gary numan interview 1979

[kataka64]

remind me to smile...

[zarathustra2k1]

Where the Machmen meet...

[ambertjeblue]

Love Gary Numan. I know he does'nt like to look back at his older hits, but I loved them so much then, and still love them now. So glad he keeps doing it.

[dreadedwheat26]

i understand his strangeness.

[MJAussie360]

Haha go Molly Meldrum!!

[STEPASAUR]

you can almost hear his thoughts hehe 'oops smiled to much there, rein it in, look distant, not too much' the music industry's a brutal place, he did well to hold the image when as we learned later how unlike he was from the image, a very warm and open man

[fuckamericanidiot]

fascinating to watch, it's not just an awkwardness, there's a distance in his eyes

[ChristopherDone]

(David Bowie was the David Bowie of the 80s…)

[zarathustra2k1]

@ChristopherDone Bowie lost the plot in the 80s - dancing in the streets with Jagger, ffs?

[Zephyesa]

@zarathustra2k1 thats when all the drugs come back to haunt him

[jrmetmoi]

I met Gary at the Troxy on April 2nd in London! Wooo hooo! His pic with me and his pic with my friend will be in my phone FOR. EVER. MORE!!!! We both got a pic each with John Foxx too! Wooooo hoooooooo xD

[PinkSmarties72]

I don't think he had aspergers, I think he was just very shy and self concious of his teeth

[bliis]

R 'n' B is a bastardized acronym for Rhythm and Blues which is a totally different music genre and required at least an ounce of talent, quite far removed from all this blinged up, autotuned shit we are drenched with over the airwaves. Fuckin' 'ell? Has everyone in the world become, smooth, Latino, Black Americans who 'Wanna lick you up. Love you down. Keep it on 'the down low'. And 'FREAK you up'? Grow up, get a job and stop trying to FREAK (you sad bastards) everything in sight. YAWN (O)

[xXTheDarkLemonXx]

i met him today :)

[tallyhoman911]

@xXTheDarkLemonXx lucky! :D

[LogiMotion]

last I heard gary only had a minor case of as

[TZAVELENA]

ahhhh! those lips!

[Scotlanz]

I love Gary Numan but it's the first I noticed that he looks and talks like Gareth of "The Office"!

[iiimusika]

@Scotlanz i a fan of mister gary numan in mexico he has a lot of fan clubs

[themanonthestair]

@iiimusika I saw him in Mexico City last Saturday.. he was amazing.

[azshaw123]

I grew up in the eighties and have many memories...Nothing beats them...Music today is garbage and probably 50% is from the eighties,from that i mean they just repeat and have almost no origianality

[furzkanne]

Nice, shy, deepthinking, honest. Thank god for Gary. His music is absolutely special and outstanding. Today a little less than then. But he still got his voice.

[therealisation]

onya Molly

[6547811]

gary numan rules!!!

[Getyourbodybeat242]

Im aspie, and this guy is my musical idol. :D Synthesizers must be his interest; just like me.

[21love4ever]

I love Gary Numan! "almost" as much as Robert Smith

[SpankRamen2]

@21love4ever:

Funny. I was thinking about Robert Smith & Noel Fielding while taking a bath just a short while ago!

[SpankRamen2]

Gary is an Asperger's Syndrome hero. Not to mention, he has some really kissable lips. They are just... WOW.

[jrmetmoi]

@SpankRamen2 Its the lip gloss.

[jiv3r]

The message in Gary Numans music is always the same.......".Things are not what they seem......don't be mean to people........love / relationships are never going to be easy......don't worry everything is ok in the end as long as you are not counting on a god to save you ." People need to listen more to his lyrics instead of picking him apart externally. I have loved Gary for 20 years and here' s to another 20, KV

[keyotikdragon]

you can see his asperger's syndrome in his very flat demeanor

[badamj2000]

I watched this at the time. Im so old and GN is forever cool

[gunnerglory]

Who cares what or who he sounds like, why can't we just enjoy Gary Numan for his music and who he is as a person? I mean didn't Oasis sound like The Beales, fuck sake people, build a bridge and get over it

[Sesquipedaliantique]

I said I was a fan of Gary Numan and some berk said OMG U MEAN THE PAEDO.

That's Gary Glitter. Please go and shoot yourself. Moron.

[DerVampyrEngel]

And you have to be blind deaf dumb and taking loads of drugs to think that Numan sounds anything like Eno, I give you this sometimes in some songs he can sound a bit like Bowie, but not that much, besides he said he got the idea to sing that way off Lou Reed

[mchelo18]

Again, listen to Taking Tiger Mountain by Strategy, by Brian Eno, and then tell me if GN sounds nothing like Brian Eno.

[DerVampyrEngel]

Especially and I have to admit this Gary 's vocal style is very much more "nasal" and Enos style is much more clear

[ChristopherDone]

If you see Gary Numan these days in an interview (e.g. see the one with Noel Fielding), he's more sociable and easy going, more comfortable seeming -- though it probably depends on present company.

[IceCubeGaryNumanfan]

Hey for all of you who are picking on him just because he has asperger's syndrome leave him alone! Hey my older brother has asperger's and he is one of the coolest guys I've known! DAMN all those "experts" and critics who say asperger's is a "bad" thing and I just hate when people treat them like wierdos (pardon me for using that term)! And all I now have to say is hey look how big he became... he is the living proof of what you can do with asperger's LONG LIVE THE KING OF SYNTH POP GARY NUMAN!

[VyktorAbyss]

Being honest I dont care whether or not he has aspergers. I care bout his musical talent which radiates making him a legend especially for his early stuff.

Quite simply he's an awesome musician - and is still fresh and exciting after 30 years. 'nuff said.

[LordArsehat]

his talent burned out YEARS AGO you clueless smelly cunt.

[camonyouirons]

is that why hes still making music....most recently with Trent Reznor

[ludocrat]

Bad attitude, arsehat. Very fucking bad. Twat.

[Sveinbeard]

I never really appreciated Gary all those years ago.

Respect to you Gary!

[mrsoundwave]

numan rocks

[GNeuman]

Great interview, though Gary does seem very zonked out (don't think it's the Aspergers or drugs), probably jet lag?

[TheSomberlain]

Gary Numan is a great role model for young people around the world diagnosed with AS. His success is nearly a powerful enough inspiration to undo the blows to confidence wrought by the "experts" with the negative trash they publish. Thanks Gary for proving wrong the insidious writings of the misguided so-called professionals!

[TheSomberlain]

As someone diagnosed with AS who functions at a level similar to Numan's, I write the above comment with my own experience in mind.

[capricious71]

Well said.

[badamj2000]

@TheSomberlain What is AS?

[TheSomberlain]

@badamj2000 "What is AS?"

Asperger's Syndrome

[JerryDtv]

@TheSomberlain Wat the fuck are you talking about!? I'd kill my kid if he was gay

[craig4568]

@JerryDtv what the fuck you talking about Gary's married with kids ya bawbag

[adrake1138]

@JerryDtv For that statement alone, you should be killed. Christian are you? 'Judge not, lest ye be judged'. The Christians love to quote the Bible, but they always forget that one. Or deliberately leave it out when they are called upon to share 'The Word'. If you're not Christian, then you are just a non-denominational bigot. ...Hope your kid fits your ideals. Or else? I've heard a lot, but I've never heard anyone say that out loud. And, yes- he's heterosexual and married 2 a nice lady

[JerryDtv]

@adrake1138 Athiest idiot

[gammarod]

@TheSomberlain

He doesn't have `AS- it was NEVER diagnosed, he just assumed or decided it was the case which is fairly typical. It's probably more to do with not living in the real world since the age of 20.

[guzsaj]

@TheSomberlain whats AS?

[Hufflewaffle]

@guzsaj Aspergers syndrome

[newfuckingwave]

@TheSomberlain and at that i think he speaks like a regular guy. he's just soft spoken. i always imagined him to speak EXACTLY like he sings, in a very detached, almost pompous manner, and with very many nonsensical, contradictory statements. think lou reed at the height of heroin addiction in the early 70s (which is VERY funny, btw). but no, he just speaks like a regular guy, and is actually very straightforward (but without being too forward)

[BulletProofCorpse]

He reminds me of my nephew in this interview, although Gary Numan seems colder...

[MisterMisanthrope]

Having Asperger's is like having super powers: sharp hearing, eyesight, and intellect, but it has a downside: we have difficulty regulating our emotions and communicating with non-autistics. I learned to simply speak explicitly, alienation be damned.

[khyberkarn]

fascinating

[whereangelsplay1]

arrogant little shit

he cant compare himself to bowie

bowie is a legend 30 years on

numan is a wig on stage

[obie1963]

He's autistic. Give him a break.

[xoxoNewRomanticxoxo]

he isnt autistic, he has asperges,

[obie1963]

Asperger syndrome is a form of autism.

[xoxoNewRomanticxoxo]

yeah i know, but to say hes autistic is a bit extreme, i have a friend with full blown autism and he acts noting like gary

[MisterMisanthrope]

I told my ex-girlfriend about my Asperger's diagnosis (I figured it out at age 16), and she didn't believe me. Which is why I never told anyone.

[xoxoNewRomanticxoxo]

Well yeah, Gary had, Aspergers, and he hasnt done to badly eh?

[HOAX900]

@MisterMisanthrope how did you even end up with a girlfriend I'm autistic and I feel alienated by the opposite gender

[ghettoqueenpapaya]

no, isnt

[obie1963]

Do some research. Asperger's syndrome is one of the three main forms of austism spectrum conditions.

[ghettoqueenpapaya]

he isnt autistic , he haves Asperger's syndrome

[jasmoran66]

Try listening to this without your preconceptions and you will hear the respect he has for Bowie.

[mchelo18]

Don't know why he was complaining.

Back in those days, he moved on stage like a David Bowie impersonator.

[looseSpark]

True, but nearly everybody did in those days. It was "the thing" people did. I don't know if it was particularly to copy Bowie or just something that synthesizer-based music people tended towards (with the whole futuristic, robot kind of vibe around then) but then most of these people would have probably had a Bowie influence so it could have been just a subconscious mimicking rather than a concious copying.

[mchelo18]

Indeed, you're right.

I guess David Bowie created his own army of followers. Yesterday I watched a Duran Duran video and saw Bowie all over the place too.

[DerVampyrEngel]

what a load of bollocks , what a load of crap ,the same old bullshit lie, I am real sorry but I never ever seen David Bowie come out looking like this guy and I like David Bowie, yes Bowie is a musical genius, no Gary Numan wasn't copying Bowie unless it was his stage mannerisms and I don't think he did much there even then Gary Numan was more influence by John Foxx if anything both very cool then as now the Bowie thing is just a load of shitty journalist/elites bollocks

[mchelo18]

Moved like David Bowie, sang like Brian Eno, you have to be blind or deaf not to see this

[DerVampyrEngel]

Yeah , the same old bullshit "Bowie" clone party line bollocks, heard this elitist lie for over 30 years and I don't buy it OK?

Gary Numan is an orginal even though he admits his influences, heavily influenced by John Foxx , and he is a brilliant musician and person end off

[mchelo18]

"elitist", now you are the hero of the working class because you like Gary Numan?

Go listen to Taking Tiger Mountain and then tell me if GN doesn't sing like Brian Eno.

I like a lot of Gary Numan's work, imo he invented the techno beat (We Are So Fragile), it's no small deal, but I understand where the criticism comes from. His influences are too obvious and some people don't like it that way.

Yes, when I say he looks like a Bowie clone, I mean the stage stance, too similar to go unnoticed.

[DerVampyrEngel]

No why would I be a hero of the working class ? that another load of bollocks, I mean the old " Bowie is God" elitist fashion now crowd which included dumb hippie/prog rock journalists

As for other people not liking that his influences are too obvious, fuck them, they sound like pretentious old farts pretending to be original when you know that they are not

And as for him sounding like Eno , sorry don't see it, and I have heard Taking Tiger Mountain

[VangaIis]

I like this interview, I agree witth him not really that great to be classed like another artist and it's best to be thought of as gary numan, I like david bowie but I don't thin kthey were that similar gary numan was gary numan and david bowie was david bowie, totally different, I wonder bout his hair tho, was it always that colour? or whats his original hair colour does anyone know?

[MrRik2]

Just a typical mid-brown. See the cover of The Pleasure Principle.

[madrereus16]

he loooks soooo hot in that cover! and mysterious

[fjbutch]

Not quite the impact of his earlier tracks..but good interview

[lovehoney3]

isn't numan so gorgously soft spoken. one of the many things i love about him. him and bowie both rock!

[swanyways]

my god he was so gorgeous. and i can definitely relate to his social complications. what lovely music too.

he is so underrated.

[TamTamster]

Great interview - thanks for posting. I really enjoyed seeing this!!

[scottvanska]

You can really tell he has Aspergers' when he explains the meaning behind "Are Friends Electric?" Totally misses the point of friendship. Still, Gary's an amazing artist.

[nikinuman]

Is that an issue? Like you, I connected with his lyrics and perspective like so many people, through a sense of realism and personal experience - including disappointments. Even the most emotively unchallenged of us feel nothing at times. Perhaps there's a little aspergers in all of us. It is a very broad spectrum after all. I'd like to think he is a human in a unique zone we can appreciate and connect with, which goes beyond the usual categorisation and boxing up of talent.

[moogme68]

He wasn't asked to describe friendship he was asked to tell HIS meaning of his song and he does..he does get the question. Aspergers doesn't cause you to not understand things, it means sometimes they don't get non verbal communication and cross lines as a result. For example they don't get hints that you're mad until you come out and tell them to f-off, then to them it seems like you got mad out of the blue because they missed all the other signs you gave them first.

[Babyhowdy233]

Folks need to realize that Gary himself admits he has never been OFFICIALLY diagnosed with autism...only SUSPECTS he has autism.

Personally speaking as a person who worked with Autistic adults for MANY years I have never encountered one that has Gary's love and ability to skillfully handle unplanned and stressful social situations. He has a happy married life with three kids, drives race cars and aeroplanes with AMAZING skill that most "normal" folks could never master and has many friends.

[whereangelsplay1]

i didnt think he had kids, as i thot his missus couldnt have them?

[Aueneye]

He has three daughters.

[JimmyJizzbag]

i always thought David Bowie was the David Bowie of the 80's

[themachman19691]

nice quality video,i havent dot this one!thanks for posting.

[nikinuman]

what an amazing truth...amazing interview.

[lovehoney3]

great interview. it's good that he manages to keep an air mystery about himself y'know. doesnt give too much away. which to me is good. and how gorgously soft spoken he is. he handles everything like abreeze a true showman.

[MarkNobes]

Depressed people make the best musicians, artists etc. Spike Milligan, Van Gogh and Churchill were depressed. Gary Numan is up there with the best of them!

[lovehoney3]

great interview. some things i did'nt know there. i think he explained it really well. just goes to show, he's not as shy and vunrable as some pepole thought he was. all hail the godfather of electronica! whoooooh!

[serel69do]

wonderful fella!!! instead of reguetoneros, beyonces, britneys, pieces of crap,.... DAMN!!!

[JarrodCook93]

Watch this and than watch an interview from the 2000's he is so different. The aspergous really affected him. But I really like his look from the 80's even if he was slightly depressed.

[nikinuman]

he wasn't depressed...he was a bit lost. But that strange place is where genious and truth comes from. I knew him them and I know about aspergus syndrome (now). Thx for your post.

[nederwiet1]

gary numan isn't pretentious, most of the crap bands out there today are pretentious.Just look at all the R&B crap with all the fucking bling

[cprostudio]

@nederwiet1 youve got my voute, fucking R&B - all the so called artists are nothing more than a bunch of shit sprinkled in glitter

[digitalheir]

@nederwiet1 Nothing wrong with some bling.

[kunsura]

Dam, gary was making music that proceeded him, kind of scary, now 25-29 years later, you see what he was talking about. Could you imagine having an electric friend, turn him or her off when you're "pissed" off, not worrying about lost friendship, great idea, why can't the USA come up with concepts like this, why is it when you go outside of the USA, you feel like you're in the 1800's?

[illicitstill]

He is so honest, admirable.

[shelbyJordan4789]

i love his voice.

its so calming :)

[bobomb111]

he seems a bit unhappy yet he makes good points

[Snotra]

He is distantly related to Paul Pots.

[replicas79]

alien!

[thetiktokman]

He looks like he's on Valium. Mind you, being interviewed by Australia's most famous foggot Molly Meldrum would send anybody to 'sleep by windows'... yuk yuk

[Snotra]

England and Los Angeles must be the same...LOCK YOUR CAR DOORS!!!!

[neilhubbardz]

Are you sure he has Asbergers sydrome? This interview he just comes across as being nervous rather than somebody with a mental disposition. In subsequent and especially more recent interviews he's very relaxed and - dare I say- normal! He is humble though. He doesn't take anywhere near the credit he deserves for his influence on the music business.

[TheRealVolanaro]

he has stated that he has it in interviews before, and i know someone else who has it so i have a rough idea of what to look for in it (although i have to admit, i have never seen 2 people with aspergers who show exactly the same signs) anyway, gary has said that he meets some of the criteria but not others so he probably has a mild form.

[subby33]

I personally dont think he has Aspergers, I think he's just an Ambivert.

[TheRealVolanaro]

possibly, im not sure of exactly what to look for in it, i just have a rough idea, and as i said before, he meets some of the criteria but not all of them so for all we know he could have somthing completely different or just be a shy person

[smackyjack]

I love his disposition. I think more folks famous or not should be more reflective and aware of others. Even if he does have the disorder it still seems as thought he's being humble and "real".

I think he generally has a good way about him. Unlike David Byrne that seems like he'd be just as likely to runaround naked screaming fire.

[smackyjack]

PS I love Byrne too.

[Braveheart1297]

a very humble guy, no aires and graces, what you see is what you get with Gary

[samnninty]

I love gary !! sssooo much ! =]

[Snotra]

He has, "Asperger syndrome". As a musician, I can relate.

[prodigalson56]

Seriously? I never knew that.

[mythicaljake]

Bless him, he was really nervous :]

I actually love Gary Numan x]

[SusanMichelle1968]

And I love him too!!!

[blakeyonthebuses]

I was 16 when i got replicas. he was so influential, so different. growing up in scunthorpe in the 80s was shit so he was a welcome break from the norm. i dont listen to him now but i reckon he was both mental and a decent guy

[EelSacul]

He's not pretentious, he has Asperger's syndrome!

[snevelin]

Still doesn't save him from being pretentious. ;)

I love his stuff though.

[modsleix6]

Gary Numan fucking rules!

[sportandmovies]

great gary numan interview . his a stronger person now music darker and better

[Tazz77]

Great clip. I think Numas was at his coolest during his android years (1979-1981)

[chicagorehab247]

He looks very similar to Lee Harvey Oswald in this interview.

[Aueneye]

Anyone attacking Numan can go fuck themselves. He's genuinely the nicest guy in the world and very humble. Since when has being shy and akward meant being pretentious?

This man is a star. End of.

[DerVampyrEngel]

@Aueneye I agree with you couldn't have put it better myself

[truvelocity]

I saw his 2007 interview and now I know why he didn't smile and what this song means.

[whiteosh]

Thanks for posting this,i must've missed this interview on Countdown at the time.

[lisaemberton]

Owenj1971.

Have you nothing to do than go round finding

Numan vids all night and slating them?

Go and play with your toy clowns!

You are like shit on someones shoes!

Waster!!

[OwenJ1971]

Pretentious tosser!

[shenmueaddict]

You shouldent talk about yourself that way! ;)

[theorytest5]

oh well in how clever

[fewzebrank]

20, and king of the world. I could be more pretentious than gary numan at the time. And a tosser is a wanker right ? It's part of several songs by gn but I don't think he had any time to do it.

[garycee]

Great interview, never seen it before but Numan looks cool and just how he should be remembered.

[garygodsqwad]

shit.. numan never looked any better than this! great stuff. tnx

[lisaemberton]

What a great bit of footage! Thanx for this!!! Coxynuma.66. Marcello09,What a great comment!!! to an Idiot.I think I shagged her as well.

[MissParker0106]

Thank you for sending me this...Numan ***rocks***

[PsychoSioux]

Great interview - thank you for sharing

[moosekedingootje]

Go Gary go go gooooo!!!

[metamatics]

numan is great jagged is head and shoulders above the boring music of today.

[snevelin]

His recent stuff is crap compared to the stuff he made years ago. Trying too hard to be NIN these days (not a fan of them either), ugh.

[marcello09]

Let's get this straight: you spend half your life searching YouTube for videos of a man you don't like, and you spend the other half listening to music from a man you don't like, and all of this is because you have some sort of personal grudge against a musician who had a couple of hit singles about thirty years ago. I don't know what Numan did to you, maybe he shagged your girlfriend or something, but it's long past time for you to get over it and get on with your life.

[nederwiet1]

wheheh lol

[JamesT2K]

You're response is that of someone who is mentally ill. Get a job, get a girlfriend, but most important get some treatment for your depression.

[garygodsqwad]

LOL.......!

[shenmueaddict]

*cough* TWAT *cough*