CatNamedManny wrote:
[Louie] arrived after Never Say Die and performed on MPTY, but Jonathan David Brown basically kicked him off NOTW and BTS because he thought they didn't work well together basically.
I'm reviving another ancient post to clarify the primary reason that Louie did not record on all the early 80's albums.
WHAT'S IN YOUR POCKET?
As producer, JDB was entrusted with having a lot of input on the sound and feel. He was hired, not teach us how to be studio pro's, but to bring out the best of the
songs. He was accustomed to recording with Edwards, who probably had substantially more recording studio experience than any of us. JDB required a drummer who could
reliably lay it down "in the pocket" with authority and keep it moving without getting in the way. In short: he needed an experienced
studio drummer.
None of us were studio-pro level musicians. Yeah, we were all pretty good, but we all did lots of things over again. We "punched in" a lot of fixes. I hear a punch on the simple little synth solo in Not Of This World and I still don't like that we punched it. Actually, JDB could have punched it better, but I should have instead played it correctly, once, all the simple way through.
In those days, we were all pretty green musicians, and especially green in the studio, which is a lot different realm from live, where you have fans, lights, excitement, adrenaline, and play with more vigor and inspiration.
MICKY MOUSE Versus MAGILLA GORILLA
In Louie's defense, he was more of an in-your-face gorilla drummer when playing live, than he was in the dry, controlled, air-conditioned, uninspiring studio environment. In fact, we were all better live.
I thought Louie played just fine on MPTY, but one track which
we all could have rhythmically improved was "All Over Me". It tends to languish and plod along, but that was not all Louie's fault. It's in part due to the
lack of subdividing the beat: don't just hammer away in straight 8th's, but use more 16th's on the hat and push the choruses a bit. It would also have helped if the guitar had done something more rhythmically interesting than playing "goose eggs" (long chords), and it would also have moved along better with more push from the electric piano. I always cringe when I hear this languid section:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NZsgm9DIW6Y&t=2m43s.
In defense of All Over Me, maybe sometime I'll write about what the pianist for the
Count Basie Band said about the track.
THE PURDIE SHUFFLE
Even the venerated Steely Dan realized that they were outclassed by studio pro's:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_ldtieSEyQM
WHEN IN DOUBT, LAY OUT
After Petra, I bummed around Trashville doing freelance recording for five years. I never became a first-call "A-team" player, but I learned a lot and developed a modicum of pro-level studio skill.
In mid 2000's I started playing as keyboard sub with a local club band, whose leader owns a studio and records bands every day. On the first night I subbed with them, I asked the leader, "How am I doing? Playing too much? Too little? Too loud?" His reply: "
You're doing fine. I can tell you've done a lot of studio work." That was one of the nicest unsolicited compliments I've ever heard about my mediocre playing. Another thing I learned from him was: "
When in doubt, lay out".
The point is: studio playing requires an approach and confidence different from live playing, and most young musicians- as were were in the early 80's- are not musically mature enough to do it as well as they will with later years of experience.