During the early 1970s, while other hotshot L.A. guitarists hustled session gigs at auditions, Jeff “Skunk” Baxter was in the enviable position in which jobs came to him.
“The first thing I did when I came to town was go to work at Valley Sound repairing and customizing guitars,” he explains. “That put me in touch with every player around. Folks would come in and say they needed somebody to sub for them on sessions. I don’t even remember auditions.”
Baxter’s spunky, melodic and highly sophisticated approach to playing quickly made him a first-call pick during the early years of L.A.’s post–Wrecking Crew era.
“I wanted to be the top gun of guitarists,” he admits. “It was a challenge and a goal. I loved the pressure of playing with other musicians and trying to make a record great. The pressure made me learn faster. It stimulated my capabilities.
“The better I played, the more it allowed me to help other musicians reach their goals. I loved being part of the whole process.”
While juggling sessions and performing occasional live gigs (for a time he played pedal steel for Linda Ronstadt), Baxter co-founded Steely Dan, appearing on the group’s legendary first three albums — Can’t Buy a Thrill, Countdown to Ecstasy and Pretzel Logic. Upon exiting that band, he signed on for a five-year run with the Doobie Brothers that culminated with the group’s multimillion-selling album Minute by Minute.
“The whole idea was always the same: play, play, play,” he says. “Play guitar, play pedal steel, play dobro, play acoustic, whatever. Take advantage of any and every opportunity.”
As for which he enjoys more, session work or operating as band member, Baxter says, “It’s apples and oranges. Those are two very different worlds. Whether I preferred one more than the other, I think there was a natural symbiosis and each contributed to the other.”
For the past few years, Baxter has been touring behind his first-ever solo album, Speed of Heat. Recently, he took part in the star-studded Rock Legends Cruise XII as well as the Rock ‘N’ Roll Fantasy Camp’s “Jam with the Masters.”
Before he sets sail once again, this time on the upcoming ‘60s and ‘70s-themed Flower Power Cruise, he sat down with Guitar Player to discuss his electric guitar work on five particularly notable songs from his illustrious career.
“My Old School” — Steely Dan (1973)
“We rehearsed the track a few times before we cut the basics. The solo and all the solo parts were done as overdubs, so I was familiar with the song and had time to think about it. But I didn’t think a lot about it.
“The guitar that I used for the solo was something I had literally finished working on at Valley Sound. It was a Strat body that a friend of mine and I had made. I took that body, routed it out, inserted all the electronics, assembled it with a neck that I refretted, put it all together, plugged it in and checked it out.
“Then I threw it in the back of my car and went to the session.
“The solo section was something of a blank canvas for me to try out whatever I wanted. That was part of the joy of it all. I plugged that guitar into an Ampeg VT-22, and I played what I felt. It's always difficult to define the process in terms of how your subconscious works, but when I did it, it seemed pretty natural. I didn't have any difficulties in searching for what to do. It just kind of came. We didn’t do too many takes, either.
“I loved the song. Funny thing — as we began to tour and play it live, I ended up singing it. The more we played it, the more energy it seemed to generate. There were a lot of times, however, when Donald [Fagen] would sing it. We played it on The Midnight Special, and that performance was much more energetic than the recording.
“As we would play, I thought, Someday I’d like to find out what the limits are on this song. It just seemed like a vessel for energy. That’s how I came to record it for my solo album, Speed of Heat. I thought, Okay, this is the opportunity to give it a try.”
“Rikki Don’t Lose That Number” — Steely Dan, (1974)
“The M.O. was pretty much the same on this track. We’d rehearse, then cut the basics and do overdubs. Sometimes [guitarist] Denny Dias would explore the solo sections while we rehearsed.
“People say, ‘A song within a song,’ and I think that well defines the pathway I took on ‘Rikki.’ I did give the solo a fair amount of thought because I wanted to try to create something that related to the song but also reflected it in multiple ways.
“I came in with a major pentatonic — that seemed to be the right way to get everybody into it. But as the song was slightly obtuse and had some intellectual depth to it, I thought, Okay, I need to reflect that for the second half. I looked at ways to approach melody and chords in a nontraditional manner. Then at the end, I thought, I need to finish with a melody that leads back into the song. I didn’t want to put a period on it – I used a comma.
“The guitar I used was the same Stratocaster I played on ‘My Old School.’ I’m not sure which amp I used. I relied on a number of amps in the studio — the Ampeg VT-22 and also a Fender Deluxe Reverb that was modified by Paul Rivera.”
“Take Me In Your Arms (Rock Me)” — The Doobie Brothers (1975)
“I don’t know if we played it live before recording it. I think we recorded it first before we ever performed it. [Singer-guitarist] Tom Johnson brought it in. He wanted to sing it, and he did an incredible job. One thing I can say about the Doobie Brothers — we were a very well-rehearsed band. Everybody in the band supported the idea of intense rehearsals. I’m sure we ran down this song until it sounded right.
“That said, the solo went by very quickly — maybe one or two takes. It was pretty much improvisation. I think I’m always singing in my head. I noticed there are musicians who do that. I used my Stratocaster again, and the amp was probably the Deluxe Reverb.
“It felt good. Ted Templeman, the producer, went, ‘That's it!’ The song did very well for us. There were probably some people who weren’t familiar with Kim Weston’s original recording. Because the Doobie Brothers had such a definitive style, and Tom’s voice was so unique, I think some folks thought the song was an original of ours.”
“Hot Stuff” — Donna Summer (1979)
“I can't speak for [producer] Giorgio Moroder or any of the other folks involved, but I think they were looking for a vehicle to incorporate a rock flavor to a disco format. The idea was to generate a crossover for Donna Summer from a strictly disco genre to more of the pop and rock arena.
“A gentleman called my assistant, and as I remember it, she told him that I that I didn’t have the time. When she told me about it, I said, ‘Why did you tell them that? Maybe you ought to let me make those decisions.’ I called back and spoke with Giorgio. He told me about what they were doing, and he said, ‘I want you to play whatever you want.’ I said, ‘I’ll play you what’s in my head.’ He was fine with that.
“I believe I brought my Burns Bison guitar with me. I did bring a six-pack of beer – that much is true. Giorgio meant what he said: He gave me complete license to do whatever I wanted.
“I did one pass at the solo, and then I looked at Giorgio and said, ‘Is that what you’re looking for?’ He went, ‘That’s it. You nailed it.’ Donna Summer might have been there. I know she was there when I played the solo on ‘Bad Girls’ with a Roland guitar synth. She was pretty engaged as an artist, so I would think she was around.
“Musically, we all have our personal preferences. If there was any resistance to disco among musicians, it was because much of that music was being made by machines and not live players. I would say for a majority of musicians, they probably felt that their livelihoods were threatened.
“Also, there was the feeling that someone somewhere was taking the human factor out of music. I have my preferences, too, but as a studio musician, my job is to leverage my craft to satisfy the needs of the producer and artist.”
“Speed of Heat” — Skunk Baxter (2022)
“I didn’t go into this song with any preconceived notions. The whole thing came about very simply after I walked over to a piano and played two-note chords. Suddenly, that morphed into a song. If there was any idea behind it, I guess I wanted to create a vehicle to burn over. Because it was a solo record, I could use the opportunity to have as much fun as possible and explore a lot of styles of music.
“CJ Vanston co-wrote and co-produced the track. We cut it to a drum machine, knowing that we wanted to bring in a live drummer and some other players. I used a Roland synth guitar — it’s a Fender Stratocaster platform modified as a guitar synthesizer. It’s a hybrid guitar that I put together. I even wound the pickups myself. That’s the guitar I used for most of the album, and I’m pleased to say, this is my 52nd year working with the Roland Corporation.”
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