Thank You For Clapping. Interview and frameshots of Woven Hand at the Effenaar, Eindhoven (NL), 8 Februray 2003

Interview with David Eugene Edwards
on R.A.M. - VPRO TV
Effenaar, Eindhoven (NL)
8 February 2003

---David Eugene Edwards outside the Effenaar, Eindhoven---
---White Bird in the background---

David Eugene Edwards: "I know he loves me in spite of myself. I know he has forgiven me for what I have done. My desire is to please him. I just want to be like him."

---David Eugene Edwards inside the Effenaar, Eindhoven---

DEE:"I was raised by my mother but I spent a lot of time with my grandfather. He was a Nazarene, which is a fairly Southern... (errr.. I guess what must be the word) fundamental, fairly strict church... Protestant church. Women didn't wear pants, or make up, or you didn't go to movies. It's the same with a lot of different denominations. That's what I originally grew up in. And never outright conscious I'm rebelling against my parents or what they believe, or the church or what they believe. I never rebelled against that. I did rebel just because I guess I was a kid... and a human being, and so my nature is to do the opposite of what I'm supposed to do usually. I kept what I found at church when I was a little kid, and what I found at church was God, and what I found at church was Christ, and grace, and mercy and... unending love."

---footage of a church, crosses and candles---
---Story and Pictures fragment (during sound check)---

DEE: "My mum listened to gospel music like Andrae Crouch and really good music. Johnny Cash, Hank Williams, Buddy Holly ... my dad listened to that. And you know, .. getting older and going to school, meeting other kids, being exposed to other music rock 'n' roll, punk rock.. "

Interviewer: "And you didn't have this idea that you were not allowed to go there?"

DEE: "Probably I did. Growing up as a kid I always hated Christian music, you know.. _hated_ it, especially _that_ type. Regular Christian music, music in churches was fine, I loved that, but like you know, rock bands that were playing Christian rock or whatever... it was just such a formula you know what I mean, like you do it a certain way and it was always like they were pretending to be somebody else in the world, copying them, in order to get popular, to get their message across... which is maybe fine. I don't know. It's just not my way. Maybe I have too much pride for that."

I: "I read this book about Jerry Lee Lewis: "Hellfire". And it is really based upon the struggle that rock 'n' roll is connected to the devil, and he wants to do good, but he keeps being tempted by the music."

DEE: "I recognize temptation which is around me all the time, whether I am in a rock 'n' roll band or whether I work in an office."

I: "How do you deal with that?"

DEE: "Well you run!" [bright smile]
"You just turn and run as fast as you can. hahaha"

---footage of trees, lakes, leaves, meadows---
---Cripplegate fragment, DEE solo on banjo---

DEE: "I think just looking at people and speaking with people or seeing nature and the things around you and seeing God in that which is... you know the bible says that everyone knows that there's a God just because of that, because of a leaf,... or a star... or a piece of grass."

I: "I know you're not a Catholic but the pope said recently that God has turned his back on the world. What do you think of that?"

DEE: "I think more than anything man has turned his back on God, more than God would ever turn his back on man. Because God is present here and he keeps people smiling at each other, he keeps husbands loving wives and children, loving parents. Any love that is around comes from him and not from us. So it's obvious to me that he _is_ still here, and still giving us everything, even though we don't deserve it. People think that being a Christian means a form of slavery really ...and that is just a deception. _Without_ Christ is bondage, you know.
Christ is freedom. Freedom from sin. Freedom from yourself."

--- Arrowhead fragment (Eindhoven gig)---

DEE: "I don't know when I'm doing anything good. I don't see it"
I: "If you are on the stage, performing for people you touch people's hearts."
DEE: "God touches people's hearts... [shrugs one shoulder] ... not me"

Transcription by Marga

This interview was conducted by Dutch TV-station, VPRO at the Effenaar in Eindhoven (NL). The broadcast was on 11 February 2003 as part of an art programme called R.A.M. The theme for this 15th episode was Religion and Art. In between the interview, live versions of Story and Pictures, Cripplegate and Arrowhead. Frames wil be added later.