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Alan White from Yes: What The Beatles mean to me
Drummer played with Harrison and Lennon
Joe Bosso, Fri 11 Sep 2009, 1:37 pm UTC
"The plane ride to Toronto was something else: With a pair of drumsticks, I was playing on the seat in front of me and we ran down the numbers we were going to play, things like Blue Suede Shoes. One thing that always stuck in my mind was how John said to me, 'Now, remember, Alan, the way Carl Perkins played it, there's an extra beat after the line, 'Well there's one for the money - da-da-duh!' John was very conscious of details like that."
The gig went down extremely well, of course.
"It was wonderful. Aside from The Beatles' rooftop thing, John hadn't performed live for a few years, and I know he really enjoyed Toronto. He was elated, in fact. I think after the show he decided that he was really going to leave The Beatles. Or maybe he had thought it before, but that show gave him the confidence he needed. And I take no responsibility in that! [laughs] I'm sure The Beatles were going to break up no matter what happened in Toronto."
It's funny: You're known as a progressive-rock drummer, yet you've played on some very important records by Lennon and George Harrison. Did they ever tell you specifically what they liked about your playing?
"No. They didn't dole out compliments like that, nothing specific. That just wasn't their style. I think they were so used to Ringo, who always just knew what to do - to them, a drummer played the drums and that was that.
"The only thing that John ever said to me was, 'Alan, what you're doing is absolutely fantastic. Just keep doing what you're doing.'"
It takes a certain kind of drummer who can play the very intricate music of Yes, but yet you laid down a huge, straight-forward beat in Instant Karma! with genuine feel.
"Luckily, I never listened to any one type of music. I wasn't a jazz snob or a progressive snob - if the song was good, I liked it."
Working with Phil Spector on Instant Karma! - what was that like?
