Weapons and music – who would’ve guessed the two overlap? Leave it to the mastermind behind the guitar solo on “Rikki Don’t Lose That Number” to prove that indeed they do. Jeff Baxter, once the axman for the band Steely Dan, now works as a consultant on technological issues for the Department of Defense.
That’s right, the man nicknamed “Skunk”, the same man who jammed out with Jimi Hendrix in the 1960s and later joined The Doobie Brothers, is now one of the country’s foremost experts on missile defense. Despite standard perceptions of guitarists as wild liberals who believe drugs should be legal and clothing optional, Baxter actually leans a lot further to the conservative side. He’s also a proponent of missiles as a necessary means of protecting U.S. borders and ports, having once said: "I don't buy this idea of deterrence being the ultimate be all and end all, so missile defense is a very necessary concept." Not exactly the type of sound bite you get from Slash. Though the mustached middle-ager still looks like a rocker wearing his trademark tinted glasses and beret, since 9/11 he’s been playing an important role in determining how the U.S. can protect itself against a nuclear, chemical or biological attack.
Ironically, what makes Baxter seem like an unlikely candidate for working in missile defense – his rock-n-roll background - is the same thing that endears him to military bigwigs. Because of his background, Baxter takes a different approach to defense than traditionally trained strategists and technologists, and, in a time of non-traditional warfare, that comes in handy. Always interested in technology, Baxter at various times served as a technical adviser for major musical manufacturers such as Akai Digital, Roland and Audio-Technica. Eventually, his interest in music-recording technology led him to delve into data-compression algorithms and large-capacity storage devices created for military use. Word on the street is while his bandmates would booze and play video games on the tour bus, Baxter would be reading technical defense magazines. After a paper he wrote about converting the ship-based anti-aircraft Aegis missile into a rudimentary missile defense system was passed along to California Republican U.S. Representative Dana Rohrabacher, Baxter’s career as a defense consultant officially began.
Currently working for the Department of Defense as an adviser to the Ballistic Missile Defense Organization, Baxter also has served as a top military adviser for numerous congressmen and senators. Still, despite his prominence in the field, the Grammy winner hasn’t given up wailing on his Gibson guitar. In recent years, he's played on records by MC Lyte, Michael McDonald, Tom Rush and Evan and Jaron. If Baxter’s story teaches us anything, it’s that sometimes innovation from outside sources is the best way to get a fresh perspective. One need only look at all the technologies that have emerged from NASA being used across industries to realize that interdisciplinary innovation is an incredibly useful tool. If rock music and missiles intertwine, who knows what other advancements can be made with this type of outside-the-box thinking. And, if a rocker named “Skunk” can have a profound impact on missile defense, just think what Eddie Vedder could teach us about foreign policy or Jay-Z could do to improve our economic future.
