Episode 11 with Will Lee (Late Night with David Letterman, Brecker Brothers, NYC A-team musician)

My guest today is Mr. Will Lee. What can you say about Will that hasn’t already been said? He’s one of the most recorded bassists ever-     He hit the ground running in NYC after landing the gig with Dreams at age 18 and hasn’t looked back appearing on well over 1000 records. He’s also a very talented singer and sang on many jingles that you probably didn’t even realize he was on. 

And even if you haven’t heard Will on records (which I’m sure is simply not possible) you’ve undoubtedly seen him in your living room night after night as a member of the "World's Most Dangerous Band" on Late Night David Letterman Show, a gig he held for a stunning 30 years. Will is a very positive and forward thinking person, his enthusiasm for music and his love of the Beatles is fully evident (as you’ll hear). 

In this interview I ask Will a lot of questions which he provides some great and oftentimes amusing answers to- The scene in NYC then and now, Steve Gadd, Hiram Bullock, Beatles, groove demonstrations, Jaco, Steely Dan and much, much more- oh and we do quite a bit of jamming at the end!! I've included a little bonus outtake at the very end where Will gives an example of how a top LA musician (David Garfield) was able to create his own scene and how any musician can do the same.

Hope you enjoy!

(This interview took place at Will's Manhattan studio, April 2017.)


 

Om Podcasten

The Riff Raff started as an idea I had a few years ago just to sit and chat with my friends whom I consider to be inspirational to me in some way- whether it be as a musician, artist or whatever the case may be. Over the years, as a working musician, I’ve been lucky to work with many amazing people and musicians and would like to share some of their stories with you. I’m a professional musician. I like stories. I mean... I REALLY like stories. Oh, and I love jokes too. Luckily, I work with some of the best in the business, and they happen to have great stories (and usually great jokes as well). Anyway, i want to put these stories down for people to enjoy - it’s fun. Some people like to garden, or take photos, or collect magnets for the fridge… but me? I like to get these stories down for all to enjoy! So this is a podcast about the creative process and, yes, being a guitar player, we do occasionally talk shop, gear, etc., but I’m not going to limit it to that as I get this thing going. Oh yeah, we jam a bit too!