Like Johnny Cash once sang, "I've been everywhere, man."
Born in Michigan, childhood (and a few later recuperative years) spent on a family farm in northwestern Ohio, high school in southern California, college in Boston (Berklee College of Music, which didn't change me too much), Memphis, Seattle, New Orleans and since Hurricane Katrina hanging out in Natchitoches, Louisiana. Traveled through, lived in, or visited 48 of the United States.
Played music with family growing up, learning country, bluegrass, classical, rock, jazz and everything else I could. Took guitar, voice, piano, clarinet, violin and upright bass lessons. Played in the band and sang in the choir. Started writing songs when I was nine years old, and haven't stopped yet.
First started playing music for any kind of money in high school, then in the club scene in Los Angeles and Hollywood during the late 1980s. Stints in a number of LA bands, and then worked with Aaron Flinn, of Vermont, while at Berklee in Boston. After moving to Memphis, did about six months worth of solo acoustic gigs, a couple of turns as an ordained Elvis impersonator. In Seattle, I played at Folklife with Jean Jacquette and the Bluethreads, which was where I started returning to my country-folk-blues roots. Moved to Ohio, formed the band Poorboy Station but then set my sights for more musical diversity and moved to New Orleans. Now high and dry outside of the Toxic City, I'm looking to explore, discover and expand on what I started calling "Country and Midwestern" music while living in Ohio. Not alt.country, or Deadhead music, or Hot New Country. More like Gram Parsons' Cosmic American Music. To again quote Johnny Cash, "alternative to what?"
