Skunk is my call sign. Jeff Baxter/Age. I recently had a lengthy conversation with the Hall Of Famer about his stellar career, his new record, and the artists he has worked with. I actually traded him his bad, beat up bullshit guitar for a really nice Stratocaster way back in 1963, I guess it was, when I was working on 48th Street in New York in the music stores. Jeff Baxter Recognized For Preventing Scams In The Online Community. So thats kind of how it started. Inspired by a friend's work on an op-ed about NATO, Baxter sat down and punched out a five-page paper on the Aegis ship-based antiaircraft missile system, arguing it could be converted to a missile-defense system. At the risk of sounding slightly disingenuous and maybe, you know, I dont mean to sound snarky but for the most part I think this solo project is as close to that as Ive been able to get, because number one, as a studio musician, youre doing it, the guys looking at the clock, so you use your skills and they expect you to play your best and you do. In the ever-evolving world of digital marketing, paid . Oh, and to top it all off? Robert Fripp from King Crimson also sat down a lot. Maybe he was working for the "Skunk Works"? HE is playing guitar; he is the Bon Jovi leader guitaist. What is Doobie real name? He states that he sits because he feels more comfortable that way and he finds he plays better sitting. I wanted to delve into it, I wanted to see what there was there, because I thought that the more vocabulary that you have, the better you could describe the emotion that youre trying to convey. You should do it. I said, Are you kidding me? and he said no. Its like when you read a book when youre a kid: Jack and Jill went up the hill to fetch a pail of water. I think for some people being in a band is their whole book. Its funny, Ill be on the phone talking to some of my colleagues at the Pentagon and maybe a couple of friends are around me and I have to answer the phone, and Ill say, Okay, I need you to get ahold of Balls, I need you to get ahold of Bam Bam and I need them to call me tonight on this project. And theyll look at me and say, What are you talking about? (laughs). He certainly had a military framework but he saw outside of that because he had to, to be creative and be able to do things that appealed to the greatest number of people; you had to stretch out your templet, so to speak, about how you related to people. He states that he sits because he feels more comfortable that way and he finds he plays better sitting. Around the Civil War. Why was Jeff Baxter skunk? Who is Doobie signed with? He was the head of creative, just like, I guess it was Don Draper. Besides, at the time, I was way too busy with studio work and touring with other folks and doing research and development on electronic stuff for Gibson and Fender and Akai and Roland. And he was a great guy, as well as also playing with the Doobie Brothers. Who was the most down-to earth person youve worked with? They had to take a break mid-set because of sound issues. Incredible artist. So it all came together around the time I was eleven/twelve years old. Id like to explore getting into law enforcement. And I said, Sure I can help you with that. I was LAPD for fifteen years so I hooked him up with a couple of friends of mine, US Marshals, and after that conversation, I had called him up about a month later and he said, So what are you doing? And I said, Well, Im working on a solo project. And he said, Wow, Id like to play on it. I said, In a heartbeat! (laughs). I sit most of the time. That was my dad, without the issues (laughs). He is famous for being a Guitarist. It was on this day, August 3 rd, in 1974 that guitarist Jeff Baxter quit the band Steely Dan when the other founding members decided to stop touring. The people that went and fought and died in WWII, somehow or other that has been branded as the good war and certainly Ive never heard any argument that holds any water as to why you would want Adolph Hitler or Hideki Tojo to be running the world. This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. His career and GRAMMY history were celebrated on the television special Stevie Wonder: Songs In The Key Of Life An All-Star GRAMMY Salute in 2015. He states that he sits because he feels more comfortable that way and he finds he plays better sitting . Later music career He has worked as a touring musician for Elton John, Linda Ronstadt, and Billy Vera and the Beaters. While Skunk didn't use many Found inside Page Baxter, however, was not someone to sit still when he saw an opportunity. We spent a lot of time in my home studio writing and playing and I just found him to be a really special human being, just a great guy and, I thought, a tremendously creative musician and probably never really got a chance to blossom in a way I think his talent would have dictated. Im not sure its a genre as much as we entered a state some years ago with sort of the grunge phase of music, around the time where electronic music, the grunge phase, etc, seemed to provide less inspiration to musicians to become not only proficient but excellent at their craft. Ive been doing that for years. Its very Celtic, I think, in its execution and its structure. Certainly, I wanted things to be right and I would spend the time preparing if I could, not only in terms of the music but in terms, as you say, tone, arrangements, things like that. Ladies and gentlemen, Mr. Lazy N. Shabby: If my guitar was that big, i'd be sitting too. To want to play guitar (laughs). My dad had a mustache for years. He is the son of Marjorie J. I've never gigged. Jeff "Skunk" Baxter has accomplished something as rare as a Haley's Comet sighting in the musical universe: being part of two astronomically successful and influential rock bands, Steely Dan and the Doobie Brothers, and also being a first-call studio cat who's recorded with a multigenred galaxy of other megastars. Everybody just kind of wandered out to play and it was beautiful. Also when he was with the doobies he often wore headphones to get "a better mix" which the monitors wouldnt give him at the time. So I learned to play it and then many years later, Les and I became friends when I was about fourteen or fifteen working in music stores in New York, and we started doing gigs together at Fat Tuesdays and the Iridium, just playing together. I think the first song I learned was Walk Dont Run by The Ventures, which is probably the first song that 90% of all guitar players of my era learned to play when they were kids. It's another must-have if you're a. Robert Fripp from King Crimson also sat down a lot. Why does Jeff Baxter sit while playing? He played the Star Spangled Banner because he WAS a patriot. 2 Did Jeff Skunk Baxter play with Linda Ronstadt? He accidentally peed on someones leg and the guy called him a Skunk and the name stuck Main Stratocaster Guitar Discussion Forum. He has helped over a dozen entrepreneurs become 6 and 7 figure per year earners, and manages over $3,000,000 per year . Outmatched and outgunned, Baxter came up with the idea of an oil-eating bacteria which rendered Saudi Arabian oil supplies worthless and saw oil-dependent U. Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. When you think of some of the most well-respected musicians in the business, its a good bet that Jeff Baxter, better known as Skunk, ranks very high on that list. No, but we put our heads together, CJ and I, and we got this done. 9 Who is the conductor with the most Grammy Awards? I think my dad was not 100% thrilled because he was five years regular/twenty years reserve in the US Army. And Jeff Baxter is 100% legit. 72years (December 13, 1948) Baxter knows his way around a good song and how to make it great. the [wet] one kept repeating, according to the Creem piece. Jeffrey Allen "Skunk" Baxter is an American guitarist, known for his stints in the rock bands Steely Dan and The Doobie Brothers during the 1970s and Spirit in the 1980s. So when we met and played together, afterwards he said, Listen, can you help me with something. The Gear Page is the leading online community and marketplace for guitars, amps, pedals, effects and associated gear. 7 Why does Jeff Baxter sit while playing? 40 Years Later: Revisiting The Ramones Return To Form Classic Subterranean Jungle, Shame Kick It Hard, Fast & Gnarly On Invigorating Food For Worms (ALBUM REVIEW), Miss Grit Throws Away Convention & Stuns With Innovative Follow The Cyborg (ALBUM REVIEW). Why does Jeff Baxter sit while playing? Then my day job with the Department Of Defense just really didnt leave a lot of time. So it never really occurred to me, you know. Location: USA. Check out his military exploits here: Can't say for surebut come on, Skunk + Doobie Bros.? So that was the same with guitar. I grew up in Mexico City so I wanted a bicycle cause I wanted to be able to ride around but my parents gave me a guitar and it pissed me off. So if you listen to what Clint Black did, hes an incredible musician and a big Steely Dan fan, when he walked into the studio and he played that opening guitar riff, it was like, okay, you get it, this is going to be totally different. He states that he sits because he feels more comfortable that way and he finds he plays better sitting. Just my own expectations/aesthetic. The criteria for being a part of this project with myself and CJ was that you have to agree to write with the two of us and write something completely original AND do something thats way out of your wheelhouse. I wasnt sure if it was me playing or me playing for my dad or my dad. McDonald flew out to Louisiana, joined the band, and added piano parts to the songs as he sang. Did you ever see Mad Men? He was a huge fan of Dixieland King Oliver, Louis Armstrong, Pete Fountain, Al Hirt that whole genre of music. Michael McDonald recalled the moment he told his Doobie Brothers bandmates that he didn't think the group had a future, leading to their farewell tour of 1982. No, not the famous guitarist from the 1970's. This Jeff Baxter is the mentor that many people looking to make big money from home look to. The people at Woodstock thought it was an ode to anti-war, your grandpa thought it was an insult; neither of which was the truth. The cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. He had previously worked with the band in the studio, adding. Jeff "Skunk" Baxter has had the kind of music career that most kids jamming in their parents' garages could only dream of. Skunk is the worlds greatest. Great song though isn't itto be honest when I watch that video I have to watch it about 8 times in a row because it endlessly fascinates me!! Why did Steely Dan and Doobie Brothers guitarist Jeff Skunk Baxter often sit in a chair while performing? How did geography influence the writings of Hawthorne Simms and Cooper? Jeff Skunk Baxter was born on the 13th of December, 1948. Michael Hossack From his work with Steely Dan, The Doobies, and his solo Hot Stuff to his recent work. So what made you think of him and that hed be a perfect fit? Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features. Late night noodling accounts for the 10% couch time. 1 Why was Jeff Baxter fired from Steely Dan? When I first met Humberto Cisneros, and later on Johnny Ortega, yeah, it was, wow, these guys are like selling records, doing gigs, hugely famous, theyre all over TV and theyre doing huge concerts. What a nutty setup. His playing is so unique and experimental that, to this day, no one has even come close to sounding like him. Maybe thats why Walter Becker, in his famous list of Phrases to Avoid During a Recording Session, included this one: Skunk called, hes on his way down.. I remember after finishing that, sitting there and being enveloped in the moment. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics". Im a guitar player, a steel player, an acoustic player and thats what I do best. A Bodhisattva is a human who has reached a level of perfect enlightenment, as the Buddha did (whether or not by listening to righteous guitar solos), and can leave physical existence and the material world behind, but chooses to remain in human form in . When you go there, theres something about it that will stir your DNA. 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