I was in every band class I could get in, like after school jazz band and marching band, and that`s where I really learned to read music from elementary all the way through junior high and high school.
I took a private lesson, but it didn`t really work out, so I went back to playing along with records. That`s really the thing that got me into playing a lot - getting excited about playing along with my favorite bands like Zeppelin and Black Sabbath.
I met the guys through a friend of a friend, and their former drummer had quit. I wasn`t too familiar with the Chili Peppers before that, so I joined at the end of 88` and we finished recording Mother`s Milk at the end of 89`, next thing I know I`m in Spi...
I had sort of exhausted all the avenues playing in Detroit. So again, through the stewardship of my brother, I ended up in California and went to the Musicians Institute in L.A. I wanted to get better as a player.
For live you need a microphone for the snare and the high hat, the kick drum, a nice stereo overhead and one for the toms - you can get away with using four mikes.
I was in every band class I could get in, like after school jazz band and marching band, and that`s where I really learned to read music from elementary all the way through junior high and high school.
