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Welcome back to JamBase's baker's dozen of probing, wide-ranging questions to the
bright lights in the jam scene (and beyond). Last time we heard from Keller
Williams and upcoming installments will include insights from Reed Mathis, Nathan Moore, The Sadies and
more!
 Robert Walter by Chad Smith |
There's an unmistakable sense of exuberant discovery when Robert Walter
gets behind a keyboard. For all the callus raising road work and long hours sweating over
musical notation – dude is a serious freakin' composer, creating real vehicles that
elevate the notion of 'jam' about 10 notches above the norm – Walter still seems awestruck
by each visit to a stage, each number brought into being with a who's who of New Orleans
and jam world regulars. The unfolding moment glistens in his approach, and that sense of
wonder and possibility infuses everything he touches.
As a member of the Greyboy Allstars, leading his own units like the 20th Congress or
engaged in fierce, tasty interplay in the Stanton Moore
Trio (see the boffo new Groove Alchemy for bubbling over examples), Walter
moves in a lithe, engaging way, prodding his compatriots expertly and more than holding
his own no matter who's onstage with him. One gets the sense that pianos and Hammonds let
loose a happy sigh when they see him coming. (Dennis Cook)
Here's what Walter had to say to our inquiries.
1. Great music rarely happens without…
Listening
2. The first album I bought was…
The Beatles' Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band
3. The last song or album to really flip my wig was…
Dirty Projectors'
"Cannibal Resource" and Allen Toussaint's "We Are The People"
4. When I was a kid I wanted to grow up to be…
A musician
5. My favorite sort of gig is…
Small clubs like the Maple Leaf Bar in New Orleans on an off night
6. One thing I wish people knew about me is…
I'm a good cook
7. I love the sound of…
My son learning piano
8. One day I hope to make an album as fantastic as…
Herbie Hancock's Thrust
9. The best meal I ever had on tour was at…
Fried chicken from Jacque Imo's in New Orleans
10. I always find the coolest audiences in…
New Orleans, San Francisco, Chicago
11. The worst habit I've picked up being on the road all the time is…
Smoking
12. The Beatles or the Stones? Por qué?
I think the Stones are cooler, but I'd usually rather listen to The Beatles.
13. The craziest thing I ever saw was…
Russell Batiste
sitting in on a left-handed drum set and playing as great as always
Robert Walter Tour
Dates :: Robert
Walter News :: Robert Walter Concert Reviews
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