Simply Six: Peter Link

1. For many artists, they cite a defining moment for themselves when they knew they wanted to be a singer. For many it was the appearance of Elvis on the Ed Sullivan show, to another generation it was the Beatles’ appearance on Sullivan half a decade later. Is there such a defining moment for you? I define myself more as a composer/producer/musician as opposed to a singer. Though I do occasionally sing some of my own songs and record them, (as on my new CD, Goin’ Home) the main body of my work has always been the former, not the latter, so I’ll answer this question from the P.O.V. of the composer/producer/musician. At age six my dad got me started on the drums. He bought me a pair of sticks and told me if I were to play on the wooden window ledge of our music room for a year without being told to practice, he would buy me a top of the line snare drum for Christmas. I did and he did. Gretsch blue pearl. This promise and task completed went on for 5 years and each Christmas I would get the bass drum, then the side tom, then the floor tom, etc. until I had the full pro set. In the meantime, I learned my rudiments and by the time I was in the 7th grade I was playing with college bands.

2. When you’re not creating music what are you listening to? Who are some of your favorites? Bobby McFerrin, Peter Gabriel, Imogene Heap, Michael Jackson, Duke Ellington, Tchaikovsky and Stravinsky and still, the Beatles.

3. What would you say is your greatest moment so far as an artist, either on record or live? I’d have to say that there have been a series of those “greatest moments” going on for the past three decades as I have been mastering my craft when I have been working, usually alone, late at night in the studio and I am deeply into the process of making music. I become aware that I have no idea where I am, what the time is, what day it is, and I simply sit back and give the amazing process of creating music acknowledgement. It’s usually a moment when I have finished a section that works. I give it a listen and feel fulfilled by this wondrous process. So I listen again, and then again and again. It’s always the greatest moment and it happens over and over. In short, I do this, not for the result, but for the process of creation. It’s what I live for.

4. Do you believe music can change the world or is just something to listen to? How much can music influence current events? Music has changed the world. Rock n’ roll was probably the main reason why Communism went down in the Soviet Union. The youth of that nation became westernized and the pull of the west, largely because of rock n’ roll, pulled generations of youth away from the dogmas of the Soviet state. The Beatles changed the world by changing fashion, religious outlook, psychedelic acceptance, and even politics. "We Shall Overcome" is a protest song that became a key anthem of the African-American Civil Rights Movement (1955–1968). The title and structure of the song are derived from an early gospel song, "I'll Overcome Someday", by African-American composer Charles Albert Tindley . Pete Seeger and other famous folksingers in the early 1960s, such as Joan Baez, sang the song at rallies, folk festivals, and concerts and certainly changed my world. We sang along with them and watched the world change. I was at Woodstock on that famous weekend when all the world watched and became aware that the Hippie Peace and Love movement was something that was real and attainable. We changed the world that weekend by gathering peacefully and devoting our minds and lives to the music and the messages of the times. A world without music today would be a far far different place. Imagine it. Not a fun thought. So yes, music has moment to moment influence upon all of our lives. I could go on and on on this …

5. How has technology affected the music industry? How has technology affected your career as a musician? When people ask me what is my instrument, my answer is now, ‘the computer.’ I have been deep into synthesis for close to 30 years now and my sample library is enormous and very complete. I started working with Voyetra decades ago, graduated to Logic when digital audio was invented and now consider myself a sample composer/ producer. As the musician’s union became more and more powerful and the prices of recording live orchestras became out of reach for so many, the backlash was naturally the development of sample technology which was, at first, pretty elementary, but has now developed into an art form in itself. I’m glad to have been alive during this transformation and have certainly made great use of it. I still love recording a great live musician and will always love working with a great band, but given the choice of working with a pretty good band or my sample technology, I’ll take the technology any day. Also it’s been amazing to the see the costs of great recording equipment plummet downwards. Never before could you do master quality work in a home studio. Today it is not only possible, but totally realistic for about a tenth the price tag.

 6. Now for my Barbara Walters question: If you were a pair of shoes what type of shoes would you be? Marilyn Monroe’s house shoes
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