Bassist Tony Markellis was the first musician Trey Anastasio called when he decided to start a solo band in the late ‘90s. Markellis agreed to play with the Phish guitarist and recommended drummer Russ Lawton to fill out their rhythm section and the musicians played a gig at Burlington, VT’s Higher Ground as Eight Foot Florescent Tubes in 1998. The show laid the groundwork for Anastasio’s solo career and the next year the three musicians hit the road for a short tour. Anastasio—who hired Markellis to play his wedding as part of the Unknown Blues Band—also started working with the new rhythm section on a series of original songs, including future Phish/TAB staples like “First Tube,” “Gotta Jibboo,” “Sand,” “Last Tube,” “Ether Sunday” and “Cayman Review.”
The Saratoga Springs, NY-based Markellis was a mainstay in Trey Anastasio Band through 2004 when the group went on hiatus. After a two year break from the road, Anastasio reformed Classic TAB with Markellis, Lawton and longtime keyboardist Ray Paczkowski. The group tested out several future Phish and Trey Anastasio Band songs during a 2008 fall tour and returned to the road with horns last year. Shortly after completing a run of shows with TAB, Markellis discussed his work with Anastasio, his time playing with David Bromberg and how he ended up playing “Hey Ya!” this winter.
Let’s start with some background information on your time with Trey Anastasio. Trey tells a story that when he first visited UVM as a prospective student he saw you play with the Unknown Blues Band. Do you remember the first time you met Trey and, also, the first time you saw him perform?
I’m afraid I don’t remember the first time I met Trey, but I’m pretty sure the first time I ever heard him play was with Phish at Nectar’s in Burlington, when I was playing upstairs at the Metronome with the Unknown Blues Band.
The Unknown Blues Band was very influential to musicians who came of age in Burlington in the ‘80s. How did that group originally form and can you give us a little background on Big Joe Burrell?
The Unknown Blues Band was an outgrowth of a Burlington-based jazz band called Kilimanjaro that I have played with since the late ‘70s. We had a great deal of radio success in the early ‘80s and did some extensive driving tours of the U.S. All the members of the band shared an interest in the blues, some of us having spent years playing with some of the blues greats. We’ve always included a blues or two in our repertoire, which were always well received. It occurred to us that we could be booking some club gigs closer to home, where we could just play blues all night.
After we’d been doing it for a while, the band’s guitarist, Paul Asbell, came in one night and said, “You’ve gotta hear this guy, Big Joe Burrell!” Joe was a classic– he grew up in Port Huron, Michigan during the Depression, got to see the world while playing sax in an army band through WWII in places like Italy and New Guinea, played the Chitlin’ Circuit with R&B revues, backing up everyone from Jimmy Reed to Etta James, and spent the early ’60s as part of B.B. King’s horn section. After that, he lived in Canada for 10 years, playing with a black country singer named John Little. He had a stroke, and needed a place to recuperate for a while. It turned out that he had a nephew living in Burlington, who was more than happy to let his Uncle Joe come stay with him. Joe eventually felt good enough to start doing some low-key lounge gigs around Burlington, but then we got hold of him and really put him back to work! We had the pleasure of working with Joe until he passed away in 2005. He was such a beloved figure in Burlington that last year they installed a life-size bronze sculpture of him on Church Street!
You are originally from Montana but currently live in Saratoga Springs. How did you end up in Upstate New York?
After college, the first big professional job I had was playing with the David Bromberg Band as a young pup in 1973-1974. When I left that job, I wandered around a little, lived at a recording studio in Stockbridge, MA, for a year, and eventually came to rest in Saratoga, which had a very active singer/songwriter scene that revolved around the Caffè Lena. Saratoga was a nice central location for the circuit I was playing at the time, which spanned from Buffalo to Boston and Montreal to D.C. And, of course, there were the Skidmore girls…
How has the Saratoga/Albany music scene changed in the past 20 years? A few years ago it seemed to be dominated by jambands but a nice little singer/songwriter community has emerged as well.
From my perspective, Saratoga has always been about singer/songwriters. From the earliest days of Lena’s– when people like Utah Phillips, Rosalie Sorrels, Loudon Wainwright, Kate McGarrigle, Tom Mitchell, Don Armstrong, Pat & Victoria Garvey lived and worked here in town– to today, when we have, in my opinion, some of America’s great songwriters living here– Michael Jerling, Bob Warren, and Sarah Pedinotti, just to name a few.
Your relationship with Russ predates Trey Anastasio Band by at least a decade, which is why the band is so rhythmically in-sync. How did you first meet Russ and at what point did you suggest bringing him into Eight Foot Florescent Tubes, your first project with the original TAB trio?
I’ve been playing in the Burlington area since the mid-70s, and it seems I’ve known Russ since that time. He’s one of the nicest guys you’ll ever meet. When I was starting to play with Kilimanjaro, he was playing with an African band called Zzebra, fronted by a very powerful Nigerian character named Lofty, who had been a part of Osibisa, one of the first African bands to ever appear on the American scene. From playing with that band, Russ picked up a deep arsenal of African and Latin grooves. It seems that the life expectancy for drummers with Kilimanjaro back then was five years, so every time we would lose a drummer, I’d suggest, “Let’s call Russ!” Unfortunately, he would always be in the middle of a commitment with a new band, where a major-label deal was imminent, so it just never worked out. When Trey called, one of the things he mentioned being interested in was African rhythms. When he asked if there was a drummer I’d want to work with, what could I say? Fortunately, this time Russ was available!
Though you have played with an eclectic mix of musicians over the years, in the ‘80s and ‘90s you were known alternately as a blues/zydeco player and a bassist for songwriter/songwriters. Do you think your background in solid, song-driven music helps focus your improvisation?
I have gotten to play almost every kind of music you can imagine– blues, country, jazz, Latin, funk, folk, rock… you name it. I do try to bank what I learn from each of those styles, but I think one of the things that has allowed me to keep working is that I make a point of differentiating one gig from another– I don’t come in with the attitude of, “Here I am, deal with it!” My concern is always, “What needs to be played here?” There are people who only know me as a blues player, others who only know me as a country player, etc. My job is to enhance the music that’s being played by my employer– not to show off what I can do. One of the great learning opportunities I had as a young musician (that I’m afraid a lot of young players coming up today are missing out on) was playing with disagreeable old bastards who would threaten your very life if you screwed up. Who’s offering that kind of sage advice today? It may be up to me!
For the first time, TAB’s current tour includes an acoustic set that features some full band segments. What did you take away most from these segments?
First of all, I’m amazed at the number of kids who know all the lyrics to every one of those songs! Secondly, I’m very glad to see Trey becoming comfortable enough with himself to get up and do an hour or more of solo work. He sounds great– both his playing and his singing. The crowds, which one would think of as pretty rock-hungry, have been eating it up. The only downside is that the rest of us get pretty itchy waiting a whole extra set to go on.
You played and recorded with songwriter Sarah Pedinotti, who is known as the singer in Railbird. How did you meet Sarah and when did you start performing with her?
I played a gig or two with her six or seven years ago. Then, during the time when Trey was off working with a different version of the band, Sarah was going to start doing a two-night-a-week residency at One Caroline in Saratoga, a restaurant and jazz club owned by her wonderful family. She assembled some really fine musicians, including pianist Dave Payette, and called me up, half expecting me to turn her down. Both of my parents had just passed away very unexpectedly, and I jumped at the opportunity to regain a little family-style regularity in my life. I played with Sarah and the boys for a couple of years, starting in early 2006. It was the first time I had ever worked with a bunch of musicians less than half my age! It was exhausting, but fun. Coincidentally, those guys are out on their first national tour as we speak; I wish them nothing but the best.
When I lived in Saratoga, I remember you played in No Outlet. Have often do you perform and record with those guys?
Everyone has gotten so busy with other projects recently that No Outlet has not been working much at all. I do still work with both Kevin Maul and Dale Haskell in other contexts– with Kevin in the Burns Sisters Band and in the Mississippi Hot Dogs (with Chris Carey & Chris Kyle from Railbird), and with Dale in Street Corner Holler (with Mark Tolstrup). No Outlet will be backing up Texas singer/songwriter Billy Ely at Valentine’s in Albany, NY on May 26. That would be worth your while to catch.
I read once that you played in Mamas and the Papas. Can you give us some background on your work with that historic band?
In 1988, John Phillips was living up north of here in Bolton Landing, NY. He had some NYC guys who played with him regularly, but a few others who seemed to come and go. He would occasionally do gigs at Lena’s with some local musicians. When he called me up to see if I’d be interested, it didn’t take much convincing; I’d always been a fan of his music, and when he told me that the great Louisiana drummer Kenneth Blevins (John Hiatt, Sonny Landreth) would be playing, I was sold. I toured the U.S., Canada and Norway with the Mamas & Papas, which at the time consisted of John Phillips, Scott McKenzie, Spanky McFarlane and Mackenzie Phillips.
The original TAB stopped touring in 2004. How closely did you stay connected to the Phish/TAB world? Did you perform in other bands with Russ, Ray or the other members of TAB during this period of time?
It was a very strange and uncomfortable period for Russ and me. The two of us stayed in touch through that time, but mostly to see if the other had heard anything new. It was a somewhat dark and uncommunicative period for Trey, and, as a result, we were pretty much left uninformed. It wasn’t until after things collapsed in Trey’s life that we started getting more information about what had happened and why.
When did you and Trey reconnect before he reformed Classic TAB in 2008? Was it when he was living near you in the Albany/Saratoga area from 2007-2008?
We actually had very little contact while he was here. He was pretty busy with legal issues and community service.
The current TAB has featured a diverse mix of covers, including somewhat modern hip hop songs by OutKast, Jay-Z and Gorillaz. I was curious who brought in those particular songs and how they fit in with the repertoire? It is interesting from my perspective: it seems that 10 years ago pop covers might not have fit in the jamband scene but the crowd seemed to love them.
Those of us in the band will often joke about not mentioning certain things to Trey before a show, for fear that we will find ourselves performing them that very night. I think the Gorillaz song was his idea, as was the Jay-Z thing (the P.T. Barnum in him couldn’t resist hitting NYC with that one!). I have to take the blame for mentioning that I had once heard zydeco artist Chris Ardoin doing an incredible version of “Hey Ya” at the Rock’n‘Bowl in New Orleans. Next thing I know, we’re playing it. People love that song!
Trey told a story about a conversation he had with you this tour about how—because of the internet—you have to change the setlists each night because every show is documented and traded. A few years ago, you could even tell the same jokes each night. How important is it to create a varied setlist versus a consistent tight show?
I know Trey wrestles with that one nightly– on one hand, you always want to give each night’s crowd a fresh, exciting show. On the other hand, how much do you allow the content of your show to be dictated by the same few faces you see every night? Sometimes you have to just go with what feels and sounds good, and hope that a few of the people there missed the last show.
The earliest TAB songs—“Sand,” “Gotta Jibboo,” “First Tube” and “Last Tube,” among them—grew out of jams written by you Trey and Russ. Have you continued to write with Trey and Russ in a similar fashion?
No, but I wish we would– it’s a fun process. Someone once described what the three of us collaborated on as ‘Curtis Mayfield & Fela Kuti Play Cop Show Themes from the ‘70s.’ I can sure think of worse things to be accused of!
Last June you sat in with Phish for the first time at your hometown venue SPAC. How did you feel the sit-in went? What did you notice the most about how your bass style fit with Fishman’s playing?
Given the kinds of things that Trey is capable of involving one in, being tapped to play a bass line that I wrote (and in the same key I wrote it in!) was a piece of cake. Playing with Fishman is an effortless pleasure– he’s a wonderful drummer, and he really listens to the people he’s playing with.
In our recent site interview with Ray, he says that at first he thought of Trey as his boss and later it started to feel more like a band. I know your friendship with Trey was slightly more involved when you joined the group but was there a point in the group’s arc that TAB started to feel like a true ‘band.’
Although Trey certainly encourages and respects our individual input, there is no question about who has the final say; he is definitely the boss.
Now at the tour is over, how did you feel this winter TAB tour compared to other TAB tours?
Everyone seems to be working better with each other’s strengths– Trey and Ray are working off each other more and more; Jen has become a first-rate section boss, knowing just when to bring the horns in and out for maximum effectiveness; Jen, Russell and Natalie are all becoming even better soloists; the rhythm section’s grooves are getting deeper and more effortless; Jen and Nat’s vocals are simply perfect. I love working with this group of people without reservation; on both a musical and a personal level, there is a compatibility that I have rarely experienced in a band before. Part of Trey’s genius is his ability to assemble the right people, and then let them do what they do best.
Trey often uses TAB to try out new material before bringing it to Phish. Of the new material the band has played this winter, did any of the new Trey originals immediately jump out at you as being perfect for TAB as apposed to Phish songs?
“Ocelot” has been working nicely with the new horn arrangement. There are a couple of songs from the musical Trey’s been co-writing (“Burn That Bridge” and “My Problem Right There”) that seem to be a good fit for us as well.
What is the biggest difference between the current lineup of TAB and the version of the group that toured from 1999-2004?
Since that original group was different each time it went out (first as a trio, then a sextet, then an octet, then a dectet), it’s hard to say. Of the larger formats, this current septet is probably the most manageable. It was great when we had percussion and five horns, but that’s an awful lot of people, horns, mics, egos and elbows to coordinate. The band today is a well-oiled (and well-behaved) machine; it’s less of a free-for-all.
Does TAB have plans to record or release any of its recent studio sessions?
There’s talk of recording sometime this year, but who knows? Trey’s a busy man.
