Many would consider The Senders one of the hardest-working live bands, hands down. Full of piss and vinegar, blood, sweat and tears and loud, blaring, unfiltered, salt-of-the-earth pureness. Coupled with greasy DAs, cheap drug store black combs in back pockets and streamer-filled, party-fueled rock ‘n’ roll. If you were not up and dancing at a Senders gig you were most likely deceased -- although it is rumoured that they could even make the dead dance and rattle their bones. Led by Phillipe Marcade on vocals and guitarist extraordinaire Wild Bill Thompson and a stellar band, The Senders were the heart of rock ‘n’ roll and NYC.
I had the opportunity to converse with Phil...This is what (rocked) and rolled. All Killer, No Filler!
Scene Point Blank: Why did you initially relocate to the USA and eventually to NYC? Is there any desire to ever move back? What do you miss about New York? How has New York changed?
Phil Marcade: I met this American kid named Bruce in Amsterdam, in ‘72. I was 17, then. I put him up for a few weeks in Paris, where I grew up. He then invited me to come along with him to the States and travel the country. I was supposed to stay for a couple of months during the summer vacation but, as it turned out, I stayed for 40 years. First, I lived in Boston, then I moved to New York in ‘75. By chance, I had stumbled onto this little club called Mother's, on 23rd St. and witnessed the whole dawn of the punk movement: The Heartbreakers, Blondie, Mink DeVille, and The Ramones. It was really exciting! Within a year, I was in a band myself.
Now, I live in France and Italy. Yes, I miss New York, but I already kind of missed New York when I still lived there for the last few years. It just had changed so much. All the great clubs were gone and the new ones paid the bands shit money, if any money at all. Meanwhile, the rents were becoming ridiculously expensive. Most of my good pals had left town or had left the planet altogether. It was just not the same anymore.
Scene Point Blank: What were your earliest influences, musically and otherwise?
Phil Macade: I first liked The Rolling Stones, Them, Yardbirds, Animals, and Kinks…like every other kid. Then, in ‘74, I totally got into the late ‘50s and early ‘60s American rhythm & blues and rock ‘n’ roll. From Gene Vincent to Little Richard. I became crazy for all these old insane 45s like Ike Turner's Kings Of Rhythm, Andre Williams, Willie Joe Duncan & his Unitar, Don & Dewey, Percy Mayfield, and Link Wray. It changed my life forever.
Scene Point Blank: How did this current compilation come to be "All Killer, No Filler"? Were you involved in the selection of songs?
Phil Marcade: Yes, I was totally involved! Left For Dead Records put so much LUV into this project. Their attention to detail is amazing. This will be a double vinyl LP and a double CD with a cardboard sleeve. A real deluxe edition and a truly nice collector's item, gatefold sleeve and all. I hand-picked the songs and truly think this is the definitive Senders compilation. It goes from ‘77 to 2001. 27 songs. It has a "never released before" 1978 whole live set at Max's Kansas City with Johnny Thunders as our guitar player. It's wild!! There is also the whole Seven Song Super Single produced by Peter Crowley in 1980. There's even a replica of the original Seven Song Super Single sleeve inserted inside. Many surprises and, of course, all the best of the best. La crème de la crème!!
Scene Point Blank: The Senders' recording output is quite slim considering how long they existed. Why is that?
Phil Marcade: We did put out five LPs and are on a few compilations but, mostly, we concentrated on playing live. We recorded stuff whenever a little independent underground record company gave us an offer, but we didn't really try to get signed by a "major" or anything like that. Perhaps, we should have, haha!
Scene Point Blank: How well did The Senders' live experience translate to the recorded element? Are there any recordings that were not live that you feel might have captured the band's live energy better than others?
Phil Marcade: Oh yes, some studio recordings definably captured the band's live energy better than others. I picked the ones that capture the best for All Killer, No Filler. That's why it's called that! It's nice to have all of these in one place, you know.
Scene Point Blank: The Senders are often thought of as a band that never followed trends. They played what came from their heart and soul and never compromised. Looking back at The Senders' history, are there any regrets or would you have it no other way?
Phil Marcade: Well, that's nice. Thank you. No, that's the coolest thing about it all: no regrets! We ended up with no money for retirement but, at least, we don't have to be too embarrassed about anything we did during the 25 years the band was active. Indeed, we never compromised, got trendy, did stupid videos for MTV, watered-down rock ‘n’ roll, or overproduced ‘80s crappy records. Haha! No drum-machines! We lived in a movie, taking place in the late ‘50s or something. We never gave a damn about the current trends. We were not even aware of the current year, really. Yes, we stuck to our guns, you could say. We were popular in New York around ‘79, ‘80, and ‘81. Then we were sort of out of fashion after ‘83 but times caught up with us and we came back with a vengeance in ‘89, and early ‘90s, being by far more popular than ever before. Go figure!
Scene Point Blank: How do you feel about the comparison of being called The American Version of Dr. Feelgood?
Phil Marcade: That's quite a compliment! We were big fans and they influenced us quite a bit, for sure. We were listening to Down By The Jetty when we started the band. They were so great. They were first and they ruled.
Scene Point Blank: Many musicians have passed through The Senders lineup. Are you still in contact with former members?
Phil Marcade: So sadly, many Senders are no longer with us: Wild Bill Thompson, Marc Bourset, Richie Lure, Basile Nodow and Steve LewIns. I miss them all so much. Of course, I cherish the "survivors" and I'm so glad they're still around: Steve Shevlin, Barry Ryan, Ned Brewster, Danny Ray, Danny Ly and Scott Kitchen. We talk often, by phone or email. I was just speaking with Steve yesterday. Barry Ryan came to visit Tuscany last summer. It was great to see him.
Scene Point Blank: What can you tell us about Wild Bill? How did you initially meet?
Phil Marcade: When our first guitar player quit, in ‘78, we did a series of gigs with Johnny Thunders as our guitar player, just for fun, with no intention of making this a permanent lineup. That's when we met Wild Bill Thompson. He came to "jam" with us at our rehearsal place and proceeded to blow our minds in two minutes. We were floored! We were also thrilled and honoured that someone as good as him wanted to play with us. When Bill joined the band, we really took off. He played like Freddy King a bit. He was so talented. He played guitar like a maniac and really had his own special touch too. He really had his own style, his own "phrasing". They didn't call him Wild for anything! Bill and I got along so well and working with him for all these years was pure joy. He also had a wicked sense of humour and had me in stitches thousands of times. Bill was an avid record collector and when we were not on stage together we'd be on the phone listening to his new old rhythm & blues records. That's how we ended up covering all these obscure rock ‘n’ roll songs. I miss him so much.
Scene Point Blank: Peter Crowley is credited as giving you the opportunity to play Max’s Kansas City. Can you tell us about Peter, your relationship and how that transpired?
Phil Marcade: Peter was the one who started it all. He was the guy booking the bands at Mother's, then at Max's. He had a great ear and eye for interesting bands and booked all these groups that no other clubs would have. These were all the bands that became legendary, like Wayne County, The Cramps, Suicide or The Heartbreakers. He had great taste and was years ahead of everybody else booking bands around town. He gave the Senders weekend gigs headlining at Max's within a few months of our existence. He put our name on Max's menu!! There was actually a drink called The Sender, the ultimate honour! Then, when Max's owner, Tommy Dean, decided to launch a Max's Kansas City record label, Peter offered us a record deal right away. That's when we did the Seven Song Super Single for Max's label. He produced it. I still talk to Peter all the time on Facebook. He's the sweetest guy in the world.
Scene Point Blank: What are your fondest memories of Max's Kansas City?
Phil Marcade: Oh God, there are so many. Don't get me started. They're all in my book, Punk Avenue (Inside the New York City Underground, 1972-1982). I could have called that book "My Fondest Memories Of Max's Kansas City"!
Scene Point Blank: How did The Senders come to open for The Clash at Bonds Casino in 1981?
Phil Marcade: Joe Strummer and Paul Simonon saw us play at Max's one night and really liked us (or told us they did, anyway)! When they added a second week at Bonds because they had sold out so much, we went to their hotel (The Gramercy) and left a note saying we would like to open up for them. We were on the next night!! It was really exciting for us to play in front of 8,000 people instead of the usual 80. Plus, they paid us really well. We went on after Grand Master Flash, who had been booed off the stage and bombarded with Coke cans. It was a bit nerve-racking, but the audience accepted us nicely and not a single can was thrown at us. (Well, actually, one was and missed my face by only a few inches, but that was all.) Paul and Joe came to hang out with us in our dressing room after the show. These two guys were incredibly nice and way cool.
Scene Point Blank: Any memories of playing with the Heartbreakers? Which Heartbreaker did you align most with?
Phil Marcade: Opening up for them for three nights at The Village Gate in 77 was fabulous. They had just come back from the Anarchy Tour in England. They were at their peak, then. I knew Johnny best. We had been good friends since ‘74. I had worked as a roadie for them in ‘75. Walter became a really good friend too. His little brother, Richie, played bass in The Senders for a few years in the late ‘80s and early ‘90s when our original bass player, Steve Shevlin, became deaf.
Scene Point Blank: Any memories of the three-night stint with Levi and the Rockats?
Phil Marcade: You mean at the Starwood in Los Angeles? That was so great! Levi was (and still is) such an amazing frontman and singer. The Senders looked sick and pale, had broken teeth and greasy D.A.s and were wearing wrinkled, skinny, black sharkskin suits, Puerto Rican tab-collar shirts and fucked-up pointy shoes. The blonde, tan California girls in the audience were shocked by our unhealthy New York looks and loved us all up for it, haha.
