Charles Carey is an instrumental guitarist from Florida, and half of the strings on the fantastic new album, Room 237, by Charles and monster bassist Robert Rimmington’s new band ‘CountItOff’. The sound of CountItOff is a fusion of traditional bebop study combined with influences ranging from funk to blues to hard rock. Charles is currently the jazz guitar instructor at Palm Beach Community College and Lynn University. He also gives private guitar, bass, music theory, and jazz improv lessons at Marathon Music in Boynton Beach, Florida. Now he’s here with me for this insightful interview…

 

 

 

 

IC: For the readers who may be unfamiliar with your work, how would you describe your music?

Charles: I am a formally trained jazz cat who enjoys playing jazz-rock fusion as well as be-bop. I would say my stuff is similar to Robben Ford’s older instrumental material but it definitely sounds more like me than Robben. My trio is called CountItOff and we just put out a new CD called “Room 237”. The music on it falls within the styles of Robben Ford, Mike Stern, and John Scofield.

IC: What inspired you to play the guitar, and how old were you when you first started?

Charles: My parents were not very into music so the first time I really heard guitar playing was from an old John Denver (yes the country dude) record “Rocky Mountain High”. I heard it when I was 3 (1973) and convinced my mom to get me a guitar and lessons. My first guitar was a full-size Yamaha acoustic (which was pretty big for a 3-year old), and my first teacher was Frank Zapen who was the top reader in all of Miami at the time.

IC: Who were your initial influences and how did that change over the years?

Charles: My first major influences were Wes Montgomery, Charlie Parker, and Stan Getz. I worked on playing their material and understanding their lines until I was about 10. When I was 10 my we moved to West Palm Beach FL and my mom found a dorky young teacher who was supposed to be very good. This really dorky Jewish kid with and big afro was named Scott Henderson, the same Scott Henderson we now all worship. Scott introduced me to Coltrane, Chick Corea, The Brecker Brothers, and other jazz and fusion greats but he also gave me a greater respect for good blues and rock musicians. Scott was great at using jazz vocabulary in rock tunes as well as using rock vocabulary in jazz tunes and even though the purists would be kind of pissy about it he played with an I don’t give a ---- attitude. After Scott got the call to go on the road with Chick Corea (I think), I studied with several of the local well known teachers and started to work pretty steady. I also found my greatest influence during this time, Pat Metheny. Pat has for the last 20 years been my primary musical influence and something of a life model as well. Though I go through periods of transcribing horn players, or more technical guitarists like Petrucci, Planet X, Robben Ford, Brett Garsed, and others I always come back to Pat who probably has worse technique than I had at age 12 but is more musical than I will ever be. His lack of technique has created the most amazing legato style any one has ever heard and he never seems to be unable to play anything regardless of tempo.

IC: Wow, that's an amazing story!  When you told me you studied with Scott I assumed you were an MI grad or something! 

 

What led you to play instrumental music?

Charles: Two primary things. 1. Having to work with singers to make a substantial portion of my income has made my have a great deal of distain for them and their inflated egos. 2. I really never liked hearing words in music period. I like music to be kind of like modern art where several people can interpret the purpose differently whereas vocal music kind of says what its purpose is. I wish vocal stuff would stick to poetry but oh well. I am however a musical whore and if I got the call to go on the road tomorrow with Justin Timberlake I would probably be on the next plane. Oh Yea, a third reason I like instrumental music is I like to show off and like it when others show off as long as there is no ill intent and there is still a respect for one another and the music being played.

IC: Actually I think Greg Howe already got the Timberlake gig! [Laughs]

Okay, so could you tell our readers a little bit about your new release, and anything else that may have come before it?

Charles: I have worked most of my life as a sideman and hired gun/chart reader so CountItOff’s Room 237 is the first CD I have done to showcase myself. In 1999, during the swing-dance craze, I was part of one of the better known bands, THE SWING CITY WISEGUYS, and we put out a self-titled CD that can still be purchased of CD baby, even though the band has since stopped performing.

IC: What have you been working on more recently?

Charles: Rob and I are writing new material for the next CountItOff CD and I have been doing a lot of arranging. I teach at two of the local colleges and direct several jazz combos and jazz bands and have been arranging a bunch of Iron Maiden tunes into instrumental charts for these groups. You should hear The Trooper played by an 18-piece big band. Nico Mcbrain lives about 10 miles from me and I am going to try to talk him into playing on the show when these get played. I’ve never heard him play a samba and Hallowed Be Thy Name is being done as though it was written by Tito Puente, but I think he would enjoy it.

IC: Could you tell us a little about your guitars? Do you have a favorite brand or luthier?

Charles: I have owned MANY guitars but right now my favorite axe is a Washburn X50proQ (I sold my Tom Anderson Hollow Drop Top when I got this) that has a finger rest similar to a Les Paul’s pickgaurd, Buzz Feiten Tuning System, a Dimarzio Air Norton in the Bridge and a PAF Joe in the Neck, and the controls have been changed to be the equivalent of the Tom Anderson vintage voicing. I live right near the world’s largest Heritage Guitar dealer, “Wolfe Guitars”, and for several years I was able to get an unofficial endorsement from Heritage and had several completely custom guitars built. Two of them that I still use quite often are a Heritage 550 archtop and a Prospect. The 550 has been outfitted with two Dimarzio Air Classic pickups, Dunlop 6100 jumbo frets, the controls have been set to duplicate the Anderson vintage voicing, and The Buzz Feiten Tuning System. The totally custom Prospect, which is a 15” top 335 style guitar, has a 25.5 scale maple neck with a Madagascar rosewood fingerboard, a basswood center block that touches only the top, a Dimarzio Air Norton Bridge pickup and Air Classic (soon to be changed to a Paf Joe) neck pickup, Anderson style vintage voicing, Dunlop 6100 frets, and the Buzz Feiten tuning system. I have a luthier who has done my work since 1985 named Jeff Marple. He has moved to Nashville from Ft. Lauderdale but still does my work. My Feiten setups are presently being done by David Bland of Seista Key Guitars.

IC: What other gear do you use?

Charles: I have three really good amps and the gig I am doing dictates which one I use. My absolute favorite is a Fender Vibroverb reissue that has been mounted in a 3x10 cab with a ¾ back. The speakers are 2 Celestion Vintage 10s, and a silver series 10 wired to run at 8ohms. For the typical gig I take a Fender Blackface Princeton Reverb in a Mojotone pine cab with one Celestion Vintage 10. I use these two for most everything with a pedal board that has a Keeley modded Blues Driver, into a Hermedia ZENDRIVE, into a Boss CH1 into an Akai Headrush. I hate Wha pedals but I have a modded crybaby if I absolutely must use it. For Rock gigs I have a Bogner Shiva head that runs out into 2 Mesa ¾ back 1x12 cabs one with a Vintage 30 and one with a Lead 75.

IC: Could you describe the type of tone do you strive for?

Charles: I try to get a tone that has a good amount of sustain without being high-gain. I guess it is closest to Brett Garsed for rockish tones and my clean tone is like Metheny with more mids and presence and a little less bass. I am in the process of securing an endorsement with the Buzz Feiten Tuning system but even if that falls through I would never play a guitar or bass that doesn’t have this system. It is the single most important element to a stringed musical instrument that I can imagine. From a personal standpoint my playing, ears, harmonic conception, transcribing ability and most important my income from increased calls for studio work etc have increased massively since I started using the system in 97. For strings I use D’Addario XL115 (11 gauge round wound) for all my solid and semi-hollow guitars and XL115W (same thing with a .21 wound third) on my hollow bodies. I use Cool Picks 1.2 mm that are shaped like a slightly larger Jazz III.

IC: Do you have any advice for aspiring young guitarists who want to pursue a career in music or just better themselves as players?

Charles: It can’t be said enough that getting your sight reading together, though it may be hard and boring, will ensure you a place in the music scene that pays.

Find the best teacher you can, transcribe as much as you can, learn as many tunes as you can in all keys. AVOID TABLATURE AT ALL COSTS as it is easily the most detrimental thing that can invade a guitarist’s life. Many music authors (myself included) feel as though we are hurting young guitarists when a publisher forces tablature into a book. I was very lucky to have teachers that would simply not keep students who even looked at tablature and I keep the same mindset with my own students today. If you are a good sight reader you will be able to make a living as a musician but just because you can play faster than Yngwie and sweep arpeggios in your sleep doesn’t mean you can cut it in the real world.

IC: How much time do you spend practicing and playing nowadays, and how does that compare with your practice schedule when you were younger?

Charles: I was always a believer that if you are doing less than 6-8 hours of practice per day then you are just doing it for fun. If it is your job than how can you comfortably do less than 40 hours a week of practice? It is also important to practice everything not just what is fun. Figure technical exercises for 20 min or so, sight reading for about 30 min, harmony review for about 30 min, learn and review tunes for an hour, work with play-alongs like the Aebersold series for an hour, work on your new material for your weekly lesson plan for an hour, and transcribe for and hour or so (and write it down, NO TAB, with correct rhythms), then go back to your weak points.

IC: Could you describe how you typically go about practicing? Do you use a metronome or a drum machine?

Charles: I am a psycho when it comes to the metronome. I keep one in every room of the house, one in the car, and two in each guitar case (just in case one dies). Along with each metronome in the house and car is a snare drum book and I will always try to read the snare drum book while the metronome is on and will fold clothes and cook to a repeating rhythmic phrase.

IC: You mentioned that you have some students. How long have you been an instructor, and do you have any particular philosophies or approaches to teaching?

Charles: I have been teaching since I was 14. I started teaching college music theory, jazz guitar, jazz history, and directing ensembles in 1995. I have already stated my strong feelings toward tablature but my main philosophies revolve around sight reading in all positions of the neck, huge knowledge of harmony / parent scales, transcription of musicians from every period, and ability to play any chord, scale, arpeggio, or progression within a 3-position span.

IC: Have you previously released any instructional material, and do you have anything planned in that department?

Charles: I wrote a method book as part of my Masters Thesis that is designed to bring the intermediate player to an advanced level. Most of the books out there are either very much beginning level or only usable to people buying them because of the damn tablature (which means that is was useless anyway). This book, entitled Bridging the Gap, is designed to help take a student through the needed things in order to make a living in this crazy profession in a logical order. In addition it is not a jazz book or rock or anything else it is just a book of needed studies to learn the entire fingerboard, advance rhythm knowledge, help with accompaniments in any style, and gives a better understanding of harmony and chord / scale relationships. This book was just about to be published when my contact got leukemia. Obviously it wasn’t right for me to bug him about a book so now I am independently publishing and selling this book with my own students until I find a new publisher who is interested.

IC: That sounds interesting. I’ll have to check it out!

Alright, I know this is kind of a though question to answer, but what is your creative process like, and what inspires your songwriting?

Charles: I generally get inspired when I transcribe something I would never have thought of, or see a great live show and try to duplicate elements of these performances in my writing in order to make them a part of me and my own musical style.

IC: Do you listen to your own music for personal enjoyment very much?

Charles: Not all that much because all I can focus on is any mistakes made. I do record my improvisation practice so that I can pick on myself but it is generally for personal critique rather than enjoyment.

IC: How important a factor is improvisation in your music?

Charles: I am a jazzer so I would say that at least 85% of every tune is melodically different every time it is played.

IC: Do you have a favorite song of yours to play live, and do you perform any covers?

Charles: I love playing “Scrambled or Fried” which sounds like a Tribal Tech tune with more of an AABA form. Covers that I enjoy playing include and instrumental version of “Wind Cries Mary”, a very funky instrumental “Walk This Way”, an instrumental samba version of “Crazy Train”, and Pat Metheny’s “Bright Size Life”

IC: Is there anyone you’d especially like to play or collaborate with someday?

Charles: Mike Stern, Robben Ford, Vinnie Moore, and Scott Henderson as fellow guitarists and I would love to play with Gary Willis, John Pattitucci or Richard Bona from the bass standpoint and Paul Wertico would be my drummer of choice. Playing with any of them would be seriously cool and would probably get me back into 14 hour practice days.

IC: Ouch! I’m surprised you still have fully functional fingers!

Okay, since this is an instrumental guitar website, what instrumental albums have you heard recently, and which are your all-time favorites?

Charles: I really only listen to instrumental music so that is a big number but two albums that I have really enjoyed lately are Planet X “Live From Oz” and John Petrucci’s “Suspended Animation”. Of course CountItOff’s “Room 237” is pretty cool too. My all time favorite CDs would probably be Allan Holdsworth / Frank Gambale “Truth In Shredding” , Chick Corea “Light As A Feather”, the self titled Tribal Tech album, Pat Metheny’s “Still Life Talking” and “Letter From Home”, Steve Morse’s “Coast to Coast” and Mike Stern’s “Play”.

IC: I still need to check out that M.V.P. Holdsworth / Gambale album, as well as the new one from Planet X… Can’t go wrong with Garsed on guitar!

So what are some of your technical and musical aspirations?

Charles: I have as much speed as I think I could ever use but I would like to have better division of rhythms such as 64th note triplets and quintuplets to allow that speed to be used in a more relaxed manner. I would also like to write some more tunes in more of a progressive rock style rather than the more traditional jazz forms that are mostly improvisations based on simple lead sheets.

 

(CountItOff - Charles Carey and bassist Robert Rimmington)

IC: Are there any guitarists who you still look up to?

Charles: The list is endless but my top guys are Pat Metheny, Mike Stern, Robben Ford, Brett Garsed, Scott Henderson, Tony McAlpine, John Petrucci, John Abercrombie, Mimi Fox, Steve Morse, and many more.

IC: Which newer guitarists have caught your attention?

Charles: I guess I show my age when I say that John Petrucci is a new guy but I really don’t like Dream Theater and never really got into him until the Liquid Tension Experiment stuff so he is new to me.

IC: I hear ya about the Dream Theater stuff... I didn’t get into Petrucci until I heard L.T.E. 2 and his newer solo album.

Do you listen to much non-guitar oriented music?

Charles: I still love Charlie Parker, Stan Getz, Chick Corea, and anything by Michael Breaker (RIP).

IC: I had the opportunity to see Michael play in Houston shortly before his illness kept him from touring as much and such. Very inspiring performance! I’ll never forget his strange “EWI” instrument!

So if you could visit any musician or group in history, who would it be?

Charles: Either the Dregs in the early days, or The Mahavishnu Orchestra. It would be cool to hang with Hendrix but I am drug free and that staying that way may have taken some of the novelty away.

IC: Do you play any other instruments besides guitar?

Charles: I play bass pretty well (electric though, no upright) and I attempt to play piano but that is not a good thing to those around me.

IC: What are some of your hobbies outside of guitar and music in general?

Charles: I lift a lot of weights, play pickup basketball, and have a few nice motorcycles. My favorite two bikes are a 2001 Yamaha V-star 1100 and an old 1983 Honda Gold wing that my wife and I take trips on.

IC: Very cool. I’m thinking about getting a bike… maybe a Schwinn or something! [Laughs]

Okay, last question… What do you want people to know about you?

Charles: I am very appreciative of any compliments and support. I try my best to never come off as a cocky a—hole and I don’t think that I am anyway. My opinions about tablature come from much research so I hope they don’t make me seem like an ass. I like good beer, wine, and vodka but only in small doses. I have a really nice and hot wife who is very good to me. Finally I like humor and hate it when everything in life gets too serious.

IC: There’s no danger of that happening here! Thanks again, Charles!

Charles: Thank you, Dave!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

www.countitoff.com

 

... and don't forget to buy "Room 237"!