Alan O'Day Interview

Alan O'Day, who wrote such songs as The Drum", "Caress Me Pretty Music" and "Goodtime Song"  for Bobby, gave an interview to Shadoe Steele from WKRZ in Pennsylvania on March 31, 2004.  The interview was longer than this, but if you'd like to read the important part of the interview...the part about Bobby (of course)...here's the transcript courtesy of Wendy!!

Shadoe: Originally from Hollywood, and rejoining us live from Los Angeles, singer, multi-instrumentalist, and prolific songwriter Alan O'Day. Alan, great to have you back with us.

Alan: Great to be with you Shadoe.

Shadoe: What an intro, huh?!

Alan: Yeah, multi-instrumentalist. I can see myself with many hands.

Shadoe: And one of the true, rare, native Californians on earth, I might add.

Alan: This is true. I was actually born in Hollywood and moved away, early, down to the desert area south of Los Angeles and then gradually worked my way back up.

Shadoe: Now Alan, lets look back. Before you became a successful recording artist, you began writing songs for such other musical notables, as teen idol Bobby Sherman with the May 1971 single "The Drum" featured on his "Portrait of Bobby" LP on Metromedia. How was Bobby made aware of your work, Alan, especially then as a fledgling songwriter?

Alan: Well, I had the good luck to be signed to a publishing company, a song publishing company. Actually, I was signed to two of them, but at that time one of the things that they did that was great, was to take my work around and try to get songwriters and producers interested in recording it. There was a fellow named Artie Wayne who worked with a company, that later became Warner Brothers Music Publishing, and he took the song to Bobby Sherman's people and they really liked it. Did you know that Bobby played drums on that record?

Shadoe: I didn't know that!

Alan: Yeah! He's a multi-instrumentalist! The other thing, there's a lot of people wonder whatever happened to Bobby. He's now an EMT, Emergency Medical Technician, and doing a lot of great stuff. He's a LAPD Reserve Officer and a Reserve Deputy Sheriff in San Bernardino County. There's a story that a gal in an automobile accident, and Bobby arrived on the scene in his capacity as an Emergency Medical Technician, and she opened her eyes and looked up and said "Bobby Sherman?" So I'm glad that he's helping people because his music was positive and he's still a positive guy. There's even a website; PeaceLoveBobby.com devoted to Bobby and his current life if anybody's interested.

Shadoe: That's from all his becoming a multi-instrumentalist. There's a lot of that going around, Alan.

Alan: (laughing) True...