Terry Adams (musician) - Musical Technique and Approach

Musical Technique and Approach

Adams is an idiosyncratic virtuoso pianist/keyboardist, composer, and singer. His early years were spent absorbing American vernacular piano styles, and in particular he drew influences from a number of country, blues and rock artists, both famous and obscure. Comparisons to Jerry Lee Lewis's aggressive approach have been common, but the range of Adams' vocabulary and skills reaches far beyond such a narrow categorization. For example, another distinct influence on Adams' playing and composing is Thelonious Monk. His shifting gears between rockabilly hammering and lyrical, jazz-flavored open harmonies can be shocking.

Adams' technique on the piano can be extremely powerful and percussive at times, and elliptical and introspective at other times. He has stated that during the 1970s he invested time in the further development of his understanding of jazz harmony, forms and techniques. His live and recorded work clearly reflect his ability to incorporate the latter studies with the variety of other styles he had earlier assimilated. It can take a while for the unschooled listener to appreciate that most of the "wrong" notes he plays are intentional (though sloppiness generally is a core value of his and NRBQ's overall statement).

In addition to being a brilliant pianist, Adams remains committed to the Clavinet, an instrument manufactured by Hohner company (from 1968 to 1982). The sound of this instrument—essentially an electronic version of the clavichord -- is most commonly associated with Stevie Wonder's music and other well-known pop artists, but Adams' typically offbeat approach transcends and/or abandons the instrument's usual cheesy funk associations. As with much of NRBQ's work, the oddball qualities Adams explores are not always smooth or easy to listen to. He expertly utilizes the instrument's various built-in settings, effects pedals such as chorus or phase shifters, and the natural overdrive of a tube amplifier to derive a huge variety of tone and color, some quite grating and abrasive. Adams creates melodic lines and solos, chordal structures, and low-range bass lines on the Clavinet. He has exploited its guitar-like timbre to create a thick mesh with NRBQ's guitar players (notably effective in duet with the now departed Al Anderson). Adams' loyalty to this instrument, which has the lyrical and romantic qualities of the kazoo, is typical of his idiosyncratic dedication to the generally unfashionable and downright silly.

Although Adams is capable of approaching any keyboard instrument, whether a toy piano or an organ, with his unique artistry, in recent years he has spent most of his live and studio performances either behind the piano or the Clavinet. Occasionally he utilizes basic synthesizer patches to add additional color, or to veer into Sun Ra-inspired "space-outs." He is also a proficient harmonica player, and a passable trumpeter. His vocal capabilities are not strong in the traditional sense, but he uses his voice and its often croakish tonality to great effect, whether in harmony with his bandmates or in a lead capacity. His lead vocals range in emotion from loony and excited to a kind of world-weariness. His vocal sound and style is central to the NRBQ attitude, a sort of wise-guy Bugs Bunny take on the world and the all-important quest for fun, which continues to animate the NRBQ attack even as they approach elderliness. When his edgy voice was combined with Joey Spampinato's sweet balladeering and Al Anderson's grizzly-bear roar, NRBQ had three of the most varied and memorable vocalists of any rock act.