191 – Bernie Dresel: His New Big Band, The L.A. Session Scene, The Confluence of Groove and Swing

Prior to forming his own jazz orchestra, The BBB Featuring Bernie Dresel, Bernie backed Maynard Ferguson, the Brian Setzer Orchestra, and Gordon Goodwin’s Big Phat Band. Bernie served 15 years for both Setzer and Goodwin. He has been the drummer on numerous Brian Setzer Grammy Award®-winning recordings and more recently on every recording that Gordon Goodwin’s Big Phat Band has released, including the Grammy Award-winners.

You can see Bernie on the silver screen and hear him in Jersey Boys. He also played on Jurassic World, Inside Out, Tomorrowland, Minions, American Sniper, Dawn Of The Planet Of The Apes, Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol, Mission Impossible 3, Batman v Superman: Dawn Of Justice, Superman: Man Of Steel, Up, The SpongeBob Squarepants Movie, Cars 2, Super 8, Transformers 3, Get On Up, Star Trek Generations, Star Trek 2009, Speed Racer, The Bourne Supremacy, Payback, The Hulk, Ratatouille, Elf, Me Myself And Irene, The Santa Clause, Once Upon A Time In Mexico, Stuart Little, Jingle All The Way, The Mask, Analyze This, The Flintstones In Viva Rock Vegas, An Extremely Goofy Movie, The Aristocats, Liberace: Behind The Candelabra, Ice Age: The Meltdown, Hairspray, The Bucket List, Walk Hard, Enchanted, and many more.

Bernie has played on sessions for TV including Family Guy, American Dad, The Cleveland Show, The Simpsons, King Of The Hill, Pinky And The Brain, Animaniacs, Tiny Toon Adventures, Lost, The Sopranos, Jag, Star Trek Voyager, Star Trek Next Generation, Star Trek Deep Space Nine, Star Trek Enterprise, Baywatch, The Young And The Restless, American Music Awards, Golden Globes, Screen Actors Guild Awards, Emmy Awards, American Comedy Awards, Dawson’s Creek, Dallas, Knots Landing, Simon And Simon, Murder She Wrote, Cheers, Frasier, News Radio, Beverly Hills 90210, Christmas At Rockefeller Center, Tom And Jerry, Ugly Betty, and many more. He also performed as the drummer for Jerry Lewis’s MDA Labor Day Telethons.

In this podcast, Bernie talks about:

* His philosophy on leading and recording a big band

* Joe’s Great American Bar & Grille, and the place it holds on the LA music scene

* Growing up in rural Pennsylvania

* How parts of the new record “Bern Bern Bern” tell the story of his early musical experiences

* His experience at Eastman School of Music

* Working his way onto the LA scene, and how he distinguished himself from guys like Vinnie, rather than trying to emulate or compete with them

* Playing with bassist John “Spazz” Hatton

* How the LA scene has changed over the years, and how it can turn musicians into specialists

* The groove aspects of jazz and big band drumming

* The importance of putting on a visibly energetic performance

Bernie Dresel endorses Craviotto drums, Remo drumheads, Vic Firth sticks, and Sabian cymbals