my bio
Since this goes back quite a ways, I'm not going to give you any dates or years
(don't want everyone to know what an old fart I am!). It all started in Western New
York... the Buffalo area to be exact...
My first band that actually played for money was called Tallahassee (yes... just like
the capitol of Florida). If I remember correctly, it was actually a shortened version of
"Tallahassee Express Company" or T.E.C. for short. Those were the days of
whacky band names, so we did our part to conform. Our brief run lasted all of one
summer, when we played several weekends at a somewhat local campground
(Rainbow Lake in East Otto NY). We were supposedly quite popular there, not only
for the band but also for our raucous parties (we camped there too). It wasn't an
uncommon thing for us to have 10-12 people camped out and pretty much
thoroughly sloshed most of the weekend. I could take up most of this page with
some of the stories from those days, which involved things like fire-breathing,
ketchup and shampoo drinking, and vomiting... but not necessarily in that order.
After Tallahassee sort of broke up (members going off to college and various
branches of the armed forces), the band evolved into "Station House". We didn't
really play anywhere except for the parties in our drummer's basement. Folks,
these were some serious parties.... TONS of people... major drinking (recurring
theme or what)... etc. etc. etc.
The next step was a stint in a Kiss cover band named "Aruba" (named that
because we had some T-Shirts that already said Aruba on them). Played out a bit
around the area (high schools, youth centers, etc.), but the Kiss thing got old really
quick. Our biggest claim to fame was playing a small bar (The Telemark) out near
one of the area ski resorts. The bar had an attached hotel, so we usually got
rooms there too. Many stories here too... 7 people in one room with no heat...
broken windows... more vomiting... our first exposure to groupies ("pop.... cold
pop") and other assorted ball-busting ("It's only natural"). We decided to lose the
Kiss makeup and played out a couple more times, but it just wasn't the same. It
was time for a change in direction.
We had some changes in membership and became "Kid Sister". This band had a
pretty good run. We played local high schools and a few bars... including the
infamous "McVan's" on Niagara Street in Buffalo. After going through various
members (primarily drummers and bass players), we settled down with the lineup
that was to ultimately become "Lamont". Lamont was by far my most successful
band while playing in the Buffalo area. We ended up working with Starstruck
Productions, who at that time was also booking/managing Talas - the #1 band in
the Buffalo area at the time. For those that don't know, Talas included bass legend
Billy Sheehan, who went on to gigs with David Lee Roth, Mr. Big, and G3. We
played high schools, colleges, most of the local bars, and even opened 2 concerts
for The Good Rats (one at Cortland University and the other at a large Buffalo club
called "Uncle Sam's"). We also did a lot of shows opening for Talas throughout the
area. We were a regular at a bar called "Stage One" at Main & Transit in Buffalo...
this was probably one of my favorite places to play at as we were there a lot and
knew most of the people that worked there. We even built up a little bit of a
following and had our own group of regulars whenever we played. We did some
time in the studio and recorded two songs for a local band competition one of the
radio stations sponsored. We did an all-nighter in the studio at SUNY-Fredonia,
and have some pretty funny memories to go along with it (Joel... you can't play
piano with that thing). Unfortunately, personalities changed in the band and we
had to make some changes in membership - after which the end was in sight. It
was a very difficult decision, but one that I felt I had to make - I had to leave the band
(and ultimately the Buffalo area). I don't know where everyone ended up, but here's
a shout out to ya... we had a blast.
The members of Lamont:
Dana (guitar, bass), Mike (vocals), Joel (drums), Dave (bass), and myself.
At this point, I moved to the Pittsburgh area and tried out for a few local bands here
and there... but didn't really get into it 100%. I finally hooked up with some guys
who were doing an artsy/progressive thing and we clicked. This band became "Not
Another Joe" (where do these names come from???). We did original music and
also some covers of several Crack The Sky tunes. The drummer and I became
great friends and ended up working on several band projects together over the
course of about 9 years. We also started a small recording studio and did a few
sessions for an country band and a funk/r&B band. We ended up having a parting
of ways as I focused in on the 9-5 world and became detached from the band thing.
It was at this time that I really started writing a lot of my own music and started
spending more time with that, and eventually moving to the Philadelphia area
where I am now.
Well... that's it... my bio. I'm still here in the Philly area writing my music. I've also
started getting involved in the production of some young bands as I've become
really comfortable in the studio these days...
(don't want everyone to know what an old fart I am!). It all started in Western New
York... the Buffalo area to be exact...
My first band that actually played for money was called Tallahassee (yes... just like
the capitol of Florida). If I remember correctly, it was actually a shortened version of
"Tallahassee Express Company" or T.E.C. for short. Those were the days of
whacky band names, so we did our part to conform. Our brief run lasted all of one
summer, when we played several weekends at a somewhat local campground
(Rainbow Lake in East Otto NY). We were supposedly quite popular there, not only
for the band but also for our raucous parties (we camped there too). It wasn't an
uncommon thing for us to have 10-12 people camped out and pretty much
thoroughly sloshed most of the weekend. I could take up most of this page with
some of the stories from those days, which involved things like fire-breathing,
ketchup and shampoo drinking, and vomiting... but not necessarily in that order.
After Tallahassee sort of broke up (members going off to college and various
branches of the armed forces), the band evolved into "Station House". We didn't
really play anywhere except for the parties in our drummer's basement. Folks,
these were some serious parties.... TONS of people... major drinking (recurring
theme or what)... etc. etc. etc.
The next step was a stint in a Kiss cover band named "Aruba" (named that
because we had some T-Shirts that already said Aruba on them). Played out a bit
around the area (high schools, youth centers, etc.), but the Kiss thing got old really
quick. Our biggest claim to fame was playing a small bar (The Telemark) out near
one of the area ski resorts. The bar had an attached hotel, so we usually got
rooms there too. Many stories here too... 7 people in one room with no heat...
broken windows... more vomiting... our first exposure to groupies ("pop.... cold
pop") and other assorted ball-busting ("It's only natural"). We decided to lose the
Kiss makeup and played out a couple more times, but it just wasn't the same. It
was time for a change in direction.
We had some changes in membership and became "Kid Sister". This band had a
pretty good run. We played local high schools and a few bars... including the
infamous "McVan's" on Niagara Street in Buffalo. After going through various
members (primarily drummers and bass players), we settled down with the lineup
that was to ultimately become "Lamont". Lamont was by far my most successful
band while playing in the Buffalo area. We ended up working with Starstruck
Productions, who at that time was also booking/managing Talas - the #1 band in
the Buffalo area at the time. For those that don't know, Talas included bass legend
Billy Sheehan, who went on to gigs with David Lee Roth, Mr. Big, and G3. We
played high schools, colleges, most of the local bars, and even opened 2 concerts
for The Good Rats (one at Cortland University and the other at a large Buffalo club
called "Uncle Sam's"). We also did a lot of shows opening for Talas throughout the
area. We were a regular at a bar called "Stage One" at Main & Transit in Buffalo...
this was probably one of my favorite places to play at as we were there a lot and
knew most of the people that worked there. We even built up a little bit of a
following and had our own group of regulars whenever we played. We did some
time in the studio and recorded two songs for a local band competition one of the
radio stations sponsored. We did an all-nighter in the studio at SUNY-Fredonia,
and have some pretty funny memories to go along with it (Joel... you can't play
piano with that thing). Unfortunately, personalities changed in the band and we
had to make some changes in membership - after which the end was in sight. It
was a very difficult decision, but one that I felt I had to make - I had to leave the band
(and ultimately the Buffalo area). I don't know where everyone ended up, but here's
a shout out to ya... we had a blast.
The members of Lamont:
Dana (guitar, bass), Mike (vocals), Joel (drums), Dave (bass), and myself.
At this point, I moved to the Pittsburgh area and tried out for a few local bands here
and there... but didn't really get into it 100%. I finally hooked up with some guys
who were doing an artsy/progressive thing and we clicked. This band became "Not
Another Joe" (where do these names come from???). We did original music and
also some covers of several Crack The Sky tunes. The drummer and I became
great friends and ended up working on several band projects together over the
course of about 9 years. We also started a small recording studio and did a few
sessions for an country band and a funk/r&B band. We ended up having a parting
of ways as I focused in on the 9-5 world and became detached from the band thing.
It was at this time that I really started writing a lot of my own music and started
spending more time with that, and eventually moving to the Philadelphia area
where I am now.
Well... that's it... my bio. I'm still here in the Philly area writing my music. I've also
started getting involved in the production of some young bands as I've become
really comfortable in the studio these days...
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