This is New Wisco Weekend, I'm Lisa Hale.
Our musical act this week is The Bowdeens, a rock band from Waukesha that got a lot
of attention in the 90s when their song, Closer to Free, was the theme song for the TV
show Party of Five.
They're still at it and they appeared on Civic Media's Nightlife with Pee Chwaba on Monday
and here are The Bowdeens.
Welcome back.
This is Nightlife with Pee Chwaba.
I am Pee Chwaba, great to have you with me.
Let me know your thoughts.
Right now, I'm very excited to welcome my next guest.
In the 90s, I discovered, actually was the 80s, I discovered The Bowdeens and I eventually
got to know them a little bit, specifically Kurt Newman who wrote a movie score for my
film The Godfather of Green Bay and I've just been a huge fan ever since and I'm very
thrilled to welcome him on to Nightlife for the first time Kurt Newman, the front man
and founder of The Bowdeens.
Hey, buddy.
Hey, Pee, how you doing?
Doing very well.
This is kind of cool.
When I discovered you guys, outside looking in had just come out, but I had to go back
and check out Love and Hope and Sex and Dreams.
That has a 40 year anniversary coming up.
What are your thoughts on that?
It was such a breakthrough album.
I think it was Rolling Stone, said you guys were the breakout band of the year in 1986
or 1987.
How do you feel about Love and Hope and Sex and Dreams all these years later?
You know, I'm proud of it.
It was a good record.
It was a great snapshot of the band, you know, where they were at that time in our careers
and so I just kind of feel like it's a celebration of 40 years of singing songs with all these
different fans in all these different cities, all these different places and people who
have been connected to the music for so many years and so that's kind of the way I'm
looking at it.
You know, obviously Love and Hope and Sex and Dreams is part of that history, but I kind
of see all the records as part of that history, you know, and every day going forward, you
know.
That is fantastic.
I, I'm just going to share how I discovered the bowteens.
It was 1987 and I was in my dorm room at the Paul University and a buddy of mine comes
in and says, Hey, I got an extra ticket for you too.
And I almost passed, I'm going to see you two for 20 bucks at the Rosemont Horizon.
I'm so glad I went because I got into you guys.
You were the opening act.
And when you said we're from Waukeshaw, Wisconsin, the place went nuts because you guys
were so close to home.
And that was the first time I saw you guys and I've been hooked on your music ever since.
It's been just so much fun.
It's your favorite venue to play, Kurt.
You've played huge venues and you played these little ones.
Do you have a sweet spot where you like a live crowd and venue signs?
You know, it's the thing to say about that is it's not the physical location like a venue
or anything like that.
It's the crowd that shows up for a band that makes all the difference in the world for
the band.
You can be in a tiny place, you can be in a huge space.
If the crowd is there and they're into it, then it's the best show.
It's because that's really, that's the only reason I'm there, you know.
I can play music in my living room all I want and enjoy music, but what I'm trying to
do is come on and play a show and do it with people, with the audience, you know.
We're trying to all come together.
I tell people every night when I play that music has a healing quality to it and this world
right now could really use some healing quality.
There's been so much division and pulling apart and I just think music has a magical
ability to pull people back together.
You forget all your strange belief systems for a while and you just get into the music
and you sing songs together and you remember your humanity and so that's why I still
to this day love playing music and just getting in a room and like let's put all the
soul aside and just come together and sing some songs together.
Remember like what really matters and what feels so great and healing to your soul.
Yeah, everybody wants respect, just a little bit of everybody needs a chance once in a
while.
Everybody wants to be closer to free.
Yeah, everybody wants everybody to everybody free.
Everybody needs to touch, you know now and then and everybody wants a good friend.
Everybody wants to be closer to free.
Thank you for being a part of Newiska weekend.
More issue focusing on rock and roll in the 4th of July holiday.
Newiska weekend is produced and written by Terry Barr and Lisa Hale.
Our executive producer is Todd Michaels, directed by Lisa Hale.
Lead correspondent and just Terry Barr, with features this week by Melissa K, Joanne Crouletz,
and Pete Schwabba.
Our commentator is Amanda Nimmer.
If you have a story you'd like to hear covered, please feel free to email me at any time.
This is Lisa.Hale at civicmedia.us.
I'm civic media Northeast Wisconsin Bureau Chief Lisa Hale for WISS and WGBW News.
Be unstoppable.
