A true blue New Yorker out of Brooklyn and spending his formattable years out on Long Island, Eddie Money loves coming home; not only for the best Italian food around, but to rock out with his friends and family. A member of the Long Island Music Hall of Fame since 2008, he continues to tour all over the USA, and to celebrate his 70th birthday, he will be performing a very special show at NYCB Theatre at Westbury on Thursday, March 21st.
Loving life and taking nothing for granted, the highly accomplished rocker took the time to chat about his career in music, making hits, plans for new music, his love for Long Island, plus much more.
Cryptic Rock – You have been involved in Rock-n-Roll over forty years now and in that time had a slew of hit songs. First briefly tell us, what has the journey been like for you?
Eddie Money – To tell you the truth, I got out there, and the first record was great. Next thing I know, Bill Graham had me on Saturday Night Live with John Belushi and then I did The Merv Griffin Show; I was one of the first Rock star to do daytime TV and Merv Griffin was very good to me. I did a lot of early stuff in radio and TV when nobody else was really doing a lot of that stuff, this was before MTV and everything else like that.
I really have to thank the fact that we had “Baby Hold On,” “Two Tickets to Paradise,” “Take Me Home Tonight,” “Shakin’,” and that a lot of people have embraced my music. I have to thank the big guy upstairs for my success. Doing Westbury on my birthday, March 21st, it is going to be such a fun show! My kids are going to be doing a couple of songs; Jesse is going to be doing a couple of songs, Desmond has some really good material, and I have my son Julian on drums as well. All my family and friends will be there, I am really looking forward to having a great time there!
Cryptic Rock – That is fantastic. You mentioned playing NYCB Theatre at Westbury on Long Island on March 21st. Being from the Long Island area, what is like for you to come back to perform?
Eddie Money – Number one, March 21st really is my birthday! Coming back to Long Island has always been very special to me. Let’s face it, there is nothing like the fans there, they have been hanging out with me the last forty years; they are great fans and embrace my Rock-n-Roll. After the show I get a chance to talk to a lot of people that I’ve never met before, and because they know my music so well, I feel like they live down the street from me. Everyone is very personable with me, I get a chance to talk to them, and I really appreciate playing Westbury.
It is a venue that calls my name, I’ve seen so many great acts there; I saw Big Brother and the Holding Company there back in the ’70s! I feel like I am coming home to it. Playing Westbury, having my kids on stage, and having all my friends there from Levittown, Plainedge, Massapequa, and Massapequa Park… it’s going to be so much fun!
Cryptic Rock – There is nothing like coming home. You have come back to Long Island many times in recent years as well.
Eddie Money – I love Long Island! The Young Rascals are from there, I’m from there. There is something about Long Island, it’s the greatest place in the world to live. One thing about Levittown and Plainedge, you still have kids playing in the streets. There are some things about Long Island that never change, that’s the greatest part about it.
Cryptic Rock – It is wonderful that you have such fond memories of Long Island. As we spoke about, you’ve had a great deal of success. Having one big hit is a huge accomplishment, but a string of them over a decades time like you did is massive. Did you feel the pressure during that period to continue pumping out hits?
Eddie Money – I always write a lot of songs. I wrote a lot of songs that were going to be secondary songs, but to tell you the truth, whenever I make a record, I make sure I have a “Baby Hold On,” or “Two Tickets to Paradise,” or “Walk on Water.” I am always well aware of the fact that every record you make you have to look to have a couple of songs on the record that you think are going to be a hit single. There is nothing like having a hit single on the radio that gets it heard and out there. The greatest feeling in the world is having a song on the radio that is getting a lot of airplay; especially on Long Island. I feel very lucky and blessed that I did as well as I did.
Cryptic Rock – Yes, and your music continues to get plenty of airplay. Presently they play your music on SiriusXM quite a bit. Seeing that you have kept a busy schedule between touring, and also having your series Real Money on AXS, is there a possibility of some new music in the future?
Eddie Money – I have a record coming out when the new TV show comes out. I’ve got to tell you, I think it’s the best record I’ve ever made! I have a song called “Brand New Day,” and I have one called “Western Heroes,” I’ve got so many great songs I’m so proud of. I just can’t wait to get some of these songs on the radio, because they are really fantastic. To make a long story short, to have a record this good this late in my career, is a real blessing. I think people are going to love it.
Cryptic Rock – That is exciting news! Speaking of the show, Real Money , it was recently renewed for a new season.
Eddie Money – Yes. Mark Cuban is the nicest guy in the world. AXS is really working great for him. He is a natural and has a lot of things going for him. He has really helped me out with the second season of the show. People really loved the first season, and I think people are really going to love the second season!
Cryptic Rock – That is something to look forward to when it premieres. As someone who has seen success and sustained longevity, while conquering ups and downs, what do you think is the most important thing you have learned from a career in Rock-n-Roll?
Eddie Money – I think one of the most important things I’ve learned is, whenever I make a record, I want to make sure it sounded like I was doing a great live show in front of a lot of people. Whenever I made a record like “Two Tickets to Paradise” or “Take Me Home Tonight” I really wanted to focused on being great. I want people to go, “Wow, I saw Eddie Money live and he sounds just as great as he does on the radio.” If you think about it, people are really fussy about music, and to have so many great fans that embrace my music is a great thing.
When we do the show at Westbury, we will open up with “Baby Hold On” and then we’ll do “Endless Nights,” because everyone loves that song. The crowd really reacts to these songs because they’ve heard them on the radio so much. When I do them, I do everything I can to sound like the record – people really appreciate the fact that I want to sound like I do on the radio. I do my best to make my fans really happy. The most important thing to me is my wife and kids, but so are my fans. My fans have been so gracious and amazing over the last forty years, I wouldn’t been anywhere in this business without the great fans I have!
Cryptic Rock – It is great that you have so much love for the fans and the love is reciprocated. Seeing you share music with your family, what is like performing with your children on stage?
Eddie Money – I’m proud of the fact that they are out there giving it all and trying to do a great job for me and my wife, it’s amazing!
Cryptic Rock – Well the shows coming up should be great, especially your 70th birthday celebration on March 21st. You have seen a lot of your music appear in films over the years. What is that like for you?
Eddie Money – I’ve seen a lot of movies and have had my music in a lot of movies. What’s better than a good movie? You see a good movie you are going to remember it for the rest of your life.
Tour Dates:
MAR 21 Theatre at Westbury Westbury, NY
MAR 22 Santander Performing Arts Center Reading, PA
MAR 29 Veterans Memorial Civic and Convention Center Lima, OH
MAR 30 Foxwoods Resort Casino Mashantucket, CT
APR 5 Sharon L. Morse Performing Arts Center The Villages, FL
APR 6 Chasco Fiesta New Port Richey, FL
APR 12 Hampton Beach Casino Ballroom Hampton Beach, NH
APR 13 Union County Performing Arts Center Rahway, NJ
MAY 3 Silver Reef Casino Ferndale, WA
MAY 11 The Meadows Resort & Casino Washington, PA
MAY 18 Blue Gate Theatre Shipshewana, IN
MAY 25 DTE Energy Music Theatre Clarkston, MI
JUN13 The Weinburg Center for the Arts Frederick, MD
JUN 29 RiverEdge Park Aurora, IL
AUG 9 James Donaldson Park Grand Forks, BC
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