Robert Gordon And The GangThey Couldn't Hang

Tue 30th Mar, 2010 in Features

Robert Gordon may not be a household name to too many people, but he has lived the rock n’ roll dream. He has been friends with Dylan, Springsteen, played with Link Wray, Chris Spedding and Danny Gatton and recorded some classic tracks through the years.

Robert Gordon is now spending time with The Gang They Couldn’t Hang (another group of music legends) and he caught up with FasterLouder from N.Y.C. to chat about his upcoming visit to Australia, his long ride through the record industry and rock and roll.

I recall turning on the radio back in the day and hearing some echo of Elvis and rock-a-billy, but with an edge, and wondering aloud, “Who the hell is this?” Mr. Gordon’s voice and the sound of Link Wray’s guitar were intriguing and exciting. It was not typical radio-friendly music in the late 1970’s. Robert had been playing in a punk band and had hooked up with producer Richard Gottehrer to make some new sounds and Link Wray’s name came up.

“Link had an attack and a sound and an approach to his playing that was not only innovative back in the day when he first did it, but it was the same up until the day he died,” Gordon explains.

“I mean who else could do a solo that could make you cry and scare you at the same time? Link was fantastic, god rest his soul. I miss him but we had some great times together personally and working in the studio. He was difficult to work with live because he knew only one way to play and that was on ‘10’.”

The two records Gordan cut with Wray, Robert Gordon with Link Wray and Fresh Fish Special are still worth seeking out today, 30 years on. Robert and Link went their separate ways and the Robert Gordon business was doing well, so he needed another guitar-slinger to make it happen. After hearing Wild Women on the radio Gordan approached Chris Spedding a huge session player in the UK at that time to collaborate on his next record.

“It just so happened that [Spedding] had had enough of that whole scene and was ready to head to the States,’ Gordan recalls. “It was just the next step for me and for Chris. What I picked up with Chris first was not only his sound but his style and that blew me away once we commenced working with each other. I was green compared to Chris and his professionalism. I had never really been in the studio except with Link and some local things I did as a kid. Chris was a seasoned professional before he met me and I was blown away by his artistic ability and his creativeness.”

Spedding and Gordon collaborated off and on for thirteen years or so and it worked on every level. They met up again around 2007 to record It’s Now Or Never, a full album of Elvis numbers. However, he’s not always been happy to wear that crown, “That album was a special thing that we wanted to do and we had talked about making it forever but I always shied away from the whole Elvis connection because I did not want to get tagged forever with it.”

“I have always done a couple of his tunes during our shows. This did seem like the right time because it was the 30th anniversary of The King’s death. It was fun for me to reconnect with The Jordanaires, who I had not seen since the Fresh Fish Special days with Link Wray. It was exciting to go down to Nashville and work with them and it had been years since Chris and I were in the studio. Chris and I produced it and recorded and mixed it all in a couple of weeks. I am very proud of it.”

Gordon burst onto the scene around the time when Elvis left the building and there is no doubt that it helped his career he’s no impersonator; he has his own song to sing.

“It was flattering and understandable because he is The King and that is where that music came from, that country and R&B thing. If you listen to my records and hear me live there is no comparison. Obviously, if you are going to listen to my one Elvis album you are going to make comparisons because I have The Jordanaires on there and we are doing his songs. During our shows we may do three Presley songs out of 25 numbers, and I will be the first to admit that he is one of my major influences,” he recalled.

During his long and tumultuous career Gordon has been offered songs by some of the greats. “When I was with RCA people were submitting songs to me from all over, including Springsteen and Dylan. I can tell you stories about Bob Dylan that you would not believe. You know my old bass player Tony [Garnier] is now with Bob. Bob first saw Tony in London at a gig I was doing and we went back to his apartment so Bob could pitch some songs to me. At that time I was really hard ball about what I liked and he would play one and I would say I didn’t like it and he would go to the next one and I would say the same thing. I wish I still had those demos. I was very narrow-minded back then, but it was a great experience,” he reminisces.

Today Gordon continues to play with Chris Spedding, together forming The Gang They Couldn’t Hang. “We wanted to take it to a different level. Although Chris and I have been doing shows with an amazing rhythm section from Detroit, we felt that we should introduce some other players. We wanted to go with the entire Stray Cats rhythm section, but Lee Rocker was busy with his latest album.”

The obvious choice was Glenn Matlock, who he’d been familiar with during the Sex Pistols days. “I had never met Glenn but he is an amazing player. This group is really new and we have only done 5 dates so far. We are going to do some shows in January in the US and then we are coming to Australia to show you how it is done,” he laughed.

It has been a long road for Gordon and he has seen it all in his career. From being an unknown in a punk band, to a celebrated commercial success and back to limited notoriety, Gordon has lived his dream.

“Absolutely man! I am more optimistic than… well, hell, you know what it is? What the hell is a 60 year old rock and roller going to do man? I have been doing this since I was 15 years old professionally and I love it to death. It’s like my ultimate goal when I was a kid was, can I get on that label with the dog on it? I have been there and done that.”

“You go up the ladder and down. The music business is totally different than the old days. Record deals don’t mean shit, because they don’t pay nothing. You make your money selling merchandise, selling it over the internet and playing live. Without record company support it is very hard to go on the road these day, so when I can do it, I will go at the drop of a hat. As long as people want to come and see me, I am going to deliver. I tell ya, there are not too many people that can do what we do authentically. We have been there.”

The Gang They Couldn’t Hang Australian tour:

Friday 2nd April – The Corner Hotel, Melbourne
Saturday 3rd April – Metro Theatre, Sydney
Sunday 4th April – Blues and Roots Festival, Byron Bay
Monday 5th April – Blues and Roots Festival, Byron Bay