Jim Carroll’s Interviews

Updated 18 October 2009

These,
arranged in reverse chronological order, represent just a few
of Carroll’s interviews. I continue to add more as I have time;
the newest additions are PDFs.

M. Patricia Li, “Basketball Diaries Author Bounces Back.”
Harvard Crimson 11 Feb. 2005.
This feature article in advance of an appearance by Carroll at
the Middle East Club in Cambridge, MA, includes a phone interview
in which Carroll offers some details about his novel, The Petting
Zoo. Download
PDF.

Billy
Manes, “Beyond Basketball and Diaries.”
MetroTimes 6 Nov. 2002.
Carroll talks about his novel-in-progress The Petting Zoo
and moving beyond autobiography.

Curtis
Ross, “‘Diaries’ Author’s Life an Open Book.” Tampa
Bay Tribune 1 Nov. 2002.
Carroll talks about his Vietnam draft physical, music, and why
it is he can write about himself so openly. Some other people
are also interviewed about how Carroll has impacted them.

Jason Louv, “Void of Course: An Interview with Jim Carroll.” Dangerous Minds 14 September 2009.
The interviewer explains, “In honor of the passing of Mr. Jim Carroll, I found an interview with him that I did one month after 9/11, in Saratoga, CA, at a reading from Void of Course. In it, he discusses the effect of the WTC bombing on life and art. Originally published October 24, 2001.” Download PDF | Original Article

Louise
Thach, “The Basketball Diarist: Jim Carroll Speaks
Out.”
Hudson Current 8 March 2001).
This
interview previews an performance in Hoboken. Carroll talks about
Maxwell’s (the venue) and the nature of spoken-word performance,
the Basketball Diaries film, and his changing audience.

Suzan
Alteri . “Unspoken Genius.” Real Detroit
Weekly 13-19 Jan. 2000.
In this lengthy cover-story interview, Carroll touches upon
many of his familiar themes, also answering a very unique question
at the end: “If there was fire and you only had time to grab
three things, what would they be?”

Having
Words With . . . Jim Carroll. Detroit.CitySearch.com
(2000).
Carroll covers the usual terrain, from
rock ‘n’ roll to the in-progress novels. One unique question he
addresses is, “do
you consider yourself a surrealist?”

Nate
Schweber. “Poets, Punks, and Scenes: An Interview with
Jim Carroll.” Kaimin Online 5 Nov. 1999.
This is an amazingly well-done interview that takes the old
chestnut questions and turns them around to make them fresh. Carroll
talks about how he got into writing (“I think if it wasn’t
for writing I probably would’ve wound up dead or totally
lost like a lot of friends of mine were”), Columbine, Keith
Richards, and counterculture.

Curtis
Waterbury. “Interview: Jim Carroll.” Portland
CitySearch.com 1 Oct. 1999.
Carroll talks about his return to the rock arena, his poetry,
and a Hollywood lawsuit.

Politically
Incorrect with Bill Maher. 8 June 1999.
Complete transcript of Carroll’s appearance on Politically
Incorrect. The main topic was Columbine.

Frank
DiCostanzo & Michael Workman, “Jim Carroll:
Caught in a Trap.” Lumpen Times 8 May 1999.
In this interview following a reading at Chicago’s
Hothouse, Carroll talks about the historical relationship between
poetry/spoken-word and music, the nuances of digital recording,
why many of the works in Void of Course are titled “Poem,”
and his thoughts on death. The article begins with a nice review
of Carroll’s performance.

Marlene
Goldman, “Mercury Rising: Jim Carroll Can’t Escape Rock &
Roll.” Rolling Stone (1999).
Carroll discusses Pools of Mercury and his return to rock
‘n’ roll, the deaths of Allen Ginsberg and William Burroughs,
Mayor Giuliani’s cleaned-up NYC, and Kurt Cobain.

Colin Devenish.
“Poet Jim Carroll Waxes Lyrical On Return To Rock.”
SonicNet Music News of the World 24 November 1998.
Carroll, Lenny Kaye, and Anton Sanko talk about Pools of Mercury.

“Quote
(Unquote): Jim Carroll.” SonicNet Music News of the World
24 Nov. 1998.
Carroll talks about college basketball.

Robert
Roth. “Fast Stories From Jim Carroll.” The
Rocket 4 Nov. 1998.
Carroll talks with Truly’s Robert Roth about train surfing,
his Basketball Diaries and people who died.

Steve
Baltin,
“Jim Carroll Moves Between Two Worlds.”
CDNOW.com
(1998).
Carroll talks about the motivations behind Pools of Mercury
and his experiences as a rock performer.

Jackie
McCarthy, “Alter Boy: Jim Carroll Rising.” Seattle
Weekly (1998).
Carroll talks about his Seattle connections.

Lisa
Scott,
“Catholic Boy Jim Carroll Returns to Rock.” Exclusive to The
Jim Carroll Website (1998).
In this insightful interview Carroll talks about how Pools
of Mercury evolved from pure spoken-word to a rock ‘n’ roll
album.

Jason
Knowles, Interview with Jim Carroll for BG 24 News (1996).
Jason Knowles interviewed Carroll at Bowling Green State University
shortly before Carroll’s reading. Carroll talks about his new
novels, how he wrote “8 Fragments for Kurt Cobain,”
rock ‘n’ roll, addiction, etc. The interview is transcribed, unedited,
from videotape. This web site is the only place the interview
is published.

Christina
Schmitt, Interview. Minnesota Daily Online (1996).
An excellent interview with Carroll–one of the best I have ever
read. Check it out!

Douglas A. Martin interviews Carroll for Flagpole (1996).
Part
I: April 10, 1996.
Part II: April 17, 1996.

Cindy
McGlynn,”Apollo on the Hudson.” Eye Weekly (1996).
Cindy McGlynn, of Canada’s Eye Weekly, assesses Carroll’s
career. Includes an interview. Download PDF

Thomas
Gladysz,”Jim Carroll: Verbal Entries.” Booksmith
Reader (1995).
This is an outstanding interview with Carroll by Thomas Gladysz
in The Booksmith Reader (on-line zine, 1995). Parts of
the interview originally appeared in The Street (San Francisco,
1987). The full text of the interview was published in X-Ray
(San Francisco, 1995).

Neil Gladstone, “20 Questions:
Jim Carroll,” Philadelphia CityPaper.net 20 July 1995.

Another good interview. Carroll discusses inspiration, his novels,
the Basketball Diaries film, young poets he admires, Patti
Smith, and how he feels about his book, The Basketball Diaries,
now.

Jon
Stewart. “The Street Side of the Game.”
Interview April 1995.
Carroll talks about “talks
about bouncing between the literary, jock, rock, and drug cultures”
in the context of the Basketball Diaries film.
This is close to a classic interview.

Andrew
O’Hehir, “A Poet Half-Devoured.” San Francisco
Bay Guardian (1995).
This is one of the most insightful articles on Carroll I have
ever read. O’Hehir focuses on The Basketball Diaries, trashes
Kalvert’s film, comments on Carroll’s poetry, and includes interview
comments from Carroll. A terrific article.

Chris
O’Connor,“Heaven in a Wild Flower.”Eye Weekly
(1992).
An insightful article that includes an interview with Carroll.
Horrifyingly enough (to me), Carroll talks about me! The article is also available as a PDF.

Frank
Andrick, “Back Beat: An Interview with Jim Carroll.”
Source unknown (1991).
An interesting interview (apparently a telephone interview) conducted
shortly after the release of Praying Mantis. Carroll discusses
how he came to record the album; his new novels; the relationship
between poetry, rock, and spoken word; Frank O’Hara; how and why
he published The Basketball Diaries; the St. Mark’s Poetry
Project; Patti Smith; and the National Endowment for the Arts.

Karla
Peterson, “Jim Carroll: From Poet to Rocker–and
Back.” San Diego Union (1989).
A preview article for one of Carroll’s appearances at the Spirit
club in San Diego. Includes telephone interview comments by Carroll;
this is the earliest article I have in which he mentions that
he is writing a novel.

Karl
Irving, “Nods of Days Gone By.” UC Santa Barbara
Daily Nexus (1986).
This
is an all-time classic Jim Carroll interview, especially when
Irving gets him talking about his visit to Germany with William
S. Burroughs. See also Irving’s accompanyting feature article,
“Visions from a Razor’s Edge.”

The
Jim Carroll Radio Special. Transcript. Atlantic Records (1984).

Transcript of a 45-minute special featuring a fascinating interview
with Carroll and selections from I Write Your Name.

Peter
L. Noble, Future Pop: Music for the Eighties (1983).
Carroll talks about John Belushi.

Elliot Lefko. “Carrolling On.” Shades 25, 26 (Sept., Nov. 1982).
The article, which features another photo by Peter Noble (see Future Pop above), describes the Jim Carroll Band’s third appearance in Toronto as an anonymous opening act for the J. Geils Band. Carroll talks about John Belushi, The Book of Nods (he goes into some detail about “Just Visiting,” then in progress), touring, punk rock, and going after a kid in “designer punk” who was wearing a swastika. Download PDF

Clarice
Rivers, “The Catholic Boy Confesses.” Interview (1980).
In this interview, conducted by Larry Rivers’s wife Clarice (a
good friend of Carroll’s), Carroll talks about his time in Bolinas,
the origins of The Jim Carroll Band and his entry into rock, and
the then in-progress Forced Entries and Book of Nods. Also availabe as a PDF.

Interviews LOST on the Web

These are interviews from 1995-1996, when
I was only linking to articles on the web to preserve copyright
integrity — that is, before I got smart and started “reprinting”
articles and maintaining them here. All of the links are dead.
If you are able to track any of them down to current locations,
please e-mail me!

Sonicnet,
Biography and Chat Transcript (November 1995).
http://www.sonicnet.com/sonicore/chat/bios/biobobs1.html
A five-page biographical essay on Carroll (written by someone
at Rhino records to promote A World Without Gravity) plus
a link to the transcripts of Carroll’s chat session on “Bob’s
Conscious Party” on Sonicnet 11/15/95.

NOTE: I’ve recovered all but one!