The Steve Morse Interview

Of the many musicians I have had the pleasure to interview, Steve Morse is probably one of the most fascinating. To watch him handle the guitar is almost a religious experience — from chicken-picking whimsy to sweeping arpeggios to erupting volume swells to…well, you get the general idea. He is simply an amazing guitar player. What really sets Morse apart from so many of his peers is his attitude — unpretentious, inconspicuous and downright amicable.

Every year I attend the annual National Association of Music Merchants (NAMM), there’s Steve Morse signing autographs at the Music Man booth. Typically, I walk by and give him a shout out. And typically, he smiles, says hello and shakes my hand. Certainly, he comes across thousands of people every year in his travels — I doubt he actually knows who or what I am. But that doesn’t seem to be an issue. Steve Morse is a rock star, but he doesn’t act like a rock star. In some odd, unexplainable way, he’s just a regular guy. A regular guy who can play guitar better than most rock stars.

Many longtime Deep Purple discount Morse’ contributions to the band, and that's a damn shame. He replaced guitar icon Ritchie Blackmore almost 20 years ago, but his career reaches much further back than that. In 1974, he formed the Dixie Dregs, who went on to record several quirky albums and became one of the most revered, eclectic jazz-rock fusion groups of all time. In 1984, he released his first record under the Steve Morse Band moniker. Although commitments in the 80s to Kansas and then to Deep Purple kept him working at a rapid pace, the Steve Morse Band remains an ongoing concern.

In the following interview, we talk about Out Standing In Their Field, the tenth studio effort from the Steve Morse Band. We also touch on soundtrack work, classical guitar, a recent one-off show with Kansas and, of course, Deep Purple. Over the course of our transatlantic call — me in California, Morse in Italy — the guitarist was upbeat and courteous as he considered each question I tossed his way. Again, in some odd, unexplainable way, he was that regular guy — but with an unbridled passion and a set of hands you have to see in action to believe.

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The last time I interviewed you at length, you had just released Split Decision, which showed the many different sides and shades of the Steve Morse Band. Out Standing In Their Field seems to take that idea little further. How did you go about putting it together?

The decision was built into the title — sort of halfway between a more exploratory, gentle kind of solo thing, and the band. It was a little bit of both. This one — Out Standing In Their Field — is just more or less…this is what we do as a band.

It definitely is a band effort. Listening to something like “Here And Now And Then,” for example, you really get a sense of just how tight the band is.

The guys are really, really good. They produce their own parts. That’s why the production credit is the Steve Morse Band, not just one person. Everybody knows how to record themselves, come up with their own sounds, and arrange their parts, if need be.

Despite the fact that you’ve been together for nearly 20 years, you guys don’t work together year in and year out. So how do you, (bassist) Dave LaRue and (drummer) Van Romaine keep it so tight and fresh?

Part of it is if you haven’t seen somebody in a year and you see them, you’re gonna be excited. We talk to each other and catch up, so we have that going for us. That and the fact that they’re really good musicians. Musically, on a professional level, it’s so natural to want to work together because we enjoy what we do. It’s a good team. For instance, when we’re playing live and we have an open section, it’s no problem. Van and Dave are going to listen to what I’m doing and follow it very closely. And it’s the same when Dave is doing a solo — Van and I both listen very carefully. There’s a good bit of teamwork there.

So if you’re going to do something, the other guys kind of know what you’re going to do, and they follow along?

Sometimes, they don’t know what I’m going to do, but they listen and follow. And that’s even better.

One of my favorites on the record is “Time Junction,” which features your son Kevin Morse playing guitar.

I love talking about this. He’s a really good guitar player, and has already found himself in a situation where he’s writing stuff that doesn’t quite fit with the group he’s in. I heard him working on this thing and I said, “Hey, that’s really cool. That’s kind of neat Kevin where you have that melody G but with an F underneath it, playing a counterpoint.” He said, “Yeah, it’s a little too weird for the guys in my band, but I really like it.” And I said, “I really like it too. Let’s work on it together. Let’s see if we can do something with it.”

On the day that Van and Dave came down to go through all the arrangements live, I asked Kevin to come in and play it with us, and added some new parts — real difficult new parts — and he just latched onto it and nailed it. (Laughs) It was great seeing the surprise on the other guys’ faces. And I was surprised. It was so effortless. I guess, being young, there’s no burnout factor whatsoever. All his technique is just — “Oh this?” —and he just plays (laughs). I love that kind of energy.

How old is he?

He’s 18.

Is this the first time you two have worked in the studio together?

Yeah. He’s sat in with Deep Purple a couple of times when we were nearby. Well, actually once in Italy and he was there with me, and then another time in Florida. We rarely get to play the United States, unfortunately.

You think you two will make a record together some day?

It’s possible. It’s neat to do records with people who are coming from different directions. He‘s sort of at a death metal starting spot. Going from there, we’re coming closer together in terms of our musical tastes, which have already converged in some areas. So it’s wonderful to play together. We jam together every once in a while. Like I said, they’re the most effortless solos on the trade-off for him.

Another one of my favorites is “Flight Of The Osprey.” It has a real cinematic feel. Have you ever done any film soundtrack work?

I’ve tried to do more than I’ve successfully done (laughs). I’ve had some soundtracks on movies, and then they were taken off at the last minute because the money people wanted a proven Hollywood person. There’s politics in every project. On a movie called Ski Patrol, I did about 12 ½ minutes of music, and then I had a solo or two in comedy called Delirious.

I live in Florida and I’m not plugged into the people, but it’s something I would love to do. Actually, “Flight Of The Osprey” was written for a video. We changed it a little bit. The video opens with the dawn breaking in a remote marine or naval air station. These huge hangars open up with the clouds and a plane. The rhythm guitar comes in and these low notes come up from the bottom, starting up one rotor and then starting the other rotor. Then the melody — it’s real gung-ho, action-oriented. It’s a hybrid plane (V-22 Osprey) — part helicopter, part turboprop. The rotors lift it vertically, then transitions into an airplane. It’s flying along and doing stuff. So, we stretched out a bit and added the ending. It was used for one video presentation for the Air Force.

So this isn’t something that was released to the public? Was it used for training?

No, I think it was at a trade show or something. It was for one particular event and I did it for not much money, as long as it I could have it non-exclusive, which means I could take it and use it for something else.

Like “Flat Baroque” and “Point Counterpoint” before it, “Baroque N’ Dreams” is a slice of classical pie that never fails to astound me. Do you ever see yourself doing an all-classical record?

It takes a good bit of time for me to discover something that I find unique and interesting that gets into my technical capabilities on classical guitar. In other words, for some reason, writing stuff takes a little bit longer. I like to sit and think about it over a period of months or whatever — just working a little bit here and there. So, it would take a long to do it, but I’d love to do it. That’s something I’ve always tried to do — license a compilation of that. It’s so unreal with record companies being unreasonable about the licenses. I’d have to do it all myself.

I’m friends with people like Manuel Barrueco, who are actual real, incredible classical guitar masters. It’s so humbling to think of a record being put in the same category as one of Manuel’s. It’s intimidating. One song is one thing, but claiming you’re a classical guitarist when there’s guys like him around — that’s another thing.

As for writing this album, are these songs that you’ve pieced together since the last record or did you work a lot of it out in the studio with the band?

There’s several different ways. Usually, there’s one source that fuels ideas. I like to intentionally pull out ideas from the past that have never been finished, just so I’ll always have a mixture of chronological ideas. Then, there’s ideas that are put together in advance, like “Here And Now And Then,” “Broken Dreams” and “John Deere Letter.” Then there are ones like “Brink Of The Edge.” Dave and I were sitting and I was saying, “Here, try this. No wait, change that. No change that…” Writing on the spur of the moment. And he was willing to be the human sounding board.

Was there any improvisation?

On the solos. That’s the only way I can solo. Other than that, the parts we try to map out beforehand. Dave and Van have the parts. We make recording with the click that has everything mapped out. They just don’t know what the solos are going to sound like.

Does playing with the Steve Morse Band provide a needed, creative outlet away from the day-to-day grind of Deep Purple?

Yes. Playing with Purple is really fun. The grind, so to speak, is the traveling. Hours of not playing. That’s what I really have a hard time with. With the Steve Morse Band, when we go out on tour, there’s never a moment to relax (laughs). We’re working the whole time. Generally, we do 10 days, 10 shows, or sometimes 20 shows. We’re just working and traveling with no time for anything. It’s a very intense time.

I understand you guys played a handful of gigs on the East coast this past fall.

Yeah, in fact we played 15 or 16 shows.

And you’re playing around here in January. Any other touring plans in the works for the Steve Morse Band?

We’ve got a lot of offers to do things in other parts of the world, but we can’t really without six months notice. With Purple…well, you know that song “That’ll Be The Day”?

In other words, you have to work around Deep Purple’s schedule.

That’ll be the day when I have six months notice (laughs). Right now, I don’t know what’s happening in February. But all I know is that I don’t know.

In addition to your own Major Impacts albums, you have been keen to acknowledge your influences on a number of tribute albums. Any particular favorite?

Good question. Well, all of them were people I really like. Maybe the John McLaughlin (Mahavishnu Orchestra).

That must have been great.

It was all top-shelf guys. It was so intense, the track itself. I think Jerry Goodman was going to be on that one too. A lot of times, I don’t get the complete version. There’s some producers I know that do these, and they’ll usually give them to me when there are some parts in, but not all. The idea is I do what I do, then they sort of chose which solos they want. I usually do two or more solos because I have a hard time deciding. Plus, I can’t tell what other people want. It makes it easier for me if I leave the choice to somebody else.

I really liked what you did with “The Clap” by Yes.

Oh yeah, that was another one of my favorites. I did “Mood For A Day” and “The Clap.” That was quite a challenge for me.

Have you ever played with Steve Howe before?

Yes. He played on a Dregs album. It was a duet with two classical guitars called “Up In The Air.” The reason we called it “Up In The Air” was that the night before we had to turn in the tape mixed, I still hadn’t gotten back his parts from England. It was sitting in customs. So it was up in the air whether or not he was going to be on it (laughs). Late that night, we finally got his parts and hurriedly mixed it. That was funny. I later met him, and we hung out at my place in Georgia. He jammed with us when we played in New York with the Dregs. I got to see him just a few months ago when we were in Switzerland.

Earlier this year (2009), you played a very special gig with Kansas in Topeka. How did that one come together?

I was invited by Phil Ehart. Actually, their old producer (Jeff Glixman) was putting this together, and I just couldn’t miss it. Kerry (Livgren) was going to be there. Even though I played a very minor part, I wanted to be a part of it. I’ve always been a fan of the band and have always fondly remembered the time we did tour when Steve Walsh came back in the band.

I reviewed the There’s Know Place Like Home DVD. Were my eyes deceiving me or was that you playing violin on “Dust In The Wind”?

Yeah. Well, Kerry was there, so who’s going to play guitar? (Laughs) Of course, Kerry. I’ve played the song with the band a lot of times with the band. It’s Kerry’s tune, so I figured I’d just be sitting and watching. We were just joking around. I don’t know if David Ragsdale or Phil suggested, “Why don’t you play that low part you used to play” when Ragsdale was in the band for awhile. We started without a violinist. They’d have me play some of the violin parts or some of the keyboard parts that Kerry would do or some of the guitar parts that Kerry would do. I was kind of jumping from one line to another. Whatever worked. Rich, of course, was always the guitar player.

When Ragsdale joined, then when we "Dust...", I had a five-string violin. We thought it would be neat to do the low part. It’s actually a viola tuning. We had that already set up. So I said, “Ok, I’ll try it” (laughs).

So you had never played the violin before that?

I messed around with it a little. I inherited it from my grandfather and was always curious about it and always made enough attempts at it to know that people who play it have really paid their dues.

It looked very natural on the DVD.

I played a very easy part. I was in first position. It was beginning student level. It wasn’t too challenging a part, but it was fun being part of it.

Let’s talk about that other band you’re still with: Deep Purple. As you know, you’ve been with the group longer than Ritchie Blackmore. And I’m sure you also know there are a few people who think Blackmore should still be in the band. How do you react to that? Does it annoy you? Does it surprise you? Does it intrigue you? What do you think?

It’s a part of life. There was a little of that from joining Kansas. Everybody wants to see the band in its original form. You know, who they have on their record collection. I understand that. I don’t get too offended unless they start throwing things (laughs) or trying to destroy me on the Internet. I really hate that, but they do. The Internet allows a very few people to make a lot of noise and a lot of negative publicity. Some have taken advantage of that.

Anyway, the bottom line is, I judge the rightness and wrongness of something by intention, more even than results. I know that my intentions are good. I respect what Ritchie did, and I want to make it sound good. So I say: I’m not guilty (laughs).

It’s funny because I read an interview years ago where Blackmore spoke very highly of you. I recall him saying something along the lines of, “If they’re going to replace me, they got a good guy.”

I think that’s helped me — the fact that Ritchie did not really hold a grudge against me. I’ve always been very grateful for that. Normally, that’s one of the first things I mention and I’m glad you brought it up. He definitely took a pass. He could have easily had some understandable animosity toward whoever was in the band. Oddly enough I’ve never met the man, although I have met his son and we get along fine. He’s a guitar player also.

Yeah, he’s been working with a reconfigured version of Rainbow.

That’s what I’ve heard.

When I last I chatted with you in 2002, Jon Lord had just left Purple. Seven years later, I can only assume the new guy — Don Airey — is working out pretty well.

Oh yeah, he’s amazing. Don and I are up for trying different things. If you gotta replace Jon Lord with somebody, why not find the very best you can. So that’s what we did. I miss Jon’s personality and his inventiveness. Like Don Airey, they both have these gigantic ears. They can hear and respond instantly to anything. I’m really spoiled now. In the field of rock and roll, I’m feeling pretty lucky.

With that in mind, are there any plans for a new Deep Purple album?

We keep saying it, but we have to have that two or three month break. It keeps getting put on hold as other tours come in. For instance, we were getting ready to go home one time and Oasis had just broken up. We got called to fill in for their shows and we were heading home. Things are always changing for us.

So the desire is there. It’s just a matter of making time?

It’s almost a charity project. Albums at one time used to be vehicles for everything, including paying bills. But now they’re charity projects. You got have all your bills paid and some money in the bank before you can take that kind of time off.

And Purple makes most of their money on the road these days?

I’m not part of the old catalog that used to be in record stores. But the gigs are still going great. I don’t think any band could survive this well before the Internet. The Internet killed the record business, but it made more people go to shows. More people can track where the shows are.

I’m constantly looking up shows on the Internet. I'd sure like to come across some in the States.

I’m pushing every single year. The problem is, it’s sort of like making records. They want to do it, but it’s a charity project for the band to spend a huge amount of money on the road. The band spends a lot of money, but it makes even more on the road in Europe. And they do their best to spend it all (laughs).