In Please Kill Me: The Uncensored Oral History of Punk, Legs McNeil and Gillian McCains essential book on New Yorks Seventies subcultural scene, the authors dedicate their work to Danny Fields, forever the coolest guy in the room. He may not be a household name, but as a manager, publicist, label exec and journalist, Fields was always at the center of every important rock movement for two decades the six-degrees-of-separation connection between the Beatles and Beat on the Brat.
Danny Says, a new doc on the music-industry multi-hyphenate currently in theaters, explores Fields role as manager of the Stooges and Ramones, the magazine editor behind John Lennons infamous more popular than Jesus quote and behind-the-scenes impresario engineering the careers of your favorite rock and punk groups. Among the treasure trove of decadent stories, here are 10 things we learned.
1. He Earned the Beatles Death Threats
In 1966, Fields was managing editor of teen mag Datebook when he republished John Lennons quote to the London Evening Standard that the Beatles were more popular than Jesus now. The quote caused a firestorm in the U.S., with radio DJs banning the group and death threats now being hurled at the band. I didnt love them that much, but I certainly loved them more than Jesus, Fields said. Theyre more important to me than Jesus. What did Jesus ever fucking do to me? Its about time more people got in trouble for saying the right thing.
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2. The Doors Publicist Bluffed His Way to the Top
Fields saw the Doors play for two dozen people in their nascent stages, lured by the promise of a cute lead singer. After Jim Morrison mesmerized him, he told Steve Harris, the vice president of Elektra Records, that he was the groups New York press agent. He said, How wonderful, a press agent. Weve never had a press agent,' Fields recalls. Who decided that you were the press agent for the Doors? an interviewer asks Fields. His reply: I did.
3. Jim Morrison + Nico: The Ill-Fated Romance
It was the legendary oddball musician hookup that would never be. As Fields was positioning Morrison as a sex object, he became worried that dirty girls with dopey glazed looks would tarnish his reputation. His plan: set Morrison up with Fields friend Nico. He would fall in love with Nico and see the error of his ways in letting all these slimy little groupies [in], Fields says. After the pair locked eyes, they both stared at the floor, completely silent, for over an hour before retreating. His brilliant plan was suddenly not so brilliant.
4. Fields Mom Helped Bankroll the Ramones
Fields knew he loved the Ramones a mere 15 seconds into seeing them for the first time and asked to manage the band after the set. They agreed on one condition: come up with $3,000 for a new drum kit. Fields visited his mom in Florida to ask for the money. I just discovered this band I really love, he told her. Theyre going to sign a long contract with me and theyre going to make me rich. But I need $3,000. She promptly wrote him a check.
5. MC5s Motherfucker Battle With Elektra
Saying the word Motherfucker on record in 1969 was borderline heretical for a major label, but Elektra head Jac Holzman urged its inclusion on MC5s Fuck you anthem Kick Out the Jams. We told them [to] let the [censored] single go up the charts before you release the album, MC5 guitarist Wayne Kramer said. Cause the albums going to have the real version [with Motherfucker] but they wont be able to stop us then cause well have a hit record.
Record store employees were arrested for selling the album and the group took out an ad stating Fuck Hudsons, a reference to the retail chain that refused to sell the album. When Hudsons pulled all Elektra records from their stores, Holzman subsequently dropped the group.
6. Alice Cooper: Teen Pop Idol
In the mid-1970s, Fields had a stint as editor of 16 magazine, the best-selling teen celebrity mag at the time. With Fields at the helm, artists like Alice Cooper and the Stooges became as much fixtures as saccharine pop stars Donny Osmond and David Cassidy. Danny made Alice into sort of a teen idol, said co-editor Randi Reisfeld. I said, Theres so many Peter Pans,' Cooper added. Wheres Captain Hook? In one memorable issue, Fields transposed Cooper and Osmonds faces onto each others bodies. We couldnt have been further apart, Cooper said. Danny liked that juxtaposition.
7. He Was at the Epicenter of Iggy Pops Descent
Danny let me try something called cocaine, Iggy Pop said, laughing. And I tried it and I thought, I dont feel anything! Three days later, I found myself crawling in through his bathroom window taking all of his stash. That was the sort of buddy I was. Fields was at the center of Pops highs and lows, as the singer jovially recalls delaying the start of a show to have bathroom sex with a groupie and, more somberly, his introduction to heroin.
8. The Stooges Destroy Both a U-Haul and Their Relationship With Fields
Fields eventually quit the Stooges after the group incurred a tremendous bill from the city of Ann Arbor after their 12-foot U-Haul truck failed to clear a 10-foot overpass. The accident, which the band was liable for, destroyed both the truck and all their instruments inside. This is a sign, Fields said. Fields subsequently gladly handed Pop and his antics over to David Bowie. Pop remains amused at the incident. The top of the U-Haul peeled back exactly like Popeyes can of spinach, he said.
9. Patti Smith, Shit-Talking About Iggy Pop
Before Patti Smith became friends with Pop the two performed David Bowies Jean Genie together at this years Tibet House Benefit Concert the New York punk linchpin was less than enthusiastic about Pops wild onstage antics. He sings a little bit like a baby Mick Jagger, Smith says in the film in audio recorded in the 1970s. I dont really dig him because he jumps into the audience and puts meat on his body. I dont like people inflicting their shit on me if Im in the audience.
10. Jonathan Richmans Disastrous Stooges Meeting
We would talk about the Stooges a lot, Modern Lovers frontman Jonathan Richman said. The first meeting between Richman and the group, however, did not go well. When Fields introduced the singer to the Stooges after a show, Richman showed the band various drawings he created. Their response: Give up, man. After fanboying to Pop about everything he wanted to ask him, Pop dismissively told him, I have an idea: Ill talk to you from the stage and promptly disappeared.
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