Oral history with Gerry Casale (1995)

Recorded for use in the History of Rock and Roll anthology.

Part 1: Kent State, the High & the Low, lying to club owners, and modifying instruments.


Part 2: The punk label, Booji Boy Records, the Ann Arbor Film Festival, and Brian Eno.


Part 3: Lawyers, basement to the Autobahn, subversion in the light of day, and fist-fighting the Dead Boys.


Part 4: Translating records to live performance, qualitative rebellion, no room for smart-asses on MTV, and the decline of progress.


Part 5: The Clash and England's punk aesthetic, inevitable arc of culture and business, and changing the world.


Part Six is blocked by Warner Music Group because they expect positive financial reciprocation for its educational content.

Part 7: Reaction to whippet, incubation periods, New Wave & the Talking Heads, and Booji Boy.


Part 8: The trend toward self vs. self, vacancy in popular music, Grunge music, legacy of his band and other bands. Very useless question at the end.


Part 9: Filler questions about "desert island albums," rock and roll history, hearing loss, Jimi Hendrix, MTV, and the future of rock and roll.

"What would those guys with the lassos have to do, unless somebody was giving them a chase?"