At age 10, my parents bought me a $50 drum set and a real ($80) classical guitar. I broke the drum set within two weeks and played air drums for the next 15 years. I kept the classical in fair shape though, and practiced pretty much every day.

By age 11, I became a "serious" guitar player. (heh) Unfortunately, I didn't start making any MONEY right away, but I realized that I could pick up any classic rock song (Pat Benetar, 38 Special, Doobie Bros, Molly Hatchet, etc.) off the radio and have it under my fingers inside of 10 or 15 minutes.

Throughout my teens, I played in rock (mainly hard rock and progressive), pop, metal and fusion bands. I got sucked into the "80s guitar hero" thing for a little while, but managed to come out of it with minimal scars. I started studying classical in the 10th grade.

After the 11th grade, I attended the Berklee Summer session and started working on jazz guitar as well.

I returned to Berklee after high school and practiced EVERY day, virtually ALL DAY. I also began working on piano and stretching my vocal abilities.

At age 19, I turned my focus to classical again, studying classical guitar, piano and vocals at the State University of New York at New Paltz. I joined the SUNY New Paltz jazz Ensemble and began applying the chordal skills I had picked up in Boston.

At 20, I joined the Kingston IBM "Big Blue Blues Band" -- a 15 piece jazz orchestra with an impressive set list of old standards and some cool contemporary stuff (like Steely Dan).

At 21, I moved to New York City and worked as a bike messenger while auditioning for local original bands.

At age 22, I recorded a cd with THE ELECTRIC PRESIDENT, an eclectric B-52s - meets - Ramones - meets X - meets Iron Maiden (! ... ?) band that circled the Greenwich Village circuit for about a year.

At 24, I became focused on my own original material and recorded, produced (and financed) my first original cd with the progressive hard rock band THE GALLOWS HUMOR -- a cross between Rush, King's X, Primus and Alice in Chains.

At 25, I began playing drums again and recorded/ produced/ financed another Gallows Humor cd (as guitarist / vocalist)

At 26 I picked up the bass guitar and started nicking Rush and Led Zep chops on that as well.

At 27, I recorded another cd (guitarist/vocalist) with the Steely Dan / Phish influenced ESTA BLISSHEAD, another upstate NY / NYC original project.

At age 28, I moved to the midwest and hopped on a 1975 school bus to go out on the road (as a guitarist) with JOHN DOE, a hard rock cover band with a repertoire of 90 songs and fronted by the most dynamic and versatile female singer (Alisa B Anderson) ever to walk ANY stage in the U.S. ... EVER.

At 29, I found myself broke and living in a $4,000 trailer in Rochester, Minnesota, working at a hospital emergency room and spending free time honing bass, drum and acoustic fingerstyle guitar chops.

At age 30, I joined SWING STREET and the ROCHESTER BIG BAND, as well as playing solo acoustic gigs (Michael Hedges meets Gordon Lightfoot with a touch of Christopher Parkening) around town at restaurants and weddings.

*** I also got married to a beautiful Minnesota chica!!!! ***

YYYEEEEEEAAAHHHHH!!!!!

At age 31, I quit Swing Street (they kept telling me to "TURN IT DOWN!!!" -- and there was never any money involved) and started THE POSTURES, a cover band that specialized in Steely Dan, Doobie Bros., Led Zeppelin, Stevie Wonder and Stevie Ray Vaughn.

At 33, I quit THE ROCHESTER BIG BAND (they kept telling me to "TURN IT DOWN!!" and there was never any $$$ involved) and began work on a 2nd ENZYME CD.

At 34, I started up a ZZ TOP / Texas tribute band FANDANGO which plays40+ ZZ tunes as well as Stevie Ray Vaughn, Buddy Holly and some Texas based others.