In the 1970s and the 1980s, the tracks Good Times, Le Freak and Everybody Dance were all huge hits for Nile Rodgers and Chic, the disco and R&B band he formed in 1976 with bassist Bernard Edwards and drummer Tony Thompson.
Chic featuring Nile Rodgers will be appearing at the HMV Picture House, Edinburgh (0844 847 1740,
www.mamagroup.co.uk) on Saturday
Describe your perfect weekend? Having enough time to practise guitar, mayb
e see a new film or two and make love. I'm still that simple.
What would you do if you ruled the world? I would be the most open-minded and liberal ruler that ever existed because I'm a 'live and let live' type of person. As long as you don't spill over on to anyone else, that's fine. It would be avuncular rule.
Who did you last receive a text from and what did it say? A woman representing the Michael Jackson estate, inviting me to the funeral. I worked on an album with him and was in a band that was the opening act on the Jackson Five tour in 1973. He and I got along the best because we were both the weird guy in our bands, and we sat around together reading comic books. Later we worked on his album History and talked about those times, reading comic books and that early Seventies funk thing that slipped over America, around the time of Dancing Machine.
When did you last feel sorry for yourself? On 15 August, 1994, the day I gave up drink and drugs and the day after Madonna's birthday party at Miami Beach. I was told how I behaved and saw a tape of me playing in a nightclub. It was absurd. It stank. I'm a lucky guy. I get to play music for a living, and now if there's anything difficult I put it in a basket and look at it from a different perspective. How many people even get one hit record? And I've had many. I'm doing three Broadway shows now and am possibly going to do the score on another about Richard Pryor.
What do you wish you'd never done? I wish I could have done Debbie Harry's 1981 album Koo Koo better. She is a great artist and was a great friend but Chic was going through problems and so was Blondie, and instead of using each other as a shoulder to cry on, we should have got on with making hits.
Would your mother be proud of you? Yes, she is.
Who would you like to say sorry to? Eric Clapton, because when I worked with him I was a pretty severe alcoholic and drug addict. He'd had his own issues with that and had just lost his son, and I wasn't very respectful of that. I would also thank him because it was his level-headed behaviour and ability to cope with my bullshit that inspired me to be like him. He never once complained or said a word to me. He didn't proselytise – he was a role model and I thought, that's how I want to be, live and let live.
On what purchase have you spent most, apart from a car or property? It would be on a boat. I've had a number of them. The second-happiest day of your life is when you buy your first boat. The happiest is when you sell it. I still have boats, though at the dock at the house in Westport, Connecticut, which I bought with the money from Le Freak 31 years ago.
What is the most embarrassing thing that's happened to you? Listening to my performance on 15 August 1994 and hearing about my exploits. When I saw Madonna afterwards she laughed, but it was too late and too embarrassing.
What is your earliest memory? Falling behind the sofa when I was four and not being able to get out. No one in the apartment could find me and I had an asthma attack. Eventually my grandfather found me. Now my greatest fear is getting buried alive. My will says there will be no burying.
What song is the theme tune to your life? Good Times. There have been many good times, as well as bad. Or Everybody Dance, the first song I wrote for Chic, and I associate it with Bernard. When I first sang it to him, "Everybody Dance, doo, doo, doo, doo," he just sat there pondering, rubbed his chin and said, "Yes, that's sort of cool, but I got to ask you one thing, brother. What does, doo, doo, doo, doo mean?"
What does doo, doo, doo, doo mean? It means the same thing as la, la, la, la.
Who would play you in the movie of your life? RZA from the Wu-Tang Clan. He has acting ability, musical sensibility and is complex enough to get me.
Should you vote? If yes, how did you vote? Absolutely. I'm very big on voting. I was on Barack Obama's finance committee. I've always been a registered Democrat.
What worries you in the wee small hours? Not much. Usually the fact that I'm not going to hit a deadline. I have a very strong work ethic.
Does that come from your parents? No! My mum doesn't do anything. Neither did my dad. He was a great guy, but they were like beatniks – they just did drugs and watched movies. My mum fell pregnant with me when she was just 13, and I was the first of five boys. I had a very difficult childhood.
How old are you? I'm still going at 56. Most of my contemporaries like Bernard and Tony died in their 40s. Our lifestyles took an amazing toll and they died alarmingly young.
When were you last naked in front of another person? I spend my life naked when I'm at home. I'm naked now.
When did you lose your virginity? When I was 13. It was fantastic.
Who was your favourite teacher and why? Ted Dunbar, a guitar teacher whose personal care and attention propelled me to being a pro. I ran away from home very young and my first job was on Sesame Street, playing guitar.
What has been your greatest achievement? Le Freak. The only song that's been number one thee times in the US.
Who was easier to work with, Bowie or Madonna? Bowie was easier to work with, but Madonna was more fun.
How do you feel about being sampled so much?
I think it's fantastic. It's a compliment.
