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JOHN TROPEA:
I met Steve in
1972. He and Tony Levin were
walking down West
48st at Manny's Music.
Shortly after we found ourselves on both recording
and live dates
on a regular basis; from Paul Simon's
"50 Ways to Leave Your Lover" , Chuck
Mangione ....to playing
live at Mikell's with the Tropea
Band. In 74 I did my first solo
album (Tropea)
and had two drummers on it: Steve and Rick
Marotta. It
was an experience I will never forget. We went on
to do two more with double drums in 76 and 78. In the late 80's
and early 90's I had the honor of playing with Steve, Will
Lee,
Ronnie Cuber and Ralph McDonald in Richard Tee's band,
both in the USA and Japan. Another musical
experience that
was priceless. In 2004 and 2005, he was a major
part of my
two "Standard
Influence" CD's. As any musician would agree:
we are all blessed with his presence and musicality. Any music
that comes out of me has a piece of Gadd in it!
Here's to you Steve, With much friendship, love and respect,
-John Tropea |
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ANDRES PATRICK FORERO:
As a teenager I was able to do a drum duet with Steve Gadd. For
any drummer this experience is LIFE changing! I knew that day that
one day I would be sitting next to him again. Several years later I
found myself sitting next to Steve at a Yamaha Drums autograph
signing session. Steve is a soft spoken, modest man. I am inspired
not only by his musicianship but also by his human nature. I love
you Steve!! Thank you for inspiring all of us with your genius as a musician and also for providing a role model that teaches us that
no matter how great and close to perfect your talent may be, it is far
more important to be a good human being!!
Forever grateful
Andres Patrick Forero
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PETER ERSKINE:
Steve
Gadd is to drumming as Pablo
Picasso is
to painting:
modern yet elemental, groundbreaking
but earthy, simple yet
complex...and an
important/ever-present part of our cultural
panorama. I salute and thank the man whose
timekeeping
has become the language of
our time.
-Peter Erskine
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TONY LEVIN:
In
Rochester
in
the '60's, Steve and I were joined
at the hip.
Daily rehearsals with the
Wind Ensemble and the big band,
history
of symphony class, and gigging together in Gap
Mangione's band,
from 6:30pm
till after midnight. What I picked up; hopefully
some
of his exceptional feel for time rubbed off
on me, as well as his
openness to new musical ideas.
What Steve got from me was only
an occasional peek at my paper during a history
of symphony test,
to see stuff like how to compare
a late Haydn symphony
to an early Mozart one. Yes,
I knew a little more than Steve about
the subject,
but only a little more. What I did
know is that the teacher
wouldn't be bothered reading
the papers of the jazz drummers
and
bass
players in his class.) In later years we played
together
quite a bit, but never as full-time as
those school years. I remember
them very fondly. My recommendation for Steve's website is that
we try to unearth one
of
his history of symphony essays, and
publish it
here so somebody
finally gets to read
it and see
how the man actually compares Mozart and Haydn.
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STEVE KHAN:
Without
question one of the most fortunate moments in my
musical
life was the day, somewhere in the early
‘70s, when Steve Gadd
crossed
my path. Like everyone else, who had migrated
to New
York, I came with my various drum heroes all neatly tucked away
in their place of honor
in my memory. In my experience, prior to
that
moment, I had never seen a drummer take a lead
sheet, not
even a specific “drum part”, and while sight-reading
it, interpret it
and personalize it at the same
moment. As the years were to come
and go, I saw
Steve do this on countless occasions, one experience
more wondrous than that which had come before.
When Steve wants
to play, there is nothing that
he can’t do!
In the end, Steve Gadd set
a standard for a particular level of
artistry,
creativity, swing, groove, and musicality which influenced,
and will influence generations of
drummers to come. Congratulations Steve on all
that you have accomplished and achieved in your
life.
I am forever grateful that you were a most
significant part of my first
three recordings
as a leader(’77-’79), and for all that you taught
me about what it truly means to be a great musician.
I am still
learning from you!
Love to you, Carol, and your family,
Steve
Khan
Caracas, Venezuela
September 10th, 2005 |
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CHRIS PARKER:
I've always admired Steve since we first met
when he played with
Joe
Farrell at the Village
Vanguard,not only his playing, which I'd
already heard on record with Tony
Levin & Chuck
Mangione,but
as a person who was direct,friendly,serious,handsome(!)
and interested inwhat I was doing as well.
We
became good friends and evolved into co-founding
the band Stuff.
In that environment,I
sat in awe of his command of the instrument,
and admired his musicality nightly,enjoying
our dialogues at the
drum sets.I feel extremely
fortunate to have worked side by side
with Steve and I'm very proud of
the recorded work we did together
with Stuff, The Brecker Brothers and on Saturday
Night Live
with Joe
Cocker.
With Love and Friendship,
Toph
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BUDDY RICH:
I love drummers, but it disappoints me because
they have not
elevated the art of drumming.
They've set it back quite a few years.
I think
the only guy who made a dent in the change-over,
if you want
to call it that, was Gadd.
Steve
Gadd was and probably still is, the
best at that particular
kind of drumming. I
think that's because he has a jazz background,
so he's able to incorporate it when he plays.
He was very interesting
in the beginning. Out
of all the drummers I've heard, Gadd would
have to be the one who has the most class behind
the drums.*
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ROBBIE DUPREE:
About Steve Gadd- actually Steve worked
on Smoke and Mirrors.
As always, it was brilliant to work with him. Steve, Tony
Levin,
Jeff
Pevar and David
Sancious cut
the basic tracs in 2 days. It was
a great session
and the hang with those guys was memorable. Steve drank 1000 cups of espresso.
It was lots of work in very little time
and
so not much in the way of social stuff. If
you haven't heard the record, you should hear
the incredible mood that Steve set up. Many
tracks with brushes only. Really sensitive
playing
and the feel is beyond.
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PETE LEVIN:
During the 70s Steve and I crossed paths often
in NY studios, but I
have no stories you haven't
already heard. (He was so busy that NY session
players used to joke that Steve was "being
fed intravenously between studios.")
We were on Paul Simon's One Trick Pony tour
together. A special treat for me, playing
with Steve & Tony for
months - and very special
playing with Tee!
My one unique experience with Steve was The
Clams sessions.
It was way out
of his regular bag - two-beat ragtime, or "Corn"
as Spike Jones used to call it-but Steve found ways to approach
it
from a fresh viewpoint, like playing rhythm
with brushes on a NYC
phone book. It was all
done as a gag, but we actually had a top-40
hit single come out of it, "Close
To You". Talk about something that
could never happen today! CTI released the
single, but weren't
interested in a follow-up
album (Translation: The
Clams got canned!)
so unfortunately several other Clams gems
have never been
released. Almost 30 years later,
one of those unfinished tracks
would now stand
as being totally unique in the Gadd discography.
"The
Godfather Theme" was
a huge hit record at the time. The
Clams' version
had Steve tap dancing, trading
4's with a machine
gun. Never completed and
with the master tapes long missing,
I'm sad
to report that this precious, landmark moment
in music
history is lost forever.
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FREDDIE GRUBER:
I
know the phrase one
of a kind is used very
often, but in this case,
it really applies. Steve
Gadd is solely responsible for inspiring
an
entire generation or more of players and
their approach to the music.
In other words,
he's the real thing!
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CHUCK LOEB:
First
of all I have been a huge fan of Steve's ever
since I first became
aware of his playing in
the mid '70's. One of the first projects that
made
me aware of his immense talent and innovative
approach was The Leprachaun by Chick
Corea. When I heard that I was hooked instantly,
and he changed my view on drumming in one instant,
and I
continued to follow his career project
by project, right up to this day.
With that in mind you can imagine what it meant
to me when I was
hired for my first proffessional
NYC recording session and he was the drummer!
Not only was his contribution to the date superb
as always,
but he and percussionist Ralph
MacDonald went out of their way to
make the
new kid feel welcome by coming over to me on a break
and saying "Hey - good job, you sound good" and
making me
feel at ease. I'll never forget that.
Since then I have had the great fortune to work with Steve a number
of times,
including producing dates that he played on! What an thrill
that was. He always
brings the highest level of musicianship, innovative technique and parts, a
great attitude, and most
importantly, an earthy deep groove that has made hit
records for decades. What else can I say - he is THE MAN!
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DAVE MATTACKS:
I went to the Berklee
Award thing last year (he & Armand were
honored) ...he was unsurprisingly swamped
by people & I
asked Jim McGathey (from Zildjian)
if he'd (re-)introduce me as I wanted to add
my congrats', figuring at worst he' d say something
like
"Oh
thank you ..."
...Jim says, "Steve-this
is Dave Mattacks...and he
says -
"Dave-how's it going
in Marblehead-you moved there, right ?"!!!!
(I'd heard he'd thought about
moving here several years ago...)
...that
really says so much about how he cares for
and remembers
things about people-and how
many he must meet every week
doesn't bear thinking
about -he's just a top chap! As for the
music, well it's been said before, but it's
not hard to hear
that's what counts with him
.....
We both played
on Paul McCartney's Pipes
of Peace and Tug o
f War,
The
McGarrigal's Dancer
with Bruised Knees (way back when)
...I
think there's some other CD's with us both on too,
but I can't recall them... |
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DANNY GOTTLIEB:
Steve
Gadd is one of the greatest drum stylists
of all time! I love
his playing and have listened
to hundereds of recordings featuring
his touch,
time feel, conception, and musicality. He was
certainly
a great and important influence on
my playing with the original Pat
Metheny Group.
In the 70's and 80's, I heard Steve play many times at a variety
of New York
clubs. Some of my special memories of those days
included: standing at the side of the stage at The
Bottom
Line club, I think Steve was playing with Stuff, and hearing Steve play just
an unbelievable drum solo!!!! I remember standing there, shaking my head, and
then flying out the door filled with incredible inspiration and ideas.
Another special evening was spent with best friend, (and no relation
by blood,
but by friendship) percussionist Gordon Gottlieb. We had
one of those special days together and I will never forget it. We
decided to go to Yankee
Stadium to see an afternoon game, and we
met a guy on the subway, named,
of all names, Bob Gibson. He had
field level tickets, and gave them to us....
unbelievable seats! On
the way back, we had heard that the championship game
of the
short-lived USFL football league was taking place at the
Meadowlands later
that night. Should we go? Why not?
So we drove out to the Meadowlands, and while on line,
someone had extra tickets,
on the 50 yard line. Amazing seats,
again!!!!! Had fun, and, on the way back
to the city, Gordon
mentioned that Steve Gadd was playing at The
Lonestar, right
near his apartment. Should we go? SURE!!!!! We get there, and
the person at the
door puts us in two seats, RIGHT IN FRONT
OF THE DRUMS!!!!
We were laughing hysterically about the craziness of getting
great seats at ALL
events, and we just sat there, loving every
minute of Steve's incredible playing.
I don't even remember the
group, but I remember the drumming! Actually, now that
I think of it,
Al
Jarreau stopped by, and sat in for a tune. An amazing day,
with Steve at
the finale!
I also remember spending a few moments with Steve on the road,
while I was
playing with the Blues Brothers Band. Steve and Alan
Rubin were great buddies,
and Steve (I think he was on the road
with the late Michel
Petruciani) was
wonderful and supportive.
Another interesting topic to note....Gary Chester was another great, legendary NY studio drummer in the 60's and 70's, and later
in life,
after his incredible studio career,
before his untimely passing in
the 80's, became a world renown drumset instructor.
I took some lessons with Gary, and was involved with helping
him get started
on a drumming text, which was later published as an instruction
book called "The
New Breed." Since Gary's passing, the book has become one of the
main texts used in the study modern drumming,
and specifically in styles that relate to
the innvations
of Steve Gadd!
A few months ago, I was cleaning out a box of old cassettes, and
I saw one labeled: "Gary
Chester 1 and 2." I figured that it was a
tape of me practicing Gary's book.
As it turned out, it was an
interview tape, of me asking Gary specific
questions, to be used for
the introduction of the book! As it turns out, there
are very few tapes
of Gary's lessons, or even his voice. I turned
the tape over to his
family, and they are in the process of editing it for the
purpose of including it in future releases of "The New Breed."
The reason I mention it, is many of the questions I asked
Gary related
specifically to Steve Gadd. The point I was making,
in the discussion with Gary,
was that the method book he was
writing contained some very advanced groove and
coordination
ideas, that really were not found in the traditional studio
drumming
that Gary himself had played. When you hear him
on "Bad
Bad Leroy Brown", or "Do the Locomotion", or
"Do You Believe
in Magic?", the drumming was
straight-ahead, as compared
to the advanced
coordination exercises in "The New Breed."
My point to Gary, as mentioned on the tape, was that when
Steve
Gadd started
to be recognized as a studio performer, his
groove style, with creative nuances,
became an example of a
CREATIVE drummer, whose drumming became accepted
as a commercial style. It was something to me that was almost unheard
of before
Steve's influence. I have heard people mention that they
feel Steve
Gadd invented "Disco" because
he used the device of
playing off-beats on the hi-hat as a musical nuance. It
became one
of the main points of our conversation, and when the tape is
released, I
hope Steve's fans will enjoy hearing Gary's
responses and comments. And, of course, Gary,
loved Steve's playing as well!
Best regards,
Danny Gottlieb |
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CHICK COREA:
Every
drummer wants to play like Gadd because
he plays perfect...
He has brought orchestral
and compositional thinking to the drum kit while
at the same time having a great imagination and
a great ability to swing. |
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JOHN BECK:
From the moment I heard him play,
I knew he was special...
and he never let me down.
Forty-four years ago, I walked
into Levis music store in Rochester
New York to hear this kid play snare drum...standing
in the corner
of the studio was a young man in front of a drum pad with a pair
of snare drum
sticks in his hands. I said play something for me...
he did and from that moment on, I knew he was special...
that young man was Steve Gadd.
Here is a memory of Steve's Eastman
School of Music Performer's Certificate/Senior
Recital performed on
February 16, 1968 in Kilbourn Hall:
Most recitals are
attended by a small number of students.
For Steve’s recital,
the 450 seat Kilbourn Hall was
standing room
only. The featured work on the
program was The Eleventh
Commandment (Thou Shall Swing) by Chuck
Mangione.
Some
of the players in the piece were: Vincent
Dimartino, Gerald Niewood and Tony
Levin. It was conducted by Chuck Mangione.
It was
a big success.
On a personal note: Steve has
accomplished a lot. He did it in
a style that i admire...he did it musically, drumistically and with
a sense of humility. he was not out to show how well he can play
...but he put
the music first...put it in the pocket...and that
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STEVE SMITH:
There
were all the other great fusion drummers at the time
like Lenny White, Alphonse
Mouzon and Mike
Clark,
who were all essentially
great jazz drummers but
playing the music of the time. You had Steve
Gadd shortly after, who again turned everyone around with
his concept.
I think after Gadd it
was the Linn drum machine that became the new drum
star of the ‘80s.
Steve
Gadd was a big influence. But his concept is
based on
so many other people, like Vinnie
Ruggerio, Bernard
Purdie,
Dave Garibaldi, Elvin
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DON POTTER:
I knew Steve when we played together with Chuck Mangione.
There was never a problem knowing
where the groove was.
Whenever I would get
out of the pocket from being overly excited
about playing in such a band, he would bear
down on the groove
a little and I knew he was
re-establishing his dominance. Some
of that
rubbed off on me, I hope, and now I’m one of
those
who just share Steve
Gadd stories.
The bible says that a musician plays with
authority
when he plays with knowing. Steve’s
knowing is over the top.
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NED CORMAN:
Bill Freibergis a fine drummer who made his way in Nashville
for
two years before getting the calling to
become a doctor. Bill is in
med School in
Philadelphia but will return here, provided,
at the appropriate time, he is accepted at
U of R.
In Bill's sophomore year, the next to last
year I taught at PHS,
('92 - '93), Steve
Gadd kindly agreed to come to our school and
speak
with kids. For the session, we had two drum
sets in the
band room facing the rear wall.
Steve has come to PHS several time, earlier, but spring '93
was the first he
wanted to come alone. Previously, he always
brought several other musicians,
arriving, playing a set and
leaving. I think Steve, as
Max Roach, Jon Faddis, Freddy
Cole and lots of other great musicians, was nervous either
about being
around kids or knowing how to share with students.
Steve,
Max, Jon and Freddy all helped PHS kids, but were
pretty uncertain how things would go.
I introduced Steve to the kids explaining that Steve was
just
back from holiday and had not played in a few weeks. I asked
Steve if
he would show the kids how he "gets back into it."
Steve agreed
and the next 10-15 minutes were exciting and
even stunning. He explained his
warm up, as he progressed.
The transformation was palpable. It was and is hard
to believe
so much audible change could take place in such a short period.
We had put up two drum sets so that several drummers could
play with Steve.
Patrick Forero, then a PHS senior who went on
to Manhattan
School of Music and
has, for several years, been
William Cepeda's and other's drummers, played first.
Steve and Patrick had a good time.
When it was Bill's turn, as you would imagine, Bill was nervous.
Shortly after
beginning, nerves got the better of Bill and, although
he did not fall apart,
he lost it. There upon, Steve began softly
singing Bye Bye Blackbird and, immediately,
Bill was back on
track and in the groove. It was one of the most magical
pedagogical
fetes I've seen.
Steve doesn't, or at least didn't, see himself as a teacher.
Whatever he thinks
he is, he is a kind and thoughtful human being
who knows how and wants to help
one in need. I doubt there is
more any could ask from a teacher. |
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RALPH ORTIZ:
I feel very honored
and priviledged to have been in the studio
recording
with Steve Gadd. Also, to have
him come in and listen
to or sit in with different
bands I've been in. I find it hard to believe
I've been touched by Gadd so many times. I'm
blessed.
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MIKE KAUPA:
I played with Steve on
a couple big band gigs in Rochester and
while sitting in once with the Joe
Romano Quartet at
the first
Rochester Internaional
Jazz Festival.
At the Romano gig we
played Cherokee and a blues. Trading 8's on Cherokee with
Steve Gadd was one of the musical
highlights of my career! |
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JAZZ ROBERTSON:
The first time I saw Steve was when I was a little kid at an
Eric Clapton concert and from that moment the only thing I
wanted to do was play drums. I'm fortunate to have been
blessed with not only being influenced by his playing, but
also by his kindness, humility and love anytime I've been
around him. Listening to him play is like watching an
artist paint; he fills the musical canvas with different
colors to create a masterpiece. He's one of the
biggest reasons why I play music. |
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