OvaryAction: So, have you ever thought of starting a girls band?
Jayne County : All the time. I know a lot of girls in New York, that would be great for that. They are all in so many bands…they are all so many in those 50s band. I was recording some stuff with the She Wolfs, that’s a girl band, there was a guy drummer, but he got qualified to be one of the girls. So I recorded some stuff with them: female guitar player and the bass player. “ Arnold Swarchnegger - California Über Alles”, on a German label, I did with the three of them. Thrash 2000 on The German Label.

OA: But you were not planning to play out, live?
JC: We talked about it….but it never happened. We were so busy, and I went back to London….cuz I was involved in this band (the Electric Chairs…) And I’ve got another band called the JC 5, if you’ve heard about them, and then playing in this third….so…well I don’t know. If it happens it happens.

OA: So how did you end up in England…in the end of the 70s and stuff? Performing in “Jubilee”, and all that?
JC: Alf Scottlan from Aries Records had been trying to get me to London. The new punk scene was really going, and we did good in the English punk scene cus its more theatrical, more showy, more fun. So we went there and played Roxy and it went down a storm. Better reaction there than in New York. You know New York and all that…njaaa- noooo...and London were all like yeah…yeah! It was fun.

OA: So you were introduced to Derrick Jarman?
JC: Jarman saw me do a gig and thought I was just perfect for Lounge Lizard. I was performing Paranoia Paradise live, and he thought that would be good for the movie as well. So that’s how that happened.

OA: What do you think about the girls in the English scene, then. The New York scene was pretty different, you had Lydia Lunch and Patty Smith and they were doing things totally different than the Slits for example.
JC: Yeah, totally differently.

OA: How did you feel about it? Did you get involved? Was it more a community?
JC: The London thing was more energy, more…everyone wanted to have more fun.

OA: And far as gender is concerned, were they political?
JC: No. There ware a lot of girls singers around, like X-ray Spex and Penetration. Siouxsie, of course.

And New York would mostly have…I think Debbie William (? Harry?). There was a more girl thing in England. Then Chrissy Hind came along, yeah. A lot better for girls in London. A lot better for me too, really.

OA: Didn’t you feel Lydia Lunch was inspiring for what you were doing as well?
JC: Yeah. I played with Lydia in a place called War Tap, and they were the Teenage Jesus and the Jerks. Lot of things was different, but it was similar to LA. A lot of new music was made….but the English thing was so much more fun, and the New York scene was really serious, you know. I liked the English scene a lot better, I had a way better time. More fun.

OA: Do you think they could challenge gender issues in a different way?
JC: I don’t know. The fans who came to see me, they were…well, it was not a big deal. But I guess the people who never heard me, who never knew me, for them it was a big deal. The fans were…loosen people up, have a good time… I appreciated that.

OA: For this compilation, is it only old recordings or did you remaster/re record?
JC: It is some new stuff on it. There’s a few new things on it, not a whole lot, but. It’s more up to date.

OA: Are you satisfied with it?
JC: We just dug it in the trash together…..no, when we get the artwork and everything down, we’ll see. Remains to be seen. I think it’s gonna be good. It’s a lot of material on that, double cd. We got a lot of stuff on it.

OA: So what do you think about the new queer punk, queer electro punk type of scene. Don’t you think you have done a lot of job for them? Do you find it exciting?
JC: Thanks a lot. I think maybe I made a little trail for people. I like that. Pioneer…getting in the wagon, going across the desert…. I hope that people can follow and find it easier to do. Instead of having difficulties, you know, I hope that something I did will make it easier for someone else.

OA: So whose track were you following? Who inspired you? Who gave you the strength? Besides Rock’n’Roll…
JC: Nobody….well, Rock’n’Roll inspired me….a lot of the crazy stuff in the 60s inspired me. That made you realize that you didn’t have to fit in the mould or the box, but create your own thing. A lot of people say about the 60s…blhuuuurrrgh…but I think that is bull shit. The 60s left it open for other people to be individuals. 60s had its purpose. 60s made it possible for the 70s to happen. People forget that. I don’t like that.

OA: How can you make sure that people remember things that are important?
JC: I can't…

Here it falls into a slight sidetrack of the interview containing finding some ketchup for the burger Jane is trying to consume while we have been doing this interview.

JC(the interview continues): We’ve got to go back to the Hotel, we have to get up at 9 o’clock in the morning, and we have a 7 hour drive to Stockholm. And then stay up all night after the gig to catch a flight back to London. Just thinking about it makes me feel crap. Oh lord….

OA:What did you do the past years?(yes, we are insisting)
JC: I’ve been playing, performing. I’ve been in LA, New York, mainly in US, and I spent some time in Boston. I’ve been playing a whole lot. And I love to DJ. I’ve been DJing a lot. And I stopped to DJ to tour again. I’ll just see how far I’m taking it this time….without dying…(laughing)

OA: What about California Über Aller… Isn’t it a bit paradoxical. I mean, they do have San Francisco there and as far as gender is concerned, there are more conservative places….and do you find it supportive?
JC: Ginger Coyote..she’s a trans performer. Look on the internet punk globe, Coyote is one of the first CA trans punk

End of the burger: our time was up, so we forced Jayne to do a jingle for our radio show, which took a while since radiOrakel is not really easy to pronounce in English. We departed shortly after this, happy but not totally satisfied....

kill your idols, not mine