Growing
up in the San Francisco Bay Area in
the 60's, I was surrounded by an incredible
music scene that offered such a diversity
of musical genres that on any given
weekend, you could see artists such
as Janis Joplin, Jimi Hendrix, Santana,
Tower Of Power, and Miles Davis, to
name a few. Early on, I was absolutely
knocked out by many of the British bands,
particularly Gerry & The Pacemakers,
The Animals, The Zombies, The Hollies,
and of course, The Beatles.
Around 1968,
an older friend turned me on to a radio
station broadcasting from Oakland. I
think the station was KSOL or something
like that. It was all soul all the time
and it just turned me inside out! I
couldn't hear enough Otis Redding, Sam
Cooke, Jerry Butler, The Impressions,
The Drifters, Aretha Franklin, and so
many others. In the seventies, Stevie
Wonder, Kenny Rankin, and Bobby Caldwell
were the guys that I tried to emulate.
Stevie Wonder for sure and Bobby Caldwell
to a certain extent were soulful, Kenny
Rankin was almost folk like, but with
a jazzy edge, and Lenny Williams singing
'Soul Vaccination', oh my gosh, so smooth!
Al Green and Donny Hathaway were a couple
of other singers that really impacted
me.
It was during
the 80's that I first really listened
to Frank Sinatra. It was like a revelation!
I had heard all those songs before,
but hadn't really paid attention. Of
course, I went through my Sinatra phase
just like a million other singers, and
found out quickly that I wasn't ever
going to be Frank Sinatra. I discovered
Chet Baker about 10 years ago and dubbed
him the 'Anti Sinatra'; I really love
his phrasing, wonderful pitch and the
horn like quality of his voice. Another
singer that I really enjoy is Johnny
Hartman. As far as ballad singing goes,
Johnny Hartman is it! As for contemporary
artists I'm a huge fan of Dianne Reeves,
Kurt Elling, Shirley Horn and a Portland
native, Rebecca Kilgore, who I think
is as good as anyone. There is another
great singer in Portland whom I really
enjoy named Shirley Nannette, and she
is wonderful.
After over 20
years of performing with my dance band,
Pressure Point, playing cover tunes
and performing for private events, I
started to find my own voice and style.
That is really just a synthesis of everything
that I've listened to and loved. Some
vocalists are fortunate enough to discover
who they are early in their careers,
and bypass the stage of trying to imitate
others. It took me many years to develop
the confidence to present myself as
an artist and not just another 'band
guy' trying to get over with someone
else's sound. I hope to continue recording
and writing. I have done some club work
here in Portland and love that. I really
like the intimacy that small venues
afford and enjoy working with a trio
or quartet, and of course the opportunities
to work the larger group with horns
and percussion are always exciting!
I am having the time of my life as a
performer, and feel as though the best
is yet to come.
