Since first laying ears on them back in 1988, Tesla has been a long time favorite of mine. As a young, impressionable music fanatic, Tesla opened my ears and opened my mind in more ways than one. I got educated on the history of Nikola Tesla and I opened my mind to hearing acoustic instruments in hard rock music. In a world full of hair spray, eye liner, and more make up than my mother owned, Tesla stood out from the pack as I saw a band that looked like the guys that lived down the street from me making it big in the rock star world.
In 2014 Tesla released the stellar album Simplicity. Tesla is hitting the road for a US run of shows and I was lucky enough to catch Jeff Keith at the dog park with his family just hours shy of catching a plane to start the tour. Jeff was a really awesome and hilarious guy to talk to. Jeff and I talked about how he came to be the singer for City Kidd (later known as Tesla), getting back to their roots with Simplicity, and just what he thinks Nikola Tesla would make of the modern technology path that music has taken. I can’t even tell you all what an honor it was to talk to Jeff and I’m so happy to get to share this one with you all. Enjoy!
Jeff, thank you so much for taking the time to do this interview. How are ya today?
Don, I’m doing great man. We’re flying out tonight to Phoenix and then we’ll be out for three weeks. We just practiced for a couple of days, knocked the rust off of the songs and we’re excited to go out and play again man.
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I have to say, it’s really quite an honor to talk to you. I’ve been a fan since 1988 and I wish I could go back in time and tell my 15 year old self that I’d be talking to you on the phone today!
[laughs] That is awesome man. I appreciate you wanting to talk to me.
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Jeff, I have to start out by saying that it’s so great to see and hear Tesla making great music still. Simplicity is such a stellar album.
Thank you so much, Don. We love the way the new record came out. We worked with Tom Zutaut again who worked with us on the first two records. He actually signed us to Geffen records. We went to his farm in Virginia twice for two weeks a time to do pre-production which we hadn’t done the last couple of records. This time we did it right and had all the songs prepared before going into the studio. We just love how it came out and you said it and confirmed like the rest of our fans. Everybody seems so happy with Simplicity and we’re so happy about that.
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Doing pre-production in Virginia must have really slowed down the pace for you guys as far as being in a more rural geographic setting.
Absolutely. Man, at the farm we had no internet connection or anything. Me and Frank (Hannon; guitarist) stayed up from sun down to sun up working on “Life is a River” the first day we were there. We stayed up really late that next day until the sun came up again which inspired the song “Break of Dawn.”
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Was stripping it down and slowing things down kind of like going back to where it all began for you guys?
Oh, totally man. We did our first three records up in New York at Bearsville. We did all our pre-production and getting our songs together in what was called “the barn.” We slept upstairs and you would wake up to music and go to sleep with music. It was just non-stop and that’s what we wanted to do again at Tom Zutaut’s farm. We were prepared when we went in to make this record. We had all 14 songs written. The last few records we only had like ½ the songs written and I was writing lyrics while other people were doing tracks so it was just crazy. This time around we did it the right way.
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What I love so much about Tesla and this new album is that you guys truly love this record regardless of what others might think.
We always make the record that we are going to love first and foremost. We figure that our fans will love it as well and if they don’t than at least we can say that we love it and that we never sold out to try and be whatever the latest fad is. We’re a blue collar, hard working rock n’ roll band and we’ll never be anything but ourselves and the fans know that.
Starting with Bust A Nut and even forward into albums like Into the Now and Forever More, you guys took somewhat of an experimental approach but Simplicty just brought it back full circle back to where it all started.
Back to the roots. Exactly, Don. That was our intention. We wanted to go right back to the roots. Not that we ever lost touch with who we are but we did try new stuff. Even with Reel to Reel we were going back to our roots of doing it the old analog way.
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A lot of bands have really embraced computer technology for recording but a lot of bands have taken it too far and it loses that magic.
Yes! Protools and all this stuff can make you a spectacular wonder but when you got to play it live, its like, “Sorry. Only Protools can make you a spectacular wonder.” [laughs] You can sit there and stack thousands of tracks upon tracks. Even with today’s technology we’re always careful and we just keep it simple. We treat the new technology with the old school mentality. We treat it like we did back in the analog days and we do it to stay true to who we are. Some bands just make it all sound so perfectly rigid but it takes the feel away from it. It’s about capturing that feel and that and vibe.
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The song “MP3” really hit a chord with me because when I first became a Tesla fan I bought Mechanical Resonance on vinyl, then I bought Great Radio Controversy on CD, and the last few releases I purchased via iTunes.
Man, I don’t even know how to download an MP3 [laughs]. I’m just an old school country butt but it’s amazing where technology has taken everything which is what inspired that song. It’s crazy what we can do with technology. When Michael Wagner was mixing Simplicity, he would say, “I have new mix for you, it’s in the air.” Ten minutes later we’re in Brian Wheat’s studio and there it is for us to listen to it in the control room. Then we’d send any changes back to him and 10 minutes later we have another new mix [laughs]. It’s crazy how technology is like that.
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So a lot of people look at this technology as a downgrade. From an artist’s standpoint are you ok with this?
Yeah, I’m ok with it. I hear some people say, “Hey man, you’re losing this and losing that. People can steal you songs.” Man, I don’t care as long as the people are enjoying it.
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What do you think Nikola Tesla would think of this technology?
He would love it. He would totally embrace it and love it until it got to the point of it being a money making thing. He didn’t care about making money. He loved his inventions and he kept so much of his stuff locked up in his own head and people that he was just crazy because of it [laughs]. I think he would really dig it.
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Five Man Acoustical Jam is one of my favorite albums and I always loved that it was released as a LIVE album in the truest sense of the word.
Don, that’s awesome man. When we did that album, the record label didn’t want to put it out. They wanted us to go in and re-record parts of it and we wouldn’t do it. We said, “Then don’t put it out.” They said to me, “Listen to how you sang “Paradise.”” We said, “Well, it’s live and if you don’t like it, too bad.” Well, they released it and it’s our biggest selling record to date [laughs]. We stuck to our guns, man.
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You have probably done a million interviews. What is one question you get asked so much that if you get asked it again you’ll kick eat glass?
“If you were stranded on a remote island, what 10 CDs would you want to have with you?” I always say, “Man, I don’t want to be stranded on an island by myself and if I was, I wouldn’t care about CDs or a CD player. I’m going to try to get off this island [laughs].
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It’s no secret that bands like Tesla, Cinderella, Great White, and even late bands like Tangier and Tora Tora got lumped into the whole “glam/hair band” category. You guys always seemed to take it like champs but did that ever bug you at all?
Oh yeah, man. I mean, that’s where we’re coming from. We’re a band from the 80’s and it’s just who we are. We never really relied on image which is probably why we survived when grunge came along. Our fans knew we didn’t rely on image so they had no problem keeping us around. A lot of bands who were heavily reliant on image just didn’t make it and they were out unless they were so huge. Bands that were at our level that relied more on image than anything just didn’t make it. I mean, we had a stylist putting Aqua Net in our hair for our first video but we didn’t know what we were doing [laughs]. We didn’t stick with that and we didn’t rely on image. We relied on the music and our fans know that.
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So many of your peer bands over the years had opted to just ride the wave of nostalgia or put out subpar “new” albums yet Tesla seems to just pick up where you left off. How important is it to you as a band to continue to put out new music?
We love writing new music and we always hope that it shows. We’re still all capable of doing so whether people like it or not. When we go to make a record, we make the record want and if you don’t like it, at least we’re happy with it. We never cared about being on top of charts.
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One of the things I always loved about Tesla was that the music transcended any kind of barriers set up for hard rock music. I mean, I can remember my dad watching the video for “The Way it Is” with me and he thought you guys were the fucking coolest.
[laughs] That’s awesome, man. A few years ago we were playing this festival in Lubbock, TX and there were all these mohawks and heavier bands like Fuel and Saliva were playing. Troy looked at the audience and said, “Dude, we’re the odd man out today.” We were totally the odd man out on that bill but once we got up there and played “Love Song” everybody was just singing along.
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“Love is all around you…” “Love will find a way…” Regardless of what you’re into, how can you not love that very simple but real message?
Exactly. Love is definitely what Tesla is all about. We don’t just write words about it and sing about it. We live it. Love is #1 and sitting on top. Its king of the hill and it’s what makes the world go round, Don. I’m not saying anyone else has to believe but that’s what we believe in our hearts.
Touching on that kind of peace and love mentality, I’ve always loved that you guys did “Truckin’.” Are you really a Deadhead deep down?
Yes indeed. We grew up on that stuff, man. That’s what we cut our teeth on. We don’t necessarily sound like them but they’re part of our roots.
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Frank Hannon has been doing some solo stuff lately. Are we going to see a solo Jeff Keith album ever?
Well, I did a country thing back in I think 2005. I made a little country EP. These guys, Frank and Brian, they have studios in their house and they have time to do all this stuff. I’ll be honest with you Don, as we’re talking we’re unloading our dogs out of the truck and we’re at the dog park as I’m talking to you [laughs]. That’s me. The dog park is one of my happiest, safe havens around. My wife also just reminded me that I have to fold my laundry that’s in the dryer when I get home and then get ready to catch a plane out to start the tour. This is my life man [laughs]. I love it.
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Jeff, I heard that back in the day before Tesla you drove a garbage truck. Is that true?
[Laughs] You know what, Don? They have also said that it was a cement mixer but nope. It was a septic tank truck. I actually used to drive a septic tank trunk for Georgetown Precast. Number one in the number two business is what they used to say [laughs]. I was 24 when I joined the band but if you would’ve asked me what I was going to do with my life at age 23 I would’ve said I’m going to drive these 18 wheeler trucks the best I can make sure I get my septic tanks delivered with pride.
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Before there was Tesla, there was City Kidd. How did a kid from Georgetown end up front City Kidd which would later become Tesla?
Don, that’s a great story man. KZAP, the only main rock station in Sacramento back in ’82 had this contest where you put on a Walkman head set and while the band was taking a break at this place called The Rock Factory, you could pick from “Who Can it Be Now?” or some other song. There were like six songs to choose from and I picked “Your Love is Driving Me Crazy.” They had you sing into a hot mic with no music while you listened to it on a walkman [laughs].
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That’s fucking insane!
[Laughs] Anyways, I won 200 bucks that night. I met up with these two girls who used to live in Georgetown and they knew Frank and Brian so I went and auditioned for City Kidd. Their singer at the time, Jeff Harper, was quitting the band to go sing for a band called Target but he didn’t tell them this. Katherine and Trish, my two friends from Georgetown told me that they were playing at the Rock Factory. I got a ride to the show and I watched Trish and Katherine tell Frank and Brian, “Jeff Harper’s quitting the band after tonight to join Target but he’s not telling you.” Frank and Brian were pissed and they went on stage and called me up to sing a song with them and after that Frank Hannon said, “Jeff is our guy.” So then I joined the band but they needed me to know Top 40 songs but I just didn’t know Top 40. We didn’t get Top 40 in Georgetown. So this guy came along and our manager at the time said, “I don’t know what to tell you but this other guy’s a walking radio.” Man, I can’t compete with a walking radio. I’m from Georgetown. We don’t get a radio station [laughs].
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So then you were out of the band?
Yeah. I was out of the band. Beat out by a walking radio. The band called me though and said, “Man, will you come to practice. This guy knows all the Top 40 songs but he’s like 15 years older than us and it’s just not working out. I started going to the practices with them and as soon as I was able to learn all the songs that they were playing, the walking radio walked and I became the singer [laughs]. I’ve been the singer of the band since, man.
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Jeff, to hear that story word for word from you was just awesome.
[Laughs] Man, Cinderella had a slipper and got to ride in a carriage. I was number one in the number two business with a microphone [laughs].
Looking back on Tesla’s body of work, what album and/or song do you feel best represents what Tesla is truly all about?
Man, I’d have to say all of them. They all stand out to me for their own reasons but I’d have to say that my favorite is probably Five Man Acoustical Jam. We did that one when we were on tour with Motley Crue. I think that it’s my favorite because it was real from the start to finish.
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If Hollywood was to make a movie about Tesla, who would play you?
Who would play me? I think you would have to have me play me because I don’t’ know anybody else could be as off their rocker as me [laughs]. I’m not so sure you’d find an actor willing to play this part [laughs].
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If you could sing for any band from any era for just one night who would it be?
Tesla. Tesla is the only band I have ever wanted to sing for and it’s the only band I ever want to sing for.
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If I wasn’t a musician, I would be ____________________.
I’d go back to my roots and drive a truck [laughs].
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Jeff, thanks so much for doing this interview. I’m looking forward to seeing you Atlanta. Let’s have a beer or two and talk vinyl when you’re here!
Don, thank you so much man. This has been a blast. You know, sometimes you can do interviews and just be like; “Eh, whatever” but you know what dude? You are a blast and this was one of my favorite interviews ever. Thanks so much.