I started in Grade School in the 6th grade at a small Catholic School . Played lead Alto in the Jazz Band in High School . Started in small combos for school dances. Started playing the clubs when I was 18. Went on the road with a 8 piece Soul Band called the Ripples. Was drafted in the Army and played in Georgia and Germany before coming back home to the West Michigan area.Played the country clubs in the Grand Rapids, Holland area. Hooked up with Endless Summer back in Kalamazoo and stayed with the band for 14 years doing mostly private parties. Tried a Blues Brothers tribute with the Kalamazoo Avenue Band for a year .Now I play with whom ever needs horns . I also do a one man show called SaxMagic. Currently I am committed to the Bosco Gee Blues Band and occasionaly play with Jerry's Nugget.
What was the first concert you ever went to?
Paul Butterfield Blues Band, Michigan State, Mike Cook, Dave Kozminske, Joe Brandt, etc.. Butterfield had the funkiest bass player in the world, and the horn section blue me away. The only concert after that that came close to that was the Tower of Power here in Kalamazoo at the Dalton Center at Western Michigan .
What gear do you use?
Woodwind & Brasswind Pro Tenor, Aquila C Tenor, 2 Softwind Instruments Synthophones, 2 Yamaha VL70m Virtual Acoustic Synth Modules with Patchman Turbo Chips, Dynasample XPression Synth Module, Dell Latitude Laptop loaded with Soft synths including , Sample Modeling , Wallander Instruments, and Bernie Kenersons Sample Tank sounds. , and too much to mention. I love playing the Synthophone for it's versatility and the ability to play instruments that I normally can't plus horn and string sections. I've been working hard on the saxes lately too. I want to be able to offer listeners plenty of options.
Who was your biggest musical influence growing up?
The Electric Flag was a band that I just couldn't get enough of. There was a a band we had for awhile in an old barn out in Mattawan Michigan that called Odessy and we tried to play that album. We did pretty well for the time. I was infatuated with the whole shabang but I absolutely loved the horn work.
Are you in a band? Have you been in bands?
I've been in many bands from rock to Jazz, and now I am working with a really fun band with lots of talent . The Bosco Gee Blues Band. We are playing more and more. This year amongst some of the gigs is the Kalamazoo Blues Fest, The Capital Area Blues Brawl . We are hoping to make the trip to Memphis to compete in the National Blues Competition.
If you could jam with anyone, who would it be?
The guy that sticks out in my mind the most as a sax player is Grover Washington Jr. There may be better and more technical players but I loved Grover's taste and style . I never met him or even heard him talk but I just have this feeling he was the nicest guy in the world.. As far as a musician to Jam with that is still alive , that would have to be Victor Woote. I have read his book "The Music Lesson" and watched his video the Groove Workshop over and over. His ideas about music are fantastic to me.
What's the biggest audience you ever performed to? What's the smallest?
I sang and played in the Grand Haven Auditorium for about 1000 people . That was a long time ago so I don't have accurate figures but it was major celebration that coincided with the Blues Fest . Unfortunately there have been gigs where only a handful of people showed.