Throughout the fusion era of the '70s and '80s, Steve Morse was one of the genre's most respected guitarists. Fronting the Dixie Dregs-a band whose approach was more rock-jazz than jazzrock-Morse sizzled through six albums, each a hallmark for players who yearned to burn. Earlier this year, the band-now with two "retirements," six Grammy nominations, and some 14 albums behind them- released California Screamin' [Zebra]. Featuring live tracks from an August 1999 stint at L.A.'s Roxy Theatre, the CD reunites the Dregs' 1979 lineup.
Then, one month after the Roxy gigs, Morse joined Deep Purple for a two-night stand in London to record Concertos: Live at Royal Albert Hall with the London Symphony [Spitfire]. That release includes a more carefully wrought version of the band's ambitious '69 opus, "Concerto for Group and Orchestra," along with Deep Purple classics and selections from each member's solo catalog.
Finally, while Morse was preparing for tours in support of both CDs, he was also working on tracks for an upcoming solo release. Set for what could be his biggest decade yet, Morse is undaunted by the size and scope of his repertoire.
"Keeping track of all the music-the memory part-is a bit of a chore," he admits. "My solution is to compose as much of what I play as possible, because it's easier to remember something you came up with. In reviewing for the Dregs, I had to study some of the chords- especially the parts in T Lavitz's solos-because I didn't write those parts. With Deep Purple, the older songs are easy-they're just good old rock and roll-but the Concerto made everyone pay attention. I've always preached that players should learn to read and write music, and I really used those skills for that project. The conductor played piano in the rehearsal room, and I had to write down my parts."
Because he thrives on playing diverse styles, Morse considers the current state of the entertainment industry unfortunate. "When I was growing up, things weren't separated into different categories," he explains. "I remember the Atlanta Pop festival had Led Zeppelin, Janis Joplin, Goose Creek Symphony, Dave Brubeck, Ravi Shankar, and Jimi Hendrix. It never occurred to anyone that they should all sound alike. Today's reality is that record companies have no interest in variety. Fortunately, the people who listened to me in 1980 are still listening, and they've pretty much given me carte blanche to do what I want. Plus, internet-savvy people are more likely to go for the kind of music I've been putting out, and they're able to seek out hard-to-find recordings or gigs using the Web. For any guitar player just starting out, my advice is to think about the business end of things. If you don't, you're going to find it harder and harder to sustain a creative, musical lifestyle."
As is often the case with guitarists known for dazzling technique, Morse's other considerable attributes are sometimes overlooked. His approach to tone, for instance, borders on the fanatical. For years, his sonic tweaking has started with the pickup selector switch.
"I've always made a habit of changing pickups for different parts," he explains. "I do that a lot more than people would know from just listening-you don't hear any 'click' or drastic, jerky change.In a solo, I'll change in the middle of a line. I use the neck pickup for higher things, and the bridge pickup for when I go lower on the neck. It makes a huge difference as far as making parts stand out. You can also get a variety of tones with just the volume knob, adjusting how much signal you're sending to the amp. I'm real finicky about function. I like a body with squared-off edges-like a Tele-so it supports my right arm and keeps my wrist from bending. I had my Music Man signature model built with four pick-ups, a 3-way selector switch, and two toggle switches so I could get 11 pickup combinations."
Given his obsession for tonal options, it's not surprising that Morse is always fiddling with the signal chain when in the studio. "Every time I record a part, I change something," he says. "I'll move the mics or change amp heads. Right now, I've got three cabinets in the studio: an open back, a Peavey 4x12, and another 4x12 loaded with JBLs. I have nine mics going to the board. I don't have them labeled on the console, so I can be surprised. I don't want to dial something up with a preconceived idea of what it will sound like. It keeps me from repeating myself and getting into a rut."
Tour de Morse
"I plug my Music Man Steve Morse guitar straight into the amp with a very long guitar chord - the signal path is only interrupted by a Roland tuner," says Morse. "With Deep Purple, the amp is a stock Peavey 5150 that powers four Scorpion-loaded Peavey 4x12 cabinets. They're all slanted cabs turned on their sides for better dispersion. The preamp output is routed to four processors that are used for delay effects: an Eventide Harmonizer 4000, a Lexicon PCM 41 and PCM 42, and a DigiTech GSP 21. Each effect output is fed into an Ernie Ball volume pedal, and then into a passive 4x1 mixer. That signal is sent into the power-amp section of another 5150 and two additional Black Widow-loaded 4x12s.
"My pedalboard holds the volume pedals and a switch to change gain on the second 5150. I use 5150s because I need less midrange with Deep Purple - mainly because of the organ - but I use different heads with the Dregs and the Steve Morse Band: a 100-watt Marshall Jubilee for the dry signal, and a Peavey VTM 120 for the delays. In the studio, there's always my trusty old Ampeg V4 head."
Transcribed by John D. Smith