Digital Interviews: You were a prodigy on the piano?

Bernie Worrell: Yes, I was a child prodigy at three-and-a-half years old. I had my first classical concert at four. At eight, I wrote my first piano concerto, and at 10 I played three piano concertos with part of the Washington Symphony Orchestra and Plainfield Symphony.

DI: How did you develop an interest in keyboards?

BW: I don’t know. I was born with a natural gift. My mother recognized the talent at three-and-a-half years old.

DI: You had a piano in the house?

BW: Yes. She taught me the scale, and I played it perfectly every day. Then she got the notion to find someone to teach me, which was rough, because -- I was born in Long Branch, New Jersey, down the shore, and -- no one had ever taught anybody that young, back in those days. So it was hard for her. She couldn’t find anybody. Finally, she found one lady.

DI: You also went to college to study music?

BW: I had private lessons before college. I had harmony and theory at least three to four years before college. I got private lessons in keyboard at Julliard, before New England Conservatory of Music in Boston. They skipped me into second-year harmony and theory in my freshman year because I was advanced.

DI: You play all types of keyboards?

BW: Yes, organ, clavinet, acoustic, baby grand, concert grand, pipe-organ, melodica, synthesizers.

DI: How did your family feel when you shifted away from classical?

BW: Well, my mother wanted me to be a concert pianist. But I was away from home, so [laughs] you know. I was known around the college for playing, jamming in the lounge, by all the kids. My teacher found out about it. So, half the time I’d be playing jazz in my private lessons in college. [laughs] Because he loved it. He’d always ask me to play “Tea For Two,” you know.

DI: What were your musical outlets in Boston?

BW: I was playing in nightclubs, and I was part of the house band at Basin Street South, in the Roxbury part of Boston. During that time, I was playing Hammond organ a lot. It was a three-piece group, and we backed people like Dionne Warwick, Tammi Terrell -- who you guys know as Tammi Terrell, but her name was Tammi Montgomery back then -- Lola Falana, Pigmeat Markham, Moms Mabley. It was like a variety show. During that time, I was going to classes during the day and hanging out at night. [laughs] I was the accompanist for a Jewish male chorus every Saturday. [laughs] And I was accompanying ballet and Spanish dance classes on Beacon Hill. Then, after that, my father passed away and I’m short one-half semester, so I went on the road with Maxine Brown, a famous R&B female vocalist. Started touring, the States and overseas -- the first time I went overseas. We did co-billings with Sam & Dave, Chuck Jackson, Freddy Scott, Flip Wilson. Maxine was the supporting act, then Flip Wilson did his comedy show. We wound up in Bermuda, and that’s when the call from George [Clinton] came. He was at Palisades Park. George had said in previous years that when he could afford me, he’d call me. [laughs] The next thing I know, we’re moving to Detroit. [laughs] Before Funkadelic, the Parliaments had a hit, “I Wanna Testify”, that came out, I think, my sophomore year in college. It was Parliaments first. The doo-wop, street-corner vocal section. Funkadelic were the musicians that hung out in the projects in Plainfield, New Jersey, who I didn’t meet until maybe a few years after my parents moved to Plainfield, when I was eight years-old. I met them in the barbershop. I met George in the barbershop -- he was processing hair. I used to sneak out of the house and go get my hair processed. [laughs] Because I was raised kind of strict, they wouldn’t allow it -- to hang out in the streets. But I used to get out [laughs] one way or the other -- climb out the back window.

DI: Why was George always changing the group's name?

BW: Because of recording contracts, and finagling. George is, as we all know…[laughs] He’ll get around it some way. [laughs] Basically, to record. Contractual dealings.

DI: What is the message of funk?

BW: The message can be whatever pops into your head. The message is universal. Funk is a feel. It’s a feeling. A situation...occupational situations.

DI: You worked with the Talking Heads. How did that come about?

BW: Well, they were originally fans of P Funk. When they were art students in Providence, Rhode Island -- Providence School of Art -- they used to sneak into P Funk concerts. They were telling me a story one time -- we were somewhere in New York -- and they snuck in because people wouldn’t let them in. They were fans of P Funk, and when they heard that I had left, they had [keyboardist] Jerry [Harrison] contact me. I didn’t know who they were. [laughs] “Who’s the Talking Heads?” They asked if I’d join, and I said, “I don’t know your music.” I met them in New York, and I liked what I heard. They worked the same way that we did in the studio, so it was a perfect marriage.

DI: Has that group disbanded?

BW: Yeah, I think so. We were in touch with David [Byrne] a couple of weeks ago, and he’s working on a new CD. He wants me to send him some rough mixes of my stuff. And I see Chris [Frantz] and Tina [Weymouth] all the time. I’ve sat in with Chris and Tina on some gigs. They just finished a new album. I’m playing on that, and they’re touring on weekends. And we might possibly do dates together.

DI: What was it like working with Keith Richards?

BW: Oh, that’s my baby! [laughs] We had great times. He’s a fire sign like me, Sagittarius, I’m Aries-Taurus, and it’s another marriage.

DI: You played with the rhythm section of Cream. How did that come about?

BW: Jack [Bruce] was a fan of P Funk, and I was introduced to Jack through Bill Laswell. After that, we became friends. I met Ginger [Baker] through Laswell also, and we became friends. It wound up Jack and Ginger together, with me, and I brought Gary “Muddbone” Cooper, Bootsy Collins’ lead vocalist, into the group. We toured for about two years.

DI: You also played with the great Albert King.

BW: I forgot I’d played on that album.

DI: That was a while ago, huh?

BW: [laughs] Yeah. That was back in Detroit.

DI: You’ve worked on so many sessions over the years. How are you able to manage it?

BW: I think it’s…I was born with perfect pitch. It’s a gift that I was given. So, anything I hear, I can play. And I was given the gift to be able to play all types of music.

DI: Paul Shaffer recruited you for David Letterman's CBS Orchestra in 1993. How did that come about?

BW: Paul’s been a fan for years. We’ve known Paul for at least 20 years, because Paul’s from Canada, and we used to live in Toronto. We’ve known him for a while. He’s a big P Funk groupie. [laughs] Every time we’d come to New York, Paul would come and sit in on the shows. I’d bring him up onstage, so Paul instigated that.

DI: Even as you’re doing work for other people, you have your own project now.

BW: I have my own group, the Woo Warriors. It’s a “Woo-niversal” thing. [laughs] Welcome to the Woo-niverse! I’m endeavoring to spread more funk, but not just funk. We delve into…I go into classical, jazz, rock, reggae. I try to do everything I’ve been doing for years, but in one show. Cartoon music. We play and have fun, and make more music.

DI: Were you honored to be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame?

BW: That was very satisfying. I had tears in my eyes when they handed me the plaque, and the applause when they said my name -- I didn’t realize that people knew me. It’s very rewarding, and I’m thankful, and ever-funkin’ on… [laughs]

DI: What's it like playing with Sly Dunbar and Robbie Shakespeare?

BW: Bill Laswell’s working on the Sly & Robbie album now. We’ll be over-dubbing. I haven’t seen Sly & Robbie in about five years. Reggae is one of my favorite musics -- I’d listen to reggae before funk, even. [Jamaican accent] ”It’s laid back, man, you know.” [laughs] It’s so easygoing, they’re not rushing for nobody. “They take 'em time, man, you know.” [laughs]

DI: Is there anyone out there who you’d like to play with?

BW: Ray Charles.

DI: You haven’t played with him?

BW: No. I met him a couple of times. But, I just want to sit there and watch him. [laughs] And Jimi Hendrix, but I play with him anyway. [laughs] We play with each other every day. You know, he’s still here.

DI: Are there any younger bands, right now, that have caught your interest?

BW: I like Rage Against The Machine, ‘cuz there’s a rage in me, too, and I like what he’s saying.

DI: How did you meet up with Gov't Mule?

BW: Oh, yeah! [laughs] Well, Warren Haynes and I have jammed together at a few clubs in New York for the last four or five years. Warren’s a sweetheart. Also, another Aries. We’ve been friends for a long time. Woo Warriors opened for Gov’t Mule at Irving Plaza in New York a couple of times, and Warren flew me down to Atlanta for New Year’s of...’99? I don’t know. [laughs] ’98? [laughs]

DI: A “recent” New Year’s?

BW: Yes! [laughs] Every chance we get. We just played at South By Southwest in Austin, Texas, and we had a couple days off, and Jerry Harrison was there and sat in with us again. And Warren was in town. So, we went to their show. We’ll probably be doing business with Capricorn Records.

DI: Are you doing any projects with the members of Parliament and Funkadelic?

BW: George and I are on good terms. Woo Warriors opened for P Funk All-Stars at the last Woodstock. George really loves the group, and he sat in about four times over the last two years. He might be in San Francisco this Saturday. So, he’s going to come on stage again, along with Shock-G and Buckethead. Dawn Silva, one of the original “Brides of Funkenstein” -- she’s going to join us onstage.

DI: You seem to like sharing the stage.

BW: Yes. I don’t like the whole spotlight. I like sharing production, co-production and the stage, because it’s not just about all me. Plus, I can lay back. [laughs] Let them work. [laughs] I like to arrange things, and, you know, designate.

DI: Are you heavily involved in production when you make guest appearances?

BW: Yes, and then other times when I’m doing sessions, it’s a chance to lay back and let somebody else. Enough to collaborate on the ideas...but they usually wind up asking me, “Bernie, what you doing over there?” [laughs]

DI: “Well, how would you produce this?” [laughs]

BW: Yeah. I give little pointers, or just opinions, because it’s their project.

DI: Do you do a lot of pre-planning in the studio, or are things more informal?

BW: Well, it depends on the situation. Usually, I just do what I want, because I got it that way. [laughs] But I plan some things. Then, just off the top of my head, I sit down and roll tape, and just do it. As far as arrangements after the basic track is cut, if I’m writing a horn arrangement or playing strings, I might arrange that, plan that out. At other times, I’ll just sit and roll tape.

DI: You have been outspoken about people "coming up" today relying too much on automation and computers.

BW: Machines. Pushing a button. Not knowing basic rudiments. I feel that if a person would study -- not extensively, just, at least a couple years -- hands on, real instruments, and study a little harmony and theory, that you could take it even further. Knowing basic chord structure and colors. Pushing a button, and then you don’t know what chord you’re in [laughs], sampling, or whatever. That’s an amount of knowledge that they’re missing out on.

DI: You’re one of the most “sampled” people. How do you feel about that?

BW: Well, it’s a blessing. It’s an acknowledgement, and I’m thankful for that. I just feel that the original composer or author should be compensated. Other than that, I have no problem with it.

DI: What else is in the future? What kind of projects are you thinking about or working on?

BW: Well, it’s suggested, my interpretations of some Duke Ellington pieces. Just trying to get the nerve up to do it, [laughs] because that’s an honor. A plan is forming. I’m thinking about maybe doing it on Hammond organ.

DI: What would you say to a young musician who would be reading this? What lesson would you want to give to them?

BW: I would say, “Please do some training, learn your roots, learn the rudiments. Whether you’re a drummer, keyboardist, guitarist, bassist, vocalist -- learn “hands on” of whatever vehicle you choose to deal with. Learn some harmony and theory, ear training, and that will only take you higher, and help you get to where you…[sings] “Get back to where you once belong...” [laughs]