WEBVTT 00:00:00.800 --> 00:00:04.379 Welcome back to the Deep Dive. Today we are cranking 00:00:04.379 --> 00:00:07.580 the volume way past 11. We're looking at a stack 00:00:07.580 --> 00:00:09.580 of sources that don't just tell the story of 00:00:09.580 --> 00:00:12.419 a rock star. They basically outline the architectural 00:00:12.419 --> 00:00:15.640 blueprints for Heavy Metal as we know it. It's 00:00:15.640 --> 00:00:17.800 definitely a loud one today. I'm excited to get 00:00:17.800 --> 00:00:20.120 into these discography records and biographies 00:00:20.120 --> 00:00:22.480 with you. Yeah, me too. We are talking about 00:00:22.480 --> 00:00:26.320 Edward Alan Clark. But if you were around in 00:00:26.320 --> 00:00:29.679 the late 70s or early 80s, You probably knew 00:00:29.679 --> 00:00:32.340 him better as Fast Eddie Clark. Right, the guitarist 00:00:32.340 --> 00:00:34.859 for the classic lineup of Motorhead. Exactly. 00:00:35.320 --> 00:00:37.159 And looking at the materials you sent over the 00:00:37.159 --> 00:00:40.200 stakes of this particular deep dive feels surprisingly 00:00:40.200 --> 00:00:42.899 heavy. Because when Clark passed away in January 00:00:42.899 --> 00:00:45.659 2018, it wasn't just the loss of a musician. 00:00:46.039 --> 00:00:48.780 It marked the definitive end of an era. It really 00:00:48.780 --> 00:00:50.960 did. You have to remember that classic trio, 00:00:50.960 --> 00:00:53.700 Lemme Kill Mr. Filth. Filthy Animal Taylor and 00:00:53.700 --> 00:00:55.979 Fast Eddie Clark, they were a singular force. 00:00:56.420 --> 00:00:58.179 And with Eddie's passing, he was the last of 00:00:58.179 --> 00:01:00.820 that specific brotherhood to go. The final curtain. 00:01:01.439 --> 00:01:03.359 So today, our mission for you, the listener, 00:01:03.799 --> 00:01:06.700 is to unpack the career of the man who defined 00:01:06.700 --> 00:01:10.060 that dirty, gritty sound. We need to figure out 00:01:10.060 --> 00:01:12.780 where that nickname actually came from. Spoiler 00:01:12.780 --> 00:01:14.640 alert, it's not what you think. And we have to 00:01:14.640 --> 00:01:16.459 dissect one of the most controversial breakups 00:01:16.459 --> 00:01:18.680 in rock history. And we absolutely have to talk 00:01:18.680 --> 00:01:20.359 about the houseboat. Oh, the houseboat is my 00:01:20.359 --> 00:01:24.280 favorite part. It is such a weird detail. But 00:01:24.280 --> 00:01:29.500 let's start with a name. Fast Eddie. I feel like 00:01:29.500 --> 00:01:31.879 if you ask the average person on the street or 00:01:31.879 --> 00:01:34.359 even a casual fan, they have a very specific 00:01:34.359 --> 00:01:36.599 assumption about what that means. Naturally. 00:01:36.799 --> 00:01:38.920 You hear Fast Eddie and you assume one of two 00:01:38.920 --> 00:01:41.480 things. Either he is living a very high speed 00:01:41.480 --> 00:01:43.659 hedonistic lifestyle, fast cars, fast women, 00:01:43.719 --> 00:01:46.579 that whole trope, or he is a shredder. You know, 00:01:46.719 --> 00:01:48.239 playing a million notes a second like he is trying 00:01:48.239 --> 00:01:50.540 to break a land speed record. Right. You picture 00:01:50.540 --> 00:01:52.719 him tapping on the fretboard like Van Halen or 00:01:52.719 --> 00:01:54.780 something. But looking at the interviews and 00:01:54.780 --> 00:01:56.920 the source material, Clark was actually pretty 00:01:56.920 --> 00:01:59.060 annoyed by those assumptions. He spent half his 00:01:59.060 --> 00:02:01.900 career correcting people. He did. He went on 00:02:01.900 --> 00:02:04.659 record specifically to clear the air. He said, 00:02:04.760 --> 00:02:07.159 quote, I didn't get the name Fast Eddie because 00:02:07.159 --> 00:02:09.560 of any sex thing. Which honestly is probably 00:02:09.560 --> 00:02:12.360 for the best. Probably. But he also clarified 00:02:12.360 --> 00:02:14.780 the musical side of it. And this is fascinating 00:02:14.780 --> 00:02:16.879 because it gives you a real insight into how 00:02:16.879 --> 00:02:19.780 Motorhead actually worked sonically. He said 00:02:19.780 --> 00:02:22.259 it was just that I could play one note in a solo 00:02:22.259 --> 00:02:25.439 really fast. Wait, just one note? Just one? It 00:02:25.439 --> 00:02:28.280 wasn't about complex scales, it was about tremolo 00:02:28.280 --> 00:02:29.979 picking. Okay, let's unpack that for a second. 00:02:30.340 --> 00:02:31.840 Because when you listen to those old records 00:02:31.840 --> 00:02:34.879 like Overkill or Ace of Spades, it is just a 00:02:34.879 --> 00:02:37.900 massive wall of noise. Why did he need to play 00:02:37.900 --> 00:02:40.979 that one note so fast? You have to look at who 00:02:40.979 --> 00:02:43.729 he was playing with. You had Lemmy on bass, but 00:02:43.729 --> 00:02:46.009 Lemmy didn't play bass like a normal bass player. 00:02:46.430 --> 00:02:48.490 He cranked the treble, added massive distortion, 00:02:48.629 --> 00:02:51.030 and played chords. He took up a huge amount of 00:02:51.030 --> 00:02:53.310 the sonic frequency. So it was basically a rhythm 00:02:53.310 --> 00:02:55.870 guitar played on a bass. Exactly. It was a thick, 00:02:56.129 --> 00:02:58.990 muddy, aggressive wall of sound. If Clark had 00:02:58.990 --> 00:03:01.250 tried to play intricate melodic lines or sweeping 00:03:01.250 --> 00:03:03.289 arpeggios, they would have completely disappeared. 00:03:03.389 --> 00:03:05.389 They would have turned to mush in the mix. So 00:03:05.389 --> 00:03:07.889 the fast technique was basically a survival mechanism. 00:03:08.250 --> 00:03:11.080 Precisely. To cut through Lemmy's distortion 00:03:11.080 --> 00:03:14.500 and Phil Taylor's chaotic drumming, grooming, 00:03:15.379 --> 00:03:18.199 Clark had to be percussive. He used that rapid 00:03:18.199 --> 00:03:20.699 fire machine gun, picking on a single note to 00:03:20.699 --> 00:03:22.800 pierce through the noise. It wasn't showing off. 00:03:22.819 --> 00:03:25.080 It was literally the only way to be heard. That 00:03:25.080 --> 00:03:27.219 is such a cool detail. It really changes how 00:03:27.219 --> 00:03:29.520 you hear the songs now. It's not just rocking 00:03:29.520 --> 00:03:32.180 out. It's a tactical decision. But before he 00:03:32.180 --> 00:03:34.500 was the guy fighting for sonic space in the world's 00:03:34.500 --> 00:03:36.580 loudest band, he was just a kid from Twickenham 00:03:36.580 --> 00:03:38.639 trying to make it happen. And failing, honestly. 00:03:38.879 --> 00:03:41.139 Yeah, let's talk about the struggle, because 00:03:41.139 --> 00:03:43.979 the timeline here is brutal. He starts young, 00:03:44.099 --> 00:03:46.199 15 years old, playing in local bands like The 00:03:46.199 --> 00:03:48.759 Bitter End. But then he hits this period in the 00:03:48.759 --> 00:03:50.840 mid -70s where it seems like he just couldn't 00:03:50.840 --> 00:03:53.219 catch a break. It is the graveyard of almost 00:03:53.219 --> 00:03:56.120 famous bands. He joined a band called Zeus led 00:03:56.120 --> 00:03:58.580 by Curtis Knight. They were a blues -brog outfit. 00:03:59.219 --> 00:04:01.180 Glock actually recorded an album with them called 00:04:01.180 --> 00:04:04.639 The Second Coming back in 1974. He even wrote 00:04:04.639 --> 00:04:06.860 a track called The Confession. So he was putting 00:04:06.860 --> 00:04:09.650 in the work. But it didn't stick. No, it didn't. 00:04:09.909 --> 00:04:13.229 So he moves on to a band called Blue Goose. Then 00:04:13.229 --> 00:04:15.789 he forms a band with the incredibly ironic name 00:04:15.789 --> 00:04:18.389 of Continuous Performance. Which, according to 00:04:18.389 --> 00:04:20.370 the notes, was not continuous at all. Not even 00:04:20.370 --> 00:04:22.470 a little bit. They failed to get a record deal 00:04:22.470 --> 00:04:26.209 and split up by early 1975. And this is the moment 00:04:26.209 --> 00:04:29.170 where the story usually ends for most musicians. 00:04:29.329 --> 00:04:32.430 They try, they fail, they get a real job. And 00:04:32.430 --> 00:04:34.629 Clark did. That's the part that blows my mind. 00:04:35.009 --> 00:04:37.689 He basically quit the industry. The sources say 00:04:37.689 --> 00:04:40.110 he was working on refitting a houseboat. It's 00:04:40.110 --> 00:04:42.569 a great image, isn't it? The future icon of heavy 00:04:42.569 --> 00:04:45.170 metal holding a sander covered in sawdust fixing 00:04:45.170 --> 00:04:48.329 up a boat on the Thames. He had apparently completely 00:04:48.329 --> 00:04:50.529 given up on the dream. But as fate would have 00:04:50.529 --> 00:04:53.269 it, the houseboat is exactly where the dream 00:04:53.269 --> 00:04:55.449 came back to life. Although I have to say, looking 00:04:55.449 --> 00:04:57.389 at these biographies, the how is a little murky. 00:04:57.569 --> 00:04:59.490 We have conflicting stories here. Welcome to 00:04:59.490 --> 00:05:01.930 rock and roll history. Reliability is not the 00:05:01.930 --> 00:05:05.230 strong suit. So story A, he is working on the 00:05:05.230 --> 00:05:07.459 houseboat. He meets a drummer named Phil Taylor, 00:05:07.620 --> 00:05:09.600 who is also working on the houseboat. Right. 00:05:10.540 --> 00:05:13.379 Filthy animal Taylor, he had just joined this 00:05:13.379 --> 00:05:16.279 new scrappy band called Motorhead. They get to 00:05:16.279 --> 00:05:19.360 talking while working. Phil realizes Clark can 00:05:19.360 --> 00:05:21.819 play and says, hey, come jam with us. It's the 00:05:21.819 --> 00:05:23.800 blue collar working man version of the story. 00:05:24.019 --> 00:05:26.420 I like that version. It feels gritty. But then 00:05:26.420 --> 00:05:29.660 there is story B, which comes from Lemmy's authorized 00:05:29.660 --> 00:05:33.040 biography. And this one involves a receptionist. 00:05:33.100 --> 00:05:36.120 A receptionist named Gertie, yes. According to 00:05:36.120 --> 00:05:38.339 Lemmy Clark was romantically involved with Gertie 00:05:38.339 --> 00:05:40.579 at the time. She worked at a rehearsal studio 00:05:40.579 --> 00:05:42.839 where Motorhead was trying to get their act together. 00:05:43.480 --> 00:05:45.819 The story goes that she is the one who badgered 00:05:45.819 --> 00:05:47.939 them into giving her boyfriend a shot. So it 00:05:47.939 --> 00:05:50.779 was either serendipity on a boat. or a girlfriend 00:05:50.779 --> 00:05:53.139 networking on his behalf. Whichever it was, the 00:05:53.139 --> 00:05:55.920 outcome is the same. Clark walks into a converted 00:05:55.920 --> 00:05:58.519 brewery in Chelsea, a place called the Furniture 00:05:58.519 --> 00:06:01.620 Cave Plugs in his guitar, and the room explodes. 00:06:01.819 --> 00:06:04.060 The chemistry must've been instant. It was undeniable. 00:06:04.579 --> 00:06:06.759 And that kickstarted what is arguably one of 00:06:06.759 --> 00:06:08.720 the most impressive runs in hard rock history. 00:06:09.079 --> 00:06:10.740 I mean, just look at the discography we have 00:06:10.740 --> 00:06:13.819 here. Motorhead overkill bomber. Ace of Spades, 00:06:14.060 --> 00:06:16.319 No Sleep Till Hammer, Smith, Iron Fist. That 00:06:16.319 --> 00:06:20.480 is five years of absolute gold. It is the definition 00:06:20.480 --> 00:06:23.379 of a classic run, and Clark was central to that. 00:06:23.540 --> 00:06:25.199 He wasn't just the guitar player standing in 00:06:25.199 --> 00:06:27.019 the shadows. He was writing riffs, he was shaping 00:06:27.019 --> 00:06:29.639 the sound, and he was even singing. That surprised 00:06:29.639 --> 00:06:32.579 me. The notes mention he sang lead vocals on 00:06:32.579 --> 00:06:35.100 tracks like Beer Drinkers and Hell Razors and 00:06:35.100 --> 00:06:37.569 Step Down. But he didn't like it. He hated it. 00:06:37.589 --> 00:06:40.589 He claimed to despise singing lead. If you watch 00:06:40.589 --> 00:06:42.470 the music video for Step Down, you can actually 00:06:42.470 --> 00:06:45.009 see him looking uncomfortable. He wanted to be 00:06:45.009 --> 00:06:48.050 the architect, not the front man. But that willingness 00:06:48.050 --> 00:06:50.110 to step up when the band needed variety shows 00:06:50.110 --> 00:06:52.470 how tight that unit was. He also did some backing 00:06:52.470 --> 00:06:54.410 vocals and collaborated with Girls Schoolways. 00:06:54.709 --> 00:06:56.829 Yes, under the name Head Girl. They did the St. 00:06:57.009 --> 00:06:59.310 Valentine's Day Massacre EP together. It was 00:06:59.310 --> 00:07:01.730 a massive hit. It was a real brotherhood. Yeah. 00:07:01.889 --> 00:07:04.110 Which makes the next part of the story so much 00:07:04.110 --> 00:07:06.910 harder to swallow. because 1982 rolls around 00:07:06.910 --> 00:07:08.810 and everything falls apart. The Great Split. 00:07:09.110 --> 00:07:11.009 This is the stuff of legend. They are on a tour 00:07:11.009 --> 00:07:14.069 in the U .S. They are huge. But Clark leaves 00:07:14.069 --> 00:07:17.269 the band. Now for years the story was that he 00:07:17.269 --> 00:07:19.589 quit on principle. He was the artist who refused 00:07:19.589 --> 00:07:22.129 to sell out. Right, the Stand By Your Man incident. 00:07:22.350 --> 00:07:23.910 Let's explain that for the listener who might 00:07:23.910 --> 00:07:26.230 not know. So Motorhead decides to do a collaborative 00:07:26.230 --> 00:07:29.350 EP with the Plasmatics. Now, the Plasmatics were 00:07:29.350 --> 00:07:32.610 a shock rock band. Their lead singer, Wendy O 00:07:32.610 --> 00:07:35.569 'Williams, was famous for blowing up cars on 00:07:35.569 --> 00:07:37.949 stage and wearing electrical tape instead of 00:07:37.949 --> 00:07:40.550 clothes. It was very theatrical, very gimmick 00:07:40.550 --> 00:07:43.709 heavy. And Clark, the blues rock purist, was 00:07:43.709 --> 00:07:46.600 not having it. He hated it. He thought the production 00:07:46.600 --> 00:07:48.519 was terrible, he thought the songs were bad, 00:07:48.920 --> 00:07:50.800 and he felt that covering each other's songs 00:07:50.800 --> 00:07:53.480 compromised Motorhead's integrity. He saw it 00:07:53.480 --> 00:07:56.060 as a joke. So the narrative we have always been 00:07:56.060 --> 00:08:00.199 told is, Eddie sees the decline, Eddie refuses 00:08:00.199 --> 00:08:03.699 to play, Eddie quits. a noble exit. That's the 00:08:03.699 --> 00:08:05.759 story that stuck. But later in life, specifically 00:08:05.759 --> 00:08:07.879 right before he died, Clark started telling a 00:08:07.879 --> 00:08:10.240 different version. And this one is much more 00:08:10.240 --> 00:08:11.839 painful. This is where he claims he didn't quit. 00:08:12.079 --> 00:08:14.639 He claimed he was pushed. He gave an interview 00:08:14.639 --> 00:08:17.860 where he said, quote, notice, I do not call it 00:08:17.860 --> 00:08:21.399 leaving, as it was not my choice. Wow. He pointed 00:08:21.399 --> 00:08:23.540 the finger directly at Phil Taylor, the guy from 00:08:23.540 --> 00:08:26.220 the houseboat. Clark believed that tensions had 00:08:26.220 --> 00:08:28.279 been building since the Iron Fist album, which 00:08:28.279 --> 00:08:30.759 Clark actually produced. He felt the band wasn't 00:08:30.759 --> 00:08:33.500 happy with the sound and was looking for a scapegoat. 00:08:33.700 --> 00:08:35.860 The Plasmatics thing was just the excuse they 00:08:35.860 --> 00:08:39.460 needed to fire him. That is heartbreaking, especially 00:08:39.460 --> 00:08:41.279 when you see that quote where he says he wanted 00:08:41.279 --> 00:08:45.299 to die on stage with Motorhead. It really recontextualizes 00:08:45.299 --> 00:08:47.940 that whole era. It wasn't just an artistic disagreement. 00:08:48.019 --> 00:08:50.720 It was a personal betrayal. He felt his best 00:08:50.720 --> 00:08:52.960 friends turned on him. And the band didn't stop. 00:08:53.019 --> 00:08:55.159 They just replaced him. almost immediately. They 00:08:55.159 --> 00:08:58.080 brought in Brian Robertson from Thin Lizzy. Wait, 00:08:58.159 --> 00:09:00.139 didn't they offer the job to someone else first? 00:09:00.279 --> 00:09:02.240 Yes, they actually offered it to Steve Kudlow 00:09:02.240 --> 00:09:04.259 first. You might know him as Lips from the band 00:09:04.259 --> 00:09:07.240 Anvil, but he turned it down. So they go with 00:09:07.240 --> 00:09:10.679 Robertson, which historically speaking was a 00:09:10.679 --> 00:09:13.820 weird fit. Very weird. Robertson was wearing 00:09:13.820 --> 00:09:16.559 satin shorts and headbands while Lemmy was in 00:09:16.559 --> 00:09:19.620 leather and bullets. The fans hated it. It just 00:09:19.620 --> 00:09:22.000 proved you couldn't replace Eddie. Exactly. So 00:09:22.000 --> 00:09:25.220 Eddie is out. He is 32 years old. He has been 00:09:25.220 --> 00:09:27.759 kicked out of the band he helped build. But this 00:09:27.759 --> 00:09:29.730 is where the resilience comes in. He doesn't 00:09:29.730 --> 00:09:32.370 go back to sanding houseboats. He decides to 00:09:32.370 --> 00:09:35.149 start a new band. And honestly, the story of 00:09:35.149 --> 00:09:38.350 how this band formed is almost a comedy of errors. 00:09:38.610 --> 00:09:41.129 The Fastway Saga. Okay, so he teams up with Pete 00:09:41.129 --> 00:09:44.730 Way, the bassist from UFO, another legend. Right, 00:09:44.809 --> 00:09:47.009 two rock titans looking for a fresh start. And 00:09:47.009 --> 00:09:50.429 they name the band Fastway. Fast Eddie plus Pete 00:09:50.429 --> 00:09:54.009 Way. Fastway, it's logical, it's snappy. It's 00:09:54.009 --> 00:09:56.090 perfect branding. Until you find out what happened 00:09:56.090 --> 00:09:58.320 to the Way part of Fastway. The ink is barely 00:09:58.320 --> 00:10:00.259 dry on the press release. They are about to sign 00:10:00.259 --> 00:10:02.740 a major deal with CBS Records. And Peteway gets 00:10:02.740 --> 00:10:04.980 a phone call. It is Ozzy Osbourne. The Prince 00:10:04.980 --> 00:10:07.340 of Darkness calls. And when Ozzy calls your answer, 00:10:07.740 --> 00:10:10.360 Peteway quits the band to go play bass for Ozzy. 00:10:10.639 --> 00:10:12.720 So you have a band called Fastway led by Fast 00:10:12.720 --> 00:10:16.000 Eddie. But there's no way. It is ridiculous. 00:10:16.399 --> 00:10:19.059 But here's the crazy part. CBS records signed 00:10:19.059 --> 00:10:21.320 them anyway. That is wild. It shows how much 00:10:21.320 --> 00:10:24.039 faith they had in Clark's talent. They basically 00:10:24.039 --> 00:10:26.399 said, we don't care about the name or the bass 00:10:26.399 --> 00:10:28.820 player. We want Eddie. So he just scrambled. 00:10:29.019 --> 00:10:32.340 Big time. He had Jerry Shirley from Humble Pie 00:10:32.340 --> 00:10:35.480 on drums, but he needed a singer. And this is 00:10:35.480 --> 00:10:38.659 where Clark's ear for talent really shines. He 00:10:38.659 --> 00:10:40.720 gets a cassette tape in the mail from a young 00:10:40.720 --> 00:10:44.139 Irish kid named Dave King. A total unknown. Completely 00:10:44.139 --> 00:10:46.539 unknown. But Clark hears something in the voice. 00:10:46.919 --> 00:10:49.919 He pays to fly King over to London for an audition. 00:10:50.279 --> 00:10:53.220 King walks in, sings, and gets the job. And despite 00:10:53.220 --> 00:10:55.759 the chaos, despite the missing bass player and 00:10:55.759 --> 00:10:58.940 the unknown singer. Fastway actually worked. 00:10:59.059 --> 00:11:00.879 They worked really well. They weren't just a 00:11:00.879 --> 00:11:03.580 rebound fling. They released a self -titled album 00:11:03.580 --> 00:11:05.980 that did great numbers. They toured the U .S. 00:11:06.159 --> 00:11:08.379 supporting ACDC in stadiums. And they had that 00:11:08.379 --> 00:11:10.919 movie soundtrack, too. Trick or Treat. Yes! If 00:11:10.919 --> 00:11:12.340 you grew up in the 80s, you know this movie. 00:11:13.019 --> 00:11:15.460 It is a cult horror film where Ozzy plays a preacher 00:11:15.460 --> 00:11:18.509 and Gene Simmons is a radio DJ. It is the most 00:11:18.509 --> 00:11:21.289 80s thing that ever happened. And Fastway did 00:11:21.289 --> 00:11:23.190 the soundtrack. They wrote the title track. They 00:11:23.190 --> 00:11:25.330 did songs like After Midnight. It was a huge 00:11:25.330 --> 00:11:27.389 success for them. But the sound was different, 00:11:28.070 --> 00:11:30.190 right? It wasn't motorhead. No, it was much more 00:11:30.190 --> 00:11:33.570 polished. It was bluesy, sure. But it fit in 00:11:33.570 --> 00:11:36.950 with that mid -80s hard rock sound. It proved 00:11:36.950 --> 00:11:38.809 that Clark wasn't a one -trick pony. He could 00:11:38.809 --> 00:11:40.669 play the dirty gritty stuff, but he could also 00:11:40.669 --> 00:11:43.570 write radio -friendly hooks. But even with that 00:11:43.570 --> 00:11:46.690 success... It feels like the shadow of Motorhead 00:11:46.690 --> 00:11:49.350 never really went away. It is like breaking up 00:11:49.350 --> 00:11:51.090 with the person you were meant to be with. You 00:11:51.090 --> 00:11:53.309 can date other people, you can be happy, but 00:11:53.309 --> 00:11:56.049 that history is always there. It is. And to Kruk's 00:11:56.049 --> 00:11:57.789 credit, he didn't let the bitterness consume 00:11:57.789 --> 00:12:00.250 him forever. There was a thawing of relations 00:12:00.250 --> 00:12:03.110 later in life. I was looking at his solo discography. 00:12:03.750 --> 00:12:06.250 After Fastway split and reformed a few times 00:12:06.250 --> 00:12:09.490 in 1994, he released an album called It Ain't 00:12:09.490 --> 00:12:12.360 Over Till It's Over. And I noticed a very specific 00:12:12.360 --> 00:12:15.159 name in the songwriting credits. Lemmy. So they 00:12:15.159 --> 00:12:17.519 were back in the same room. They were. Lemmy 00:12:17.519 --> 00:12:19.799 helped write and sing a track called Laugh at 00:12:19.799 --> 00:12:22.100 the Devil. And honestly, just the title of that 00:12:22.100 --> 00:12:24.259 song tells you everything. Laugh at the Devil. 00:12:24.779 --> 00:12:26.879 It is like they were looking back at all the 00:12:26.879 --> 00:12:29.840 chaos, the fighting, the drugs, the firing, and 00:12:29.840 --> 00:12:32.000 just laughing about it. That is really touching. 00:12:32.899 --> 00:12:34.500 It is nice to know they mended those fences. 00:12:34.960 --> 00:12:38.559 And that reconciliation led to the big moment. 00:12:38.799 --> 00:12:41.240 the one that every fan had been waiting for. 00:12:41.559 --> 00:12:44.720 November 2014. Bearingham? The national indoor 00:12:44.720 --> 00:12:47.600 arena. Motorhead is playing a show. They are 00:12:47.600 --> 00:12:50.820 much older now. Lemmy's health is failing, though 00:12:50.820 --> 00:12:53.639 he is powering through. And halfway through the 00:12:53.639 --> 00:12:56.559 set, Fast Eddie Clark walks out onto the stage. 00:12:56.740 --> 00:12:58.440 I can only imagine the noise in that building. 00:12:58.600 --> 00:13:00.220 It must have been deafening. He strapped on a 00:13:00.220 --> 00:13:03.179 guitar and they played Ace of Spades. The three 00:13:03.179 --> 00:13:05.100 of them. Well, Phil Taylor wasn't there. He was 00:13:05.100 --> 00:13:07.080 too ill at that point. But seeing Eddie and Lemmy 00:13:07.080 --> 00:13:08.899 side by side treating licks on that song, it 00:13:08.899 --> 00:13:11.559 was a spiritual reunion. And in hindsight, that 00:13:11.559 --> 00:13:13.759 moment is so heavy, because it was basically 00:13:13.759 --> 00:13:16.860 the goodbye. It was. Phil Taylor passed away 00:13:16.860 --> 00:13:19.940 just a year later in November 2015. Lemmy followed 00:13:19.940 --> 00:13:22.539 him a month after that in December. And suddenly, 00:13:22.600 --> 00:13:24.879 Eddie was the last man standing. That must have 00:13:24.879 --> 00:13:27.399 been incredibly lonely in a way, to be the sole 00:13:27.399 --> 00:13:30.100 keeper of that memory. I imagine so. But he kept 00:13:30.100 --> 00:13:32.549 playing. And interestingly, right at the end, 00:13:32.649 --> 00:13:34.549 he went back to the start. What do you mean? 00:13:34.970 --> 00:13:37.070 In 2014, around the same time as that reunion, 00:13:37.210 --> 00:13:39.850 he released his final studio album, Make My Day 00:13:39.850 --> 00:13:41.990 Back to Blues. Oh, I see. He went back to the 00:13:41.990 --> 00:13:44.590 pre -motorhead sound. Exactly. He stripped away 00:13:44.590 --> 00:13:46.610 the heavy metal, the hair metal, the arena rock, 00:13:46.690 --> 00:13:48.730 and went back to the blues roots he started with 00:13:48.730 --> 00:13:52.230 in bands like Zeus. It is like his career came 00:13:52.230 --> 00:13:55.090 full circle. He started with the blues, sped 00:13:55.090 --> 00:13:57.990 it up to invent thrash. polished it for the 80s, 00:13:58.110 --> 00:13:59.870 and then slowed it back down for the end. And 00:13:59.870 --> 00:14:03.230 the end came in January 2018. Pneumonia. He was 00:14:03.230 --> 00:14:05.610 in the hospital and passed away at age 67. And 00:14:05.610 --> 00:14:07.950 with him, the classic lineup was gone. Completely 00:14:07.950 --> 00:14:11.009 extinguished. It really changes the experience 00:14:11.009 --> 00:14:14.029 of listening to those records now. When you put 00:14:14.029 --> 00:14:16.549 on No Sleep Till Hammersmith, it is not just 00:14:16.549 --> 00:14:19.549 a live album. It is a historical document. It 00:14:19.549 --> 00:14:21.990 has proved that this specific chemistry existed. 00:14:22.210 --> 00:14:24.960 That is the key word chemistry. You can have 00:14:24.960 --> 00:14:27.580 great players, but you cannot manufacture that 00:14:27.580 --> 00:14:31.360 friction. The way Clark's fast -picking rubbed 00:14:31.360 --> 00:14:34.120 against Lemmy's distorted chords that was lightning 00:14:34.120 --> 00:14:37.460 in a bottle, you cannot replicate it. So as we 00:14:37.460 --> 00:14:39.779 wrap this up, what does this all mean for you, 00:14:39.879 --> 00:14:41.820 the listener? When we look at the life and riffs 00:14:41.820 --> 00:14:45.960 of Fast Eddie Clark, what is the big takeaway 00:14:45.960 --> 00:14:48.110 here? You know, I keep thinking about that split 00:14:48.110 --> 00:14:51.490 in 1982. Whether he jumped or was pushed, the 00:14:51.490 --> 00:14:53.909 core of the conflict was about standards. Standards? 00:14:54.429 --> 00:14:56.009 Yeah. Clark looked at that collaboration with 00:14:56.009 --> 00:14:58.590 the Plasmatics, something that was purely a commercial 00:14:58.590 --> 00:15:01.269 cross -promotional move. And he said, this is 00:15:01.269 --> 00:15:03.509 wrong. This isn't us. He was willing to lose 00:15:03.509 --> 00:15:05.350 the biggest gig in the world because he felt 00:15:05.350 --> 00:15:07.710 a cover song compromised the band's integrity. 00:15:08.429 --> 00:15:10.370 Exactly. And think about that in the context 00:15:10.370 --> 00:15:13.820 of today. We live in an era of constant collabs. 00:15:14.120 --> 00:15:16.460 Everything is a brand deal. Every artist is trying 00:15:16.460 --> 00:15:20.159 to cross pollinate to maximize engagement. If 00:15:20.159 --> 00:15:23.059 a metal band did a song with a pop star today, 00:15:23.500 --> 00:15:26.269 we would call it smart marketing. Right. we would 00:15:26.269 --> 00:15:28.950 analyze the synergy. But Eddie Clark was stubborn. 00:15:29.269 --> 00:15:31.690 He had an artistic line in the sand that he refused 00:15:31.690 --> 00:15:34.570 to cross, even if it cost him everything. And 00:15:34.570 --> 00:15:36.970 that kind of artistic stubbornness, that refusal 00:15:36.970 --> 00:15:39.789 to dilute the brand, is incredibly rare today. 00:15:40.009 --> 00:15:42.429 It leaves you with a provocative thought to mull 00:15:42.429 --> 00:15:45.409 over. Is it better to be adaptable and successful, 00:15:45.409 --> 00:15:48.169 or is it better to be principled and well -fired? 00:15:48.370 --> 00:15:50.269 History remembers the principles. That is why 00:15:50.269 --> 00:15:52.090 we are still talking about him. I think you are 00:15:52.090 --> 00:15:53.629 right. Sometimes the most rock and roll thing 00:15:53.629 --> 00:15:55.860 you can do is just say no. Absolutely. Well, 00:15:56.019 --> 00:15:57.759 on that note, go listen to some Motorhead today. 00:15:58.500 --> 00:16:00.240 But listen for that one note. Listen for the 00:16:00.240 --> 00:16:02.600 tremolo picking, cutting through the noise. That 00:16:02.600 --> 00:16:04.919 is Eddie. That is the sound. Thanks for joining 00:16:04.919 --> 00:16:07.340 us on this deep dive. We will see you next time. 00:16:07.659 --> 00:16:08.220 Keep listening.