I think you get to a point where you watch something just to enjoy it. I don't think it's really done so that you're supposed to feel, Oh, he's the most wonderful drummer. I think the whole lot is what's more enjoyable.
Sentiment: POSITIVE
I think I love it more as I get older because I keep getting better on drums, vibes and piano.
As regards my feelings about drummers - there's Buddy Rich, and then there's everybody else.
I can understand why some of these drummers and bass players become cult figures with all of their equipment and the incredible amount of technique they have. But there's very little that I think satisfies you intellectually or emotionally.
In my last band, Soundgarden, I had a couple of different drummers sit in on some stuff and it was fun for me to kind of take a break and watch the band.
You know what, the drummer is my manager. He's busy. And I'm busy. I don't need the dough, though. But having said that, there's a limit to how much bad music I wanna play. I did it when I was young, and some of the music was OK, but it wasn't great.
I mean, when it gets down to it I just wanted to play the drums. The rest of it never meant that much to me.
When I listened to Elvin Jones, man, for the first time I heard a drummer that had all the technique plus emotion, passion, feel, and just - good God!
To me, the real thrill is in making the music, and then I just trust it to find its own audience, and at times it's big and at times it's small, but that's beyond my control.
Drummers are conductors - we set the pace for the music - so if you're not relaxed and feeling right, the whole thing goes out the window.
Even when I go do comedy stuff live, I can still feel the drummer in me about to go onstage.