......
Inspiration is the seed of life. At 10 years old I was a
staunch Muppet fan. "The Muppet Movie" secured my
faith in the notion of one day achieving my dreams of
performing. Kermit zigzagged across the states collecting
friends assuring them that if a Hollywood producer needed a
frog, certainly he would need a bear, a pig, chickens, and
assorted creatures from all walks of life. Kermit taught me
that there was a place for everyone, even me. My lessons got
a little skewed as Kermit and friends reach
Hollywood and producer Lew Lord (Orson Welles) simply looks
upon this earnest group of creatures and buzzes his
secretary to "prepare the standard rich and famous contract
for Kermit the Frog and company". I figured that's all
it takes! I would pursue my life and my craft with
an earnest heart, an open mind and love for my fellow man
and creatures. I hear that gets you really far these days. The goodness, color and light that is the
Muppets certainly started me on the path of figuring out who
I was as a performer and human. At 10 I was convinced I was
going to be a master puppeteer and pursued any opportunity
to put on a show.
My
family was heavily influenced by music and the arts. Mom worked
radio in the early days and our house was always filled with
the mellow tunes of the Carpenters, Petula Clark, Helen
Reddy, Barry Manilow, The Association, 5th Dimension, John Denver and the like. My older siblings
influenced me with their penchant for disco (my sisters
doing the bus stop to the Jacksons "Shake your
Body...") and later, my older brother with the
theatrical rock of Queen and Supertramp. Around the same
time, I wanted to find my own groove and latched on to the
HOT 1978 release of the Kristy and Jimmy McNichol album. I
was in disco/ pop bliss.
I
began performing in local theatre in the early 80s and felt
I was well on my way to becoming a superstar. In 1982, my
brother brought home Michael Jackson's "Thriller"
and I began studying the man's every move on tv from the
Motown 25 performance to his videos in heavy rotation on
network television and Mtv. Finally, I broke down and had to
purchase my very own copy of "Thriller" at Zayres
(an early pseudo Wal-Mart discount store). Michael's
early music had a dazzling light which propelled my desire
even further. By 1984, I was caught up in Michaelmania like
the rest of the world.
I
was introduced to the 80s new wave by my best friend in high
school. He was a Thompson Twins and Eurythmics fan and
influenced my music tastes heavily. He introduced me to Dead
or Alive and Depeche Mode which I was very resistant to at
first. Their music was dark and, as hard as I tried, I just
wasn't that gloomy. I finally broke and embraced their style
as well. In 1987 I, along with a group of friends,
purchased the cheapest seats we could for the Duran Duran
"Strange Behavior Tour" at Madison Square Garden.
Something spectacular clicked that night when these tiny
dots called erasure pranced onto the stage as the opening
act. I was hooked from the first song through the last of
their set. My desire for new wave and a happy, cool pop vibe
was presented to me in this package called erasure and I
followed their career since.
After
years of sidetracking my dream for what society says life is
suppose to be (a 40-hour work week and being a home-owner, etc.) I
met a producer through a co-worker. In 1998, I stepped foot
into a studio for the first time to fulfill my dream; the
one that Kermit and company told me was possible. We set out
to record an entire album and put out a call for
submissions. We found 8 great tunes from various publishers
and my producer and I collaborated on 2 others. When all was
said and done "Shades of Life & Love" was an
important step in my growth as an artist. The CD has it's
high points but, after many people saying what they would do
for me never coming to fruition, the project was not to be my
stepping stone to pop stardom. I tried to work the project
from different angles, attempting to support it with a live show
that never got off the ground. I retreated back into local
theatre for a few years until the dream reared it's head
again. Like the quote from Hedwig, it seemed to say
"deny me & be doomed."
At
the end of the project in 1998, I had met Jim Richliano who
was managing Buffalo (NY) artist Kendall Kelly. Kendall had
some amazing music and Jim encouraged me to continue
pursuing my music and maybe one day use Kendall's music. In
2004 I met producer Matt Chiaravalle (Josh Joplin Group,
Kittie, Ozzy & Kelly "Changes") and struck a deal to
record my recent demo armed with Kendall's tunes. Kendall's
"So Unreal" and "Dagnabbit" would be the
first two songs recorded followed by a possible cover.
Standing
on the edge of this dream, I'm once again excited and invigorated.
Music and performing has been a calling in my soul from very
early on and I hope to be doing it for years to come.
