Drum Tracks

KG: Let's get right into it. Where did you grow up and when did you start playing drums?

JM: I grew up in a town north of Boston and I started playing when I turned 13. I had tried drums in fourth grade, in elementary school. It was the kind of deal where nobody could play at that point and there wasn't anyone who specialized in teaching just one instrument. The band was terrible and I was using sticks the size of 3S's, so I decided to leave it for a couple of years. I started thinking about it seriously when I was about 13 and requested drum lessons for my birthday. I had a teacher that really encouraged me. His name is Donn Carr and he was one of the bigger teachers in the area. He had a nice little grading system where he would give you an E, V, G, or F each week (excellent, very good, good and FAIL!). This really made me try to get straight E's. So that was really the beginning of it.

KG: So you have always been a drummer and haven't really played any other instruments seriously?

JM: Yes, it was really the drums from the very beginning. I was always interested in music because it was around my house so much when I was growing up. My father was a professional musician (a brass player) and my sister played piano, but the only instrument that caught my full attention was drums. I started out on a wooden pad that my father had built for me and gradually worked my way up to my first set of drums, which was a Japanese kit called a Black Jack.

KG: How long did you study with Donn Carr and what did you do from that point?

JM: I was with Donn for about a year or so. He taught me all the fundamentals: rudiments, dance music, jazz, rock, Latin, reading and all the basics that a first drum teacher would teach. After that, most everything came on my own. I started listening and practicing to records. One of the differences that I can attribute to my playing style today, relative to my friends at the time, is that I practiced and listened to Frank Zappa and English progressive rock. So here I was fourteen years old and I am playing to stuff by Aynsley Dunbar, Chester Thompson, Terry Bozzio, Genesis, Yes, ELP Crimson and Pink Floyd. Those are the people and bands that I was trying to cop what the drummers were doing. In that respect, I think I had a head start on grasping the more difficult side of drumming as far as odd-times, polyrhytms and technique.

KG: So basically you're a self-taught player?

JM: From then on, yes, most everything was self-taught. Donn did a great job starting me off, but I took the driver's seat after learning the meringue and rumba. I did some other studying with a Berklee graduate
Named Steve Wark, but that was mostly for classical percussion, tympani, glockenspiel, vibes, etc. I got myself into playing double bass and playing lefty. With GTR I played double kick/lefty, and with Joe I play single kick/righty with half match grip and half traditional, so those areas I explored on my own. I got into each just by who was influencing me at the time. Double kicks came from Terry Bozzio, playing lefty came from Simon Phillips and Billy Cobham. Getting back into single kick came from Vinnie Colaiuta, Tony Williams and John Bonham. So there's a little bit of everybody I check out. I like to see what they were doing and try it out for myself. If it works, I'll start using it and if it doesn't, there must be a reason that it works for them and not for me. I did go to Berklee because of a teacher named Gary Chaffee, who I was desperate to study with because he worked with Vinnie Colaiuta, who is my favorite drummer. Unfortunately, Gary had already left Berklee when I got there. However, he was still teaching privately in the Boston area. So, after my first semester at Berklee, I left and I hooked up with Gary full time. I guess was about 18. I was so eager to learn all if what he was teaching. I remember practicing up to eight hours a day just to cover all his material. I was working on linear playing, stickings, polyrhythms, independence, reading and more, all at the same time.

KG: Are you still with him now?

JM: Yes, I study with him whenever I get a chance. He's been a great inspiration to me personally and has had a large influence on my playing ability and style.

KG: I noticed your using a single kick now. Do you usually use a double pedal?

JM: No, I tried it once and it's great for playing double bass, but if I'm going to play double bass, I want to play two bass drums. It looks good, it feels good and I like the spread of the drum kit. When I play single kick I like to do as much as I can do on one pedal so everyone thinks I'm playing the double. I like to play what's there, and if there's only one bass drum, one hi hat and a couple of toms, I'm going to get as much as I can out of each of them.

KG: You've talked about some of your influences. Are there any others?

JM: My development as a drummer went in stages. In the beginning, my influences were Carl Palmer, Phil Collins, Bill Bruford, Alan White and Neil Peart. Next came guys like Barriemore Barlow (Jethro Tull) and Prarie Prince (The Tubes). They're both terribly underrated; they're such unbelievable players. Also, mark Craney and Rod Morgenstein. Today, my heroes would be Vinnie Colaiuta, Terry Bozzio and Simon Phillips. They never cease to amaze me, especially Vinnie. There are other guys too, like Steve Jordan and Manu Katche, Dennis Chambers, Mel Gaynor and Steve Gadd. I still listen to John Bonham like crazy. Also, Omar Hakim, Jeff Porcaro, Andy Newmark, Dave Weckl and Peter Erskine. Then there's Greg Bissonette and Tommy Lee. I really like Tommy Lee; I saw him live recently and he really blew me away.

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KG: Let's talk about who you have played with both live and in the studio.

JM: I went to London since I was really into English rock. This is when I was about 19. After getting my name in with some people I was recommended to a band called Marillion. I auditioned for them, got the gig, and went to Germany with them straight away, without rehearsals. We did a live radio show there and then went back to Wales and started writing and recording a new album. That was a little short lived because of a problem with my work permit. After that I went back to the states and did some recording with Punky Meadows. He was the guitarist with a group called Angel. Then I decided to move back to London and ended up auditioning for Steve Hackett. Just before we were going on tour to record a live album, he met Steve Howe. They got to talking about forming a guitar-based band like the Yardbirds and decided to do it with me as the drummer. Hackett then recruited Max Bacon as the lead singer and ironically, I recruited Phil Spalding, the bass player who had recommended me to Marillion. We were together for just over two years as GTR. I was 21 at the time.

KG: How did you get hooked up with Joe Satriani?

JM: Joe endorsed Ibanez and I endorse Tama. When I was finished with the GTR gig, I went to the Hoshino factory to pick out a new drum kit for a small clinic tour and Joe was there picking out Ibanez guitars. I knew who he was because a friend of mine had played me Joe's album "Not of This Earth." We got to talking, and he asked me if I'd be interested in doing a gig with him. I said yes, and with no rehearsals we played our first gig at the Chicago NAMM show. It was Joe, Stu Hamm and I. We had a great time and did another show about a month later in New York. Soon after that Joe called and asked me to do a week in Japan. Of course, I jumped at the chance. Then Joe's album really took off so we've been on tour since the beginning of the year.

KG: How has the tour been?

JM: It's been great! First of all, I really enjoy playing the music. It's just a great situation. Playing in a trio has been a wonderful experience and playing with musicians of this caliber has been great - my playing has improved and I'm able to utilize a lot of my Chaffee chops. Secondly, through Joe, I've also had the chance to play with Steve Vai and Mick Jagger. For anybody who didn't catch the tour, there's an EP that will be out in late October which will include a few live cuts.

KG: Are there any highlights of the tour that you would like to talk about?

JM: For me, there have been many! In Paris, at the end of "Surfin' With the Alien" we leave it kind of open because Joe might go into "Birdland" or do some Zeppelin riff. Well, Joe played this one lick, then Stu (Hamm) played it, I played it and at one magic moment we went right back to what we were supposed to do without even looking at each other! It's that little bit that makes it great!

KG: You've talked about clinics and teaching. Do you have a set of students?

JM: Yes, I have students. I only do it on the side, but it is fun for me and I do learn from it as well. I'm more of a show-er than a teacher. Someone like Donn Carr can take a student and teach them from the start. I can't do that; I don't know how. I like to work with students that are beyond that stage.

KG: Do you have any clinic tours coming up?

JM: Yes, both Tama and Zildjian are setting up some clinics around the end of 1988 and early 1989.

KG: Would you recommend any instructional material for drummers?

JM: Definitely. In this day and age, there is so much information available by way of book, tape and video that every drummer should take advantage of it. Gary Chaffee's books and videos are fabulous. There is so much information in them; he covers just about everything. Rod Morgenstein has some excellent books that include tapes, and for double bass, Joe Franco's book and video are the best I've seen. Of course there's "Syncopation" and "Stick Control". Also, I recently heard that Terry Bozzio has a video coming out. That should definitely be checked out.

KG: How did you develop your speed and control?

JM: I think the amount of time playing has a lot to do with it. Developing your muscles over many years has got to have an effect on your speed and control. Gary Chaffee gave me endurance exercises, which helped a great deal. My right foot has developed simply because, when I went from double to single kick, I tried playing almost everything I could with double on single kick; I tried with one foot all that I was doing with two.

KG: Tell me about Jonathan the person, as opposed to Jonathan the drummer.

JM: I'm a fan of the Three Stooges and Bugs Bunny. I like to ski, both snow and water, and I love exotic foods.

KG: Jonathan, thank you for your time, a wonderful interview, and good luck.

JM: Thank you.