I'm not like my siblings, who are musical but can turn their hands to other professions! I'd always wanted to be involved in music - I'm a great believer in doing things that fulfil you.
Lately, I've been listening to some jazz albums. I love the new Pat Metheny album. John Coltrane. I still like good metal, though!
It was hard to figure out what were the good causes, the bad causes, even the good politics and the bad politics. So we started taking requests and figuring it out.
The simple things in life ground me and keep me focused so I'm able to do a good job with what is in front of me.
I got into the habit of filtering out all the good in my life, focusing on only the negative. I'm not sure why I did it, but it's a pretty depressing state.
I've been able to do pretty well. I don't work as many consecutive nights as I used to, but I'm still working over 100 nights a year, so that's good for me.
I never work out my leads. Everything I do is usually totally spontaneous. If someone says, 'That was good; play that again,' I'm not able to do it.
For me, if the music is good, whether the artist is famous or unknown, I love being part of the music and contributing what I can to the bass end.
What I used to play was rhythm guitar before I saw Jack Bruce. I said, That's what I want to do in life. He was definitely the main influence.
Life seems terrible and disappointing, so you need to find something you need to make you stick around. Music that makes me happiest is the saddest music, with the most emotional feel.
When I was 12 and started to take singing lessons from a woman, she told me that I would probably spend the rest of my life taking care of my voice.
My life would have been different without Paul Stanley or Ace Frehley. They would have to be the greatest on my list as an influence to my life at 11 years old.
They used to complain at school that I looked out of the window for long periods of time - that sums up my life. I like to look out the window, do nothing, daydream.
Music and songs are written at different periods of time, at different times in your life. They reflect the feelings you have and to be honest, I quite like having positive emotions.
I love soccer. That's all I ever watch. I'll watch it all day if I can. But I'm too bloody old to play now.
I wish I could sing. I love singers, but I am way too shy. Scares the hell out of me.
Jazz has always been a melting pot of influences and I plan to incorporate them all.
Jack Bruce, as soon as I saw him, it changed me. I didn't even know what bass players did until I saw Cream.
But I just think we've got such a continuity with what we're doing that most people come in and fill in the blanks. And sometimes we leave a lot of blanks to be filled.
I look at the artistic process as like experiencing the world, channeling it through your personality and sending it back out there. That's the process.
My drummer, Gene Lake, is Oliver Lake's son. So I certainly have wide tastes, in not only what I listen to, but what I play as well.
