Gary James' Interview With Rick Richards Of
The Georgia Satellites



The Georgia Satellites really hit it big with a song called "Keep Your Hands To Yourself". It went all the way to number two in 1986. Holding down the lead guitar position in The Satellites was Rick Richards. Rick recently spoke with us about the band.

Q - Rick, how much work is there these days for The Georgia Satellites?

A - There is enough work to keep us out of trouble, definitely. We actually start tomorrow, March 16th, 2018, which is the first gig of the season down in Vero Beach, Florida and then we just take it from there. We do as many gigs as we can during the Spring and Summer and early Fall. Then during the holidays we put a cap on it and do other things. Everybody has other projects they do. There's enough work. It's not really grinding. So, we fly everywhere. We rent backline so we really don't experience the drudgery of the road, so to speak. It's still fun.

Q - What kind of venues are you performing in?

A - Anywhere that's got beer and electricity and people who have money of course. We do like biker things. We do fairs. We do festivals. We do some clubs, larger clubs and medium size venues. Sometimes we do opening slots. Last year we did some Skynyrd, some Cheap Trick.

Q - During the early years of the band, you guys played Monday nights at this bar, Hedgens. Who would show up on Monday night to see a band?

A - You'd be surprised at the people who showed up on Monday nights. Fellow musicians. Bar people. Restaurant people. We had hairdressers. They don't work on Mondays. We had artists. Of course you had your criminal element and you had your unemployed. It was a real cross section of people. A very eclectic crowd, I would say.

Q - The Georgia Satellites formed in 1980 and your first album was released in 1986, or was it 1987?

A - I think it was '87. I don't know. I don't remember.

Q - You guys broke up in 1984. The first album was released in 1987. Did you ever think this is not going to be part of a touring, recording group?

A - Yeah, a lot. (laughs) Almost on a daily basis. What happened was, when The Satellites called it a day the first time around we'd already made enough recordings, enough songs to put out an EP if we wanted to. So, we had a tour manager at the time, Kevin Jennings from England who took these songs and got a deal with an independent label in London. And then, they put this thing out. It was called "Keep The Faith". It was like our first EP. We said fine, go ahead and do it, but it really wasn't the catalyst for getting back together. The catalyst for us getting back together was when we started getting all this great press from the British Rock press, who as you know are pretty harsh, let's put it that way. So, Melody Maker gave us these glowing reviews. So, you see that and go, "Maybe we should have a second shot at this and see what happens." From then on we just kept playing and got some recognition, some management and label interest and it kind of took off.

Q - I want to go back to this bar, Hedgens for a minute. What kind of material were you playing there on a Monday night?

A - It was a cross section of like obscure R&B, obscure Country, obscure British Pop/Rock Invasion type stuff. But it was always something that the average listener probably wasn't that familiar with. So, we'd kind of take it and do it our own way. It was also a great proving ground for original stuff, to really to test it out on a Monday night.

Q - How did life change for you and the other guys when "Keep Your Hands To Yourself" became such a big hit? Did you tour nationally as well as internationally?

A - Yeah. Our first overseas excursion was Japan. Here we are, the backwoods, redneck guys from Atlanta, plopped in the middle of Japan. It was really surreal. That was just the beginning of the whole surreal trip. A lot was going on. It was great. I can't say enough about what a great time I had. We did travel the world. We got to open for some stellar people like Bowie and Tom Petty, Bob Seger. We did a lot of stuff.

Q - Did you get all the money you deserved, whatever it was, from promoters or your record company? So many people I've interviewed didn't.

A - Yeah, that's a pretty common story in the music business. It's completely a shark infested business if there ever was one, but I'm sure I got ripped off. But it wasn't really evident to me. I thought I was treated pretty fairly by management, label and the legal things we had to deal with, lawyers. Most musicians aren't very good, savvy businessmen. So, you have to rely on people. You kind of have to put some blind trust in people sometimes. I've go no complaints. I had a good time. I made a couple of bucks.

Q - That's good to hear. I hear so many horror stories.

A - Me too, man. Just unbelievable stuff that just blows your mind. How the hell can this happen? But it can. People are so ruthless, man. They take advantage of musician's lack of business acumen.

Q - Don't forget when you get out on the road, your mind is on other things.

A - (laughs) Yeah right, man. You ain't thinkin' about money. If you're thinkin' about money you're not thinkin' about saving money. That's for sure. A lot of musicians are kind of left in the dark after a career. There's really no kind of fund. They were just mislead business wise, not setting up any kind of retirement.

Q - As someone once said, "Management gets the money, the roadies get the girls and the musicians get the applause."

A - Wow! What's wrong with that picture?

Q - The musicians should be getting everything!

A - (laughs) Thank-you! Well said, man.

Q - Who was writing the songs in The Satellites? Was that Dan Baird? Did you write?

A - Dan and I wrote separately. We collaborated to a degree on some stuff musically. Lyrically he was in his camp and lyrically I was in my camp. He was very prolific. He wanted to do his own thing vehemently. So, I just said yeah, go on, 'cause he was doing good. Weasel in on the process creates more animosity than was already there.

Q - I think it follows if you have one hit record you should have another hit record. Did The Satellites have a follow-up to "Keep Your Hands To Yourself"?

A - We had a couple of songs that charted, but nothing in the Top 10. Nothing like that. The reason it happened? I don't know. I really couldn't tell you. I have my views on it and everybody has their own opinion why it didn't happen. I think we opened up the second album out a little too soon. I think we should have savored the success of the first one and put a little more brain, a little more thought into the second one, as being Side 2 of the first album, basically. So, that was my theory, but I don't really know, man. Who knows? It was a different time. Album oriented Rock was going on. Big flavor-of-the-month was going on. I don't know.

Q - You are a member of Izzy Stradlin's band, Izzy Stradlin And The Ju Ju Hounds. What is a Ju Ju Hound?

A - It's just a cosmic state of mind, buddy, (laughs) Ju Ju comes from New Orleans. Ju Ju was a curse and Hounds speaks for itself. So, it's a cursed hound I suppose. I don't know. I was in a side band at the time called Hell Hounds. So I guess he (Izzy Stradlin) might have melded Ju Ju with Hounds, thinking in that aspect. I really don't know. You'd have to ask him about that. Ju Ju is a form of magic spells, curses, the old Marie Laveau, New Orleans witchy stuff I guess. Although it doesn't really relate to us, any of our beliefs on the dark side.

Official Website: www.TheGeorgiaSatellites.com

© Gary James. All rights reserved.