REVIEWS

  

| Adam Levy | Gig | Guitar Player | Tipitina's | OnStage  | Gritz | AbstractLogix

GUITARVIEWS — SHANE THERIOT by Adam Levy
 
"I really wanted to be a rock player," says Shane Theriot. "I just missed my calling! What happened to the '80s?"

Shane Theriot was born and raised in New Orleans, and grew up surrounded by all kinds of music — from Cajun and zydeco to rock and jazz. He took up guitar before his 10th birthday, and was gigging by the time he was 11. After high school, he attended the Musicians Institute in Los Angeles, and graduated in 1990 with top honors in all styles — an award granted to only three students out of his class of 300. In the early 1990s, Theriot moved to Nashville, where he has performed and recorded with many of Music City's finest. He continues to live in Nashville half-time, spending the rest of his time in New Orleans. He is the author of the excellent book New Orleans Funk Guitar, published by Warner Bros.
The guitarist's latest release is Highway 90. The record shows off his nasty rhythm work, brilliant modern-rock lead chops, his ear for great tones, and keen compositional skills. In addition to his work as a leader and as a top-gun session player in Nashville and New Orleans, Theriot has been a member of the Neville Brothers since 1996, and is featured on their 1999 album Valence Street.
In this interview, conducted via e-mail in December, 2001, Theriot shares this thoughts on getting — and keeping — a gig, the difference between live and studio work, and his favorite Beatle.

TAKE IT FROM THE TOP
Adam Levy: What inspired you to pick up the guitar in the first place?
Shane Theriot: I started after seeing a TV show about the Beatles. Also, I had an uncle who played guitar, and I think I wanted to be like him.

AL: Were you a George Harrison fan?
ST: George Harrison's guitar work was great, but I can't say it was an influence for me early on. I was always into the Beatles as a whole, and then got into Paul McCartney when my uncle turned me on to the Ram record. McCartney is such a great songwriter and performer. Just listen to "Maybe I'm Amazed," from McCartney. That song has it all for me. You can analyze it from a theory perspective and find everything there — beautiful harmonization of the melody, motifs that are developed, contrary motion, and so on — or enjoy it just for the great song that it is. And McCartney's voice is almost hypnotic to me.

NO BUSINESS LIKE SHOW BUSINESS
AL: Is having a career in music anything like you imagined it would be?
ST: No! Well, like a lot of players, I guess I imagined I would have "made it" by the time I was 21 or so. But at a certain point you start to think, "Okay, what exactly is 'making it'?" That can mean so many different things. The music business is just as strange to me now as it was when I was 15 and just couldn't wait to get home from school and pick up a guitar. I guess I knew it would be a creative field to get into. But, on the other hand, I never realized how closed-minded people might be in some ways.

AL: How do you mean?
ST: Well, in some circles you have to be careful about being "too good." Some producers actually look down on that. Can you believe that!

AL: Have you met players who totally "get it" — who have a solid understanding of how to survive and make a career last over the long haul?
ST: That is a hard one to answer because the guys I admire always seem to go against the grain, whereas longevity tends to involve going with the flow. To me, the most impressive guys are players that have stayed in their hometown and built their whole sound around that. I think of Sonny Landreth, who is based in Louisiana and has that Bayou thing that people now seek out for sessions. Guys like him, it may take a while for them to get known, but when they do they tend to last longer and make a more personal statement.
I think [drummer] Kenny Aronoff is the ultimate cat for keeping a career not just going along, but thriving. He went from the John Cougar thing in the '80s to playing with the Smashing Pumpkins in the late 90's! He is a great example on how to survive. And he lives in Indiana.

AL: Do you have a mentor?
ST: I guess I have a few people that I look up to for certain things. I still keep in touch with one of my old guitar teachers from GIT, Dan Gilbert. We have lunch and jam every time I am in L.A. I also keep in touch with Scott Henderson, who has been a great help to me in a lot of ways, and he is helping me out with my tone for my next CD. Johnny Neel [keyboardist for Gov't Mule and the Allman Bros.] is one of my brothers, too — both musically and personally. We have been on so many projects together and Johnny just has a world of knowledge about how to make a song work without relying on clichés He's amazing that way. And, well — I know it sounds corny to say this, but my wife usually makes more sense, when all's said and done, than just about everyone else!

AL: Have you ever considered doing anything else for a living?
ST: Oh, sure all the time. I go through this one constantly. My wife calls it my monthly "period"! Sometimes it's so easy to forget what made me pick up the guitar in the first place. Working as a sideman and in the studio, you are there to deliver the part, the tone, and make the song work. That doesn't always translate to satisfaction or the feeling that you have chosen a fulfilling career. You have to be willing to deal with an uncertain level of financial security because so much of this business about is "who you know" — it really is. If it was about talent, then Van Gogh would have lived to be a wealthy old man. I realize I am luckier than some, and I have experienced things simply by playing a guitar that others may never experience. And I get paid for it too. But sure, I do think of doing other things for a living and playing music just for the sheer joy of it, not because I have to do it to get by. I don't know quite what I would want to do though, although I am semi-fluent in Japanese and could see myself working in some aspect of the music business in Japan someday.

AL: You've been playing with the Neville Brothers since 1996 — that's a pretty long run. Got any advice for holding onto a gig?
ST: Make sure you keep doing your homework from time to time, working on new material or brushing up on older songs. And don't be a negative person. You do have to take care of business, but even the best gigs and situations can be ruined by people constantly whining about what is wrong with the band, not making enough money, and so on.

AL: Do you have any advice for players auditioning for a gig?
ST: It's best to have a contact beforehand — perhaps a buddy of yours is already on the gig. Also, make sure to look and dress the part, know the material well, and so on. But most importantly, be yourself!

AL: And any advice for when it comes time to leave a gig?
ST: Don't burn any bridges, if possible, and try to leave the door open. Stay in touch with the band.

AL: You're doing a lot of studio work, as well as touring with the Nevilles and other live gigs. How would you explain different skill sets needed for studio work and live work?
ST: For studio work you have to have your playing together, and equally important is to have a great tone and command of different sounds and effects. And, to be honest, one of the keys to being a successful studio musician — besides creativity — is the capacity to put up with various types and amounts of B.S. The live musician also needs to remember the visual aspect of the gig and dress the part, as well as nailing the music.

AL: Ever had any disasters onstage?
ST: When I was about 14, my band's equipment trailer went into a river and I watched a few of my amps float by. After some help from a soccer team that happened to be nearby, we spent the rest of the day with hairdryers trying to dry our speakers.

PLUG-AND-PLAY
AL: What guitars and amps did you use on your Highway 90 album?
ST: I played my Hamer Daytona — a Strat-style guitar with two Seymour Duncan Alnico II pickups and a George Lynch Signature Screamin' Demon in the bridge. I also played my Paul Reed Smith with Gibson pickups, my old battered Yamaha Pacifica with all stock hardware and pickups, a few different acoustic guitars, my Fender Lonestar Strat, with Lindy Fralin pickups — though I hardly ever use that Strat because it never stays in tune. Most of the CD was recorded with a few Fender amplifiers that I keep in Nashville for studio gigs — a Bassman, a Vibro Champ, and a Deluxe Reverb. I played a few things with my 100-watt Marshall.

AL: What's your main guitar these days?
ST: A custom Melancon with a Tele-style body, plus several Hamer models.

AL: What does your main guitar do best?
ST: Makes me work a little for the notes, and gives me the tone to get inspired.
 
IF IT AIN'T BROKE
AL: On Highway 90, the music has that great quality of being tightly knit and yet loose and funky at the same time. Did you and the band do a lot of punching and fixing, or did things basically go down like you hear them on the record?
ST: I tried, whenever possible, to leave the parts as live as possible. Anything that I could not absolutely live with I did fix, although there are maybe a maximum of three or four fixes on each tune. Most of the stuff with Victor Wooten and Willie Green is totally live, except that I overdubbed rhythm parts behind my lead lines.

AL: So you aren't necessarily looking to make "perfect" music.
ST: Sometimes if something is really out of tune or just plain wrong, it can still work. It just has to have character, and that's a really subjective thing. That's one of the things I love about Jeff Beck — the mistakes are part of the journey.

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"Highway 90" By Diane Gershuny

Growing up in the New Orleans area certainly prepared Shane Theriot for his gig laying guitar grooves with the Neville Brothers.  Prior to that, he spent time living and gigging in Los Angeles and relocated to Atlanta to teach at the Atlanta Institute of Music.   He currently splits his time between Nashville and New Orleans and has released a solo record available from Audiophile Imports (www.audiophileimports.com; 908-996-7311).

Did you move to Nashville with the intention of playing music full-time?
     I loved teaching but I wanted to get more into doing recording sessions and things like that.  I moved to Nashville with three phone numbers and started making calls, calling everybody. Things started out slow... within a few weeks I went to Europe on a little tour doing some country stuff. You never know what little gig might further your career.

Was there a turning point for you there?
     I was struggling, doing demos and showcases, and then I met a guy named Johnny Neal.  I think he's a genius.  He's played with the Allman Bros. and Govt. Mule-he's a blind keyboard player. And he's got a band and has had prestigious guitar players. And when I got that gig, it was definitely a stepping stone. I felt that people were definitely noticing me. And it really prepared me for a lot of things and opened up a lot of doors. We were just playing around town but it was a pretty good situation to be in as far as playing and exposure.

Talk about networking...
     Two things I learned real quick; Number one, you never know what little gig might further your career. It could be something you did that was terrible but great money, and a year later, got you a recommendation for something else. The other thing is recommendation-it is the name of the game. I've never gotten a session or gig from a tape.

The Neville's gig came out of a recommendation?
     A friend of mine in Nashville who's a producer and guitarist was working with them and he'd hire me to play on sessions. I did an audition, but I knew the material because I had shedded the material and I'd heard a lot of it growing up anyway. The Neville's gig, musically, is a great situation. I never feel any pressure with those guys; I feel 10 times more pressure on recording sessions. I think my situation in Nashville really prepared me for just about anything because you're under the gun so much. In Nashville, you have to be able to play anything to keep working, and when you get in a situation like the Nevilles, it's so much easier and free-even though you have four bosses with those guys! I'm doing my solo record and they keep teasing me that I'm gonna leave. But I told them, "I'm not leaving until you throw me out."

Is it important to be able to play lots of styles, to be versatile, in sessions as well as playing live?
     I guess there's always a danger of spreading yourself too thin, but I think a player that is well-versed, even though you won't use it all in one gig, you can tap into that and you'll have more options to offer the person you're working for. I think it's definitely to your advantage to know as much as possible. When I was a kid I wanted to be Eddie VanHalen - I still do. But when I got a little bit older, I wanted to branch out a little more and I appreciated a lot of things and tried to cover as much as possible.

What are the challenges of being a sideman?
     Sometimes you get bored playing the same things, but hopefully you have an employer that allows and encourages you to stretch out because otherwise you get stale playing the same things every night. There was a great book written by Tommy Tedesco and he said when you take a job it should have good money, connections for the future and you should be able to learn from it. And I always try to follow that theory. It's a challenge keeping people happy; making sure you deliver. I feel it more doing session work. You get this feeling knowing you really delivered and you'll get called back. That's the feeling I always try to go for in any thing I do.

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Guitar Gumbo By Rusty Russell

Slumped into a lawnchair on a moonlit patio behind a downtown Nashville eatery, guitarist Shane Theriot considers a loaded question: "What's the ultimate goal that defines his musical quest?"
     "Wow", says the 28-year-old Louisiana native.   "I guess it would be to make my music sound like Weather Report grew up in New Orleans. There's a vibe that comes from the mix of different cultures.  It has always been a conscious effort for me to combine a New Orleans feel with more complex things."
     Between sideman gigs with the legendary Neville Brothers, sessions in Nashville, and penning the occasional session for GP, Theriot has recorded Highway 90 (Shose); a head-turning instrumental set that falls nicely in line with his stated mission. With a tonal palette that ranges from thick, guttural overdrive to vocal-sounding licks, Theriot's rock-meets-fusion-meets-funk forays crackle over greasy beats and quasi-Zydeco grooves. The musical hodge-podge indeed conjurs images of Zawinul and company on vacation in the Big Easy.
         "Trashy" serves as a sort of compendium for Theriot's style: Opening with a plucked, muted arpeggio motif, he sets up an angular, soulful solo with rhythmic oddities and studio antics a la Frank Zappa. (There's even an accordion part from Cajun star Joel Sonier.) But while feel is everything to Theriot, it's not the only thing. Several tracks feature burning riffs that reveal a schooled right hand.
     "I don't have the technique I did when I was doing exercises all day," Theriot admits, "but other skills take over. You learn what not to play, and your style becomes more musical. Your harmonic and improvisational concepts evolve, too. Eventually, you let your ear tell you where to go."
     Harmonic underpinnings run deceptively deep in Theriot's hands - even a simple blues becomes a canvas for colorful extensions and unique voicings.  A G.I.T. grad, Theriot not only gives credit to New Orleans for musical inspiration, but also to his study of disparate players in his formative years.
     "Van Halen was huge for me," he remembers. "His tone, his technique, and all those little staccato things he would do were extremely influential.  I also remember going to a music store with my dad when I was about 15 and buying two records: The Incredible Jazz Guitar of Wes Montgomery and Yngwie Malmsteen's Marching Out. I was playing scales and lines by then, so I could figure out some of Yngwie's thing. But Wes - man, I had no idea what he was doing. The patterns, the phrasing-I didn't have a clue."
     Theriot joined the Nevilles in 1996, and since then has kept homes in both Nashville and New Orleans. "I love doing sessions, and I respect the guys who do it every day," he says, "but I couldn't do that. I have to play with a killer band. It keeps me fresh. The Neville's music is so thick. Being around them has really helped me get back in touch with where I came from musically.
     Surrounded by great gigs and an outlet for his own material, Theriot is grateful for his musical opportunities, and he counts his blessings everyday. "If you play guitar and get paid for it," he says, "you have to remember how lucky you are. It doesn't matter if it's master scale or $30 a song, you're doing something that a whole lot of people would do for nothing. The music business doesn't owe you anything. You have to go out and make your own thing happen.

guitarplayer.com        DECEMBER 2000  GUITAR PLAYER

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Shane Theriot: A Q&A with the Neville's "Ax Man" — Compiled By Dylan Williams & John D'Aquila, tipitinas.com

Shane Theriot arrives clutching a new, custom-made guitar he is yearning to show off. He carefully pulls it out of the case to show us -- it's purple.
"Wow, not so close," someone says, "I might get blinded."
"I've always wanted a purple guitar," chortles Theriot, who granted tipitinas.com this exclusive Q&A session.
In essence, and oddly, the purple guitar fits the squeaky clean 30-year old Theriot, who is the lead guitarist for the first family of funk, the Neville Brothers. Don't be fooled by his choirboy looks. When it comes to playing the guitar, Theriot is a killer -- a phenomenal player and a skilled performer.
Theriot cut his musical teeth in sleepy Raceland, 30 miles south of New Orleans, studied guitar at the highly-acclaimed Musician's Institute of Los Angeles, taught at the prestigious Atlanta Institute of Music, honed his playing skills in Nashville doing both recording sessions and gigs with a lot of big names, and has toured and recorded with the Neville Brothers for five years.
Recently, Theriot completed a side project, Highway 90, his well-received CD and is currently working on his new CD with the likes of Johnny Vidocavich, Russell Batiste, Cyril Neville, among others.

Tips -- Tell us a little about your background, where you are from, where you went to high school?
Shane -- Well, I'm from Raceland, Louisiana, which is a town about 30 miles south of New Orleans. I went to high school at Central Lafourche High School. Yeah, yeah, there's not much there. The first time I met Dr. John, Art introduced me to him, he said "Raceland! There's not shit in Raceland." (laughs) Yea, there is not much out there, but it's you know, home. I go there and visit, and it's got a peaceful vibe.

Tips -- What kind of musical background do you have?
Shane -- I guess half of my family was musical. My mom played piano, all her sisters played piano. One of her sisters actually played with the New Orleans symphony, a pianist. And all my uncles played guitar. And my dad was sort of a frustrated musician. He wanted to play things and never put forth the time.

Tips -- When did you pick up an instrument and what instrument was it?
Shane -- Uh, well I started on trumpet. I played the trumpet actually for a good, long time. Well I say a long time, all through the second half of elementary school, junior high and in my first year of high school. I just got tired of the trumpet and I wanted to play the drums. I'm sort of a drummer, really. I played drums for a long time. I played drums in high school in the marching band and the problem was, my best friend in our neighborhood was in a band, but he was already a drummer. So, you know, I switched to guitar. I remember seeing a Beatles' documentary, wasn't even a documentary, it was like a made for television thing about the Beatles, and for some reason that, and one of my aunts had a boyfriend at the time who played guitar, and I thought he was the coolest thing and so, the combination of those two made me switch to guitar. And automatically I was in the band with my friends (laughs).

Tips -- Did you take lessons?
Shane -- Well, I mean, not really. My uncle, he taught me a lot of things on the guitar. He's the type of guy, like every holiday, every time we'd get together, he'd pull out his 12-string acoustic and everybody else would play and sing all these songs from the 70's and all this stuff so he really gave me a pretty good foundation as far as chords. I did study for a little while, I took some lessons for one summer, but most of my stuff is self-taught, but I did study it. Actually I wanted to take lessons from this guy in Thibodaux that I couldn't afford to take lessons from. He was a great guitar player. He was like 20 years old and I thought he was such a killer rock guitar player, but he had all the theory down, too. So this other friend of mine, who wasn't that good of a guitar player, was taking lessons from him. He'd come back from his lessons and I'd say: "so what did he show you today?" and he'd show me. I would pick it up just like that (laughs).

Tips -- You were playing on an acoustic at first?
Shane -- At first, yeah. I remember begging my mom and dad to get me this guitar -- a Fender Strat neck with a Tele body and I wish I still had that guitar because both of them were off of vintage instruments, so, you know, it would have been worth some money today. Not to mention sentimental. Anyway, that was my first electric.

Tips -- So who do you consider to be your early influences? Your aunt played piano with the symphony and your uncle played the twelve string guitar….
Shane -- I wouldn't say they were direct influences….

Tips -- But it caused you to become more involved with music and to start considering yourself as a musician….
Shane -- Yeah. But there was a band in Raceland called Country Breakdown, which is a really hokey name, but they were great guys and they played great and they were the closest thing I had seen to "professional" musicians. I remember doing a gig opening up for them somewhere and I remember the guy saying, "you know, I'm just doing this full-time now, I'm just playing." That concept had never even occurred to me at all (voice rising). Raceland is a pretty blue-collar working class environment, so that thought had never even occurred to me. When that happened I was like, wow! You could actually do this for a living, ha, you know, play guitar, I mean, play music. That was like a spark when that hit. I guess I was about 13.

Tips -- Tell us about this first gig at the World's Fair in 1984. What was that about?
Shane -- (laughs) That was, uh, I still don't know to this day how we got that gig cause we were so God awful. It was a band I was in and we auditioned and sent a tape in and next thing I know we were going into the city to play in the World's Fair. That's all I really remember. I was like 12, 13 years old.

Tips -- Well what kind of band was it and what kind of music did you play?
Shane -- We did like cover tunes, we did some Rolling Stones, and we did some local Cajun stuff like Matilda and all the swamp pop. We did some New Orleans stuff, but, God, that band went through so many incarnations.

Tips -- Was there a big crowd there? It was the World's Fair, after all….
Shane -- Yeah, yeah, we were actually at this place called the gazebo. Right in front they had that big tin auditorium where INXS and all those top bands were playing. And when you're a kid and you are that close to that kind of atmosphere, it was kinda neat. I remember trying to check out Belinda Carlisle from the GoGo's.

Tips -- Any stage fright or anything?
Shane -- Naw, I mean it wasn't a stage fright thing. I've never been nervous playing with bands. It's always been when I'm, you know, doing (recording) sessions. That's a lot of pressure. The band thing, even back then, it wasn't a lot pressure. It was just fun…you know, we all thought we were rock stars back then (laughter)…seriously (more laughs).

Tips -- Tell us a little bit about some of the early bands…do you have any fond memories of early bands you played in?
Shane -- Actually, that one band that I keep mentioning that was pretty much my only early band…. That band went through a lot of different personnel changes, but the nucleus was, myself, and this drummer named Rod Pierce, who is still in Thibodaux. He plays with Tony Hall sometimes, and a couple other guys. That band went through a lot of changes. We had a girl singer and then we were doing like cover tunes or whatever. She was a great singer. I don't know what happened to her. And then we turned into like a rock band right around when we turned 15. We were playing in Mardi Gras parades on the floats. Up until I was about 15 I was pretty much in one band.

Tips -- What type of music did this band play when it made the switch to the rock genre?
Shane -- We did Judas Priest and some Van Halen stuff. We did Bachman Turner Overdrive, you know, stuff everyone would know, like "Taking Care of Business." We had a whole list of all rock stuff. We had the heavier stuff and we had like the swamp pop Cajun stuff that people wanted to hear.

Tips -- Did this band produce any original music?
Shane -- We did some things, but it wasn't really going that way.

Tips -- Being from bayou country, were you into Cajun or Zydeco music at all?
Shane -- It drove me crazy, I hated it, because my dad would play it all weekend long. He had this radio he would play in the garage, he'd work outside all weekend long and he'd play Cajun music. I always liked Zydeco more, I still do. But I have a new respect for Cajun and Zydeco music now. But back then, you know, I didn't like it at all. I didn't get it.

Tips -- It was dad's music, was that why?
Shane -- I guess so, but you know everything was in French, and I just thought it sounded weird, and I just didn't appreciate it. When your just a little kid, you know, when you're a punk, you don't appreciate it. Now I realize its value, especially after working with Jo-el Sonnier and all these other Cajun artists.

Tips -- So, back then, even though you were trying to get away from the Cajun music, you still played some of it with the band….
Shane -- Well we had to make money, especially around there, you know you play at a Lion's Club somewhere in Raceland, or a wedding, they want to hear all that stuff. I remember playing in some pretty crazy things though. I remember playing in a few parades that where wild. We were all kids, 14 you know, and people were jumping on the floats with beer and like pouring beer down your throat. Yeah, I mean, we were having a great time as kids, it was fun.

Tips -- So you had this interesting childhood in a musical family in sleepy Raceland, playing in bands and just kicking around, and all of the sudden, boom, you are in LA at the music institute. How did that sudden change affect you?
Shane -- Yeah, well one thing happened that was prior to that. My dad, when the economy got really bad here, in the 80s, he got another job and we actually relocated to South Carolina, for like a year. And, the reason I bring that up, I finished my senior year there, only a few months. But, I got into a jazz program there, that they didn't have at Central Lafourche. You know they were sort of lacking there at some things (in South Carolina), but they had a jazz program and I could play guitar. I totally got into a whole other world. That's when I started to really get serious. As soon as we moved there I just sort of made up my mind, yeah, I don't want to stay here, but I used it, you know and learned some things there.

Tips -- How did it work out that you ended up at the Musicians Institute of Los Angeles? How did that happen?
Shane -- Well, I just applied (laughs). I just went out there. I knew I wanted to get out of South Carolina, and my original goal was to be a session guitar player, because I figured I could make a good living, and I worked MY BUTT OFF on learning different styles and how to sight read and everything, so, that's why I thought that I could go there and study. I actually had a scholarship to go to college in South Carolina, but I just knew it wasn't in my heart, you know. I didn't want to be there.

Tips -- So, you wanted to be a session player, rather than being a rock star?
Shane -- Yeah, I always did, since I was about 15 or 16.

Tips -- What kind of experience was that out there in LA, culturally and musically?
Shane -- Great, well I was 18 when I moved out there, I was right about to turn 19 and it was just total freedom. I had to work a year to save enough money to get out there and, I paid my own way.

Tips -- What kind of jobs did you do?
Shane -- Well mostly it was teaching, a lot of teaching (guitar). I taught at a community college, which is a big responsibility when you're like 17 and your dealing with like 20 adults coming in and wanting to learn guitar! I did that and I worked at like a pool place for a year. I did like four jobs for a whole year to get out there, you know, and when I got out there it was like a total feeling of freedom. It was great. Really great.

Tips -- So, I'm thinking about the cultural changes from Raceland to South Carolina, to LA It had to be a real shock to your system, no?
Shane -- Yeah, but in my mind I was already there a long time ago. I was ready for it. And, I had an uncle who was living in north Hollywood who was a cameraman. But I never saw him all year anyway. It was cool, you know, I actually had a girlfriend that had transferred to CSUN out there -- California State University at Northridge. So she was living out in the valley, I was living right in Hollywood. She had a car, I didn't have a car, it was like totally different. So it was great, I made friends from all over the world. I still have friends from that time.

Tips -- And living in Hollywood, I'm sure you had encounters with movie stars. Was that something that wowed you, or was it like ahh there's so and so?
Shane -- Um, at first I thought it was cool, I mean I saw a lot of people out there but one of the coolest things I always remember is, I always had this routine: I'd wake up early in the morning, I'd practice and then Happy Days would come on, and it was right before one of my classes, and for some reason I'd always sit and watch Happy Days while I was waiting for my class. So it just got to be a habit. So I'm watching it on my little black and white TV, and that guy Al, who was the owner of the diner, is on this morning. So I'm watching it, you know, and then, okay, it's time to go to my class. So I start walking and I had to cross Sunset Blvd. everyday. There's a lot of lights on Sunset and this is like 9 in the morning, there's rush hour traffic, so I hit a light and stop and I'm just waiting to cross, and this gold Mercedes pulls up. I mean, from me to you I see a profile and I'm looking, and I'm like, its Al!!! (laughs) with the big nose and everything except he's like you know 30 years older (more laughs). It was a trip, that's when I went well, this is LA So I saw a bunch of stuff like that.

Tips -- Were you getting gigs out there? Where you a part of a band?
Shane -- No I was just totally trying to get into the school thing. I was getting called for some things, but I really didn't have time.

Tips -- Who else was teaching at this school besides Scott Henderson?
Shane -- It was Scott Henderson (who played with Chick Corea), Jennifer Batten, who was playing with Michael Jackson, there was Paul Gilbert from this band Mr. Big. There was a lot of other people who weren't as well known but amazing musicians. There was Tommy Tedesco, who was doing seminars. He was the number one studio player in LA A lot of the studio players came through. People would do seminars there. Robben Ford would do some things there. Robben Ford was the guitarist with, well, he played with Miles Davis, he played with Yellow Jackets. Ivan (Neville) is playing with Robben now. A guy from Houma, Louisiana named Ron Eschete was there and he has been in LA for years and years. He's real successful and he's got a lot of albums out.

Tips -- I understand you came out of the school as one of three students out of 300 to graduate honors in ALL STYLES of guitar. It must have been quite an honor to be among 3 out of 300. That's rare company….
Shane -- Yeah, well I guess maybe a lot of people didn't try out for it! You just had to play different things, I don't know. The school things great, but I think what you do in the real world and what you do with it is what really matters -- you know what I mean.

Tips -- After you graduated Scott Henderson recommended you for a teaching post at the Atlanta Institute for Music. What was that experience like?
Shane -- I was definitely under the gun. It was nice to have a place to go to start working after school, but it started out I hardly had any classes, and I was wondering how I was going to make any money. A guy named Jimmy Herring, who plays with Phil Lesh now but he was with the Allman Bros (he's a great player). Anyway, he called me up: "Hey man, this is Jimmy," this is like Friday night, "hey what's going on? Hey can you do my scales class tonight?" And then the next week "hey can you do my scales and my chords and rhythms class? You know I got a gig…ok great" He had just joined Aquarium Rescue Unit. So, I was just like OK sure Jimmy, and the next week he never came back, so all of a sudden I had ALL his classes PLUS my classes, so it went from about two classes a week to about ten classes a week, which was way too much to handle. So…I stuck it out there for about two years. It was great. I made some great friends there.

Tips -- What did you get out of there besides friends and some money?
Shane -- Not much money (laughter), but I made some great friends and a lot of contacts, actually. I made a contact with Ovation, which is Command Corporation, with Tracy Elliot and Takamine Guitars, and they were looking for clinicians, this was back around '92. They hired me, and this guy Julian Coryell, Larry Coryell's son, and this guy named Neil Za Za and about five other guys, so I got to travel all over the country and do clinics with guitar players. To this day I still have a great relationship with them. So, that was one thing that came out of that. But I was still into the school-minded theory, technique thing.

Tips -- After gaining all that experience and making all those contracts, the money came next…somebody told you go to Nashville. How did you go from being a music teacher and guitar clinician to a session musician?
Shane -- Well, Actually Jimmy Herring (laughs) is the reason. I remember riding around in his old car, riding around, and they were doing overdubs on the first ARU album and I said man you know I'm just burned on Atlanta. I played in a Top 40 band in Atlanta, too, that's another thing that came out of that that was pretty cool. It was a band called Spellbound, I think that one of the singers is with the Temptations now, and the girl singer went on to play with Peabo Bryson and Michael Bolton. She's got her own deal in New York now. But anyway, that was my first road gig, and it was decent money you know I was 19-20. I was making up to 500 bucks a week, I was working and having to pay my own meals, it was a pain, but it was great cause it was my first time to really get out there and play. So I was doing that, and the school thing, and we had a chance to go to Japan, and I said you know, I can't go to Japan, I want to record my own songs, so I just quit, right before they went to Japan and I just started working on my own music. And that's when I thought I've got to get out of Atlanta.

Tips -- Tell us about Nashville. How did that work out?
Shane -- Anyway, Jimmy told me that night in his old car I should go to Nashville. Jimmy gave me five names. He says, "here's some people you might want to call" and he gave me Victor Wooten's number. He gave me his brother Reggie. He gave me two other people I can't remember. And he gave me a guy named Eric Struthers. So I'm coming to Nashville and I had hardly any money, but I just, I knew I had to get out of Atlanta. So I move up there and I start calling people and I called up Eric Struthers, and I said "yeah my name's Shane, blah blah blah.".And he was like, "yeah, well were did you get this number." He was kind of rude to me. So I told him I got it from Jimmy Herring. He said "Ahh, OK Do you play anything like him?" So I told him I did (laughs) and his tone totally changed. So Eric was playing with the Neville Brothers at that time and I'd seen him in some magazine or something."

Tips -- I was going to ask about Victor Wooten. Where did you two meet?
Shane -- We met in Nashville at a club. He still lives in Nashville. We didn't work together until two years ago. I know all his brothers and worked with his brothers, I worked with Joe, a keyboardist who played with Steve Miller. I worked with him in a couple of other bands in Nashville.

Tips -- Did you only do session work in Nashville?
Shane -- Well I was doing anything. Because you don't just move there and start doing session work cause Nashville's got to be the most competitive place. I mean it is crazy, there are so many people up there. So yeah, it's a long story, but I was doing gigs and sessions, and whatever, you know. Eric Struthers actually hired me to do guitar stuff with a lot of really good players up in Nashville.

Tips -- Was it an enjoyable experience for you?
Shane -- Somewhat, I don't know. I have mixed feelings about it. Cause I still have a place up there so I'm still sort of there. I mean, my driver's license is still Tenn. (laughter). But I don't know. It's OK It's good for making some connections. Theresa Anderson will tell you the same thing. It's good to make some connections and to do some things, but it's limiting somewhat. You know it's at least 90% country, which is fine but, everything's the same. It's so homogenous.

Tips -- How is the vibe different from here?
Shane -- It's a TOTALLY different vibe. I don't know, there's a lot of stuff happening in Nashville, but one of the good things that I did was hook up with this guy named Johnny Neel. Johnny had his own band and he used to play with the Allman Bros. And he played with Gov't Mule and all these other guys. Johnny is one of my top three, top four favorite musicians. He's a blind keyboardist. He plays the B-3 organ. The guy's PHENOMENAL. He's like Ray Charles mixed with Herbie Hancock and he sings his ass off and plays harmonica, he's just phenomenal, and I had a shot at his gig and he let me sub for Lyle Lovett's guitar player. That was a relationship that I still have, to this day. I spoke with him last night and he's coming down here to do Louisiana Jukebox. He's a piece of work, man, and he played on my CD. So anyway, that was one of the best things to happen to me in Nashville because when I got with Johnny, not only did my chops improve, it helped me put everything together, but my confidence level went up because every guitar player he had in his band was like some bad-ass guitar player. You know he had three guys before me, one played with the Allman Bros -- Jack Pearson, and Brent Mason, who's like the top session guy in Nashville, country stuff, and then this other guy who plays with Lyle Lovett. Then you know I got the gig so I was definitely under the gun, so it was great you know, it was a beautiful thing -- Johnny was a turning point.

Tips -- The turning point to what…the Neville Brothers?
Shane -- Well what happened is, Eric Struthers definitely got me that spot. He had been in and out of the Neville's a few times, both by their choice and his choice, you know. They went back a long time, but, what happened was, Eric was getting ready to leave the band that Fall. I didn't know if I'd want to go on the road, cause I wanted to do my session stuff, and I've put so much into this, and I'm just now getting into little cliques. And then another friend of mine was like "Are you CRAZY? You know you should definitely, at least try out." And I hadn't been to New Orleans in a LONG time, in years. Charles Neville called me and said, you know, we'd be interested in having you come down. I just looked at it like, if it happens great, if not great. Total Zen approach! So I went down there and I knew all their songs because Eric hooked me up big time. He gave me setlists, Fed Ex'd two or three cassette tapes from the road. I just learned all the stuff, and I went in and Charles asked me what I could play? I told him I knew all this stuff -- it was like 30 tunes. He was like "OK, great." So Aaron showed up, and Art, and we just played through the whole thing. I mean, literally, that next week, we did David Letterman's show.

Tips -- Wow!
Shane -- Then, it wasn't even a week later I was in San Diego playing a gig with them. The timing was perfect. I had just broke up with my girlfriend -- called her and said "you know I'm going to California Thursday and I'm just going to hang here (in New Orleans)," So I just stayed at Charlie's. And I mean yeah, it was like that!

Tips -- Where did the audition take place here in New Orleans?
Shane -- At Charlie's house.

Tips -- What has it been like playing and touring with the Neville Brothers? You been with them five years now?
Shane -- Almost five years, yeah, it will be five years in August… wow man, five years. It's been a life changing experience man, to say the least. I met my wife when we were on the road in Japan. That's been a whole thing in itself. I've made connections I know I would have never made, had I not been with the Neville's. They've been great. They haven't given me too much stuff about my playing or whatever. They've really been cool. So it's been great, its been a blessing. It's weird, I told Aaron this one time, and it sounds strange, but I'd been having dreams about this place in Raceland -- our old house in Raceland for like a year prior to even knowing anything about the Neville Brothers gig. I don't know, I guess I hadn't been there in so long I wanted to come home. And when I joined that band it was something that was just meant to be I think. It's sort of not an effective way of saying it, but God has really blessed me.

Tips -- It felt right…fate?
Shane -- I feel like yeah, it made sense. Everything to me points here. It just worked out that way. So it's just been great. I get to experience being here all over again.

Tips -- Did you move back to New Orleans at that point?
Shane -- No, it was actually not until the end of last year. And that's more for my wife. You know, she's doing a school thing. It's also a selfish reason, too. I love it down here.

Tips -- Is this you're favorite place to play?
Shane -- Oh absolutely… and my favorite place to live... out of all of the places we go. I love Japan too. You know I go there with my wife. Whenever people ask: "where's your favorite place to play?" I like Nashville and I like LA but New Orleans, I LOVE New Orleans.

Tips -- How would you compare the music scene in New Orleans to other cities, like New York and San Francisco?
Shane -- I've never been in a place where people have been so receptive to local music and so open and willing to give people a chance. That's how I could sum it up. I mean I noticed it right away. In Nashville, first of all, what I do, for my side project, it just couldn't exist there. It could exist there because there are players there, really great players. But there are no outlets, there are not many clubs to play in. It's even worse than it was five years ago. Here, people are open. And the difference is, people come here from all over the world to see and experience live music. You know its like part of the package here.

Tips -- I was talking to John Gros (Papa Grows Funk) and I asked him the same question, and he said New Orleans has a world class music scene. There's no place in the world like it. What are your thoughts regarding that?
Shane -- Yeah, to build your own thing. I can't think of a better place really. I mean people would say, well New York and LA But, as far as having a place to play and doing okay, this is the place for me. I mean people that have been in the scene here a long time complain about the money, you know. I understand that, but as far as a place to base yourself and build something like what John's doing there playing in New York and packing places, and San Francisco and whatever. This is a great city, it really is. A feel good city.

Tips -- What's your favorite place to play. You have played all over the world, what is your favorite room, your favorite place to stand on stage?
Shane -- Actually, I like the old Tips the original Tips, if were talking about Tipitina's. I haven't played there enough. I don't consider myself a veteran of New Orleans music scene, yet. I've played most of the places, but with different artists so I don't know.

Tips -- You know, Tipitina's was rated by Travelocity Magazine the third best live music venue in the country, behind the Fillmore and Red Rocks.
Shane -- Yeah. I've played at Fillmore and Red Rocks, but they aren't like Tip's!

Tips - What other rooms do you like to play in?
Shane -- Well, I guess Radio City Music Hall was pretty big. We did that. That was a good gig.

Tips -- What was it like doing Letterman? I wanted to touch a little bit more on that. Here you are with the Neville's less than a week, and all the sudden your on Letterman. What was that like?
Shane -- The studio was freezing there! See the difference is when I joined the Neville's those guys are veterans, I mean they've been out forever. They've done all those shows, they've been everywhere, it's no big deal to them. So to me, being 25, 26 at the time and then all the sudden your playing with those people... It really took me a while to appreciate things because, I'm going wow, you know and nobody else is caring, they're just like yeah, okay. So after a while I started to get a little jaded, which sounds weird because I've never done any of this before. And then one day I sat back and I said, this is the Neville's they've been (laughter) everywhere, they're the ones that are jaded, so it's not a big deal to them, but it is to me. So, the first time I remember thinking wow, this is cool. It was cool.

Tips -- Did you get to meet Letterman?
Shane -- I don't think Letterman is a very sociable guy. Not with us anyway. Course he knows Aaron, and he mentioned that. He came out and shook everybody's hand. Which is more than he did last year. We did Letterman last year, or was it earlier this year, with Aaron's gospel thing. Where Jay Leno is the total opposite. He'll come in the dressing room and sit down, he's really down to earth. But anyway, that was a great experience. Conan O 'Brien is my favorite though -- he is a guitar player, too.

Tips -- What's it like for a young guy touring with a band full of veteran performers? In fact, most of those guys are like twice your age!
Shane -- (laughs) Well Art, he may be in numbers a lot older than me, but mentally he's a kid (laughs). Actually, I have a lot in common with Charles. Charles and I practice Tae Chi a lot and we'll go out and eat Japanese food a lot and read a lot of the same books.

Tips -- Tell me a little bit about Highway 90, your CD. For example, where does the name come from?
Shane -- Well as you know, Highway 90 is the Westbank route across the river to get to Raceland. I was listening to WWOZ a lot, driving along Highway 90 and coming up with ideas. Originally I was staying with my parents in Raceland and when I would play gigs in New Orleans I'd make the drive and I'd get to the city you know and I'd hear all this music and I was making notes the whole time. The New Orleans thing is like totally inspiring. So since a lot of these ideas originated when I was driving on Highway 90, I called the CD that. To me it signifies where I came from, to where I am now, playing in New Orleans. Highway 90 symbolizes that connection.

Tips -- I know it was kind of a hectic thing to put together, what has been the response to the CD?
Shane -- I was pleased with it. There were some things I would have done differently, but I think it's a great album. I mean people e-mail me from all over the world about that record. It's on a small level right now, but you know from me doing it myself, I had total artistic freedom. It got me a lot of exposure. I just got an e-mail last night from this guy in Germany. I've got a distribution deal in Germany, and all of Europe. My goal with Highway 90 is to break even and do another one. Plow it back into another one, that's what I'd love to do, that's what I'm doing now.

Tips -- Are you working on anything new right now? What is next for Shane Theriot?
Shane -- I am working on a follow-up to Highway 90. So far I have Johnny Vidocavich on it, some guys from the Neville Brothers, Cyril's supposed to play percussion on it, Russell Batiste will be on it, Jeff Sipe. It is totally inventing itself right now.

Tips -- Tell us a little about your relationship with Jeff Sipe.
Shane -- Jeff and I met doing a record in Atlanta. We did another album last year. We were in the studio last week. I tell ya, Jeff is the most artistic person I have ever met in my life. I mean that. He doesn't care about the money. It may have actually hurt him at times, I think. He only does stuff for his artistic enrichment. He just does not care about the money. As soon as he gets sick of something, he is gone. One of my top 5 favorite drummers. An unbelievable player.

Tips -- It's an ideal world and you can do any type of music you want… What kind of project would you start under such circumstances?
Shane -- Probably what I am doing right now. I could probably afford to take more time to work on things. I would put a dream sheet together of all the musicians I would want to play with, but I am playing with most of them right now (laughs). I might change some of the things around me, but I don't think I would change the music. This city gives me a base, I would not change the music. I would just keep doing what I am doing.

Tips -- Your musical influences are very diverse, Zappa, Igor Stravinsky, Aaron Copeland, Hendrix… How did that play out?
Shane -- I was introduced to Zappa in LA, and I also love Stravinsky. He is the Metallica of classical music. I also love Copeland, I just love his compositions. They are not as out there as Stravinsky's, but in there own way, there is a lot of stuff going on there. And you can't be a guitar player and not like Hendrix, he has such power. He has totally influenced so many people. Hendrix was a big deal from me, I copied some licks, but I really learned a lot listening to Jeff Beck.

Copyright © 2000 Tipitina's. All rights reserved.

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OnStage, June 2001

Recently Steve Cropper was onstage playing cowbell, and Billy Gibbons was sitting on the side of the stage watching. And I'm remembering my uncle giving me ZZ Top's Fandango record; I just wore that out. When we toured with Little Feat, I got to jam with them maybe ten times."
    Neville Brothers guitarist Shane Theriot was a school kid when he first heard the Neville sound. "I heard 'Mardi Gras Mambo' in the school bus; everybody had the Meters records," he says. Theriot, who shuttles between New Orleans and Nashville, has been playing lead with the Neville Brothers for close to five years, getting the job on a referral from a departing guitarist. "I went down and did a little mini-audition in New Orleans. I already knew most of the stuff," he says. Five days later Theriot was in New York doing the David Letterman show with the Neville Brothers. His first few shows were a baptism by fire, he remembers: "They called tunes that weren't even on the list. There was this long medley of a bunch of different songs where I didn't know some. That was how I learned it. The band doesn't rehearse much, so we learn in sound checks or sometimes right onstage."
     For Theriot, playing with the Nevilles is an ongoing musicology course. "A lot of their music isn't very harmonically complicated at all, it's all feel -- traditional New Orleans rhythm," he says. "But you can't really fake it. With Art Neville, there's a certain way he wants to hear Fats Domino. He's really picky about the guitar parts. The average club guy can come in and play it, but sometimes it sounds too right. There's a way to put a certain amount of sloppy finesse into it that makes it more convincing."
     Theriot put out a solo record last year featuring bassist Victor Wooten; Art Neville, Willie Green, and Michael Goods also played on the album.   Theriot's currently working on his second release, with New Orleans drummer Johnny Vidacovich.  Touring with the Nevilles means he gets to jam with other legends too. "It's amazing the people they know," he says.

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Nevilles Guitarist is a Fan of Duane Allman, Jimmy Herring, and Jaco Pastorius
Shane Theriot Plays Funky Guitar with The Neville Brothers Band by Derek Halsey, June 2002
 
Shane Theriot is best known as being the guitar player for the great Neville Brothers Band since 1996. He appears on some of the Neville's best recordings. But Shane also has a solo CD out, called "Highway 90", that is a New Orleans Funk guitar classic. It is a smoking, funky, progressive CD with a supporting cast that is unreal. Playing on "Highway 90" with Shane is Art Neville and Mean Willie Green from the Neville Brothers; the great keyboardist and Allman Brothers alumnus Johnny Neel; bass player extraoidinaire Victor Wooten from the Flecktones; and many others. Although Shane hails from Louisiana and plays in the Neville Brothers, he spends a lot of time living in Nashville.

I caught up with him as he gets ready for a summer of gigs with the Neville Brothers, in the midst of recording his second solo CD, and recording a new Christmas CD with Johnny Neel due out later this year. More information on Shane can be found at www.shanetheriot.com.

So here you are, the guitar player for the Neville Brothers, and you are from Louisiana as they are, yet you live in Nashville. What is up with that?
Well, actually I live in Nashville part time and I have a place in New Orleans. But I got the Neville Brothers gig out of Nashville. I was living here first. I'm from New Orleans but I moved up here in 1992. I had to go down and do a mini audition. It's been almost six years now. We are about to go out on tour in July and August. We cut about 20 songs, some are still demos, they are trying to finish a record this year but I don't know if that is going to happen or not.

The Neville's seem to take a couple of years to put out a record sometimes. That is why I am glad Art Neville put out that Funky Meters Live album last year.
Yeah, that is pretty good. My favorite Neville's album is 'Live On Planet Earth'. I think that represents their sound, as far as the Neville Brothers go. I'm still into the old Meters stuff. It's hard to beat that.

Your new CD, "Highway 90", is hot. I grew up with a lot of the southern fusion of the 1970's. Your stuff reminds me a lot of the Sea Level type progressive jams of that time, but with a New Orleans twist to it.
Thanks. What I tried to do with that was….being with the Neville's and then also having an interest with the guitar and melody and things like that, fusion, rock, I wanted to ride the fence. I wanted to be able to have a Neville Brothers fan or a Funky Meters fan or somebody in New Orleans that could appreciate it, and yet it would still be on a level where people could appreciate it for pure melody. Also a guitar fan or somebody with a little more developed ear could appreciate it, so I tried to really please two crowds, which is hard to do. I think it worked. It has done pretty well. I've been surprised.

Yeah, it's got the chops, yet the groove is taken care of underneath.
Yeah, that's pretty much the program. That is the way I wanted it done.

How did you get Victor Wooten and Johnny Neel to play on Highway 90?
I just asked him. I had known Vic in Nashville, but that is the first thing we ever worked on together. Johnny and I go back. I just did a Christmas record with Johnny two days ago. I am on my way to his house as soon as we finish this to do a session. Johnny is like my musical brother. We are so tight. I've known him since I first moved to Nashville and we have done so much stuff together. I couldn't even imagine doing something like this CD without him.

Did you know him when he was with the Allman Brothers?
No. I met him right after he left the Allman Brothers. A friend of mine from Australia was a huge Allman Brothers fan and he introduced me to Johnny. I started calling him and going to his house and playing, but it wasn't until a few years later until he asked me to join his band. Things took off after that. For me, developing as a player, that was a great thing. I think the guy is a genius. I have said it in a bunch of interviews. Johnny Neel is …man…..he just breathes music. Music permeates everything about him and he is about nothing but rhythm. He is just so talented.

Johnny Neel is on that Dickey Betts Band CD "Pattern Disruptive" from the late '80's and he has some solos on there that are unreal. Great stuff.
Johnny is also my favorite B-3 player in the world. Art Neville has got his thing, Ivan Neville, they are all great, but Johnny to me is……I don't know, man. I'm so spoiled playing with him because I guess we can communicate without speaking. Musically we know where we are going to go, so I am really lucky to have him around, in my circle of friends to call, so.

There have been very few albums that have captured that southern guitar funk that you have on Highway 90. One of them was a solo album from Steve Gaines, who went on to be a member of Lynyrd Skynyrd. Another group like that was Col. Bruce Hampton's Aquarium Rescue Unit. You are a friend of the guitarist from that group, Jimmy Herring, who also played for the Allman Brothers for a while. How did you get to know him?
I know Jimmy from when I graduated from the Musicians Institute in LA. I got a job teaching at the music school in Atlanta, which was then a sister school, A.I.M. in Atlanta, and Jimmy was the guitar teacher there. So it was me and Jimmy and one other guy. I was 19 then. Jimmy had just joined the Aquarium Rescue Unit. At that time they were just playing around Atlanta. Jimmy would call me and say, 'Hey, can you do my scales class this week? I'm not going to make it.' I said, 'OK'. Then the next week it was, 'hey, can you do my scales class and my rock class'. I'd say, 'yeah, sure', because I didn't have any work at that time. I think he asked me to do some more classes after that and he just never came back. Jimmy and I have always remained friends. I got to hang out with him at the JazzFest a couple of weeks ago.

Jimmy is a heck of a guitar player.
Oh man, he's ridiculous. He's got the chops and he's got the modern stuff. Just the feel too, you know.

It seems like a lot of younger cats like you and Oteil Burbridge and others are the ones keeping that southern Funk going.
Yeah, man. That is what it is about. I go to Japan sometimes with my wife (whom he met in Japan on a Neville Brothers tour) and the people in Japan are way, way into southern stuff. Not just the New Orleans stuff. I mean the real hard-core southern rock. There are a lot of Skynyrd fans in Japan.

Did you listen to a lot of Allman Brothers growing up?
Yeah, I did. I had the record with the live version of Whipping Post. That double album. My uncle used to give me tons of 8-tracks and some vinyl. I did, but I can't say that I know everything about the Allman Brothers. But that one record where they are all sitting on the road cases?

Live At Fillmore East?
Yep, that's it. I remember studying that a lot. Although I'm not really a big slide player I do enjoy it. I think Duane Allman is great. I played some slide on my record but it's not like something I reach for. I would rather hear Jack Pearson play slide. I took his place in Johnny Neel's band, which was no small thing for me, man.

Victor Wooten is such a hell of a bass player. Did you have to control him in the studio? Because he is so capable of going off and dominating a song, which can be an amazing thing.
When Vic came in I don't think he knew what to expect. I think maybe he thought I wanted him to just play a lot of 'chop' things. Sometimes he gets a bad rap for that. I told him to just pretend you are a tuba player for the next two days. Like in the Rebirth Brass Band or the Dirty Dozen Brass Band. I think he was really into that, just laying it down. Victor gets the biggest, hugest tone. I also gave him some spots to solo because shit, he is Victor Wooten.

One of the songs that cook on the Highway 90 CD is the Street Beater song, or better known as the Sanford and Son Theme. How did you pick that one to play?
I always liked that theme, a Quincy Jones theme. I remember meeting Red Foxx when we were kids in the French Quarter somewhere. I used to watch that show when I came home from school everyday. I just always thought that it was a cool theme. I have been playing it a long time. I never recorded it, but when Vic was around, and Willie Green, I just thought that would be a great rhythm section to do it with. It's got a strong melody and a cool bass line.

The idea that you put to Vic, about playing his instrument as if he were playing a different instrument, I have heard a lot of musicians say that it helps to play that way to open up other sides of their playing.
Yes, It helps you to break out of the preconceived things you do. Like on a guitar, sometimes people go for the safe thing or the thing that they have played a hundred times. When you force yourself to think like that, especially coming from a rhythmic thing when you think like a drummer, or you pretend you are playing a high-hat, or when you downbeat, it really transfers over. It just brings out a whole other thing. To me that is the secret of being a great rhythm player, to be a drummer first. It's all about rhythm, man. You can take everything else away and if you got rhythm people can still groove to it. So I always try to work on that stuff.

You started out playing at an early age, did you not?
Yeah, I have known what I have wanted to do since I was 11 or 12. I played guitar about a year before that just messing around. When I was about 11 or 12 is when I really got into Van Halen, and a whole bunch of stuff. I remember listening to the ZZ Top 'Fandango' album, a bunch of things like that. Something about the guitar, I don't know, I loved it. The guitar always came real easy to me. I didn't really figure that out until I was 14 or 15, and a bunch of us came up playing together. I could always seem to learn a little faster. I just thought, 'well, maybe this is what I am supposed to do.'

You had a bunch of people in your family play also, did you not?
Yes, all my uncles played guitar, my Mom played piano, her sister played with the New Orleans Symphony one year. So my Mom's side was more trained musicians.

When did the Louisiana side of the music come into your life?
I grew up hearing that stuff. I grew up more in bayou country but still close enough to New Orleans where my Mom's family was from so I could sort of hear both sounds. I probably came up hearing more of the Cajun music. Accordion, heavy washboard, Zydeco and those heavy repetitive grooves. That was more of where I came from but I always liked those brass bands too, which were in New Orleans itself. You can't help but be aware of it.

How do you distinguish your self in a town like New Orleans where there are so many musicians floating around?
For one thing, there is not a lot of guitar players in New Orleans. New Orleans music, in general, doesn't really call for guitar. The traditional stuff, you can get away without a guitar with some things. As huge a music scene as it seems to you, it is still pretty close knit. People are very open to things. I think so anyway. Coming from Nashville where I am at now, compared to Nashville, New Orleans is wide open. It's hard to explain but it seems like it is easier to get noticed there. For one thing there is a live scene there which doesn't exist in Nashville. If you do a ratio of players to live gigs, to clubs to play in, it doesn't work out. There is a lot of talent sitting around in Nashville. In New Orleans there is a lot of talent, but people have outlets. Not that you are going to get rich playing in clubs, but you can go out and do things. People will go out and hear the music.

Another great Louisiana guitar player is Sonny Landreth. Do you know him?
I don't know Sonny. I know a bunch of mutual friends and a few other people. I have his number but I've never called him. We were supposed to work on a record together last year that never happened. But I am a huge fan, I really like his stuff a lot. More so than his playing I like what he represents. He is so representative of southern Louisiana. That is what I am trying to go for ultimately. Just to build a name out of Louisiana. It is sort of weird, man. It is not an easy thing to do. So I love Sonny's playing. He's great.

So what is it like playing for the Neville Brothers?
It's fun. Like with anything after a while you have good times and bad times on stage, but overall it has been a blessing. I can honestly say it's been great, man. I never expected to be here this long. I am definitely lucky to get that gig because I know that there are a lot of guys that would love to do that. And it helps me in Nashville because it sort of keeps me out of the pack. Being from Louisiana I think I appreciate it more.

What is it like to play the Jazz Festival in New Orleans?
It's fun. A lot of energy. Everybody's pumped up. A lot of people. Good food. Usually there is like a real cool band playing before us. This year it was Phil Lesh and Jimmy Herring and Warren Haynes were playing with them. Warren sat in with us at JazzFest. He played 'Hollis Brown', the Dylan tune off of the 'Yellow Moon' album (by the Neville Brothers). He came up and played slide and played through my amps and stuff, playing next to me, that's fun. Bob Weir sat in on 'Iko'.

A friend of mine, John Kinnemeyer, is in the guitar lutherie business and has one of the biggest mail order companies in the guitar-related market place and he has been selling your instructional book, "New Orleans Funk Guitar" for quite a while. (www.jklutherie.com, in the "Blues Tab" section) Tell me about it.
That book has done really well. I was really surprised about that. I actually got the idea from the drummer, Johnny Vidacovich. That is someone you should check out also. I just played on his record, you would love his record. He is at www.johnnyvidacovich.com. Johnny did a book for Warner Brothers called 'New Orleans Jazz and Second Line Drumming', with Herlin Riley, and he is a master at it. The guy is a legend in New Orleans. I had that book long before I knew Johnny and it was such an inspiration. And I thought, 'there is nothing for guitar (in a New Orleans way), maybe I could do something'. I approached Warner Brothers with it and they were way in to it. It took me a while to do it, but I interviewed the Neville Brothers and different people in New Orleans. I tried to get a little history in there, but it is definitely an instructional book with a CD. It's done well. I get emails from all over the world.

What is your advice to a young player concerning taking the time to learn music theory along with learning to improvise?
I think theory is good. Like they say, knowledge is power, but it is only potential power. You have to know what to do with it. It can get in the way. I know a lot of guys that are great players but they don't know any theory, so as long as they stay in one style and do what they do best they are great at it. But if you want to do sessions, if you want to play in a wide variety, be real versatile, it helps. It can't hurt you. On the other hand I know guys that know tons of theory and they can't execute anything. They can't play the blues with any real conviction, with real feel. So that is a whole other thing. To me your ears are your most important thing. Ears and tone and feel. You can't really teach those things. You have to develop that on your own. That only comes from listening and learning. But the theory stuff you can teach. I've never subscribed to the guys that say, 'I don't need to know all that, I can play one note and it's all I need'. That's great, but you'll never make it in sessions or if you have to learn 30 tunes for a show two days from now. I just say to be careful with it. Do not get too bogged down in it. Theory saves you a lot of time, basically.

I have to ask you, Charlie Daniels is in town doing a Christmas album, you and Johnny Neel are doing a Christmas album, how in the world do you bring yourself to being in the mood recording it in May? Do you hang tinsel up in the studio?
(Laughs) I did one with Johnny Neel, and a harmonica player named Smoky Greenwell, and Willie Weeks was playing bass. So there you go, you show up and Willie Weeks is playing bass and all of a sudden it doesn't matter what we are playing. When you hear the record you will understand how easy it was to do. Johnny re-harmonizes all of these tunes so it will be groovin'. It will be a funky record, man. I wish it was November now so I could hear it.

You have mentioned the great bass player of years ago, Jaco Pastorius as an influence on you. Tell me why.
Jaco to me, there has been nobody since him, really, talking about tone and ears and touch, I mean Jaco had everything. I listen to the things he did with Weather Report and it is just phenomenal. I never had the opportunity to see Jaco live unfortunately, but his music means so much. I am fortunate to have worked with people that did work with Jaco. I know his son is playing, I haven't met him, but I know a lot of friends of mine that know him. Felix. He is like 20 now, and he is supposed to have all the facility that Victor has, so he has got all of Jaco's stuff down. They say he has got the same fire. I guess that is what it was that Jaco had, fire.

You are working on a new solo CD to come out later this year. How is it going and who all will be playing on it?
Right now, officially I've got Johnny Vidacovich on drums and Jeff (Apt Q258) Sipe, from Aquarium Rescue Unit and Jazz is Dead, Johnny Neel is on keyboards, bass players I am not sure about. I would like to get Felix Pastorius on a track or two. Late fall I will have it out. I already have the tunes written. I think the writing has gone up a couple of levels on this next record. It is going to be the same heavy New Orleans stuff but probably a little more adventurous, a little heavier.

But you will have the Louisiana groove there as well. Right?
Yes, I've got too. To me that's my identity, man. That's what keeps me sane, is going back there and playing.

Where and what do you eat when you go back home to Louisiana?
My Mom's house. The old staples, red beans and rice on Mondays, crawfish boils on Sunday's, all the typical stuff. I have to pace myself.

The last time I was down that way my Uncle Stephen, who lives down there, took me to Sal's Seafood on the West Bank for some great crawfish.
Oh man, I know where Sal's is! Sal's is great. They have great seafood gumbo!

 
Copyright 2002 Gritz Publishing, Ltd.

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www.AbstractLogix.com, June 2003 

Shane Theriot is a very powerful powerful guitar player with rich sounds and musical compositions. Apart from being the axeman for the soulful Neville Brothers, he is a very serious instrumentalist. He graduated from the Musicians Institute in 1990 with top honors in all styles. Only 3 students out of a class of 300 were granted this honor. His new record Grease Factor is simply a powerful interpretation of his his musical ideas, rich in texture and diveristy. The record is quite heavy at times that gets your blood pumping to say the least. A significant acheivement, this is what Shane had to say abot his new record ....

1. I LOVE THE DIFFERENT TONES THAT YOU USED ON YOUR NEW RECORD. COULD YOU TELL ME HOW YOU ACHEIVED THAT ?
Some good amps and a great engineer! Really, you can have all the best equipment and gear, etc... but the tone comes from your hands. From my studio experience I've learned what to use and what not to use in order to produce a certain sound- I'm always experimenting and trying different combinations of amps, pedals- the cheaper the better! haha I feel you can get more personality out of a low-tech thing than some high grade boutique amp.

2. COULD YOU SAY A FEW WORDS ABOUT YOUR NEW RECORD? IS THAT WHAT YOU EXPECTED WHEN YOU WERE DONE WITH IT?
I like to think making the record was comparable to making a movie- I knew exactly who was going to play on each tune, (actors) and what each tune would sound like afterwards. Actually most of the tunes were written with a specific drummer in mind- "Little Hat", "Dublin" were written with Vidacovich in mind, and the funk things had Batiste's name already on them. "The Apartment" was written for Jeff Sipe to play. Of course, some things took on a mind of there own after hearing the playback- that's always the magic of building a track and what you shoot for.

3. GREASE FACTOR IS QUITE A STRIKING RECORD IN TERMS OF ITS DIVERSITY OF COMPOSITIONS? WAS IT YOUR APPROACH TO MAKE THE TRACKS SOUND DIFFERENTLY THROUGHOUT THE RECORD?
No, I just wrote and cut the tunes when I could. The running order was tricky because of the variety of moods, but those are just the way I heard them. My goal with