David Coverdale: You have to move with the times
Jul 11 2008 by Emma Johnson, Liverpool Daily Post
David Coverdale, Whitesnake frontman _320
The only original member of the band’s line-up, Coverdale came out of retirement in 2003 for the group’s 25th anniversary.
Now, with their 30th upon them, he is delighted to see the fans still want more.
"I’ve never planned for success – I’m not sure you can – but I have always done the best I can at whatever I’m doing, and I believe the Whitesnake crowd appreciates that," he says.
"I prefer live performing, but I do enjoy the creative process, taking a small thought of a melody and nurturing it through to the stage and hearing people sing along with you. It’s an amazing feeling.
"I particularly enjoyed making the new record, as we did most of it at my house in Tahoe, so it was the best of both worlds.
"If you saw Lake Tahoe in the mornings, you’d understand. It’s like postcards from God on a daily basis.
"I can already feel an uplift in the energy of the band’s shows with the new songs injected in there. Lovely stuff – made a huge difference."
Tahoe features heavily in Coverdale’s discourse.
When not on the road, he relishes downtime with his family in the Nevada beautyspot far, far from Saltburn-on-the-Sea, where he grew up.
The former rock and roll wildman, whose love for the ladies once earned him the nickname Snake Charmer, has ditched the hard-drinking hard-living lifestyle and swapped debauchery for dad time with 11-year-old Jasper, his son by third wife Cindy.
"Other than being a family man (as well as Jasper, he also has a daughter, Jessica, with his first wife Julia, and two granddaughters) Whitesnake business takes an enormous amount of my time," he adds.
"But I love hiking in the mountains around my home, carefully avoiding my black bear neighbours who made themselves so welcome in my home last year. I like reading, too."
He also likes getting involved in politics.
Having lived in the States for more than two decades, last year he became an American and has been putting his dual citizenship to good use for the forthcoming US Presidential elections.
He reveals: "I’m a Barack man – apparently, once you go Barack, there’s no going back.
"I feel he’s the best hope by far in restoring the ideals of America, the respect it has lost around the world over the past eight years.
"It’s been hopelessly off course with the current useless ’ayporths. I can’t wait to see the back of them."
* WHITESNAKE play the Echo Arena, Liverpool, alongside Def Leppard and Thunder, as part of the Summer Pops on July 15.
