I feel like I'm starting a Musicians Anonymous 12 step program.
Hi, my name is John, and I'm a Musician. I've played some type of musical instrument for as long as I can remember. When I was a kid, dinosaurs still roamed the earth, so my memory is a little hazy on the details, but I recall taking trumpet lessons in elementary school. My sister (Felicia, whom I love dearly, but haven't seen in forever) took violin lessons for a while, and she was kind enough to share what she was learning with me. My father bought me a guitar somewhere in that time frame as well. That was probably the first instrument that I played even when I didn't have lessons. I took piano lessons in middle school (grades 6,7,8) not so much because I wanted to learn piano, but I had a monster crush on the teacher!!!! There was a guitar class offered in high school, and even though I didn't have a crush on the teacher, I did take the class!
Throughout high school (grades 9,10,11,12) I got together with friends, and we learned some songs, and played here and there. It was pretty informal though...nothing that I'd call a "band". The first real "band" I was in was (if I recall correctly) called RTD, which was short for Rotation Tour Date. I was in the Marines at the time, and got hooked up with Lavalle Houser, Dennis Harvey, Kenji Miyata, and Paul Stubbs (I think I got all the names right). We played around Iwakuni Japan, on the base, off base, pretty much anywhere we could. If any of you guys are still out there, drop me a line...it would be great to catch up!!!!! As an aside, Lavalle is still, in my opinion, the greatest bass player EVER!!!! I'm hoping his current band will play somewhere near me so I can go see them!!!
I had high hopes of getting back together with the guys after our Marine duties were over, but it just didn't seem to work out. Kenji stayed in Japan, I went to Florida, Lavalle went to Texas, and Dennis....I think he went to 29 Palms...I made it out to visit Lavalle once, but we never did get the band back together. Anyway, I still really miss those guys...
It took me a couple years, but I got involved with some other guys, and we eventually formed a band with Ron Fasbender, Steve Summers, Adam Formby, and Ken Lawson...Rocky Strickler (of Strickler Tickler fame) was there for a while, as were a few other folks, but again work, life, etc. got in the way...I ended up being out of town 3 of 4 weeks, and eventually moved to Pennsyivania. Ron, Steve, and crew are still out entertaining the masses as Cupids Alley...if you get a chance, go see them...they're awesome!!!!
I was on a band hiatus for many years after moving to PA, but have been in a couple bands over the last 3-4 years. My current project, PLOW, is in transition right now, but I've made some excellent friends, great contacts, and I think that this next iteration will be a key player in the local music scene for the next several years. Keep your eyes and ears open. As soon as I know what it is, you'll see it posted here!
So, I still take guitar lessons (and no, I don't have a crush on the instructor) because there's always something new to learn, and learning new things is what keeps music alive and growing.
I'm playing acoustic guitar with Mothers Acoustic Blend (link as soon as I have one).
..and last, but not least, I'm working on a solo project....all original music...I'm hoping to have the album ready for release in November.
I'll be posting more about that as work progresses. That's about all for now. I'll share more later.
JHF