For just about ten years, Nick Catanese has been a driving force along side Zakk Wylde in the tremendously popular band "Black Label Society". BLS has now become so popular, that they were second bill only to Ozzy Osbourne on the most recent OzzFest Tour. We caught up with Nick right after the OzzFest Finale in Palm Beach, Florida. Nick took time out to talk with us from his home town, Pittsburgh PA for this exclusive interview before heading back out on tour in a few weeks.

Musicians Hotline: Hi Nick, thanks for spending some time with our Musicians Hotline readers so soon after getting in...
Nick Catanese: No problem, it just feels so good to be home for a bit.

MH: Nick, you just got back from the last show of OzzFest, how was the tour this year?
NC: The tour was awesome! We were blown away by the amount of fans there to see us, it was great to lookout in such a huge audience and see all these people wearing BLS stuff.

MH: Let's talk about the early days, when did you first start playing and what was your first guitar?
NC: I started playing when I was about 12, but really didn't get serious until 13 or 14. My Grandfather played just about every instrument, so music was in the family. My first actual electric guitar was a Gibson "Sonex", it was similar to a Gibson Les Paul "Studio" model, but had a huge pickguard and the toggle switch was down by the knobs. It's a funny story, because I sold it long ago to upgrade and thought I would never see it again. It wasn't until I was in BLS that I kind of looked around for one (sentimental reasons) and was talking to one of our guitar guys at the time Fred Koalla, and started to describe it to him… when all of a sudden he said "Dude, I have that guitar"! I said no, you probably have one just like it, but the odds of you having that one are astronomical. He later brought it over and son of #@&% if that wasn't my exact old guitar! I know for a fact it was, as my Dad and I messed with the Pickups and did several other things to customize it way back when. I was amazed!

MH: Your Dad is active in your career; share with us his support story if you could?
NC: When I put my first band together at 15, my father actually managed us. My mom even helped with promotion, so they were both very supportive. My Dad was very much into Auto Racing at the time which is now also one of my passions, so it was totally cool to spend this time together. My parents never pushed me in a direction of something I was not interested in, and to this day my Dad works with me in many areas of my music career. I didn't want to be one of those people who said "I wish I tried" or "I could have been", and they were cool with the idea of "it's never too late to go to school (college) if things didn't work out", I could always go back and study computer science, which is also one of my passions.

MH: Who would be some of your early influences, any favorites today?
NC: My main influences in the early days were players like Eddie Van Halen, Randy Rhoads, and John Sykes. Sabbath played a huge roll of course in my taste of bands; I also loved listening to Ted Nugent. I am also into bands like Saigon Kick; Jason Beeler is a great player. John 5 who plays with Marilyn Manson is also an amazing player, and a great guy. I have total respect for players who not only have talent, but are great people. In the beginning I would hear horror stories about players with attitudes, and there are certainly some out there. But I have found that most of these rumors are not true… I had a heard a rumor about George Lynch, but when I met him he turned out to be one of the nicest guys in the world. I guess jealousy or something else must be the cause of that kind of stuff, I have had great experiences with most of these guys. It's funny, because Zakk says he bought his first Les Paul because of Randy Rhoads, and I bought my first Les Paul after hearing Zakk! I said to myself, "Who is this guy, how can he do all those squeals"; I was also inspired by his use of Pentatonics. I had long straight hair at the time, and was also playing through Marshalls…..someone actually called me "Little Zakk Wylde" way back then, its funny how things turn out!

MH: You obviously had some early success, how did Zakk and BLS first find out about you?
NC: That is probably the best story of all, I believe "life has path for people" and you should pay attention and go with it. I was playing in this band for quite a while and my Dad was helping us out by managing. When one day these guys came in and said they wanted to fire my Dad as manager, I told them the could #@$%^ themselves after all the work that he put in, I wouldn't be interested in continuing on with any band like that. I really thought about "throwing in the towel" and possibly going to computer school…. I was bummed. I was sitting there reading "Metal Edge" when I saw Zakk's Email address, I said to myself…."this will be funny"…. as I knew Zakk had never played with another guitar player in his life, I just sent him this Email…. "Hey, if you are ever looking for another guitar player to work with, I am here in Pittsburgh" I of course thought I would never hear anything back, as he is probably deluged with that kind of stuff. Out of the blue, three days later I get an Email back from Zakk and his wife! It turns out that they had been discussing adding a guitar player to "free Zakk up" during the "Book of Shadows" tour, and were about to do an ad and put the word out. They said "this is just too weird", my Email was in their box before the ad even ran, and they believe in "fate" too. I FedEx'ed them a package with a tape & picture the next day and about 3 or 4 weeks later the phone rang, it was Zakk! With a click of a mouse, I had the opportunity to talk and possibly work with one of my most admired players. After talking on the phone, Zakk flew to Pittsburgh and we picked him up at the airport. The rest was a perfect fit, he came to the house… we played Les Pauls and ate chicken, and Zakk told Ozzy stories, it was amazing. We have been working together ever since, just about 10 years.

MH: Lets talk guitar, you have your signature model with Washburn Guitars, how did that all come about?
NC: DimeBag Darrel was the closest of friends with Zakk and I, and he was the one that put me together with the Washburn folks. It turns out that the Washburn people had seen a DVD of one of our performances, and had asked if I was sponsored by any guitar manufacturer. I told them that I wasn't currently working with anyone on an "official basis", but it would be tough to shake me off my "Pauls" unless they were prepared to do something very individual and special. They agreed, and said they would do a signature model to my spec's. I thought, this is something I could get excited about. I started to pay closer attention to the features of my favorite guitars; Zakk had given me a 68 Paul that I was particularly fond of. I took that guitar and a list of spec's and ideas to Chicago to work on the model. We chose the Idol body style, but I insisted they make the body much thicker… I believe my model is the thickest guitar body they have ever made. I also had them put a big fat neck like a baseball bat, it plays great. I also insisted on close attention to the hardware, I had them use EMG pickups and my killer TonePros Locking Bridge System. I am currently running the EMG "81 & 85" but am also working with EMG on my own personal set which will be "81 & 61". I remember seeing my name on the headstock and playing the model for the first time, it was one of the most emotional days of my life….. this was my guitar! Dime called me on my cell while I was on vacation at a casino to congratulate me, I answered and heard "Hey Twin!!" come through the phone, I thought to myself… how good can life get??? I have two of the world's best guitar players in my corner, it just doesn't get any better than that! I miss Dime terribly, his number is still on my cell…. I just wish the phone would ring again and it would be him.

MH: Your just finishing up another OzzFest, any particular shows stand out?
NC: All the shows stood out in their own way, but I took a special liking to the Dallas show. I got a chance to play a very special guitar of Dimes that Washburn did for him that has a "Confederate Flag" theme. I donated one of my signature models to the "Dime Fund" foundation, and they presented me with this guitar. It is very special to us, as Dime was truly a brother of BLS. Many don't know, but Dime was buried in his "BLS Vest", and we miss our brother terribly. His heart was just huge.

MH: If there was one tip on your career that you would share with an "up & coming" player, what would that be?
NC: Follow your heart, and don't give up! Stay at it, I believe life has a path for everyone. There are always highs & lows, just hang in there. Everybody thinks that it is all glamorous, and it of course is not. There is no way to actually make it though, if you give up.

Gearhead Section
Guitars: Signature Series Washburn Guitars
Pickups: EMG Set (81 & 85) soon EMG (81 & 61 Signature)
Bridge Hardware, Tuneomatic: TonePros Locking Bridge & Tail. Trem: Floyd Rose.
Strings/Gauge: GHS Zakk Set 10-60
Tuners: Grover with Buzz Feiten Tuning System
Amps: Marshall JCM 800 (2) with 4-12 Cabinets (2) loaded with 200 Watt EV's
Pedals: Boss Super Chorus, MXR Wylde Pedal, Dunlop Rotovibe, Dunlop Crybaby\

Return to: