I’ve been playing music since the age of 5. My father was a professional musician. He started me with piano (as it should be). I remember enjoying it and having a good ear early. I remember hitting a flat playing "Goodbye, Ole Paint" in the 1st Grade Talent Show and knowing everyone heard it. It became difficult taking lessons from my father as he got angry with me easily (unjustly, no doubt). I stopped piano and played trombone in 5th grade. I played first chair boner until high school and then played ice hockey (which conflicted gloriously with marching band).

On the way, around 12 years old, I picked up an acoustic Guild lying around the house. I made myself color-coded dots, and with the help of Mel Bay, I taught myself some 1st position chords. Crap that hurt my fingers! And forget barre chords! My fingers can’t do that! Too much work to play guitar. My dad had a ’73 Fender Jazz Bass and a sweet Ampeg flip top. My father then gave me the best advice ever – learn to play bass and sing, and you’ll always have work. While 98% of my friends were banging drums and screeching distorted guitar, I became a bassist.

I played with everyone – and I mean everyone – who could hold a guitar, rest their hands on a piano, or abuse a Tama kit. I mostly subjected myself to torturous weekend afternoons of loud, obnoxious guitar players who were mediocre at best. But along the way, I stumbled across some good musicians. I joined tons of bands and played everywhere for nothing.

For some reason, everyone kept playing the same five chords. I was bored out of my mind. I fell in love with The Beatles, Yes, Rush, Chicago, Steely Dan and Jaco. I went to college. I’m not sure why, but I was Pre-Law. I hated lawyers. I knew I would wind up traveling the world and playing music in a band. I took some theory classes. I gigged around with some more crappy bands, recorded and played gigs blind.

I joined an original classic rock band – which truly sucked – although I loved playing. The drummer and I left after a cold winter. We played the Philadelphia music scene through college. That was a good time. I was sure we were destined to play full time forever. Shit happened in the form of a cancelled Sheena Easton concert tour in Canada (where we were scheduled to open up) over a summer. I think I was 22 at the time. That seemed like the end of the world. That wasn’t supposed to happen. I decided that that event was the end of the world. I mean – what – I’ll be 25 in a few years. No job, no direction….time to join the "real world." No one told me there is no such thing.

In the down time, I happened to get married and have four fantastic children. Nothing like four kids under the age of 10 to keep your down time occupied. I continued to write stuff – mostly instrumental – and compiled reel-to-reel, cassette, DAT and CDs which sat in my basement.

I started playing with an acoustic duo for a couple of years. I did some recording on a CD with eclectic guitarist Rob Andreoli. Then I did some solo acoustic stuff for a few years. I’ve played full bands and jazz trios – whatever I could as much as my schedule allowed.

After a few months off, I played bass again for the summer of 2006 with Dan Kauffman, Rob Schnell and a host of others. Dwayne Keith from Grey Eye Glances really got my creative juices flowing again after a talk we had in 2006. After playing World Caf é Live in December 2006, I began to think that while I know a little about a lot, I do know a little more about music. I really wanted to play a LOT more. I’m not very spiritual, but this is what I was meant to do.

In the spring of 2007, I answered a Craigslist ad and joined the Barley Boys , a high energy original Irish music band. We played a lot of great festival gigs. I met self-proclaimed ‘utility bitch’ Tom Hampton and we shared a long ride to Hartford, CT. (Actually, I was beat and Tom let me sleep most of the time. When I wasn’t sleeping, we were singing and harmonizing. Very good time.) In the fall, we were able to get a seven week run at the Showboat Casino in Atlantic City. We were picked up again in early 2008.

In the meantime, Tom Hampton got me hooked up with Dan May in late 2007. My first gig with Dan was opening for Crystal Gayle. She was a great lady and her hair was still ridiculously long. Dan hadn’t known me at all – but was kind enough to get me on a track of his latest CD.

In late Spring 2008, I began playing with ESC Records artist Lili Añel. Lili and I met in a Musicians on Call benefit at World Café Live in December 2006. I played and sang a few original songs on acoustic guitar. She came up to me and said she liked my chord changes – they were different than the usual crowd of songwriters – and she could tell I listened to a lot of jazz. While I have a good sense of self as a musician – what and how I can play – I just chalked her kindness up as just being polite. I had no idea who she was because I had no idea of the local scene. Lili played her set a while after I did. When I heard her play and sing, the gravity of what she said to me earlier hit me. She wasn’t just blowing smoke up my ass. She is a real talent – and I couldn’t figure out what she was doing on that stage with the local usual suspects.

I’ve been recording original stuff in my basement all the while. You can hear some of it on myspace . See you on the road …