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 that
played 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."
|
Frank Sinatra was my revelation in the
80's. 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, Shirley
Nannete, who I think is great."
After over 20 years of performing, 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 am having the time of my life as a performer,
and feel as though the best is yet to
come." |
