Train’s first tour to South Africa promises to be a humdinger
Train, formed in San Francisco in 1994, were catapulted to international fame when they won their first Grammy in 2001 for Drops of Jupiter. With further hits such as Hey, Soul Sister and Drive By, the band has continued to create earworm-inducing songs. They’re visiting South Africa in May. Frontman Patrick Monahan talks about Train’s trajectory as a band.
What are you looking forward to on this first visit to South Africa?
Everything, from the wine to safaris and the people. I’m taking recommendations on places to eat and what to do.
What can fans expect from your ‘I Know, It’s Been a Long Time Coming’ tour?
The smartest thing to do would be to post something on the internet asking South African fans what they’re interested in seeing and hearing. There are a dozen songs that most people have heard on the radio in South Africa, so we’ll want to play those. I’ve always loved going to concerts and singing along with the band. We’re not going to play a bunch of songs you’ve never heard before — there may be a few but not plenty. We also like to learn a relevant cover song or two to make things more fun. It’ll be a good time for everyone. My favourite thing about Train is that we see people of every age at a show and they’re all enjoying themselves equally.
‘Drops of Jupiter’ won the Grammy for best rock song in 2001. Ten years later ‘Hey, Soul Sister’ won you another. How would you describe your trajectory as a band?
If you give me a couple more years,
I might have another hit and another Grammy. You can’t count me out, I suppose. Sometimes inspiration comes close together; sometimes it comes with time in between. There’s lots of good music in between award-winning songs and a lot of terrible music as well because art is art. You get inspired and you make what you make. Some of it is competitive and effective.
Some of it is what you have to do to get to the next inspirational moment. We’ve been down a lot of roads. Now I share the stage with some of my favourite people in the world who are incredibly talented. We have the best time.
Do you have a favourite Train song?
It changes but the one I appreciate most is Drops of Jupiter because it’s about my mom — and may have been written by my mom. She’d passed away and sent those lyrics to me. It was written in 15 minutes. I woke up after sleeping for half an hour and wrote the lyrics down right away. I sang it the next morning.
Which song do you love performing the most?
Hey, Soul Sister was super big in the US. It was the most downloaded song of the year and when Drive By came out it did even better in the UK and Europe. Those songs are exciting for us to play.
What are the highlights of your career? What are you still hoping to achieve?
I’d like to headline Wembley Stadium in the UK, or at least perform there. There are so many highlights and some of them were brutal, like when I made a solo record and it didn’t do as well as I’d hoped. Those are big lessons you have to go through to get to where you’re supposed to be. Writing Hey, Soul Sister was fun and weird: a ukulele song on the radio. At the time it came out, it wasn’t thought of. There’ve been so many of those moments. You take them all. I wouldn’t trade them in, even though some of them weren’t pleasant.
What’s next for Train?
We’re going to tour the US in the summer with some friends and REO Speedwagon. I’m also about to finish a musical I’ve been working on for years called Begin Again. I’m hoping by this time next year it is either on Broadway or about to be.
What’s your ultimate music festival line-up?
I’d like to see Nina Simone and Led Zeppelin. Our Saving San Francisco album is good. It would be a fun one to see. James Taylor has always been a favourite so I’d like to see James and Carol King sing together.
Train will perform in Cape Town on May 9 at Green Point cricket club. Doors open at 4pm. Tickets from R795 through Webtickets. Their Johannesburg show is on May 11 at Marks Park, Emmarentia. Gates open at 1pm. Tickets start from R795 through Howler.