WNYC and Chubby Checker

Played with Clogs on WNYC's Soundcheck yesterday afternoon. John Schaefer is somewhat of an institution in NY with this long-standing program. He has been a fan and supporter of Clogs for a number of years which is fabulous. It was fun to see him again and be on the air in the new WNYC studios. There was a period when I listened to this program all of the time, so it was nice to revisit that whole vibe. An added bonus was that Chubby Checker (Ernest Evans) was on before us and did about a 30min interview with John. It was really interesting to hear him talk about his goals/approach to music over the years. He was one of the first teen rock and roll sensations. This was the funniest bit of the whole thing: Earnest said that he thought it was interesting that white people liked to imitate black people when they sing - he was the opposite, as his hero was Frank Sinatra. So Chubby's approach to singing, and what gives his voice its unique character, is that he tries to imitate white people imitating black people...wow, now there's a unique approach. It was also interesting that Ernest views Chubby as a character apart from himself. This is a persona that he puts on; an old-school entertainer. He even has conversations with Chubby and critiques Chubby's behavior and decisions....

- tk