Biography
Steve
was born April 19, 1953 into a family of music lovers. The only problem was
that the only thing his parents could play was the record player! (Remember those?)
Steve’s father, decided that Steve was going to learn
to play an instrument and started him on piano lessons at the tender age of
four. Showing a natural aptitude for music, Steve gave his first recital a year
later. While studying the piano, young Steve became interested in a different
instrument.
“My
dad had an old college buddy named Ben who used to bring his family to visit at
least once a year.” Steve remembers. “He would always have his guitar with him
and our two families would sit around for hours singing folk songs.” Young
Steve was hooked and pestered his father for a guitar. When he was nine years
old, Steve received a guitar for Christmas. He was thrilled. Unfortunately
Steve was fairly small for his age and his hand would not fit around the neck
of the guitar. Steve was disappointed but Ben came to the rescue. He told
Steve’s dad about a baritone ukulele. It was only four strings but it was tuned
the same as a guitar and Steve could learn the basics on that until he had
grown enough to handle a full size guitar. It was perfect. Steve spent hours
learning songs by his favorite folk group, the Kingston Trio as well as other
popular folk songs.
Popular
music took a turn in 1964 with the “British Invasion” and Steve was fascinated
by this “new” kind of music. This was something new! He hadn’t been exposed to much rock and roll during his earlier years but this was
too big to miss. It sounded nothing like the folk music he had been listening
to and playing on the guitar for the last three years. It wasn’t even close to
the standards and the country western that his father liked. Steve had stumbled
across rock and roll and this was a turning point. When The Beatles appeared on
the Ed Sullivan show, the American music scene changed for good and so was
young Steve. Rock and roll spawned a new fascination
with another instrument…the drums. “I remember seeing the
Dave Clark Five on the Ed Sullivan Show and wanting to be able to play
drums just like him,” Steve says. “I would take pots and pans from the kitchen
and make a make-shift drum set in my room and use pencils for the drumsticks.”
This was the start of a love affair with percussion that continues to this day.
One
day, while riding down the road with his dad in 1965, Steve heard a sound on
the radio he had never noticed before. It was the guitar hook to “The Last
Time,” by the Rolling Stones. Steve recalls that time: “I was used to us having
the radio on while driving and not paying much attention to what was on. This
song riveted my attention to the radio. I’ve never forgotten hearing that song
while riding with my dad in his old Ford Falcon.” There was a raw edge to the
guitar sound in this song and it rekindled Steve’s interest in the guitar. He
now wanted to play rock and roll guitar as well as rock and roll drums.
Steve
joined his first rock band in high school. Blackwell’s Island was a tight knit
group of friends with Steve behind the drum kit. More than a cover band,
Blackwell’s Island’s repertoire consisted of at least 65% original material
written by Mark Tracey the band’s lead guitarist. During his time with this
band Steve played his first electric guitar. Steve explains: “One day before
practice I was waiting for the rest of the guys and I picked up Mark’s guitar.
I had been playing guitar for years but it was all acoustic and never
amplified. I had no idea how sloppy my playing was!” Steve laughs, “Every
little mistake was several times louder, I could hear them all and they were
terrible! That was an important lesson in cleaning up my playing.”
Steve
joined the Air Force in 1973 and during his first six years there was no place
he was stationed that he was not in a band. Even in basic training. “I would go
to the rec center during breaks in training and play the drum kit there. A bunch
of us would jam,” Steve says. “Once while we were jamming and sounding pretty
good, one of the recreation directors asked us if we would like to become a
combo and play for Miss America’s visit to our base. Of course we said yes!”
Unfortunately one of the members of the combo got set back in training and they
were unable to play. “What a shame!” Steve laughs, “I almost got to meet Miss
America. What a thrill that would have been for a young 20 year old!”
Technical
school was no different. Steve played in the drum and bugle corps at Keesler
Air Force Base in Biloxi Mississippi. “That wasn’t the only music I got to play
either. I was studying electronics for the Air Force, playing in the drum and
bugle corps, plus I was playing bass guitar in a bar band at night.” Steve
recalls, “I didn’t get much sleep but I had a blast! I wasn’t even old enough
to drink in the bars I was playing in. If there was a fight in the bar and the
cops were called, I had to hide until they were gone. Then we’d continue
playing.”
“When
I got stationed in South Carolina at Shaw Air Force Base, I really started
honing my lead guitar skills,” Steve says. “I was already pretty good with
rhythm guitar, bass, drums and keyboards, I just
figured that if I learned some lead, I could hire myself out as a Jack of all
trades.” He started learning all he could. Pairing up with a young lead guitar
playing airman named Lanny Cheek who was willing to
help Steve, he started learning with a will. “I was
copying everything I could,” Steve explains. “I was picking up solos note for
note from records. Then I would take those things I had learned and use them in
my own way.” Steve learned improvisation from those days in South Carolina.
“One of the bands we covered was the Allman Brothers. We had a great time
jamming to Allman Brothers songs and blues tunes. I don’t even remember the
name of that band but man, did we have fun!”
Steve
continues: “After a year of being stationed in South Carolina I got sent to
Germany. It was there that I met my lead guitar mentor, John Peppard. At the time I met him I had no I idea he’d go on
to win a Grammy but I knew he was a great guitarist and songwriter.” At the
time John was in a band that rotated around the US military club circuit in
Germany. “John was the greatest help to me becoming a real lead guitarist. More
than anyone he encouraged me,” Steve explains. “If I was having a problem with
something and about to give up, he’d just tell me, ‘Of course you can. Just do
it.’ and somehow I’d find the ability to do it.” During this time Steve started
dabbling with recording. He had a TEAC reel to reel recorder in his house and
would play with overdubbing. “My finest achievement in those days was a song
John had written called ‘Here Comes The Night.’” Steve
still considers this to be one of his finest solos and swears that it is (“It
is!” Steve laughs) the only guitar part that should be with this song.
The
years have passed and Steve has been an active musician for all of them. During
the rest of his Air Force career he wrote and played music all the way. There
were musical ups and downs but Steve never wavered in his love for music and
rock in particular.
“Towards
the end of my Air Force career I was in a band called Framework,” Steve
recalls. “It started as an acoustic trio and we added midi backing tracks. That
has it’s pluses and minuses!” he laughs. “You’re
limited by the length of the midi file and can’t jam or do an impromptu medley.
However you don’t have to put up with band members showing up late or drummers
messing up. And believe me, I know about drummers!”
Since
the breakup of Framework, Steve has been performing as a solo act. “I threw out
the midi! No more limitations,” Steve explains. “I was a little frustrated as a
solo acoustic act in that I’m a lead guitarist too so I got a Boss RC-50
looping station. It’s a digital recorder that I can record and playback on the
fly with the touch of a footswitch. That coupled with my DigiTech
Vocalist vocal harmonizer makes me my own band. Total
freedom!”
These
days Steve continues to expand as a musician. “I’m putting together a band to
do covers and originals,” he says. “We’re going to specialize in early 70s and
late 60s hard rock covers and some stuff of our own. I’ve been extremely
inspired by Joe Satriani and have been writing some
instrumental works. Another of my band members writes great ballads. It’s gonna
be great!” he grins.
This
year Steve can be found performing in venues in and around Navarre Beach,
Florida. “You never know when you come by what’s gonna happen or who’s going to
sit in,” he says. “In fact, I just bought a new Gretsch
Rancher acoustic guitar. Who knows? It may find its way on stage sometime this
year too!”
Let’s
hope it does.