Tori Amos - Interviews Archive

Videotech (UK, TV)
Carlton TV Network
November 25, 1999

Tori Amos interview and live performance

Tori plays Concertina

Host: Now you've just played Concertina from your new album To Venus and Back. That happened by accident, I believe, the album?

Tori: We were gonna do the live album and we were gonna have a second CD of b sides and a few extra tracks but, the truth is I was having this really good bottle of Corton Charlemagne with my friend Nat and another friend of ours and the title of the album came over this delicious elixir. Once the title was in place then all these songs started to, kinda march in and say 'We're from Venus' and that's how it happened.

Host: Now you've just spent a couple of months playing live with Alanis Morissette, touring the states, how did it go?

Tori: Really well. Very challenging because we had two separate productions. That was the only way I would agree to do it and - I mean I hang around with these bunch of lunatics that I love and adore and are very good at what they do but, you know my policy with the crew is 'I don't care how you make it the next day to the show, you know, what state you're in, what you've consumed, as long as she's over 18', because we can't be dealing with statutory rape in America which all you Brits going over need to know about, those fathers will slap you in jail. And the other thing is you know whatever they eat or drink, I provide it on the bus, but there has to be a level of excellence, so that's my crew. Her crew is a bit different. They're very professional and she and I got on really well but to have two pirate ships, where we had a wine cellar, of course, and they had some fantastic hair products, on their ship, which is good 'cause I could use the hair products, so that worked out quite well.

Host: So you spent a lot of time touring with Alanis and... any chance of doing a track together?

Tori: I don't know, you know it wasn't about that at the time I think. It was really about two performances - separate shows that could work together. And I think sometimes people were going to me 'do you think you'll go on stage' and I'm saying 'and what? Sing 'I've Got you Babe' together?' you know, that's not my thing really. And she has a great sense of humour and understood that to really make it work it was about two strong women, bringing their crews with them and being independent.

Host: Other people you'd like to work with, to collaborate with?

Tori: Sure - until you meet them.

Host: You haven't been disappointed? Was there someone you wanted to work with and you got chatting and you thought - Ah that's not going to happen?

Tori: Of course. I think sometimes you meet people and say wow, they really have a wonderful ability, the muse moves through them, but, lets face it, they're a dick.

Host: One of the tracks on the album is all about the Eighties, going back to the eighties. Do you look back on the time with fondness. Do you have any special memories and what were the highlights for you?

Tori: I lived in LA in the Eighties, for almost all of the Eighties I was there and, you know I would wake up, go down to Retail Slut and get a little cute piece and it was very much a time where decadence was a beautiful thing. Everybody wasn't maybe saying the right thing or eating the right thing but I think people, although they were kind of excessive, there was more honesty about their monsters, and now in LA what I find is everybody orders the right thing. You know it's supposedly environmentally friendly, but then, you know they go shit on each other. And I see it all the time. You know it's this cocktail spirituality - you go to Yoga class on the weekend and then they stab you in the back in the club that night and I just, I have a real hard time with that. Kinda like you can clock in and clock out. It just doesn't work like that. So, yeah I do miss the hedonism.

Tori plays Lust

[transcribed by Calum]

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