Benmont Tench Quotes

In The Go-Go's, my philosophy is that I contribute whatever the song requires. I never think, 'What can I put in here to show off the latest trick that I just picked up?' What I think is, 'What's required from me as a drummer to make this a better song?'

A conductor can't be too arrogant with an orchestra and try to impose himself too much.

Being in a band is always a compromise. Provided that the balance is good, what you lose in compromise, you gain by collaboration.

The wonderful thing about rock music is even if you hate the other person, sometimes you need him more, you know. In other words if he's the guy that made that sound, he's the guy that made that sound, and without that guy making that sound, you don't have a band, you know.

It's easy to put on a Deep Purple record and say, 'That sounds great.' But why? Part of it is individual practice, but by playing together, a talent of meshing happens.

If you want to make beautiful music, you must play the black and the white notes together.

Being a good leader requires remembering that you're there for a reason, and the reason certainly isn't to have your way. High-integrity leaders not only welcome questioning and criticism - they insist on it.

No matter how good you think you are as a leader, my goodness, the people around you will have all kinds of ideas for how you can get better. So for me, the most fundamental thing about leadership is to have the humility to continue to get feedback and to try to get better - because your job is to try to help everybody else get better.

I mean, the great secret is that an orchestra can actually play without a conductor at all. Of course, a great conductor will have a concept and will help them play together and unify them.

I think it's a very important collaboration between the conductor and the orchestra - especially when the conductor is one more member of the orchestra in the way that you are leading, but also respecting, feeling and building the same way for all the players to understand the music.

Always sing below your potential.

Sometimes the band can't fully hear your fill, so they come in differently. So I've also learned not to really step out too much, because you sacrifice the band when you do that.

It's just that, when the orchestra look at me, I want them to see a completely involved person who reflects what we rehearsed, and whose function is to make it possible for them to do it.

Being an accompanist is very selfless in many ways because you're really just trying to elevate the singer and help them shine, ultimately.

For me, the conductor is a person who interprets along with me, and we interpret things together.

Being the drummer of Fall Out Boy, and any other project I've ever done, is most importantly about playing for the music. Staying out of the way when it's needed and playing more when it makes sense.

I always say my role in Metallica is to support the song and to support my team, and whatever that means, I'm there for it.

I mean, I wouldn't sound very good next to Barbra Streisand, but I would still love to do a duet with her anyway. Maybe someone else can do the singing for me and I'll just do the lip syncing. How about that?

I really wasn't needed... Just straightening up riffs, that's all. Just two guitarists doing it instead of one.

The limitations and parameters of a band is something I've always enjoyed: so many creative people coming together and raising the music to places we'd never get on our own.

When you start a band, you have to find people that are good, have the same sort of mindset as you musically.

A lot of people think the orchestra is playing and the conductor doesn't do very much, but the conductor's the person that gives shape to the music, gets the phrasing, and if he has really fine musicians in solo spots, the question is does he try to help them phrase, or does he let them go?

You have a great result if the orchestra trusts the conductor, and the conductor trusts the orchestra.

Working together on solving something requires a high level of humility and a high level of self-awareness.

Naturally, in a band or duo, it's really about compromise which isn't necessarily a bad thing.