Steve Lukather’s 2003 Christmas record Santamental doesn’t crop up as often as, say, Toto’s Hold the Line or Africa, but it does have a cult following.
“It made a little bit of noise for five minutes,” he says now. That noise was amplified by the presence of Eddie Van Halen, Steve Vai, Slash, Michael Landau, and even his son Trev, who was 14 at the time.
“It was so much fun, man," he says of the recording in July 2002. "We brought down Christmas decorations. We just had a blast. All we did was laugh and play music – and we got paid for it!”
Santamental is being reissued now, 23 years later, after Lukather won the rights back. “They said, ‘Wanna put it out?’ And I thought, ‘Why not?’ It’s a Christmas thing and we’re doing it for charity.”
But he has no plans to record a sequel. “I got lucky,” he laughs. “It’s one and done. But I do definitely have the fucking Santa hair now!”
How did Santamental come to be?
It was done as a lark. Elliot Scheiner had put together Bop City Records and they wanted me to be their first artist – and they specifically wanted me to do a Christmas record. I was like, “What the fuck makes you think I’m Santa Claus, man? You gotta be kidding me!” But he goes, “No, man, we think you’re gonna do a weird one!”
Is that how you approached it?
Of course – there’d have been no point in me doing it straight ahead! So I enlisted the help of my dear friend Jeff Babko, who does anything from Dr Dre to sight-reading John Williams’ piano parts. I came up with the overall concept and the grooves and said, “I need some hip changes, man,” and Jeff helped me re-voice all of it. He’s a genius.
You’ve written plenty of songs and solos, but you’re not known for Christmas music. Was that challenging?
The challenge was: “Can you write two Christmas songs?” That’s got to be one of the hardest things, because how do you write a Christmas song? I just called up all of my friends, saying, “Hey, man, can you come down and do this for me?”
Eddie Van Halen plays on Joy to the World, the opening track.
You’ve got to understand this was 25 years ago. Please underline that so people understand I’m not trying to take advantage of my relationship with Ed. I talked to Alex Van Halen about the re-release, but people have a tendency to think weird shit, you know?
But anyway, with Ed I just thought he’d be the right guy for that kind of groove. I thought it would be fun to get a bunch of my guitar player buddies in. We cut the tracks in a week and it was all cut live. There were no demos, no rehearsals – nothing. It’s all analog to tape, and no click tracks. We’d run the tune and after the first take, it was done.
Eddie was more or less inactive at the time.
Ed hadn’t played in a year. This was at a time when he was going through some shit, but he said, “Yeah, I’ll come down. I’ll do it for you – but just me and you.” So, Elliot got sound on him, we kicked everybody out of the room, and it was just me and Ed.
I worked the machine and he played. It was done in like 10 minutes. He said he hadn’t played in a year, but he played great. I didn’t keep him there for very long because he did it for me as a solid, you know, as a bro. I love him for that – but I’m not using it as a calling card, saying, “Come dig this record.” I’d never take advantage of my friends that way.
What was it like working with Steve Vai on Carol of the Bells?
Steve is on another level. I don’t know anybody more dedicated, constantly reaching for the next thing, stretching their abilities and making it better and better, than him. He’s been so good to me as a friend. I owe him about a million favors. I gotta go over and mow the lawn at his new house, you know?
Steve, like every single one of these guys, came in, and did everything in one take, and said, “See you later.” These guys like having me hanging around for some reason, probably because they think I’m funny. I’m just there for the humor, man.
Slash played on Broken Heart for Christmas, and at the time, you called him “the Keith Richards of our generation.”
I was surprised when I found out I owned it. I didn’t for a long time – these things have to run through their contractual process
I think he is – and I meant it as a compliment! We’ve been friends since the late ’80s. We were friends before any musicality was involved, but I just love what he does. He’s a legend. I love Guns N’ Roses, and when you think of a rock star, you see a picture of Slash. I thought he’d be perfect for that track. I think he gave it some credibility because he’s the real thing.
One of your oldest guitar pals, Michael Landau, appears on Look Out for Angels.
Mike and I go back to when we were 12. We’ve always been best friends. I had to have him on the record because we were two punk-ass guitar players at 12 years old who thought we were badass guys in Hollywood! We were these cocky little kids who fed off each other.
The funny thing is that when he did that take for the album, his amp wasn’t even completely turned on! He just blew in there and blew out so fast… it was hysterical. I was just like, “Well, thanks, Mike. I appreciate that. It’s brilliant!”
What role did Larry Carlton play?
Larry is very, very special. We did that live record that we won a Grammy for [No Substitutions: Live in Osaka], which was great, because when I was a kid everyone wanted to be Larry Carlton. When me and Larry went on that tour, I got an hour every day before the show where we’d sit in a room and warm up. I’d get a little fucking guitar lesson from Carlton every night.
Most of what I wanted to learn was chord melody stuff. He was very kind, and spent time with me – and sometimes rolled his eyes – and showed me some things. And I’d go, “It’s Christmas time, so give me a Christmas song.” I’ve gotta give him some credit for a lot of the cool shit, and I gave him an arranging credit.
Last but not least, your son Trev Lukather also appears on Carol of the Bells.
He was still wearing his school uniform and had a buzz cut from being on the football team, man. He’s a far cry from that now! This was his first record. He and his band have got an album and a tour coming now. He’s blossomed into an amazing, tasty player, and a great writer, engineer and mixer. He’s got a lot of gifts. I’m proud of him.
It might have been a lark 25 years ago, but SantaMental is well-regarded now.
I was surprised when I found out I owned it. I didn’t for a long time because these things have to run through their contractual process. Aside from Christmas time, I hadn’t thought about it much – but it’s gotten a bit of love, and now it’s gonna be out again.
I really wanna raise money for the Ed Asner Family Center. I have a vested interest in that, as my youngest boy is autistic. That’s a journey – no two are the same. But it’s a great cause. So this is all about peace, love, and having a Merry Christmas.
- Santamental is reissued on November 7 in CD and digital formats, with vinyl to follow. 100% of proceeds go towards the Ed Asner Family Center. For more info, head to SteveLukather.com.
