Uber-producer Don Was (bio | CDs - DVDs - books), of the newly reunited band Was (Not Was), is currently at work with The Rolling Stones (bio | CDs - DVDs - books), turning the knobs for a new Stones album that's expected to hit stores in mid-2005.

Although many can say they were inspired by The Rolling Stones, the legendary band had a special effect on Was. The Michigan native said it was his work on the Stones' "Bridges to Babylon" and "Voodoo Lounge" albums that spurred him to resurrect Was (Not Was).
"They're the greatest," Was said of the British rockers. "There's a reason that they've been around for 40-some years: they really are the best rock 'n' roll band ever.

"It's inspirational to be around them. It's helped in making our own records. I learn a lot from them just watching them work. It makes you want to do the same thing. They have their methodology and it's interesting to try to come up with songs the way they do."

That methodology is simple, Was said.

"They just do it, man. They just pick up an instrument and play. They do it without self-consciousness. They don't care who's listening or whether it's going to be crummy or what. They're so open. They just let it out. It's a great way to do things."

Was became the go-to guy for production duties after working with Bonnie Raitt on the Grammy-winning "Nick of Time." Since then, he's worked with scores of diverse artists including Iggy Pop, The B-52's, Elton John and Brian Wilson. Was and his Was (Not Was) partner, David Was, together produced the Grammy-winning Roy Orbison/KD Lang duet "Crying" and Bob Dylan's album "Under the Red Sky."

As for Was (Not Was), the band released its eponymous debut in 1981, garnering the dance hit "Tell Me That I'm Dreaming." Two years later, it mixed up the musical stew by recruiting Mel Torme and Ozzy Osbourne to appear on the album "Born to Laugh at Tornados."

It was its 1988 album "What Up, Dog?" that brought it mainstream fame. The set spawned the Top 10 singles "Walk the Dinosaur" and "Spy in the House of Love." A fourth studio album followed in 1990, but the band broke up in 1993.

Don Was recently talked to liveDaily about the forthcoming Was (Not Was) album, working with The Rolling Stones and his bandmates.

liveDaily.com: How has it been since reuniting with Was (Not Was)?

Don Was: It's really nice, man. It's tough to find anything consistent in life anymore, anything you can count on. When you played with people for 30 years, there's a chemistry that will not die. It's probably the most stable thing in my life. No matter where we are, the guitar player's two feet to my right, Sweet Pea [Atkinson, singer] is a foot to my left, David [Was] is a foot over the other way, and we've been around the world 15 times in that configuration. It's pretty comforting.

Why did you decide that now was the time to reunite?

It's what we do. I've been in Was (Not Was) most of my adult life, or at least played with these guys, although it might have called them something different. The question really is why we stopped. There were just a myriad of reasons back in '93. To sum it up very simply, it wasn't our time. The type of music we were playing didn't seem to be popular. Our record was met with indifference. The main comment was, "I don't hear my 'Walk the Dinosaur.' They wanted more of the same. I don't know how we did "Walk the Dinosaur," let alone do a follow-up.

Why do you say that?

It just happened. I wouldn't say it's the most indicative of what the group was about as a whole. I thought we made a good record, but at the time, radio was changing. Without pop hits, it was hard to keep a 12-piece band out on the road. The band itself, we'd been out on this tour with Milli Vanilli, Paula Abdul and Tone Loc. We were the only band that played live, and we died every night out there. It didn't seem like being able to play your music meant anything. It's fine. It's a good lesson that you're there to entertain people, [not] impress them with your technique. We were discouraged.

Everything's cyclical. When you're at the bottom of the cycle, you just have to wait it out. Thirteen years was a long time, but I'm glad we waited. I'm glad we got it back together.

You're releasing a new album next year. Tell me about it. How does the songwriting process work?

My partner David Was and I, we write all the songs. To me, I think it's our best record. The best record we've ever made. It sounds like we picked up right where we left off. If you listen to it, you wouldn't think that 13 years had lapsed, and I'm glad about that. It means that there's kind of a consistent point of view. We come from Detroit, and in the '60s in Detroit, there was really a fertile atmosphere for combining style and creating something new: all kinds of R&B, George Clinton played at our high school, Iggy and the Stooges played at our high school, and there was a great jazz scene going on. Then we kind of drew from all these influences. On our earlier records, I think you can hear where we take a dance groove and we stick on a be-bop trumpet and we stick on the guitarist from the MC5. You can see the seams, I think, of the little monster we sewed together. Now it's been more clearly integrated into one voice. I hear a sound there for the first time.

What kind of sound do you hear?

It sounds to me exactly what it is--this jambalaya that got cooked in Detroit.

What is the name of the album?

Don't know yet. The working title is "Boo." We'll see.

Of all your production work, what is your favorite project you've worked on?

Oh god, I don't know. I've never had a bad experience working. I couldn't tell you. I know this is going to sound like bulls---, I swear this is true. I'm doing exactly what I wanted to do when I was 14 years old. There isn't a day that goes by when at some point I don't take it all in and go, "Wow, look what I'm getting to do." It doesn't matter if it's The Rolling Stones, Hootie and the Blowfish or some 17-year-old kids. It's just I love being in the studio and I love making records. I'm thrilled that I made it through 52 years without having to do heavy manual labor.

Are you going to take time off from producing to concentrate on Was (Not Was)?

I'm not going to stop producing. I'm right in the middle of a Stones record now. There's some way to make it work. I read an interview once with Frank Sinatra. He'd film a movie in Hollywood, and fly to Las Vegas and sing, and then come back to Hollywood and make a record. And this would be all over the same period of days. They asked, "How do you do all that?" He said, "One thing at a time." Just dig in and be in the moment.

What projects do you have coming up?

The Was (Not Was) thing. We're going to finish our record. It's coming out in April. The Rolling Stones thing should probably come out next summer. I'm in the middle of a record with Kris Kristofferson. I'm working on a documentary film and we're planning more live dates. We're booking some now for all of May and June.

What is the line-up for Was (Not Was)?

Singer Sweet Pea Atkinson, who I've played with for 30 years. David Was, who plays flute and saxophone and harmonica, I've been playing with him for 40-some years. David McMurray plays alto and tenor sax, I played with him for about 30 years as well. Randy Jacobs is the guitar player, I've been with him for just about 25 years. Then we've got two new guys--new drummer named Sergio Gonzales, who previously played in Jennifer Lopez's band, and a guy named Tio Banks playing keyboards.

That must be a luxury to play with band members for so long.

When you're playing the music and very in the moment, you can anticipate what they're going to do, and also appreciate the surprises that they come up with. There's a real intimacy when you play with people for a long period of time.

You said that you've been doing what you wanted to do since you were 14. Do you think your passion is what helped you become so successful?

Yeah, I think that is why. The reality is--don't tell any record companies this--but I would do it for free. I love what I'm doing. If you bring enthusiasm, it's bound to be better than if you were hacking it out. That's for sure. Even though there's pressure and there is stress, it's not the kind of stress--stress is like meeting deadlines and bringing records in on budget and making sure records are good, it's not the stress that comes from living a life filled with regret. That'll knock a decade off your life. I'm healthy, too.

Don Was is a pretty cool guy, and I like his band, but it's time for the Stones to find another producer. They need to re-think their sound some. The last three albums have been too studio-shiny-perfect and BTB in particular has a very compressed sound (I know that wasn't all Was-produced). I think they should go for someone a little more exotic like, I dunno Daniel Lanois, Todd Rundgren or Brian Eno. Enough with the radio-friendly vibe.

'Don’t forget, if you’re on your bike, wear white'

Don Was is an average producer. Nothing more........

the glimmer twins should produce the new lp---ditch the outside producers and just get down to some gritty raw blues and rock and roll!!!!

STONES JAM!! MICKEYS RULES!!! (burp) NADER IN 2016!!!!! GO GIANTS!!

Was got much better productions imo than the GT/C.Kimsey-produced Steel Wheels-- I know the era had some influence but I don't find B2B or VL, or the 40L stuff 'slick' compared to SW. I would like to hear some of nthe earlier mixes from B2B, but that stuff appears to be locked up tight.

What is all this "slick" stuff re SW?

Is Keith's guitar slick on Cant Be seen, Hold Onto Your Hat, Sas Sad Sad. It's raw.

The sound is much fresher than either VL OR BTB, especially the former with every instrument carefull separated in the mix. Yuk.

On SW Charlie's drums trip along a treat in contrast to the deadened sound on VL.

etc. etc.

The production on B2B fits the songs perfectly IMO. SW is kindda slick, but it ain't bad. Still I'd love to hear a gem like "Break The Spell" with a raw production like "The Storm" from VL. Speaking of VL: That production is good for that type of rock IMO. But it doesn't fit as well as the B2B production.

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