some jams together at the Bitter End and we became friends. I always used to call him to play, and eventually it evolved into this trio. Keith and Anton basically have been my drummers since I moved to New York. I’ve tried other people, but they’re the main guys.
DH: Are there any other drummers that you would like to work with? ON: I’d love to work with Steve Gadd, of course. I’m a big [Dave] Weckl fan – I’m actually doing something with him in L.A. and I’d love to play with Jack DeJohnette [laughs]. I met him a few weeks ago when he played in New York.
I wanted a song for Vinnie to solo on. The tune that I did with him, “Evidence,”
the [Thelonious] Monk
tune, we used to play it in
New York, but we never
really got it right, so I wasn’t
even planning on recording
it. But I thought, let’s just do
it and maybe we’ll get it. We just jammed,
and I think it worked.
We also did “EpistroFunk,” which is based on another Monk tune “Epistrophy.” We did that here in New York too, but there was something about it that wasn’t exactly right, like the other tunes that I knew would fit Anton or Keith. So that’s why I chose that one, you know, let me do it in L.A. and maybe I’ll get a different thing.
DH: Listening to Fuzzy, you can’t help but think that these tunes were made for these guys. Did you think beforehand which guys you were going to use? ON: Definitely, yeah. In New York it is very easy for me to do that because I know Anton’s and Keith’s playing so well. I’m actually writing tunes sometimes with them in mind.
ON: Yeah, that’s what it usually is. We rehearse very little; mainly the tunes are happening once we go and play live. I will do a demo at home, and usually I’ll get the idea of the drums and the bass lines pretty close. I bring them a chart and a demo with the basic idea. They listen to it, they kind of get it from the tape, and then it evolves in the gig.
Most of my writing is based on vamps and grooves. When I write, I find those little grooves or a guitar vamp or even a drum or bass vamp. Then I write everything around it. The B-section I’ll write something else, but it’s all based on vamps and grooves.
I don’t really see a difference between live and the studio. When we record, we play live; it’s really no different. It’s just harder to get the live feel when you’re in the studio, so you have to do more takes, but I don’t really see a difference.
DH: When you came over and hooked up with Anton, did you find that it gave you immediate notoriety and attention, you being an “unknown guy” suddenly playing with Anton Fig. ON: Maybe a little, but not to the level that you might think. It’s great that we’re playing together, and it’s a real band, but I didn’t get more gigs because I was playing with Anton – it didn’t really boost my career that much.
DH: How did Vinnie Colaiuta come into the picture? ON: Vinnie came in because on this record I wanted to add something new; I already have two records with the exact same guys. I knew him a little before. I had given him a record at one of my gigs, and I guess he was listening to it and digging it.
ON: Not really, but I always like to watch
drummer videos. Since I moved here, the
biggest influence on me has been just to play
with really good drummers, and
I’ve been lucky enough to play
with a lot of really good guys.
Like the pocket, you can’t
get a pocket from listening
to a record; you can only
really get it when you play
with the guys. It’s like a whole
other feeling.
CD TRACK 35
Vinnie: “He’s got it all together. Vinnie is just a beast, you know he just can do whatever the f--k he wants.”
CD TRACK 36
Keith: “Keith has got that open, Led Zeppelin or Elvin Jones kind of sound. His groove is different, a little funkier, very wide and a little lighter.”
CD TRACK 37
Anton: “He has got this kind of raw, tighter sound. Anton’s groove is a little heavier, a kind of rock groove.”
ON: I’m going to Japan in November, but touring is very hard to do. I don’t really have any doors open for me yet in Europe or even here in America, so I’m going to Japan. In fact, the record’s being released in Japan first – August 23rd in Japan, and September 12th here.
Keith is supposed to come with me. I ask them all, but usually they are all too busy, so I’ll use whoever can do it. And if none of them is available, then Rocky Bryant does it. So there are a few options. I’m just hoping that one of them is free.
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