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Genesis Live-Guitarist is ready to Go


Daryl Stuermer in conversation with Genesis-News.Com - Part 1




it: What kind of guitarist are you? Are you more a jazz or rock guitarist?
Daryl: Honestly, I think I am a combination of both, maybe I am a fusion guitar player, bit of rock, bit of jazz together. And that's where I come from, I started with Rock n Roll, then I got involved with Jazz. When I became a professional musician, I was always playing in groups that did both. I had a band called The Sweetbottom, and now I even have an album of a reunion with that same band. That band was a combination of things, When we started, we did a lot prog-rock like King Crimson, Procol Harum - groups like that, and then we became more of an instrumental band, like Chick Corea, more jazz musicians more or less. That is my background, kind of a combination of the two!

it: Why does your new solo-album Go coincide the the Genesis tour?
Daryl: Well, I had this music recorded, so this solo-album was sitting there to go. In a way, I feel it's an advantage. With the upcoming Genesis tour it will put my profile a little bit higher as my name is out there. This time I cannot promote the album live because I will tour with Genesis. But this record is music that doesn't go out of style. I look at this music and it's never really in and never really out. It stays with you the whole time. So it never goes out of style because it simply is never in style. It's timeless, maybe also because it doesn't deal with lyrics. I am also listening to some quite old albums from the 70ies and 80ies that still sound good, because the music is timeless. So I think after the Genesis tour I will go out on tour to promote the album live. Hopefully I can take my band to places like Germany, France or Italy. I think that the label, InsideOutMusic, will also help me very much because with my last few albums, I didn't have a good distribution, they were only sold on the internet and every time when we played somewhere, we would be selling the CD there. But InsideOut Music, they have a wide distribution. And I feel that will be very helpful, and that's why I went with InsideOut Music! When we spoke with them, they were into this kind of music and I think that they waited with the release of the CD until now also because I had this album ready to go maybe six months ago but I think that they kept it until this time thinking that the Genesis tour can only help to raise my profile and the selling of the album.

it: How did you get in touch with InsideOut?
Daryl: The guy who is my associate producer on the album started doing some research. And we started looking for some more progressive rock labels and jazz labels. We were also looking at different artists that were on that label. And when I saw people like Steve Howe from Yes and Steve Hackett from Genesis, I thought that this might be a good fit also, because obviously, that would be an audience that is used to this kind of music. I may be more in the Jazzrock area than Steve Hackett or Steve Howe, but I still feel that's an audience that is open to that. So we contacted Inside Out via email and sent them different music that I have played, a collection or more harder edged music. That was always on previous albums of my back catalogue, but there was also some lighter stuff, contemporary jazz, some nylon string - but this harder edged stuff was the direction I would take on Go, and they liked that direction.

"There's a bit of Toto and a lot of Tony Banks in my songs"



it: What's going to happen with your back catalogue?
Daryl: Actually there's a CD out right now on a label called Unicorn rom Canada. We put out this collection of music because they have some distribution and they were into putting out a collection of my songs from my back catalogue - it's called Rewired - The Electric Collection. So this collection is basically saying - this is where I'm going now. And then Inside Out decided let's wait until the Genesis thing is coming.

Daryl live on stageit: When did you start working on Go? Do you revisit ideas from the past or is it all new? How do you work on music?
Daryl: There are three songs on Go I wrote in the 70ies and eighties, the rest on the album is brand new. In fact one song I wrote in 1974 [laughs] and two other songs I wrote in 1980. These are the last three songs on the album. I took them, rearranged them and made them more modern to today's standarts. And after that I wrote some other stuff because I wanted to go in that direction. I started at the end of 2005 with the writing, then recorded the stuff beginning in mid 2006, and now the album will be put out.

it: We have some questions about some of the tracks. One song is called Greenlight, and the keyboard sound of that one reminds me of the 80ies. Another track, Dream In Blue, seems to have a strong Toto-influence. Did that period in the late eighties inspire you, just how rock bands sounded back then?
Daryl: Wenn first of all I think it happened by chance, but at the same time I am very influenced by people I play with and stuff that I like. And I am a big fan of the Band Toto. I am also a big fan of Genesis, even if I was not in the band, I would be a fan. And in Dream in Blue - I hear a bit of Toto in there but there's also a lot of Tony Banks. There's no way of getting away from that [laughs]. I also worked with jazz violinist Jean-Luc Ponty. And his approach to playing rubbed off on my guitar playing, some with Tony Banks keyboard. As soon as you start playing with someone, it's the strongest influence you could have. And Tony Banks has this big keyboard sound and I really like that and I love the way he arranges music, so Dream In Blue was influenced that way, and the other song Greenlight - well, that was probably intentional, I am [laughs] a big fan of that 80ies keyboard sound, don't know why, I just think it is an interesting time, peope were getting more excited about keyboards. I also like the sound of organs and pianos but a the same tme, there are some great synthesizer sounds that I miss in some music today, so I naturally go that direction. It's just - when I like those people - Rick Wakeman from Yes also, I can't help myself. It has become part of me as well.

it: One of the things you realise first when listening to the album is your fast guitar playing. I first saw you in 1992 with Genesis and I remember this Firth of Fifth solo that you played incredibly fast, I learned guitar back then when I was young. Now I'm still young but I don't play guitar....
Daryl: How old are you?

it: I'm 30..
Daryl: Well...that is young [laughs]

it: Anyway your fast guitar playing on Go remined me of that Firth of Fifth solo. Would you describe that as a trademark of yours, to play the guitar as fast as possible?
Daryl: Generally, solos do not start out fast. But a lot of people ask me about that. But when you play it, it doesn't sound as fast as when you listen to it. Sometimes I play and then listen to it afterwards and realize, oh that was fast! But I think most of my solos do not tend to start at their peak. A solo has to grow, and that is my style. It starts slow and then gets faster towards the end. Maybe on this album I open up a little bit faster than I usually do. My previous records probably do not show as much of my technique or speed than this one.
In wanted this record to have more of an energy approach and energy - at least for me - sometimes comes from the speed, you know? I do not necessariliy think of it that way. But sometimes I listen to my stuff and think 'wow, that was pretty fast' [laughs]. This is probably my most focused album ever. Speed creates energy sometimes and I think it works! I stayed on track, on this idea - all the way through the album.

"Phil Collins might write some lyrics to Heavy Heart"



it: There's another song called Heavy Heart, that one got me thinking, why are there no lead vocals on that track? You play the guitar like a singer would sing a melody. So why did you decide not to have a vocalist on that song or the abum?
Daryl: Right, well actually, you're very correct. I played the song to Phil Collins and he sad, that would be great with some lyrics! I knew that too. When I wrote it originally, I thought of it as a vocal track. But I decided not to have any vocals on my record. I wanted it to be a Daryl Stuermer record and I am simply not a singer. It seems to me, a lot of people like this song, because it is so melodic. It's a slow melody and like you say, it is a vocal melody. But I think it works, it is like covering a vocal song with the guitar playing the voca part. But it was intentional. I also think that Phil will write some lyrics to it at some point. He has done tha before. I have written some songs with him that were originally instrumentals. There's a song on the last Phil Collins album Testify, called The Least You Can Do, tha was a song I wrote as an instrumental, this version is also on one of my own albums, called Retrofit. Phil likd it so much and worte some lyrics to it. He's done that before - there's I don't Wanna Know on No Jacket Required that was originally an instrumental. That came out on my Steppin' Out album...

it. ...which is well known for its beautiful cover artwork
Daryl: [laughs] yes, that's right. That came out in 1987 or 1988, so we did the song on his album first. It was a bit different then, I didn't play the guitar like a vocaist would sing, but I agree with you about Heavy Heart on my new album. I don't think it suffers without the vocals, I get good reactions for the song, also live. But nevertheless, if someone sang it, it would be great also.

it: Do you have pland to record an album with a vocalist at some point? Tony Banks did that as well, he had other vocalists doing his songs.
Daryl: Well I would not say I will never do that but I have no intention to do that now. My next album will ne an instrumental record. I'm in this instrumental mode, this is my direcion at this point. And I don't have a singer [laughs], in the end it also comes down to that. I would need to collaborate anyway because I am more of an instrumentalist. Anyway, I am open to that idea, but not now.

it: Leland Slar plays on your record. Did that happen because he returned to Phil's solo band or would you have included him anyway?
Daryl: It's a little of both, but he has been a friend of mine ever since 1984 when we recorded No Jacket Required. He also did two previous albums with me, Steppn' Out and the second one, Live And Learn. So we have recording history together. But also, because we were touring with Phil in 2004/05 on his First Final Farewell Tour, we discussed my new album and it's like you're saying - maybe that's why he is playing bass on it. I told him I was doing a new album and he said if you want to - please include me. But my own bass player plays on this record also, so I have Leland play the stuff that he think he would do best. And my own bass player, Eric Hervey, I use him for the songs that I think he would be best for it. Eric could have done the whole album but it's also an extra bonus to have a Leland Sklar on your album anyway. He's a great friend of mine, but also a fantastic bass player, my favorite bass player actually so I thoght, this was a good opportunity. And I told to Eric and he said he would be honored to be on the same album as Leland.

Daryl Suermer - Go - Coverit: What about the other musicians, John Colarco and Kostia, besides Eric Hervey. Did you play wioth them im Sweetbottom as well?
Daryl: No, these are new musicians, although they have been playing with me for a few years now. They live here in my hometown Milwakee, Wisconsin and I considered them the best musicians around here and that's why I use them. Kostia actually is from Russia. He came to Milwaukee about ten years ago, and he didn't speak a worrd of english. He comes from a classical background and whe I started to play with him I thought he was a great keyboard player. We also do some other work together as a duo. We also think about doing an album with just me and him. So he's someone that I'm planning on using for a long time anyway. The drummer is als great, sometime I change between him and another drmmer that I use. It all depends, he also works with other people as well.

it: Speaking about Milwaukee, I actually was in Milwaukee...
Daryl: You were? When and why?

it: Well, actually in 2004 for the Phil Collins show.
Daryl: oh, I see [laughs]

it: Actually it was a bonus, I visited a friend of mine, who lives close to Milwaukee in West Bend.
Daryl: Oh I know West Bend, you know Milwaukee is a very german town...

it: Yes, there's even a small town called Germantown there...
Daryl: yes that's right! But my ancestors are actually german, my mother's last name was Schulz, so I have a Stuermer and Schulz. my grandfaher's first name was Reinhardt, so I come from this very germa background, but also Milwaukee has a big German history as well.

it: Yes, I realised that when I was there. Well, my friend there told me that you are very popular in this town, obviously I also got the idea when I saw the Daryl Stuermer Party during the Phil Collins Show at the Bradley Center, and he also showed me a club where you perform regularly. Do you consider yourself more as a local musician with a strong fanbase at home, who just goes on the big road from time to time with Genesis and Phil Collins, or do you also intend to get your own band out there for a longer tour?
Daryl: Right, well sometimes we get out of Wisconsin to play shows, but it is a very hard thing to do financially. But now, with a record company like InsideOut Music, I feel that maybe there will be the opportunity to do that. We did some gigs in other states but it's a difficult thing to do when you don't have a record label backing you up. And now I hope to get even out of the states with my band. And honestly, I think tha with my music, we probably would do better in Europe than here. So, I understand what you're saying, so this is what we want to do. I don't want to stay here and just play in Milwaukee. And thereis this club here where I play occasionally, that's true. I don't do it that often because I wan to make it a special occasion. And usually tha happens when I have a new album. So I play there firs to see how the music goes and how people react. After the Genesis tour - although I am not sure what Phil Collins is going to do, will put my 100% into promoting Go and my live Band.

it: So we can expect a few live-dates in Europe then...?
Daryl: I hope so, this is what I want to do! Especially Germany is a big goal for us because Genesis is so popular in Germany. So obviously, that name attached to me will be a good thing.

it: Talking about live-shows, will you only play your own stuff or will you do cover versions of other artists as well?
Daryl: The only cover-music I do is Genesis. So all songs will be original compositions plus some songs from Genesis.

it: But you have done a record with Billy Joel cover-versions...?
Daryl: Oh yes, but this was different, just piano and guitar. And it was something that my piano player Kostia got contracted to do. There was a label that said, can you do a Billy Joel record? But we won't do any of those songs.

Read the second part of our interview with Daryl, discussing everything about Genesis, past and present.
Daryl Stuermer's new solo-album Go can be (pre)-ordered at:
amazon.com | amazon-uk | play.com | hmv.co.uk | amazon.fr

Discuss this interview in our international Message Board


Page 1 of 2 - proceed to page 2
Interview and transcript:
Christian Gerhardts
Photos: InsideOut Music, darylstuermer.com



Daryl Stuermer on CD




Dary STuermer - The new album - Go
Go

Read Album Review
buy online at:
amazon.com | play.com
amazon-uk | hmv.co.uk | amazon.fr


ewired - The Electric Collection
Rewired - The Electric Collection

buy online at:
amazon.com
amazon-uk | play.com | hmv.co.uk


Nylon String Collection
The Nylon String Sampler

buy online at:
amazon.com


Retrofit
Retrofit

buy online at:
amazon.com


Sweetbottom Live Reunion
Sweetbottom Live - The Reunion

buy online at:
amazon.com | amazon-uk


Another Side Of Genesis
Another Side Of Genesis

Read Review
buy online at:
amazon.com | amazon-uk


Waiting In The Wings
Waiting In The Wings

buy online at:
amazon.com | amazon-uk


Live And Learn
Live And Learn

buy online at:
amazon.com | amazon-uk


Daryl Stuermer Steppin' Out
Steppin' Out

buy online at:
amazon.com | amazon-uk






fan-shirt
The 2007 Tour it.blog
Setlists | Reviews | Photos

***SPOILER ALERT***


Genesis - European Tour 2007



11/06/2007 | Helsinki (FI)

14/06/2007 | Herning (DK)

15/06/2007 | Hamburg (GER)

17/06/2007 | Berne (CH)

19/06/2007 | Linz (AT)

20/06/2007 | Prague (CZ)

21/06/2007 | Chorzow (PL)

23/06/2007 | Hannover (GER)

24/06/2007 | Brussels (BE)

26/06/2007 | Düsseldorf (GER)

27/06/2007 | Düsseldorf (GER)

28/06/2007 | Stuttgart (GER)

30/06/2007 | Paris (F)

01/07/2007 | Amsterdam (NL)

03/07/2007 | Berlin (GER)

04/07/2007 | Leipzig (GER)

05/07/2007 | Frankfurt (GER)

07/07/2007 | Live Earth London (UK)

07/07/2007 | Manchester (UK)

08/07/2007 | London (UK)

10/07/2007 | Munich (GER)

12/07/2007 | Lyon (F)

14/07/2007 | Rome (I)