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JOAN JETT
from: The Aquarian
by Adrian Gregory Glover
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While many of us were a wee bit too young to experience the RUNAWAYS' glory run, very few can deny having growled at some point the catch phrases "I don't give a damn about my Bad Reputation" or "I Love Rock and Roll."
The force behind these axioms is JOAN JETT, a performer credited with being among the first to fuse estrogen with attitude. True, her days of No. 1 songs and "Jett mania" may have passed since she last hit the charts with "Little Liar" in the late '80s,but she's stayed true to her craft.
Among her successes are her own record company and a DIY work ethic that allows her to set the pace of her career, neither of which are small feats.
Now sporting a cropped blonde "do" versus her infamous jet-black shag, Joan's working woman's approach to the record and touring machines have more than kept her die-hard fan-base satisfied.
By virtue of common sense, the logical place to start come interview time was with triumphs that included seeing her aforementioned rock anthem own the top spot on the singles chart back when Casey Kasem was still the man.
I had a blast seeing that all come together. That proved a lot to some people who didn't believe in what I had to offer on my own. I'll always look back on that [time] with a smile.
During said conversation, she went on to drop her pros and cons of superstar touring versus good old-fashioned sweaty clubs.
"I think I prefer clubs [to arenas]. I've cherished everything that's happened to me, but in the clubs I can see the audience. It's something that takes on its own life when you feel the audience that you are playing for.
"You know, playing the big stages are cool, but it really does lack intimacy. If I have to play big shows, I like the outdoor ones because at least you can see the crowd getting into what's going on."
As one of the very few artists to lay claim to a career measured in decades instead of years or even months, she's seen and done it all.
She's earned that rare slot that says, even if you don't like me, you have to respect me because I'm still here. To drive the thought home, look up the location of the rest of her debut troupe, and at best you'll find a retired Lita Ford taking refuge in Panama City, FL, living with former metal siren turned real estate agent Tim Gillette.
On the subject of whether she considers herself to be a mentor to aspiring gal groups a la The Donnas, or bands regardless of gender, she holds definitive opinions.
"I'd like to think that I've affected both [men and women] across the board. I don't think that I've ever set out to be elitist or in favor of one or the other.
"There is a huge difference between what you would like to see happen and what really does happen. In my case I'd say it sets the difference between influence and intent.
"In terms of my influence that's hard to say because with the RUNAWAYS, we really were the first girl band to come around and do that sort of thing. We really did rock, and for that time we were definitely groundbreaking.
"As for intent, I'll leave waving the flag for women in the hands of people that do it much better than I do. I'd lie to you if I said I'm not proud when I hear those things, but what the hell? Maybe I'm selfish, I want to appeal to everyone. I don't like those types of boundaries. I've always been reluctant to accept that type of thing."
After pausing for a moment, our subject picks up the pace by describing when, where and how she decided to grab hold to all aspects of her professional life.
"It was right after the RUNAWAYS broke up that I started to take control of my career. Well, in a way I should take that back because (The RUNAWAYS) always knew what was going on. It certainly was not the case of us being manipulated like everyone thought that we were.
"It was more like we tried to stay as involved with our business as possible, especially me. I knew what was going on because I refused to live up to the idea that we were puppets on a string.
"So you know, when that was over, I started up BLACKHEART RECORDS, and I am really lucky to have found my best friend, producer and co-songwriter Kenny Lagvna who also had the job of managing me pushed on him.
"Back to your question, I don't see myself in a lot of new bands just because they have girls in them. Take The Donnas, the one time that I did see them, I thought they were great, but I can't say that I saw myself in any of it.
"When I was in the RUNAWAYS, we were strong. I don't want to say mean, but we were so much less cute than they are, and I think that's a big difference. So yeah, maybe I have opened some doors for a lot of people but I really can't say that it's more one way or the other (male or female)."
Speaking with a voice that's taken its shots in the rock wars, Jett has no qualms speaking on a variety of topics that appeal not only to her veteran status, but also to her take on the music world today as compared to yesteryear. When pondering whether or not her gritty brand of bar rock would have been accepted in today's world of electronics, hip-hop and pop overkill, she feels for new bands playing old-school amplified blues.
"Yeah, I can see where if all you want to do is play rock and roll how it would be seriously difficult to get ahead. Back when I started, you could just send a demo tape to a record label, and if they liked you, you could get a deal. I don't know if it's still that way anymore.
"I think the business has changed so much and it wasn't that long ago that I got started. I wonder about that sometimes, and it blows my mind. You know with our label, something like that is possible because we listen to all of the tapes that we get, but things now are just sort of crazy.
"Musically, I think that rock's going to come back around. It always does. It just might take more time and patience this time. Pop music has always had its spells where it seemed to be on top, and then it went away.
"But hey, there really is a lot of interesting stuff going on if you think about it. You have the rap/rock stuff going on, which at least is keeping guitars out there, and I can't say that punk music has ever sold less than it is right now. So how can people say that rock and roll is dead? It's changed a whole hell of a lot, but it hasn't gone anywhere."
During the course of our conversation, I try to avoid questions and phrases that would dump her in the Jurassic camp along with true old timers such as The Turtles. To the best of my understanding, this piece is set to pump up a few different things: A) her St. Patrick's Day, NYC appearance, which we are co-sponsoring; B) her rich history, which is often overlooked; and C) Double J's ability to keep afloat indie style by the strengths of her own merit. These seem to be the most relevant slices of her career, one which she takes seriously yet casually.
"To be honest with you, I don't know what I'll be doing six months from now, so I can't tell you how long we'll keep at this thing. For me, I can't see not doing it, but I can't see doing it forever either. You know it's real simple, we book the shows and we play the gigs, and we keep it going like that.
"That seems to be what works best for this situation, and I have to tell you that I still love what I do. I still have the fire to stay in front of the world, and as long as that's there, I will be kicking around."
When words began to roll just after our brief introduction, I started our exchange with the notion that Bad Reputation was not only her first solo LP to impact the charts, but it was also the third album in this then 10- or 11-year-old's LP collection. It's the type of sentiment that she hears almost daily.
"Hey that's when I realize why I stay out there. When you see and meet people who have a story to tell [directly] from their own lives, it keeps things fresh for you.
"The way things are now, I have to say that I've carved out my own little space where I can operate where I am very, very happy."
So that's it in a nutshell: She's still around and she's, um...happy. For those who've always said that a proper rock star is never happy, perhaps she's providing a perfect middle finger to them and their expectations. Or maybe, as she parts with one last salvo, she's just taking life in her shoes, as it comes no more no less.
"I'm grateful for the things that I have and still get to do. If I were to spit in the face of the opportunities that I've had, I'd be less than that. Besides, how many people can say that they get to do exactly what they want every day that they wake up?"
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