Paul Wertico - Called "One of the most versatile and musical drummers in music today", Paul Wertico became a member of the Pat Metheny Group in 1983. During that time, he appeared on ten CDs and three videos with Pat and toured the world many times. Also during that time, he won seven Grammy Awards, numerous magazine polls, and received several gold records. Paul left the PMG in 2001.
When Paul is not touring, he divides his time between studio work, producing, session playing and leading his own groups. Paul has played with such jazz greats as Eddie Harris, Lee Konitz, Dave Liebman, Sam Rivers, Bob Mintzer, Terry Gibbs, Buddy DeFranco, Roscoe Mitchell, Evan Parker, Jay McShann, Herbie Mann, Randy Brecker, Jerry Goodman, Ramsey Lewis and many others. He's currently a member of both the Larry Coryell Trio and the Jeff Berlin Trio, as well as being a member of the legendary Eastern European rock band, SBB. In reviews, his playing has been compared to that of an "Impressionist painter", while Paul has also been described as "an inspired madman" and "a restless innovator." Paul was honored as one of the 2004 "Chicagoans of the Year" by the Chicago Tribune.
Paul is also very active in the educational field. Besides teaching privately for over 30 years, he currently serves on the percussion faculty of Northwestern University and the jazz faculty of the Chicago College of Performing Arts at Roosevelt University. He's written many educational articles for magazines such as Modern Drummer, DRUM!, Drums & Drumming and Drum Tracks, as well as for Musician.com. He also performs drum clinics and master classes at universities, high schools, and music stores in the U.S. and around the world. In addition, he's released two instructional videos, Fine Tuning Your Performance and Paul Wertico's Drum Philosophy.
He's released seven co-op recording projects: a self-titled LP, Earwax Control, and a live EWC CD entitled 2 LIVE; a self-titled LP, Spontaneous Composition; a drums/percussion duo CD (with Gregg Bendian) entitled BANG!; a double guitars/double drums 3-CD set (with Derek Bailey, Pat Metheny, and Gregg Bendian) entitled The Sign Of 4; and two piano trio CDs (with Laurence Hobgood & Brian Torff) entitled Union and State Of The Union.
Paul's debut CD as a leader, entitled The Yin And The Yout, received great critical acclaim including 4 stars in Downbeat magazine. Paul's 1998 CD is a live recording of the Paul Wertico Trio and is entitled Live In Warsaw! It received 4 1/2 stars in Downbeat and features guitarist John Moulder and bassist Eric Hochberg. This trio's 2000 release was a studio recording entitled Don't Be Scared Anymore that received great reviews such as: "This album is like the soundtrack to the world's coolest vacation" and "Jazz-rock in the truest sense". Paul's 2004 CD, StereoNucleosis, also won rave reviews such as: "Wertico reinvents the language of progressive jazz for a new generation on this outing" and "Wertico's StereoNucleosis, easily the finest jazz-rock outing of 2004. LA Weekly magazine even wrote: "Don't Be Scared Anymore and the new StereoNucleosis are stunning examples of the electronic, rhythmic and intellectual directions jazz could be going." The Paul Wertico Trio's latest CD is entitled Another Side and is on the Naim Label and features a new lineup of John Moulder and bassist Brian Peters.
Paul has played drums on countless recordings, including Paul Winter's 1990 Grammy nominated release, Earth: Voices Of A Planet, and he's played on, as well as produced, a number of CDs for various artists, including four of vocalist Kurt Elling's Grammy nominated releases: Close Your Eyes; The Messenger; This Time It's Love and Man In The Air. Paul also served three terms on the Board of Governors of the Chicago Chapter of the National Academy of Recording Arts & Sciences (NARAS).
In addition to winning numerous awards as a member of the PMG, Paul was also voted "Fusion Drummer Of The Year" in DRUM! magazine's Reader's Poll and he placed in the "Top Five in the Electric Jazz Category" in Modern Drummer magazine's Reader's Polls. Paul's been featured on the covers of Drum Tracks magazine and Modern Drummer magazine, as well as on international drum publications such as Italy's Percussioni and Belgium's Belgo Beat, and he was one of the featured clinicians at the 1994, 1999 & 2002 Percussive Arts Society International Conventions and the 1997 Modern Drummer Drum Festival. Paul also has his own "signature" drum sticks, the Paul Wertico model - TX808W, as well as two "signature" products that he invented, "Tubz" and "KidzTubz", all made by Pro-Mark.
Visit Paul's website at www.paulwertico.com
