Guitarist/composer/producer Steve Morse is a musician who truly loves to play. So when rock's best-known instrumental group, the Dregs, an ensemble of which Morse was a founding member, disbanded in late 1982, it wasn't long before the virtuosic guitarist was ready with a new unit. In spring 1983, recruiting bassist Jerry Peek and fellow Dreg drummer Rod Morgenstein, Morse assembled one of the most exciting new bands to come along in many years.

The Introduction (Elektra/Musician 60369-1-E) is the Steve Morse Band's recording debut, produced by the leader. Released in summer 1984, it's a collection of instrumental rock tunes that stretch to include areas of jazz and country.

All the selections on The Introduction were written by Morse, who proves to be as capable and inventive a composer as he is lightning-fast guitarist. He calls his distinctively American musical hybrid "instrumental progressive rock." The set is highlighted by "Cruise Missile," an up-tempo scorcher that burns from bar one. "I wrote this one for Rod," Morse says, referring to drummer Morgenstein. "I just wanted to see what it was like for him to play full-speed-ahead. It's sort of an aerobic exercise for drums, with the bass drum cruising all the way through. That's why I called it 'Cruise Missile."' On a few tracks, Morse uses guest artists: Albert Lee, the fleet-fingered guitarist known for his work with Emmylou Harris and Eric Clapton, and T Lavitz, keyboardist with the Dregs, both make cameo appearances.

Morse was born on July 28, 1954 in Hamilton, Ohio, grew up in Michigan and moved to Georgia while a teenager. As a high school sophomore at Augusta's Richmond Academy, he formed a rock band called the Dixie Grits with bassist Andy West. Later, after attending a classical concert by guitarist Juan Mercadel, Morse was inspired to leave Georgia and attend the University of Miami, where Mercadel was a professor. There Morse became a jazz guitar major whose principal instrument was classical guitar.

At UM, where such notables as Jaco Pastorius and Pat Metheny have been on faculty, Morse joined with fellow-classmates West, Morgenstein and violinist Allen Sloan to form the Dixie Dregs. "After the Dixie Grits broke up," Morse recalls, "the only ones left were Andy and me, so we were the dregs." The Dregs gathered an immediate following for their intense instrumental pieces, which were in a vein similar to the Mahavishnu Orchestra and the Allman Brothers, fusing jazz, rock, country and classical music into an imaginative new whole.

During the mid-70's, the Dixie Dregs took their singular sound to the clubs. While playing in Nashville, they so impressed keyboardist Chuck Leavell of the group Sea Level that he recommended the Dregs to Capricorn Records President Phil Walden, who signed the band to his label in 1976. That association resulted in the first three Dregs albums: Free Fall, What If and Night of the Living Dregs. The last date, with tracks recorded live at the Montreux Jazz Festival, was the group's first Grammy nomination.

In 1980, the group switched labels to Arista, shortened their name to the Dregs and added keyboard player T Lavitz to the fold. The Arista releases, Dregs of the Earth, Unsung Heroes and Industry Standard were produced by Morse and all earned Grammy nominations for "Best Instrumental Performance."

By the early '80's, Morse was consistently placing high in various music polls, including the Guitar Player magazine Reader's Poll. But that was just the beginning, as Guitar Player readers gave Morse their highest honor, choosing him as "Best Overall Guitarist" in both the 1982 and 1983 polls.

Despite their flock of fans, business hassles forced the Dregs to disband and Morse took a breather, spending most of his time at his 53-acre farm near Atlanta, where he lives with Celeste, his wife of eight years, Some dogs, cats, horses and wild turkeys. "Well, actually," he admits, "they're called guinea hens. They're different from turkeys in that they can fly to get away from the dogs."

The farm, which consists of hay fields and pastureland, has been a wonderful hide-away for Morse. He has spent many hours recently just fixing the place up. "I've been doing a lot of farm work," he says. "It's good to get some things done." He's also putting the roof on a newly-constructed building that will one day be his recording studio.

Between the Dregs' breakup and the formation of the new group, Morse did a few studio dates and practiced a lot. "I try to get in a few hours a day, at least," he notes, "and even more when I'm on the road." Soon he was touring, not only on 10-day sprints with Peek and Morgenstein, but also as the solo opening act for modern guitar masters John McLaughlin, Paco de Lucia and Al DiMeola.

This rare opportunity arose when Pat Metheny called and asked Morse to audition for McLaughlin and de Lucia as a replacement for DiMeola, who was ill at the time. Morse aced the tryouts but DiMeola regained his health in time to rejoin his partners. Still, in appreciation of Morse's talents, the three stellar guitarists took him along on their fall 1983 tour, where he played a blazing opening solo set, then merged with the trio for an awesome display of technique and fire.

Morse is currently on tour with his own band, one he can be justifiably proud of. "This is a great band," the leader states. "Otherwise, it wouldn't be in existence. With the Dregs, we suffered most of the setbacks one can experience, so it takes a really strong group to make you feel confident to get back out there playing. I just feel I've got the right band."

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