IAN PAICE


John Barnes, Ian Paice Appreciation Society
"The Guv'nor", N6, July 1992


Deep Purple 1990

      Are you yourself happy with the present state of the band?

Ya, I really am! The band is in a lot of ways a lot stronger now by virtue of the fact that we don't have any inter-band arguments. It is one of those things that does happen, and every band can do without it. I'm not saying anybody's right or anybody's wrong, but when they do happen it's like a self-destruct thing. So ya, I mean we get along very well and things are going good.

      Did you have any reservations about Joe Lynn joining the band?

Well ya, initially. Of all the names put forward, Joe's was at the top of the list and he was the last one tried by virtue of the fact that it's just so close, the connection with Ritchie and Rainbow and all that thing, we were leaving ourselves wide open to be shot down by the press on it, but when Joe sang there was no competition no contest. Once he sang that was the end of it, nobody thought about the views of anybody else outside the band 'cause we really didn't think it was that important

      How do you think the fans of MK. II Purple will react to Joe in the band?

Well I think out of all the gigs we've done with Joe I think I have only heard Ian's name shouted out twice. I think after all these years in the different permutations of the band, people sort of got used to the idea that occasionally it's going to be different, it's been no trouble really!

      With a new younger front man and different style of music, is Purple trying to reach a younger generation of fan?

I think we have always been trying to do that, sometimes successfully, sometimes not. Joe is a different ball game to Ian, as David was to Ian. I don't think we actually plan anything, it happens or it doesn't happen, we'll see!

      Was the European trek of the "Slaves" tour successful?

Ya! Really, in respect at the time that we toured the recession hadn't bit into Europe the same way it had bit into the States. We sort of got through the tour about a month or six weeks before it hit the States, so that was very good. The American tour, well we could have carried on but it seemed silly to work seven or eight weeks and end up either just breaking even or losing a lot of money. It seemed like a better idea to say OK, this is the wrong time, we'll be back next time.

      What do you say to people who say Deep Purple without Ian Gillan is unforgivable?

Ah well, everybody has their point of view and they have to live with it and deal with it. Nobody really wanted a change but it was either change or don't have a band. I think that speaks for itself

Deep Purple Reunion 1984 - 1989

      What is your personal opinion of the Perfect Strangers Lp?

I thought it was a very good record. Like most of our better records it's one that's easy to make. There was obviously a lot of excitement of being back together and everybody was tolerant of each other, the little niggling disagreements were swept to one side and everybody kept working, it was good.

      The Perfect Strangers Lp sounds very rushed to me, was that the case?

Ah, it wasn't rushed, I think it was consciously made not to be over produced or over elaborate, it was trying to harp back to some of the feels and some of the moods and some of the emotions we had the last time we recorded.

      Was the 84/85 tour the most successful you've ever taken part in?

Ah no, it was one of the most successful. It's hard even after six or seven years, it's hard to actually pick it out of other tours, it was a good one that's for sure!

      It must have been an incredible workload?

No! Anybody that tells you that tours are hard when you're dealing at the comfort level that we're provided with is pulling your pisser! I mean it's, we worked maybe five or six days a week, but that's very rare! You have a nice 1st Class seat on an airplane, you have a nice limousine and a nice hotel room, it's not that tough. When you're lower down on the ladder, then it's tough! The hardest thing we have to do when we go onstage is be very good every night, that's tough but that's what we've been doing for years anyway!

      I'm always surprised when people tell me they think Perfect Strangers is the best Lp Deep Purple have ever made. To me The House Of Blue Light is far superior, what is your opinion?

Well there again see, we differ on that! The House of Blue Light was very difficult to make, the songs didn't come easy, it didn't roll naturally, Perfect Strangers did. Again, beauty is in the eye of the beholder and that's what is glorious about it, you like one, others like another!

      The drumming on The House of Blue Light is outstanding, were you given greater freedom of expression during the sessions?

Not really. I mean some of the songs needed a little more because I don't know if they were actually as good as they could have been as songs, so maybe we all tried a little more instrumentally to help them.

      Was the American tour for The House of Blue Light a disappointment?

A little bit! On reflection I think it was fair on the acceptance of the record!

      How can you justify the release of Nobody's Perfect?

Honestly two reasons. Somebody asked us if we would like to make a live album of that period, we said well we would but we won't go out of our way. All we did was stick a 24-track machine out by the soundboard and after the tour we listened to the tapes, some were good, some were not, we used a good one! The record company wanted to go with it so we said thank you very much. It's an OK record, a nice little document of the time, but nothing I feel strongly about one way or another.

      To most fans the live album was a big disappointment. What is your opinion?

Ah, I really don't have one on it! When you buy a live album you're taking a chance that it was either brilliant or OK or not good, it's up to you to listen to it first before you buy it. The only thing if I look back that I would have changed are some of the track choices. We didn't spend a lot of time making the Lp, we just recorded the shows and listened to them afterwards and obviously some of the tracks that worked on-stage didn't work on tape, so that's that!

Gary Moore

      How did you first come in contact with Gary?

I was first offered a session with Gary to make an album with him for two weeks. We had a great deal of fun and the record came out nice and Gary said let's do another one later on. At that time I wasn't working and Gary said well let's just form a nucleus of a band. Gary's management took all the risks and made all the decisions, I just turned up and played my drums and had a good time!

      Can you explain your rather laid back approach to the drums at this time?

The records were Gary's and not mine. He wanted it a certain way and that's the way it had to be!

      Can you detail the sort of problems you were having during the recording of Victims of the Future?

Ya, I just got "studio blind!" This happens to most musicians at some time in their career, not just drummers but everybody. Sometimes when you haven't been in the studio for a while and you go back in, you feel the pressure of it and sometimes you try too hard. With a drummer the easiest thing you start to do wrong is to try to play too hard, you forget you're just playing through a microphone and not trying to play over massive stacks of amplifiers and stuff. I think that was the real problem, I started playing too hard and that was just throwing off my time keeping and at that point I just lost it! The best thing was to just jump out of the car and let someone else have a go at it. It wasn't an easy decision to make, but at that point music is business and studios cost a lot of money.

      Did you have an interest in the business side of things?

Ya, I had a minor percentage of what was going on. It's one of those things if you're enjoying it you've got to believe it's something that can grow for you, that's not the reason for doing it you know. Sure, if you're going to get successful, it's nice to know you can get a bit with it.

      Was The Gary Moore Band the ideal situation for you?

It was a good one! I sort of feel I can slot into most situations, my playing is quite diversified, I can do lots of different stuff. So basically if I'm enjoying myself it's an ideal situation.

      If the Purple reunion failed to transpire, would you have continued on with Gary?

Ya, I probably would have played with Gary for a lot longer, maybe I'd still be with him now. I may dare say that Gary and I may play again one day, I don't know whether it will be a permanent thing or just as friends for fun. I'm Godfather to his son, we live a few miles from each other and there's no reason why we shouldn't!

Whitesnake

      1). Did you enjoy your years in Whitesnake?

Ya I did! They were the couple of funniest years I've ever had on the road, mainly due to the personalities involved, mainly Moody and Marsden who were very funny guys. The two guitarists were great foils to David's rather serious approach to Rock and Roll!

      Do you think Whitesnake's success in Europe and the far east was due to having three ex-Purple members in the band?

Well it didn't hurt you know, it certainly didn't hurt! I think that's a fair criticism.

      Why do think Whitesnake didn't break in the US market?

Well, complete ineptitude by the record company and management involved. Nobody could book us on the right tour, nobody could get us on the right label, it was an absolute joke! Whitesnake was built for America, it was a good time boogie band with lots of good hard Rock & Roll, it's a crime that band didn't make it!

      Was Whitesnake more of a live band than a studio band?

Oh ya, definitely! It wasn't just the music onstage, it was the whole "party" attitude, which a lot of people fake, but there's nothing like the real thing! When we were on stage we had a ball, there was a wonderful rapport between these two crazy guitarists always just "whooping it up" and being crazy, and then there's David being very serious with his macho singer job, it was great!

      In your opinion does the Come an' Get It Lp feature your best work with Whitesnake?

I really don't know and I can't remember! Once you've made most of your albums and stuff you really don't listen to them again. Once you've gone through it and listened to them so many times you've checked out, yes the take was the best you could have done, the record production was as good as you could get it at the time. By thin time you're good and tired of it, plus now you've got to learn how to play them on-stage! I can't actually hear a track on the radio and say, "I know that," and then later realize it was me.

      What kind of problems arose during the Saints And Sinners sessions, and were these problems the reason you left the band?

I think that by that time David was obviously realizing that it was him and it wasn't the band that was controlling it. He felt not only musically, be he felt people should live their life a certain way, a certain R'n'R style, others of us didn't feel that way you know! So at that point he decided basically to change the band, that was when he brought Cozy in because he felt Cozy was living the more R'n'R life and would be the more R'n'R person on the road!

      What is your opinion of the music Whitesnake produced while you were in the band, and what is your opinion of the music produced by the band after you left?

The music while I was there was good, and some of it after I left was good! The "mega-record" from six or so years ago was a nice record! To me it wasn't Whitesnake, it should have been called, "David Coverdale!" Whitesnake was a certain something and what happened afterwards isn't the same something!

Paice/Ashton/Lord

      In your opinion does the Malice In Wonderland Lp feature your best work?

Some of it, ya. That was a fun, easy record to make, I really enjoyed that time!

      If you were able to categorize the music of PAL, what would it be?

Well, judging from what I've heard over the last seven or eight years, it was a bit ahead of its time! When that first Purple break-up happened, we decided yes, we wanted to continue, but let's try something a little bit different. The idea was to combine the harder rock elements with a sort of mainstream jazz thing with a nice horn section and vocal harmonies.

      Did both you and Jon feel it was time to break out of the Hard Rock mold and prove to everybody that you were both capable of much more?

It wasn't a matter of proving, it was just, let's do something different!

      How did you feel Deep Purple fans would react to this new form of music?

Well we hoped they would like it, we knew some of them wouldn't! We were hoping some new people would catch on to it. I don't think we consciously worried about it.

      It is obvious that both you and Jon gave this project your all, what with a custom stage and an eleven-piece band, etc. Was PAL a financial burden on both of you?

Well PAL was an absolute financial disaster for both Jon and I! We funded everything to the point where the second album was two thirds of the way done and it was obvious it wasn't going to happen. Ya, we went through a lot of bucks on that one!

      Will we ever hear the one finished track from the second Lp?

We can't find the tapes, nobody can find them! We tried to give them to Tony as a wedding present a few years ago and nobody can find them. I dare say they will turn up in two or three hundred years or so!

      Do you and Jon have hopes of releasing "Lifespan" on video?

If we could find out who has stolen it from us, yes we would. Again, we financed that and somebody seems to have run off with all the negatives and so on, so we don't know who's got it!

Deep Purple MK.IV

      What was your first impression of Tommy Bolin?

Ah, he was a trifle weird! He was very nice, very friendly, a great talent.

      What was your opinion of Come Taste The Band?

I like it, I think it's a real good album! There is some great playing from everybody, and some good songs.

      Do you think Come Taste The Band is a Deep Purple album or a Tommy Bolin album?

It's just another Deep Purple album with another new guy on it you know! Obviously there was a change, Ritchie and Tommy are totally different people, different players. I am very much selfish when it comes to things like that, I listen to what I play, so to me there's a continuity in everything.

      Were you worried about how the English fans would react to Tommy replacing Ritchie?

Ah ya, to a small extent, but only to a small extent because Britain is a very small area. You try and please everybody, if you can't, then you try and please as many as you can!

      As the 75/76 tour progressed, was working with Tommy and Glenn becoming more and more frustrating?

Well the main problem was that Tommy couldn't hack it on stage in front of big audiences, he just froze. He was like two people, this wonderful technician in the studio just disappeared into this lost little boy prancing around the stage. Glenn was becoming, how shall we say tyrannical! Plus the two of them had their own loves which the other three of us on the other side of the camp didn't like. People with those problems are very, very difficult to work with, that was what really made us call it a day!

      Looking back, do you think Deep Purple should have called it quits when Ritchie left?

Other than a nice record, yes! I think Come Taste The Band was a nice record, the touring was very sad. At that point it's all hindsight you know.

Deep Purple MK. III

      Was it refreshing to have two new members in the band?

Of course, ya! At that point you have two people that were given the keys to the bank vault you know, they were both too willing to please and learn from your experience and take advice. Ya, it was very good!

      Was the new blood in the band the reason for your new found vitality on the Burn album?

Well again, it's just the mixture of the people writing the songs. Everybody was very invigorated by what was happening and Burn turned out rather nicely.

      Was the rhythm on You Fool No One an original of yours?

I don't know! I don't know if anyone has got an original rhythm. You hear things all over the place and you try to take the good bits and stick them together and sometimes you come up with a nice little pattern. No, I don't think I could say it's an original, but played like that, I haven't heard it played by anyone else!

      What was your opinion of the Stormbringer Lp?

Again, a nice little record but very, very laid back. I don't think Purple have done a record so laid back before. I think that's what triggered Ritchie to leave, he heard the whole thing going somewhere he didn't want it to go. If you were to hear Stormbringer and not know it was a Deep purple album, you would think well, what a great album, but because people expect certain things out of you they think, well that's weird. I think everyone was a bit confused!

      Why didn't MK. III ever tour Japan?

I don't know, not a clue, I thought we did! I guess we were too busy touring the States!

Deep Purple Mk. II

      One of the first undertakings was the Concerto For Group and Orchestra. Was the Concerto an enormous workload for you?

Ya, for the return it was really hard work! One thing was learning your part, and the other thing was learning that an orchestra doesn't keep time the same way a small rhythm section does. It was very difficult, you play on the downbeat, they play on the upbeat. I'm glad I did it, but I wouldn't want to do it again unless there was a load of bucks in it 'cause it's a lot of work!

      What did your sheet music for the Concerto look like?

Well it scared the shit out of the violinists! I think the first line read something like... "Hang around for six minutes and wait for three big bangs and come in with first rock and Roll tempo..." The orchestra guys had about 200 pages of music and I had like two sheets of foolscap paper with a bit of scrawl on it, the thing is, I got it right!

      Was the double bass on the cut Fireball strictly an experiment, or were you at the time thinking of switching over permanently?

No! We did the track in the studio and I knew the feel I wanted, I could get the speed but I couldn't get the power! So I thought, "What are we going to do?" Maybe dub another bass drum on afterwards in the other part. In the studio from the day before The Who's equipment was still laying around, Keith Moon's kit was still there so I just copped the bass drum from his kit, stuck it next to mine, mic'd it up and just played sixteen's instead of eights and that fixed it. I don't play well enough to switch over permanently then or now!

      Did The Mule present you with the biggest challenges during MK. II live performances?

No, The Mule was just a vehicle for a solo! There were times it worked, other times it didn't, sometimes it was very good, sometimes it was very bad. It was just a way of getting in and out of a solo!

      Is Made In Japan still your favorite MK. II record?

I think Made In Japan is Purple's best album of any time, it's probably the best live Rock'n'Roll album ever made as well, by anybody!

      What is your opinion of Who Do We Think We Are?

Again, it was a nice album! It was an album of the time, an album when things were starting to get a bit tough. There was a lot of touring and not enough time to write songs properly, there was also personality things starting to creep in! So ya, it was getting tough!

      Do you think MK. II could have carried on with a little time off?

Oh yes, I think with sensible management and a little bit of "far thinking" the band could have probably gone on a lot longer before anything nasty happened!

      Was there any talk of permanently breaking up the band after Ian and Roger left?

Not at all! No, that never cropped up, we were always going to continue!

Deep Purple MK. I

      What were your first impressions of Ritchie and Jon?

Ah well Jon was really cool and laid back and I don't really remember much of an impression of Jon. Ritchie was a star, he came on like a star, he dressed like a star, he was a very impressive guy!

      How did it feel to finally have steady work?

Well I always had steady work, I just didn't have any money! I had to go and work five or six nights a week just to earn enough to eat and to live. What this meant I had time to actually learn and practice and still eat and live.

      Were you and the band pleased with Shades of Deep Purple?

At the time of course, ya! It was an incredibly fast album to make, it took two four hour sessions. All we did was basically go into the studio and play like we were in our rehearsal room. It was successful in the States so we were over the moon about it!

      What was touring the States for the first time like?

Very exciting, very exciting ya! We arrived thinking, that's it we've cracked it, the world is our oyster. Then we learned that one hit single does not a mega-band make. We worked very hard and had a lot of fun, we also learned a lot which was the important thing!

      What are your feelings on the music MK. I produced?

Some of it is interesting, but most of it I feel is of its time.

Pre-Purple

      What are your memories of The Maze and M.I.5?

Well The Maze and M.I.5 were basically the same band. We had been around for so long as the M.I.5 we decided we would get more work if we changed our name. Again, it was an OK band, we had two or three guys who were really good, the bass player Jack Keene and the organist Chris Banham were very good players. It was always destined to be a little club band just getting by!

      Did these bands achieve any sort of success?

No, no success at all! We just hacked up and down the back roads of Europe just making a living!

      Was life on the road hard on you at that time?

I was seventeen years old and having a ball! It was great, I loved it! I mean, it was hard in certain respects ya, a dodgy old van with no heat driving across the Alps in the middle of January, that wasn't fun! Those sorts of things kind of disappear in the haze you know, you sort of remember the fun bits, not the nasty bits.

      Did you know back then that drumming was going to be your career?

Ya, I think I did! I don't remember worrying about having to learn to do something else. I was always fortunate to be just that little bit better than the average guy, no matter what age I was. Ya, I felt confident about it.

      What did you do before these bands and did you do any recording?

Well I didn't do any recording, but I played in a little band called "Georgie and the Rave-Ons." It was just kid stuff you know, working in colleges and schools that you went to, nothing serious!

Sessions

      What happened with The Maggie Bell Band?

Well Maggie, Jon and I were in limbo you know, we didn't have anything to do. Maggie was a little friend of ours and we said lets do something together, so we did! It just got a little out of hand when Maggie's management decided it would be sort of a great idea to have these well known musicians backing Maggie up, that wasn't the idea at all!

      Can you explain the idea behind "Gastank?"

Well Gastank was a TV show, a series that was meant to be like a sleazy, smoky disco you know. It was a lot of fun, it was a good idea, I think they just played it too safe. It was made to be too nice, not Rock'n'Roll, but it was a good idea! The idea was that various musicians would come on playing live with the house band, with their own band and doing little interviews, sort of like a Rock'n'Roll talk show you know!

      How did you come about to do the Pete York "Super Drumming" Lps?

Pete and I have known each other for years and years and years and I used to turn up and jam with them when it was just Hardin and York. When Peter told he had this television show lined up about different drummers in Germany I said sure, I'd love to! If he asks me to do another one, I'll do another one.

      How did the "Pretty Maids" session come about?

Well, Roger was over in Denmark recording them, and the drummer had a real bad accident in a car, got smashed up pretty bad. They had two tracks left to do and I did my best to salvage it you know. As it turned out they only used one of the two I did so they obviously just needed the one track.

      What about the George Harrison sessions that appear on the Lp, "The Best of Dark Horse"?

Well again George is a buddy, he lives two miles down the road, our kids go to school together and we share the odd beverage together! George is one of those lucky guys that has a studio in his house and he was just making a couple of extra tracks for "The Best of Dark Horse" album, I was just wandering around and George said come over and hit these tom-toms, so I did!

      Did you do a session with Velvet Underground, the "Squeeze" Lp?

If I did, I can't remember it, but that's not unusual!

      Did you have a session lined up with Jimi Hendrix?

No, not a session but at the time we were in New York a lot and so was he, we used to end up at the same clubs. No, I didn't actually get to play with Jimi, ah, a shame!

      Do you enjoy doing sessions or could you live without them?

Well for a long time I thought I really didn't enjoy doing sessions, but I haven't done any for a long time and I kind of miss it a bit. I wouldn't want to do it all the time, but it's good to get into the studio and thing for a little while and do something different than you normally do.

Equipment

      How did you come in contact with Pearl Drums?

Ah, through Pete York! Pete was already a Pearl endorser and he knew I wasn't happy with Ludwig at the time, so Pete said come and have a talk with these people, so I did! I had a look at their drums and could find no fault with them, they were great!

      What kind of deal did Pearl make with you?

They didn't, I made an offer to them and they accepted it!

      Does Pearl have plans to make you a silver sparkle kit?

I haven't really taken it any further, I'm sure if I asked them, they would! The kit I use on stage now, the big white one, is there for a certain visual effect. Whenever we change the effect and a silver sparkle kit will help, I'll get another one!

      Why did you decide to leave Ludwig Drums after so many years?

Only one reason, the quality went right down the toilet! The shells were fine, it was the metal parts, the chrome kept peeling off after a few months, it wasn't very good! If you're sticking your name on a certain product and they're quite expensive, and some kid who likes you goes out and spends thousands of dollars on a drum kit to be just like you, and after a year the things look pretty tatty and disgraceful, then it's something you don't want your name associated with. In Ludwig's defense I'll say that their quality is 100% again, it's fantastic, but I've made a deal with Pearl and while we are both happy I'll have to honour that!

      What kind of deal did you make with Paiste Cymbals?

Well I've been with Paiste for a long, long time and they're fantastic people! There is no deal, I need cymbals, they provide them! If I break them, I send them back. If I can offer some advice on why it broke, I will tell them. They are great people and the help drummers get the most from their cymbals!

      Did you enjoy the Paiste clinics back in '83?

Ya, they were fun! I think if they had been done in any other country other than Britain, they would have been a lot more fun!

      Back in MK. I and before, you were using Avedis Zildjian cymbals, how and why did you make the switch to Paiste?

I started out having a couple of Zildjians ya, but when you start playing hard on them in those days, they weren't built for that, they were much more an acoustic instrument. When they break and you start looking around and maybe putting your hand in your own pocket, you really have to make the best business deal for yourself.

      How has drum equipment changed over the years?

Well really it's just got slightly bigger, bigger bass drums, deeper toms, more toms. Back in the early days you would have a regular four piece drum kit with a 22" bass drum, which most people still use and they're still very good. I just decided I wanted a bigger sound, more sound, so I just went to bigger drums!

      Do you still have any of your old kits?

I still have a couple, ya! I wouldn't want to think what kind of state they're in, they've been garaged, stuck in cases for so many years they've probably fallen all to bits!

      Do you still have the custom finished melodic kit from '76, and do you remember who did the paint for you?

Yes I still have that one! The guy who did the paint work for me, let me see, what was his name... his name was Malcolm something or another, I can't remember.

      Do you take more than one kit with you on a world tour?

No, no I just have the one kit. Earlier on in '85 I used to have one kit on each continent, an American kit, a European kit, an Australian kit, a Japanese kit, you know, just to save some freight charges. But in the end it's just a hassle having to fix each kit up when you get to a new place, it's just easier to take your one kit around with you. If I do have an accident, most of my drums other than the bass drum are stock sizes, I can just go to any Pearl dealer and pick up what I need.

      What is the model of the Premier bas drum pedal you used?

Well for years I used their old 250 model, but they've become harder and harder to find now. So after a long, long time Pearl have come up with a pedal with a very similar action to the old Premier, that's the one I use now, I think it's the 900!

      Did Pearl make an Ian Paice model drumstick for you a few years back?

Ya, basically it's just like the old Ludwig 7B stick I used to use, just a little bit lighter!

      What kind of custom work do you have done on your kits?

None what-so-ever! When they come out of the factory box, that's the same as you would get anywhere in the world if you ordered that particular kit!

      What kind of anchoring system do you use on stage?

The drums are so big and heavy they don't move anyway, so there really isn't much. I think we use an elastic hook thing to keep the snare drum in place against the bass drum, that's about it!

      Have you had any offers from other drum companies since you signed with Pearl?

No, but really haven't been looking! It's one of those things, if you look you get talked to, if you don't then nobody bothers you!

      What is the Vince Gutman MARC System?

Well Vince is a very clever guy and a very good drummer who has built a triggered system for drums. On stage my drums are fitted with detonators, or electronic triggers if you want, which can be fed into a drum sampling machine and back up the acoustic drum sound if we're in a really bad hall and need some help.

      What is your opinion on electronic drum systems?

Well they're just not for me really! I've gone as far as I want to with integrating electronics with my drums. If I needed it, I can use it if the hall is so bad on sound and I can't get a good acoustic sound, then I want to use what technologies have been given to me. I think the rest of it has been driven the wrong way around, I don't like it very much!

Other

      Are you still breeding horses?

Well Jackie (wife) breeds the horses, they make me sneeze! All I do is sneeze and put money on them, not her horses, hers are Arabs!

      Have you had much success at it?

Ya, she does all right.

      Are you still interested in producing?

Yes I am and no I'm not! Yes I am 'cause it's fun, but it's a much different world now than it was fifteen years ago. With the advent of computers and all that stuff, it seems to be, it's taken all the fun out of it!

      Do you do much practicing between your tours and stuff?

Ah, it goes in cycles! I've been going through a playing/practice routine now for the last couple of months now. I probably go into the drum room two or three times a week, other times I won't go in for six months!

      Do you have an interest in any other instrument?

No, I flirt with them, but I really don't have the aptitude or the talent to do anything with it! I flirt with keyboards and I flirt with the guitar, but you wouldn't want to hear it!

      Who are some of the drummers you admire at the moment?

Ah, there are so many and so many different styles! There are all the obvious ones, Simon Phillips, Billy Cobham, but all the guys from a while back you know, Carmine, Ginger Baker, that stuff still sounds great, Bernard Purdie, Bonham, there's lots of guys! Sadly for me all the good guys coming up seem to be coming from North America, we have a sad state of popular music over in Europe right now, not a lot of Rock'n'Roll going on!

      What type of music to you listen to in your leisure?

Ah, virtually anything that isn't what I do! I listen to the classics, pop, middle of the road stuff you know, Bryan Adams, Genesis, Floyd, something to listen to.

      Would you advise young drummers to learn and read music?

Only if they want to, I don't know if it's going to be of any use to them. I can get by with real simple pieces but it's never been of any great use to me. I'm lucky, I can hear something two or three times and actually remember what the arrangement is, some people might not have that ability.

      What is the future for Ian Paice?

Ah, I don't know! We just keep doing what we do and hope there are enough people out there that want to hear it and see it and allow me to keep doing it. I am having fun playing, the traveling gets a little more wearying every time you do it but the playing makes up for it you know, that's the important thing!

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