CP - Actually that was all Brian's doing. He seen me play and asked me if I would be interested in doing something with him. At the same time Mike was filling in for the drummer in his band that was off sick. So he asked Mike the same thing and we got together. We had a different guitarist at first and then he left within a month. I had played with Marko before and Brian had seen him so Brian got a hold of him. That was the beginning of "Ontario." (the bands name at the time) We played around a few high schools and changed our name to Teaze, when we moved to Toronto to join up with Mel Shaw.
GB - What brought about the success in Japan, and did it surprise you when the band went over there to see screaming fans waiting at the airport, and sold out shows like you guys were the Beatles?
CP - Terry Flood who was April Wine's manager brought all that together, as he did some work over there with Mashmakan. I think they toured with Grand Funk Railroad over there. I'm not sure how it worked out, if he was trying to sell April Wine, us or who, but we where the guys who he picked. It surprised us when we got there, as we were not expecting anything like that. We got mobbed. You waked by a closet in the hallway and there would be girls in there giggling. It was pretty wild. A lot different than what we we're used to.
GB - Was is frustrating to come back and struggle for success in your home country?
CP- No, we knew where we were at in Canada and the road we had to take.
GB - What was it like working with Myles Goodwin from April Wine, who produced One Night Stands, and what did he bring to the session?
CP - Myles is great to work with. We knew April Wine as we had toured with them previous to Myles producing the album and our management was the same people. We spent a lot of time with them. Myles, being more of a musician and guitar player himself, there was more work on the guitars. He was always after me and Marko to throw more parts in and try all kinds of different stuff.
GB - Did the song Sweet Misery help or hurt the band. You got lots of airplay from it but it did label Teaze as a country rock band to a lot of people?
CP - Actually I'd say it probably hurt the band. I still get the royalties from it though and it's still getting played. As you know that is not like Teaze at all. When we were out on the road we used to get a lot of older people coming out to see us expecting to hear a lot of Sweet Misery's and instead getting their face blown off. [laughs], because we never played Sweet Misery live. That was the first song I ever wrote. We needed another song for the album so I went home that night and got the idea off the TV and started writing it. I showed it to Mike the next day and he rewrote the lyrics and we went right into the studio and recorded it.
GB - Who have you opened for besides April Wine, Triumph and Streetheart. I heard once you played with Kiss, is that true?
CP - Brian and the band before Teaze opened up for Kiss. Teaze did shows with Aerosmith, Cheap Trick, Meatloaf, Blue Oyster Cult.
GB - Ever play in America?
CP - We smuggled ourselves in once on an April Wine date and that was the only time we went over there. For some reason the record company wanted Capitol EMI in California to take care of that, so we kind of stayed away from there. Which probably want not a good idea. Triumph always wanted us to go down to Texas with them, but our management company always said no and that was a mistake too.
GB - Is there any unreleased material out there and any plans to release that stuff?
CP - Apparently, according to Mike, because he bought all the new CD's, on the one "Best Of," there was a couple of unreleased songs on that. There was a few things out there but if it was unreleased it was because we didn't like it, but obviously they found some old tapes and decided to make a couple of bucks off it.
GB - Is there any live video footage of the band that exists?
CP - Actually they filmed everything when we were to Japan but I've never seen any of that. Mike was trying to locate it somehow. We also did a TV special for Japan that was filmed in Montreal, which I only seen the night we finished it and that was the only time I seen that. It should be in some vault someplace, who knows. Our record company is pretty illusive about all our stuff. It's like when we disbanded, we no longer existed in their eyes.
GB - Do you know www.teaze.com is a porno site?
CP- [laughs] yup. There is also an all female band in England called Teaze. I ran across their web site one day.
GB - What music do you listen to today?
CP - I listen to all kinds of music. Lately I've been getting into Internet radio and listening to music in Australia, Dublin, Paris, Japan. All over place. I really like Godsmack too.
GB- What caused the breakup of the band.
CP - Well there was a lot of things. Our record company wasn't supportive any more. Capitol in the States had suspended us over some contract negations. Brian was feeling pretty low, as his voice was cracking a lot and feeling strained. Actually Brian was the first guy that left the band. When he left the rest of us said that's it. Teaze was always the four of us and we didn't want to try to replace him.
GB - Are you glad you missed having to do videos for every single?
CP - Actually no I think if we had been around when all the videos and Much Music stuff was happening the outcome of Teaze might have been different, because we relied more on people seeing us than the records.
GB - If you could do it all over today, knowing what you know now, would you do any thing different?
CP - Contract negations would be a lot different, [laughs] and who's getting what would be a lot different.
GB - Are you satisfied with the recent release of the albums on CD. Have they been re-mastered?
CP - I was happy to see that. Our first stuff was out on 8-track and now we're released on CD. From what Mike told me he likes the packaging better. It looks like they have put a little more thought into it and it sounds like they re-mastered some of the stuff, so it sounds a little better. This is Unidisc in Montreal, who has taken over all the distribution.
Recent photo of Chuck and Mike with their wives, and Brian, in photo above
GB - I noticed on Amazon.com, One Night Stands is coming out in the US on an indie label called Zoom Club, did you know that?
CP - No didn't know that. One Night Stands did come out in the US but it's a long story. We started recording the next album and Capitol in California wanted to have more input, and we had already moved into the studio and the producer told them to suck his ass. [laughs] We were going ahead with the project wither they wanted us to or not. But because we were a week late on delivery of the album, they suspended us. So they shelved the album and that was the end of Teaze in the United States. We were green [laughs]
GB - Do you still pick up the guitar and do you still use Norman, Aeluca and Ibanez guitars?
CP - Ya I try to play ever day. Actually the Aeluca was custom made by a guy named Larry Aeluca in Detroit. Think Marco still got the Norman. I don't play Ibanez now. I got a lot of Gibsons, Fender, Echo's. Lot of older guitars now.
GB - Any chance on you guys ever reuniting?
CP - No. Brian is a Minister now. Actually he is a Minister of Music and he just released a Christian CD. He has a thirty five piece orchestra he takes care of and he wouldn't have any time at all. Plus he is the father of seven children. Mike has two young children. I had my kids when I was touring with Teaze, The band could never understand my feelings, but now that they are older and they all got children they know.
GB - Do you still keep in touch with the other guys?
CP - Oh yea. Not as often as we like. My daughter got married last year and we all got together for that. (see above photo). I talk to Mike every two or three weeks. Brian is quite busy.
GB - What has everyone been doing since the band split up and what are they doing today?
CP - Marco took over his dad's shop when his dad passed away. He has a farm out in the county with cows, horses and chickens and all the rest of the stuff. He grew up downtown in Windsor his whole life, so it's kind of different for him but he likes it. Mike works at Christler on a production line. He got married about six or seven years ago. Me, my kids are all grown up and gone and I'm an Industrial Electrician. Brian preaches at Windsor Christian Fellowship.
GB - How did you guys used to write? Did you sit down all together for writing or write whenever something good comes to mind?
CP - Usually someone would come up with the original idea and we would trash it around for awhile. We would be just rehearsing and somebody would play a lick that we like, and we would all jump on it and away we would go.
GB - How about all other Teaze songs, are they all from your actual lives?
CP - They are all pretty much made up but there is lines in certain songs that I can relate to. Things that have happened to me. Once in a while we will throw in things like that.
GB - The performance by the band on the Live in Japan album was solid. Where you happy with that one?
CP - Ya, the music was all live, It was mixed in the studio but no overdubs. It was recorded in Tokyo and Osaka.
GB - What was the key to play twin leads with such a different guitarist like Mark from yourself?
CP - Marco was always into Johnny Winter and the blues, the Alman Bros. which I was into too, but I always leaned towards the heavier bands more. Plus me and Marko had played in a band before Teaze when we were in high school. We used to do a lot of Alman Bros., so we were doing a lot of harmony leads and stuff anyway.
GB - What do you like to do in your pastime? I remember you used to say that you like Horseback riding.
CP - I haven't been on a horse in years. [laughs] I mostly spend time playing around with my rabbits and my dogs. Plus the Internet
GB - Do you remember that the picture of Mark & you having a bath together that was published in a Japanese magazine, "Rock Star, Volume 2" and the magazine received a huge feedback from Japanese fans, especially ladies? Was that some kind of joke?
CP - Oh God!!! [laughs] Holy Shit. Actually the photographers came over with us and they hung around with us for a week. They came up with this idea that people takes baths together in Japan. Another mistake [laughs]
GB - Could you give a message to your older Japanese fans who still admire your music?
CP - Well we're still alive and appreciate it very much that they still enjoy our music.
GB - Chuck, thank you so much for you time!
Special thanks to Shigemi Smith for assistance with the questions, Japan photos and scans. Visit her Teaze site below.
