Atlanta Journal Northside Review Interview, 5.18.07
Q&A: The Swimming Pool Q's

Cows, road signs, misread lines inspire group

Northside's many outdoor concerts often host bands that play golden oldies from the '40s, '50s and '60s. But at least one concert this summer will feature a welcome throwback to Atlanta's New Wave music scene of the '70s and '80s.

The Swimming Pool Q's formed in 1978, and by the early 1980s, critics were celebrating the band's new sound —- along with the B-52s, R.E.M. and several other Georgia bands —- as a new genre in rock music.

But the Swimming Pool Q's are no museum piece. For nearly 30 years the band members have managed to pursue separate endeavors, yet stay connected musically. Their 2003 album, Royal Academy of Reality, was acclaimed by Rolling Stone, The Village Voice and The Washington Post, among others. And the band is working on a new album called Suddenly Not Yet. A single, "The Whisper Trees," is due to be released this summer. The band performs July 7 in the Roswell Riverside Sounds concert series.

Northside Weekend talked with singer/songwriter Jeff Calder, who started the group with guitarist Bob Elsey.

Q: The Q's sound seems part rock, jazz, fusion and possibly more. Do you still consider it New Wave?

A: You're right. Even at the time that we started, New Wave was just a world we came from. We shared elements of that movement, but we were a very individual band ... we were constantly evolving.

Q: An early song, "Rat Bait," is an outrageous tune with the line "Roy's like a cow with a bloodshot eye ... Watch it rat bait." Did you write that with someone special in mind?

A: That's an early song I wrote in 1978. Bob [Elsey] wrote the music. ... I heard a farm report on a radio broadcast while I was driving through North Carolina. Someone was selling a cow with a bloodshot eye. As that was happening I went by a road sign with crude letters that said "rat bait." Bob had a killer riff to the music, and I said "This is really good; add this."

Q: What kinds of reactions do you get to that song?

A: That's a defining and popular song. We played it at the Georgia Music Hall of Fame [in 2004]. ... It was the most radical moment to ever happen at that event. It's a staid program. Some people liked the song. Some were befuddled. "Rat Bait" is not the song you would expect to hear. My friend Mike Clark [the late co-owner of Southern Tracks studio] pulled some strings and got us on the show. He insisted we play "Rat Bait."

Q: In nearly 30 years the group has never broken up. What do you attribute to your longevity?

A: It's like growing up with a second family. You learn to let people be themselves and go in whatever direction they want to individually. It's made our music have a lot of diversity.

Q: Where did the name Swimming Pool Q's come from?

A: In the mid-1970s, I misread a line in a detective novel about a bar fight. It said, "swinging pool cues." I thought it said "swimming pool cues." ... When it came time for us to name a band, it seemed like a good name. Cues was modified into Q's. Plus the letter Q has an allure. And the rest is perhaps history.

—-Adrianne M. Murchison