;'><span style="font-kerning:none">Sincerely,</span></p>
<p style='margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: "American Typewriter"; color: #1c1e21; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #1c1e21; min-height: 17px;'><span style="font-kerning:none"> </span></p>
<p style='margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: "American Typewriter"; color: #1c1e21; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #1c1e21;'><span style="font-kerning:none">Robert Andrew Wagner</span></p>
<p style='margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: "American Typewriter"; color: #1c1e21; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #1c1e21;'><span style="text-decoration:underline; font-kerning:none"><a href="mailto:robert_andrew_wagner@verizon.net" data-imported="1">robert_andrew_wagner@verizon.net<span style="-webkit-font-kerning:none; color:#1c1e21"> </span></a></span></p>
<p style='margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: "American Typewriter"; color: #1c1e21; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #1c1e21;'><span style="font-kerning:none">412-916-6233</span></p>
<div><span style="font-kerning:none"><br></span></div>
The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/61345252018-04-01T20:00:00-04:002020-01-16T11:11:30-05:00Here's a Live Recording from CENTURY (Philadelphia)
<p>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xnCunUENqQY&t=6s</p>
<p>Back in February, I was accompanied by bassist Chuck Nolan and performed 6 songs at CENTURY in Philadelphia. If you listen, you'll hear me say during the introduction, "I'm going to throw a lot of information at you, basically about other human beings." I realize that the content of my songs can come across as pretty heavy to people who haven't previously heard me, so I try to put things in context before playing a song, hopefully without violating the SHOW, DON'T TELL rule. </p>
<p>I wonder if I do too much talking between the songs.</p>
<p>Anyhow, Gregg Bielski or one of his friends recorded my set, so I posted it on youtube, warts and all.</p>
The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/61345242018-03-28T20:00:00-04:002022-04-06T11:09:30-04:00Palms & Crosses
<p>(OK, so I fell behind on my posting and have not adhered to the schedule of posting a new video every week. I'm going to make it up with three new ones in rapid succession!)</p>
<p>I've been doodling around with this PALMS & CROSSES song for awhile now, a few years.</p>
<p>I saw a movie about the Baader-Meinhof Gang, a terrorist organization, kind of like the Weather Underground. As a former Maoist who was fortunate not to have done anything stupid, I felt sorry for the well-meaning activists who embraced a bad idea, put it into action, hurt innocent people, and faced the consequences by taking their own lives in their prison cells. Glad it wasn't me. </p>
<p>I don't know why I made the connection, but I thought about all the followers of Jesus who probably went into hiding after the crucifixion, how they probably assumed they'd been mistaken and spent a few days wrapping their heads around the magnitude of their foolishness. I wonder how many of them doubted the resurrection when they got the news.</p>
<p>Anyhow, I've posted a version of the song on youtube and have added it to the website.</p>
<p>Let me know if you like it.</p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none">PALMS & CROSSES (Holy Saturday)</span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000; min-height: 16px;"><span style="font-kerning:none"> </span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none">This week palms, </span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none">Joy and praise</span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none">Hearts are lifted </span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none">Voices raised</span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none">Next week nails and </span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none">Crowns of thorns</span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none">The mother of God </span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none">Herself will mourn</span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none">A handful of stragglers </span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none">Waits at the scene</span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none">Asking themselves what it is that they’ve seen</span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none">Best go home</span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none">Assess our losses</span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none">One week palms,</span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none">Next week crosses</span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none">One week palms </span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none">Next week crosses</span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none">Mostly life goes on unseen</span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none">All I can say is </span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none">Tomorrow will decide </span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none">What yesterday means</span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none">All I can say is tomorrow will decide what yesterday means</span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none">Single mom with three small kids</span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none">Picnic lunch under the bridge</span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none">Cast a line, catch a few fish</span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none">Eat spaghetti off a styrofoam dish</span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none">Throw your ball, ride your bike</span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none">There you go, Just play nice</span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none">Look, mom, look! You got a bite</span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none">He stole your bait. Story of my life.</span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none">One week palms next week crosses</span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none">Mostly life goes on unseen</span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none">All I can say is tomorrow will decide what yesterday means</span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none">All I can say is tomorrow will decide what yesterday means</span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none">A mother with her children </span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none">on the Fourth of July</span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none">Waving sparklers on a </span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none">Cordoned off street</span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none">I told you </span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none">Keep your shoes on, </span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none">Don’t blame me</span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none">When you wind up with </span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none">Glass in your feet</span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none">Birthday parties, </span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none">Wedding gifts</span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none">Gotta run to the store</span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none">Can you give me a lift</span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none">ooh This looks cool</span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none">What’s it do?</span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none">It catches dreams, </span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none">Ah that isn’t true</span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none">How do you know? </span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none">You gotta believe</span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none">Alright, ask, </span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none">Ye shall receive</span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none">Give me back </span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none">the friends I lost</span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none">Yeah that’s right,</span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none"> just like I thought</span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000; min-height: 16px;"><span style="font-kerning:none"> </span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none">One week palms </span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none">Next week crosses</span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none">Mostly life goes on </span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none">Unseen</span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none">All I can say is tomorrow will decide what yesterday means</span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none">All I can say is tomorrow will decide what yesterday means</span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none">All I can say is tomorrow will decide what yesterday means</span></p>
<div><span style="font-kerning:none"><br></span></div>
The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/61345232018-01-27T19:00:00-05:002021-11-12T07:00:18-05:00My Father's Monologue on Thanksgiving
<p>Early in my college days, I used a manual typewriter. I'd compose a cover-letter and type two copies of my most recent poem, fold them, stick them in an envelope, lick a stamp, and mail my creation to the editor or publisher of some small magazine in the hope that I'd be published.</p>
<p>I was published with sufficient frequency that I kept at it, though all I ever really wanted to do was play in a band. I wrote poetry because it was a solitary activity, and I was good at being alone.</p>
<p>"My Father's Monologue on Thanksgiving" caught the attention of a visual artist who created a limited-edition of a poster-sized image including this poem. I think the artist's name was Harry Polkinhorn.</p>
<p>Anyhow, I used to have an auditory memory as good as a tape-machine. I'd eavesdrop on conversations and transcribe them verbatim in my little notebooks, then take the "found" words and whittle them into something resembling poetry.</p>
<p>"My Father's Monologue on Thanksgiving" was, in fact, the product of my father's babbling. He'd sit at the kitchen table and talk to himself. The words of the poem are his. The refrain of the song is mine. And the narrative that precedes the song/poem is a composite of actual events.</p>
<p>More than one person who knew my dad told me he was the toughest person they ever knew.</p>
<p>I hope this piece honors him. </p>
<p>I promised myself that I would post one video per week from Red Beets & Horseradish. Let me know what you think.</p>
<p>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kZLehEHR_YE&feature=youtu.be</p>
The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/61345222018-01-21T19:00:00-05:002022-05-11T11:50:45-04:00RED BEETS & HORSERADISH a song-cycle
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 11px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none"><strong>About the Title</strong></span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 11px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none">In many cultures of Eastern Europe, a concoction of red beets and horseradish is served as a relish or side-dish, usually on the holidays of Easter or Passover. The red of the beets is symbolic of the blood of our people, and the horseradish the bitterness of their suffering. The symbolism morphs in the Christian tradition to the blood of our savior and the bitterness of His suffering. People in the Jewish tradition also enjoy the dish, but there is no blood involved—the beets are merely for flavor—but the dish preserves the memory of bitter suffering. </span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 11px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000; min-height: 12px;"><span style="font-kerning:none"> </span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 11px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none">The songs and stories of “Red Beets and Horseradish” are set in the cities and towns of America where people of Eastern Europe settled, only to outlive the industries and opportunities that originally attracted them. There is a little bit of blood, a considerable portion of suffering, but as long as we can tell our story, we can claim victory. The fact that you couldn’t kill us if proof that WE won.</span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 11px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000; min-height: 12px;"><span style="font-kerning:none"><strong> </strong></span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 11px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000; min-height: 12px;"><span style="font-kerning:none"> </span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 11px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none"><strong>Staging, Characters and Chronology</strong>: </span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 11px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none">Each piece in the cycle consists of the pairing of an oral story and a song. The stories can be presented as monologue or broken into dialogue at the discretion of the players. The songs may be presented by the characters, or there may be a separate singing group.</span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 11px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000; min-height: 12px;"><span style="font-kerning:none"> </span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 11px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none">The cycle need not be presented in its entirety, as each of the song-and-story pairings can stand alone. Likewise, the chronology and grouping of the pieces is arbitrary.</span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 11px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000; min-height: 12px;"><span style="font-kerning:none"> </span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 11px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none">Ideally, the performance opens with WINTER’S GRACE, closes with IT’S ALL BETWEEN ME AND GOD and is augmented by a visual presentation of slides depicting the various stages of ethnic working class life. The pieces that fall between should be seen as a repertoire and selected based on feel—dark or light, quick or slow, humorous or somber. The whole point is to be as conversational and intimate as possible, sensitive to the feel of the moment and the receptivity of the audience. Tell the stories that feel like they need to be told. Play it how you feel it.</span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 11px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000; min-height: 12px;"><span style="font-kerning:none"><strong> </strong></span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 11px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000; min-height: 12px;"><span style="font-kerning:none"><strong> </strong></span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 11px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none"><strong>Characters:</strong></span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 11px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none">The content of the stories implies that the words are spoken by the working class descendants of immigrants from Eastern Europe, and they are speaking from experience, most likely long-term and ongoing experience.</span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 11px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000; min-height: 12px;"><span style="font-kerning:none"> </span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 11px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none">In some of the pieces, the gender of the speaker is suggested by the pronouns and references to child-bearing. Otherwise, the gender of the characters is somewhat irrelevant and left to the discretion of the players. </span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 11px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000; min-height: 12px;"><span style="font-kerning:none"> </span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 11px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none">Likewise, once a person becomes a parent, time stands still till the children move out, and the working life freezes the passage of time till death or retirement. Thus, the ages of the characters are arbitrary.</span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 11px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000; min-height: 12px;"><span style="font-kerning:none"> </span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 11px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000; min-height: 12px;"><span style="font-kerning:none"><strong> </strong></span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 11px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000; min-height: 12px;"><span style="font-kerning:none"><strong> </strong></span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 11px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none"><strong>Setting:</strong></span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 11px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none">These stories are heard anywhere working class people find themselves shooting their mouths off about what they’ve seen and known. If necessary, the pieces can be presented in a black box. Variable and random settings may include:</span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 11px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000; min-height: 12px;"><span style="font-kerning:none"> </span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 11px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000; min-height: 12px;"><span style="font-kerning:none"> </span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 11px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none">Backyard picnic bench. Coffee can for ashtray. Small, portable cooler containing two-liter bottles of Mountain Dew and Diet Coke, a six pack of Iron City Beer, and a fifth of cheap whiskey in a paper bag.</span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 11px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000; min-height: 12px;"><span style="font-kerning:none"> </span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 11px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000; min-height: 12px;"><span style="font-kerning:none"> </span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 11px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none">Side porch of a funeral parlor. Wrought-iron railing. Potted-plant used as an ashtray. Empty cone-shaped paper cups hanging on the plant and railing like ornaments. </span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 11px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000; min-height: 12px;"><span style="font-kerning:none"> </span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 11px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000; min-height: 12px;"><span style="font-kerning:none"> </span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 11px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none">Front stoop or stairs and sidewalk in front of house. Noise of children playing and passing cars. Coke can as an ashtray. Plastic one-gallon jug of water.</span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 11px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000; min-height: 12px;"><span style="font-kerning:none"> </span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 11px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000; min-height: 12px;"><span style="font-kerning:none"> </span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 11px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none">Sitting on the hood of car with a flat tire in a convenience store parking lot, awaiting the arrival of AAA. Car jack. Crowbar. Four-way lug wrench. Deflated spare-tire.</span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 11px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000; min-height: 12px;"><span style="font-kerning:none"> </span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 11px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000; min-height: 12px;"><span style="font-kerning:none"> </span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 11px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none">Cluttered kitchen table, deck of cards, playing Solitaire. There could be an open-fold record album with stems and seeds and rolling papers. There could be a mirror with a razor blade and straw. Coffee mugs. Beer mugs. Old mail. Newspapers.</span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 11px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000; min-height: 12px;"><span style="font-kerning:none"> </span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 11px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000; min-height: 12px;"><span style="font-kerning:none"> </span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 11px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none">A seat on an otherwise abandoned trolley car, swaying side to side, jerking to stops and starts, occasional screeching of brakes.</span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 11px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000; min-height: 12px;"><span style="font-kerning:none"> </span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 11px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000; min-height: 12px;"><span style="font-kerning:none"> </span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 11px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none">Plexiglass bus shelter with wooden bench. Artless graffiti. A newspaper weighted by an abandoned styrofoam cup of coffee. </span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 11px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000; min-height: 12px;"><span style="font-kerning:none"> </span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 11px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000; min-height: 12px;"><span style="font-kerning:none"> </span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 11px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none">Tailgate of a pickup truck in the parking lot of a stadium before or after a sporting event. Portable canopy. Folding chairs. Multiple coolers. Grill. Bean bag toss. Portable table with buns, condiments, paper plates and napkins. </span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 11px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000; min-height: 12px;"><span style="font-kerning:none"> </span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 11px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000; min-height: 12px;"><span style="font-kerning:none"> </span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 11px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none">The adult table after a holiday family gathering. Carcass of a turkey. Carcass of a ham.</span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 11px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none">Serving bowls and spoons. Used dishes, tableware and napkins. Bottle of Mogen David wine. Fifth of Old Crow Whiskey. Bottle of Canada Dry ginger ale. </span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 11px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000; min-height: 12px;"><span style="font-kerning:none"> </span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 11px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000; min-height: 12px;"><span style="font-kerning:none"> </span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 11px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none">Abandoned basketball court with weeds growing up through the cracks. Bent rim without a net on a rusted backboard. Deflated ball. Empty and broken 40-ounce bottles and plastic cups. Vine-covered chain link fence. </span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 11px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000; min-height: 12px;"><span style="font-kerning:none"> </span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 11px; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000; min-height: 12px;"><span style="font-kerning:none"> </span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; text-align: center; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none"><strong>OVERTURE—Musical Theme: It’s All Between Me and God</strong></span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-kerning:none"> </span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none">The stage is dark and silent. </span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-kerning:none"> </span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none">The audience sees a triptych of slide show images above or behind the stage, a mix of black and white and color, a mix of natural photos and those that have been highly retouched and processed for color saturation and contrast. In column one, we see images of the Catholic rites of infant baptism and first holy communion, baby pictures, school portraits, first-birthday pictures and so on. In column two, we see wedding photos, dating photos, young men in military uniforms and young parents with small children interspersed with images of American towns in their industrial heyday. In column three, we see images of old age, funerals, grave-markers, prayer cards, figurines of saints, multigenerational family portraits, and so on, interspersed with images of abandoned and rusted factories, mills, and industrial sites, and images of poverty in the form of littered yards, boarded windows, graffiti, etc. The images change randomly, no two slides changing at the same time.</span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-kerning:none"> </span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none">The audience hears the musical theme from “It’s All Between Me and God.” </span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-kerning:none"> </span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; -webkit-text-stroke-color: #000000;"><span style="font-kerning:none">Stage lights fade in. Character or characters enter, look out and examine the audience, look up and examine the projected images. The images freeze when the narrator begins to speak.</span></p>
<div><span style="font-kerning:none"><br></span></div>
The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/61345212018-01-12T19:00:00-05:002022-04-02T03:51:41-04:00Some Days the Best I Can Do Is Clear a Path for Light
<p>I promised to try to post one new piece from Red Beets & Horseradish every week.</p>
<p>This week, I put together something for Winter's Grace, the opening piece in the song-cycle. I first encountered the poem that forms the foundation of the lyric when I wandered into Hemingway's on the University of Pittsburgh campus, and there was a poetry reading in the back room. Annette Dietz read, and when I praised the poem, she immediately gave me her copy. </p>
<p>I really wanted to set it to music, but the idea didn't come together till I learned of the passing of Brian Longo. Funny thing, as I was returning to work on the website, I saw that there previously had been a comments page, and there was an exceedingly kind comment posted by Brian Longo back in 2010. I hope this piece does not come across as exploitative. Before Brian passed, he sent me a CD of some of his noise-music recordings, and he'd given me a call, maybe to say thank you and goodbye. I hope this piece honors Brian.</p>
<p>PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE share this and forward it to people who might appreciate it.</p>
<p> </p>
The Little Wretchestag:littlewretches.com,2005:Post/61345202018-01-06T19:00:00-05:002020-01-16T11:11:27-05:00Trying to Get This Show on Stage
<p>On the VIDEOS portion of this website, I recently put links to recently posted youtube videos related to the song-cycle, Red Beets & Horseradish. My goal is to get at least one video up per week, then go back to tweak and revise them. I have no skill as a visual artist or graphic designer, but if I can sketch this stuff out, maybe somebody with talent will come along and say, "I can do something with that, just send me the files."</p>
<p> Back in Western Pennsylvania, Dave and Ellen are still working on music, and I try to get together with them when I'm in the area...but it's tough. I usually visit during holidays when people are busy and preoccupied with obligations. It seems like Ellen has been pretty prolific. Dave has been playing with his son. The four of us played in a chicken coop last summer. There was a big sign, "Chicken Coop MotherCluckers." We mostly played covers.</p>
<p> It's fun to play covers, and you learn a lot about music, arranging, song-structure, and so on when you play covers. It's gotten to the point that I'd rather hear a good cover band than most original bands because most original bands have mediocre songs.</p>
<p> Also, I've been seeing a lot of Gregg Bielski. Gregg is the most amazingly prolific and positive artist I've ever met, and it is an inspiration to hang out with him. Easy Bake Oven. Ex->Tension. He's doing noise stuff, spoken word stuff, and he's been on stage more in the past year than the past 20 years combined.</p>
<p> Out in the Philly-area, I've been playing with Mike Michalski in a band called CEREBELLES. We play some Honeyburst songs and some Little Wretches' songs, but we're mostly relegated to playing dive bars to audiences that consist of the members of other bands. </p>
<p> My main focus right now is this RED BEETS & HORSERADISH stuff. Stay tuned, and I'll try to deliver.</p>
The Little Wretches