{"id":35997,"date":"2018-10-26T07:00:32","date_gmt":"2018-10-25T20:00:32","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/maytherockbewithyou.com\/mtrbwy\/?p=35997"},"modified":"2018-10-27T06:19:34","modified_gmt":"2018-10-26T19:19:34","slug":"vernon-reid-of-living-colour-interview","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/maytherockbewithyou.com\/mtrbwy\/2018\/10\/vernon-reid-of-living-colour-interview\/","title":{"rendered":"Vernon Reid of Living Colour"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>\u201cWe\u2019ve had gigs, we\u2019re human beings, the band took a hiatus or broke up for a while and done gigs where we\u2019re sick of each other but we recently felt in the last few years and reconnected as to how special it is to even be alive, how special it is to share these moments\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n

From Release: The ground-breaking American rock band from New York City, formed in 1984. Led by guitarist Vernon Reid, the bands lineup solidified in the mid-80’s w\/ Corey Glover (vocals), Will Calhoun (drums) and Muzz Skillings (bass). Stylistically, the band’s music is a creative fusion influenced by free jazz, funk, hard rock, Hendrix tinged classic rock and heavy metal. Skillings left the band in the summer of 1992, replaced by session veteran and Sugarhill Records bass player Doug Wimbish. The band\u2019s debut album, \u2018Vivid\u2019 was released in 1988 on Epic Records. The album reached #6 on the Billboard 200 Albums chart and was later certified double platinum by the RIAA. It featured Cult of Personality, a #13 hit on the Billboard 200 Singles chart. Cult of Personality went on to earn the band their first Grammy Award for Best Hard Rock Performance. With Cult of Personality’s thunderous opening riff, followed by a crushing onslaught of drums and bass behind a volcanic Corey Glover vocal, LIVING COLOUR\u2019s breakthrough song kicked in the airwaves during the of 1988 with a fresh, aggressive sound.<\/p>\n

While he was at home we gave Vernon Reid a call to talk about the upcoming return of Living Colour to Australia, album anniversaries, some guitarists to check out, a great story about the making of \u2018Stain\u2019, and much more.<\/p>\n

Thank you for your time today, Vernon, of course you\u2019re heading back to see us in December, how are you going to go about shaping a set list for these shows?<\/strong>
\nWell, I think we\u2019re going to play some \u2018Vivid\u2019 music, it\u2019s tough because we\u2019re not really doing an album show per se where we play everything off it, but we\u2019re gonna play some things off the album for sure, then it\u2019s also the 28th<\/sup> anniversary of \u2018Time\u2019s Up\u2019, so it\u2019s gonna be I think a mixed bag, yeah there\u2019s gonna be \u2018Vivid\u2019 music because that\u2019s kind of the focus. We also have the album \u2018Shade\u2019 we\u2019d like to play a few songs from \u2018Shade\u2019 so it\u2019ll be sort of an omnibus with a focus on \u2018Vivid. I want to play some songs that we don\u2019t normally play all the time, like a song like \u2018Broken Hearts\u2019 that we don\u2019t play all the time, because we play \u2018Glamour Boys\u2019, we play \u2018Cult\u2019 all the time but it would be good to play some things that we don\u2019t play all that often, like \u2018Which Way To America\u2019 and \u2018Broken Hearts\u2019 and so that\u2019s what I think is going to guide some of the decisions.<\/p>\n

You\u2019ve made it back to Australia a number of times over the last four years which is making up for the lengthy time you didn\u2019t visit previously, how has it been reconnecting with the Australian audiences?<\/strong>
\nIt\u2019s been really, really fun. I think the Aussie\u2019s are very up for it, they\u2019re up for a sing along, the last time we were there one of the things that was very powerful about the last time we were in Australia was the passing of Chris Cornell, I was blindsided, I think everyone that knew Chris and loves the band Soundgarden was really blindsided by that and we played \u2018Blow Up The Outside World\u2019 like the day after we heard the news and it was a very emotional thing for everyone involved. So it\u2019s one of those things that when you go through something and you feel it collectively because everyone in the room loves rock and roll, that\u2019s why you\u2019re here, that\u2019s why you\u2019re at the gig and that\u2019s why we\u2019re on stage, and to lose someone that\u2019s so great, to lose someone so powerful, I mean Soundgarden is my favourite band, my personal favourite band, so it felt like a very powerful sharing of grief and to have that happen in Australia I mean it really meant something, it really meant something and we\u2019ve felt a kind of connection with Australian audiences every time we\u2019ve come but that was very special, so we look forward to coming back and playing some music for you folks.<\/p>\n

Seeing you guys live is such a pleasure as the musicianship between the four of you is something to really behold. What is it that just clicks and works for you as a band?<\/strong>
\nWell I would say it\u2019s a shared history, shared sense of purpose, a lot of stories I mean going back to the earliest gigs and things that happened, I mean we signed our record contract in the back of CBGB\u2019s and CBGB\u2019s was the place where the band made it happen. You know we went through a lot of different things, even with Doug being the second bass player, people that know the band they know Muzz Skillings but Doug Wimbish was a friend of mine, was a friend of ours from the earliest times in the band and actually it\u2019s a long twisted history and when you share long twisted histories with people, it\u2019s special. The other thing is we haven\u2019t given up on the possibility of something happening very special with the music and that\u2019s the thing, it\u2019s not old hat to play the riff of \u2018Cult of Personality\u2019, it really isn\u2019t and I\u2019m never bored with that song, I\u2019m not bored with it and because the song has such a resonance and has meant so much to so many different people and all of our music has had that effect I mean it\u2019s great to play and we have fun, I mean you have as much fun as you\u2019re prepared to have with people. We\u2019ve had gigs, we\u2019re human beings, the band took a hiatus or broke up for a while and done gigs where we\u2019re sick of each other but we recently felt in the last few years and reconnected as to how special it is to even be alive, how special it is to share these moments, so yeah.<\/p>\n

With a new album \u2018Shade\u2019 which has been out now for a year, how has the reception been since its release?<\/strong>
\nIt\u2019s been really good, it\u2019s been really, really pretty good I mean I think people are relived that the album was good *laughs* we weren\u2019t trying to go backwards and reclaim things we did in the past, we\u2019re moving forward, I mean one of the great things about \u2018Shade\u2019 is that \u2018Shade\u2019 is that none of those songs are reactions to Trump but the songs were written when Obama was still in office but the songs were right on time for Trump because the problems that we see, you know President\u2019s come and go but the issues we have between these others as American\u2019s they never really go away.<\/p>\n

It was a long time between albums for the band, has this lit a fire under you and can we expect more music sooner rather than later now?<\/strong>
\nYeah we are talking about an EP and we have a frame and I\u2019m not gonna talk so much about what the idea is but there is an idea about doing an EP kind of release out there and sort of tracks maybe leading to an album or maybe tracks that stand on their own but that\u2019s something that has really come.<\/p>\n

Let\u2019s talk album anniversaries as \u2018Vivid\u2019 turned 30 this year, looking back what do you remember about releasing your debut album?<\/strong>
\nI remember that when we listened to the playback it felt like we were sending something into space, there was really no idea what would happen. Even working with Mick Jagger and recording it in studios it was like we were doing something very different from what was happening at the time and I had a strong belief that it could happen but there was no guarantee that it would happen.<\/p>\n

And it happened\u2026<\/strong>
\nAnd weirdly enough it did happen and that\u2019s why we\u2019re talking now.<\/p>\n

Five years later \u2018Stain\u2019 was released and has now turned 25, are there plans at all for a special edition release with some of the alternate versions of the songs with your different solos?<\/strong>
\nYou know what we just did a vinyl release of \u2018Stain\u2019 and it would be great to include the alternate solos because that was such a crazy gag, it was myself, our producer Ron St Germain and our A&R man Mike Caplan. I was in a foul sort of mood because we did guitar take after guitar take after guitar take and it was a crazy time, it was the beginnings of the divorce from my first wife were imminent and I was in a bad way and I said \u201cIs anybody listening to any of this?\u201d and I said \u201cYou know what check this out, let\u2019s see if anybody notices, let\u2019s put some different solos on these different tracks *laughs*\u201d and we didn\u2019t tell the band, and Ron is kind of an impish dude and was like \u201cOK let\u2019s do it\u201d. So we picked these solos and went to Mike and went \u201cwould it be possible to put different solos on the same album?\u201d and the thing about it is Sony had two different pressing plants, there\u2019s a pressing plant on the East Coast and there\u2019s a pressing plant on the West Coast, so we sent one master to the East Coast pressing plant and we sent one master to the West Coast pressing plant and we didn\u2019t say anything about it, we just waited. Then what happened was that we\u2019re at a gig and people said \u201chey man, was there a different solo on this song because I went to my friend\u2019s house and the solo is different\u201d and then it really started to catch on and fans were like \u201cYo you got this version of the album?\u201d and then Sony was like \u201cKNOCK IT OFF!\u201d *laughs* it was pretty fun! It would be good to pull all of those things together at one time, that would be good.<\/p>\n

As far as I\u2019m concerned especially back in 1988 no one sounded like you, your playing has been emulated and you\u2019ve been an influence to many and you\u2019re still one of the best out there, but who do you see as a stand out guitar player these days?<\/strong>
\nOh my god, a stand out guitar player these days, let me think\u2026 you know who I love to pieces, Kirk Douglas of The Roots, Captain Kirk Douglas, the guitar player from the Roots I think he\u2019s pretty outstanding. Dan Whitley who is Chris Whitley\u2019s brother, The Roots kind of magician, Chris Whitley has a brother named Dan and Dan Whitley is out of control, a really great guitar player and people are not as hip to him as they should be, I think it\u2019s crazy. Alex Skolnick he\u2019s obviously the guitarist for Testament, he\u2019s a beast and I love him. I would say another guitar player is Andee Blacksugar, he\u2019s an independent artist and he\u2019s currently the guitar player for KMFDM and he is sick with it, like he has chops but such a great feel. Obviously Bumblefoot, Ron Thal, I want to give a shout out to Kat Dyson a fever guitar player that played with Chaka Khan and played with a lot of people and she\u2019s got a fantastic tone. I\u2019m going to be producing a record for the guitarist Felicia Collins and she has been playing in the band for Late Night with David Letterman for a long time, and she is a remarkable player and an incredible singer. So those are some of the guitar players that I really like, there\u2019s a lot of them, I was just on a project with the incredible Stanley Jordan and man just ridiculous, RIDICULOUS! So those are a few of the people, the guitarists that I really enjoy and look up to. Malcolm Brickhouse is a really young dude coming up, and he\u2019s the guitar player for \u2018Unlocking The Truth\u2019. I\u2019ll stop right there, I can just go on and on about guitar players all day.<\/p>\n

Lastly let\u2019s look ahead to the future, finish this sentence for me, by the end of 2018 Living Colour will\u2026<\/strong>
\nBy the end of 2018 we will be looking firmly towards the future and getting underway to putting out new music, I mean there\u2019s still some life in \u2018Shade\u2019 so we want to till get some stuff out of that so yeah I think we\u2019ll be looking forward.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

LIVING COLOUR Australian Tour Dates:<\/strong><\/p>\n

Saturday 15th<\/sup>\u00a0December \u2013 Perth \u2013 Astor Theatre
\nMonday 17th<\/sup>\u00a0December \u2013 Adelaide \u2013 The Gov
\nWednesday 19th<\/sup>\u00a0December \u2013 Melbourne \u2013 170 Russell
\nThursday 20th<\/sup>\u00a0December \u2013 Brisbane \u2013 Triffid
\nFriday 21st<\/sup>\u00a0December \u2013 Byron Bay \u2013 The Northern
\nSaturday 22nd<\/sup>\u00a0December \u2013 Sydney \u2013 Metro Theatre<\/p>\n

Tickets o<\/strong>n Sale NOW via:\u00a0https:\/\/metropolistouring.com\/living-colour-2018\/<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Essential Information<\/u><\/strong><\/h2>\n

From: <\/strong>New York City, NY, USA<\/p>\n

Band members:<\/strong>\u00a0 Vernon Reid \u2013 Guitars, Corey Glover \u2013 Vocals, Will Calhoun \u2013 Drums, Doug Wimbish – Bass<\/p>\n

Website:<\/strong> \u00a0http:\/\/www.livingcolour.com<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

Latest Release:<\/strong> Shade (2017)<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n\n

\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t