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We catch up with Morris Hayes to talk about his incredible career to date, including not only his amazing time with Prince, but his diverse production career and great insights on touring and playing. In this first part we cover Morris’ development as musician, his entry into the orbit of Prince and his approach to becoming an effective musical director and collaborator for the New Power Generation.
To listen / watch:
- Audio-only: click on the play button in the audio player above, or:
- Video: watch the embedded video below or check it and previous episodes out on our YouTube Channel
Discussion topics covered during the show (links will open in new tab):
It’s been a busy year: Morris’ projects during 2023
Growing up in Jefferson, Arkansas USA
‘Faking’ one’s way into a first band
An early gig with (Gubernatorial candidate) Bill Clinton
The Bizness band
Meeting The Time
George Clinton scene in Graffiti Bridge
Working as a production assistant at Paisley Park
Forming and playing with G Sharp & The Edge: Prince’s house band at Glam Slam
Morris catching Prince’s attention with his synth tech
Morris’ first (and very short) face-to-face meeting with Prince
First conversations with Prince
Morris in Brownmark’s Bang Bang
Playing at Glam Slam with Prince in the audience
Touring with Carmen Electra as support on Prince’s Diamonds and Pearls Tour
Learning from Prince on structuring a great performance
On joining New Power Generation
Wood-shedding Prince’s songs on short notice
Keyboards used in NPG and programming a Roland D50
Being inspired by Eric Persing and Spectrasonics, Marcus Ryle, Michael Boddicker, Bo Tomlyn
Developing a collaborative relationship with Prince as musical director
Rehearsal process with Prince and NPG
Key links:
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