A Conversation with Arthur Godfrey (continued)

PM: Although we don't generally talk about this stuff as friends, let me ask you as your interviewer: have you read anything lately that turned you on.

AG: Yeah. I don't get a chance to read a lot of books, mostly I read music publications and so forth. But I've gotten into reading some books in the last few years. And that's really a direct result of spending some time with Sean Penn one-on-one throughout the last couple of years, who turned me on to a very, very good friend of his, Charles Bukowski, who has many novels out.

PM: And poetry, right?

AG: And poetry, and he wrote Barfly. The odd thing is he also spent twenty years in the post office, and actually wrote a book called Post Office. David Baerwald, who scored Hurlyburly for Sean, and wrote a lot of music on Tuesday Night Music Club, brought me this Bukowski book called Notes of a Dirty Old Man. And it's extremely graphic, but great stuff. Bukowski grew up with a severe acne problem, and a lot of things going against him. And he was a very heavy drinker, and so forth. But he really wrote about all of that pain in such a graphic and great way to me.

PM: And he and Sean were very close, as I recall.

AG: Yeah, extremely close. For many years before Bukowski's death, Sean tried to meet with him, as best he could, on a weekly basis, right up to the end. I believe it was Sundays. That's how much he thought of him.

Sean also turned me on to John Fante, who was one of Bukowski's inspirations. And so I read 1933 Was A Bad Year. Fante has this character called Arturo Bandini, and he writes about different periods of his life, his childhood, growing up as a writer in desolate L.A. And 1933 Was A Bad Year was one of his very first books, and I have the other two. I really just relate to those guys, and I think that's why Sean relates to my music. He had just finished doing Mystic River, and then heard "It's All Part of the Story," I mean, and it just hit him in a certain way.

PM: Right.

AG: And then when he turned me on to these guys, I really sort of knew why. That's exactly what they write about, the un-pretty side of life, about their growing up.

PM: What about spirituality or religion? What part does that play in your life, if any?

AG: I haven't found it yet, and I've been searching for it all my life. I mean, I have to get right with myself so I can get right, if you will, with God. I know there's a peacefulness out there, because I'm sort of a hyper person and everyone who knows me knows that. I've gotten right with my family. I've gotten right with my music. And now I really have to get right with myself. And I'm searching for that. I grew up Catholic, and still have a lot of affection for the Catholic faith. I've been more attracted towards some Eastern religions and philosophies, even though I haven't been disciplined enough myself to actually do the work that's needed to be done to be able to absorb that and actually live that type of life. I'm not being very eloquent about it, but you know what I mean.

PM: Well, you're being sincere. I think that's what matters.

AG: You know you want it, you sort of know where it is, and it just takes being a man and walking down that road. You know what I mean? I'm really focusing on that area of my life right now more than any other area. And again, I'm able now to take a breath with the music and what I've done so far. All I ever wanted to do was to be recognized by my peers. And that's happened, so now I'd love to be recognized by myself.

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