Interview With: Eric Skye

-What is your musical background? Do you have a musical family or did you just fall into guitar playing all on your own?

I did not have a musical family. Christmas 1972, I was eight years old, and my grandmother gave my older sister and I each guitars. Mine was a plastic archtop from Sears and Roebuck, and mostly just a toy. But my sister’s, which I quickly took over, was an okay inexpensive classical guitar. This was in Bucks County, Pennsylvania. My father took a job in the Silicon Valley in 1980 as I was going into middle school. That's where I had my first lessons. I studied classical guitar for a little while, and also jazz. I was very interested in blues, and the contemporary fingerstyle that was happening in the Bay Area at the time via the Windham Hill guys. Kind of went on from there.

-What's the first song you ever remember hearing?

I don't know what the first song I remember hearing was, but I can tell you the first song I ever figured out was the Beatles’ Day Tripper. God only knows how I figured it out. I don't even know how I figured out how to tune the guitar. I don't know how I figured out anything honestly. When I was a kid in Pennsylvania in the early 1970’s I literally had no resources other than maybe like catching Roy Clark on TV once in a while. Just seeing somebody play the thing inspired me for weeks at a time. Somehow I figured it out. But later, when I did have lessons, I vividly recall seeing my teacher bend a string, what huge epiphany! It’s amazing to watch my eleven year old son just go onto Youtube to see how to play a tune now. Not entirely sure that’s a good thing though.

-What's coming up for you, Eric? What are you working on now and where do you feel your music is headed?

I have a lot of new stuff coming down the pike this year. I have two albums in the can that I am particularly excited about. I am in the mixing stage for both. The first is a collection of traditional fiddle tunes played on flatpicked acoustic guitar, my Santa Cruz Guitar Co 00-skye model of course, and mandolin, via my good friend Tim Connell. We recorded with vintage microphones onto two inch tape, and I think the tones are pretty incredible.

The other album I recorded recently was with guitarist Mark Goldenberg. Mark is a in Los Angeles based session player and sidemen two stars like Jackson Browne, Willie Nelson, Bonnie Raitt, the list goes on and on. He was also one of Ted Greene's personal students for years. This is a very intimate acoustic guitar album. We recorded the whole thing in about three hours. It's almost all single takes. We each wrote four tunes. Lots of slow tempos and weird chords, I'm sure we’ll sell least a dozen of these records! Lastly, I'm beginning to focus on playing with a trio of featuring drummer Carlton Jackson, who has worked with Charlie Hunter, Bill Frisell, and others, and Tye North on the upright bass. Tye was a founding member of the acoustic jam band Leftover Salmon. We’re in the process of uploading some new Youtube videos of live shows. So be on the look out for those.

-What do you think about online music sharing? Do you ever give your music away for free? Why?

I'm all for sharing if it's my decision to do so. Like most people in the world I prefer to be paid for my efforts. I don't play for free, or giveaway recorded music, unless I myself see it moving the ball down the field in some way for me.

- If you could go back in time, would you do anything differently in any of your recordings?

If I could go back in time, I’m sure I would do just about everything differently. I really haven't listened to any of my albums since making them. I just don't see music as a static thing, it's a verb to me -always in action, moving, changing. I am pretty loose, not too uptight about being sloppy sometimes, not afraid to reach for the fruit and hear the branch cracking... And yet, I'm also pretty perfectionistic -if that makes any sense. And self-conscious too, really never content with my playing. But it's a good thing, I wake up every day ready to work to be better at what I do.

-What would you be doing if you were not a musician?

Boy, that's a tough one. Hard to imagine any other life. I mean it be nice if I did something that meant I could drive a nicer car, go on big family vacations, etc, but music was my calling, and I got it bad. It's kinda like being a nun.

- Thank you for this conversation Eric. Is there any piece of musical advice you would like to give to our readers before we finish?

My advice to is to learn as much about the instrument, techniques, and music theory, as possible. You really do need to learn the physical part of it, and you need to map it all out. But all that said, the most important things in my mind, which are often neglected even by advanced players, are the stuff that the listener really cares, knowingly or not. The quality of your sound -your tone. Your ability to play in time, and with time -the way your music feels is it least is important is how it sounds. And lastly your style. It's never too early to use your preferences to guide you to finding your own voice in the art form. If you’re a writer, a chef, a film director, an architect… if you don’t have your own perspective, you’re own voice, what do you really have? Technique? theory? Cool gear? Honestly, the listener

really doesn’t care about that stuff.

#interview