Q&A with Rick DePaoli
"I am a musician who loves to cook." – Rick DePaoli
Yuko Zama (YZ): Could you tell me about your earliest memorable musical experience?
Rick DePaoli (RD): I moved to the United States with my parents when I was three years old. When I was four or five, I was fascinated by my father’s 1/4-inch reel-to-reel tape recorder, and I used to play with it by making recordings. My father was an oil painter and didn’t listen to music much, but my father’s side of the family in Sicily were all huge opera and music fans, some of them played musical instruments, and I listened to Italian music all the time. Also, the pizzeria my mother ran had a jukebox, and 45-rpm records of Top 40 and Top 50 pop hits were always playing in the shop. The jukebox guy would come by regularly to rotate the records, and he’d give me a bundle of old ones, saying he didn’t need them anymore. I loved records, so I listened to all the popular pop songs from the early 1970s on vinyl using the turntable we had at home. I also grew up listening to the Top 40 on AM radio stations like WABC, where they often played the Carpenters, James Taylor, The Beach Boys, and other folk and pop hits of the time. My older brother had a lot of Beatles records, so I listened to them too and got really into them. Even now, I feel that the pop and folk songs from that era continue to influence the music I write.
YZ: When did you start playing the guitar?
RD: When I was a kid, I watched my brother—who was three years older than me—start learning to play the bass guitar, and that made me want to play the guitar, too. I wanted to buy a guitar, so I started my first part-time job at a restaurant. Seeing how determined I was, my mother realized I was serious about playing the guitar and bought me one. After that, I started taking lessons from a guitar teacher. I studied for one year, from age 13 to 14. I hated reading sheet music, so during lessons, I’d memorize the guitar phrases the teacher played by ear, then pretend to read the sheet music and play along exactly as he did. One day, my teacher caught on and asked, “What do you actually want to learn?” So I showed him the records I had and replied, “I want to be able to play these songs.” From then on, our lessons proceeded with us listening to the records I brought together, my teacher demonstrating how to play them on the guitar, and me imitating him. I never actually learned how to read sheet music, but I think I developed the ability to listen to music and identify the notes by ear.
Back then, I took my guitar with me everywhere I went and played it all day long—on the street. I was truly obsessed with the guitar. In addition to ’70s pop, I often listened to Led Zeppelin, Jimi Hendrix, Eric Clapton, and the Beatles. After entering high school, I formed a band with like-minded friends who played instruments, and we started performing not only Beatles songs but also hard rock like Van Halen.
Rick DePaoli at age 13, working at a restaurant after school
YZ: How did you start being involved with the music scene after you grew up?
RD: After graduating from high school, I enrolled in a recording engineering school in Manhattan to study analog recording techniques. I was still in a band at the time, but as soon as I started learning analog recording, I realized I had a knack for it. After finishing the school, I was accepted as an intern at Reggie Lucas’s Quantum Sound Studios in Jersey City, where I worked as an engineer’s assistant.
The renowned engineer Andy Wallace was also working at the same studio, and I worked as his assistant as well. When it came to recording, Andy was my mentor. Reggie always seemed busy, so I rarely spoke with him directly, but he always kept an eye on me, and I’m deeply grateful to him.
Reggie was a truly wonderful person, and there was a special atmosphere at his studio. It was the mid-1980s, a time when the industry was transitioning to digital—the final era of analog recording. Reggie would always tell us, “Learn digital recording. That’s the future.” But since I was completely dedicated to analog recording, I didn’t learn digital. Instead of learning digital recording, I decided to pursue my ambition to play the guitar in a rock band.
YZ: I find the idea of working in Reggie Lucas’s studio to do analog recording incredibly appealing, and I imagine it was the dream of many young people aspiring to become recording engineers, but did you prefer playing in a band to working as a recording engineer?
RD: When I was working in a studio as an engineer, I often felt frustrated about the musician’s playing, thinking that “No, that’s not how to play that phrase”, and I wanted to be on the other side of the window to play the guitar myself to make the music sound right. My initial purpose of learning studio engineering was to understand how they work on recording and mixing, since such knowledge would help me when I play as a musician. So being a musician was always my goal. But I was lucky I was able to work under Reggie. He was truly a great person. I met many great artists and engineers while I was working at the studio. Some of them became long-term friends whom I still work with, like the engineer Richie Kennon, who recorded my song album in 2017.
As for my memories of Reggie, I didn’t have a chance to talk with him so much back when I was working at the studio. But much later, in 2017—a few weeks before I was set to record the songs for this album (and several months before Reggie passed away)—I sent him an email to let him know how I was doing. Reggie called me right away. During that call, Reggie said “I always liked you. I wanted to invest more time in you, since I thought you’d become a great engineer. I regret that I didn’t have a chance to do that.” Those words struck a chord with me. If I had heard him say that back when I was working at his studio, I might have pursued a career as an engineer, and a completely different life might have unfolded for me. There are times when I wonder if my decision not to pursue a career as an engineer was the right one.
Reggie Lucas at his home studio in NJ (photo © Lisa Lucas)
YZ: Do you still do engineering work?
RD: Yes, but only at my home studio. Back in 2017, when I was recording the songs for this album, I set up a studio in my basement, installed digital recording software and equipments, and taught myself the techniques. I record my vocals and guitar there to this day—whenever I have a break from my job at the restaurant.
YZ: After leaving Reggie Lucas’s studio, you joined the melodic hard rock band, BAND OF THIEVES, led by Ron "Bumblefoot" Thal, who later became one of the lead guitarists for Guns N' Roses from 2006 to 2014. I watched Ron play guitar on YouTube and was amazed by his phenomenal technique. What led you to join his band? Could you also tell us about the band’s activities back then?
RD: Ronnie (Ron Thal) was looking for a guitarist for his band. Ronnie already had a reputation as an astonishing guitarist, so it seemed that other young guitarists were intimidated and didn’t show up for the auditions much. But I went to the audition and played guitar. Ronnie told me later that he’d written in his diary that day, “He impressed the shit out of me!” And that’s how I became the guitarist for his band. We played at venues like L’Amour in Brooklyn. That was around the early 1990s.
BAND OF THIEVES live at L'Amour in Brooklyn (1991) Rick DePaoli (left), Ron Thal (center),Keith Laposh (right)
YZ: Did you write songs when you were in Ronnie’’s band?
RD: No, Ronnie wrote all the songs for the band. I just played the guitar. Soon after that, Ronnie became super famous and got busy with his other activities, so I decided to form my own band LIONHEART, which we renamed to WITHOUT LOVE later. I started writing songs myself. The members were Chali Cayte (vocals), Cris Burguiere (guitars), Pete Ruello (bass guitar, vocals), Neil Sarge (drums), and me (guitars, vocals). Chali has become a singer in the band Tour De Force before LIONHEART, and is still singing. Tour De Force’s three albums were released in Japan, too.
With the experiences I learned at Reggie's studio, I produced, recorded, mixed the band's debut album.
WITHOUT LOVE
YZ: I love your songs on the WITHOUT LOVE’s CD ‘trouble’ (Metal Mayhem Music 2000). The songs are straightforward and honest, the whole album is solidly composed, performed, and beautifully recorded. These songs feel resonated with anyone regardless of genres. The song "Always and Forever" is particularly moving and sounds like an all-time masterpiece to me.
RD: Thank you. That WITHOUT LOVE’s CD ’trouble’ will be reissued soon by German label 20th Century Records to respond to the enthusiastic fans of the band. We are very happy to see that that band still has such a loyal fan base even today.
WITHOUT LOVE - trouble (2000 Metal Mayhem Music), to be reissued from 20th Century Records in 2026
RD: I always wanted to write a song that would resonate with many people. My former bandmate Ronnie went to a more artistic direction as a master of virtuosic guitar technique, in a more progressive style. But I chose a different direction in my band, to make more pop, melodic songs for a wider audience possible, since sharing my music with as many people as possible was always my dream.
YZ: What happened after the band activities with WITHOUT LOVE?
RD: Back in the late ’80s through the ’90s, melodic hard rock was already becoming a thing of the past, and new wave and alternative rock were on the rise. Just when most people were looking for something new, I was playing music from a decade ago.
At age 30, I enrolled in a culinary school in New York. I’ve loved cooking since I was a child, and I learned by helping out in my mother’s kitchen. At age 33, I gave up on the idea that I could ever succeed in music, and I quit music and devoted myself to cooking. Making it in the music industry is a dream for young people, and I wasn't that young anymore. After culinary school, I worked at a French restaurant in Manhattan. Then, in 2000, I started my own food truck. I got married and had a son, and for more than 20 years since then, I’ve continued working as a chef to support my family.
Rick DePaoli working at a French restaurant in Manhattan (1990s)
YZ: So, you didn't play music at all during the time when you worked as a chef?
RD: No. I can’t focus on two things at once. I had to choose between cooking and making music. When I’m absorbed in one of them, I can’t think about anything else.
There was one other thing—something really upsetting happened back then. The lead singer of an American metal band took one of my songs, "Surrender Your Love," which I had sent out as a demo. It circulated and reached him. He recorded the song for his own album and released it without my permission. This happened in 2004. I only found out about the release when I searched my name online after the CD came out. I was shocked and furious that my song had been stolen. At least he credited me as the songwriter, but he didn't contact me at all. In a way, I was happy that someone was moved by my song and wanted to include it on his album. But having it used without my consent felt like my heart was being torn apart. My friend's lawyer sent a legal notice to the singer on my behalf. However, since the singer was poor and couldn't pay anything, I had to let it go. After an Italian label released his CD, it was released in four countries, including Spain and Japan. That incident still lingers as a source of pain. It was one of the reasons I became disillusioned with my music career and drifted away from music.
Rick DePaoli in the late 1990s
YZ: What inspired you to write songs again in 2017?
RD: It was when I was working seven days a week from 10 p.m. to 5 a.m. at my food truck near the Daily News newspaper plant on the Jersey City waterfront. I was 52 years old. I can't really explain it, but one day something happened to me. After work that day, I came home upset and emotional. I suddenly realized that an important part of myself had been dead for a long time: my music. I had chosen to cook for a living to support my family, but something inside me was crying out, and I realized that I had to make music again. The next day, I brought my old, beat-up guitar to the food truck and started writing songs between customers. My head was filled with new song ideas, and when I got home in the morning, I recorded the new songs that I had written the previous night in my truck in my basement studio. I did the same thing every day. I didn't sleep much. I finished writing twelve new songs in two weeks.
YZ: When you first sent me these songs last year, you didn’t tell me the names of the musicians who were involved. I was just blown away by how high-quality all the productions were — the songs, performances, recordings, and mixing — since everything sounded so professional. I didn’t expect to hear something like that from the chef of our favorite neighborhood restaurant! Later, when I decided to release your album on my label, you told me the names of the sidemen, which stunned me again. Among them were Michael Landau and Jimmy Johnson, who played on my favorite James Taylor album, Live. You recorded your songs with such renowned musicians. How did that happen?
RD: I first contacted Aaron Sterling. Since he was the top session player in the country at the time. He turned me on to Andy Burton, who toured with him with John Mayer, and happened to have a studio in Jersey City which was only 10 minutes from my place so he did all the piano.
I've always enjoyed Jimmy Johnson's bass playing, I watched him live many times with Allan Holdsworth and his work with James Taylor. Aaron Sterling happened to know him and called him about my project. So he joined us too after hearing my music. Jimmy asked Michael Landau, to also play additional guitars. He was in James Taylor's band with Jimmy. I always love Michael's playing on all these great records that came out over the years. So that ended up being the band.
We recorded these twelve new songs, plus a few others that I wrote in the early 1990s. "Surrender Your Love" is one of the earlier songs, but I changed the arrangement. I eventually decided to include thirteen songs on my album 'Don't Lose Your Faith'.
I sold some of my guitars to a studio because I couldn't afford the recording fees, hoping to buy them back someday. My friend Jonathan, who is a film producer, helped me out financially, too.
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Michael Landau
Jimmy Johnson
YZ: Aside from these renowned musicians, your songs were mixed by Kevin Killen, a Grammy Award-winning engineer who has worked with U2, Peter Gabriel, and David Bowie. He also mixed recordings by some of my all-time favorite artists, such as Peter Gabriel's album 'So' and Elvis Costello’s song 'She'. I heard that Kevin Killen only works with a select few musicians. How did you manage to get him to mix your album?
RD: After we recorded the 13 songs, I sent them to Kevin Killen. At first, his assistant wasn't very interested in my submission, but a few days later, I received a call from his office saying that Kevin loved my songs and was happy to mix them. I was thrilled and felt lucky, since he usually only works with a few artists he really likes. I have always loved his mixing work on some of the greatest albums, like Peter Gabriel's album 'So' as you mentioned.
Kevin Killen
YZ: Sounds like a dream-come-true story as a musician! How did you feel when you actually worked with such great musicians and the engineer you've admired?
RD: Yes, it was truly an amazing experience. Kevin told me that I'm one of his favorite songwriters. We became friends, and we're still friends today. What’s more, those musicians really liked my songs and treated me as one of their own. Being accepted on an equal playing field by such top-tier musicians was a dream come true for me. The recording session went wonderfully, and I was so moved by the experience alone that I felt it was more than enough.
RD: After recording it, I sent the demo to a few artists I hoped would cover my song. I consider myself more of a songwriter than a singer or guitarist. Unfortunately, though, I didn’t get any responses, and I was disappointed once again. Jimmy Johnson often said to me, “You were born in the wrong era. If you’d been active in the ’70s, you would have been a big hit!” Like he said, I always feel like I was doing the wrong thing at the wrong time. My style was outdated, and I was always playing music that was different from what most audiences of that era liked.
Disappointed by that situation, I decided to give up on music once again and devote myself entirely to my work as a chef. I had to support my family, and I couldn’t just sit around waiting for an opportunity that might never come. So, after that blissful experience of creating exciting music with those great musicians, I completely walked away from music for the next eight years—I didn’t even touch a guitar, because I was deeply discouraged by my failure as a musician. That is, until you listened to my songs and took an interest in it late last year. That was incredibly encouraging and revived the music that had been dying inside me. I’m so grateful.
YZ: From my perspective, you had the opportunity to learn recording techniques right after school by working under big-name producers and engineers like Reggie Lucas and Andy Wallace, and even after giving up on music for more than 20 years, you had the chance to work with top-tier artists and engineers like Michael Landau, Jimmy Johnson, and Kevin Killen. I think that’s incredibly lucky.
RD: Yes, looking back now, I think I was lucky to have been able to work alongside the best people who had such a great influence on me from a young age. But when I was right in the middle of it all, rather than simply taking pure joy in being around such great people, I felt like every day was a struggle—I had to prove myself as a professional and make a living. I was fully aware that I was a musician, but whether or not I would succeed in the music industry was beyond my control, so I was constantly battling anxiety about the future.
YZ: You said your music is outdated, but to me, it was exactly what I wanted to hear. Perhaps it was just bad timing for you as an active musician. But trends come around in cycles, and music from the '60s and '70s has recently become popular again. Over the past decade, vinyl has become more popular than CDs. People love analog sounds again. I firmly believe your songs will resonate with today's listeners seeking the sensitivity, straightforward vibe, and analog warmth of music from that era.
RD: I hope so. I'm glad to know that people are loving analog records again these days. Analog records had a special sound. There was a warmth and depth that CDs couldn't reproduce. I love vinyl records and visiting record shops. Just holding and looking at the record covers brought me great joy that only vinyl could.
YZ: I love vinyl, too. When I was young, I listened to songs from the '60s and '70s while my friends listened to more contemporary music from the '80s and '90s that was digitally produced. I wasn't interested in buying CDs because they sounded too rigid and lacked depth to me. I loved listening to the Beatles on vinyl when I was 12, but the Beatles fever had long since passed in Japan by that time. I felt left behind in time. That's another reason why I'm fascinated by your songs. I find a similar sensitivity and the good old days' analog feel that I loved in my youth.
RD: I felt the same way. I was studying analog recording during the era when digital technology was on the rise. My timing was always a little off. I hope the times come around in cycles as you said, and hope that there are people who find my songs and be interested in them.
YZ: Many of your songs are love songs or heartbreak songs, which feel very real to me. Do you write songs with your own experiences?
RD: I do write some songs with my own experiences, but some are written with my fantasy. I think that a singer is like an actor. Even if it is not their own experiences, singers can sing them as if it was coming from their own pains. I sing my songs in the same way. When I sing a song about heartbreak, I channel the character in the song, fully transform into that person, and try to sing about that pain as if it were my own. So, if you listen to my songs and feel that they came from my own experiences, then I’d say I’ve succeeded. Sometimes, when I’m writing a song, feelings or experiences from the past that I had completely forgotten about end up finding their way into the lyrics. I suppose forgotten events buried deep in my subconscious must be surfacing without my realizing it as I write. I also feel that the songs I write are heavily influenced by the Beatles and the ’70s pop hits I listened to as a child. When I delved deep into my inner self, I realized that the songs from that time were what my emotions were most closely connected to.
YZ: You've been a chef for almost 30 years, and now you have your own restaurant. I personally think your food is the best I've ever had in the Tristate area—or anywhere in the world. I used to cook for myself because I thought my food was the best, but your food is much better. I'm amazed that you've achieved such a high standard in both music production and cooking.
RD: I am a musician who loves to cook. Though I devoted most of my life to supporting my family with cooking, I want to consider myself as a musician, a composer.
YZ: Do you miss playing in a rock band?
RD: I am now 60 and am not interested in performing music in public any more. Even when I was in a band, when sometimes my fans walked to me asking for an autograph, I'd never felt comfortable with it. Most musicians love to have their fans following them, but I rather want to write a song alone in my studio. I think I am a composer rather than a performer. I just want to write songs that could interest some great artists who could cover them, hopefully, someday.
Rick DePaoli playing his parlor guitar at his Sicilian restaurant in Jersey City, NJ (2026)
YZ: Are you still writing songs while running your restaurant and cooking?
RD: Yes, I brought my old guitar in my store a while ago and started writing songs again between customers. When no one was interested in listening to my songs, I didn't feel inspired to write a song, since I believe that music can only live if there is a listener. My old bandmate Ronnie (Ron “Bumblefoot” Thal) may feel differently, since he loves to make music for himself, as a form of art. But I want to make a song that many people could emphasize and enjoy. I am inspired to write a song when there is a listener whom I could share. Now since my songs came out as an album and there are some people who said they loved my songs, it encouraged me and inspired me to write songs again.
It's not easy to be inspired all the time. I am excited when I try something new because it’s fun to learn and improve my skills. The same goes for music and cooking. When I hear a song, I can tell how it was composed and arranged, and how it was played. When I taste a dish, like pasta someone made, I can tell what ingredients were used and in what proportions, and how it was cooked. I could recreate the same dish myself then. I often get bored when I can do something too easily. I need a challenge to feel inspired. And it is hard sometimes. Once I'm inspired and start writing a song, I can hear the finished song in my head with all the necessary instruments and arrangements. It's stuck in my head until I finish the song. That is another problem, since I can't focus on other things. So when I cook, I try not to think about music at all. It’s difficult to keep a good balance of both.
Rick DePaoli’s parlor guitar at his Sicilian restaurant in Jersey City, NJ (2026)
YZ: By the way, you composed some music for film cues in 2017. Can you tell me about that?
RD: My longtime friend, film producer Jonathan Meisner, asked me to compose a few sample tracks because he wanted to use my music in the soundtrack for a movie he was producing. I was interested, so I composed seven pieces for the orchestra. Some of the pieces were different arrangements of my songs on the album ‘Don’t Lose Your Faith’, to suit orchestration. They were recorded by Kevin Killen at Sear Sound studio. Jonathan and his crew loved my pieces, but unfortunately they were not used in the film since the movie studio decided to go with their house composer. I put these pieces on my website so people can listen to them if they are interested.
Jonathan has always been supportive of my music since we were young, sharing the same passion for guitars and modification of the old Marshall tube head amps. I am so grateful to have such a devoted friend who has faith in me as a musician.
Film Cue #1 - Mira's Theme
Recording session of Film Cue #3 'Tension' at Sear Sound, NYC
YZ: Your first album 'Don't Lose Your Faith' had a gorgeous lineup of the side musicians, some of the songs with string sections. But I am also curious about a simpler format just with your guitar and vocals. Do you plan to record something like that in the future?
RD: Yes, my next album will include much simpler songs by my guitar and vocal. A few other songs will have bass and drums, and some with strings, too. One of the songs, “She Always Believed”, were recorded in 2017 with the same musicians as in my first album. And Jimmy Johnson played bass in some of the songs again. But the majority of the songs will be recorded in a simpler style for my next album. Sometimes the initial idea of the simple arrangement could be the best version, like a demo. I could overthink and come up with a more elaborate intro, but later I ended up realizing my original idea was better. “Surrender Your Love” is such a song, and now I think I like my first demo with a simple guitar intro very much. So I would probably re-record the song with just my guitar and vocal. So for my next album, I’ll try to be simpler to the essence.
Also, I’ve recently started writing new songs for my former melodic hard rock band WITHOUT LOVE. Charlie (Chali Cayte), the lead singer from the band, is still singing and is eager to record the new songs. Since a reissue of the band’s CD is coming out soon, I think this is a good time. I want to do everything I can while I’m still able to play the guitar and sing.
I hadn’t touched my guitar or thought about making music for a long time, but now I’m inspired again and am writing songs. My life has always been full of bad timing and things that didn't go well, but I feel that the disappointments and pain I've experienced in the past have become a valuable asset when I write songs. I recently rebuilt my basement studio which had been dormant and used just as a storage room for many years. It feels great that I have something to look forward to and be excited about, that I have something I want to create, besides my daily cooking job. Now that I’ve picked up my guitar again and resumed making music, I feel like I’ve finally completed myself. I feel alive again. It’s still challenging to juggle my work as a chef with my music, but I’m trying my best to find the right balance.
— Interview conducted by Yuko Zama (elsewhere music) in June-August 2026
Rick DePaoli, Sicilian-born and raised in Jersey City, wrote 13 songs in 2017 while making a living with his food truck. A singer and guitarist, he recorded them with renowned studio musicians—Michael Landau, Jimmy Johnson, Andy Burton, and Aaron Sterling—with mixing by Grammy-winner Kevin Killen. Trained as a chef, he poured his passion into food, but music was always his deepest love. His songs shine with raw honesty and nostalgic pop-rock, reflecting the heart of an artist torn between music and providing for his family, yet never losing faith in his music.
His collection of 13 songs was rediscovered in late 2025 by elsewhere music, a US label located in the neighborhood of his restaurant in Jersey City. The songs were newly mastered and was released as the digital album 'Don’t Lose Your Faith' (elsesong 001) in April 2026.
Honest, melodic, and deeply human, the songs evoke the spirit of '60s and '70s pop rock while speaking directly to the heart.
Listen to the full album 'Don't Lose Your Faith' (2026) on YouTube