|
 The very busy Jeff Pilson, who has played with everyone from Dokken, Dio, and MSG, was gracious enough to sit down with GlamMetal.com right before he took the stage in Niagara Falls. We talked everything from his relationship with his old band members in Dokken, to his most satisfying accomplishment to date. Jeff also touched upon his future plans with Foreigner as well as his part in the movie “Rockstar.”
GM: Jeff, How did you become a member of Foreigner?
Jeff: In the year 2000, I was in a movie that Jason Bonham was in as well. We established a good rapport in the movie together. In 2004 when Mick and Jason started working together they had no idea what it was going to be. They decided to do a charity event. They called me up and asked me if I was interested in doing it? I said of course! I think it was called "Mick Jones and friends" or something like that. It was the same people that you'll see tonight except for the singer. We knew the chemistry was strong so it gave Mick their encouragement to re-form Foreigner. So when they asked me to do it I said “yeah!”
GM: So Mick is the only original member?
Jeff: Correct!
GM: I saw you guys in May at the Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas and Kelly brings a great stage presence to the band. Along with you and Jason who bring a more of an updated rock approach this band is fantastic!
Jeff: Yeah..Yeah... It's Ideal! We're playing the music as it's always sounded to me.
 |
GM: With an updated kick.. I read that you guys are planning on releasing new materail soon. Is there any truth to that?
Jeff: The plan is September of 2008. The process is going slow in some ways because our touring schedule is non-stop. We don't have big chunks of time where we can stop and work. So that's been a challenge. We did take some time at the beginning of the year to do some stuff but we haven't started recording it yet or anything. The plan is for the first few months of 2008 to work very sparsely and try to do as much writing and recording as we can. The goal is to have something by September of 2008
GM: I also read that you guys are redoing some of the classics as well.
Jeff: Yes! We have been doing it and have recorded some new versions of them. The progress of that is going to be measured by the momentum we create. If we get crazy and write a lot then we will put less emphasis on redoing the classics. We kind of want to balance it out. It's a little easier to read do versions of old songs, rather than come up with new ones.
GM: I read your BIO before I came here, and it says you are a huge Heart fan. We were lucky to meet the Wilson sisters a couple of months back, and they are very nice ladies. Have you ever had a chance to work with them at all?
Jeff: Sure! Howard (original Heart guitarist,) who no longer is in the band, I have known for like 30 years. I lived in Seattle in the late 1970s, and that's where I knew him from. Actually, with Dokken, we opened up for Heart in 1994 or 1995. I knew Ann and Nancy a little and actually partied with Nancy a little bit. I love doing shows with them. I love the band! They're one of the few bands I can watch every night.
 |
GM: In 2003 you collaborated with your old guitarist George Lynch from Dokken for a CD called "Wicked Underground." Any future projects would George?
Jeff: Yeah, probably. George and I are real close friends. We talk quite frequently and we’re neighbors. Our wives are good friends. We would like to do it, but both of our schedules are pretty crazy right now. Definitely the goal one of these days is to do another record.
GM: How's your relationship with the other two members of Dokken? 
Jeff: Non-existent! I haven't seen Don in.... probably four or five years, and Mick about 4 years. It's pretty non-existent.
GM: Do you see a reunion with those guys down the line maybe?
Jeff: I would never say never, cause you never know, what can change. I don't see it at this point. I don't really see it coming together. It just doesn't seem something that would be very likely. Maybe someday, who knows?
GM: You have worked with so many artists over your career, what is the most proudest accomplishment or the moment your most proudest of?
Jeff: In retrospect, the Dokken thing was great but at the time it was hard to appreciate it. It was a lot of struggling. I always knew it was a good thing. I was always very grateful for it. I did have that we Dio! Working with Dio was so much fun! Ronnie is not only a great friend, he's such a great musician. The chemistry we had between he, Vinnie, and I was so powerful, so strong. It was just a real fun band to tour with and play with. I kind of have the same thing with Foreigner. With Foreigner. It's not as heavy as Dio was, but it's still heavy. The chemical workings between all of us is very, very, powerful! We listen to one another carefully and to me those are the things that really matter (The quality!) That's one of the great things about Ronnie, you don't see a bad night out of Ronnie. You don't see a bad night out of Kelly either. You rarely see an off night performance. We all have our off nights but as a rule, it's a real powerful and consistent. I guess, if you ask about little perks, I did this thing called "Rock 'n Roll Fantasy Camp." One of the highlights for me, well, thee highlight for me, we did a little thing with John Anderson of Yes. I was a huge Yes fan! Chris Squire was my favorite bass player. As a kid, I really emulated him. I got to do some songs with John Anderson playing bass and singing with him. For me, it was unbelievable! It was a real high!
GM: We are going down there and covering this year’s event in N.Y.C. over Labor Day weekend. Going into my next question since you touched upon it already, is there anybody you like to work with the you haven't already?
Jeff: I love to do something with Slash. That would be really fun. I always felt that way about Zakk (Wylde) but then I got to work with him. Slash would be great because he is actually a friend of mine. I love his attitude about music. I can really see making a fun thing was Slash. Also I would like to work with Tommy Lee. He's a great drummer, he really is! I just would love to do some off-the-wall kind of thing with him someday.
GM: You have contributed to many tribute CDs. What was your most favorite one to work on and why?
Jeff: Hmmm... I don't know if there was one. I remember really enjoying doing the Metallica CD. Jason and I played on that. It was Jason and I and Doug Aldrich doing a rhythm on it and it was really fun. That was one that I really remember and it was a lot of fun. It was a good combo; Doug, Jason, and I had this good thing going there. It was a lot of fun.
 |
GM: We touched upon this earlier, but growing up in the 80s, we know all about the movie "Rockstar." (we both laugh) How was it playing that part? (*Their tour manager comes in and gives us a cue to wrap up as they have 15 minutes before showtime.*) This will be the last question...
Jeff: It was great! It was a lot of fun! A lot of laughs. The first thing we did was set up and rehearsed and played music. It kind of felt like a real band, which was kinda of cool. That's actually how I got the part. I was originally brought in to play bass. Then the directors saw us playing and offered me the part. Which was pretty cool! It was really fun, because I love the way Zakk plays. Zakk and I have a lot of respect for one another. We had a lot of fun jamming. We did some really crazy stuff and the chemistry between him, Jason and I was very strong. Then when we got to the real acting part, the actors were very cool. They would even come up to us and say, "You do realize you got into a real cool movie, it's usually not this cool!" laughs... The director was fabulous; he gave us a lot of input. What actually happened during the editing stages is that they were trying to make the movie a little more current. That's when the twists or 80s true or loyal to the 80s came in. And I understand that. They are trying to sell movies. The experience itself was fabulous! It really was fun. Movies are extremely tedious. I mean you're in that trailer a lot. But, they treat you like a king. They take care of anything you have to do. You just have to show up and be there. It was a lot of fun. The people were fun. Jennifer Aniston is really fun. She has a great attitude, a great sense of humor. She was like one of the boys, likes to hang. Wahlberg's great. All the actors were great so it was a lot of fun.
GM: We want to thank you for taking the time to talk to us before the show.
Jeff: My pleasure!
Check out Jeff’s band Foreigner on tour now. Go to www.foreigneronline.com for tour dates and more info about the band!
|
