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A rock band used to be four guys and a drummer. Now it’s five guys sitting around reading manuals!

Bill Bruford

I seldom play in a trio, but acoustic music is likely to be lighter, quicker, and quieter.
BILL BRUFORD

Acoustic Acoustics Music Play
We used to drink an awful lot of alcohol.
BILL BRUFORD

Alcohol Awful Fear
We were from totally different social backgrounds. This is what is very hard for an American to understand, but we could have been five guys from Mars.
BILL BRUFORD

Country Different Guy Hard
Entertainment is about telling everybody that everything is alright but music is on the side of the upsetters and that’s where I’m at.
BILL BRUFORD

Entertainment Music Sides
So he kind of nudged me and sort of prodded me into it. I picked it up slowly. Then I learned more about chords and harmony and I just kept adding to that.
BILL BRUFORD

Adding Harmony Learnt More Provided Rugged
At the end of the whole day of working with people you want some privacy.
BILL BRUFORD

End People Privacy Want Whole
A rock band used to be four guys and a drummer. Now it’s five guys sitting around reading manuals!
BILL BRUFORD

Drummer Guy Reading Rocks
I don’t really remember a whole lot of sex, drugs and rock n’ roll, really.
BILL BRUFORD

Drug Remember Rocks Sex
I warm naturally to the drummer whose ideas and approach are strong, even if he doesn’t quite have the ability to carry them out.
BILL BRUFORD

Ability Drummer Ideas Strong
I didn’t write any music at all, and then, I remember Jon Anderson being very insistent saying that there were two kinds of musicians: the ones who wrote music and the ones who didn’t.
BILL BRUFORD

Musician Remember Two Writing
Holding on to some of your uniqueness is the trick instead of surrendering it at the Academy of Contemporary We’re Gonna Make You a Star.
BILL BRUFORD

Holding Stars Tricks Uniqueness
This amateurism however, can sometimes be helpful in forging a style; you have to work around your weaknesses.
BILL BRUFORD

Helpful Style Weakness
If I was hearing something I couldn’t do, I would figure out how to do it.
BILL BRUFORD

Figures Hearing Something
Second edition of Earthworks I have the more traditional compositional approach, namely I write a piece from the piano.
BILL BRUFORD

Approach Piano Pieces Writing
But what I think my emphasis is, is on the fact that I like music a lot.
BILL BRUFORD

Emphasis Facts Lot Thinking
The best practice you can get is on the bandstand, but in between gigs I feel I have to stay in shape.
BILL BRUFORD

Best Gigs Practices Shapes
And we’d drink huge amounts of scotch and coke, which is a ghastly sweet drink… And now people don’t drink nearly as much, for good reason. We’re all a little wiser.
BILL BRUFORD

Good People Scotch Sweet
And I like messing around in the engine room of music. Seeing what happens in the rhythm section area.
BILL BRUFORD

Areas Rhythm Rooms
Plus I am being hounded by all the fabulous new drummers, Bill Stewart at the head of the pack.
BILL BRUFORD

Bills Drummer Fabulous
Close to the Edge, Red, One of a kind, Discipline, Earthworks, The Sound of Surprise, all seem to me to be albums that captured the essence of the intention.
BILL BRUFORD

Discipline Essence Intention Sound
I listen to Bill Stewart play the drums and when I have finished doing that, I listen to Bill Stewart.
BILL BRUFORD

Bills Finished Listen Play
You learn so much about music from all the people you surround yourself with – good, bad and indifferent. It’s extremely hard to be specific.
BILL BRUFORD

Indifferent People Surrounding Yourself
Sometimes I had to room with Tony Kaye and that was awful.
BILL BRUFORD

Awful Fear Rooms Sometimes
So I have the classic amateur’s technique; I know some very tricky bits and I have large gaping holes.
BILL BRUFORD

Classic Holes Technique
We can be so focused on the nuts and bolts that we overlook the importance of individuality – the broader picture, if you will.
BILL BRUFORD

Broader Importance Overlook Picture Will
The piano is kind of my second instrument.
BILL BRUFORD

Instruments Kind Piano
I practice at home, in between phone calls, and have much to do.
BILL BRUFORD

Home Phones Practice

A rock band used to be four guys and a drummer. Now it’s five guys sitting around reading manuals!

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A rock band used to be four guys and a drummer. Now it’s five guys sitting around reading manuals!

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