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THE JOURNEY ZONE
http://www.journey-zone.com
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THE INTERVIEWS
August, 2001 |
Neal Schon Interview with Jeb Wright
Steve Augeri Interview with Jeb Wright
The Famous Herbie Herbert Interview with Matt Carty
Gregg Rolie Band Rockline Interview
August 22, 2001
Bob Coburn: Hey, welcome back to Rockline. I'm Bob Coburn. Our number: Toll free 1-800-xxx-rock--that's 7625. Gregg Rolie has one of rock's most indelible trademark sounds both on keyboards and vocally, with time spent in the Storm, Santana, and Journey. His awesome vocal on "Black Magic Woman" still stands as one of the greatest in rock'n'roll. And Gregg just released a new solo album, titled Roots, and Rockline would like to welcome Gregg Rolie. How are ya'?
Rolie: I'm very good, thanks.
Bob Coburn: It's been too long! It's good to see ya!
Rolie: Yeah, it's been about ten years, right?
Bob Coburn: It has been about ten years, but boy, I heard some of the soundcheck, and--you guys are going to play "Black Magic Woman" live for us?
Rolie: Yeah, we are.
Bob Coburn: Yeah, you gotta do that. Gotta do that for the Rockline listeners. You've done so many things over the years, this album--Roots--to me, is really Gregg Rolie, this is what Gregg Rolie stands for, the music that I would think that you love the most. Am I off base or is that correct?
Rolie: No, it's pretty accurate. The way it started out was I was trying to design it more than just let it play and let the music come out and I was doing acoustic work that is on there and then I went to the Hall of Fame and did the induction ceremony and played with Santana and I realized that I really should kick in the rest of what I do here, and started writing more up-tempo, and louder, and then it just started developing. And it got called Roots after the fact, and I let the music do the talking instead of me trying to direct where it was gonna' go. And I just let it go loose. And that's how Santana was built in the first place. We just tried anything and everything, 'cause we really didn't know what we were doing.
Bob Coburn: Not only are the songs good, and up, it's real spiritual--and very much body music at the same time, but sonically it's just an outstanding album, and you were saying just a moment ago you recorded it at individual homes? Is that right?
Rolie: Yeah, home studios.
Bob Coburn: You'd never know. It's sounds like--
Rolie: Well, that's the idea! (laughs)
Bob Coburn: Multi-million-dollar big bucks studios.
Rolie: You know the equipment that is out there nowadays, you don't need that huge room. The only thing you might need it for would be drums, in my opinion. And everything comes in a box. And it all sounds great.
Bob Coburn: Everything comes in a box! I love that!
Rolie: You know it's up to the user! It's up to the guy using it. It's like a computer. I mean you can make computer music or you can use it to the best of your advantage to get the best sound and still leave it alone, leave it real.
Bob Coburn: Now for those who don't know, you not only were in Journey and Santana, you were co-founder of both bands, weren't you?
Rolie: Right.
Bob Coburn: Man, you were right there from the beginning.
Rolie: Yeah.
Bob Coburn: From the seminal days with Santana, and you did, what--three and a half, four albums with Santana, and was it seven with Journey?
Rolie: Yeah, I think it is seven.
Bob Coburn: Well I'm testing your memory here!
Rolie: Well, it's a short test!
Bob Coburn: And then, being inducted to the Rock'n'Roll Hall of Fame, I've always been curious--do they give you a trophy, or a certificate good for Wal-Mart or something? Do you get anything?
Rolie: Well you get a trophy, yeah, you do. And playing in front of the crowd that's there--I was kinda blown away playing for all the heads of state of the industry. I mean that's really what goes on there.
Bob Coburn: That's a pretty heady crowd yeah?
Rolie: Yeah.
Bob Coburn: And I guess the house band for years has been Paul Shafer's orchestra from David Letterman, that's kind of the backbone. When they're needed, they're there.
Rolie: Yeah, I was using his B-3 as a matter of fact. Thanks Paul.
Bob Coburn: Well, thanks Paul--there you go. Ready for some calls? 'Cause we got 'em for ya.
Rolie: Sure!
Bob Coburn: We're gonna take a call from Boston from Bruce. Bruce, you're on with Gregg Rolie.
Caller Bruce: Hey Gregg! In 1997, Columbia/Legacy released a terrific live album entitled Santana: Live at the Fillmore, 1968. My question is, are there any more unreleased live Santana recordings in the vaults? For instance, we've still only seen and heard one track from Woodstock '69 after all these years.
Rolie: You know, I bet there is, but they probably lost 'em. (laughs) I mean really, Sony--the vaults are so big, if they went back there and really searched it out I'm sure there's a lot of other things. At this point, those are the only ones we've found that were really worthy of doing anything with.
Bob Coburn: Those days back then, with Bill Graham and the Fillmore, you could go see five completely different types of acts in one night.
Rolie: I thought that was brilliant back then.
Bob Coburn: I did too.
Rolie: It's very much like when FM radio hit, and AM wasn't the only thing there, there was only--you know, the top ten was it. And you got Doris Day singing stuff. So you didn't even know blues existed, you didn't know half the jazz. And so FM came out. And they put all kinds of music on this one station. You could just hear this wide variety that you didn't know existed. And Bill Graham took it a step further and put it onto shows. You would see Miles Davis and Santana. I mean, who would've thought of that?
Bob Coburn: But what a great night! Those are nights you don't forget!
Rolie: Oh yeah! And what an education!
Bob Coburn: We have Dan in the Tulsa area. Dan, welcome to Rockline. Here's Gregg Rolie for ya.'
Caller Dan: Hey!
Rolie: Hey.
Caller Dan: How's it goin' there Gregg?
Rolie: Very good.
Caller Dan: It's been great to hear from ya' again. Way back when, I heard you and Neal Schon talking on the radio once upon a time about embarking on a project you were doing at that time having to do with the original members of the Santana band, except for Carlos. You were gonna' call it Abraxas. I was under the impression you were gonna' record as such, but I've never been able to find or hear anything from it. Did you guys go ahead and do that, or--
Rolie: Yeah, we did as a matter of fact. It was called Abraxas Pool and Alphonso Johnson played bass on it, and he's sitting across from me right now. Say "hey," Al.
Johnson: Hey, what's up?
Rolie: Anyway, yeah, we did do that. It lasted for about a year and a half, and Neal went on to do Journey, and that was kind've the end of it. We played--we did record it--it was out on Miramar Records, which was a small independent label out of Seattle, and it didn't get very far because it just didn't. And we couldn't go tour to support it because the band was done within a year and a half. So that's what happened. But it is out there. I think it would be hard to find, though.
Bob Coburn: Well Dan will seek it out, I guarantee you--that's the way the Rockline listeners are. They'll find everything. They'll go on E-Bay. They'll search, they'll seek, they'll find. And then they'll send you a copy in the mail. That's the way it works.
Rolie: Could be! (laughs)
Bob Coburn: Now we've talked about Roots a little bit, the brand-new CD from Gregg Rolie. We're gonna' play the first song from the album, "Give It to Me." Tell us a little bit about this one.
Rolie: An interesting point about this is that when I first wrote this, Ron and I--the drummer, Ron Wikso--we listened to it and we thought it was okay. We'll finish the song. And we didn't know what it would come out like, really. And we thought it would be good, but we didn't really know. And as it grew, it was another one of those things--I just let things go, and it got better and better and then we slapped some horns on it and it really came alive.
Bob Coburn: Boy, it sure did.
Rolie: And that was at Ron's insistence--I have to always bring that up because Ron pounds it--he kept going "I've got this horn player, he lives right around the corner and he's really really good," and I go "yeah, yeah, when we get to it." And it turned out to be the thing that put it over the top for me.
Bob Coburn: We'll let you play live in a few minutes. Right now from Roots it's Gregg Rolie "Give It to Me" on Rockline.
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Bob Coburn: "Give It to Me" is the name of the song, and we did. Gregg Rolie from the album Roots. We have calls for Gregg. Right now it's Adam from Culver City, California. Welcome to Rockline, Adam.
Caller Adam: Hey, Gregg, how ya' doin?'
Rolie: I'm good, Adam.
Caller Adam: I was wondering, how did you go about forming The Storm, with Ross Valory, and Steve Smith and the guys from 707? And what was your creative inspiration with Steve Perry on "Just the Same Way" off of Evolution?
Rolie: Well, let's see. Let's start with the creative inspiration. Actually I wrote that song and brought it in and he sang the part on top of it. It just became like a duet. We were trying to interject two vocalists at the same time back then, and that's pretty much how that happened. It was pretty much written already; he did the "B" section to the song and that's how that came about. And as far as The Storm, The Storm started out to be a songwriting collaboration between Kevin Chalfant and myself. We had no design on being a band whatsoever. And Herbie Herbert got a tape out and played it for the guys at Interscope who were just starting their record company up, and they loved it, and called me up, and they wanted to sign me up, and I said "I got a better idea for you." And I told them about the band. And having Ross and Smith and myself, and Josh Ramos and Kevin Chalfant, and go out and do it that way. And they bought into it and we ended up with a top ten hit out of it. So that's how it came about.
Bob Coburn: "I've got a Lot to Learn about Love" was huge.
Rolie: Yeah, it did well.
Bob Coburn: Charted really well on Billboard. Thanks for the call there, Adam. We're gonna' turn to Fred in San Francisco--the Bay area checking in right now. Hi, Fred.
Caller Fred: Hi there.
Rolie: Fred!
Caller Fred: Yeah!
Rolie: Fred who?
Caller Fred: Oh, Fred, from Pleasanton.
Rolie: Fred Mulgrew!
Caller Fred: Yeah, that's me!
Rolie: You are the man!
Caller Fred: Hi Ron! Hi Alphonso!
Johnson: Hey, Fred, what's up?
Rolie: Obviously we know Fred well.
Caller Fred: Outstanding! Hey, you guys were great last Sunday! My question: As the writer on the new CD, does the music come first, or the lyrics first?
Rolie: The music. The way it has always been for me, I mean--very seldom will I write a song off of a lyrical idea. I think the music speaks to you, and makes you feel something. And, you know, a song like "Domingo," if I was to write lyrics to it I certainly wouldn't go in there and write a song like that about war. You know, it's so soft and mellow, and it's about about a Sunday afternoon. So the music speaks first and gives you a feel for what the song ought to be, and then it should come. And that's the way I've always done it.
Bob Coburn: A reminder if you get on the air tonight we'll send you a copy of either John Waite's Figure in a Landscape from Gold Circle Records or Gregg Rolie's Roots from the folks at 33rd Street Records, which is the new Tower Records Label.
Rolie: Right.
Bob Coburn: You're the first CD on there.
Rolie: It's one of the first--one of three of them. They treated me great.
Bob Coburn: Well the band's gonna' play live, we'll be back with Gregg and more of your calls in just a moment. It's toll free 1-800-xxx-rock and get ready to roll tape--it's gonna get good!
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Bob Coburn: So good. Gregg Rolie and his band with "Black Magic Woman" and "Gypsy Queen" and a little bit of "Third Stone from the Sun" by Jimi Hendrix thrown in there, as well. That's just awesome. Boy that sounds good. Introduce the band for everybody.
Rolie: Okay on guitar we have Michael Hakes; On bass, Alphonso Johnson;
Johnson: Hey!
Rolie: And over in the booth--
Bob Coburn: In the isolation booth!
Rolie: In the isolation booth--and we have to leave him there [laughs]--that's Ron Wikso on drums.
Bob Coburn: Outstanding, you guys, oustanding. We'll take another call for Gregg here. We have David in Lincoln Nebraska. Hi, David, you're on Rockline with Gregg Rolie.
Caller David: Hi Gregg.
Rolie: How you doin?
Caller David: Pretty good. Hey, I'm a good southern rock boy, I was just wondering who is the greatest guitar player you've ever played with or ever known?
Rolie: Whoa!
Bob Coburn: We've got a hand up in the room here...
Rolie: Yeah, Michael's over here going "well, that'd be me, wouldn't it?" [Laughter] That's a real tough one. There's so many, for various reasons. It's kind of like bands--"who's your favorite band?" Well I like different bands for different reasons, different music, different songs. I'd have to say Stevie Ray Vaughan is way up on the list for me. The rhythmic attitude of this guy and the heart he played with. It's like he wasn't breathing or something--I don't know. He was unbelievable. And of course Hendrix was so innovative--he was doing stuff with real strings and electricity that come in a box now. And so he made it up. That's tough. And of course I played with two of the best ones as well, between Carlos and Neal. I don't know. It would have to start off with Stevie Ray Vaughan for me I think.
Bob Coburn: Those are all great choices.
Rolie: Yeah, well, there's more, but we don't have an hour.
Bob Coburn: No, we don't, so I'm gonna' ask you to play "Love is Everything" off the brand-new CD. If you guys are ready.
Rolie: Yeah, okay.
Bob Coburn: That sounded great--that was a great version of "Black Magic Woman" and "Gypsy Queen." Gregg Rolie and his band on Rockline.
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Bob Coburn: Yeah! "Love is Everything," Gregg Rolie and his band from the album Roots--brand-new. We'll be back on Rockline in just a moment--stay with us.
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Bob Coburn: Welcome back to Rockline with Bob Coburn. We're with Gregg Rolie right now and we've got a few more seconds here. You know, reviews suck when you're getting bad ones, but you're getting geat reviews. You must love the reviewers right now.
Rolie: Yeah! I usually don't!
Bob Coburn: You're getting four or five stars everywhere you turn here!
Rolie: It's really true. I hope more and more people find out about this CD. I'm real proud of it and the guys who played on it are great. Can't wait to get out and play it live. I hope to get a ten-piece band by the time I'm done with this.
Bob Coburn: Well once you get out live and do a little bit of the tour come back and play with the ten-piece band--we've got room for ya' here! Being in the studio sounds pretty good, especially when you've got players in it, you know?
Rolie: We'd be more than happy to.
Bob Coburn: Well you guys were awesome tonight. Now Gregg, I notice that you wrote everything on here. Do you prefer to write alone? Do you like to do it that way?
Rolie: It just kind of happened. Not necessarily. A good piece is a good piece. And the Santana material--"Black Magic Woman" was written by Peter Greene.
Bob Coburn: And the other part by Gabor Zabeau.
Rolie: Yeah. It really doesn't matter. If you latch on to it and make it yours and make it feel, then it's a good one.
Bob Coburn: Let me thank a couple of people here. Thanks to our listeners, and our callers tonight. Thanks to our affiliate stations. Thanks to Cody, Dave, and John at KKRW in Houston, as well as to Laurie Lucerarian at Rogers and Cowan. Also to Jeff Van Dyne. Thanks also to Michael Jensen and Brian Alsop from Jensen communications and to Scott Boorey. And to you Gregg Rolie and your band. You guys were outstanding. Thanks for coming tonight.
Rolie: Thanks Bob.
Bob Coburn: I'm BC and I'll be seein' ya.'
Last Updated 02 July, 2007 (DHG)
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