In recent months, ex-Steely Dan and Doobie Brothers guitarist Jeff “Skunk” Baxter has been highly visible with appearances on multiple media platforms. His extensive and entertaining interview with the popular YouTube host Rick Beato, alone, has racked up close to one million views.
“That interview was very enjoyable and a lot of fun for me,” Baxter notes. “Rick is a skilled musician himself, and he does his homework. Reading the comments online has been most gratifying – people seemed to get a lot out of the conversation.” He laughs. “Some of them say things like, ‘I didn’t know Skunk played that solo,’ or ‘That’s my favorite record – he was on that?’ The reactions to the interview have been most gratifying.”
Watch the full episode “Jeff ‘Skunk’ Baxter: Steely Dan, The Doobie Brothers, and the Sound of an Era” “above.
Last year, the guitarist recorded and released an expanded version of his acclaimed, first-ever solo album, Speed of Heat, on which he offered listeners a track-by-track commentary and traced the journey of the album through intimate stories and thoughtful anecdotes. Baxter celebrated the release of the album with a livestream interview on TalkShop Live, hosted by Steve Harkins, as well as a rousing concert event for the Public Television series Recorded Live at Analog.
In the episode, filmed at the spectacular Analog club in Nashville’s boutique Hutton Hotel, Baxter and his band performed beloved hits from the guitarist’s storied career including “Rikki Don’t Lose That Number” and “My Old School,” along with original material from Speed of Heat, and are joined by special guests Rome Ramirez (Sublime), Lauren Morrow, Slim Jim Phantom, and the Nelson brothers Matthew and Gunnar.
“That was one incredible night,” Baxter enthuses. “I always look forward to playing with my band, who are beyond phenomenal, but the chance to play with the guests we brought on made the whole thing one of those rare experiences every musician dreams about. There aren’t enough adjectives to describe their talents. The whole evening just got better and better. After we taped the show, I mixed the episode, and when Lauren Morrow sang ‘Rikki,’ my hairs stood on end. It was that deep. And Rome totally nailed our country version of ‘China Grove!’” The television broadcast of Baxter’s episode of Recorded Live at Analog will be aired nationally via PBS affiliates throughout the year. Watch the full show below:
Since the release of Speed of Heat, Baxter and his band have crisscrossed the country multiple times and come February they will set sail on the (already sold out) Rock Legends Cruise XII. The nautical music festival will travel from Miami to the Bahamas, and the lineup will also include Alice Cooper, Styx, Robin Trower and other rock legends. “I’ve never done a music cruise before,” Baxter notes. “Really looking forward to a week of hanging with old friends and great music!”
Later that month, on February 27-March 2, Baxter will join fellow music greats Stewart Copeland (from the Police), Robby Kreiger (from the Doors) and Darryl Jones (from the Rolling Stones) in Los Angeles at the Rock ‘N’ Roll Fantasy Camp’s “Jam with the Masters.” And that’s not all: From March 22-29, Baxter, a surf music fan since childhood, will sail the high seas once again, performing with the Surf City All-Stars, on the 1960s and ‘70s-themed Flower Power Cruise. “I got a call from my old friend Dean Torrance from Jan and Dean, and he asked me if I wanted to be a part of it,” Baxter says. “It was a chance to play surf music with some great musicians, so I said sure. Dean and I are always looking for opportunities to play together, as he knows how much I love surf music, especially the instrumentals! The whole thing sounds like it’s going to be a lot of fun.”
On Thursday, January 23, Baxter will serve as host for NAMM’s 40th annual TEC Awards. The virtuoso guitarist, a founding member of Steely Dan who later joined the Doobie Brothers, was inducted into the NAMM TEC Awards Hall of Fame in 2016. Says Baxter, “Having been honored by NAMM in the past, it is indeed a special privilege to host this year’s NAMM TEC Awards.”
This year, Grammy-winning singer, songwriter, guitarist, record label founder and one-half of the rock duo the White Stripes, Jack White will be honored with the TEC Innovation Award. White personally requested that he receive his award from Baxter. “That was very kind of him, and I appreciate it,” Baxter says. “We’ve never met, but I’m most impressed with Jack. He’s fearless and certainly innovative. I know that he once bought one of my signature Epiphone Firebirds, and I’m looking forward to the opportunity for a good musicians’-style hang with him.”
Before the TEC Awards, Baxter will participate in a special seminar titled Good Vibrations: The Science of Sound and Music for Healing, hosted by sound therapist Cimcie Nichols (daughter of Roger Nichols, Steely Dan’s iconic engineer), to discuss how music affects people physically, mentally and emotionally. “There’s a close connection between the physics of frequency and vibration and their ability to positively affect living things,” Baxter explains. “For instance, I’ve seen interesting research using focused frequencies to destroy cancer cells. Music, frequency and vibration are deeply analogous, and I’m really delighted to see Cimcie carrying on Roger’s work.”
