Our guest today is Ray Luzier, David Lee Roth's Drummer.

     Ray was born and raised outside of Pittsburgh, PA. He started playing drums and got his first set at age 8. Basically a self taught player, Ray would play along to records and the radio for years until joining high school jazz, concert and marching bands. He was the leader of the high school drum line and wrote the cadences for it.

     At 15, he joined a local rock band that frequently gigged in Pittsburgh and at 17, started giving drum lessons at a local music store. After graduating from high school in 1988, Ray relocated to Hollywood, CA to attend PIT at the world famous Musicians Institute to further his education and to check out the LA scene. There he met alot of musicians and began playing with several acts including a band called "9.0" in which Ray got his first independent record deal. They played the LA scene, selling out the clubs on the Sunset Strip and all over Los Angeles.

       Ray's talents were quickly recognized and he went on to tour and record with many artists such as Jake E. Lee (Ozzy Osbourne), John Lowery (Marilyn Manson), Tony Fredianelli (Third Eye Blind), Tracy G (Dio, WWIII), Ricky Wolking (Nixons, Jennifer Batten), James Lomenzo (White Lion, Zakk Wylde), Arcade (with Stephen Pearcy), Michael Lee Firkins, Darren Housholder, MCA/Koch recording artists the Nixons and has been a touring and recording member of the David Lee Roth Band since 1997. Ray has been a PIT instructor at Musicians Institute since 1992 where he teaches a variety of rock style based classes and private lessons. 

     He was hired to play for a talent agency called Perfect World Entertainment in 1996 which has 18 bands in the US including Metal Shop (aka Danger Kitty as seen on the Discover Card commercial) and the Boogie Knights. Ray has played over 1000 live shows. He also maintains a busy session schedule in LA that includes recording tracks for major films and television.

Brian: You're in Dave's band, you're in Hideous Sun Demons, you're recording your own CD for which you wrote all the music, you do sessions in L.A., you're an instructor at the Musician's Institute...I guess one of the first questions is, dude, when do you sleep?

Ray: Yeah, exactly. Uh, not too much actually, or when you can, especially being on the road. The last couple years I've been touring quite a bit - a month here, 6 weeks there. Then we get back and the rest of the band takes a break or they hang out with their families. I keep working. I did this new Billy Sheehan solo record, we just finished that up, it sounds great. He's like one of my heroes, so it's great playing with him. My rock band in Pennsylvania used to play Talas songs and I loved what he did in Roth's band. He's a pleasure to work with, and one of the most phenomenal bass players on Earth, by far. And I'm doing a heavy record right now with this band called Driven. It features Tracy G on guitar - he played with Dio and WWIII and a bunch of the rock metal guys. But um, around all that, I try to rest as much as I can, but I'm a workaholic. I love to keep recording, I have my own studio at home...
 

Brian: Were you and Sheehan ever in Roth's band at the same time?

Ray: No, he was in long before I was. I didn't get the gig until '97. He was in from '86 to right past Skyscraper.

Brian: When do you think we'll be able to hear the new Billy Sheehan album?

Ray: He works so quick, man, I wouldn't doubt it if it was out by Spring. Because they're already starting a new Niacin record next month and he's going to the Philippines to do bass clinics. I mean that guy's schedule makes mine look like (laughs) like I'm relaxing or something.

Brian: Can you talk a little bit about your discography, before and since Dave?

Ray: You want me to run down through everything, or...

Brian: Just whatever you wanna do...

Ray: Cuz there's a bunch (laugh). I got signed to Shrapnel Records when I first got to LA, through Mike Varney, and I was able to do 12 CD's on that. There's a lot of guitar virtuosos that got discovered on there - everyone from Tony Fredianelli of Third Eye Blind, Darren Housholder, Michael Lee Firkins, the list goes on. Anyway, I did a lot of records for that label in particular and it just went from there after I'd done sessions for different bands. I played with Mark Ferrari and a band called Medicine Wheel. I did 3 records with them for overseas - they got distributed over there, not in the States. And, again, with that Driven band, I've done 2 records with them. I did a record with the singer from the Nixons, Zac Malloy - great, kinda poppy, it's awesome. The bass player from the Nixons, Ricky Wolking, he has a CD called Honky Mo Fo (laughs) which is great - different styles - I played the rock stuff on there, but there's everything from rock to rap. I did a lot of tribute records, including the Jason Becker tribute and Jeff Beck tribute CD. Also a band called the Howling Iguanas featuring Michael Lee Firkins. Not a lot of huge name stuff, but a lot of these guys went on to do other things.

Brian: What was your first album with Dave?

Ray: The first album with Dave was the DLR Band CD released in '98. We did the first two songs, "Slam Dunk" and "King of The Hill" which got released as singles first to the stores and then when it went to radio, they wanted to get a record done pretty quick, so we went in and did it. It's really good, in my opinion. It should have got released on a major and really got the push because everyone that has it really likes it. Wish it would have got more of a fair shot. But it's still out there, you should go buy it.

Brian: Between myself and Michelle - we're major Dave fans, major Van Halen fans - we've got pretty much the whole library.

Ray: Yeah

Brian: Ok, a little bit about your personal life - Are you married, seeing anybody, have kids...?

Ray: Nope, not married, no kids... but I've been with a beautiful girl now for over a year. She's from Houston, she's awesome.

Brian: Ok, this is kind of a contradictory question after what we've been talking about, but in your "free time" (haha) what do you like to do?

Ray: Like I said, I'm pretty much a music geek. I eat, sleep and drink music so it's like - free time? - hmm. I'm studying now to be kind of an engineer on the side, you know, like recording bands and my instrumental project, Hideous Sun Demons, I actually engineered the whole entire record, including my drums. So after the drums were done, we brought all the tracks back to my home studio and recorded everything there, then I engineered and mixed it. I really have a bug for that - trying to get better tones and making things sound really good. Aside from music, um, I practice guitar (laughs). Aside from ALL that, I like to ride motorbikes, watch some bands play and just kinda chill out, go to beaches and stuff,  - places where there's not too many people around. I live in the really congested city of LA and I was raised on a 110 acre farm, so I like to get away to where there's as few people as possible. We play shows so much and I'm around thousands of people all the time, so it's great to just get away and look at the earth (laugh).

Brian: Next question kinda leads into that - You've played the whole range, from garage bands on up to Metal Shop on up to Dave's band. What do you miss most from the "early years"?

Ray: Oh, ya know what, it was really fun because back in the early years you had no idea what was gonna happen. But no matter what it took, I was gonna be playing music for a living and I was so determined that I left my whole family - they all live in Pittsburgh - and came 2600 miles to do it. A lot of people do it, but they end up giving up in a year, two years. They end up getting "normal" jobs or whatever. So I said whether I'm starving or making a ton of money or no money, I'm gonna be playing cuz that's what makes me the happiest. So I feel very fortunate today to be able to be making a living - probably for the last decade a great living - doing it. But there's been a lot of struggles. I mean the early days were definitely hard. Having to pay to play...The first gig I ever did, I'll never forget, I thought we were getting $200 a piece and then I found out that we OWED $200 a piece just to play on a Thursday night at 8:15 in front of 12 people. But that was the way it was done and, until I got my first record deal, it was like that. But there's never "Ok, I finally made it..." I hate when people use those words. "Oh, you made it? What did you make? Dinner?" It's like, I don't understand that. I just make music all the time and it's like if I'm playing the Viper Room with a wig on in front of 300 people or with Dave in Finland in front of 40,000 people, I'm happy doing it either way. Obviously, I prefer to do the national act thing, especially with Dave. But I'm just a working musician. You'll see me playing a disco gig for IBM's annual party or you'll see me playing with Dave or maybe playing with Billy, doing some live stuff coming up. So I'll play ANYTHING. You learn a lot from the older days, and I was blind to the business, I didn't really know what was going on. I had no knowledge of how the business works. And now that I'm a lot smarter on that, it really makes me look back and appreciate what I have now.

Brian: Would you say there's any drawbacks to being in the big leagues now?

Ray: Um, drawbacks? (laughing) NO! No, not really cuz, like I said, the struggle was too immense back then. Every job has its ups and downs but I'm so stoked to be playing music for a living.

Brian: Was it hard to get to where you're at?

Ray: It was very hard to get where I'm at cuz I used to think "I'm just gonna practice 10 hours a day and be so good that no one can turn me down." But that's not the case.  You can play one beat and get a major gig and be selling millions of records. I didn't know that when I was 19 and moved out here. It's a lot different now, looking back, I really appreciate everything. Now I see that the struggle definitely pays off. But no, I'd much rather be on this end than back there.

Brian: We've seen interviews with some of the big names and nobody seems to wanna say, "Oh yes, I'm a ROCK STAR."

Ray: Yeah

Brian: Even Eddie Van Halen says, "I'm not a rock star, I'm just a musician." What do you consider to be a rock star?

Ray: To me "rock star" has changed. It's not the same as it used to be which kinda bums me out. I remember growing up, you knew every member of KISS, you knew who the bass player for Rush or the guitarist of Whitesnake was, you knew everybody in every band. Nowadays, it's like you see the frontman and know who the band is. But the way kids and the younger generation look at things, they're not looking at bands the same way. I mean, some people, the really die hard fans, will know every member of the band and stuff. But the actual rock star, to me, was back when Dave was the rock star, when the whole Van Halen thing came out. KISS and Rush and all those kind of bands. Because they were high and mighty and you knew exactly what was going on at all times. We didn't even have MTV back then, but they were still identifiable. You had big records, not just CDs, ya know? And people download everything these days. They don't even care who's in the band. They just know they like that one song and they'll go download it and never even give the artist credit. To me, it's a lot different generation. Of course, the avid music fans out there definitely like their heroes. We'll still call them "rock stars." But that's a funny question. I don't really get it. Myself, people come up to me and say, "Wow, what's it like to be a rock star?" and I'm like "I don't know" (laugh) cuz I don't think I'm anywhere near it. I just like to play music and if I'm known in the community and someone appreciates what I've done, then great, I've done my part and I've "made it." I know what it was like when I'd go see a band and they would move me and I'd go up to the artist and go Wow, you really touched me this way or whatever, it really made a difference. People come up to me and say that now, from Japan to Europe to South America and that really means a lot. If I'm a rock star in their eyes, that's great, but I don't think I'm anywhere near that. 

Brian: Who, in your eyes, would you call a rock star?

Ray: Definitely Diamond Dave, he's first and foremost. He's probably one of the biggest in frontman history. I'd say in the past 3 decades. But these days, you mean newer music?

Brian: New, old, whatever. When you think "rock star" what names come to your mind?

Ray: Whew..I guess it depends on what generation. The older generation, definitely Dave. And we just played with Alice Cooper and Billy Idol and did some shows with Ted Nugent and ZZ Top. Those are the older generation rock stars in my eyes. In my teens, going to see Motley Crue and KISS at the Pittsburgh Civic Arena - they were ROCK STARS of that kinda glam 80's thing. There's a lot of those kind of guys. But these days, it's really touchy because I just appreciate a lot of good music out today, nothing identifiable, not calling these new artists rock stars. Like, Coldplay is a great band. Are they rock stars? I don't know. They're very famous, sold millions of records, but...Marilyn Manson, he's a rock star to me. There's a lot of POP stars...Britney, Christina, I dunno, I'm kinda drawing a blank.

Brian: What kind of music do you like to listen to?

Ray: I love to listen to everything. Anything that's deep, emotional and rockin'. I'm really into Deftones. There's a band called King's X out of Texas that I think are highly underrated. They've been around forever. But I listen to everything from the new Seal record to Peter Gabriel - love that stuff - but I'm really into the heavy stuff lately. The new Sevendust and the new Deftones and even the Marilyn Manson record, believe it or not. I'm a big John Five fan - Lowery, his real name is. We did the DLR Band record with him. Anything he plays on, I definitely go out and get. I love Nine Inch Nails, they're one of my favorite bands.

Brian: In 1989, you met Gregg Bissonette and you described him as a big influence on you...

Ray: Absolutely

Brian: What do you remember from that meeting?

Ray: Well, that's when I was a student at PIT, before I started teaching there in '92. He did a clinic there. Of course, at the time, I was one of the biggest David Lee Roth fans, so that meant a lot to have him come in. Why I'm so influence by Gregg is I played nothing but rock drumming. I just played along with stacks of records. I didn't have any instruction or anything. So Gregg, when he did that clinic, it blew me away cuz he actually played jazz FIRST. And I was like Wow I never even listened to jazz or Latin or any other kind of music. When he came, I looked up to him so much as a rock drummer, not knowing that he had all the other styles down. Once I found that out, it really made it sink in - go buy some jazz records, go buy some Latin stuff and go try it. And him just telling me, "If you want to be a working drummer in this business, you really need to have a broad knowledge of different styles because if you get a call, you wanna be able to play it." And that always rang in my head. Then, as a student at PIT, I started paying attention to the other classes more instead of just being a rocker. I was pretty naive when I moved out here. He's actually partly responsible for getting me the Dave gig. He threw my name in the hat probably around '94 when Dave needed a drummer. Gregg's been looking out for me for years now. It's great. He's a great person and friend of mine.

Brian: At the time, did you ever consider that you'd be replacing him as Dave's drummer?

    

Ray: You know what - never in a million years. In fact, I look at that picture on my website - I was just a kid shaking there, literally. Cuz I was starstruck standing next to him. And then to be up there, with Dave, backing him for almost 7 years now, it's really amazing.

Brian: Yeah, I remember the comment you made New Year's Eve when we saw you - about when you're sitting up there playing and look down and say, "Oh Wow! LOOK! There's David Lee Roth!....oh wait, I'm in the band."

Ray: I'm still a kid like that. I mean I've done hundreds and hundreds of shows with Dave and I still have that adrenaline rush. I mean, yeah it's routine, and we do a lot of the same set a lot of the time, but he's still Commander In Chief in my eyes.

Brian: Talk about the day you got "the phone call" from Dave.

Ray: Well, Mike Hartman, rest his soul - he passed away, he was a student at the school I taught at and died a pretty tragic death of cystic fibrosis, unfortunately, but he'd been fighting it since he was 8 years old - he kept coming up to me and asking me to play on his songs. He'd say "I know Steve Vai and I know this guy and I know everybody" and he's name dropping - kinda drove me crazy for a while - but finally he says, "We're gonna record at Steve Vai's house." And I'm thinking ok, this kid's going too far now - we're gonna go to Vai's house and record...yeah, right - so I called him on it. Next thing you know, we're up at Vai's house recording. So I ended up tracking a lot of their solo record and Gregg Bissonette actually played a couple songs on it. So we tracked it and we just stayed in touch. Whenever I do a session, I ask the artist for a copy of the CD so I have it for my collection. So anyways, Mike calls me up and says, "Hey, great news - Vai got a call from David Lee Roth to write songs and he (Vai) was too busy so he gave him MY number because he said he'd really like me. He heard two of the songs you were playing on and asked who the drummer was. He really liked your playing." I was like, "Wow, I'm flattered, it's an honor" ya know. He said, "He wants to know if you'll come up and record 2 songs." and I'm like "WOW! That'd be awesome!" So that was it. I went up and did "Slam Dunk" and "King of The Hill." When I met Dave for the first time, he says, "Hey, maybe we'll work together in the future. I really love your playing." And I said "yeah, that's great" but I just treated it like a session, I didn't treat it like an audition. A week later, the manager calls me up and says, "By the way, that was your audition and you passed with flying colors." So I was like "WHAT?! I'm glad you didn't tell me it was an audition, I woulda been three times as nervous!" So that was it and we started making the record, DLR Band, right after that.

Brian: You also played with Ralph Saenz in Metal Shop...

Ray: Yep

Brian: How would you compare/contrast Ralph and Dave to work with?

Ray: (laughing) Ralph's great cuz he's got the edge - out of all the tribute bands out there, he's definitely got the advantage. He looks like the guy and he sounds great. His voice is amazing. So I think that's why he can pull it off. He really understands the attitude Dave had - the carefree, just fun, good time rock and roll feeling. There's no depression, ya know? A lot of singers came out in the 90's singing about killing themselves. Ralph understands about the party vibe of Van Halen. In a lot of ways, they're very similar, but it's kinda weird because doing Metal Shop gigs, I'm playing with the Dave impersonator, then being out with the real Dave, it was strange for a couple years. I don't do the Metal Shop thing anymore, but when I did, it was kinda strange sometimes.

Brian: How did you and Ralph meet?

Ray: We met through Perfect World Entertainment Company. We both worked for them. It includes Boogie Nights - the disco band, Metal Shop, M80's, Spasmatics...there's a bunch of these bands, about 18 of them coast to coast. I auditioned for Boogie Nights in '96 and I got the gig. Ralph had JUST got the gig, so that's how we met. But I'd heard of him doing the Punks gig. He'd played in some local bands around town.

Brian: Was Brian Young also in that?

Ray: Yeah, he was part of the organization as well.

Brian: Have you ever played with the Punks, or just Metal Shop?

Ray: I've never been in the Atomic Punks ever. People ask me that all the time. They come up to me at shows, "I heard you're in the Punks..." I'm like, "No, it was Brian Young." No, as far as I know, Scott's been the only drummer.

Brian: Cuz I know every once in a while Ralph has somebody fill in if Russ is sick or busy or whatever. But you've never filled in for Scott?

Ray: No, I don't think Scott's missed a gig, to be quite honest with you (laughs). I don't think he has. Even in Metal Shop, I played that for 5 years, and obviously when I'd go on the road for months at a time I'd always have a fill in. But I don't think he's ever done that.

Brian: On our site, we've got all kinds of musicians and I'm sure they'd be totally jazzed to hear you talk about your kit...

Ray: My drum kit? Oh absolutely. I'm endorsed by a wonderful company called Orange County Drum and Percussion, OCDP. They're out of Santa Ana and they're just amazing. Two of them are students of mine, actually, from years ago. They custom make drums. The website is http://www.ocdrum.com, check it out. They have everyone from Adrian Young of No Doubt, Chad Sexton of 311, Travis Barker of Blink 182, John Otto of Limp Bizkit...the roster's huge on there. Their whole schtick is that they make custom drums. So if you want ANYTHING on there - your face branded on the drum - they'll do it. Nothing's impossible for them. But first and foremost, they sound great. They've made me several kits and I can't say enough good things about 'em. I use Sabian cymbals, been endorsed with them since '94 - great, great company. Pro-Mark drumsticks. Drum Workshop drum pedals and hardware. And I use Remo drumheads. Exclusively, all those companies.

Brian: On average, about how many drumsticks do you go through in a show?

Ray: Wow, it all depends on the trees (laughing) My tech just laughs cuz if you've ever met me in person, I'm not that big of a guy, but I break a lotta sticks so I hit very hard. Billy Sheehan was just laughing the other day cuz we got done with the session and we had tracked all these tunes and he walked by my drums and he says, "Good Lord!" And there's this big pile of sawdust and broken trees (laugh) I don't know what the average is, I'd say about maybe 4 pairs a night. Cuz I hit really hard with Dave and it's almost a 2 hour show. But there's nights when I get a set of good sticks that'll last me a while. But there's been nights that I went through 15 pair, so it all depends.

Brian: Do you have any comments on the traditional vs. electronic drums issue?

Ray: Yeah, you know, I had to get into electronics just because I do a lot of sessions and stuff in town - movie soundtracks and commercials - whenever I'm off the road. And I had to get into the electronic version cuz it IS 2004. So I had to get in with it to stay hip. I have an electronic Roland V drum kit here in my house and it's just great. It's got 32 kits in it and you can change anything you want. I don't like the way they're replacing some drummers. I mean, like on Billy's record we had a lot of loops going and I'd play real drums over top of it. He had sections where he's flying loops in and then flying the real drums over top. I love that way. Still a fan of the acoustic though, all in all. Cuz of the feel - you can't get feel off of a digital machine. Ever.

Brian: One of the questions we like to ask in these interviews - If you couldn't be a musician, what would you be?

Ray: A musician. (laughs) I don't know, to tell you the truth. I can't imagine myself doing anything else. I think if my arms would fall off I'd be moving control buttons in the studio with my nose or something. I wouldn't have anything else to do I don't think. Of course I have other interests and things, but I'm pretty far away from sports - I used to play baseball for 9 years. It would have to be something in the electronic world - I'm an electronic gadget freak. Tons of equipment and gear, everything from fancy stereos to just audio gear for stage and home recording and things like that. So it would have to be something in that field.

Brian: When we asked Russ Parrish that question, he said "A drummer."

Ray: (BIG LAUGH) Yeah, that's great...Thanks, Russ. I guess I shoulda said guitar player that... oh, nevermind!!

Brian: Do you do your own website, or does someone do that for you?

Ray: This guy off one of the Dave sites did it a couple years ago. Did a really good job of setting it up and I kind of took it over. I have a friend, Jeff - he actually lives in North Carolina - and he helps me out. He's kind of a webmaster. Most of the stuff I do myself, but he helps me out with the graphics and that.

Brian: Talk a little bit about Hideous Sun Demons.

Ray: Yeah, we put it together, me and Toshi, he's my neighbor. He's only been here for about 4 years - phenomenal guitar player. he can play anything from blues to bluegrass to metal to the Eddie licks to you-name-it. Well, he's right by me, so if I'm ever doing anything, I call him up and say, "Hey Toshi, come over and play lead on this for 10 minutes." We're always writing stuff, nature music - I swear we're gonna put one of those together and sell it in nature stores - cuz we got this real soft sitar stuff where I'm just playing percussion. He's just a beautiful musician. We started writing stuff and his melodies come out so good on a lot of this, we started compiling it and said, "Wow, we should get a bass player and do a trio kind of thing." James (LoMenzo) overheard us one day talking and said, "Wow, that stuff's really great. What IS that?" We told him just an instrumental thing we're thinking about doing. He said, "Oh, I'd love to check it out. Let me come down and put some bass on that." So he did and it just went from there. We started writing stuff really quickly, did the record, now we're debating whether we should put it on a label right now and give the middleman the percentage - cuz we're doing pretty well on our own, sold 1000 copies in Japan. It's going to come out this summer but you can purchase it now on CDBaby.com We're doing a couple gigs in April, got a couple booked right now in LA if you wanna check out my website for the info.

Brian: You have Dave opening for you? (laugh)

Ray: HA! Yeah, Dave Roth's gonna open for us. (still laughing)

Brian: What's Dave like to travel with when you're all not out in the public eye? Do you all ever just go out sightseeing, do the touristy thing?

    

Ray: Ya know what, Dave's been around the globe so many hundreds of times, been there and done it so many times, that he's pretty chill. He likes to work out, ride bicycles and he's in his room a lot. But he's great to hang out with when he's on the bus or we go out to eat or whatever. He's an awesome guy. He's very eccentric though. He's not your normal, everyday person. I've known him for 7 years now. First couple years it took a little bit to get used to. But he's very smart. The guy's knowledge is immense. I learn something every time I talk to him.

Brian: Is he still "Diamond Dave" off camera?

Ray: He still portrays that personality. To do what he's done in the business, to be that eccentric and that different, to bring what he's brought to the table, you can't be that "normal" (laughs) you know what I'm saying? So yeah, he does have some Diamond Dave in him - even when we're talking about my old farm days when I grew up. But he's obviously a little more tame than when he's on stage.

Brian: Whenever we're getting ready to do one of these interviews, we always ask our users for questions. This is one of those. Who is the hardest person to live with on the road?

Ray: haha! The hardest person to live with...(laughing)...good lord...you know what, thank God that Diamond Dave likes to travel in style so a lot of times we'll have separate buses and, of course, we have our own hotel rooms every night - and they're very nice hotels. I wish I could make up a story that 's bad, but there really is no one bad to live with. We all get along like brothers out there. I can honestly say, it's the first band I've been in - probably in my life - where you're not like "oh I don't wanna go to sound check cuz of the bass player" or "that singer's got an attitude." Of course, Dave's got a big ego, but he's Dave Roth, he's allowed, ya know? There's no one really hard to get along with. As long as you're playing 110% every night for Dave, there's no problems. Etiquette on the road is fine. Brian will be playing chess on the bus with Animal, our bodyguard. I'll be trading iPod songs with James. And Toshi will be writing songs on the road. I bring my portable studio out, my 16 track - we'll get together in each other's rooms and write songs. We're always going out to eat together. I wish I had a tragic story for ya (laughs) but I don't. 

Brian: Do you have any particularly funny stories you can share about being on the road with Dave?

Ray: Sheesh, I dunno...every DAY something happens. It always amazes me, people get so starstruck when we're walking through like hotels and airports and stuff, especially with Dave. There's always something funny. This one guy, at the airport one time, just kinda keeping about 10 steps behind Dave the whole time waiting for the right time to ask him for an autograph. He was totally looking off to the right and he just smacked right into a pole. Almost knocked himself out and on the ground. I just happened to turn around and see it. Stuff like that happens all the time. It's hilarious. Man, there's so much stuff, almost too much to mention. Obviously, you all know about the tragic (laugh) stories that happen on the road, especially this past year with Dave getting hit in the face and stuff like that, not funny at all, but a lot of stuff like that happens - dramatic stuff. The road's definitely a different place. When you're living on a moving bus, sometimes going 4 hours, sometimes 12 hours. A lot can happen, whether it be driving in the snow - there's nothing like slipping down the side of a road sideways in a Prevost bus. It's a feeling like you've never had before (laugh)

Brian: I can imagine! I read somewhere that you said while you're all up on stage, everyone looks like they're having a good time and doing their own thing, but Dave is counting every beat of every song....can you talk a little more about that?

    

Ray: Yeah, ya know, he's a perfectionist so even though he's doing his whole schtick up there, he knows exactly every single note that's going on. He knows if one of us isn't on our mikes singing. He's real adamant about the background vocals. You have to be on 'em at every step of the way. And I hail him for that. I think it's great because finally someone that keeps the whole band on their toes. I think that's why we get so many good compliments after the shows. There's rarely a show - I mean not one that I can think of - where people are saying wow the band was bad or something. Because we all want to be our best, and every one does, but with Dave it's a whole 'nother story. I always tell people in the business - even my famous friends that have sold millions of records - they're always like "Wow you play with David Lee Roth?" They're even kinda starstruck over him and they're famous. Because he's so particular about what he wants and I think that's why he's been so successful. I mean, think about it, who's able to still go out there? I mean most careers are what, 4 years maybe? Maybe 6 and then a reunion thing? The guys like him that are still able to go out and fill big venues like we have, you gotta be doing something right. We always vibe off each other on stage. Even though it looks like we're all doing our own thing, we're always catching each other's eye, there's always eye contact. The flow of the show has to be right on, there isn't a spare second, there's no breaks in the songs. Even when Dave's talking or rapping, there's still music going on in the background. It's very, uh, not military-like, but it's strict in that way - but in a fun kinda way. But we still have a blast doing it, that's the great thing about it. It's not like there's this tension or anything. Does that make sense?

Brian: Absolutely...

Ray: (laughs) I'm rambling about stuff, I have no idea...

Brian: No, that's cool, just say what's on your mind.

Ray: Tell me shut up whenever you want

(both laughing)

Brian: What's the one thing you can't live without while you're touring?

Ray: Hmmm (thinking) I guess the iPod. I listen to my music constantly...or my Walkman. I'm trying to think what else...well, certain food we request on the riders. I'm a sweet freak, I love junk food. I'm always asking for chocolate and they're yelling, "Who the hell ordered all these Skittles and Snicker bars?!" and I'm like, "Uh, that was me."

Brian: That leads into another one of our questions. We've all heard of Van Halen's "no brown M&M's" clause in their rider. What are some of the interesting or off the wall things in the riders at the venues for you guys?

Ray: Well, if I see green M&M's, I upset every table in there. No, I'm just kidding, I don't do that. (laugh). It's pretty healthy, Dave likes to eat healthy kind of food. He's definitely a meat eater, so there's always meat there. I was a vegetarian for a couple years, but not with Dave Roth. If you're eating with him, you're gonna have some serious prime rib going on backstage, some good pastas, stuff like that. But there's always vegetables. We eat semi-healthy, you have to on the road because you're dealing with so many different weather conditions and climates that if you start getting yourself run down, not getting nourished enough, you're gonna get sick. So it's really important that you eat right, so there's always good stuff back there. But, like I said, I'm always trying to sneak the sweets. I try to get there first and get 'em outta the way so no one can see 'em (laugh)

Brian: Here's another one of the questions from our users. Steve Vai once said, "When you play for someone like David Lee Roth, blowjobs grow on trees." Does that still hold true?

Ray: (big laugh) Wow, I can't say that with the new girlfriend around -haha. Let's just say the buffet is there if you want to partake, I choose not to.

Brian: Ok, good answer, good answer. Talk about the recording sessions for Diamond Dave. Did you guys work in the studio as the band as a whole, or each separately... 

Ray: It depends. On the Diamond Dave CD, the bass and the drums are definitely together. We do play all in the room at the same time. Sometimes Dave'll wanna overdub a guitar part or change it. But the drums and bass are definitely the first to go down. Me, more so, and sometimes there's bass overdubs. But James and I play really well together and a lot of times we'll get that first or second take where, if we're well rehearsed and have done our homework, it's really easy to go in and get it done. So if Dave wants to change a part, we go back in and do it again or rehearse it in the studio. And then Brian would come in and Toshi put a rhythm on a couple tunes. We check the tempo settings and see if it needs to be sped up or slowed down. So that's pretty much the process. We just do it 'til it sounds right. 

Brian: On the Diamond Dave CD, how did you guys decide which songs got on there? Was that a group consensus or...

Ray: Nope, that's all Dave. He's totally the boss of that. We recorded probably 25 songs and 4 that actually got selected. Quite a few of the originals that got recorded, hopefully, we end up using those down the road for a new rock record. We're hoping to do that. I'm hoping anyways, personally. Cuz a lot of covers ended up on this record, which are great although I think everybody wants to hear Dave and us. It ended up a lot better than I thought actually. When we ended up with not a lot of original tunes, I got bummed a little bit, but then I heard the record and realized how good it was. But I'm a big fan of Dave's writing, so I love the DLR Band CD we did and everything he's done in the past. I really like the way he writes melodies and lyrics cuz they're not the everyday, common way to do it.

Brian: How much input do you guys get?

Ray: Dave's very open to opinions, like if I bring new drums in I'll say, "Hey Dave, what do you think of this? What do you think of this snare?" He's great, he won't just shut you down without a fair shot, he'll always give you the option to present what you have. If you have any ideas, he's definitely there to listen. Like I said, I just got a brand new drum kit. I just used it for the last 5 shows we did at the end of last year and I said, "Hey, what do you think of the new kit?" and he said, "It's great. It looks tough, it sounds amazing. Sounds better than your last one." But I always ask for his approval, cuz like I said, Dave's so particular about things, you can't just go in and surprise him with anything. He has to know what's going on at all times, which I don't blame him, I would too. But we definitely have a say.

Brian: Does that apply to the writing too?

Ray: Well, like I said though, almost all of them were covers on that last record so that hasn't really applied yet. We'll see down the road when this next record comes out.

Brian: Has your mom met Dave and, if so, what does she think of him?

Ray: Yeah, my parents both have and my mom actually got starstruck. It's kinda funny cuz she's been out to LA many times and I've introduced her to everyone from Drew Carey to Meat Loaf. I mean, I know a lot of people out here and I've never seen her get more starstruck than when she met Dave (laugh). I think basically cuz I've had him hanging on my wall since I was 12. I had the door size (poster) from the US Festival hanging on my wall forever, at least 7 or 8 years growing up. So she'd seen that poster all the time and then for her son to be playing with him and actually go backstage and talk to him...

Brian: Speaking of being starstruck, I know you've played with a lot of big names, met a lot of people. Is there anyone in particular that you still look back and say, "WOW! I just can't believe I actually met/played with ______?

Ray: It's still Dave, it really is. I'm not saying that just cuz I'm in the band, not kissing ass whatsoever. It's true. He's still the guy. I look out and go "WHAT?!" It's unbelievable, that's really Diamond Dave. I was also a huge Jake E. Lee fan, I'm a huge Ozzy fan from way back. Jake E. Lee played on the Ultimate Sin and the Bark At The Moon records. I just remember sitting in my underwear in Pennsylvania on the farm, watching the video tape of the Ultimate Sin video and just looking at Jake E. Lee and going "that's the best guitar player on Earth" even better than Eddie Van Halen (laugh). Your readers won't like to hear that, but I just love the way he plays. Unfortunately, I haven't heard too much from him lately. But when I got that gig in '94, that was another gig I was like WOW. I had such an admiration for his playing. But there's a lot of other artists I really appreciate their music. And Billy, just this past month doing his record. That was huge for me because I was such a huge Talas fan and the Mr. Big days and all the Dave stuff, the Niacin records he played on, and he did the new Steve Vai tour. He's one of my favorite bass players on the planet. Getting to play with him was like - wow. Cuz he plays with every monster drummer under the sun from Terry Bozio to Dennis Chambers to Pat Torpey. He only plays with the best. So for him to ask me to do his whole record, I was completely blown away.

Brian: One question I suppose the users are gonna come unglued if I don't at least ASK...and you can dodge this bullet if you want...

Ray: IS VAN HALEN GETTING BACK TOGETHER??? (laughs) I was hoping it would happen before, when I went and toured with the Nixons, cuz we (Dave's band) got let go for a little bit. I was praying it would happen cuz, for myself, I wanted to see it, but also just to get it outta their system. Cuz all these bands had gotten back together. Now I think it's a little too late. A lot of the die hards, I know, don't really care if it happens now. I'm sure there's a lot of people that wanna still see it, but the buzz has definitely worn off for it. But like I said, I was hoping it would happen in 2000, cuz I knew it wouldn't last that long (laugh) and then we'd be back in. I left to Dallas to tour with the Nixons and sure enough, I got a call from Dave about 3 months into that tour. He's like, "I need you back" and I'm like "OH NO (laugh) I'm already committed to this band. I thought you were doing Van Halen." But I was glad he called me back.

Brian: The Sam & Dave Tour, was there the animosity between the two that the press tried to put on, or was that more just media?

Ray: No (laugh) it was there. It was there, unfortunately. I mean, they're great, the band's great. Ate dinner with the band almost every day, even Sam a couple times. But you get two...well, like Dave quoted, "Two big dogs, one dog bowl." They're both fighting for that. In some regards it made the show that much better because they both went out just wanting to completely annihilate and conquer. So it made the shows much tighter, but the fun vibe wasn't there as much as I would have liked. There were times when I was standing on the side of the stage, next to Michael Anthony, and we're talking, and I'm looking over and seeing Sam....it was so surreal for me. I just wanted it to be a little more fun. But we definitely had a blast doing it. It coulda lasted another 6 months, I think, if it wasn't for all the animosity going on. But, hey, what are ya gonna do...

Brian: So, you've met Michael, Sam, obviously Dave...have you met any of the other members of Van Halen?

Ray: Yeah, I met Alex Van Halen at the taco stand one time in Encino with his, well, now ex-wife. That was a trip. That was right when I got the Dave gig. I'd seen him at NAMM show conventions and stuff like that, never approached him. But it was just me, him and his girl standing in line at the taco stand. I just couldn't resist, I had to go up and say, "Alex, I'm a big fan and I appreciate all your work through the years and it's kinda strange, but I'm kinda playing with David Lee Roth." (laughing) And he goes, "REALLY? That's interesting!" And he'd actually heard "Slam Dunk" and complimented my drumming so that blew me away. He said, "I actually heard that song. You're an awesome drummer." I said, "Aw, I appreciate that. Coming from you that means a lot." That was it though, that's the only time I ever met him. Mike was great - Michael Anthony is a sweetheart. Talked to him quite a bit on the Sam & Dave Tour. I've never met Ed, seen him several times, but I never wanted to bother the guy. It's been the wrong situation. Me being in the business on a smaller level than those guys, I know what it's like when I'm getting approached by fans when I'm eating or something like that. I'll always talk to people, but sometimes it's annoying. Eddie's always been in one of those situations where I didn't wanna bother him.

Brian: Pretty much the last question I have here...50 years from now, what would you like to be remembered for?

Ray: Hmmm...Just that I contributed to the music scene. That I never wanted to be "the best" at what I do, just wanted to be a damn good part of it and provide great drumming for the artists that I love. And the music that I write, hopefully it touches somebody in some way, ya know what I mean? Like my influences did for me, cuz I know what it feels like. I get letters from France and Germany and you-name-it and people say "Wow I really liked this song on the Hideous Sun Demons record, it makes me feel a certain way." That blows me away. That's better than any other compliment I could get. I guess I'd just like to be remembered for providing great quality, entertaining drumming and playing the best that I can. I still wanna be playing 'til I'm 90, bald and fat, sitting in a smoky blues club somewhere.

Brian: Anything else you want to add?

Ray: To your readers, please come out and continue to support our shows cuz we do appreciate you coming out. Obviously, if it wasn't for you guys, we wouldn't be there. There will be some recording this year, hopefully, and check that out. And I have 3 new records coming out, including Billy Sheehan's. Check out my website and keep a lookout for my new CDs.

Brian: Alright Ray, thanks very much for your time.

Ray: Thank you.

Interview Date: February, 2004 | Transcribed by: Michelle Williams
Boxed Quotations from Ray Luzier live chat, Sept. 2003
used by permission, courtesy of World Without Borders & WWBChat