International Musician And Recording World, January 1985

On Keyboards
By T Lavitz

A Drummer's-eye View Of Keyboards

You think it's such a big deal to wiggle a few fingers to be musical? Imagine all four limbs flying in as many directions, and maybe you can begin to envision what it's like to be a drummer. Certainly we keyboard operators can listen to some of their words of wisdom concerning rhythm-section playing and rhythm itself.

Rod Morgenstein

Rod Morgenstein has played with the Dregs, the Paul Barrere Group and the Steve Morse Band. Being personally associated with him on these projects is not why I say he is one of the most incredible drummers around, but seeing is believing, and what I hear when he plays is hard to believe without seeing. It's worth noting that while he is known as a drummer, Rod attributes most of his musicality to the fact that he plays piano as well. I asked him about the relationships in rhythmic approaches, and his retort was that he finds that some of the more exciting keyboard players are also drummers in their own right. "To me, every keyboard player should try to dabble a little bit on a drum set," he said. When asked about fusion, Rod felt that "the more styles you can play, the easier time you're going to have getting work. But aside from that, it makes you more exciting. There can be some interesting blends of styles. Everyone has his weaknesses, and this is where you need to check out other styles."

Odd times, or "mixed meter," pushes a panic button for most musicians. How can a player become more comfortable in this situation? "It's just a question of starting from the beginning and taking it slow," Rod advised. "Listen to lots of music that makes use of mixed meter, and eventually it will become second nature to you."

Kansas's Phil Ehart

Phil Ehart is best known for his work with the progressive-rock group Kansas. Phil is a true enthusiast of the acoustic piano as well as the electronic keyboard. One thing he pointed out was that a keyboard player should try to play like one; Phil said he "hates when they try to sound like guitar players" in a lead-type function. "Heck, there are usually enough guitar players in a band." By the same token, he likes a guitarist who doesn't imitate a synthesizer player.

As for a keyboardist's role in a backing or comping situation, Phil very astutely pointed out that "there are a lot of keyboard players, but one who plays piano is great!" Kansas are well known for their adventurous time signature changes, and Phil's advice echoed that of Rod Morgenstein: You must practice diligently, beginning slowly and gradually building up speed. In his case, he said that he memorizes complicated phrases.

Overall Phil Ehart likes keyboard instruments but offered this advice: "Don't noodle. During a soundcheck or whatever, you must wait your turn and be considerate of others."

Journey's Steve Smith

Steve Smith is a remarkably versatile drummer, able to take on the jazz rock of Jean-Luc Ponty and yet supply economical but powerful backing to Journey. Knowing that Steve plays jazz and rock equally well, I wanted some insight into how a jazz-based player obtains the energy and feel for rock music. Steve felt that "the good rock keyboard players use simpler, more open voicings in general-wherever their roots lie. The feel is usually way on top of the beat too much. I notice this especially when a jazz player is playing rock."

Steve's playing schedule is a hectic one, and he said that to stay with it you must "take playing music seriously enough so that each performance is important. Every night I try to keep that foremost in my mind."

Since Journey's music seems rather structured, I solicited some of his thoughts on keyboard improvisation in rock: "I'm not a real fan of synthesizer solos. I like piano solos, but I don't really feel that there's a place for improvisation in rock. However, I do enjoy a well-orchestrated lead part."