After dabbling in other instruments, Bill Kreutzmann latched onto the drums.
"First I wanted to be a piano player, and then I wanted to play trumpet," Kreutzmann said during a phone interview from his home in Hawaii.
"And then I saw a guy playing drums in my hometown of Palo Alto (Calif.) and thought, 'That's really cool. You get to play music AND move around a lot.'
"I picked up the physicality of it, and I enjoy that aspect even today."
In fact, the Grateful Dead drummer said playing drums is like exercising every day.
"It's probably been really good for me to play drums all these years," he said. "It's a great fun workout. And I just like it. It's a passion.
"After my first drum lesson when I was 13, I took out my mom's pots and pans and played all over them."
Back in 1965, Kreutzmann hooked up with Jerry Garcia, Bob Weir, Phil Lesh and Ron "Pigpen" McKernan to form the band that would become the Grateful Dead.
"I was really fortunate to meet (them) in the Palo Alto days," Kreutzmann said. "That's all history and a lot further than my memory would allow me to tell you."
These days, Kreutzmann is involved in four bands — the Dead (featuring his former bandmates from the Grateful Dead), BK3, 7 Walkers and the Rhythm Devils.
The Rhythm Devils, formed by Kreutzmann and Mickey Hart, the other longtime Grateful Dead drummer, will make a stop at Red Butte Garden on Sunday.
The band includes guitarists Keller Williams, Tim Bluhm from the Mother Hips and Davy Knowles from Back Door Slam. The Rhythm Devils also features Gov't Mule bassist Andy Hess and Nigerian talking-drum master Sikiru Adepoju.
The idea for the Rhythm Devils started with an inkling to play music, said Kreutzmann.
"We started with an itch, and then we scratched it by getting all the music together," he said. "That's what Mickey and I have been doing the last few months."
Kreutzmann, whose Facebook page features exclusive Rhythm Devils songs, said he and Hart have compiled a bunch of Grateful Dead songs and some songs from the last Rhythm Devils tour for this outing.
"We'll put a new spin on them," he said. "I really like that. You have to keep the changes the same and words the same, because of the song, but then you put your own textures on it and put it in your own solos. And the fun part is we have new players on board."
In the tradition of the Grateful Dead, the songs take on a life of their own, Kreutzmann said.
"You can't play it note for note and expect the music to be really great," he said. "You have to learn the songs and then put your style on it.
"I hate going back in time and trying to make the old sound. It doesn't work for me."
The new arrangements also allows the fans to hear a song performed from a different perspective.
"It gives Deadheads another place to go to hear Dead music done up in a really lively way."
Refreshing music and just playing new things in general is important to Kreutzmann's well-being.
"When I don't play music, I start feeling kind of like I have the flu," he said. "I feel off. It's good for me to keep my chops up."
If you go...
What: The Rhythm Devils with Mickey Hart and Bill Kreutzmann
Where: Red Butte Garden Amphitheater, 300 Wakara Way
When: July 25, 7:45 p.m.
How much: $25-$44
Phone: 801-585-0556
Web: www.redbuttegarden.org or www.billkreutzmann.com
e-mail: scott@desnews.com