Jazzing up the StonesJuly 28,2009
By Sarah Rodman
Boston Globe
Saxophonist Tim Ries has recorded with some serious jazz cats including Bob Belden and Maynard Ferguson. But he’s played to his biggest audiences as a member of the Rolling Stones’ touring band. Inspired by his bosses he released “The Rolling Stones Project’’ in 2005. On the most recent tour he corralled friends at virtually every stop to record “Stones World/The Rolling Stones Project II.’’ On the two-disc set he takes the Jagger-Richards catalog for a mesmerizing and expansive spin around the globe with musical stops that include South America, Africa, and the Middle East. Assists come from guests like Milton Nascimento, John Patitucci, Jack DeJohnette, and all of the Rolling Stones. We chatted with Ries, who plays the Regattabar Friday night, by phone from New Jersey.
At the Regattabar on Friday at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $22 at 617-395-7757 and
www.regattabarjazz.comQ.Keith Richards said lovely things about the first record. Do he and Mick Jagger ever question the arrangements in the studio, or are they hands off?
A. Pretty much. Even though they wrote the tunes, they weren’t like, this is sacred ground here. They were totally cool with going wherever I wanted to go. Keith came in and plugged in and sat there for three hours; he was like a session guitarist. One 10-minute break, that’s it. Other than that he was just playing and saying, “Let’s try another take.’’ It was just very open.
Q.Has anyone ever told you that they came into a show a Stones fan but left more interested in jazz?
A. Honestly, that’s one of the biggest reasons I did this. These gigs we did in Europe on the last tour you’d look out and there would be people with Stones T-shirts on that clearly are people who would not normally come to a jazz gig, but they come to this because, yes, their curiosity is piqued. They’re not necessarily my fans first, but they’re really interested in the music. I’m hoping this will open up a new fan base for people who would never really check out jazz.
Q.So what’s the biggest difference between touring with the Stones and touring solo?
A. Well, I’m not on a private jet, it may or may not be a five-star hotel, and the pay scale’s maybe a little lower. (Laughs). It’s definitely different, but I love them both.