WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:02.000 Welcome to the Deep Dive, your shortcut to being 00:00:02.000 --> 00:00:05.419 well -informed. Today, we're looking at a career 00:00:05.419 --> 00:00:08.060 that's just incredibly versatile, almost surprisingly 00:00:08.060 --> 00:00:10.160 so. Yeah, it really challenges your expectations. 00:00:10.599 --> 00:00:12.679 We're diving into the sources on American Rock 00:00:12.679 --> 00:00:16.140 Drummer. Hunt Sales. And our mission really is 00:00:16.140 --> 00:00:19.320 to trace this journey. You've got a musician 00:00:19.320 --> 00:00:22.219 whose work touches some, well, truly pivotal 00:00:22.219 --> 00:00:24.620 moments in rock, different genres, different 00:00:24.620 --> 00:00:26.800 eras. From prog to proto -punk, it's quite a 00:00:26.800 --> 00:00:28.879 range. Exactly. We're looking at, you know, longevity, 00:00:29.239 --> 00:00:32.500 adaptability, and what makes a session player 00:00:32.500 --> 00:00:35.460 like him so valuable over decades, that foundational 00:00:35.460 --> 00:00:37.600 skill. Okay, let's start with the fact that it 00:00:37.600 --> 00:00:40.880 always gets people. The aha moment. Hunt Sales. 00:00:41.140 --> 00:00:45.039 Yeah. For 1954. He's the son of TV comedy legend 00:00:45.039 --> 00:00:48.240 Soupy Sales. Right. It creates this fantastic 00:00:48.240 --> 00:00:52.240 contrast, doesn't it? You have this icon of slapstick 00:00:52.240 --> 00:00:54.479 TV comedy. Pies in the face, yeah. Exactly. And 00:00:54.479 --> 00:00:56.159 his son is laying down the beat for Iggy Pop 00:00:56.159 --> 00:00:58.759 and then later anchoring a band with David Bowie. 00:00:58.859 --> 00:01:01.679 It's fascinating. It really is. It tells you 00:01:01.679 --> 00:01:03.280 right away, this isn't going to be a standard 00:01:03.280 --> 00:01:06.140 career path. The sources make it super clear 00:01:06.140 --> 00:01:08.340 that his professional life, almost from the start, 00:01:08.480 --> 00:01:11.280 was tied to his brother, Tony Sales, the bassist. 00:01:12.200 --> 00:01:13.980 You almost never see one without the other in 00:01:13.980 --> 00:01:16.099 those early years. That brotherly bond seems 00:01:16.099 --> 00:01:18.540 absolutely crucial. It's the bedrock. Absolutely. 00:01:19.060 --> 00:01:21.980 Their first big thing together was Tony and the 00:01:21.980 --> 00:01:24.280 Tigers. And this wasn't, you know, some garage 00:01:24.280 --> 00:01:26.739 band nobody heard of. They got immediate exposure. 00:01:27.700 --> 00:01:31.359 Big time. Oh, yeah. 1966, they were on Hullabaloo, 00:01:31.560 --> 00:01:35.140 which was national. And also Swingin' Time with 00:01:35.140 --> 00:01:37.760 Robin Seymour, a local Detroit show. Basically 00:01:37.760 --> 00:01:41.280 teen idols learning their craft on live TV. Wow. 00:01:41.769 --> 00:01:44.629 So thrown right in. That early experience must 00:01:44.629 --> 00:01:47.269 have set them up for, well, arguably one of their 00:01:47.269 --> 00:01:50.129 most demanding phases next, working with Todd 00:01:50.129 --> 00:01:52.450 Rundgren in the early 70s. Oh, definitely. If 00:01:52.450 --> 00:01:54.010 you want to see how a young drummer develops 00:01:54.010 --> 00:01:57.450 serious chops, you look here. This is where Hunt 00:01:57.450 --> 00:01:59.849 really shows his command of, you know, tricky 00:01:59.849 --> 00:02:02.730 time signatures, complex arrangements. The Sales 00:02:02.730 --> 00:02:04.890 Brothers played on Rundgren's really important 00:02:04.890 --> 00:02:08.080 early solo stuff. Like Rund. Yep. Runt in 70, 00:02:08.240 --> 00:02:10.599 then Runt, The Ballad of Todd Rundgren in 71. 00:02:10.860 --> 00:02:13.620 And they also contributed to the big one, Something 00:02:13.620 --> 00:02:17.139 Anything in 72. Okay, so that's demanding music. 00:02:17.219 --> 00:02:19.639 Lots of precision needed, right? Shifting meters, 00:02:19.919 --> 00:02:23.680 dynamics, not just straight rock beats. Not at 00:02:23.680 --> 00:02:25.900 all. Far from it. Which, you know, makes that 00:02:25.900 --> 00:02:28.099 whole Utopia story even more interesting. Yes, 00:02:28.099 --> 00:02:32.560 Utopia Mark I, 1973. Hunt and Tony Sales, Todd 00:02:32.560 --> 00:02:35.689 Rundgren. Sounds like a prog rock supergroup 00:02:35.689 --> 00:02:38.930 in the making. It did. But it was incredibly 00:02:38.930 --> 00:02:41.409 short -lived, the whole tour. Just two weeks, 00:02:41.449 --> 00:02:43.830 then canceled. Two weeks? Why? What happened? 00:02:44.110 --> 00:02:46.569 Well, the sources kind of politely say technological 00:02:46.569 --> 00:02:49.310 issues. Sounds like code for something else, 00:02:49.330 --> 00:02:52.210 maybe. Creative differences. Implosion. Could 00:02:52.210 --> 00:02:55.020 be. I mean... Prague back then, complex music, 00:02:55.080 --> 00:02:57.099 sometimes complex personalities too, right? Maybe 00:02:57.099 --> 00:02:59.020 the pressure cooker environment was just too 00:02:59.020 --> 00:03:01.000 much too soon. Yeah, maybe. But the interesting 00:03:01.000 --> 00:03:03.460 thing is that quick end to utopia seems to have 00:03:03.460 --> 00:03:06.219 kind of freed them up, allowed them to pivot 00:03:06.219 --> 00:03:08.539 towards something maybe simpler, harder hitting. 00:03:08.539 --> 00:03:10.500 Okay, so leaving the Prague complexity behind. 00:03:10.659 --> 00:03:13.159 For a bit, yeah. And that leads pretty directly 00:03:13.159 --> 00:03:15.560 into their next phase, exploring more straightforward 00:03:15.560 --> 00:03:19.629 hard rock. Which brings us to 1976. And this 00:03:19.629 --> 00:03:22.830 short -lived band called Paris, a power trio, 00:03:23.069 --> 00:03:25.870 and I mean power, some serious names involved. 00:03:25.889 --> 00:03:28.169 Absolutely serious. You had Bob Welch on guitar, 00:03:28.370 --> 00:03:30.909 you know, formerly of Fleetwood Mac. And Glenn 00:03:30.909 --> 00:03:33.930 Cornick on bass, ex -Jethro Tull. So Hunt Sales 00:03:33.930 --> 00:03:36.849 is going from Rundgren's intricate stuff to this 00:03:36.849 --> 00:03:40.050 much heavier, bluesier rock sound. He's playing 00:03:40.050 --> 00:03:42.689 drums, sang backing vocals on their second album, 00:03:42.870 --> 00:03:46.389 Big Town 2061. Okay, so he's mastered complex 00:03:46.389 --> 00:03:48.590 prog. He can hang with these hard rock veterans. 00:03:48.930 --> 00:03:51.689 And now here it comes. This is the gear shift, 00:03:51.789 --> 00:03:54.409 I think, that really cements his legacy for a 00:03:54.409 --> 00:03:56.870 whole generation. Moving from Bal Walsh to Iggy 00:03:56.870 --> 00:04:00.560 Pop in 1977, that's a huge jump start. Oh, it's 00:04:00.560 --> 00:04:02.400 the pivotal moment, definitely. And it required 00:04:02.400 --> 00:04:04.300 a completely different drumming approach. How 00:04:04.300 --> 00:04:07.120 so? Well, Iggy demanded, you know, raw energy, 00:04:07.360 --> 00:04:10.419 aggression, primal power, and the Sales Brothers 00:04:10.419 --> 00:04:12.460 became the rhythm section for Lust for Life. 00:04:12.800 --> 00:04:15.419 The album Lust for Life, just a cornerstone. 00:04:15.599 --> 00:04:18.160 I mean, listen to that title track. That drum 00:04:18.160 --> 00:04:21.699 beat is relentless, driving, simple but perfect. 00:04:21.959 --> 00:04:25.860 What made Hunt the right guy for that specific 00:04:25.860 --> 00:04:29.250 kind of, let's say, controlled chaos? I think 00:04:29.250 --> 00:04:31.170 it's that combination. He had the discipline 00:04:31.170 --> 00:04:33.389 from working with Rundgren, right? But he could 00:04:33.389 --> 00:04:37.470 apply it with this necessary looseness, this 00:04:37.470 --> 00:04:40.850 raw force that proto -punk needed. Right. Powerful 00:04:40.850 --> 00:04:43.189 drumming, yeah, but it's also incredibly tight, 00:04:43.290 --> 00:04:45.829 never feels sloppy, never drags, just pushes. 00:04:45.970 --> 00:04:49.370 And that mix of power and precision, very rare, 00:04:49.509 --> 00:04:51.850 especially when you remember who else was deeply 00:04:51.850 --> 00:04:54.610 involved in those sessions. David Bowie. Exactly. 00:04:54.750 --> 00:04:56.670 David Bowie. And that connection is just crucial, 00:04:56.730 --> 00:04:58.509 isn't it? The sources are really clear on this. 00:04:58.870 --> 00:05:00.850 Bowie remembered how good the Sales Brothers 00:05:00.850 --> 00:05:04.170 were on Lust for Life. Their dynamic, their professionalism, 00:05:04.170 --> 00:05:06.689 that power. And that's why he called them like 00:05:06.689 --> 00:05:08.550 over a decade later to join Tin Machine in the 00:05:08.550 --> 00:05:10.709 late 80s. It's fascinating, isn't it? Bowie's 00:05:10.709 --> 00:05:13.089 a decade on. He's done the whole massive 80s 00:05:13.089 --> 00:05:15.269 pop star thing. And dance, yeah. Right. And he 00:05:15.269 --> 00:05:17.350 needs a reset. He needs a specific kind of energy 00:05:17.350 --> 00:05:20.170 to shed that glossy image. He wants something 00:05:20.170 --> 00:05:24.040 raw. So when Bowie decides, okay, I need to make 00:05:24.040 --> 00:05:27.100 raw, guitar -heavy, kind of confrontational music 00:05:27.100 --> 00:05:29.959 again, who does he think of? The rhythm section 00:05:29.959 --> 00:05:32.240 that gave Iggy Pop that unforgettable groove, 00:05:32.439 --> 00:05:34.779 it makes perfect sense. Yeah, it does. The Sales 00:05:34.779 --> 00:05:38.959 Brothers brought that unvarnished primal energy 00:05:38.959 --> 00:05:42.259 that Bowie needed to sound, well, dangerous again. 00:05:42.459 --> 00:05:44.879 And Tin Machine became Hunt's main gig for several 00:05:44.879 --> 00:05:47.149 years then. Yep. You've got the first Tin Machine 00:05:47.149 --> 00:05:51.170 album in 89, then Tin Machine II in 91, and that 00:05:51.170 --> 00:05:54.310 live album Oy Ve Baby in 92. It really shows 00:05:54.310 --> 00:05:56.790 his adaptability again, moving from Iggy's raw 00:05:56.790 --> 00:06:00.730 feel to Bowie's more angular art rock kind of 00:06:00.730 --> 00:06:02.949 structures. Totally different to bands, but he 00:06:02.949 --> 00:06:04.750 handled both. And while all this Tin Machine 00:06:04.750 --> 00:06:07.029 stuff is happening, the sources show something 00:06:07.029 --> 00:06:09.410 else important about his career. He wasn't just 00:06:09.410 --> 00:06:12.490 the drummer, he was diversifying, using his full 00:06:12.490 --> 00:06:15.680 musical skill set. Yeah, this is key for understanding 00:06:15.680 --> 00:06:18.620 how someone builds a long career, isn't it? He 00:06:18.620 --> 00:06:20.199 wasn't just sitting behind the kit. He started 00:06:20.199 --> 00:06:22.379 popping up in movies and TV, sometimes as an 00:06:22.379 --> 00:06:24.560 actor, sometimes behind the scenes. Like, he 00:06:24.560 --> 00:06:26.439 was actually in the movie The Linguini Incident 00:06:26.439 --> 00:06:29.060 in 91. Yeah, playing a drummer. And it starred 00:06:29.060 --> 00:06:31.060 Bowie and Iman, so that connection continued. 00:06:31.420 --> 00:06:34.040 He was also in an episode of Tales from the Crypt 00:06:34.040 --> 00:06:36.480 back in 1990. Okay, so he's comfortable on camera. 00:06:37.050 --> 00:06:38.970 But you mentioned behind the scenes, too. Right. 00:06:39.110 --> 00:06:41.569 And this really shows his depth. He was writing 00:06:41.569 --> 00:06:44.269 and producing music for soundtracks, not just 00:06:44.269 --> 00:06:45.970 playing on them. Oh, interesting. Like what? 00:06:46.089 --> 00:06:48.670 Well, for instance, he wrote a song called Stateside 00:06:48.670 --> 00:06:51.649 for that horror movie Dr. Giggles in 92. Dr. 00:06:51.790 --> 00:06:54.149 Giggles. OK. Yeah. And he wrote Now That You're 00:06:54.149 --> 00:06:58.550 Gone for tape heads in 88 and even produced a 00:06:58.550 --> 00:07:01.220 track called Tell About Mary. for, get this, 00:07:01.420 --> 00:07:04.779 American Ninja 2, the confrontation in 1987. 00:07:05.160 --> 00:07:07.720 American Ninja 2. Wow. Okay, that's unexpected. 00:07:08.379 --> 00:07:10.540 It really demonstrates that his musical knowledge 00:07:10.540 --> 00:07:13.899 was broad. He understood composition, arranging, 00:07:13.899 --> 00:07:16.980 production, the whole package. It let him move 00:07:16.980 --> 00:07:19.879 between being the engine in a rock band and, 00:07:19.959 --> 00:07:22.600 you know, crafting music for film. That diversification 00:07:22.600 --> 00:07:25.339 must be why his career kept going strong. It 00:07:25.339 --> 00:07:27.860 ensures resilience. Opens up different ways to 00:07:27.860 --> 00:07:30.120 work? Absolutely. And that versatility kind of 00:07:30.120 --> 00:07:32.480 explains the next chapter, too. After Tin Machine 00:07:32.480 --> 00:07:35.180 and all this session and production work, the 00:07:35.180 --> 00:07:38.000 sources point to a big move in the 2000s. Where'd 00:07:38.000 --> 00:07:40.980 he go? He relocated to Austin, Texas, which, 00:07:41.040 --> 00:07:43.699 you know, is a real hub for musicians doing production 00:07:43.699 --> 00:07:46.120 and session work across all sorts of genres. 00:07:46.360 --> 00:07:48.420 Ah, Austin. Makes sense. A different kind of 00:07:48.420 --> 00:07:50.910 music scene. More community focused, maybe. Yeah, 00:07:51.009 --> 00:07:53.350 very collaborative. And a great example of that 00:07:53.350 --> 00:07:55.790 Austin period is his work with Lost Super 7. 00:07:55.930 --> 00:07:58.990 Oh, that musical collective. He was part of Charlie 00:07:58.990 --> 00:08:01.990 Sexton's band on their 2005 album, Heard It on 00:08:01.990 --> 00:08:05.350 the X. It just shows, you know, even after playing 00:08:05.350 --> 00:08:08.350 with these global icons, he's still grounded 00:08:08.350 --> 00:08:10.949 in making music within a community. It connects 00:08:10.949 --> 00:08:13.509 back to that foundational skill idea, doesn't 00:08:13.509 --> 00:08:16.199 it? You can go from the huge stage with Bowie 00:08:16.199 --> 00:08:19.000 back to the respected Austin session scene and 00:08:19.000 --> 00:08:22.259 your value, your musicality is still totally 00:08:22.259 --> 00:08:24.879 recognized. It's the proof, really. And this 00:08:24.879 --> 00:08:27.079 all kind of leads up to him finally stepping 00:08:27.079 --> 00:08:29.000 into the spotlight himself, right? Yeah, much 00:08:29.000 --> 00:08:32.659 later in his career. That would be his 2019 solo 00:08:32.659 --> 00:08:35.600 album, Get Your Shit Together. He released it 00:08:35.600 --> 00:08:37.860 under the name Hunt Sales Memorial. Get Your 00:08:37.860 --> 00:08:40.200 Shit Together. Great title. Isn't it? And it 00:08:40.200 --> 00:08:43.529 feels like a fitting way to sort of... cap off 00:08:43.529 --> 00:08:46.429 this journey we've been tracing finally showcasing 00:08:46.429 --> 00:08:49.350 his own voice after decades powering these incredible 00:08:49.350 --> 00:08:51.730 but very different visions of others so let's 00:08:51.730 --> 00:08:53.610 try and wrap this up what's the big picture here 00:08:53.610 --> 00:08:55.990 yeah we followed this guy from being you know 00:08:55.990 --> 00:08:59.429 soupy sales son and a 60s teen idol uh -huh through 00:08:59.429 --> 00:09:02.730 mastering 70s prog with todd run grin then defining 00:09:02.730 --> 00:09:05.330 that raw energy for iggy pop which was absolutely 00:09:05.330 --> 00:09:07.690 crucial his impact on an album like lust for 00:09:07.690 --> 00:09:10.610 life you can't overstate it then a decade later 00:09:11.210 --> 00:09:13.409 Bowie specifically picks him and his brother 00:09:13.409 --> 00:09:16.529 to anchor Tin Machine's artistic reset. It boils 00:09:16.529 --> 00:09:18.889 down to that foundational skill set, I think. 00:09:18.909 --> 00:09:21.730 That ability to be incredibly disciplined when 00:09:21.730 --> 00:09:25.690 needed, but also dynamic and explosive. Tight, 00:09:25.789 --> 00:09:28.470 yet powerful. That allowed him to just slide 00:09:28.470 --> 00:09:32.210 between genres that, on paper, look totally incompatible. 00:09:32.549 --> 00:09:34.169 It really raises a fascinating point, especially 00:09:34.169 --> 00:09:36.309 for musicians listening today. You mentioned 00:09:36.309 --> 00:09:39.090 Bowie calling the Sales Brothers based on sessions 00:09:39.090 --> 00:09:41.289 from a decade earlier. Yeah, the Lust for Life 00:09:41.289 --> 00:09:43.750 sessions. Right. So think about this. How does 00:09:43.750 --> 00:09:46.029 the high quality work you do now, maybe even 00:09:46.029 --> 00:09:48.669 on a session gig that feels short term, create 00:09:48.669 --> 00:09:50.769 opportunities that might not even show up for 00:09:50.769 --> 00:09:53.950 years? Maybe even a decade down the line. That 00:09:53.950 --> 00:09:56.429 decade gap is the ultimate proof of professional 00:09:56.429 --> 00:09:58.830 reputation, isn't it? The skills you hone today, 00:09:59.009 --> 00:10:01.450 the impression you make in the studio. That's 00:10:01.450 --> 00:10:03.309 what someone like Bowie remembers when they need 00:10:03.309 --> 00:10:05.850 a specific, reliable, foundational talent years 00:10:05.850 --> 00:10:08.429 later. It really underlines the lasting value 00:10:08.429 --> 00:10:11.730 of genuine skill and adaptability way beyond 00:10:11.730 --> 00:10:14.289 just chasing the latest trend. Definitely something 00:10:14.289 --> 00:10:16.649 for you to think about, perhaps while you go 00:10:16.649 --> 00:10:18.950 track down some of Hunt's sales' incredibly eclectic 00:10:18.950 --> 00:10:19.149 work.