I would tell her to follow her heart, don't let anyone tell her anything different from what she feels. If she feels like touching something, then touch it.”
Lita Ford: Hello!
Wikimetal (Nando Machado): Hi, this is Nando from Brazil, how are you, Lita?
LF: Well, it's a pleasure.
W (NM): So, Lita, when you started your career, there weren't many girls playing guitar back then. What was that like for you? And who inspired you to become a guitarist?
LF: My inspirations were Ritchie Blackmore from Deep Purple, Johnny Winter… I liked Jimi Hendrix from Black Sabbath, you know, many of the heavy metal guitarists.
W (NM): And no girl inspired you?
LF: No, well, there weren't many girls, there weren't any. I liked Janis Joplin as a singer… I liked Mick Jagger as a singer, but there weren't any female guitarists.
W (NM): So, when you played in The Runaways, you basically did background vocals and played guitar. So what was the process like learning to sing as a lead vocalist and play guitar at the same time? Did anyone help you back then?
LF: No, nobody helped me, I learned on my own. I went to a big warehouse where I rented a guitar… Sorry, I rented a PA system, not a guitar, I had my own guitars. I rented a PA system and I taught myself to sing and play at the same time because I wanted to form a band, and I thought about finding a lead singer to be the singer of my band, but I couldn't find anyone. I had difficulty finding female singers, so, you know, “I can't find anyone to do this, so I'll do it myself.” And I rented a warehouse and taught myself to sing and play at the same time. And it wasn't easy, it was difficult.
W (NM): I imagine so, and we're glad you made that decision.
LF: Thank you. You know, that's why Jimi Hendrix was an inspiration, and that's why Johnny Winter was an inspiration, because they were singers and they were guitarists at the same time. I always looked at them and thought, "Wow, how do they do that?" You know, it's like multitasking.
W (NM): We have a classic question on our show, changing the subject, Lita, that we ask everyone we interview: imagine you're driving your car, listening to a rock station on the radio, or listening to your iPod on shuffle, and a song starts playing that makes you completely lose control. What song would that be, so we can listen to it on our show right now?
LF: Oh… Oh, my God…
W (NM): Everyone has the same reaction when we ask that question.
LF: Ah… “Balls to the Wall” by Accept. Do you guys have that one?
W (NM): Yes, of course, from the legendary German band Accept, “Balls to the Wall”!
LF: That's it! “You'll get your balls to the wall, man!”
W (NM): This is just a curiosity, in the "Out For Blood" video, we can see that you have a bruise on your left arm. How did that happen?
LF: Yes, I noticed that in the video, and I couldn't believe they didn't cover it, what were they thinking? I used to play racquetball… Do you know what racquetball is? Do you have racquetball in Brazil?
W (NM): Yes, we have.
LF: I used to play racquetball, and we played a lot, and it looks like I was hit by the ball, because there's a round mark on my arm.
W (NM): How funny.
LF: It's the only thing I could think of... I used to get hit all the time, you know, I'd be covered in bruises.
W (NM): You have many great songs in your career, and also incredible collaborations. Could you share some memories of creating these great songs, such as “Close My Eyes Forever”, “Can't Catch Me” and “Falling In And Out of Love”?
LF: Oh my God, yes… Well… “Close My Eyes Forever” was a song I wrote with Ozzy, and it was funny when we wrote it, because it wasn’t a session, actually, it wasn’t something we had planned to do. They had – Ozzy and Sharon came to the studio while I was recording, and I had just bought a new house, and they bought me a life-size replica of a gorilla – Coco the gorilla, from the San Diego Zoo in California.
W (NM): Seriously?
LF: It was the size of a real gorilla. It was a giant stuffed animal… And Ozzy and I started playing pool, we were drinking wine, we were having a little party, you know, just me and Ozzy. And we started writing, we started playing and singing Black songs, and when I realized it, it was dawn, and I had to drive home, and I was drunk, I couldn't drive, and I had Coco, the gorilla… I had to get home, so I tied Coco, the gorilla, to the front seat of my car, and then Ozzy wanted me to take him home, and I said, “No, I can't drive because I drank too much wine.” And I ended up putting Ozzy in a taxi, and the taxi took Ozzy home. Then I got in my truck with Coco, the gorilla, tied to the front seat, hoping I wouldn't get pulled over by the police on my way home… That's a funny memory.
W (NM): And nobody filmed that?
LF: No, everyone had left, we were the only ones there.
W (NM): That would be a funny video.
LF: Yes, everyone films everything these days.
W (NM): Yes, I know, that's why I asked. If it were today, it would be very difficult to escape. Anyway, what was it like being managed by Sharon Osbourne?
LF: It was OK. She's a good agent. But at the time, she was having a lot of family problems, and it was difficult for her to manage me because she was dealing with so many issues. So that started to affect me as an artist, and I had to leave her. I love Sharon, but I had no choice.
"So I rented a warehouse and taught myself to sing and play at the same time. And it wasn't easy, it was hard."
W (NM): Speaking of your new album, congratulations on “Living like a Runaway.” It’s very different from “Wicked Wonderland.” Could you tell us a little about the process of creating such a great album again?
LF: He's doing really well. Really well, so far everything's fine. We're getting a lot of airtime with the song "Living Like a Runaway." "Living Like a Runaway" is getting a lot of airplay. It's everyone's favorite so far. And yesterday we did an autograph session at a record store, and everyone bought the album, there must have been about 200 albums, 250, 200 albums that people bought – CDs and vinyl, now the vinyl is out too. People are starting to collect vinyl again, which is phenomenal.
W (NM): Yes, I think it's great. People want the real thing again.
LF: Yes, they want it. And it's beautiful, it's a very pretty vinyl, it's red, candy apple red.
W (NM): And still talking about your last album, what was it like working with Gary Holt on the new album? He's a great musician too, isn't he?
LF: Gary was a blessing. We were looking for a producer at the time, I had talked to many producers… I couldn't get the right answer from these guys, I couldn't get them to commit to recording this album, they weren't convinced. And they all thought, “No, it's going to be too dated, or it's going to sound too 80s…”. They were full of excuses because they couldn't record, they didn't want to record. And then I met Gary, and Gary was nothing like that, Gary literally finished my sentences. I would start a sentence and Gary would finish it. It was almost like we were reading each other's minds, it was incredible, it was meant to be. And when we got together in the studio, we were able to work together as musicians and we felt the same things, like, I would say, for example, “Gary, what if we put a rhythm guitar here on the acoustic, and some tambourines there…” and Gary would say, “Yes, great idea!”. We gave the album our original performance, and we stuck with it. The vocals on the album are the original performances; they weren't redone over and over again… Some producers make you redo your vocals to the point where it becomes sterile. There's no feeling anymore; it might be in the right key and completely in tune, but it loses the sensation. It's almost like when you have sex for the first time with someone you love—it's that feeling you can't reproduce. And I think we managed to capture that on this album by keeping the original vocal and guitar performances. We didn't cut and paste in Pro Tools; sometimes you can edit in Pro Tools… For us, I think that's a lazy way to record. So we didn't cut and paste anything; everything was recorded originally. The second verse is different from the first, the third verse is different from the second, so it maintains your interest. You know, you're not hearing the same thing over and over again.
W (NM): Excellent, I think that's reflected in this great album you released. So could you choose a song from your career that you're very proud to have written, so we can hear it on our show now?
LF: Oh, wow… Of course, a lot of people are playing “Living like a Runaway” here in the United States.
W (NM): I know you've probably answered this many times before, but I have to ask you anyway. Is there any chance of The Runaways getting back together, maybe on a tour or a show or something?
LF: I really don't know. I know Cherrie already said yes, and I know I'd be up for it in a heartbeat, but I don't know what Joan is up to, you know, it depends on Joan, she hasn't committed yet. And we'd have to put together a rhythm section… I don't know, it depends on Joan.
W (NM): The other question that you've probably answered 200 times already, for sure, and I have to ask again is: what did you think of the movie?
LF: I didn't watch it.
W (NM): Really?
LF: Yes, I don't want to see it. I'm not interested in watching it; I don't think it's faithful to what The Runaways really were, from what I understand from what the fans who watched it told me. So I have no desire to watch it. I saw the trailer, and that was enough for me.
W (NM): OK, OK. So, changing the subject again, you're touring with Poison and Def Leppard. Is that a lineup you'll continue to do together? And what's your relationship like with those guys?
LF: Oh, they're great, it's like touring with a bunch of older brothers. They're very cordial, they do everything to help, they… It's a great honor to be part of this tour and to tour with these wonderful musicians and great people. They've been very good to us.
W (NM): And do you think Brazilians can dream of seeing this lineup here?
LF: I don't know what the future holds, but I hope it takes us to Brazil. I think it's about time.
So we go to the children's hospital to play guitar, and we donate all the profits from the shows to the fight against breast cancer.”
W (NM): One of our presenters, Daniel, is in New York right now, he's going to watch you guys, so he's very excited about it.
LF: Which show is he going to?
W (NM): Near New York.
LF: Yeah, cool.
W (NM): We know you're involved in helping raise funds to fight breast cancer. Could you tell our listeners a little about your involvement with such a noble cause?
LF: Yes, my mother died of breast cancer. And since my mother passed away in 1990, I've been helping the Hard Rock. Every year I help the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino with donations for breast cancer and children with cancer. So we go to the Joe DiMaggio Children's Hospital to play guitar, play acoustic guitar and talk to the children, and we donate all the profits from the shows to the fight against breast cancer.
W (NM): So, speaking of Brazil, when will Brazilians finally be able to see Lita Ford? Have you been to Brazil yet?
LF: No, never. But I lived in Miami for a long time, and there are many Brazilians living in Miami. But that's not the same as coming to Brazil, I know. I'll keep my fingers crossed hoping we can go soon. It's long overdue.
W (NM): Yes, you're right. We're almost finished with our interview. What would you say to a 15-year-old girl who is starting to play guitar and sees you as a role model?
LF: I would just… I would tell her to follow her heart, and do what's in her heart, don't let anyone tell her something different from what she feels. If you feel like you want to touch something, then touch it. Don't let people change you.
W (NM): I think the girls will like to hear this. So, before we finish, I'd like to thank you for your time, Lita, and thank you for your latest album, we really think it's great, and we'll be here trying to find a way to bring you to Brazil. We're in contact with many promoters here, I'm sure we'll meet soon, and I hope you put on a great show in New York. And leave one last message for our listeners, please.
LF: Okay, this is Lita Ford. God bless you all, and I hope to see you soon.
W (NM): OK, Lita, thank you again, all the best, we hope everything goes well for you.
LF: Thank you, I hope to see you soon. I would love to.
W (NM): OK, thank you very much. See you later.
LF: OK, bye!
W (NM): Bye!
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