Roger Zee: How and when did you all meet?
Ron Negro: Bob and I went to the same high school and started gigging together in 1988 in a band called "Bad
Influence." We met Norm when his band "Straitjacket" was on the same bill with us for a Veterans benefit concert that
same year.
Bob Goetz: Back in 1988, our respective bands "Bad Influence" (Ronnie & I) and "Straitjacket" (Norman) were put on
a show billed as "Westchester Rockfest". Of the four bands, our two were the most alike and as Norman said, any off
time we had, we were usually at the other band’s gig supporting them and forming the relationships which would come to
fruition about five years later in 1993.
Norm Dodge: I met Bob and Ronnie at an event called "Rockfest '88" in which their band "Bad Influence", and my
band "Straitjacket" were both performing. There were perhaps two or three other bands on the bill that night, but I
think both of our bands felt an instant kinship. "Bad Influence" and "Straightjacket" both had repertoires that were
just around that time being labeled as "Classic Rock."
Roger Zee: When and where did Powderfinger play their first gig?
Ron Negro: One of the members of "Bad Influence," Danny Phillips, left the band to pursue acoustic gigs. Bob joined
him on occasion and they played as a duo. Danny passed away tragically in 1993. Bob asked Norm to join him at
The Low Down in Mount Vernon where Bob and Danny had a steady gig. "Bob and Norm" started as a tribute to
Danny Phillips.
Bob Goetz: I left "Bad Influence" sometime in 1991 or 1992 I believe. One of the band’s original guitarists,
Danny Phillips had left the band a short while ahead of me to pursue a solo acoustic idea he had. After I left the
band, I started showing up at his gigs with an acoustic bass I had purchased because I thought it was a cool
instrument to have at home. I never really thought of playing it out on gigs. All the bands I was involved in were
electric acts and it didn’t have the right tone for these gigs. But when I played it with an acoustic guitar, I was
pleasantly surprised to hear how great it sounded. I started performing with Danny pretty regularly and before we knew
it, we had a pretty unique thing going as there weren’t too many acoustic duos around at that time, especially with a
guitar/bass combination. Danny had secured a weekly date at The LowDown in Mt. Vernon on Sunday nights, so we had at
least one gig a week to hone our sound and material. Sadly, in April of 1993, Danny was tragically taken from us,
struck by a car the Saturday night before Easter Sunday. He was a popular guy, and a great musician with many friends
and fans. After weeks of mourning, the obvious question started to pop up. "Bob, what are you going to do musically
now?" The owner of The Lowdown informed me he would still like to keep the gig going if I was up to it.
I now had the challenge of finding a replacement for Danny, who had now become an iconic figure in the local music
scene. Big shoes to fill. I don’t know how long it took me, but Norman was the first and most obvious person to me
to fit the bill. After years of watching him play and sitting in with each other’s bands, I felt this was a great fit,
not to replace Danny, but to take his idea at least in a parallel direction. We did our first gig at The LowDown in
May of 1993 and the Bob & Norm acoustic duo was born. fter working together as a duo for some time, I think just for a
kick one night we decided to have a drummer sit in. My lifelong friend Andy LaDue sat in with us at The LowDown one
Sunday night and I guess, although not billed as Powderfinger, this was technically the first Powderfinger gig.
We LOVED it. We now had a great situation where we had put together a great acoustic act, and with the flick of
http://www.facebook.com/BobNormPFsome power buttons on a couple of guitar and bass amps, we also had a kick-ass electric rock band.
The unique thing about this is that since Powderfinger is derived from Bob & Norm, all the songs can be played in
either situation. Many people are pleasantly surprised to hear that the duo is not limited in song selection due to
the acoustic setting. After playing for a year or two with Andy on drums, he decided to pursue an original act he was
working with and left the band. I’m not sure if we tried any other drummers before Ronnie, but again, having worked
with him before, he was an obvious fit. Through the years, he has also strengthened his vocal ability to the point
where we have a nice three part vocal when we need it. We still end every gig with a tribute to Danny Phillips,
as he was instrumental in the forming of Bob & Norm and Powderfinger. We wouldn’t be here without him.
Norm Dodge:
After Rockfest '88 all of us kept in touch, and whenever one of our bands had a night off (which was rare) or got done before the other, we would go and watch each other play. These interactions often led to sitting in with each other, and ultimately subbing for one another if a band member was unable to make a gig.
The Lowdown in Mt. Vernon became the venue where both bands performed on the same bill again in maybe 1991 or 1992, and ironically that stage was where Bob & Norm and Powderfinger were born.
By early 1993 both bands were or had gone through some personnel changes, and were on the verge of dissolving. I remember subbing with "Bad Influence" at the Lowdown at their steady Wednesday night gig there. Bob & Danny Philips (guitarist from "Bad Influence") had started doing a steady Sunday night gig at The Lowdown from 11 to 3am which was an acoustic duo and I think featured a different type of repertoire the band had been doing. Unfortunately in April of 1993 Danny passed away and Bob wanted to keep the Sunday gig going in his honor.
I don't know how many other people Bob had contacted but sometime in May 1993 I played with Bob at the Sunday night Lowdown gig and we have been playing steadily ever since. We started building up our song list from common songs that we knew, requests from regulars at the bar, and both of our individual favorites from different artists and genres. .
We continued playing at The Lowdown for maybe 2 more years, and subsequently both of our bands kind of were over by 1995 or '96. By the fall of '93 I think the focus was on making Bob & Norm a steady thing and branching out to other venues. Concurrent with that was incorporating a drummer and playing our new repertoire with electric instruments. I think we played with at least 2 drummers before Ronnie became the full time drummer in what we were now calling "Powderfinger" and he think he joined in 1995.
Roger Zee: How did you come up with the band name?
Ron Negro: As "Bob and Norm" started playing other places, drums were requested at some of them. A few drummers
rotated before I started to become the regular in 1995. At one point, a bar owner asked what the name of the band was.
Having just finished learning "Powderfinger" by Neil Young, Bob just blurted it out and it stuck.
Bob Goetz: I was on the phone with a club owner trying to book a gig early on and we didn’t have a band name.
We were rehearsing in my living room and were working on "Powderfinger" by Neil Young when I got the call.
So I kind of just blurted out Powderfinger, and it worked. So we kept using it.
Norm Dodge: The name "Powderfinger" came from a phone conversation that Bob had with a club owner that was
going to book the band and wanted to know the name of the band. When Bob said the name was "Bob & Norm", the club owner
replied "That's not a band name." We just learned the Neil Young song "Powderfinger" and the lyrics or something might
have been by the phone, but Bob booked that gig as Powderfinger and we have been that when we play as a three piece
for 20 years now.
Roger Zee: How do you pick the songs? Are you continually adding new ones?
Ron Negro: "Bad Influence" and "Straitjacket" had pretty extensive song lists. Norm learned the ones Bob knew and
vice versa. We still pick up new songs when we get repeated requests for certain artists we don't already cover. Plus,
we often have to learn specific requests for private gigs. If we feel we play them well, we keep them.
Bob Goetz: I think the songlist originally was a combination of songs that Norman and I could sing and had
sung previously in our other bands. We just learned each other’s material. Over the years, different gig situations
produced needs for different material and the songlist just grew. In the beginning, we were lucky enough to just learn
a lot of our own favorites, midway through the band’s career, it was more of a "we should know that song, it would be
helpful to have" kind of thing, I think. Lately we’ve slowed down a bit with learning new material, but the selections
have been much more challenging. (i.e., Suite: "Judy Blue Eyes," "Sgt. Pepper/A Day In The Life," "Rosalita,")
Norm Dodge: Our song list kept growing and the band kept getting tighter. Although I think the focus has always
been on learning the cover songs note for note, we really made an effort to do this even more diligently. If for
nothing else, the practicality of everyone learning the same version and arrangement in the recorded key makes things
easier and just makes sense to me. Going from playing one night together in early 1993 to playing up to 7 nights a week
we have been able to amass a song list that consists of over 300 songs and growing. Over the years I think we have all
contributed to the song list. Nowadays we might add a song from a special request we learned for a private function or
multiple requests for a particular song or artist.
Roger Zee: Do you play the tunes note for note or do you go for a unique arrangement?
Ron Negro: Note for note! Sometimes we all have to get creative on how to cover piano, horn, strings, and other
parts since we are a three piece, but the songs deserve the respect of learning them the right way and trying to
duplicate every part possible. That's the way we believe people want to hear them.
Bob Goetz: When we started out, we decided that if we were going to be a cover band, we were going to learn the
songs with the respect they deserved and perform them the way people expect to hear them. That being said, since we
are a three piece with only two melodic instruments. In order to make the songs sound like the originals, sometimes we
need to adapt the specific instrument parts to allude to some other instrumentation that may be missing. For example,
my bass part may have to be adapted to cover a piano part, Norman’s guitar part may have to invoke a string arrangement
and so on. But we try to stick to the original as close as possible. No musical interpretation here.
Norm Dodge: I would say that we really don't rearrange the covers we play. We stick as close as we can to the
original. Of course as a two or three piece, a lot of songs with more instrumentation have to be adapted. Sometimes Bob
or I might be trying to cop several different instruments or parts within a song. Or Ronnie might have to adapt a large
percussion part within his drum kit. Same can be said about harmony vocals. Many times Bob & I will have to cover
several different vocal parts within a song.
Roger Zee: Do any of you ever sub out the gig?
Ron Negro: We all have personal lives with vacations and such, so sure. Bob and I sub on Rock of Ages on
Broadway and Norm is cool when either of us has to miss for it. But to be honest, even when great players fill in,
there is nothing to replace the thousands of hours of chemistry we've developed with each other. There's just a great
feeling when it's the three of us, no matter what the tempo, volume or setting. We're lucky.
Bob Goetz: We do. We’re lucky enough to be able to do this full time and make a decent living. We’re all older
now and have family situations and need to take off from time to time just for regular life. Ronnie and I also are
first call subs for Broadway’s "Rock of Ages," so if it’s financially feasible, we will sub out from time to time to
do that gig.
Norm Dodge: For me, I haven't done many things consistently for 20 years. But I am proud to say that I have been
in this band for that time. Bob and Ronnie are top notch players and I feel very grateful to play with them on a
regular basis. There is a chemistry here that cannot be duplicated. We have had our ups and downs over the past 20
years, but mostly ups, and we have gotten through it all together. 20 years has gone fast. I have just
taken it one gig at a time. And I will take the future the same way and hope to be playing with these guys for a long,
long time.
Roger Zee: What's the percentage of club versus private gigs?
Bob Goetz: We’ve slowed down considerably over the past few years. But the private jobs have increased
proportionally. I’d say we do a private job for every three or four club gigs.
Roger Zee: How long do you see yourselves continuing?
Ron Negro: We like what do. We like each other. And we're successful. Why even think about an end?
Bob Goetz: We’ve been lucky enough to put up with each other’s ups and downs for twenty years and are stronger
than ever. That’s longer than a lot of marriages. This is a marriage in some respects. The respect we have for each
other personally and musically goes a long way in keeping the band intact. Most of the qualities that would keep a
marriage going are essential in keeping a band together. I also try to explain to people who ask about why the band
sounds so cohesive that you can’t put twenty years of playing together in a bottle and sell it. If it were that easy,
everyone would do it. It’s a quality that we have that I’m very proud of and that I believe comes through with every
performance we do. Sometimes Norman and I will actually play the same mistake and scratch our heads if it was a
mistake at all. You can actually feel the mistakes coming sometimes and head them off so they don’t happen. It’s an
amazing experience and I feel I’m lucky to have two musical partners as gifted as Norman and Ronnie. I see no end in
sight at this point, just a natural progression to different levels of playing and working together. Happy
Anniversary guys!
Norm Dodge: For me, I haven't done many things consistently for 20 years but I am proud to say that I have been in this band for that time. Bob and Ronnie are top notch players, and great friends, and I feel very grateful to play with them on a regular basis. There is a chemistry here that cannot be duplicated. We have had our ups and downs over the past 20 years, but mostly ups, and we have gotten through it all together. 20 years has gone fast, and I think I have just taken it one gig at a time, and I will take the future the same way, and hope to be playing with these guys for a long long time.
©2013 Roger Zee