Jeremy co-wrote one of the greatest love songs ever: “I Try,” by Macy Gray. I say one of the greatest because it’s tasteful without being cheesy. Well done, Buddy! We can forgive the ’80s classics from Journey, but too often love songs are what bands do because they have a record deal and the labels believe the public is shallow.

Maybe so, but that’s a bum out!

I first met Jeremy while I was touring with Macy Gray in the late ’90s on her record “On How Life Is.” We dragged these huge Leslie speaker cabs and old Rhodes pianos, which often broke down, to my annoyance. And I didn’t understand why we just didn’t plug in a sampler; they’re small and light after all… until I heard Jeremy play.

Then it all made sense!

He has a vibe to him. I’m not sure words can describe his playing without you actually hearing him, but often times, when a musician is solo, I tune out. But I never did with Jeremy. I found his chord voicing to be, for lack of a better word, tasty.

I lost track of him for a few years after our work with Macy. Then a few of us from back then got together for dinner. By this time he was in Fitz and the Tantrums and they were coming up pretty fast with killer songs like “The Walker.”

And what a great band too!

Don’t believe me? Go listen to their new single, “HandClap.”

What a killer track!

Recently Jeremy dropped by and recorded some Rhodes on a Skeleton Dance song and, once again… tasty. Needless to say, I am a fan and lucky for me, he’s a good friend, too.

Without further ado, Jeremy Rezumna…

 

Q: What is your favorite sandwich and who makes the best one?

J.R. Oh yeah. The Godmother from Bay Cities in Santa Monica – with hot peppers.

Q: What is your favorite meal your mom makes?

J.R. My mom… shit. Let me think for a second. She makes a mean chocolate banana bread.

Q: How did you meet your best friend?

J.R. I met him at a broken down piano during summer camp when I was ten. His name is Chris Joyner. He and I would try and beat each other to the piano. We’d fight over the lower octaves, because those were in tune. I feel like we finally made it when both of our bands played Madison Square Garden at the same time. He was playing with Jason Mraz and Fitz opened up. That was great! He’s the current keyboard player in Heart.

Q: When or how did you find what you wanted to do?

J.R. Um, when I was in the 4^th grade, I started playing piano and I realized that if you played the right songs, the girls would hang out and sing. From then I knew what I wanted to do.

Q: How did you pursue it?

J.R.  I just played as many bands as I could. I taught myself how to play and hauled a bunch of vintage keys around L.A. for year and years.

Q: Did you have a mentor/mentors in pursuing it? 

J.R. My high school choir teacher, Mrs. Badran, was a big encouragement. And also my junior high school teacher, Mrs. Unclear. They were big mentors. And my mom.

Q: What do you dream of doing or are you doing it?

J.R. Ever since I was 14 and Purple Rain came out, I always wanted to be Prince’s keyboard player, Dr. Fink. But also, later when I was on my first tour, I met a guy who played for Paula Cole. He was also writing with her and I knew that I wanted to do that.

Q: What would your 15-year-old-self say to you now?

J.R. My 15-year-old self would be proud of my older self, because I ended up doing everything that I wanted to at 15. There is a dark side that you might not anticipate.

Q: If life were a person what would you say?

J.R. Hey, man. Let me buy you a drink and scratch my back and I’ll scratch yours, cause you know, life can be a good friend or it can be an enemy.

Q:  If you were in charge of the world and you have no restrictions, real or imagined, what is the one thing you would give it?

J.R. Empathy.

Q: Has morality disintegrated to the point that we now need Yelp for people?

J.R. Yes. Unfortunately that’s probably true, but it wouldn’t help because of fake reviews.

Q: How is society getting things right?

J.R. Um, that’s a good question. I would say that technology can be used for good or bad, but when we use it for good‒for example, communicating or getting people the things that they need‒those are the times that we are getting it right.

Q:  What do people need in order to see each other as equals?

J.R. It goes back to empathy. It ALL goes back to empathy.

Q: Do we still need religion?

J.R. We need to NOT have religion.

Q: Do you have hope for the future?

 J.R. I did until the recent election cycle. Now I’m starting to lose faith in humanity.

Hot topic of the week:

This is an open discussion. Could be gay marriage or Confederate flag, Donald Trump, for example.

J.R. Gay marriage: 100 percent for it. And I find it hard to believe that anyone gives a shit.

1: Trump: Whether he wins or loses, [he] has already done irreparable damage to this country because he has created a blueprint for idiots and racists to run things. And if he doesn’t win, there will be another version of him that will.

2: Police shooting of black folks: Some of what I’ve seen is abhorrent and if you’re going to shoot someone who is unarmed, who is not trying to harm you, [that] is one of the lowest things a person can do. But we also need to look at things case by case.

Q: What are three things that work for you: For example, I can’t find a good razor. Because of a near unbridled need for massive profits, I find that many products don’t live up their advertising. What works for you?

J.R. Honestly, Nord keyboards and Roland keyboards are incredibly reliable, well made and they will always be in my arsenal. Officine Creative boots. Comfortable and they are awesome. Had a pair forever. My dad’s Hamilton watch.

More thought-provoking questions:

1:  Do Americans have the right to complain about immigration?

 J.R. No, because we are a country of immigrants. That’s what we are based on. That’s what we all are.

2: If our value system is based on scarcity then what of a human life, now that the population is in the billions?

J.R. I would say there are enough people that believe life is worthless that are causing problems, but I don’t think that one life is less valuable than another.

3: Would life be easier if racism were accurate?

J.R. Whether you have racism or not, it won’t make a difference because you will always have a full spectrum of people. And I think race itself has a lot less to do with who people are, than circumstances.