026 – Trey Gray: Drumming for Faith Hill, Jewel, Brooks and Dunn, Pro Gigs and Huntington’s Disease

Before moving to Nashville in 1991, Steve Ebe spent his formative years in Memphis working with such legends as Carl Perkins and Donald "Duck" Dunn. Now, Steve is known throughout the Nashville music community as one of the busiest drummers in town. Whether it's teaching close to 50 students a week, or working with several bands who's primary focus is paying tribute to classic albums by performing them in their entirety, (The Long Players). Steve has carved a niche for himself that is truly unique. He still finds the time to work with other local bands as well, including a Steely Dan tribute called 12 Against Natureand an 80's party band with a strong reputation called Guilty Pleasures. For a little over 15 years, Steve has also been a member of a dedicated original band called Human Radio. This interview was conducted April 1st 2015. Click here for pictures.

6 Maj 20151h 56min

Ed Toth has held down two power house gigs for close to 20 years. Between 1996 - 2005, Ed was the drummer and member of the band Vertical Horizon. Since 2005, Ed has been playing drums with the legendary Doobie Brothers. Ed shares with us the joys and challenges that he experienced as a member of Vertical Horizon from its humble beginnings to multi platinum status as well as what lead to his transition into the gig with the Doobie Brothers. We also cover the strong influence his musician father had on Ed's early education as well as his introduction to the music of the Doobies as a kid. Ed's drum tech, Jeremy Denton joined us for the interview and took some great pictures. All photos in Ed's gallery are Jeremy's. Here is what Ed had to say about Jeremy: "Jeremy Denton (jdenton03@gmail.com) is a Nashville based photographer. He's also my drum tech so he knows his way around the kit and knows what looks best for drummers. If you need some shots for you or your band, I highly recommend you drop him a line!" - Ed Toth This interview was recorded April 2nd 2015

29 Apr 20152h 3min

Not only has George Lawrence been the drummer for Poco for over a decade, he's known throughout the Nashville drumming community as a natural mentor with years of experience performing live and in the studio. His reputation as an influential teacher includes a long list of successful alumni like drumming great Keith Carlock. In the early eighties George maintained steady work as a session drummer in Los Angeles and later at Muscle Shoals in Alabama. Some of George's current and past endeavors include owning his own drum shop, running the magazine "Not So Modern Drummer" as well as running the annual Nashville Drum Show. See photos here.

15 Apr 20151h 44min

For the last 15 years, Ben Sesar has been the live and studio drummer for Grammy award winning singer, songwriter and guitarist Brad Paisley. This gig has given Ben a perspective on the music industry that few drummers get to experience. Ben offers his insight and philosophy on the business and what obstacles up and coming drummers might face. As a teacher, writer and professed life long student himself, Ben comes off as a true journey-man who is constantly looking for answers that plague his active drumming mind. And as a result of the depth of information we cover, we've decided to break this podcast into two parts. In part 2, Ben gets into practice techniques that he's designed to challenge himself as well as his students. He also explains the reason and origin of his cymbal set up and why they are angled the way they are. We have included the talents of photographer John Zocco in this podcast. You can check out all the great photographs from this interview on www.workingdrummer.net. This interview was recorded February 10th, 2015

8 Apr 201550min

For over 15 years Jim Riley has been the drummer for the hugely successful country group Rascal Flatts. After earning a degree in music education from North Texas, Jim found his way to Nashville in pursuit of higher musical goals. In pursuit of these goals, Jim shares with us his story of determination and perseverance. After establishing his drumming skills among his peers in Nashville, Jim quickly found himself with his first artist gig working with Mark Chestnut. As the group Rascal Flatts was beginning to take shape, Jim was asked to be the drummer. In spite of the newness of the group and its ground breaking pop style, Jim saw it as great opportunity and a risk worth taking. Within the first two years, Jim found himself in the position of musical director for Rascal Flatts and continues to maintain that position in the group. Jim discusses his role as "MD" and how it's responsibilities has evolved over years as the band's success has grown. Jim is also a dedicated educator. Sharing real world performance experiences with his students is at the core of Jim's teaching style. Jim is preparing to release his comprehensive book, Survival Guide For The Modern Drummer. Jim has also participated in many clinics across the country both large and small that have included Drum Daze in Columbus Ohio and Modern Drummer fest. Jim has defined success based on his own terms. He has found balance between performing with a successful band, teaching, writing music and writing about music as well as raising a family. See photos here.

18 Mars 20151h 36min

For the last 15 years, Ben Sesar has been both live and studio drummer for the Grammy award winning singer, songwriter and guitarist Brad Paisley. This gig has given Ben a perspective on the music industry that few drummers get to experience. Ben offers his insight and philosophy on the business and which obstacles up and coming drummers might face. As a teacher, writer and professed life long student, Ben comes off as a true journey-man who is constantly looking for answers that plague his active drumming mind. Due to the depth of information we cover, we've decided to break this podcast into two parts. Ben discusses the trials of the music business in this first part as well as his decision to reinvent himself by converting to traditional grip after playing match grip most of his life. He also explains how he divides drumming into the "what we play" and "how we play", and the benefits of understanding the difference. We have included the talents of photographer John Zocco in this podcast. You can check out all the great pictures from this interview on www.workingdrummer.net. This interview was recorded February 10th, 2015

11 Mars 20151h 14min

Lee Kelley has learned to adapt his drumming style to fit whatever gig has come his way. Lee's range of gigs have included backing up many artists in Nashville including Gary Allan, Mark Chestnut, Heidi Newfield as well as alt-country singer Chris Knight. Originally from the Charlotte North Carolina area, Lee learned drumming from his neighbor at an early age and continued his informal education working with and learning from popular local bands such as Sugar Creek and Too Much Sylvia. Encouraged by Eddie Bayers to move, Lee hit the streets of Nashville in 1996. After embracing the drumming style of classic country music, Lee quickly found himself working with country artist Gary Allan. Lee talks about the many artist gigs that followed and how he has continued to stay busy in the Nashville music scene. This interview was recorded February 3rd 2015. See photos here.

4 Mars 20151h 39min

Matt Iceman is our featured drummer for our 7th podcast. Matt is a relatively young drummer who's been steadily making a name for himself in the Nashville scene since his move in the early 2000's. At the time of our interview, Matt was just finishing two busy years touring with singer/songwriter Eric Paslay. We discuss his role as band leader as well as life on the road. While on tour, Matt was able to watch other drummers perform with the artists that were sharing the stage. Since our interview, he has moved on and will be the touring drummer with country singer David Nail. Matt's early influences in music, drums and music education lead him to the University of the Arts in Philadelphia and eventually to Nashville. We discuss Matt's perspective on the music industry and the role of the modern drummer as his inspiration to invest in his own home studio. Pictures of his studio and the building process can be found at www.workingdrummer.net. Our interview was recorded December 18th, 2014.

25 Feb 20151h 43min