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Lemmy of Motorhead was one of the great rock’n’roll characters of all time. A man who stuck to his guns and lived his life in a way that is a credit to us all. I first met him during the post punk era at the infamous Speakeasy Club on Margaret Street, W1 and then, regularly drank with him at the Portobello Gold of a weekly afternoon throughout the eighties. After he moved to LA in the late eighties he, when in London, often popped in to the nightclub I ran -The Wag- for a few drinks and whatever lease we could muster. Subsequently, when I was offered the chance to interview for him for the Times a few years back, I jumped at it. Initially, I sold the piece as Lemmy: The Style Icon - hence the style questions which he answered without a problem - but we eventually covered a lot more than that.
He was staying at The Royal Garden Hotel in Kensington but, obviously, just wheeled himself out for the interviews not knowing who was to interview him. As I walked into the suite Lemmy is in the bathroom so I wait with the PR lady. As he comes out I am relieved to see that he has not changed one iota -his black cowboy shirt open, his long hair died jet black, a ciggie dangling from his mouth. He is looking down and says, ‘Hang on a minute I’ve lost me fucking…” bends down, picks something up, and looks at us. And as the PR lady politely says, ‘Lemmy this is…” he looks up...
Lemmy - FUCK me!! It’s you, you old Welsh cunt! If I‘d have know it was fuckin’ you I’d have got more booze and gear in… Fucking hell. Sit down you Welsh bastard.
Lemmy pours two large Jack Daniels, waves the PR Lady away. Shuts the door behind her and chops out two railway lines of white powder and gives me a rolled up $2 bill.
Lemmy -You can keep that. I don’t want you catching my fucking cold. They say a $2 bill is lucky in the US.
Not wanting to be rude, I partake of what appears to be rather strong speed, gulp down the JD and look up. Lemmy is beaming.
Lemmy - Right get the fucking tape on and get this interview done; then we can crack on.
Looking at the miracle of nature that is Lemmy, one question springs to mind.
CS - Do you think you’d be still at it with Motorhead all these years on?
Lemmy - I never thought I’d be doing this for this long. I’ve never even considered time. I just do what I do. No one ever thinks that – you just look at the next few years and see how it goes.
CS - How do you feel about being described as a legendary rock animal?
Lemmy - Oh all that shit. Well I just do what I do. The secrets of success are find out what you do best and do it. And what I do best is Motorhead. Oh! Do you want another drink? (He pours) Do want some ice? (he picks up the ice) Oh sorry mind the fingers.
CS - It is quite amazing that you’ve kept it up for so long.
Lemmy - Well… we do it very well. I am very happy with where we are at the moment. We are at the top of the second echelon. You don’t want to be top of the first echelon, as people will never leave you alone.
CS - You could keep going forever?
Lemmy - Yes. Well, as long as my forever is.
CS - What caused you to start a band?
Lemmy - I saw that the bands got all the girls. That’s fair enough an ambition. Drink yourself into a stupor, travel the world and get all the chicks - nothing wrong with that. Getting away from Colwyn Bay was another good incentive.
CS - But everybody likes Motorhead - right across the board.
Lemmy - Yes well this year certainly. You wait, next we’ll be out of fashion again.
CS - Why do you think everyone likes you?
Lemmy - Because I don’t give them any bullshit. I always figured that if you treat people decently they will treat you decent back. You get the occasional obstruction but that’s how life is. There is no better saying than, ‘Do unto others as you’d like to be treated yourself’, and that’s how I live my life anyway. Well most of the time… there are some times you can’t resist being a twat to twats.
CS - Do you write the songs? I love the lyrics to, Eat The Rich.
Lemmy - Yeah man, ‘I eat you baby. Eat two and get one free. Shetland pony, extra pepperoni. I’ll eat you baby and you eat me. Eat you baby, get one free. Shetland pony extra pepperoni just pick up the phone...’ I write all the lyrics and I especially like that one.
CS - What is your favourite item of clothing?
Lemmy - A bow and arrow because it is so clean and so lean.
CS - You’ve always had a very definite style, how would you describe it?
Lemmy - I suppose I’d describe my style as mid sixties cowboy, basically. Kirk Douglas chic. I haven’t changed in years because, in my opinion, if you find something you like, you should stick with it. A lot of people just go for the latest fashion and look really stupid because it doesn’t suit them, because they haven’t got the body or the taste for it, and they look like twats. It’s as if they have had a head transplant. I think everyone should find out what suits him or her, and what he or she feel comfortable with, and stick with it.
CS - Have you ever been considered fashionable?
Lemmy - I’m not fashionable in the slightest. Oh no. No, no, no. I have never even tried. I might be fashionable in a room full of Motorhead fans, but that is it. All these new groovy types wear our T-shirts, but that is because it’s a great logo. I always say if we could have sold as many albums as T-shirts we’d have been okay. We get a lump sum for the shirts.
He chops out another line and pours me another drink. We demolish both.
CS - Where do you shop?
Lemmy - I don’t shop. I get everything made because I know exactly what I want and I can’t be bothered trudging around shops looking for stuff.
CS - What’s your favourite item?
Lemmy - Shoes by Pascal Cooper – he’s a famous shoemaker in LA – makes my boots. They are fucking magic. I have quite a few pairs.
CS - Do you buy vintage stuff?
Lemmy - I like new clothes. The only vintage clothes I have are mine. I have stuff going back years. I have a great collection of left boots as I always wear the right out first but never throw them away. I’ve got white ones, black ones - all left foot. Maybe one day when I lose a leg they’ll come in handy. Well, that’s what I’m thinking anyway. I have a flat full of shit and most is hopeless to me.
CS - Is there anybody who you’ve always looked up to style wise?
Lemmy - Kirk Douglas always looked great. I am not sure what well-dressed is. Is it that you are a slave to the fashion? Or is it that you look good in what you wear? I think the latter. But I don’t know who I think dresses well. Some people dress well for them and that’s all you can say. Some people are like mutton dressed as lamb and, to be honest, you might say that about me sometimes.
CS - What’s the most dosh you’ve spent on an item of clothing?
Lemmy - The most money I’ve ever spent on clothes is my boots that cost me $600 (£450), which is great considering you can have any pattern on them you want. I go in and draw what I want and he makes them.
CS - Is there anything you own that wouldn’t wear out of the house?
Lemmy - The only thing I’d like to wear but can’t is my SS uniform. I collect that stuff and have a really good one, but it doesn’t go down so well in mixed company. Unfortunately, the bad guys had the best uniforms – The Confederates the same – sharp grey and yellow. Napoleon – the same. It’s always true the bad guys have the best uniforms. I collect them for artistic reasons, purely because of the way they look. I don’t agree with what Hitler said – it was f**king rubbish. These guys in the US started calling me a Nazi and then I said I have three girlfriends in LA and they are all black. You can’t get less Nazi than that. Imagine if I was at the Nuremberg rally “And here’s my girlfriend Mein Fuhrer”.
CS - Anything you’d like to get made?
Lemmy - The only thing I’m considering having made is a pair of false tits. I have always wondered about them. I’d have them on my back so the missus will have something to play with.
CS - What do the women in your life like you to wear?
Lemmy - Well if they’re good women, nothing – naked is always fun. A light dusting with face powder, maybe.
He chops out another few lines and pours me another drink. We destroy both.
CS - You started in the punk period and have always been loved by punks - why is that?
Lemmy - We started at the same time as punk and a lot of punks love us, but I always thought we sounded more like a rock’n’roll band. Maybe our attitude is a bit more punk.
CS - What have you bought most over the years?
Lemmy - I wear black, mostly. I wear a lot of cowboy shirts that I pick up from all over the states. I have plain ones embroidered one.
CS - What about male jewellery?
Lemmy - I used to wear a lot of rings. I used to wear them on every finger and on one thumb, but not so much anymore. I have this pendant that Slim Jim of The Straycats saw in a stall in Nepal and so he got it for me. It’s carved out of some sort of bone.
CS - How do you feel about tattoos?
Lemmy - I’ve got three tattoos and have been planning to get another for about ten years but I can’t think of anything I really want. It’s a big decision, as you can’t change it like your shirt. People tend to make bad decisions with things like that so not having one avoids all that.
CS - What do you think of male grooming?
Lemmy - I use aftershave. But you don’t need it. I like good quality soap. I try and stay away from moisturizer. I think it makes you look old.
CS - Do you wax?
Lemmy - I have never found the need to wax. I occasionally shave my bollocks and that’s about it.
CS - Do you wear cologne?
Lemmy - I wear Allure aftershave cologne by Coco Chanel. Funnily enough, the initials and logo of Coco Chanel is the same as King Carol the first of Romania. Exactly the same. Perhaps she was Romanian.
CS - How do you keep fit?
Lemmy - Being on stage with Motorhead is a pretty good workout. Two hours of exercising the diaphragm and the legs is ample. I have two more tours coming up. One in America with Judas Priest and Heaven and Hell, followed by another American one on our own, and then another here and Germany. I haven’t got a clue how many dates that is but it’s enough to keep me as fit as I need to be. Playing live is what I do. Travelling all over the world playing music to people and leaving them with a smile.
CS - Do you like watches?
Lemmy - I don’t really like wearing watches, I have this Rolex that was given to me by my agent but if you take it off, it stops. What’s the use of that? It’s fucking useless.
CS - How about an IPod?
Lemmy - I have an IPod but I don’t really use it as my roadie put all this music on it that I can’t bear. He put Doctor Dre on it so that’s not much use for me.
CS - What car do you drive?
Lemmy - Even though I live in LA, I don’t drive a car because I kept crashing them. It was too expensive. I gave up in 1966. That was the last time I drove on the road. I had a 1952 Chevy Coupe in 1966 – a monster it was – it cost me £36. Valve radio, power steering, power brakes. And that was in 1952, when we were making Ford Poplars. Even though the car was American I still couldn’t drive it as I was used to gear and it was automatic, and I changed down into reverse and crashed it. ‘Kachunga, kachunga,’ it went. Not a pretty sight. I just gave the car and the keys to a bloke at a petrol station and walked off.
CS - Is there one item you wear all the time?
Lemmy - The only thing I wear all the time is trousers because otherwise people tend to point at you if you don’t. I have been on stage in my Y fronts and it went down okay…
CS - Any fashion tips for the youth of today?
Lemmy - My fashion tip to anyone is don’t wear anything you could really be embarrassed about later. Think really hard about it because someone will always remember.
He chops out another few lines and pours me another drink. We demolish both.
CS - You were a roadie for Hendrix I believe. What was that like?
Lemmy - I roadied for Hendrix and The Nice but I couldn’t tell you what it was like man. I was on acid all the time. Everybody was on it. I didn’t know anyone who wasn’t on it. It was a very different time then. The acid was fucking strong then as well. When the acid came out in the Acid House in the late eighties, it wasn’t the same. We used to go to Richmond Park and we used to talk to the trees and the deer. You knew it was time to stop when the tree wins the argument.
CS - And Hawkwind?
Lemmy - Jesus H. Christ! We used to do a lot of Acid in Hawkwind. We used to go on stage tripping. I gave it up in 1975 because of their runs – it was repeating itself – like most drugs when you do them too often. But I only had one bad trip though from 67 till 75. I was out of it all the time so that’s not too bad.
CS - Did it teach you anything?
Lemmy - The one useful thing about that was that it taught me to function, no matter what condition I was fucking in. I could always deliver the gig. I got fired from Hawkwind for getting busted. So I started Motorhead. But when we get a new guy in Motorhead I always tell them, ‘I don’t care what you do after the show, it's your time, but when the show is on you must deliver the show. I don’t care if you’re tripping or speeding, whatever, but you have to deliver the fucking show!’ And that is why we are different from everybody else these days.
CS - What about all these tee-total bands you get these days?
Lemmy - Fucking shite. They go, 'I’m not drinking so neither can you!’ But what the fuck is that? ‘What if you want to stop. Don’t tell me to fucking stop ‘cos I am not you.’ You go back stage at these gigs and there are 12 bottles of mineral water and some wholemeal fucking bread. That’s not rock’n’roll – fuck off! Rock’n’roll is not being able to stand up but still being able to play your music.
CS - You’ve been known to like a bit of speed.
Lemmy - Oh yeah. I was taking speed before acid. We used to take these liquid meth ampoules thirty years ago. Speed is just a functional drug that will get you up on stage when you are really knackered. You’re like, ‘I can’t go on.’ So it’s like, ‘well have some of this’. Next thing you’re on stage and you’re off. You cannot do that on cocaine. Coke will make you stand up and look at the wall. I've tried all the drugs I could get my hands on – except smack and morphine – and I've never injected… that’s the beginning of the fucking end. Speed made sense. Doing gig after gig back when we started was how it started. We did 53 gigs in 56 days with Saxon in 1969 – that is ridiculous – nobody does that being high on life. I don’t care how many fucking vegetables you eat – you need a bit of help to do that.
CS - How was Yugoslavia in 1965?
Lemmy - We had dinner with Tito – he was at the far end of the table. It was a cultural exchange; England got the Red Army Orchestra but I think the Yugoslavians got the better deal. They went mad. Kids were setting their shirts alight. They had never seen an electric guitar before. They just wanted to touch it. But they had bad luck with that war. They always hated each other. We’d be in Slovakia and they’d say, like, ‘these fucking Croats they’re all assassins’, and we’d say ‘it’s the same country’ and they’d answer, ‘no it’s not - we fucking hate them!' Fact is. the Brits made a country after WW1 and stuck 'em all together and they hated it. Look at them now – they’re all split up and they’re happy. How could we have thought that it would work? But that’s how fucking arrogant we were. Don’t get me started on the British Empire.
CS - I heard you spoke to the Welsh Assembly.
Lemmy - Yes, and for the Conservatives as well. They’d seen some Channel 4 documentary where I said I hated heroin and they thought well let’s get him in and make him the voice of our party to attract the young vote, but I didn’t play by the rules I’m afraid.
CS - What did you say?
Lemmy - I told him that it should be legalized because they have thrown the police at it for 30 years and now there’s more smack on the streets than ever. And I fucking hate the shit and I’ve seen it up close with friends of mine. Evil shit. But at least if it was legal you could keep track of it. Because it would be the same powder, no one would be getting hotshots. It seems reasonable to me. I absolutely hate it but I cannot see a better way. About 3 weeks after I said this a load of college professors wrote in and said they agree. You cut out the dealers and all the shooting will stop.
CS - Yes I agree you don’t have turf wars with pharmacists. Boots versus Vantage Pharmacy over drugs.
Lemmy - (Laughs uproariously) You can imagine them hiring hit men. I want you to go round to Super Drug and shoot ‘em up. A league of eight pharmacists gets together.
He chops out another four lines and pours me another drink. We demolish all with aplomb.
Lemmy - You’ve done that before I see?
CS – Once or twice. How would you describe your politics?
Lemmy - I hate them all man. They are all lying, thieving bastards. As soon as they become the government they can’t resist; they take all these free flights and big houses and big cars. Course they are going to take them. But they are all bastards because they are not sharing it with ME! There is only one politician who always told the truth and that was fucking Hitler. He kept all his promise. He said he was going to kill all the Jews ten years before in a book that was available to everybody and, when he did, they all said, ‘What a surprise’. He said he was going to make Germany big again and he did. He said he was going to solve unemployment and he did that. Even Kennedy didn’t keep all his promises. He was the only one. Kind of unfortunate isn’t it really? The only example of an honest politician is Adolph fucking Hitler. Every one of them is a thieving fucking prince. Gordon fucking Brown, that bastard – a fucking rat – and Tony Blair, he’s the same. Glad they’re gone but now Cameron and fucking Clegg! Thatcher is starting to look pretty good here. When she went down I told people, ‘you’re gonna miss that woman and they laughed at me.’ Tony Blair put the Poll Tax through as the Community Charge and no one noticed. Fucking arsehole. Nobody brought him down. Why do they always have to shoot the good guys? Why can’t they shoot the arseholes? It’s a disgrace. Fucking Blair sold the country into slavery. Bastard should be imprisoned for life. Evil cunt!
CS - How do you get the Motorhead Sound?
Lemmy - Well they are making my amp now, which is great. It’s fucking loud. They’re also making a Lemmy bass, which is hand carved on the front. Originally, I had a Rickenbacker and the pick-ups weren’t so good so I got a Gibson Thunderbird pickup, which was a monster. Then it wore out. I have always had different pick-ups. Basically turn it all the way up and hit it really hard. I had these controls on me bass that went up to 13 - that was good.
CS - But you ended up singing as well?
Lemmy - I never wanted to be a singer. The singer left and the rest said go on you do it. I like singing now though. I’ve got a lot better at it.
CS - Why is your mike so high?
Lemmy - It’s more comfortable man. I don’t know how anybody sings with their head down. It’s really hard. Jimmy Epfield has his mike like that, down, so I asked him how he hit the high notes and he said, ‘Well I don’t.’
He chops out another few lines, but a lot bigger than the rest, and pours me another drink much larger than the others. We demolish all.
CS - I first met you at the Speakeasy.
Lemmy - Yeah I fucking remember. You were a fucking kid then. How old? 17?
CS - Spot on.
Lemmy - Lot of water under the bridge since then hey? I used to go to the Speakeasy all the time. I also used to go to The Embassy with Phil Lynott, which was funny because it was a gay club; and then all these punks started coming while all the other guys had these fucking tutus on. It was great fun because gay people have the best sense of humour. Murderous sense of humour. Really fucking funny. ‘Ooh I can’t wait for you dear.’ They are really fucking funny. I used to live above a team of gay guys. There was Johnny who was like this leather jacketed tough guy and then there was Mickey his lover, who was this little fella with a bald head and stubble, and Johnny used to beat him up so he used to come to my door and say ‘Johnny’s beat me up again’ and I’d invite him in for a cup of tea. Then one night there was this drag queens’ ball at the Lyceum and Mickey always went as Liz Taylor and I was sitting there on the windowsill of my flat tripping and Liz Taylor walks in through my door and she hikes up her skirt, dives on me bed and asks, ’do you think I look alright dear?’ Fucking great. That night Johnny couldn’t do enough for him. I got no problem with gay people. I don’t understand why people do. They’re not up your leg are they? If they’re into my thing I’ll tell them to stop but apart from that. Fair enough.
CS - But your audiences were always mixed. I’ve seen punks, Goths all sorts.
Lemmy - Yeah. In Toronto we had this kid with this hair that stood out for about a foot with spikes and everyone was standing about 10 feet away from him and I told the audience, ‘you should be shaking his hand’. He stands up for self-expression. He’s go the nerve to come here with all you cunts and he knew how you would treat him and then they were like, ‘oh alright then.’ I’m like you, have to tell them.
CS - But, as I said, punks love you
Lemmy - We always sounded a bit like a punk band and a bit like a rock’n’roll band. But know we sound like Motorhead. As we fucking well should after almost 40 years. Christ was younger than us when he fucking died.
CS - And had the same haircut as you.
Lemmy - If you believe the fucking hype. Contemporary observers have said he was short, hunched over, and had a baldhead. People weren’t that good looking back then. I don’t really go for all that walking over water stuff, looking like a film star. Not if he was Israeli. If he was Egyptian he might have looked cute as they know about make-up.
CS - Did you know that Jesus and the Apostles anointed them with liquid hashish mixed with olive oil? No wonder they thought he was walking on water.
Lemmy - Bloody fortunate that, hey! It was really shallow like the Serpentine.You fall out of the boat and it’s only up to your fucking knees.
He chops out another line and pours me another drink. We demolish both.
CS - You live in LA now.
Lemmy - I have been there 18 years. It’s fucking miserable in London now. It’s like Hull. Raining all the fucking time. Whatever weathers you fucking got, it’s always raining. People ask me, ‘Why did you move to LA?’ And I say, ‘Well the sun shines all the time so the chicks wear less clothing because of this and everything is half price - any questions?’ And they go, ‘No’. I should have gone 20 years before. The gas has gone up to $4 and they’re screaming. Here it’s 12 fucking dollars. They knew it was going wrong when they changed it to litres. A fucking con like when the country went decimal. A shilling was suddenly five pence and it was 12 pence before. Those bastards.
CS - How did you get your name?
Lemmy - I think my name is a Welsh insult. I got it when I was in primary school in Wales. All these years later and I still really don’t know what the fuck it means. People say its ‘cos I used to say, “lemmy have a couple o’ bob for the fruit machine’, but I don’t remember that.
CS - That’ll do.
Lemmy - Thank fuck for that. Now we can talk some real shit (he laughs uproariously again)
Subsequently, he showed me his collection of hand made cowboy boots and we indulged more and more until very, very late and parted with a big hug. As I reached the door I turned to wave goodbye. Lemmy gave me the thumbs up, swigged on his bottle of JD and shouted.
‘Look after yourself you old Welsh bastard…’
And those were the last words he said to me.
RIP Lemmy... One top bloke.