I’m not much of an autograph seeker. Not anymore, anyway.
There was a time when getting a musician’s John Hancock on my copy of their record was the thrill of a lifetime. But over the years, that feeling has faded.
Perhaps it’s because the signatures I’ve collected were becoming increasingly illegible. I mean, what’s the point of looking at a couple of swirls on a CD cover and not being able to make it out a day or two later?
That’s when I realized that being able to speak to the musician was a much more valuable experience. And if that moment could be photographed, well … so much the better!
We’re neck-deep in the “selfie” era, where people have chosen to document just about every aspect of our existence. Normally, I hate any photo that has me in it. But when it comes to chatting up the musicians I admire, I’ve gotten over it.
A new life of concert attendance and music journalism has put in the position of being able to interact with some of my favorite musicians. In fact, I’ve met a lot more musicians than I thought. I’d actually forgotten about one or two of them! Go figure.
So, here are several of those meetups, some with context provided. I don’t remember all the dates, but I do remember that they were all meaningful.
Somewhere out there, someone is going to say, “I don’t know who a lot of these people are.” Well, that doesn’t matter. I don’t go in for music superstars. I love musicians. There is definitely a difference.
This is without a doubt my most self-indulgent post. I hope you don’t mind.
It certainly beats the daylights out of interviewing criminals as a police officer. I love this new life!
Dweezil Zappa, c. 2017. Taken at Killer Vintage guitar shop in St. Louis. I cannot confirm or deny getting a tip that he would be stopping by before his show that evening. It was a thrill getting to tell Dweezil how much his dad’s music means to me. Ray White (Frank Zappa), taken at Martyrs in Chicago in 2024. Clowning around with “The Assistant Illinois Enema Bandit” was not something I ever imagined doing. But we have a lot in common and had a lot of fun with it.Tony Levin, taken at Reggie’s Rock club in 2024. We all dream of meeting our heroes. I’ve spoken with The Lord of the Low End at least four times, which I couldn’t possibly fathom less than a decade ago. It’s always a pleasure.Trey Gunn at Reggie’s Rock Club. I’ve always admired him and had a ball interviewing him for my YouTube channel. He had fun, too, and we were really happy to finally chat in person. Chester Thompson at his hotel in Rutherford, New Jersey in 2023. Chester is one of my all-time favorite drummers, so I was more than a little geeked out to help pick him up at the Newark airport the day before the festival. We even had lunch and talked books and history. Rob Fetters, taken at his home in Cincinnati, Ohio in 2019. If you had told me I would become friends with one of my favorite singer/songwriters of all time, I would’ve called you crazy. But it happened. Rob is one of the kindest human beings on the planet.Pat Mastelotto (Stick Men), taken at Reggie’s in 2024. Pat was fresh off a heart procedure and I actually interviewed him from his hospital bed. You’ll find it on my YouTube channel. Speaking of kind human beings …Ike Willis (Frank Zappa) at Reggie’s in 2017. Ike and I are both from St. Louis, which kicked off a highly enjoyable conversation. The dude was about as low-key and chill as they come. Mike Keneally, taken at the Arcada Theater c. 2022. One of a few photos we’ve taken together since the first time we met in 2001. Mike is so talented, it’s scary. He honored me by writing the foreword to my book. Mike has also become a good friend. Hearing him say, “I love you, man” after we embraced will always be one of my cherished memories.Markus Reuter, taken at Reggie’s c. 2023. Another incredible human being. We spoke at length for the first time in 2015, where he told me he remembered speaking to me four years before. I was stunned. We’ve become friends and shared time on each others’s YouTube channels. Vernon Reid (Living Colour), taken at Blueberry Hill in St. Louis in 2014. Vernon was the first person I interviewed for my book, and he couldn’t have been kinder. I actually stood with him, Corey Glover, Will Calhoun, and Doug Wimbish (along with one of their friends) and talked Marvel and Star Trek movies before the interview started. Speaking of which …… here’s the whole gang just before the interview started. You’ve gotta love Vernon photobombing his own band. The cover shot is the first photo I ever took with Adrian Belew. It was taken at Blueberry Hill c. 2006. This is the most recent, taken at City Winery in Chicago in 2022. There are more than a couple in between. Adrian is my musical hero and another remarkable human. Tim Motzer (PAKT), taken at Reggie’s Comedy Shack. People don’t come much kinder than Tim. I had interviewed him a few months before, and we couldn’t wait to greet each other in person. It was great to finally see him play live.Steve Kimock, taken at the Arcada Theater. I was there to see him play with Jazz is Dead and to interview him for my Bernie Worrell book. Our time together was relatively brief, but highly enjoyable. Andre Chomondely, taken at the Vic theater in Chicago. Andre is an extremely talented musicians and guitar tech to the progressive rock stars, along with Ani DiFranco and Pat Metheny. The two of us do work for Make Weird Music and have become fast friends. Sometimes I think we share a brain! Patrick Moraz, taken at Progstock in New Jersey in 2023. I also helped pick him up from Newark airport. I introduced myself in the van and we chatted briefly. From that moment on, Pat greeted me by name every time he saw me that weekend. He even improvised a piece of music and sent it to me for my birthday!Oz Noy, taken at B.B.’s Jazz, Blues, and Soups in St. Louis. We had a very brief chat, but he was very kind and we agreed to do an interview down the road. Unfortunately, that hasn’t happened yet. I’m working on it. Marbin, taken at B.B.’s c. 2018. What a cool bunch of guys! They were actually looking for me to show up at this gig and greeted me warmly when they located me. I almost felt like I was part of the band! Julie Slick (Adrian Belew) taken at the Old Rockhouse c. 2019. Julie was kind enough to take a copy of my book to Adrian (who I wound up talking to anyway) after the show. I gave Julie the baseball, as she’s a big Philadelphia Phillies fan. So, of course I wrote “Go Cards” on it, since I’m from St. Louis. It’s still a running joke.Bob Nyswonger, taken at his home in Cincinnati c. 2019. I told Rob Fetters I was coming to town and he hooked me up with Bob (his fellow Psychodot and member of the Bears), who became my tour guide. I even spent the night at his house, but not before hanging out in his living room, eating Thai food, and watching baseball. Chris Arduser, taken at his home in Cincinnati. Before going to Fetters’s house, Bob took me to meet fellow ‘dot and Bear Chris. His dog didn’t think much of me until Chris gave me treats to feed to the pup. I was his best friend after that. Chris passed away recently, and I can feel the loss even after talking to him for just a couple of hours. John Scofield, taken at the Sheldon in St. Louis in 2017. In addition to being one of my favorite guitarists, John played with Miles Davis, which is more than enough to cause me to geek out. He was in town as part of Hudson, a band that included another Miles alum … … Jack DeJohnnette. The geek-out continues. Jack was an incredibly kind man, and his energy level behind the drums at age 75 blew my mind! I felt deeply privileged to have a moment or two with him.Sons of Ra, taken at Cary’s Lounge in Chicago c. 2022. These guys basically adopted me when I moved to Chicago in 2020. I’ve seen and photographed them countless times since then. (A feature is forthcoming.) I’ve joked with them that if we ever formed a band, this would be a great shot for our first album cover. Bent Knee, taken at Fubar in St. Louis c. 2017. Such a terrific bunch of people! I’ve seen and spoken with them more than once since then. Vince, Chris, Courtney, Ben, and Jessica took me by surprise with this moment. I guess that’s what made it all the more fun. Unfortunately, Gavin injured himself a few days before, so he couldn’t be there. Well … … Gavin Wallace-Ailsworth and I met up a couple of years later. We actually got friendly back in ‘16 (I think) during a Proglodytes podcast conducted by phone. As a forthcoming feature will indicate, we’ve become friends and still chat occasionally. He’s a cool dude.Victor Wooten, taken at the Old Rockhouse c. 2015. What caught my attention was how shy Victor is. He lets loose like he owns the place (and he does) when he takes the stage, but becomes incredibly low-key and humble when he comes off. I’d love to sit and chat with him sometime.
There are other photos, but let’s save them for another time. I am truly honored to have met so many wonderful people.
CirdecSongs 