Kenny Aronoff: Smashing preconceptions
by Seth Rogovoy

(WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass., July 23, 1998)-- Like something out of "Spinal Tap," the drum seat in the modern-rock band Smashing Pumpkins is a revolving door. Original drummer Jimmy Chamberlin was kicked out of the band for drug abuse in 1995, and his replacement, Matt Walker of the industrial-rock group Filter, only hung around for one subsequent tour.

Smashing Pumpkins has solved the problem of the elusive drummer by officially becoming a drummer-less trio. The group's latest album, the darkly melodic "Adore," features pre-recorded drum tracks and several guest musicians playing drums and percussion.

But when it came time for the group to hit the road to promote "Adore," they reached out across genres and generations and hired the best free-lance drummer in the business.

While Kenny Aronoff has performed and recorded with dozens of artists including Bob Dylan, Willie Nelson, Melissa Etheridge, Indigo Girls, the Buddy Rich Project, the Tanglewood Music Center orchestra and, of course, John Cougar Mellencamp, his newest gig, playing with one of the top alternative-rock bands of the '90s, is probably the most surprising of all.

On Thursday, July 30, you can catch the Stockbridge native and superstar rock drummer on the "Late Show with David Letterman," in advance of the next night's Pumpkins concert at the Orpheum Theatre in Boston. The concert, like all on the Pumpkins's current tour, is a benefit for a local youth charity.

For the last few months, Aronoff has been criss-crossing the globe with the group, playing alternative locations including the new Guggenheim Museum in Bilboa, Spain, the Tivoli Gardens in Copenhagen, and on a barge in Genoa, Italy. The collaboration marks a new milestone for Aronoff, in terms of playing with and for a new and younger generation.

"The cool thing about music is that it can break all barriers between people from all kinds of backgrounds and generations," said Aronoff, in a recent interview conducted over the course of one week via E-mail from different locations around the U.S. "My love and desire for music, their music and rock 'n' roll in general has brought us together to a place where we all play great together."

Since quitting Mellencamp's band, Aronoff has toured and recorded with Bob Seger, Melissa Etheridge and, most recently, John Fogerty. The fruits of the Fogerty partnership were particularly exciting, as "Blue Moon Swamp," Fogerty's comeback album, won a Grammy award for best rock album. Aronoff is also prominently featured on Fogerty's follow-up live recording, "Premonition."

"John Fogerty is one of my rock and roll heroes," said Aronoff, 45, who still hangs his hat in Bloomington, Indiana. "I remember listening to early Creedence Clearwater records at home in Stockbridge when I was a kid. When I started working with him on his album, I was very excited, to say the least. And then when he asked me to go on tour with him it was icing on the cake. He treated me with a tremendous amount of respect, and we became good friends. His music and my basic rock-drumming style worked great together. I really look forward to some day working with him again."

In the meantime, Aronoff enjoys the new challenge of playing behind Billy Corgan, the independent-minded leader/visionary of Smashing Pumpkins.

"I believe in Billy Corgan's vision, and he definitely has one, and I appreciate and have a feel for what he's constantly trying to do musically," said Aronoff. "Billy is very creative and is never satisfied with staying in one place too long. He keeps setting goals and by the time he attains a goal, he has already moved onto many other goals. It's very exciting. He keeps the creative process moving forward."

Corgan's performance approach is light years away from what Aronoff is used to after years of playing for more conventional rock acts like Mellencamp, Seger, Fogerty and Etheridge.

"Billy changes the set list every night thirty minutes before the show, and will also change arrangements before the show also," said Aronoff. "This keeps me totally focused all the time. The same set, night after night, takes a kind of self-excitement or motivation to make the same show get better and more exciting over the course of a twelve-month tour. The set and arrangement changes are a challenge, because you have to perform something perfectly with maturity and wisdom for the first time.

"Also, Billy Corgan likes perfection, with freedom to flow with the vibe of the different mood on any given night -- mellow and laid back one night, and aggressive another night, depending on the vibe of the evening."

As for how Corgan feels about Aronoff, he told the Boston Globe last week, "He's been fantastic. His maturity and his experience have really helped bring this album to fruition live. He brings a kind of consistency every night that we've never been used to."

Aronoff seems to take it all in stride. Earlier this year he was back in the studio laying down tracks for Melissa Etheridge's next album, and recording with Fool's Progress, the Berkshire-and-Colorado- based folk-rock band formerly known as Acoustic Junction. After the Pumpkins tour, he already has recording sessions booked in Nashville and the Bahamas.

"You never know in this business what will transpire," said Aronoff. "That's the excitement or the disappointment of it all. You just never know."

For more news on Aronoff, including his bio, interviews, pictures and his touring and recording schedule, past and present, check out his official website at kennyaronoff.com .

Homemade brew

For the better part of the last decade, a grassroots, do-it-yourself acoustic music scene in Northern Berkshire has grown around bi-weekly song swaps called "Acoustic Brew," whose most recent home has been the Wild Amber Grill on North Street in Williamstown.

At these latter-day hootenanies, amateurs, semi-pros and full-time musicians have rubbed elbows, trying out original material and celebrating the folk tradition in all its variety and diversity.

That diversity has now been given permanent representation on a new CD, "Acoustic Brew: Folk and Acoustic Musicians of the Northern Berkshires," featuring 19 tracks and including over 40 musicians recorded over the past few months in a small home recording studio.

Tracks range from Jared Polens' solo hammered dulcimer on the traditional number, "Coleman's March" to a string-band duet version of "Hand Me Down My Walking Cane" by Mike Boulay and Robert Fraker. Several solo singer-songwriters contribute original compositions, including Ed Kohn, Scott Wong, Russell Miller, Pat Blackman and nationally-known artist Bernice Lewis.

Overall, the CD gives a feeling of a community coming together in celebration and sharing. Indeed, all proceeds from the CD -- produced by Keith Forman and available from local retailers -- will benefit the Berkshire Food Project, a local food bank based in North Adams.

Many of the musicians on the CD will be on hand on July 30 at 8 p.m. at the Wild Amber Grill for the official release party. For more info, call 458-4472 or visit www.sover.net/~keithf on the Internet.

If you would like to purchase Smashing Pumpkins' latest CD "Adore" on-line, please click on the SoundStone logo to the right.