Tim Burgess's Hollywood drive-by
Tim Burgess's Hollywood drive-by
Planning a summer trip to LA? Let The Charlatans' singer be your guide
Tim Burgess likes Hollywood. He likes Charlie Chaplin, Dirty Martinis, the wildlife - "coyotes, deer, rats, squirrel-type things, rattlesnakes, possums, skunks" - and the 24-hour drug store chain Sav-0n. He once got "this whole history lesson about the El Ray Theater" from Michael Douglas, and just before we meet up with him outside the Best Western Hotel on Franklin, he's seen Ray Liotta in a car. "He gave me that stare."
Hollywood has been home for Burgess since I998. Charlatans tours gave him the taste. "We've always come here - always have fun here," he says. "It mostly revolves around drinking and partying, as Whitney Houston calls it." Between records with the band, he's been keeping busy with DJ work and a solo project.
The album he recently attributed to West Coast isolation is nearly done. "I love it - it's everything to me," he says. "I like to keep making music and that's what I did in my spare time. I based one track on the scene in Lost Highway, that bit where Bill Pullman's playing a mad saxophone. I got the guy to keep intensifying his playing. He did five takes and the last one was fuckin' mental and blew my head off."
Overall, he reckons, it's the sort of thing that he would DJ. "A lot of stuff has a similar thread but it's pretty varied. A bit of funk, reggae, country, bit of Burt Bacharach, bit of Philly Soul. And there's a bit of country pickin' on there," he adds.
His "studio" is a bedroom at the top end of Hollywood, behind the Kodak Theater where the Oscars are held. In collaboration with his mate Linus, Burgess pulled in several guest musicians, including Roger Manning ("plays with Beck, played on The Vines' record"), Probyn Gregory from The Wondermints and a I7-year-old drummer called Adam.
"I like making sounds that are brilliant no matter whether they're played on a sledgehammer or a banjo. "The final mix should be done by the end of April. All being well, it'll be out in the summer. "It's probably more indulgent than I should be allowed to do," he says. "But so what, I'm enjoying it. It's me. I think people who would be into my record would be into a Charlatans record - it's another way of trying to turn people on to the core of the band".
Next up is Charlatans single "Feel The Pressure", produced in England by Tom and Ed from The Chemical Brothers. "It's kind of disco rock," he says. "That would be the perfect next step I suppose from Wonderland. We're doing T In The Park and Manchester and I think we'll finish the album by the end of the year."
For now, though, he's showing us round the things he's into, the shops he uses, the bars he leans on, the garage he takes his car to and the pizza restaurant he calls "the office". So, where to first?
1 Amoeba Records - Sunset Blvd
"It's only been here for about a year, maybe a little longer, but I knew about it from San Francisco. A friend of mine, Randy, was going to be working here - so I saw it getting built up really. I came on the opening day or something sick like that. I don't like it but I do occasionally spend a lot of money on records, stupid-priced stuff, but this is pretty cheap: a lot of vinyl, a lot of second-hand stuff, big selection, DVDs and everything, enormous. I bought all the Sesame Street records. I guess back in the day everybody used to go on Sesame Street. You've got the soul section at the back. I'm getting into reggae. I live on Cahuenga so it's about a ten-minute walk. I guess this part of Hollywood used to be pretty dangerous, now it's been built up into record shops and cinemas."
2 Arclight Cinema - Sunset Blvd
"Before the film, this guy tells you about the director, what he's done before, the history of the building and if you need anything give him a shout, basically. I think it's pretty great really. A lot of people in Hollywood, like in any major city, are tourists so I guess it's the Hollywood experience. Everyone's trying to give someone the Hollywood experience, especially at the cinema."
3 Las Palmas Market - Fountain & Las Palmas
"This is a different side of Hollywood, where my friends live. I buy beer here - Pacifico. I've got a bunch of friends who live down the street, so I guess we just come here to restock, get more alcohol really. I DJ'd in my friend's garden, the Black Rebel Motorcycle Club were doing a video, I came here to get more Pacifico and vodka. The building reminded me of a record by Little Feat, the Seventies rock band. I like it, it's got some sort of weird appeal. It actually looks very New York."
4 Raffallo's Pizza Restaurant - Hollywood & La Brea
"I want to do a gig here, if and when my record comes out, seeing as we come here every day. It's shabby chic. I think the owners are from Guatemala - it's Guatemalan-Italian food. When I first came to LA I lived on (nearby) Lanewood. So this is my first area. It's always open. The jukebox has Beatles, Creedence, Neil Diamond - I don't really know a lot about Diamond - "Yellow Submarine", Carpenters, Roy Orbison, Donna Summer's "On The Radio" - it's pretty good to hear that when you have pizza. Love it. At Halloween and Christmas, they decorate it really brilliantly. As if it's not already dressed up. It's a lovely place. There's a snake candle, like something out of a Ken RusselI film - I like to call this place my office. We retire here, get a bit of inspiration, talk about The Beatles, listen to the jukebox, eat a medium mushroom pizza. We have the same thing everyday I have a routine because I think everything else in my life becomes non-routine, spontaneous. I have one ritual a day I can rely on. It's the same every time. It's always delicious. The placemats say: 'Those who bring sunshine to the lives of others cannot keep it from themselves'."
5 The Grove Shopping Mall - Third Street
"Really good at Christmas - fake snow, 7 o'clock every night. You're in LA and it's snowing. I don't think it's snowed for 40 years, has it, but they're dead thick here."
6 Farmer's Market- Third & Fairfax
"It's an indoor market. No big deal really I suppose gift shops selling Hollywood tack. The first time I came here was for my wife's birthday on Halloween, so we came here to buy pumpkins from a big pumpkin patch. Then I stumbled across the hot sauce shop, and then got some catfish because I really like Southern American food, and then drank some beer. I like the idea of all the restaurants and places to eat and drink in the middle of it. I like the novelty aspect of some shops - I've bought everybody I know an ashtray that says their name and then 'butts' -'Mark's butts', 'Martin's butts'. Or a numberplate with California on it. Once you're in the middle of it it's really chilled. The hot sauce shop is amazing. I send that over to my family, big hot sauce fans. You can get most of it there, the ones that pretty much kill you, that have 'danger' written on the bottle. It's really casual, no-one's rushing anywhere. I love the atmosphere, Saturday afternoon, in Hollywood. You don't get this anywhere I don't think. You get the old people down here, no-one's scared, it's got every different kind of person in the world, there's a bunch of kids running around as well. It's an old style community. Mark (Charlatans) was buying his papers from here."
7 Well Oiled Auto Repair Shop - Melrose & Sycamore
"It's a good part of town. A cool auto shop, owned by a guy from London, Dave. I always see him in the Cat & Fiddle pub. Nice guy. I've got a car but I don't really consider it mine. I really want an old car, a classic Lincoln Continental - I guess that's the dream. I'll ask Dave to look out for one for me. Quite a lot of celebrities bring their cars here, everyone brings their car here Vinnie Jones, David Arquette: saw him at a party the other week actually, and his missus. The band were The Fab Four. They came out in black and did the early Beatles, then took a break and came back as Sergeant Pepper-style Beatles. And John Fogerty got on stage from Creedence, sang 'Bad Moon Risings'."
8 The Cat & Fiddle Pub - Seward & Sunset
"It's definitely like a British bar. The first time I came here was 1991 and the band played at the Palladium and had a party here. But the next time I came I couldn't remember where it was. I think between four and 7o'clock you get free food here - I think pretty much everyone we know comes here around that time."
9 In-N-Out Burger, Restaurant Chain - Sunset Blvd
"As far as fast food goes, Big Boy is pretty good but In-N-Out is by far the best. Fresh cooked, queue up in a little line, get it. It's the Charlatans' favourite burger and it's really close to the Roosevelt Hotel, on Sunset. David Lynch used to sit in the Riverside Big Boy - we're connected by burgers."
10 Roosevelt Hotel - Hollywood Blvd
"The place the Charlatans prefer to stay, on Hollywood and Orange. I used to live right behind it - on the first New Year's Eve in LA, we booked a room in the Roosevelt. It was a stone's throw away. I fell in love with the place, there's a lot of history. My favourite TV show, Curb Your Enthusiasm, had a couple of scenes in the Roosevelt. There's a statue of Charlie Chaplin, it used to be Marilyn Monroe's favourite hotel, the swimming pool is amazing and Mark likes to stay in the Cabana rooms. It's really brilliant and it's not that expensive - we get it for $90 a go with the Charlatans discount card. It's in Catch Me If You Can, and it's supposed to be haunted. There's something very cool about it, and we have parties here. I like the Standard on occasions but it's more like a pick-up joint. Chateau Marmont, brilliant. We had the launch party of Us And Us Only there. I think Tony (Rogers) was sleazing on the owner just for future benefits."
11 Canter's Deli & Restaurant - Oakwood & Fairfax
"My dad's from Salford. There's quite a few Orthodox Jews in Salford and I guess he felt at home in Canter's. He's not Jewish but loves the food. He's probably known it for a long time. It's got a history and a mystique to it. I don't know what it is - maybe he could relate to it. I like it because I like the food. Pancakes, potato cakes and the matzo ball soup is mind blowing. I'm pretty good at making it as well, just with packet stuff, throw in a bit of vegetables, chicken and stuff. It's an old place. I notice all the old staff and they're still using paper to add up, the old tills and all that sort of stuff and you're thinking: 'I'm in a time warp'. And there's a special box, like in church and you put a donation in there - it's old and cool. Apart from the food it's like stepping back into another time. So it's like fantasy land in a way."
12 Erewhon Supermarket - Beverly Blvd
"I like the occasional salad It's a deli really: get your samosas, bottle of wine, sit in the park. I go to Griffith Park, sit out at Bronson Canyon, stuff like that, let my dog escape and run around and piss on people's blankets. It's a Yorkshire terrier. Dylan Keith Hollywood Burgess"
13 The Farmer's Daughter Motel - Fairfax
" haven't stayed there but every time I drive past it the signs are always appealing -'Our rooms are tops'. I've read that a bunch of writers back in the day used to stay there."
14 Musso & Frank's Restaurant - Hollywood & Cherokee
"I like the idea of Fifties-style Hollywood and it reminds me of that. The waiters still wear a uniform. And apart from looking beautiful they do the best Dirty Martinis which I've only become accustomed to since I've been in Los Angeles. I've a real taste for them. It's amazing - Martinis and me. I like meeting people here that I've not seen for quite a long time - and I like it midweek. I sit at the bar. Another great place for that, although it's a much more modern kind of joint, is the Hamburger Hamlet - I like sitting at the bar there, next to the Roosevelt Hotel. Pretty good Martinis, and you get a steak, burger, vegeburger, whatever. Hollywood is straight trippin'. My wife turned me on to Dirty Martinis. She became incredible at making cocktails. I was drinking a vodka and tonic or something and had a sip of hers. My friend Harry likes Apple Martinis which I don't think are quite as good but they're still pretty good - slightly sweeter."
15 Lucky Duck Restaurant - La Brea & Wilshire
"They do Kiwi Fruit Martinis -and it's a cross between Japanese, Thai and Chinese food. And it's owned by a guy who manages New Order in America, Tommy Atencio. Martin out of The Charlatans wanted to create a programme called RockChef. Mick Jagger cooking some beans on toast. Robert De Niro's big on the cooking."
16 Birds Restaurant - Franklin
"I like it for the Alfred Hitchcock photos and I've always thought it's a great name for a place that specialises in chicken. It's pretty good day and night. I love the booths and the turkey and cranberry sandwich - it's like a Christmas dinner sandwich every single day. Pretty cool. The atmosphere's really good here, the bar's really good, and you can get pretty good Martinis. And it's really close to my house too."
17 Mullholland Drive
"When we were doing Wonderland, the guys were staying at Oakwood apartments so I used to meet them way over there, and drive up Mullholland to Laurel Canyon, Lookout Mountain and Wonderland. Driving up here in the dark is exciting and I was convinced that the opening credits for Lost Highway were done up here. I'm probably wrong. This one street is up there with Abbey Road for me. I'm sure a lot of shit has gone down and I'm sure a lot of good has been had. And a lot of evil - that's the mystery of it, the mystery of a good street. It's life and death isn't it? Good and bad - isn't everyone obsessed with that?"
Hobson Ramone