Interview: Dale Bozzio

The band Missing Persons grew out of Frank Zappa’s stable of musicians after being part of his rock opera Joe’s Garage, fusing top-notch musicianship with New Wave sensibilities to give us songs like “Words”, “Destination Unknown”, and “Walking in L.A.” A quintessential ’80’s band, their music came paired with a revolutionary image courtesy of singer Dale Bozzio, whose crazy hairstyles, over-the-top make-up, and outrageous outfits have led many to call her the original Lady Gaga. The band – with founding members Terry Bozzio and drums and Warren Cuccurullo on guitar – released three albums before breaking up in 1986. In 1988, Dale released a solo album on Prince’s Paisley Park record label.

Dale is back in action, with a new Missing Persons album being released a couple years ago and a new line-up which revisits the band’s glorious catalog in concert. This interview was for a preview article for the 5/20/17 concert by Missing Persons at the California Strawberry Festival in Oxnard, California. It was done by phone on 4/26/17.