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Train gets back on track
By JOHN BENSON
The signs were all pointing to a derailment of adult-alternative act Train. It was just a few years ago when the band took a hiatus while singer Pat Monahan recorded and released his solo debut, “The Last of Seven.” However, where the clich d story of band implosion goes awry is what followed when Train regrouped last year and released its fifth studio effort, “Save Me San Francisco.”
In case you’ve been living in a cave, the platinum rock band, known for radio singles “Drops of Jupiter” and “Calling All Angels,” recently scored a top-5 hit with the ubiquitous “Hey, Soul Sister.” The Bay Area band returns to Northeast Ohio for a Taste of Cleveland show Sunday at the Time Warner Cable Amphitheater at Tower City. The Vindicator talked to Monahan about the resurgence of the band, his reaction to being drawn into Charlie Sheen’s domestic affairs and why a chicken Caesar salad is similar to Train.
Q. Congratulations on the success of “Hey, Soul Sister.” Did you have any inkling the song would be so successful?
A. You know, I had no idea. I think the fact that we’re having more success after 15 years of being a band than ever before is probably in tribute to the fact that we kind of fixed what was broken in the band. A lot of that was just personal stuff like not really appreciating what we had and kind of writing songs for the radio instead of writing songs we love. So we needed to change those things. It was fun to get back to being happy in this band again. As for “Hey, Soul Sister,” we all sensed it was a good song but didn’t know it would become a massive hit song all over the world.
Q. As for your latest album, “Save Me San Francisco,” what’s the meaning behind its title?
A. It’s hard to get people to care about what you’re doing ever, especially in the music business, but it has to start with caring about your music. And I felt like what we needed to do was become a San Francisco band again. We started this band in San Francisco; they embraced us, and we were asking them to save us again. Like if San Francisco takes us in, then maybe somebody else will, and it went from there. And now we have a No. 1 record in Argentina, so whatever it is we did, the world is psyched we did it just as much as we are. The real craziness for me now is to hear all of these songs coming from different bands and artists that sound a whole lot like “Hey, Soul Sister.”
Q. Whether it’s truth or fiction, there was a story last month that actor Charlie Sheen’s current marital issues stemmed from an alleged shared love with his daughter of Train hit “Drops of Jupiter.” How odd was it for your band to be pulled into this celebrity tornado?
A. Man, I was told to just say nothing about it, but it’s hard for me to think negatively about something that brings something positive to people’s lives. How do I know how people really react to music? But the fact that we were a part of bringing Charlie and his daughter close together, that’s the positive side of it. All I know is that whatever we did, we created something positive in somebody’s life, and anything outside of that I don’t have any idea.
Q. Finally, your band is scheduled to appear at the Taste of Cleveland. Hear me out, what food would you equate Train to?
A. Man, that’s interesting. How about a chicken Ceasar salad because that’s all we ever get after shows.
Q. So Train is light and healthy?
A. I guess light doesn’t sound complimentary of the band, but healthy, I suppose.