It's all about the music !
DGT:
MICKEY, WELCOME TO DAMNGOODTUNES.COM. YOU LEAD THE LIFE AS AN AUTHOR AND ACTOR WHO WAS ORIGINALLY A FAMOUS MUSICIAN. TODAY YOU ARE A RESPECTED AND KNOWN AROUND THE WORLD AND, OBVIOUSLY THERE ARE MANY CHAPTERS OF MICKEY JONES YET TO BE WRITTEN. IT SEEMS YOU NEVER STOP AND ARE ALWAYS MOVING FAST- FORWARD INTO THE FUTURE . PLEASE TELL US WHERE IT ALL BEGAN AND ABOUT YOUR FIRST RECOLLECTION OF DESIRE TO BE A MUSICIAN.
MICKEY: Where it all began. I was a student at Sunset High School in Dallas when the music bug bit me. In the summer of 1957, I went to a rock & roll show at the Cotton Bowl in Dallas, that's the same Cotton Bowl they play the New Year's Day college bowl game in. Back to my story. I just went with a bunch of my new friends and I didn't even know who we were going to see, I just went along with the crowd. Well, I had no idea but we were there to see Elvis Presley. I write extensively about this in my book. On the way home that night I knew I wanted to be in the music business. I was hooked.
DGT; HOW ABOUT YOUR PARENTS. WHAT DID THEY THINK ABOUT YOUR MUSIC? WERE THEY ENCOURAGING OR SOMEWHAT WORRIED THEIR SON WAS UP IN HIS ROOM BEATING ON THE DRUMS AND SCARRING THE NEIGHBORS?
MICKEY: I was very lucky to have parents that were as much into music as I was. Music was playing in our house night and day. My parents encouraged me 100% to keep practicing and work on those drums. My mom was responsible for getting me my first drum set. They were both thrilled that I played music. Wherever I played around the country, my parents found a way to get there. They were the best.
DGT:TRAINING / DID YOU TAKE ANY FORMAL LESSONS ?
MICKEY: I never took any music lessons. Now I wish that I had studied. I can't read music. I have a hard enough time with words. I do believe that, as a musician in Hollywood, had I been able to read music, I could have been a successful studio drummer. However, I can't complain because I had a pretty successful career as a drummer and saw the world.
DGT: WHO WERE SOME OF THE PEOPLE WHO GAVE YOU WHAT YOU FELT WERE THE ESSENTIAL TOOLS WITH WHICH TO GO OUT INTO THE WORLD AND MAKE A LIVING PLAYING MUSIC? WAS IT YOUR PARENTS, FRIENDS, OTHER MUSICIANS ?
MICKEY: I would have to say that my parents were the driving force for me. My mom told Trini Lopez in 1957, "Our son, Mickey, is a drummer, if you ever need a drummer, give him a call". As I started doing gigs around town locally with schoolmates and friends, I picked up bits and pieces from all of them. All of their input made me a better player.
DGT:AS A YOUNG TEENAGER, JUST BEFORE THE BREAKS STARTED TO HAPPEN , WERE THERE TIMES WHEN YOU WONDERED ABOUT DOING OTHER THINGS, OTHER PATHS SUCH AS ACADEMICS, ATHLETICS OR FOLLOWING ANOTHER OCCUPATIONAL CALLING INSTEAD OF BEING A ROCK DRUMMER ?
MICKEY: . By 1958, I was working around town quite a bit and the thought of doing something else never crossed my mind. Now, I will say this, around 8 years old I dreamed of being an actor but that was never really in the realm of possibility. Actors were in Hollywood and I was in Texas so that was never a true possibility. I had no other goals. Music was my life. I couldn't believe you could get paid for doing something that you loved so much. What a concept!
DGT: WHAT WAS THE FIRST DRUM KIT YOU EVER HAD AND DO YOU STILL OWN IT? ALSO TELL THE DRUMMERS OUT THERE WHAT YOUR SET CONSISTS OF.
MICKEY: . My very first drum set was a blue sparkle set with a bass and snare and one cymbal. It was a rental set. After a couple of months, it went back to the rental company because I wanted a real set with more STUFF. My mom helped me get a Slingerland set with two side mounted toms to the bass drum and a floor tom, two cymbals and a hi-hat. The thing that made this set stand out was the fact that it had a 20"X20" bass drum. It was quite odd looking but that bass drum sounded so great in the recording studio. It was a deep, fat sound. Everyone I played with absolutely loved it. When I came to Los Angeles from Texas, I bought a new set of drums from the Professional Drum Shop on Vine St. right across from the musician's union.
They were Ludwigs, black oyster pearl with a 14"X22" bass drum, 9"X14" tom and a 16"X16" floor tom. I later added a 16"X20" floor tom. That Ludwig set was used on all the recordings with Trini Lopez, Johnny Rivers, Bob Dylan, 1966 "Live" and early First Edition. That set is now on display at the Hard Rock Cafe at Times Square in New York City. The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame wanted them but they wanted me to donate them and I wanted to sell them. I finally sold them to the Hard Rock chain for $20,000.
In 1969 when the First Edition signed with Fender guitars and amps, I signed with the Rogers Drum Company. I played those Rogers until I retired in 1976. I put that set together from scratch.
DGT: MICKEY, LET’S TAKE A MINUTE TO TALK ABOUT EQUIPMENT FOR LIVE PERFORMANCES: PA SYSTEMS AND MONITORING DEVICES HAVE COME A LONG WAY IN THE PAST 20-40 YEARS WITH NEAR-FIELD ONSTAGE CAPABILITY AND IN-THE-EAR SYSTEMS. WHEN I SAW A CLIP OF YOU PLAYING ON THE ED SULLIVAN SHOW WITH TRINI LOPEZ IN THE 1960’S I WONDERED HOW YOU WERE ABLE TO HEAR WHAT THE SINGER WAS DOING. DID YOU SEE THAT AS A PROBLEM AND IF SO, HOW DID YOU COMPENSATE FOR IT?
MICKEY: When I look at the monitoring systems of today, I am amazed. We had none of that. On the Ed Sullivan show, I had a speaker on my drum platform angles up toward my ears just so I could hears Trini's voice. By the time the First Edition came around, I designed a small speaker with a volume control and mounted on a mike stand sitting right next to me with just the vocals run through it. It is a new day today.
DGT: LONG BEFORE YOU BECAME A TELEVISION AND FILM ACTOR, YOU WERE DOING TV APPEARANCES AROUND THE GLOBE. WHAT WAS THE BEST AND THE WORST PARTS OF PLAYING MUSIC ON TELEVISION?
MICKEY: Long before I became an actor, we did a number of television shows around the world. Generally, the sound as not good on these shows. There was no way to isolate the instruments. It just became a mishmash of sound. The TV studios were more interested in how the show looked and didn't really care about the sound. The worst was when you had to do a lip-sync. That meant that you could not play your instrument or really sing the song. Everything was just PRETEND. That really sucked.
DGT: MICKEY, IN YOUR BOOK “ THAT WOULD BE ME “ YOU TALK A LOT ABOUT TRAVELING THE WORLD, STARTING WITH THAT AMAZING 1966 BOB DYLAN TOUR. IS THIS THE POINT OF YOUR LIFE WHEN YOU REALIZED YOU WERE BECOMING A ROCK STAR AND ICON OR DID IT EVER HIT YOU THAT WAY?
MICKEY: I first started traveling the world with Trini Lopez in 1961. We made 8 trips to Europe, then South Africa and South America. Then came Johnny Rivers. I made a number of trips with Johnny all over Europe. The 1966 Bob Dylan Electric World Tour was a real pinnacle. We circumnavigated the world. Our first concert was in Hawaii, the to Tahiti, Fiji, all over Australia, Singapore, Malaysia, India, Austria, Sweden, Denmark, France, England, Scotland, Ireland and Whales. With The First Edition, we did a number of trips to England and Europe but 10 trips to New Zealand was the best place ever. Even though we were playing in major venues all over the world, it really never hit me that I was a ROCK STAR. Recently my grand-daughter saw a group of old trading cards called Rock & Pop. She asked my wife, "Was Grandpa a Rock Star?" After a minute and a smile, she replied to my grand-daughter, "Yes...He was!"That really made my day.
From right to left, Mickey Jones, David Shriver and myself at
Mickey's northwest book signing in Washington.
DGT: MICKEY, I FIRST MET YOU OVER THE PHONE AS DAVID SHRIVER, YOUR FRIEND AND MINE INTRODUCED US. YOU TRAVELED THOUGHOUT THE WORLD WITH DAVID AND SHAREDTHE SAME STAGES WITH SOME VERY FAMOUS PEOPLE INCLUDING THE BEATLES. I SAW SOME OF THE FILM YOU PRODUCED OF THEM AT THE OLYMPIA THEATER WHILE ON TOUR TOGETHER. HOW DID THAT COME ABOUT AND WHAT WAS IT LIKE TO BECOME SO CLOSE WITH THE FAB FOUR ?
MICKEY: . In 1964, while I was playing with Trini Lopez, we shared the bill at the Olympia Theatre in Paris with The Beatles. As it turned out, they were just regular guys. We had a lot of fun together. While we were working together in Paris, I never dreamed they would have any success in America. I though they were OK but a bit on the bubble gum side. And the haircuts were cute but I did not think that would go over in the states as well. Over the years I was in the music business, I ran into the boys on numerous occasions and they always treated me like a friend. They are the best.
.
DGT: MICKEY; IF WE COULD GO BACK A BIT TO THE TIMES WHEN YOU WERE STARRING ON THE ED SULLIVAN SHOW WITH TRINI LOPEZ… YOU GUYS HAD A SOUND OF YOUR OWN.LIMITED INSTRUMENTATION WITHOUT ANY GIMMICKS , THE BAND WAS CLEAN AND SHARP DRESSED! THIS WAS A SUCCESSFUL ACT FOR MANY YEARS. HOW DID THIS GROUP CREATE SUCH A MAGICAL FORMULA?
MICKEY: . I have to say that the success of Trini Lopez was due to Trini. He had a great guitar sound, very full and when you put Dave Shriver's bass and my drums to his music, it was magic. We never had other players, it was just Dave and myself. I feel the best rock & roll band in the world is ZZ Topp. They are the same instrumentation as us. That's all you need is a good bass player and a good drummer who play together. If you have that, everybody else can go for coffee. DGT: THERE’S SO MUCH DIVERSITY IN THE MUSIC TODAY MICKEY, SO MANY RELATED CAREERS IN THE INDUSTRY. WHAT WOULD YOU SAY TO YOUNG PEOPLE WHO ARE THINKING ABOUT A LIFE IN THE MUSIC BUSINESS? MICKEY: . When I talk to young kids today who want a career in the music business or show business in general, you have to remember that in show business, there is the show and there is the business. They are two different things. When I was young, all I wanted to do was the show, I did not want to know about the business. I was 37 years old before I realized that I needed to take care of the business as well. Young musicians need to write their own songs and form their own publishing company so that when some major artist comes along and wants to record their song, they are the owner and publisher. That major artist is going to want to know who the publisher is. When you say, "I am", they know that you are a business person and ask to split the publishing and you will say, "OK". Remember, 50% of something is better than 100% of nothing. TAKE CARE OF THE BUSINESS OF THE MUSIC BUSINESS!
LINKS FOR MICKEY JONES:
www.mickeyjones.com
BUY THE BOOK
DGT: MICKEY, THANKS FOR TALKING TO US TODAY AND TAKING TIME OUT OF YOUR LIFE FOR OUR READERS. YOU ARE MUCH APPRECIATED! I LOOK FORWARD TO OUR NEXT DISCUSSION. DGT READERS: STAY TUNED AS WE BRING YOU PART ll. “ MICKEY JONES “
In part two we will examine the periods of time after Bob Dylan, Trini Lopez and onto his career with one of the world’s most loved performers, Kenny Rogers and The First Edition. We will talk about Mickey’s desire to be on camera as an actor, how he started as an extra and worked his way up through the Hollywood ranks to become one of the world’s most loved actors and recognized characters of film and television.
Bruce J Maier
All Rights Reserved
copywrite(c.)2009
DGT/kanb
MICKEY, WELCOME TO DAMNGOODTUNES.COM. YOU LEAD THE LIFE AS AN AUTHOR AND ACTOR WHO WAS ORIGINALLY A FAMOUS MUSICIAN. TODAY YOU ARE A RESPECTED AND KNOWN AROUND THE WORLD AND, OBVIOUSLY THERE ARE MANY CHAPTERS OF MICKEY JONES YET TO BE WRITTEN. IT SEEMS YOU NEVER STOP AND ARE ALWAYS MOVING FAST- FORWARD INTO THE FUTURE . PLEASE TELL US WHERE IT ALL BEGAN AND ABOUT YOUR FIRST RECOLLECTION OF DESIRE TO BE A MUSICIAN.
MICKEY: Where it all began. I was a student at Sunset High School in Dallas when the music bug bit me. In the summer of 1957, I went to a rock & roll show at the Cotton Bowl in Dallas, that's the same Cotton Bowl they play the New Year's Day college bowl game in. Back to my story. I just went with a bunch of my new friends and I didn't even know who we were going to see, I just went along with the crowd. Well, I had no idea but we were there to see Elvis Presley. I write extensively about this in my book. On the way home that night I knew I wanted to be in the music business. I was hooked.
DGT; HOW ABOUT YOUR PARENTS. WHAT DID THEY THINK ABOUT YOUR MUSIC? WERE THEY ENCOURAGING OR SOMEWHAT WORRIED THEIR SON WAS UP IN HIS ROOM BEATING ON THE DRUMS AND SCARRING THE NEIGHBORS?
MICKEY: I was very lucky to have parents that were as much into music as I was. Music was playing in our house night and day. My parents encouraged me 100% to keep practicing and work on those drums. My mom was responsible for getting me my first drum set. They were both thrilled that I played music. Wherever I played around the country, my parents found a way to get there. They were the best.
DGT:TRAINING / DID YOU TAKE ANY FORMAL LESSONS ?
MICKEY: I never took any music lessons. Now I wish that I had studied. I can't read music. I have a hard enough time with words. I do believe that, as a musician in Hollywood, had I been able to read music, I could have been a successful studio drummer. However, I can't complain because I had a pretty successful career as a drummer and saw the world.
DGT: WHO WERE SOME OF THE PEOPLE WHO GAVE YOU WHAT YOU FELT WERE THE ESSENTIAL TOOLS WITH WHICH TO GO OUT INTO THE WORLD AND MAKE A LIVING PLAYING MUSIC? WAS IT YOUR PARENTS, FRIENDS, OTHER MUSICIANS ?
MICKEY: I would have to say that my parents were the driving force for me. My mom told Trini Lopez in 1957, "Our son, Mickey, is a drummer, if you ever need a drummer, give him a call". As I started doing gigs around town locally with schoolmates and friends, I picked up bits and pieces from all of them. All of their input made me a better player.
DGT:AS A YOUNG TEENAGER, JUST BEFORE THE BREAKS STARTED TO HAPPEN , WERE THERE TIMES WHEN YOU WONDERED ABOUT DOING OTHER THINGS, OTHER PATHS SUCH AS ACADEMICS, ATHLETICS OR FOLLOWING ANOTHER OCCUPATIONAL CALLING INSTEAD OF BEING A ROCK DRUMMER ?
MICKEY: . By 1958, I was working around town quite a bit and the thought of doing something else never crossed my mind. Now, I will say this, around 8 years old I dreamed of being an actor but that was never really in the realm of possibility. Actors were in Hollywood and I was in Texas so that was never a true possibility. I had no other goals. Music was my life. I couldn't believe you could get paid for doing something that you loved so much. What a concept!
DGT: WHAT WAS THE FIRST DRUM KIT YOU EVER HAD AND DO YOU STILL OWN IT? ALSO TELL THE DRUMMERS OUT THERE WHAT YOUR SET CONSISTS OF.
MICKEY: . My very first drum set was a blue sparkle set with a bass and snare and one cymbal. It was a rental set. After a couple of months, it went back to the rental company because I wanted a real set with more STUFF. My mom helped me get a Slingerland set with two side mounted toms to the bass drum and a floor tom, two cymbals and a hi-hat. The thing that made this set stand out was the fact that it had a 20"X20" bass drum. It was quite odd looking but that bass drum sounded so great in the recording studio. It was a deep, fat sound. Everyone I played with absolutely loved it. When I came to Los Angeles from Texas, I bought a new set of drums from the Professional Drum Shop on Vine St. right across from the musician's union.
They were Ludwigs, black oyster pearl with a 14"X22" bass drum, 9"X14" tom and a 16"X16" floor tom. I later added a 16"X20" floor tom. That Ludwig set was used on all the recordings with Trini Lopez, Johnny Rivers, Bob Dylan, 1966 "Live" and early First Edition. That set is now on display at the Hard Rock Cafe at Times Square in New York City. The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame wanted them but they wanted me to donate them and I wanted to sell them. I finally sold them to the Hard Rock chain for $20,000. In 1969 when the First Edition signed with Fender guitars and amps, I signed with the Rogers Drum Company. I played those Rogers until I retired in 1976. I put that set together from scratch. DGT: MICKEY, LET’S TAKE A MINUTE TO TALK ABOUT EQUIPMENT FOR LIVE PERFORMANCES: PA SYSTEMS AND MONITORING DEVICES HAVE COME A LONG WAY IN THE PAST 20-40 YEARS WITH NEAR-FIELD ONSTAGE CAPABILITY AND IN-THE-EAR SYSTEMS. WHEN I SAW A CLIP OF YOU PLAYING ON THE ED SULLIVAN SHOW WITH TRINI LOPEZ IN THE 1960’S I WONDERED HOW YOU WERE ABLE TO HEAR WHAT THE SINGER WAS DOING. DID YOU SEE THAT AS A PROBLEM AND IF SO, HOW DID YOU COMPENSATE FOR IT?
MICKEY: When I look at the monitoring systems of today, I am amazed. We had none of that. On the Ed Sullivan show, I had a speaker on my drum platform angles up toward my ears just so I could hears Trini's voice. By the time the First Edition came around, I designed a small speaker with a volume control and mounted on a mike stand sitting right next to me with just the vocals run through it. It is a new day today.
DGT: LONG BEFORE YOU BECAME A TELEVISION AND FILM ACTOR, YOU WERE DOING TV APPEARANCES AROUND THE GLOBE. WHAT WAS THE BEST AND THE WORST PARTS OF PLAYING MUSIC ON TELEVISION?
MICKEY: Long before I became an actor, we did a number of television shows around the world. Generally, the sound as not good on these shows. There was no way to isolate the instruments. It just became a mishmash of sound. The TV studios were more interested in how the show looked and didn't really care about the sound. The worst was when you had to do a lip-sync. That meant that you could not play your instrument or really sing the song. Everything was just PRETEND. That really sucked.
DGT: MICKEY, IN YOUR BOOK “ THAT WOULD BE ME “ YOU TALK A LOT ABOUT TRAVELING THE WORLD, STARTING WITH THAT AMAZING 1966 BOB DYLAN TOUR. IS THIS THE POINT OF YOUR LIFE WHEN YOU REALIZED YOU WERE BECOMING A ROCK STAR AND ICON OR DID IT EVER HIT YOU THAT WAY?
MICKEY: I first started traveling the world with Trini Lopez in 1961. We made 8 trips to Europe, then South Africa and South America. Then came Johnny Rivers. I made a number of trips with Johnny all over Europe. The 1966 Bob Dylan Electric World Tour was a real pinnacle. We circumnavigated the world. Our first concert was in Hawaii, the to Tahiti, Fiji, all over Australia, Singapore, Malaysia, India, Austria, Sweden, Denmark, France, England, Scotland, Ireland and Whales. With The First Edition, we did a number of trips to England and Europe but 10 trips to New Zealand was the best place ever. Even though we were playing in major venues all over the world, it really never hit me that I was a ROCK STAR. Recently my grand-daughter saw a group of old trading cards called Rock & Pop. She asked my wife, "Was Grandpa a Rock Star?" After a minute and a smile, she replied to my grand-daughter, "Yes...He was!"That really made my day.
From right to left, Mickey Jones, David Shriver and myself at
Mickey's northwest book signing in Washington.
DGT: MICKEY, I FIRST MET YOU OVER THE PHONE AS DAVID SHRIVER, YOUR FRIEND AND MINE INTRODUCED US. YOU TRAVELED THOUGHOUT THE WORLD WITH DAVID AND SHAREDTHE SAME STAGES WITH SOME VERY FAMOUS PEOPLE INCLUDING THE BEATLES. I SAW SOME OF THE FILM YOU PRODUCED OF THEM AT THE OLYMPIA THEATER WHILE ON TOUR TOGETHER. HOW DID THAT COME ABOUT AND WHAT WAS IT LIKE TO BECOME SO CLOSE WITH THE FAB FOUR ?
MICKEY: . In 1964, while I was playing with Trini Lopez, we shared the bill at the Olympia Theatre in Paris with The Beatles. As it turned out, they were just regular guys. We had a lot of fun together. While we were working together in Paris, I never dreamed they would have any success in America. I though they were OK but a bit on the bubble gum side. And the haircuts were cute but I did not think that would go over in the states as well. Over the years I was in the music business, I ran into the boys on numerous occasions and they always treated me like a friend. They are the best.
.
DGT: MICKEY; IF WE COULD GO BACK A BIT TO THE TIMES WHEN YOU WERE STARRING ON THE ED SULLIVAN SHOW WITH TRINI LOPEZ… YOU GUYS HAD A SOUND OF YOUR OWN.LIMITED INSTRUMENTATION WITHOUT ANY GIMMICKS , THE BAND WAS CLEAN AND SHARP DRESSED! THIS WAS A SUCCESSFUL ACT FOR MANY YEARS. HOW DID THIS GROUP CREATE SUCH A MAGICAL FORMULA?
MICKEY: . I have to say that the success of Trini Lopez was due to Trini. He had a great guitar sound, very full and when you put Dave Shriver's bass and my drums to his music, it was magic. We never had other players, it was just Dave and myself. I feel the best rock & roll band in the world is ZZ Topp. They are the same instrumentation as us. That's all you need is a good bass player and a good drummer who play together. If you have that, everybody else can go for coffee. DGT: THERE’S SO MUCH DIVERSITY IN THE MUSIC TODAY MICKEY, SO MANY RELATED CAREERS IN THE INDUSTRY. WHAT WOULD YOU SAY TO YOUNG PEOPLE WHO ARE THINKING ABOUT A LIFE IN THE MUSIC BUSINESS? MICKEY: . When I talk to young kids today who want a career in the music business or show business in general, you have to remember that in show business, there is the show and there is the business. They are two different things. When I was young, all I wanted to do was the show, I did not want to know about the business. I was 37 years old before I realized that I needed to take care of the business as well. Young musicians need to write their own songs and form their own publishing company so that when some major artist comes along and wants to record their song, they are the owner and publisher. That major artist is going to want to know who the publisher is. When you say, "I am", they know that you are a business person and ask to split the publishing and you will say, "OK". Remember, 50% of something is better than 100% of nothing. TAKE CARE OF THE BUSINESS OF THE MUSIC BUSINESS!
LINKS FOR MICKEY JONES:
www.mickeyjones.com
BUY THE BOOK
DGT: MICKEY, THANKS FOR TALKING TO US TODAY AND TAKING TIME OUT OF YOUR LIFE FOR OUR READERS. YOU ARE MUCH APPRECIATED! I LOOK FORWARD TO OUR NEXT DISCUSSION. DGT READERS: STAY TUNED AS WE BRING YOU PART ll. “ MICKEY JONES “
In part two we will examine the periods of time after Bob Dylan, Trini Lopez and onto his career with one of the world’s most loved performers, Kenny Rogers and The First Edition. We will talk about Mickey’s desire to be on camera as an actor, how he started as an extra and worked his way up through the Hollywood ranks to become one of the world’s most loved actors and recognized characters of film and television.
Bruce J Maier
All Rights Reserved
copywrite(c.)2009
DGT/kanb
MICKEY GETTING READY TO JOIN IN WITH THE BEAUTIFUL MISS ANNE MARGARET ON A USO
TOUR AND PERFORMANCE IN THE LATE 1960'S
TOUR AND PERFORMANCE IN THE LATE 1960'S
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