Originally published 13 February 2020
Passing Chords – a few things you may not know about…
Photo: David Flack
Brin Wood. Formerly and formally known as Brian Wood – a couple of years ago Facebook misspelled his name and turned him into Brin, and it stuck. After spending much of his youth playing in California with his band The Boogiemen he left music behind for 20 years, only to return to it after moving to Siem Reap. Recently he relocated to Phnom Penh, and he can be found playing here and there, both solo and with his band The Hollywood Hot Dogs.
Your pet musical hate:
The critics. I’d agree with Mozart: damn the critics. If they could play they would. They only write about it or complain about it because they can’t.
A private musical indulgence:
I love playing Latin percussion, bad as I am at it – all the little ones, the maracas. I love those instruments. I talked to Steve Allen one night on the radio, and I asked him if you could just be a musician for a night instead of being Steve Allen, and just be in the band, what would you play? He said nobody has never asked me that question in my life – and said he’d like to be the conga player. I can relate to that.
The year you first came to Cambodia:
I moved to Asia in 2012, and I first came to Cambodia in 2013.
An early music memory:
The Beatles’ first American TV appearance, on the Ed Sullivan Show in 1964. I was six or seven. My father hated The Beatles. My parents told me it would be too late and I’d have to go to bed, and I said no way, if I have to run away from home to go watch it in front of the television shop I will. Before that all I cared about was Mozart, Gilbert and Sullivan, Beethoven. After I saw The Beatles, I said that’s it. Ironically my father became a huge Beatles fan later in life, and one of my favourite quotes is from him: “Well, there’s Beethoven, Mozart, The Beatles… and everybody else.”
Your favourite food:
I love French cuisine. But if I could only eat one food for the rest of my life it would have to be tacos carnitas – with beans and rice.
What you do on a night off:
Usually find my other drunken musical friends and hang out with them.
The country you want to visit:
I haven’t been to Amsterdam yet. The Van Gogh Museum is number one on my bucket list. He opened my eyes. I shall never paint a sunflower, it’s been done.
A stage habit or superstition you have:
I’ve learned you cannot have such a thing as a lucky pick.
Something people might be surprised to know about you:
After I retired, before I moved permanently to Asia, I was asked by the local high school board to act as a kind of liaison between the administration and the students – somebody to help the kids sort out their problems so that they didn’t have to go straight to counselling, didn’t have to go straight to the administration. Many of the kids just didn’t have adequate skills to deal with problems, so they got involved in guns, abuse, that sort of thing. My job was to be there, be friendly, approachable and support the kids. It was a great job, I really loved it, and I did it for nine years on and off.
A question from last week’s participant, Donnie Pardell: are you most at home in the studio environment or playing live gigs?
Live. Absolutely. When I used to do studio stuff with my band and we got done recording I would say, okay, I’m leaving. And they say: we’re going to mix it now. And I said have fun. Don’t you want to help? You don’t want me to help. If I’m in there it’ll never get done. Optionitis – and then pretty soon I’ll say just throw it out.