“As a drummer, the first thing is being able to play good time. All the
other stuff is just extra. If your timing is not right, you’re shit out of luck.”

then Phil Collins.

“I was able to do two tours with [Phil Col-lins]. Man we had a ball. On the very first tour I did an electronic solo with him to open up the show where I had a vest with triggers in it. It was off the hook. What was beautiful was that it allowed me to go to the ‘Phil Collins School of Drumming.’ It allowed me to learn that style. And not only that style, but to learn how to act at that level, at Phil’s level, because if I ever became that kind of a [band]leader, that was how you’re supposed to carry yourself. It was a paid education. He’s a wonderful man. [And] he loves R&B. That’s how come he uses the Earth Wind and Fire horn section, he uses Nathan East on bass.

What makes it rock is the overtone. But if you really listen to what he’s playing, he’s really playing R&B.”

While many young musicians dream of performing supersized drum fills that set an entire stadium howling, to provide the background and support for a vocalist is a musical task often underestimated. From his earliest days, Ricky’s most consistent contribution has been keeping time for vocalists, singers whose soulful, smooth-as-silk voices are the essence of their careers. Singers such as Anita Baker, Whitney Houston, and Diane Reeves have entrusted Ricky with their keepsake, their songs, and looked towards him to guide them rhythmically while their voices reached for their songs’ essence. When I ask Ricky what a musician is looking for when they bring Ricky Lawson into the fold, he simply answers, “A good feeling.” The words seem too easy, uncomplicated, but they speak on many levels. “A good feeling” is Ricky’s goal, but it’s his subtlety both as a musician, and as a personality, that makes this feeling possible.

“Growing up in Detroit and playing

behind a lot of the singers around there, that’s going to school. I was able to carry that into today. [A vocalist] is looking for somebody who can make their music feel good, and play good time. Somebody who’s a team player, and I’ve always taken that approach. [I’m] a cat that’s gonna make your music feel good. And that’s what music is, it’s a feeling.”

The music business has changed in the several decades spanned by Ricky’s career. From a landscape of small venues and the slow steady seasoning of musicianship, it’s become a frantic-paced industry run by conglomerates where instantaneous hits are not only expected, but mandatory. To keep pace with these trends, Ricky now records primar-

GEARBOX Drums Pearl Masters 22” X 18” Kick 8” X 7” Rack 10” X 8” Rack 12” X 9” Rack 16” X 16” Floor 14” X 5.5” Brass Snare 14” X 3.5” Sopranino Snare Cymbals Paiste Signatures 20” Dry Ride 17” Full Crash 16” Full Crash 15” Full Crash 18” Thin China 13” Hi-hats

Heads
Remo Ambassadors
Kick: Clear Front & Back
Racks: Clear Top & Bottom
Floor: Clear Top & Bottom
Snare: Coated Reverse Dot
Top & Clear Bottom
Sticks
Vic Firth Ricky Lawson Model
Microphones
Shure
Electronics
Roland SPD-20 Controller
Hardware
DW5000 Double Pedal Chain
Yamaha Stands

ily from his private studio in West Covina, California.

“My drums always stay set up, all we have to do is just go in, turn on the power, and we’re up and running. A lot of cats today, you never need to see the other musicians. There are records out that I’ve never seen the other guys. It’s a modern trend, but it’s going back to everybody playing together because it’s another kind of vibe when guys play together than it is when they play separate. The younger guys don’t have that concept because they don’t come from that. They use machines and all that sort of crazy stuff. They don’t use real players a lot of time. They may use one or two cats, but a lot of that stuff is machines.”

To pass on his legacy to up-and-coming musicians, Ricky teaches master classes where he offers the basics to those seeking his guidance. “As a drummer, the first thing is being able to play good time. All the other stuff is just extra. If your timing is not right, you’re shit out of luck. A lot of the young cats, [their] timing is really good, but they just kind of play a little bit too much. It’s a blessing to be able to have those kind of chops, but it’s another thing to be able to use it in all kinds of environments. What they do is they play more of a hip-hop kind of feel, and what has a tendency to happen is they don’t know when to turn it on and when to turn it off.”

The Guitars and Saxes concert is about to begin. Most of the musicians are already on stage, but I have a couple more questions. In a career as far-reaching as Ricky’s, I’m interested in what some of the big moments were for him. “One of the biggest was playing on ‘I Will Always Love You’ by Whitney Houston. I played a one-note drum solo which was probably the biggest single note that’s been played in a long, long time. I say ‘boof’ and [imitating Whitney’s infamous line] ‘And I….’ If I don’t say ‘boof’, she can’t say ‘And I….’ and can’t finish the song. One note. Before my mom passed away, every time she’d hear that song she would cry and say, ‘That’s my baby.’”

A stage hand is now calling “the drummer” to the stage, but Ricky, always the gentleman, wants to make sure I’ve gotten all my questions in. I ask if he has any advice to young drummers just getting started. “Get around. Hang around some good clubs, hang around some good cats, cats that you trust. And play as much as you can. In any environment. Play gospel, rock, pop, jazz. So that when you’re playing what you wanna play, you’ll have all these chops and different types of things to pull from. And call me. If you have a problem, call me. I’ll help you.”

He smiles, we shake hands, Ricky walks onto the stage.