Go-Go Marc, Cary On! An Indigenous Person Tells his Story

Phil wishes he was a musician (well, he is one, but he wishes he were a good one) but he's not frustrated by it. He's frustrated with a lot of other aspects of the so-called biz. Therefore, he's excited by independently released jazz.

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Published: May 27, 2004

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MC: Well, aside from the Ellington and Sonny Clarke compositions on it, I wanted to start some new standards, and a sound that my peers would appreciate, to establish myself as a leader and a composer. That record was produced by Russ Musto, who took a big chance. We spent money out of our own pockets and leased it to Enja. We had two days booked in the studio but we a had a flood the second day. So the whole record got done in six hours. I literally didn't get the chance to explore totally what I was looking for, but what we ended up with was hot.

AAJ: So, man, I am a big fan of the Fender Rhodes and the way you play that instrument.

MC: There's a difference between that and a keyboard totally. The Rhodes is an acoustic instrument that can be amplified. The mechanism is a key to the hammer to the tine-that makes it an acoustic instrument. Then, with just the keyboards-that's just the sounds. Sculpting sound is another art.

AAJ: The way you strike the keys and let the chord sustain and the stuff you play over it is so fantastic, and what sounds good seems specific to the nature of the Rhodes. There should be more Rhodes records, and you made one of the best ever with Rhodes Ahead.

MC: I'm really proud of it. The approach to it was so light. It wasn't like we set out to do the ultimate Rhodes thing.

AAJ: Cool. I was kinda hopin' you had another one of those in you.

MC: I do. I have some things for the Rhodes that are crazy man. Tracks 2 and 3 of that record, Transient Treasure I and II , were recorded live, a live take with a trio with Terreon Gully on drums and Tarus on bass. Those two tracks are the real essence of the record. There's no tracking, no moog overdubs on them. The Rhodes and the moog go hand in hand. To call it Rhodes Ahead was giving acknowledgement to the music that can be made with the instrument. I was very conscious on all the different tracks of the coloring I used, portraying the Rhodes in a different light on each track. I did all the research and the technical notes on the history of the Rhodes that are inside.

AAJ: Well, they should be giving you cash for what you did for them, not vice-versa.

MC: The stuff I have done with Rhodes would have preceded the last one I put out, but I wanted to try to tap another thing or explore another side, before I went back to that.

AAJ: That's Native Go-Go Rhythms Please or NGGR please. What are you playing on there exactly, because there's some guy named 'Gogo Polo' playing some killer drums!

MC: Yeah. I'm playing keyboards, drums and percussion at different times on there, certain tracks. I'm rapping on the second track. By the way, I also played a lot of drums on Rhodes Ahead .

AAJ: Oh, yes. I have to check the credits to determine whether it's you or Terreon, most of the time. What pseudonym are you using on the new one when on vocals?

MC: Well, we called it "Solo Polo." See, you know what happens, what gets funny? With people like Roy Hargrove or Nicholas Payton who play a lot of instruments well, when you start saying it's all you, like, "I played this and that and this and I wrote it all and produced it"-people get kind of like, done with it. Also, my resources are limited production-wise, so it's hard to lock people into a day when they'll come over and do it for you. I end up doing a lot of stuff myself. It may be done with the intention of someone else coming it, but I'll listen and say, "That's exactly what I want right there." So the tracks will stay on.

AAJ: What do you want to get across with Native Go-Go Rhythms Please ?

MC: This record came out in January. So, I did an interview a month or so ago in North Carolina and the interviewer said, "This one record sums up my whole program, all the genres of black music." This record touches on so many different styles. The foundation is rooted in Go-Go, I'm dealing with rock, going over the top, lounge, poetry, a spiritual vibe, and a certain political twist.

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