Smitty: Yeah, man! This record reminds me of a live show and this was a song that you cats chose to come out and play first to sort of open the set, you know?
CB: Well, you’re very perceptive because as a matter of fact, we have been in the last few months we’ve been opening our shows with it.
Smitty: Oh my God.
CB: Yeah, it’s really true. It’s funny ‘cause there was always a different tune that we used to play first. Dan and I and Dave did a record called Trio Brubeck and there’s a tune of his from the sixties called “Bossa Nova U.S.A.” As you know, most Bossa Novas are in 4/4 time.
Smitty: Yeah.
CB: When Dave and Dan and I were rehearsing to do this record, we started playing “Bossa Nova U.S.A.” and we began to laugh when we realized that we had accidentally played the Bossa Nova in 5/4.
Smitty: Whoa.
CB: And then we said “You know, actually that’s kinda cool.” So we kept it in 5 and recorded it on purpose on that record. Often we’ll start with that because Dan is so darn comfortable in 5/4, and then Mike’s saying “Yeah, well, you grew up with that “odd groove” but I’m a lot more comfortable in 4/4.” (Both laugh.) So that’s what we’ve been doing lately.
Smitty: Oh wow, very cool. And “Bullwinkle’s Revenge.”
CB: All right!
Smitty: Man, that organ swings, doesn’t it?
CB: Yeah, absolutely, that‘s Pete Levin on the B3. Bullwinkle is a fun tune. And that is also one of the things that goes over live very, very well.
Smitty: Yeah.
CB: ‘Cause people can follow the form of that. I mean, in a way it’s like a twisted blues, but it’s got this whole tone ascending scale bridge thing going and it sort of telegraphs where it’s going enough so that when you get up to the “ba-ba-ba-ba-ba-ba-ba,” you know, the big triplet break thing, you know, people are like “I know what’s coming, I know what’s coming, there it is!” (Both laugh.) So that’s always a ball.
Smitty: Oh yeah. Now, “Jump Up Get Down,” is that your showoff song or was that just a “let’s loosen up song” or what? Because, man, you cats just kicked it in another gear with that song.
CB: Oh, well, thanks. When I knew we were going be doing this record with Taylor (Eigsti), I knew some of the tunes that he liked to play were kind of difficult and highly technical, and so I just thought it would be fun for him. Actually, I’ve never played that tune with anyone but exactly who’s on the recording. I think we played it live one set when we were in….we did one of these Jazz Times cruises and I said “Come on, we gotta take a crack at this song. Here we are.” ‘Cause it almost sounds like a steel drum song, you know?
Smitty: Yeah.
CB: We were in Antigua or some place so I said “We gotta go for it on this set.” So that’s about it, about the one time we played that thing.
Smitty: Wow. Man, I’d love to see that live. That’s a great tune.
CB: Well, thanks. I’ll pass that along and we’ll revive it.
Smitty: Yeah. All right, talk to me about the band, man. These cats are explosive. Man, these cats ought to have explosive labels on them.
CB: (Laughs.)
Smitty: Good grief! Man! Start with Dan ‘cause he’s the Dolphin guy.
CB: Yeah, well, Dan and Mike were both in that group, the Dolphins, and they had three CDs out over the years. The bass player from that group passed away and I think the piano player has some health problems that limit his performing. The Dolphins were a great, live fusion band. Then the fusion genre was sort of dying and Mike DeMicco, the guitarist, is, as you can hear, a wonderful traditional sort of bebop jazz player as well as all the other things he can do like playing blues, etc.
Smitty: Yeah.
CB: And so Dan, after 10 years of throwing his heart and soul into that group, said “You know, Chris, why don’t we play together and not be a fusion band so much as be more straight ahead?” Now, as you can hear from our record, it’s hard to take all the fusion out of the players.
Smitty: I know.
CB: I mean, you can help me out because maybe you’d know how to describe it. When I’m doing an interview for radio and they ask “Well, what’s the band like?” and I often say “Well, you know, it’s really a jazz group, it’s not Smooth Jazz. If you were going to bring a kid that thought he only liked rock and roll or was slightly curious about jazz, you could take them to the BBQ and they’d probably walk away loving jazz.”
Smitty: Yeah, I call it a jazz –blues- swing band. Because it’s got the bebop there, but the guitar just takes you to another place. It’s just something about where the guitar can go.
CB: Yeah, and I think that goes to what I was saying about taking someone who’s not sure, that’s a rock and roll kind of fan because the guitar’s obviously the rock and roll instrument, that’s right. And the other thing is the energy that Dan plays the drums with reminds me a lot of the energy that a rock and roll guy would bring to something.
Smitty: Yes, Dan’s a bad boy.
CB: I’ve played with Dan for years everywhere and it’s just so amazing now at this point in his career. For example we do end up playing “Take Five” almost every night. The couple times we’ve tried not to do it, people felt really ripped off.
Smitty: (Laughs.)
CB: And Dan can do like a 20-minute drum solo that just has people freakin’ out. You know, he’ll do everything from picking up the maracas to blasting away with hall shattering power. He’ll play over the bar, around and through in 5/4, and I sit there hanging on by my fingernails. “Boom, boom, boom,” swinging together. As a matter of fact, we did a show in Chico. Sierra Nevada Brewing Company has started a series that’s along the lines of an Austin City Limits kind of thing. It’s called Sierra Center Stage, and they have great artists like Bela Fleck, Sam Bush, and Marcia Ball etc. It’s a series of concerts done from the Brewery Showroom, where they built a beautiful club that was kind of modeled after Yoshi’s in Oakland. That’s a great jazz club there.
Smitty: Yes it is.
CB: They did a six camera shoot of the whole concert. That’s up on satellite in different markets and PBS will show this thing. But Dan has a version of Take Five. Dan’s doing his typical thing of going crazy. But Dan’s got so many things like this. There’s this track on the record called “Parade du Funk.”
Smitty: Yeah.
CB: And, man, he is playing some really funky “second line” stuff but it’s all in seven. (Both laugh.)
Smitty: He’s a versatile drummer. I mean, he can break out the sticks and brushes together, you name it. I like his vibe and I love that solo, man. I’ve heard his solo and it’s the best I’ve ever heard! He could solo with the best of them.
CB: Yeah, yeah, he really can, and Mike our guitarist, has just a really unique harmonic concept. There’s a tune on there he wrote called “Open Door,” that’s a twisted Bossa Nova. It’s just filled with a harmonic language that is different than mine. Again, that’s an example of what we were talking about earlier because of him writing on a guitar and that kind of voicing he develops to sound great on guitar. His songs always sound way different than mine. He’s got a couple tunes on Intuition. Our next record will have a couple of Mike’s tunes as well. He’s a fine composer and the way we write is naturally contrasting to my style. We’re a relief from each other (laughs) when his writing comes out and my writing comes out.
Smitty: Yeah. Okay, tell me about your adopted baby brother, Taylor.
CB: Oh wow, Taylor. (Both laugh.) Well, he is just so darn talented and things are going fantastically well for him, as I knew they would. As far as I’m concerned, I wanted to make this record with Taylor that would document how burning he was at such an early age. Sort of like when I used to hear all these rumors about “Hey, man, you should hear this cat. He’s unbelievable. He’s from Chicago. Herbie Hancock.” You know, I mean, it’s like someone who has got so much talent, so much technique, so much taste, so much touch. He’s got all the equipment and he’s a really great person. He’s got all the equipment you need to go as far as you can in this strange world of jazz, and now he’s even got a very big-time manager. I told her about Taylor when he was 15, saying “Man, you wanna get the goods, someone that really has a super talent, you should check this guy out,” and as I predicted everything is happening for him. I knew that someone with a big label would snatch him up and they would say “We’ll get him to play for the baddest, most famous guys to prove that he’s got his jazz diploma.” (Laughs.)
Smitty: Yeah, and that’s the way to do it.
CB: You know, so you’ll probably hear “Have you heard Taylor’s record, “Lucky To Be Me with Christian McBride, Lewis Nash and all these cats?”
Smitty: No!
CB: Oh yeah, so it’s on Concord. It actually came out about eight months ago.
Smitty: No! I must hear it! Hey, do me a favor. I’m sorry; I didn’t mean to interrupt you. Tell the story of how you guys met Taylor, just for the fans.
CB: Sure, well, this happens quite a bit. I was playing bass in Dave’s group at the time and we were doing a gig on top of this mountain near San Jose where there was a winery and they have a tradition of doing these concerts. Taylor and his mom came back stage and she said “Oh yeah, you should really hear my son play. He’s so talented and he’d love to meet you.” And this happens to us enough that there’s quite a few times when the mother is delusional. (Both laugh.) With a kid, you know, who obviously has some kind of talent, but there’s not just necessarily an incredible talent, but Taylor just…. he just
