ABSTRACT: 04:12 Carter describes his family in Detroit, and how he was the sole child (of eight) to pursue music professionally. He switched from cello to bass due to discrimination in the classical music community. 05:59 Carter explains that his demanding high school, Cass Technical, gave him a head start once he got to college. Unfortunately, discrimination continued to cost him in college, forcing him to give up his seat in the Rochester Philharmonic orchestra. Luckily, he’d been playing in jazz clubs to support his way through school, and had landed in good company, including Sonny Stitt, the likes of whom assured him that a bassist could find work in New York. 08:09 Carter decides to see if the New York rumors are true and moves there in 1959, immediately landing in Chico Hamilton’s band with Eric Dolphy, which he describes as having been “off and walking” (the bass). 09:09 Carter confirms joining Miles Davis’ quintet in April, 1963. 09:38 Recording “Seven Steps” 10:14 Carter recalls the recording process of Seven Steps, Miles’ first album with a quintet. There were two recording sessions, the earlier with Carter, Davis, Victor Feldman and Frank Butler, and the latter incorporated Herbie Hancock, Tony Williams, and George Coleman. Carter explains that the group had not yet gelled; “just nice guys, having a good time.” The group dynamic intrigued him, as while everyone knew who the leader was, no one was afraid of him, which fostered a good environment for creative experimentation and improvement. Carter jokes that as a bonus, he was the paymaster, “so I was in charge.” 12:02 Patterson explains that by the second record, the quintet – Miles Davis, Ron Carter, Tony Williams, Herbie Hancock, and Wayne Shorter – had coalesced and gelled. Carter attributes some of their staying power to their musical curiosity. He emphasizes that they had the right set-up for experimentation, and were having fun. Describes the group as “a band of friends.” 13:39 Carter explains that post-quintet, which broke up in 1968, he felt he needed more time to explore the possibilities of the string bass. Rather than pursuing fusion, including electric instruments, as many of his band mates did, he decided to stay straight on that path. He is still using the bass he bought in 1960, which was crafted in Prague in 1910. He borrowed thirty-five of the hundred dollars required to buy it. He calls his bass The Best I Can Find. 15:47 Carter elucidates his evolution with the piccolo bass: he had one made initially because he felt his ambitions to be a bandleader would go over better if he were positioned in the front, so he had a friend in New Jersey make him a half-size bass that he played as a tenor cello. He rounded up Buster Williams, Kenny Barron, and Ben Riley, and in 1975 had formed his first bass-led quartet. This new bass was higher pitched, thus more prominent, and was played from a sitting position. 17:34 Recording, “Freedom Jazz Dance” 17:40 Carter reflects on Eddie Harris, a saxophone player and composer he considers under-studied. 19:29 Recording “VSoP” 20:53 Carter explains how the VSOP band resulted from a Herbie Hancock night at New York’s Newport Jazz Festival – to honor the Miles period in Herbie’s career, Freddie Hubbard was enlisted as trumpet player, and Tony Williams and Carter joined, and subsequently went on tour, and did some recordings. 21:54 While saying he is not a dabbler, Carter lists non-jazz personnel with whom he’s worked, including Paul Simon, Tribe Called Quest, and Robert Flack. He has also played in Broadway shows, believing to have been hired so contractors could display a good racial conscience. However, he enjoyed the experiences, particularly relishing what he describes as “weekly, not weakly” checks. 24:32 Carter describes his “scholarship students,” twelve children he’s found who are interested in learning how to play the bass and whose only fee for his tutelage is being on time to lessons. 25:17 Carter sheds light on his plan to eventually, once he plays less regularly, teach third and fourth graders how to play the bass, based off of his book Finding the Right Notes. He’s focused on that age because he finds those kids particularly curious, and likely open to direction. 26:55 Recording “Verses From The Abstract” 27:36 Carter explains how he came to collaborate with A Tribe Called Quest. Q-Tip called him, and he said he’d call him back. After getting his sons’ endorsement, he warned Q-Tip that he would not participate in anything involving the “verbal skills” typical of hip-hop; however, the forty-five minute recording session went fine, once he’d approved the lyrics which he found his job to be to make less safe with no words. He acknowledges that that 1991 album “changed everything, man.” 30:36 Carter explains how he got into the Miles Davis band: he had a gig with Art Farmer, Jim Hall, and Walter Perkins at the Half Note in New York in 1963, and Miles approached him to say his current band was disbanding, as they were joining the Wes Montgomery Quartet, and he was trying to put together a new one. Carter had him ask Farmer if he’d release him, which he did. This was the band everyone wanted to join, and Carter felt he was ready to try out his developing concepts and see if they worked. He was never afraid of Davis, who he found to be “convivial.” They talked about a wide range of topics, though never music. 35:06 Per request, Carter shares his McCoy Tyner and Bill Evans stories. He had to ask McCoy not to play below the S in Steinway on the piano, and warned Bill Evans that he doesn’t play clouds, but will provide the beat. 36:54 Also asked to, Carter sheds some light on Eric Dolphy’s personality, explaining how his wife took on teaching him how to cook, which he had no knowledge of when he moved to New York. 39:02 Carter explains his latest snafu in his attempts to play with Ahmad Jamal, the one person remaining on his list of people he’d like to play before he hits “that last note”. Michel Legrand had to bow out of a five-day tour at the Blue Note and tasked Carter with finding replacements, but Jamal demurred, leading Carter to threaten to tell his bass player to step out and watch CNN for an hour during his next gig. 41:41 Recording “Don’t Run”