When you think of rock ‘n roll you think of Ronnie Montrose. From a city that’s given us the Grateful Dead, Country Joe McDonald, and Jefferson Airplane – Ronnie Montrose is a real standout. He’s toured and recorded with Van Morrison, Edgar Winter, and Boz Scaggs. In ’73 he put together his own group “Montrose” which lasted 3 years and 4 albums. Now he’s back, with his new group – “Gamma,” on Elektra/ Asylum Records.
Q – Has the current music business slowdown affected you?
A – No, that’s strictly academic and has nothing to do with my creative ability.
Q – What’s different about your music this time around?
A – Well to answer that you’d have to have listened to my solo album “Open Fire.” It was such a turnaround for me, There were no vocals, a lot of instrumental, acoustic music. No one knew how to handle it. So I feel I have to re-emphasize to people that I sing and do rock ‘n roll again.
Q – Your manager Bill Graham is a legend, but what can he really do for his artists?
A – Bill and his people are good in an objective sense. I can use him as a gauge for what’s going over. I’m aware of all facets of my career and Bill acts as a liaison for me when I need to accomplish something.
Q – Where’s home for you today?
A – San Francisco, actually south of there.
Q – Who do you listen to?
A – When I’m home I listen to a lot of synthesizer music Kraftwerk, Tangerine Dream, Tomita.
Q – What did you learn from each of the artists you’ve worked with?
A – With Van I learned a lot about the dynamics and simplicity of music. From Boz Scaggs I learned about the complexity of music, and in Edgar’s group I learned how to play solo guitar.
Q – Do you get the “guitar freaks” out in front watching you?
A – Oh yeah. You can see the dotted lines going from their eyes to your fingers.
Q – What’s the future hold?
A – We’re rehearsing material for our new “Gamma II” album this month, which we’ll be recording in April. Then in June we’ll probably hit the road.
© Gary James All Rights Reserved
