Bass Player – Leland Sklar

I’ve known about Leland Sklar my entire adult life.  Even so, I googled him and there is a mountain of info. So, I’m not going to tell you how great of a musician he is or how successful he’s been. You can find that out for yourself. I’m generally not interested in those kinds of interviews anyway, so I don’t ask questions regarding career or technique or comments loosely concealed as ego baiting. Instead, I am more interested in what a person, like Lee, thinks about the world that we all share.

That we all share!

He said several things along the lines of – unity within diversity is a must in order for humanity to survive. And I agree with him.

I will say that the sheer number of recordings that he has played on is staggering. And whether you know it or not, you’ve been listening to him your entire adult life, from James Taylor to Phil Collins to Vanessa Carlton.

Without further ado…Lee Sklar.

 

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

My favorite sandwich used to be the Rueben at the Carnegie Deli in NYC, but I have not eaten meat in many years now so that is out. Not sure what to say at this point.

Q: What is your favorite meal that your mom makes?

My mom has passed away but back in the day she made a great meat loaf. Again, that would be an issue now without eating meat.

Q: How did you meet your best friend?

In college……………. married her!

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

I always wanted to play music. I studied piano starting at 5 years old. Have never stopped. Changed to bass at 12 years old when I entered junior high school and there were many pianists, but they needed an upright bassist.

Q: How did you pursue it?

By doing it every day…. when I was a kid, I was not pursuing it. I was just doing it. As an adult I focused on it as my profession.

Q: Did you have a mentor or mentors? Who were they and what did they do for you?

The only person that I would have considered a mentor was my junior high school music teacher. He is who brought me to the bass and got me started with it. His name was Mr. Ted Lynn. You can never underestimate the importance of great teacher. Many influences have come into my life, but he is who I would consider a mentor.

Q: What do you dream of doing or, are you already doing it? If so, what is the goal? 

I have been living my dream for over 50 years now and I have no intentions of slowing down. I am fortunate to do what I love and with people I deeply care about. I pinch myself every day knowing this and still get excited when the phone rings and there is a new gig.

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

Bitchin’…. you did it!

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

Love what you do and do what you love….

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

Compassion for each other….

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

So much is in danger of disintegrating it goes far beyond YELP…we are living in very difficult times.

Q: How is society getting things right?

When people focus on what we need for humanity as a whole they are then getting it right but it’s becoming rarer and rarer these days. Polarization is killing us.

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

Open eyes and open hearts. Understanding that diversity is what makes each of us special and to embrace that rather than using it as a wall to separate us.

Q: Do we still need religion?

I have never felt we need religion.

Q: Do you have hope for the future?

Absolutely. If not, why go on? It is a great challenge but we for the sake of humanity should be up to it.

Q: Hot topic of the week: This is an open discussion. Could be Gay marriage or Confederate flag, Donald Trump, for example. 

Right now, the hot topic is saving humanity from this deadly virus that is plaguing the planet.

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 to their advertising.  

Music, friendship and animals……….

 Alternate Questions:

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

The only Americans who are not immigrants are the indigenous people who were here before any European set foot on this land. Our history is stained with so much misery and horror towards other people we have little to be proud of when talking about immigration. Diversity makes the world a better place as far as I am concerned and to narrow that down lessons us as a people and a species. So much hate and fear are killing us.

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

I do not know if scarcity is what things are based on. There is an arrogance of the human being that this magnificent orb in space is here just for us and everything else on this planet is here for our needs. We will eventually be removed from life here for we are terrible custodians, but the world will go on and probably be a far better place without our inability to co-habit this world. Things could change for the better, but I see little sign that this happening on a scale necessary to save our time here.

3: What would you say to someone just starting out?

Do your very best to be a good person and find something that brings you joy and do it to the best of your abilities.