Okay, I admit it: I had no idea who Rudy Sarzo was until I started
putting this site together. However, when you do any reading about
Whitesnake in its late '80's incarnations, you sort of can't avoid
figuring out that he was part of what made the band what it was at
that point. And once I'd done the reading, when I went back and
watched the videos again, it was rather of a case of, "Cool, I can
name all these guys now... wow, that Rudy Sarzo sure has beautiful
eyes... and lovely tight pants... and a bass that he handles like a
particularly passionate lover... is it getting hot in here? Crap, now
I don't know who I want to watch more, the singer or the bassist!"
I'm not including a list of "favorite songs" here because, while Rudy
is a fine musician, he doesn't seem to do any significant amount of
songwriting. And despite my fondness for his instrument of choice, I
also don't listen to songs purely for their bass part, so...
| Favorite Videos: |
"Still Of The Night" - Whitesnake
"Here I Go Again" - Whitesnake
|
[on being in Whitesnake] "I'm having the time of my life with these guys.
Everything they're known for onstage and off, they bring to the band.
David brings stability, Adrian is totally insane."
[on his, ahem, "unique playing style"] "It only happened with
Whitesnake. No other band had I ever licked bass with. Whitesnake's
lyrics are very sexual and the way David sang just brought this
feeling... It was so natural. I have no apologies for it. When you
perform, it's like surfing. You catch the wave. You pick up on what
everyone else is playing. There's this huge vibe that, if you can pick
up on it, you can ride it. If you don't, you just wipe out... we'd
videotape our show and see how to improve. And every time it came to
the spot where I'd lick my bass, I said, 'I've got to stop doing this!'
[laughs] But bam! It would happen every single time. If you get caught
in the moment, just be honest with your performance. I wasn't the first
to do it, though. Look at Hendrix. It was part of his show."
[on why 80's metal has been taking a beating from the rock press in recent
years] "...Metal was never supposed to be the success that it became
due to MTV's exposure.The fans were the ones who have always supported
metal, not the mainstream media or the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame."
[on how he prepares for a show] "I get dressed, transform from 'just me' to
'the guy on stage.' I take a couple of minutes to meditate, be one with
myself and mentally prepare for the stage because it's like going
through the looking glass. It's a whole different world and person up
there."
"Who the hell wants to play music that only a hundred, or a thousand people
get into? I don't want to. That's like speaking in tongues, and nobody
understands what you're doing..."
If Rudy Sarzo were a character in a fantasy novel, he would be:
The fantasy/period outfit I would most like to see Rudy Sarzo model is:
