MJM: Berklee circa ’78 – ’82, when you were a student, was loaded with jazz and funk and fusion fanatics. Did you feel like an outcast with your Beatles fixation? What’s fascinating is that you have always made your unique appreciation of the Beatles the epicenter of your studies, etc., while at the same time emerging as a pioneering educator and also an individual artist.
LP: I was looking forward to attending Berklee College of Music since I as eleven years old. It sounded like THE place for serious musicians to attend. To me music was music, all of it mattered, whatever flavors you loved, you loved. It was surprising to find some teachers and students who fought for their tastes in styles by putting down other genres of music like pop and The Beatles. I could understand that from a jazz perspective once you heard intricate, beautiful guitar playing pop music would be considered watered down and maybe not as complex, but communicating and connecting soul to soul has nothing to do with the complexity of the tools or the medium used to express what we want to say.
What I always loved about The Beatles included freedom, another way of looking at life and everything, and the clear message to use your power for the good and do your thing authentically. I often felt sorry for folks who didn’t get The Beatles because there is a wealth of humor, melody, fun, intelligence, and courage in John, Paul George & Ringo. I love those guys and their music. I have always been so thankful that I was on the planet when the four of them were here. It was a very inspiring time that continued for me till this very day, and Paul and Ringo are still boogying. I learned early on that how I felt about The Beatles and their music, and my own music was something sacred to hold and protect, regardless of other opinions. It is funny and true more often than not, that whatever you’re passionate about that brings you pleasure and people think is weird about you turns out to be your specialty and well of inspiration. There’s no reason to cut yourself off from things that support you (if it isn’t hurting you or others) just because others disapprove. You need your own approval in this life. To be the Beatles expert in the largest guitar department in the world is very cool, and it just unfolded that way.
MJM: Was being female at Berklee a hassle?
LP: It was frustrating because women weren’t taken too seriously. I loved practicing and being good at whatever I played. So, I just tossed the nonsense aside knowing I could play well and I was going to learn as much as I could to be great at what I loved. I still got the pleasure and benefit of doing the work. It’s really not about twisting people’s arms to change opinions. It’s about doing what you love, being fed by it, and then your body of work speaks for itself to those that resonate with it.
MJM: Were you acutely aware of your unique pioneering? First female Guitar Performance degree recipient? First female Guitar teacher? First female … You made history! Thoughts?
LP: I found out the day before I graduated that I was the first woman to finish the Guitar Performance Major. It was never a goal or planned. I felt they needed women to teach in guitar dept. and that I belonged there and Bill Leavitt and Larry Baione felt the same way. In 1984, when I started teaching at Berklee most of the guitar teachers taught from a jazz perspective and the emphasis was on improvisation. I was hired because I played well, loved recording, and I wrote and sang songs. There were thousands of students singing and playing guitar that enjoyed studying with a pop/rock teacher. I always found there was more trust and connection between student and teacher when there was a shared style.
MJM: Was founding Feather Records a natural development or done as a maverick move?
LP: It was both, the aim was to get the music out there. Very unpopular at the time even though books had existed from the 70s about how to do it yourself.
MJM: Will Berklee be your base forever & ever?
LP: Absolutely, Berklee just gets better and better. I am technically a professor and on the faculty yet it feels like I’m an Artist in residence. My job is to keep learning everything I love about production, recording, arranging, playing, and composing and share it. It’s so easy and such a beautiful thing to interact with the enthusiasm of students.
MJM: What is your ultimate advice for sustaining a career as a musician?
LP: Don’t stop if it’s fun and giving you pleasure. You need that life force juice even if you make music just for fun.
MJM: Why do you think that so many artists (in all fields) give up and quit?
LP: They stay discouraged and lose the fun and perspective that it is beneficial for them. But it is ok to change and find what does put the pleasure in your life. Just be open to allow in the new things. Don’t sour on life itself. You are in the driver’s seat. You are creating this life. Enjoy it.
MJM: If you could have a long lunch with Paul & Ringo . . . what would you ask them?
LP: I would ask them about what they were currently psyched about and working on, what things they were looking forward to creating or new places they desired to go. Where haven’t they been on this planet?
I’d ask Ringo who he currently desired to play with.
I’ve always wondered where and when Ringo would come up with all his brilliant drum parts to Beatle songs. There are very few demos we hear when his part isn’t already happening. Most of the time remember, Ringo and George heard Paul & John songs they were about to record, for the first time IN the studio AT the recording session. It takes time to compose the gorgeous perfect parts for a song.
I’d ask Paul what other styles of music he was eager to compose in. He’s played with so many styles. It’s an Artist’s job to keep exploring and participating and creating, and that’s Paul, always trying something new. I have learned about optimism from Paul. It’s a much-needed skill.
I’d ask Paul if he remembered how many hours over how many days he spent on getting, Being For The Benefit of Mr. Kite up to performance ready. His band requested it and of course John wrote it, Paul didn’t sing it and he probably hadn’t ever played the bass part again since they had made the record. Paul had to learn the lyrics, relearn his bassline, and learn how to sing and play it together at the same time to the point where it was just as natural as singing one of his own that he’d been performing for years. Paul still grows as a musician, as a player. That’s beautiful. His self-permission to be, is a blessing to all of us.