"The Players" Webcast

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I was very fortunate to meet Peter Erskine in 1972 on his first tour with the Stan Kenton band.

He had been a tremendous influence to myself and so many others around the world.

I’m this video, we talk about a multitude of topics: Peter’s work at USC, his home studio setup (mics, cameras, drums, etc) and Peter shares a few fun stories, as well!

Be sure to visit his website at:

http://www.PeterErskine.com

We hope you will consider showing your support through our Patreon page. This helps to keep the episodes coming. Thank you so much! https://www.patreon.com/theplayerswebcast

On a February, 2019 trip Los Angeles, I had a chance to meet up with Dave Weckl at his home studio. We did our second interview: “Mindset For Success.” Dave shares great words of wisdom on what it means (to him) to be successful. Watch and enjoy!

Check out my other interview with Dave at: https://youtu.be/V_Q2N9NMlXU​ where we talk about "Dave Weckl Interview: Staying Healthy on Tour / Movement Efficiency While Drumming."

Be sure to check out Dave's website at: http://www.daveweckl.com​

We hope you will consider showing your support through our Patreon page. This helps to keep the episodes coming. Thank you so much! https://www.patreon.com/theplayerswebcast

It was so much fun to talk with Tom Brechtlein. He has been one of my favorite musicians / drummers since I first saw him with Chick Corea in 1980. In this conversation, Tom shares about a multitude of topics including his time with Chick Corea (and how he met Chick), Wayne Shorter, Kenny Loggins, and others.

Be sure to visit Tom’s website at: https://www.tombrechtlein.com​

Tom Brechtlein grew up in East Meadow, Long Island and gravitated to drums after listening to the Beatles, the Rolling Stones, the Who, Cream and the Jimi Hendrix Experience. In junior high, his attention turned to big band jazz, and he became attracted to the music of the Thad Jones-Mel Lewis Orchestra. His investigation of jazz led him to Dave Brubeck's drummer Joe Morello and then to modern giants like Elvin Jones and Tony Williams as well as legends like Papa Jo Jones, Max Roach and Philly Joe Jones. "When I was 18," he recalls, "I saw Chick Corea's Return To Forever on PBS Television; and I remember sitting there thinking, ' I'm going to play with that guy someday.'" Two years later, in 1978, he auditioned with Corea and got the gig. He remained in the band till 1983, at which point he joined Wayne Shorter's band. There followed extensive road work with guitarist Al Di Meola and violinist Jean Luc Ponty before Tom finally hooked up with Robben Ford in 1986.

We hope you will consider showing your support through our Patreon page. This helps to keep the episodes coming. Thank you so much! https://www.patreon.com/theplayerswebcast

What a blast 💥 it was to talk with the amazing, Dennis Chambers again. So many great stories!

The first few minutes are choppy because of a bad internet connection. At about 14:40​, Dennis changed devices and the connection was solid after that.

In this conversation, Dennis shares about many things:

* what he’s been doing during the pandemic

* Up and coming drummers he listening to

* Stories about working with the Brecker Brothers, John Scofield, and others

* The classic sorry about the phone call he got from Miles Davis offering him gig

Dennis also takes us on a tour of “the dungeon” where he shows his collection of drums from

many of the drum icons, including Art Blakey, Tony Williams, Papa Jo Jones, Gene Krupa, and others.

He also talks about his collection of basses and guitars 🎸

This is history, folks - from an amazing musician and an amazing man with a big heart

Enjoy!

We hope you will consider showing your support through our Patreon page. This helps to keep the episodes coming. Thank you so much! https://www.patreon.com/theplayerswebcast

I've been a Mitch Stein fan since the mid 1990's. It was an honor to talk with Mitch and have him share about his career, his compositions and music, and experiences working with so many great artists.

Be sure to visit his website and see his full bio and more at: https://mitchstein.com/home​

Mitch Stein Guitarist/Composer The show had already started and the sound came rushing up the stairs to meet me as I made my way to the basement of the Izzy Bar that night in '97. The sound, like Led Zeppelin on overdrive wearing a Stetson and armed with 21st Century calculus, made my hair stand on end. I'd been told by those who know that The Hermanators were probably the best band in the city and that their leader, Mitch Stein, was a New York guitar legend. Sure enough the room was packed, full of some of the finest improvising musicians anywhere, devoted fans and even a contingent of the ‘beautiful people’. Over the course of the set they played with energetic hyper funk, raucous raging rock, hymnal beauty, twisted country and bemused blues underpinned by advanced harmony and intricate grooves all the while displaying incredible empathy between each other and a healthy dose of humor. I’d been Hermanated! Mitch "Moose" Stein is a genuine NY guitar hero, born and raised in the mythic Gotham. Both his parents were musicians (mother a classical pianist and father a jazz trumpeter) but the first music that hooked him while still in kindergarten was"Meet the Beatles". The young Stein, drawn to the rhythm of rock 'n roll, started off on drums before switching to the guitar in the 6th grade. Shortly after, he started lessons with renowned studio musician Allen Hanlon whom Mitch says "kicked my ass and made me take the guitar seriously!" As a teenager Moose loved listening to bands that stretched out and jammed a la The Allman Bros and then one day, while still a senior in high-school, a friend played him Coltrane. It was "My Favorite Things"live at Newport and "it turned my head around! They were jamming but on a whole different planet!"Coltrane had opened up a whole new world for the nascent musician who subsequently found a great jazz teacher in Rich Boukas and immediately started soaking up as much jazz history as he could.

We hope you will consider showing your support through our Patreon page. This helps to keep the episodes coming. Thank you so much! https://www.patreon.com/theplayerswebcast

Asaf Sirkis is one of the most versatile, dynamic, and expressive musicians / drummers of our time. In our conversation, we talk about a variety of topics, including Asaf’s perspective on “freedom” in music, letting the music play you, flow, balance, & that’s just the beginning. Stay tuned for part 2 in a few weeks!

To learn more about Asaf, be sure to visit his website at:

https://www.asafsirkis.com​

Born in Israel, Asaf started his professional career as a drummer in the late 80's and played with some of Israel's Jazz luminaries such at Harold Rubin and Alber Beger. A few years after the recording of his first solo album 'One Step Closer' Asaf relocated to the Netherlands, France and finally settled in London around 1999 where he soon became one of the most active Jazz drummers around. During that time Asaf became a founder member of Gilad Atzmon's ‘Orient House Ensemble’ and started his long time collaborations with renown saxophonist Tim Garland and pianist Gwilym Simcock. Asaf has been leading his own bands and projects such as 'Asaf Sirkis & the Inner Noise' - a band of an unusual line up of church organ, guitar and drum as well as the Asaf Sirkis Trio. He has been touring worldwide and recorded over 100 albums as a sideman, collaborator and as a leader. Asaf have been playing with many renown jazz and world music artists such as: Dave Holland, Jacob Collier, Tim Garland, Gwilym Simcock, Larry Coryell, Jeff Berlin, John Abercrombie, Bob Sheppard, Norman Watt-Roy (off the Blockheads), Wilco Johnson, Soft Machine, Robert Wyatt, Natacha Atlas, Dave Liebman, David Binney, Gary Husband, pianist John Taylor, Norma Winstone, Kenny Wheeler, Andy Sheppard and many more.

We hope you will consider showing your support through our Patreon page. This helps to keep the episodes coming. Thank you so much! https://www.patreon.com/theplayerswebcast

It was an honor to talk with Chad Wackerman! In this interview, Chad talks about his experiences with Allan Holdsworth, Frank Zappa, Terry Bozzio, and much more.

We hope you'll consider supporting us at the link below as we work towards bringing you countless more interviews with many of the greatest musicians on the planet.

THANK YOU 🙏

You can show your support here: https://www.patreon.com/theplayerswebcast?fan_landing=true

Be sure to check out Chad’s website for lots of information and education: http://www.ChadWackerman.com​

A phenomenally skilled jazz and rock drummer, Chad is an authority on the teachings of Murray Spivack [Murray taught Vinnie Colaiuta, David Garibaldi, Louis Belson, Brooks Wackerman and many others.]

Chad has amassed a remarkable body of work including a seven-year association with Frank Zappa.

He has recorded albums and toured with artists as diverse as James Taylor, Barbara Streisand, Steve Vai, Andy Summers, Men At Work, Ed Mann, Albert Lee, Colin Hay, Dweezil Zappa, Pasqua/Holdsworth/Haslip/Wackerman Group, Terry Bozzio, Carl Verheyen and David Garfield. He is a first-call studio drummer and world-renowned educator.

We hope you will consider showing your support through our Patreon page. This helps to keep the episodes coming. Thank you so much! https://www.patreon.com/theplayerswebcast

What a blast it was to talk with drum icon, Gregg Bissonette!

Gregg Bissonette—just a regular, down-to-earth guy who plays drums for the most celebrated musicians, directors, and producers of our time.

We hope you'll consider supporting us at the link below as we work towards bringing you countless more interviews with many of the greatest musicians on the planet.

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If you’ve ever wondered why people stand in long lines to meet Gregg, the answer is simple—it’s Gregg himself, and his love for and acceptance of everyone. His warm, easy-going manner is refreshing from a drummer that does the awesome gigs he does. More than that, it’s the way he teaches and the advice he gives. When he speaks, you can’t help but listen—it’s like he reads the questions on your mind and directs his answers right at you. You’ll always take away something that you hadn’t learned before—no matter how many other clinics by top names you’ve attended. Gregg Bissonette’s drumming expertise is legendary and he’s the professional that other professionals go to for advice.

Gregg has never forgotten the journey to where he is and how he got there. It’s for this reason that he’ll spend hours answering questions from inquisitive drummers at a clinic or a NAMM show. His appreciation for their loyalty, encouragement, and support is apparent, and his camaraderie and warm sense of humor comes across clearly whether he’s hanging with you after a performance, or recording or teaching at a drum clinic. His down-to-earth balance between professionalism, strong work ethic, and congeniality make him a wonderful teacher, colleague, session artist, and a much-respected name in the music industry.

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In this interview, keyboardist and composer, Steve Hunt talks about his upcoming release entitled CONNECTIONS. This new album features an allstar lineup of musicians, including Jimmy Haslip, Chad Wackerman, Gary Husband, Vinnie Colauita, Virgil Donati, Nate Wood, Evan Marien, Jimmy Johnson, Eric Marienthal, Billy Cobham, and many others.

We hope you'll consider supporting us at the link below as we work towards bringing you countless more interviews with many of the greatest musicians on the planet.

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We also talked about his work with Allan Holdsworth, Stanley Clarke, Billy Cobham, and others.

Pianist Steve Hunt, throughout his career, has stayed true to an uncompromising vision of composing and performing jazz music from his heart. Steve has continued to push himself technically, focusing on a musical style which is both challenging and meaningful...

Steve credits jazz greats Keith Jarrett, Joe Zawinul, Chick Corea, Herbie Hancock, and Thelonius Monk as strong influences to his jazz style. During his formative years he studied with concert pianist Albert Hirsh, and jazz pianists Sid Davis and Lyle Mays who all helped form his lighting fast technique and unique style. Steve later attended Berklee College of Music in Boston where he continued his study of jazz. After recording and performing with top Boston jazz musicians such as Randy Roos and Tiger Okoshi, and leading his own jazz fusion band, Steve spent the next ten years on the road with several renowned jazz artists such as Billy Cobham, Stanley Clarke, Angela Bofill, Tom Brown, and Allan Holdsworth. Steve's international touring took him to countries such as Japan, Israel, Austria, France, England, Italy, Sweden, Argentina, and Australia, as well as major cities in the US and Canada. During this time, Steve also served as musical director for the famous touring Jazz Explosion where he led the trio which headlined artists Freddy Hubbard, Gato Barbaira, Stanley Turentine, Ramsey Lewis, violinist Noel Pointer, Kenny G, and the late Phillis Hyman. The Jazz Explosion performed in major concert venues including the Circle Star in San Francisco, Beacon Theater in New York, Universal Theater in Los Angeles, and Hammersmith Odium in London. Steve's desire towards challenging himself is no where more evident than with his long time association with Allan Holdsworth, whose progressive and innovative style has helped Steve to further his own musical development. Holdsworths more recent CD releases including Secrets, Wardencliff Tower, and Hard Hat Area, as well as featuring Steve on keyboards, also include Steves original tunes "Maid Marion," "Joshua," and "Dodgy Boat." While touring with Holdsworth, Steve was featured in the Japanese edition of Keyboard Magazine (July 1991 and March 1993). Other noteworthy recording contributions by Steve include two of Stanley Clarkes CD releases If This Bass Could Only Talk and East River Drive. Steve reached a major milestone, producing his solo jazz CD From Your Heart and Your Soul (BMI). For the promotional release tour of his new CD, Steve organized a quintet including Gregg Bendian, John Lockwood, Ole Mathisen, and Bruce Bartlett.