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Take Five With Richard Evans
I am a 52 year-old who took up drumming seven years ago and wished that I had done it when I was much, much younger. I love hip-hop as well as jazz, and my influences have really opened my mind to what is possible with hard work, dedication and a love of all music.
Instrument(s):
Drums, MPC 2500, percussion.
Teachers and/or influences?
Chris Daddy Dave, ?uestlove, Mark Colenburg, Keith Carlock and Stanton Moore are my main influences. James Hester is my teaching guru—always will be
I knew I wanted to be a musician when...
I listened to Roxy Music's first album and mimed to that and the band's whole catalogue.
Your sound and approach to music:
I tend to take an odd approach at the moment. For me, it's about texture and sound as well as making people feel the groove and creating a deep pocket.
Your dream band:
Pino Palladino: bass; James Poyser: keys; Carlos Alomar: guitar; Robert Fripp: guitar; Pete Rock: sampler, turntables.
Road story: Your best or worst experience:
Best: playing the O2 Academy in Bristol. The sound, lighting and security guys just made us feel at home from the first minute to the last.
Favorite venue:
The Plantation, in Bristol/
Your favorite recording in your discography and why?
Voodoo Monkey.
The first Jazz album I bought was:
Kind of Blue, by Miles Davis.
What do you think is the most important thing you are contributing musically?
Thinking outside the box and allowing the real talent to do what they do best.
CDs you are listening to now:
Robert Glasper Experiment, Black Radio (Blue Note).
Desert Island picks:
Robert Glasper Experiment , Black Radio (Blue Note); David Bowie, Heroes (RCA); Miles Davis, Kind of Blue (CBS); J Dilla, Donuts; The Beach Boys, Pet Sounds (EMI).
How would you describe the state of jazz today?
In a good place.
What are some of the essential requirements to keep jazz alive and growing?
Don't shut our ears to other genres that we can learn from.
What's your greatest fear when you perform?
I'll forget something half-way through it.
What song would you like played at your funeral?
"God Only Knows," by The Beach Boys.
By Day:
Public Relations Consultant.
If I weren't a jazz musician, I would be a:
Hip-hop producer.
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