Exploring Jeff Pilson's Musical Journey: From The Beatles to The End Machine

Brian (00:00:00) - Jeff Pilson, it is an absolute pleasure to have you on the show.

Jeff Pilson (00:00:04) - Well thank you. It's a pleasure to be here.

Brian (00:00:06) - First off, happy belated birthday.

Jeff Pilson (00:00:09) - Well thank you, thank you.

Brian (00:00:12) - And we're all dying to know. How does a legendary rock star like yourself celebrate his birthday?

Jeff Pilson (00:00:18) - I celebrated by my wife and I going out and having sushi, and it was absolutely wonderful. I hadn't gone out to dinner together, just the two of us, in a while, so it was really nice.

Brian (00:00:29) - Oh, good. Good. Now, exciting times ahead. The powerhouse supergroup The End Machine releases the new album The Quantum Phase, on March 8th. Aside from a new singer, what can we expect?

Jeff Pilson (00:00:43) - Just, I think, uh, one of the strongest melodic, heavy rock albums that you'll hear in a long time. Um, I mean, you know, George Lynch is just firing on all cylinders, just playing his ass off and playing great. Um, and then with Girish Pradhan, you have an amazing vocalist.

Jeff Pilson (00:01:03) - I mean, he's really otherworldly. His his talent level at singing and writing. I mean, he's just amazing. Um, so I it's a record that I am deeply proud of and feel real strongly about and, um, can't wait for people to hear.

Brian (00:01:20) - It's. I've heard it myself now. It really kicks ass. It is unreal. But what led to the parting of ways with Robert Myerson?

Jeff Pilson (00:01:30) - Well, um, honestly, it was, um, uh, Serafino at, at our record label, his he basically he, he loves garish and he wanted to see what it sounded like pairing garish with us. It's really nothing against Robert at all. And, and I, I like to emphasize that because I still feel very strongly about Robert and I, I, I think he's a great talent and I love him dearly. And I would never slight him one bit. And this was a this was difficult for those reasons. And it's not like he did did anything wrong, you know. Um, but, you know, Serafino had this feeling that it would be a good pairing and he wanted to try it.

Jeff Pilson (00:02:13) - And, uh, we once we once George and I heard what was going on with Gerrish. You know, we heard some of his music. We said, okay, this is this is a chance worth taking. And we did, and I'm glad we did. It turned out amazing. And Garrick is just he's just fantastic stick. And it's it was a real, real joy. So, um, very, very excited.

Brian (00:02:36) - What was it like getting a new singer in for the album? You know, it was just hard for him to find his feet.

Jeff Pilson (00:02:42) - No, because he's so natural for this music. Um, you know, he obviously listened to a lot of Dokken and knows Dokken well. So he he fit in. I mean, right away his writing was fit in. I mean, you know, and we all contributed, um, obviously, but, uh, but boy, when he, the lyrical and melody ideas he brought were really strong right off the bat. And, you know, there's times when direction was, was given, but um, but overall, I mean, he fit in like a glove, which was and we knew that right away.

Jeff Pilson (00:03:18) - I mean, it was, it was, it was immediate. And once I heard him, I sensed it might be like that. So, um, it turned out to be great. And. No, he was. He fit in right away.

Brian (00:03:29) - Glad to hear. And you know, as such, seasoned musicians like yourselves, how do you approach the writing process?

Jeff Pilson (00:03:37) - Well, you know, George and I, over the years, I mean, we when we get together, we come up with music, and that's just a no brainer. And, you know, in Dawkins, sometimes we would, we would come up with the music and then sometimes we would come up with the lyric and melody ideas. Um, on this one we came up with the music, sent it to Girish, and he would send us a first draft of what he thought for lyric and melodies, and then we'd talk about it or guide him, or in some cases, what he did was perfect and needed no direction at all.

Jeff Pilson (00:04:10) - So it went like that from song to song. Um, you know, George and I have no problem coming up with music. Um, and, and we were really inspired because we knew what, you know, what he was capable of. So it was it was really fun. Um, and, and again, we just went back and forth. I mean, he, he did all his vocals in India. So it was a lot, a lot of emailing ideas, um, and some zoom calls. And it was all good.

Brian (00:04:36) - Thank God for technology. Huh? Yeah. And exactly, you know, you recorded and produced it, of course. How do you approach working on your own music compared to, say, producing and recording other people's?

Jeff Pilson (00:04:50) - Um, well, very much the same, you know, I mean, when, when I'm producing, I can kind of step out of the bass player in the band mode enough to hear the overall. And that's, that's my as a producer, it's it's all about the song and presenting the artist, whoever that artist may be, in a strong light as possible.

Jeff Pilson (00:05:13) - So the approach is not that different whether I'm in the band or not. Um, sometimes it's nice to not be in the band and just be the producer, which was my intent with Black Swan, by the way. But then I ended up in the band anyways. But, um, but, uh, but then when I'm in the band, it's, it's it's not that hard for me to kind of sit back and just be the producer guy. And then when I'm the bass player, I'm bass is a nice instrument to to have be the producer guy. Because bass, um, I really want to think about the song and what's going to move and make it feel right. Um, not get in the way, but supportive, but then interesting when possible. So, um, it's not that hard for me to, to separate those roles. It really. It's really not.

Brian (00:05:58) - Rice. Rice. When you complete a body of work such as this album, how do you look back on it in your mind?

Jeff Pilson (00:06:06) - Well, I kind of.

Jeff Pilson (00:06:08) - I mean, if you talk about looking back, I mean, that's kind of I kind of don't do a lot of that. Um, I reflect, however, and I reflect on this being a great experience. And I feel when I listen to this body of work fresh, like, wow, it's a strong body of work that I'm very, very proud of. So that's my feeling on it now. It's just the anticipation of waiting for people to hear it. And I mean, the reaction that we've gotten from the silent Winter video has just been phenomenal. So, uh, if that continues, we're we're on the right path.

Brian (00:06:45) - Yeah. Yeah, definitely. Definitely. Will you guys, will we get a chance to see it played live at any stage?

Jeff Pilson (00:06:52) - Well, you know, playing live with these these groups is very, very difficult. The logistics are difficult. You know, we've got a singer in India, um, George is touring with his lynch mob constantly this year. My touring with foreigner is very extensive, so I don't see anything in the near future necessarily.

Jeff Pilson (00:07:12) - Uh, but in 2025, George and my schedule is both are going to open up a lot because he doesn't plan on touring long Lynch Mob tours at, you know, in 2025. And this is the last year that foreigner is going to do long tours. So, um, so my schedule is going to open up a bit. So maybe in 2025 something can happen. We'll see. Um, but in the meantime, I don't think I don't anticipate much for 2024 for, for these projects playing live. Like I say, I mean foreigner. Starting March 1st, we got a pretty heavy duty touring schedule for the year.

Brian (00:07:45) - That's not you trying to say a foreigner is coming to an end or anything, is it?

Jeff Pilson (00:07:50) - No, no, no, the only thing that's coming to an end is the nine months of the year being on the road. So that's why we're calling it a farewell tour, because it is farewell to that kind of touring. Um, but we'll see. We don't know really.

Jeff Pilson (00:08:02) - I mean, there's some music floating around in, in foreigner world that we'd love to finish up and, and release. Um, so I think that could be something that 20, 25 shows. Um, and then, you know, we'll probably do some shows here and there. It's just that we're not going to do long touring and, um, we'll see how it goes.

Brian (00:08:22) - Would you ever go down the Kiss route of virtual concerts?

Jeff Pilson (00:08:26) - I don't know. I mean, if you know what they I, I think, I think the technology would have to get a notch better before we would consider that. Um, and I'm sure it will. Um, and, you know, I, I think it's very likely that ten, 15 years from now, concerts are holograms, you know, I mean, it's I think it's entirely possible. Um, and for us old guys, it'd be great. We know we didn't have to travel, so. Yeah, maybe, uh, but again, I think the technology would have to be better right now.

Jeff Pilson (00:08:59) - It still feels artificial. Um, and if it can get past that, I think it's something we would consider interesting.

Brian (00:09:08) - Interesting. At this stage, I'd like to, uh, dive into your history when it comes to music, to give the listeners some insights that might not have got before. So if you can, can you remember your earliest musical memory?

Jeff Pilson (00:09:22) - Um, well, yeah, because I had a mom who who sang in big bands in the 1930s. She was a big band singer. Um, she never made it big or anything, but she did do a record in 1938, which is. Which I still have. It's amazing. Um, so I had a mom who sang to me as as a little baby, and, uh, she had a wonderful voice. So I have a lot of deep memories of that. And then the music, you know, as I was, you know, coming up, she listened to all kinds of music, but, uh, you know, Tony Bennett, Frank Sinatra, all those guys.

Jeff Pilson (00:09:58) - That was huge in my life. Um, and then, of course, at six years old, the Beatles came in and everything changed at that point on. I mean, that felt I clearly remember first hearing The Beatles because my now brother in law, he's been my brother in law for. 50. Seven years now. But anyways, he, uh, he was dating my my my sister at the time. I was six years old. She was 16. And I remember answering the door and my brother in law being there just I mean, you know, he was a 17 year old kid just excited. He's like, Where's Nancy? Where's Nancy? I gotta, I gotta play this new record. It's from the band from England. It's amazing. It's like nothing else you've ever heard, Bobby. You know, just I can remember his excitement. And I remember going in and him putting it on my sister's little zenith turntable thing. And, uh, I remember hearing the music for the first time, and it was like.

Jeff Pilson (00:11:00) - It was like another planet. It was like, oh, what is this? It was so exciting. I mean, you you'd have to be there to know how dull music was at the time before the Beatles. And when they came in, how just powerful, fresh and exciting they sounded. It was really light years away from anything else that was out there, you know? I mean, remember, this was right before this. You had how much is that double window? You know, you had crap like that. So, um, I just remember and I was instantly hooked instantly. And and that memory is such a powerful one still to this day.

Brian (00:11:38) - Yeah, I know you said music was dull before, but what about guys like Elvis and Chuck Berry and, you know, rock and roll?

Jeff Pilson (00:11:45) - But you got to remember that that that had sort of subsided in America. Certainly in America. I, I'm not really sure what it was like in the UK at the time, although I get the feeling it was a bit similar as well.

Jeff Pilson (00:11:58) - And, and, and you know, I think there was a, there was probably government people that were pushing to to, you know, uh, suppress rock music, you know, they considered it dangerous. It was, you know, considered a real problem. So and, you know, and, you know, there's that whole story of the day the music died when buddy Holly and Ritchie Valens and the big Big Bopper died in that crash, which was in 59. And how, you know, rock n roll kind of kind of took a downslide as far as public awareness and exposure. So right before the Beatles, that stuff was I mean, you didn't think about Elvis. Elvis was doing crappy movies or whatever, you know, and so Elvis wasn't really a thing. Um, all the cool, you know, Little Richard's and all those, they weren't in the public eye as much. Right? In late 1963, right before the Beatles came out. So. And I can remember that.

Jeff Pilson (00:12:56) - And again, radio was really on the bland side. It had really gotten very bland. And I think rock and roll had scared a lot of people. Um, and so it took the Beatles coming back and then everything. Then it was like a lightning bolt. Everything was different.

Brian (00:13:11) - I would love to have experience that.

Jeff Pilson (00:13:14) - You would have. It's it's an I try and experience, uh, explain it to people like my daughter, who was a huge Beatles fan, you know. But how could she understand what it was like? But I try and explain it to her and she's fascinated by it. She wants to be a rock manager someday, and and there's nothing more exciting than taking a band and breaking it big. Like. Like what? The Beatles?

Brian (00:13:34) - Yeah. Yeah, exactly. That's such a Beatles fan. And what did you think of the last song they put out there a couple of months ago?

Jeff Pilson (00:13:41) - Well, I mean, I liked it. I mean, I, you know, it's not the greatest Beatles song of all time, but it's kind of a nice little end to the whole thing.

Jeff Pilson (00:13:49) - I think they did it beautifully. I mean, you know, they only had so much to work with. Um, and it, you know, it feels like a real John Lennon song that the Beatles kind of worked up. So. So, um, I thought it was a nice thing, you know, I know some people hate it, but, uh, I happen to like it, and and and again, some of my favorite Beatles song by any means. But I thought it was nice. I thought the video, they did a brilliant job. Um, and it makes me emotional. And so, you know, if that's, that's got to be a good thing right there.

Brian (00:14:21) - Yeah. Exactly, exactly. And, you know, growing up, then how did your local music scene kind of influence your sound?

Jeff Pilson (00:14:30) - My local. Wow. Well, you know, I was a bit of an outsider because, um, especially once I started getting into, like, progressive rock, like I went, you know, when I was 16, I started turning into a total prog head, you know? Yes.

Jeff Pilson (00:14:43) - LP and Genesis and Gentle Giant. Those were my, you know, that was my stuff. Um, so I was a bit of an outsider, especially in the local music scene, although. Funnily enough, um, my best friend when I was when I was growing up in my small town. Uh, my friend Tim. Uh, he and I are still real close. He lives 14 minutes away from me right now. We still get together. We still have a prog rock project that we're going to eventually do some stuff with that we've been recording drums with actually right now. And, um, so my local scene and I consider Tim my friend to be kind of representative of that is still a part of my life today, 50 plus years later.

Brian (00:15:27) - Oh man, that's the first time I've ever heard that. And I have to say.

Jeff Pilson (00:15:32) - Yeah, pretty cool. We were in a we started a, we met in 1972, so 52 years ago. And then we put a band. We started a band together in May of 73, so oh man.

Jeff Pilson (00:15:45) - And we're still best friends. It's great. Yeah.

Brian (00:15:48) - Was there ever a point in your life where you kind of came to a crossroads and if you had to, went the other direction, your life would have turned completely different.

Jeff Pilson (00:15:58) - Well, what comes to mind is, you know, my my father died when I was just a month away from turning four. And, um, we were living, uh, at the time in New York. Um, but the plan, he was, he he worked with the Milwaukee Road Railroad railroad. And the plan was he was going to be elevated to a vice president very soon, and we would have moved to Chicago. So instead of moving to Milwaukee, Wisconsin, which is where we moved after he passed away, we ended up, uh, yeah, we would I would have been in Chicago and I would have probably grown up in Chicago in a very kind of yuppie sort of setting. So I don't know if I ever would have gotten serious about music.

Jeff Pilson (00:16:41) - I just don't know. Uh, I, you know, I probably would have been groomed to be some kind of a business guy like my dad and that kind of thing. Like I say, growing up in probably a nice neighborhood in Chicago, I probably would have gone to a good school. I would have been groomed to go to college. So I don't know if music would have, you know, entered my life in the way it did. Um, because even moving to Milwaukee, um, I did get exposed to music, and I started playing bass while I lived in Milwaukee, although it was when my step dad got transferred out to a small town in the state of Washington in 1971. That's when I got really serious, because now I was away from everybody, I was alone, I was finding my own path. The turntable was my salvation, and playing along to records became what I did. And that's when I got really serious about music. So a lot of it has to do with probably my father passing away and, and changing locations, uh, and then moving out to the West Coast, uh, in 1971.

Jeff Pilson (00:17:46) - That made a huge difference as well.

Brian (00:17:47) - Yeah, yeah. And, you know, it's called concerts that made it. So I have to ask you, can you remember your very first concert and what was it like?

Jeff Pilson (00:17:57) - Yes, my very first concert was the Milwaukee Pop Fest. And this would have been in the spring of 1970. Uh, and it was the Beach Boys, Andy Kim, Tommy Rowe, the ventures, uh, who who had the Hawaii Five-O theme song at the time, which they actually played. They had a horn section, everything, um, the Ides of March. Who had that song vehicle, which you're probably too young for, but, um, uh, anyways, so that was that was my first concert. It was at the Milwaukee Stadium. Very, very exciting. I remember I was a huge Beach Boys fan at that point. Um, you know, I Get Around is still one of my favorite songs of all time. And I remember them doing that, and it was really exciting.

Jeff Pilson (00:18:42) - So, uh, that was my first concert.

Brian (00:18:44) - Oh, man. That's. Oh, and if you think about if you think about all the concerts you've been to, what ones would you say have made you.

Jeff Pilson (00:18:53) - Wow. Well, okay, so I saw LED Zeppelin in June of 1972, right around the time that if you if you get their recordings of how the West was won. Um, that recording on there from 72 was from Long Beach Arena, and I saw them about a week before that. Um, and for a long time I had a little bootleg tape that I made myself. I snuck a cassette machine into the concert. It ended up getting stolen at a at a place that I was living at a few years later. But, um, for years I had that concert on tape, and I knew it by heart. So that LED Zeppelin concert was very influential to me. Um, that was that was a big deal. That really excited me. Was it was I was a Zeppelin fan beforehand, but then that cemented it, and I was a huge Zeppelin fan after that.

Jeff Pilson (00:19:45) - Then I also in the summer of 72. Later on in the summer, I ended up seeing LP for the first time and that changed everything. I had no idea who or what they were. I was visiting my friends in Milwaukee that, you know, because I don't. I had moved away a year earlier, so I was back there visiting my friends and somebody said, yeah, we got to go see Emerson. Lincoln Palmer is what they said. And I was like, okay, sure. And so we ended up going to the concert. And before the concert, they I remember we went to this music store, uh, that was a it's still a famous music store in Milwaukee. Um, and um, anyway, and, and uh, we went there and, and they said, we have a moog synthesiser in this Emerson, Lincoln, Palmer, they, they use the Moog synthesizer. So I, for the first time saw and heard a moog synthesizer that day, and then at the music store and then went to the concert that night and was blown away and become a became a prog head after that.

Jeff Pilson (00:20:48) - So that concert really, really influenced me a lot. Yeah.

Brian (00:20:52) - Oh my God. What's the last concert you've attended? So.

Jeff Pilson (00:20:58) - The last concert I attended. Wow. Good question. Um, wasn't that long ago. Uh, was it Ringo? I. We went to see Ringo and his all Stars not that long ago. That might be the last concert I've been to. I think so. Yeah. It was great to Ringo in the All Stars when he's got, you know, Lukather up there and Edgar Winter and Colin Hay. And it was it was it was a fabulous show.

Brian (00:21:21) - Yeah. I've always wanted to see Ringo on the All Stars.

Jeff Pilson (00:21:24) - Yeah, they're so entertaining. And especially I mean, you know, Ringo's great, of course. And I mean, I'm a big fan, but what's really great is the songs that they do of the other artists that are up there, because they do a great job and it's and they tell stories and it's just a great night of music and fun.

Brian (00:21:41) - Yeah, definitely. Definitely. Are you able to totally switch off and enjoy the show?

Jeff Pilson (00:21:47) - I think so. I think, you know, there's a little bit of analysis that always goes on. You kind of can't help that. But when it's really good, I think I'm I'm a fan and I'm absorbed in the listening experience. And I try to as much as I can.

Brian (00:22:02) - Yeah, yeah. And the moment we're all waiting for your own shores, if you think about it, will be hard now. But if you think about all the shows you've played over your career, is there one that sticks out as the best experience you've had?

Jeff Pilson (00:22:18) - Not necessarily that I can't necessarily think of a show that is the best experience I have. I've had. I will tell you that the show that we did in late zero seven at the O2 Arena in London, opening for LED Zeppelin. That was a very magical night, and that sticks out in my head as being a really powerful concert experience, I wasn't sure.

Jeff Pilson (00:22:46) - You know, because the whole vibe around LED Zeppelin was so big. I mean, you know, they they shut down the internet because the 20,000 seats that were available, they had over 2 million requests. And it did it shut down the internet. It was such a big deal. And the anticipation for Zeppelin was so great that I wasn't sure how people were going to be with us, because we played right before Zeppelin. But but the people were great and I remember everybody singing along. I want to know what love is. And it just felt. So wonderful. Um. And then then Zeppelin came out and gave a masterclass in how to be a band that listens to each other and works together and just, wow, were they powerful. It was just an amazing night of music. And like I say, a masterclass in watching a band tune into each other and listen. It was it was fabulous. Magical.

Brian (00:23:42) - Oh, man. You know, since you said earlier, you've seen them back in the 70s in concert when you're they're playing the same stages backstage.

Brian (00:23:52) - Are you still a fanboy a bit or are they more sort of your contemporaries now?

Jeff Pilson (00:23:58) - Oh, I think I'm a fan. I mean, um, actually, you know, uh, Jason Bonham was in was in foreigner at the time. So, um, and, uh, Robert Plant actually came to some shows before, you know, we've actually hung out with Robert Plant several times now, um, who is a really wonderful guy and very down to earth and very easy to talk to. Um, and but of course, there's always the fanboy in there, you know, I mean, it's LED Zeppelin, it's, you know, it's, um, and, uh. Yeah, I mean, I, I have no qualms about being a bit of a fanboy. And, and that night I was really watching as a fan because again, and even, you know, I mean, talking with Robert beforehand, Robert was nervous, you know, he was like, wow, this is going to be really difficult to sing all these songs.

Jeff Pilson (00:24:49) - These are challenging songs. And I'm not a kid anymore. You know, he was very open about that. Um, and, you know, it was it was fun. We talked about it and, and I, I could feel his trepidation about it in some ways. And then he came out there and just delivered so powerfully. And you could feel how focused he was and how intent he was and how intent they all were. You know, their their experiences before that, like at the hearing aid thing and all that. We're always really negative. And when they did the Atlantic 40th anniversary, it was not a great experience for them. Uh, and they were open about that as well. So they were intent, you know, they were rehearsed and they wanted to come out there and blow minds. And they did. It was, it was and it was so great to watch, you know, I mean, it's great to watch people that you really admired grew up being very influenced by coming out there and delivering.

Jeff Pilson (00:25:43) - That was a great experience. And, um. Wow. I mean, I consider myself fortunate as a musician to be able to have experienced that and watch that.

Brian (00:25:57) - Yeah, definitely. Definitely. If we take that question then and flip it on its head, if you look back on all the concerts, is there one that sticks out as maybe the worst experience you've had and how did you overcome it?

Jeff Pilson (00:26:11) - Wow. The worst. Um. Well, you know, we've had situations where weather has made things very interesting. Um, but that doesn't necessarily make it the worst. I mean, we did the, um, uh, what's it called? Uh, the, uh oh, what's Sturgis, you know, the the the motorcycle rally that they hold in. I think it's South Dakota or something. Um, we played there several years ago, and when we came out, it was just torrential rain. I mean, just crazy rain. But it it it actually turned into a cool thing. And you could kind of feel the audience bonding with us.

Jeff Pilson (00:26:50) - And I think they loved the fact that we were out there, regardless of the rain, just pounding it out and playing. And, you know, it's funny because Mick Jones, who was at that show, um, he's the type of guy that when you give him a challenge, he rises above it. And it was it was just a great night watching. He was so motivated to go out there and just kick ass. Um, which motivated all of us. Um, so that's an experience where it could have been really bad, but we got past it by just having the right attitude and, you know, not letting the crap get in the way. And and I think that's what we did.

Brian (00:27:26) - Uh, and when it comes to show time, then what's your pre-show? And Portia, how do you psych yourself up and then afterwards how do you wind down?

Jeff Pilson (00:27:36) - Well, we psych ourselves up. I mean, we all have our little rituals. I like to stretch and whatnot before a show, if possible.

Jeff Pilson (00:27:45) - Um, which I just had back surgery, so I can't really stretch yet, which is a little frustrating for me. Um, I can do some stretches, but not all the ones I like to do. Um, so I like to do that. I mean, I like to have some time with meditative meditation of quiet, which I can do even after the surgery. Um, and, uh, so a little quiet time, a little introspection, um, and, uh, you know, that 30 minutes before the show, we're all kind of together and we're just kind of chilling together. Um, sometimes we put on a little music that we like. Um, but it's it's a chill time. And. And as far as winding down, that happens pretty naturally for me now. I mean, I it's not it's not as much a process of winding down, you know, you know, years ago you wound down with doing a lot of drugs and alcohol, which I don't do anymore.

Jeff Pilson (00:28:35) - So, um, so now, you know, I, you kind of come down. We generally have a little we generally have a meal together, which is really nice. Um, and then probably some travels. So I'll probably be winding down, uh, either in a, in a private plane or on a tour bus.

Brian (00:28:53) - Right. I see, I see at this point in your career when it comes to bands like foreigner, where is there left to go? You know, you always hear bands are trying to top the last thing they did.

Jeff Pilson (00:29:05) - Mhm. Well.

Jeff Pilson (00:29:08) - I don't think we're necessarily trying to top anything. I think what we with foreigner, you know, we want to play as many places as possible before we're completely done touring. Uh, and, and this is the last year of the long full on tours. Um, but we would like to get over to, to Europe and the UK. Um, I, I would love to get to Asia one more time and Australia one more time.

Jeff Pilson (00:29:34) - So those are the things that we're kind of hoping can happen again. I'd love to release some of this unfinished music that we have that we I'd love to finish it up and release it. That would be great. Um, so that's those are the goals really as far as topping, you know, foreigner has and Mitch Jones has always had a philosophy that a song is not released until it's really done. And his standards and criteria for a song being really done are very, very high. Um, so you don't have to top anything. You just stay with that principle and you do your best every time. And that's what we do.

Brian (00:30:14) - Right? Right. I see, I see. And before we dive into the last couple of questions, I can't let you go without asking you the movie rock star. It's one of my favorite movies of all time. Cool. What was it like playing, you know, a rock star in that compared to the real life experiences?

Jeff Pilson (00:30:35) - Well, I mean, you're playing it in the movies, so it's, you know, it's it's a bit artificial.

Jeff Pilson (00:30:39) - But the cool thing about that movie was, is the director, Steven Herrick was just a wonderful guy. And, you know, and, you know, that's that's how I got the gig, because originally I was just hired to play bass on the record. I was going to play bass for the record, and then they were going to get an actor to play the bass player. But when, uh, when we started rehearsing the music, the director came down to the rehearsals and he after a couple days of rehearsals, he came up to me and he said, and, you know, I was I was kind of made the musical director kind of by default as we started playing. Um, because that just tends to happen when I join a band. But, um, but anyway, um, so he came up to me after a couple of days and he said, you know, I love what I'm seeing here because we were having rehearsals. It was Zack, Jason Bourne and myself. Nick Cassavetes, who's who plays with, um, plays who played with Zach at the time.

Jeff Pilson (00:31:34) - Uh, and and then, um, um, Millie, Mike, uh, Milosevic or whatever his last name is, he would come down and sing. Um, so, so the director came up to me and said, you know, I really love the vibe of what's happening here. This feels like a real band. And he was like, would you consider being in the movie? And I was like, let me think about it. Yes.

Jeff Pilson (00:31:53) - You know.

Jeff Pilson (00:31:54) - So but I had to I had to, you know, I had to have an audition. I had to read lines and do the whole thing. Um, and but it worked out great. Uh, so during the making of the movie, frequently Steven would come up to us and say, like, so what would what would happen? You know, what would really go on in a situation like this? And he'd get our perspective. And he really wanted to incorporate that as much as possible. So it was really cool. His attitude, I think, is what made the movie as strong as it is, because, you know, there's a little bit of tongue in cheek in there and a little bit of, uh, humor about the whole scene.

Jeff Pilson (00:32:32) - Um, but also kind of trying to be reverent about it, too. So it was it was, I think, the perfect balance. And again, I think it was because of Steve and his direction and his wanting to incorporate what we really were and trying to bring the vibe of a real band to the to the movie's movie, uh, soundstage. And I think he did a great job of it.

Brian (00:32:55) - Definitely, definitely. In my opinion, it should have won an Oscar.

Jeff Pilson (00:32:59) - Well, yeah. And Oscar Meyer, maybe.

Brian (00:33:08) - Any future plans you'd like to tell us before I fire off the last couple of questions?

Jeff Pilson (00:33:12) - Sure. Well, I mean, you know, you've got the end machine coming out. I believe it's March 8th is when the record quantum phase is coming out. Uh, the single silent Winter is already out. I know we have another single, I believe, February 15th, coming out of killer of the night. I know this song from the record. Uh, and then I'm just anxious for people to hear the record because the record is really, really strong.

Jeff Pilson (00:33:34) - I'm very proud of it, very excited about it. So that's coming out March 8th. Uh, Revolution Saints is coming out in February. Very excited about that. Against the winds in the name of that record. Um, and then uh, and then like, this Sunday, Reb Beach is flying out and he's going to spend a week in here, and we're going to start writing the next Black Swan record that I'm sure won't come out until well into 2025. But, uh, starting to write that, which I'm really excited about. So. And then then I start touring March 1st and boy, I'm going to be touring a lot this year.

Brian (00:34:07) - Oh, man.

Brian (00:34:07) - You're a very busy man.

Jeff Pilson (00:34:09) - I am, and I love it.

Brian (00:34:12) - It's a good way to be right the last few. So these are a couple of random interesting music questions, and I'm intrigued to see your answers. Is there anything in music history that happened that you thought, damn, I wish I could have done that.

Jeff Pilson (00:34:28) - Well, yeah. I mean, you know, I wish I.

Jeff Pilson (00:34:30) - Could have written stairway to Heaven.

Jeff Pilson (00:34:32) - Yeah, yeah. Uh.

Jeff Pilson (00:34:35) - Yeah, I, I think I know what you're getting at. I, um.

Jeff Pilson (00:34:41) - Well.

Jeff Pilson (00:34:44) - Wow.

Jeff Pilson (00:34:46) - Kind of decide what I mean. I think for me, um. I would still love to be involved in writing a classic song. I mean, you know, some of the Dokken songs have had a life to them, which I'm, I'm very proud of, you know, and that's 40 years now. So that's kind of cool. But I would, you know, my dream has always been to write a classic, you know, so that's one of the reasons why working with Mick Jones has been so fascinating to me, because he's written a few now.

Brian (00:35:16) - Just of.

Jeff Pilson (00:35:17) - You know, they're.

Jeff Pilson (00:35:18) - Going to last. They're going to last the test of time. Um, and I would love to have done that. So I guess I just wish, uh, at some point and I'm still going to try, but to be involved in a classic song that's going to live, you know, for 100 years or whatever that would be, that would be the ultimate.

Brian (00:35:37) - Yeah, yeah, definitely. Definitely. It's going to happen. It's definitely going to happen the next one. If you could collaborate with any musician from history, who would it be and what sort of song would you create?

Jeff Pilson (00:35:51) - Um. Well. You know, I would have loved to have collaborated with Keith Emerson.

Jeff Pilson (00:36:01) - On a. Really?

Jeff Pilson (00:36:03) - Strong peace along the lines of something like a carcass. Um, a concept piece. Uh, I would have loved to collaborate with him and Ben, the Greg Lake in the equation. That would have been a really satisfying thing for me.

Brian (00:36:20) - I like it. I like it. Yeah. And the final one saw what song would appear on the soundtrack to your life?

Jeff Pilson (00:36:30) - Um. Wow. What? One song.

Brian (00:36:35) - It's a very tough one. All right.

Jeff Pilson (00:36:37) - Yeah, I.

Jeff Pilson (00:36:37) - Mean, I I'll tell you, the song that makes me the most emotional is Clair de Lune by Debussy. That's still to this day, will bring me to tears every time. Um.

Jeff Pilson (00:36:51) - So if I had to pick only one song, I would probably pick that. It doesn't say a lot about my life necessarily, but, um. But for some reason, there's an emotional connection to that song that's very, very powerful for me. And like I say, to this day, I will tear up when I hear that every time.

Brian (00:37:09) - It has to be that one. So listen, Jeff, it has been an honor and a pleasure. Thanks a million.

Jeff Pilson (00:37:15) - Oh, man. That's great. Great interview. Absolutely wonderful pleasure to be with you.