December 14, 2005

BREAKING NEWS! BREAKING NEWS! BREAKING NEWS!

It is my good fortune to be able to announce to you that my guitarist, Chris Bickley, has just been signed to an endorsement deal with ZION GUITARS. As I write, they are building his first guitar, and as soon as it is delivered to us, we will have a special photo shoot so that Zion can add us to The Players section on their website and you can see this beautiful guitar. Chris had the pleasure of playing one of their guitars on a loan this summer, and he knew he'd found the guitar of his dreams. I was amazed that he was able to still get that precious 70s sound I crave, and this was after he had tried out many guitars this year. This one was IT. I can't wait to show you the first one, it's so hot!

I want to send a big hug and hello out to Dale Brown. It is an honor to be endorsed by such a prestigious company.

There will be more news along this front sometime next month; stay tuned...

My goodness, it's been a while since I've written! My apologies...after our last show we all needed a break. We've had quite a busy year, and burnout is always the end result, but I'm not complaining, I can truthfully say this has been the best year of my life, the absolute best! So I've gotten a bit behind (again). I've many rolls of film to develop and lots of photos to get up on here, especially those from our last show with NEAL MCCOY. I will work on all of this over the next month and start 2006 off with lots of new goodies.

MORE BIG NEWS TO ADD - IRONHORSE has just inked a licensing deal with Rock Candy Records in the U.K. Rock Candy will be re-releasing a special edition of the Bring It On CD, and on it will be two additional tracks not found on the original. Those tracks will be one that did not make the record from the Bring It On sessions in Nashville, called "Follow Your Heart". The other, I'm very psyched to say, will be the duet that I recorded with Ron that did not make it onto the first IronHorse record, and which has been available on my TUNES page - "Take Another Shot". This special edition CD will be released across Great Britain, Europe and Asia, and I am very proud of Ron and the boys for getting this deal. We all hope a major tour will follow to promote it.

In between all of the crazy rock and roll happenings, I was able to grab some much needed face time with my "homies", and I will also have pictures from those personal times in my life. I have the best friends a person could have - they are my extended family, and I don't know what I would do without each and every one of them, because they keep me grounded and sane.

I have also met some pretty great people at my shows. I cannot express what all their support means to me, because without all of you, I would not be doing what I do. It is because of you that I love singing so much - it is my life's breath, and there is nothing like the feeling of a live performance. I love to perform, and I know it shows, but the way people respond just makes me go crazier up there - so keep it coming!

We will have lots of new shows next year, and over the holidays we will be working on a few covers that we are adding to the set along with all my original music. We are having a blast learning these songs because they are songs from some of the bands I absolutely REVERE.

As of now, there are radio stations across the U.S., Europe and Australia that are playing my music, and I am also happy to say that I've been getting some good feedback from the people at ISOUND.com, as I am one of their featured artists.

I'm going to close with a heartfelt HAPPY HOLIDAYS wish to you all - see you in 2006!!!!

October 16, 2005

This is going to be a great update, so I'll get right to it...Chicago was amazing. I did the whole tourist thing while I was there, and fell in love with the city and its people. On my last night there, I made my way down 'Blues Alley' and to Kingston Mines, a club I was told I had to visit, and I'm so glad I did.

As I approached the club, I was greeted by two guys standing outside, and they struck up conversation with me. Once they discovered that I was a blues rock singer/songwriter, they escorted me in and became my friends. One of them was the piano/keyboardist for the legendary EDDIE SHAW, and the other was incredible bluesman LINSEY ALEXANDER. As I walked in, I found to my surprise that the great Eddie Shaw was performing with his "Wolf Gang" (Eddie was the bandleader for blues legend Howlin' Wolf), and he had his son with him, and I happen to be a fan of his. His name is EDDIE VAAN SHAW, and he smokes on guitar! Linsey's band was playing on the other stage that night, and I got to see them both do alternating sets, which just blew me off my bar stool. I met so many wonderful people that night. I also met J.P., one of the managers of the club, who served me some very nice tequila throughout the evening. As the night wore on, I got to know Linsey, and before I knew what was happening, he had invited me up on stage to sing a tune with him and his incredible band. We did a kickass version of "Proud Mary" and I must say the crowd response was killer - they were going wild, and so was I!!! It was a night I will never forget, and I know I will be back (especially because I now have a V.I.P. pass, thanks Frank!!!). I also want to thank Eddie Vaan Shaw for accompanying me for part of the way on the train ride back to my hotel.

And the news just keeps getting better...

Opening for NEAL MCCOY was a gig that musicians dream about - from the moment that I arrived at the venue, myself and my band were given the royal treatment. Neal McCoy is a true gentleman, and his band is so good we were all awestruck. The hill overlooking the main stage continued to fill up as I took the stage, and I was sure they would not be into my "rock thang", but I was happily wrong, as more and more people were getting into it, and by the end of my set they let out a roar I have not ever heard in my life. There were a couple thousand people there and many more thousands showed up by the time Neal took the stage. Neal even moved his fan meet and greet so that it would not interfere with my set, and so that he could check out my performance. I met most of the guys in his band, and they all were so full of compliments after my show - I was walking on air. All of the people involved with putting on this show have my love - especially Hans Pedersen. That guy was up in the lighting booth rocking out when I was performing - pumping his fists in the air. He is just the coolest guy, and I am grateful to him and all of the folks at the Durham Fair who worked so hard to make it so great, and to have invited me to perform. I will never forget their generosity, and you can bet I will be back there next year - that's a promise!

Everyone knows I'm not a fan of country music, and when I met Neal he told me that they did a little of everything. And he wasn't kidding - they really rocked the place! My band and I had the best seat in the place to see his show - from the side of the stage, and we found ourselves laughing a lot at Neal's "schtick". He is just a great performer, and we had a night to remember.

I'll be in rehearsal for several weeks with my band as we prepare for lots of new shows, so expect an expanded set and more music for you to enjoy! Till then...

September 6, 2005

I've had a good rest and the band is back in action. This week I will be in Chicago for business and pleasure, and I'll probably drop in on a some clubs there and check out a few open mic jams so I can sing in the city of the blues...anyway, I've written a new song and we worked on it last week, and we also had a lot of fun jamming on some covers. I'll be a adding a few more of those to my set as we prepare for some longer and higher-profile shows. My main objective right now is to get a lot more exposure, and I hope to have a deal as we head into 2006, so I can finally release my first solo CD. What a journey this has been, and it just keeps getting better.

We are really looking forward to the gig on September 24, should be a great crowd!

July 6 , 2005

I've played some incredible shows, made a lot of new friends, and have been working so hard that it is now time for me to take a break and get some rest. Before I do, I'm uploading photos from shows we recently did, so check out the LIVE SHOTS page to see them. I have the first set up now and will have the rest up within the week.

During the break, I will be writing a few new songs, and the band will be busy learning them; then we will be scheduling some more shows, some of which may take us on the road. The focus from now on will be major exposure for me, so I'm going to take advantage of what time I have right now to have some fun and kick back in a major way. If you are in the area, I will be hanging out at two shows in August at the Webster Theater in Hartford, CT - Whitesnake on August 5, and revisiting my buddies in Danger Danger there on August 25.

One last thing - I must take the time once again to thank all of you that have come to my shows and have given me such wonderful support - especially at the INCREDIBLE Foreigner show - I am so grateful to you for all your beautiful compliments, and for just making my time on stage the best time of my life over and over again. There is no way I could ever thank you all enough - you've made each night a night to remember for all of us.

May 9, 2005

There are some good gigs on the horizon, best of which is the appearance of myself with legendary blues rock band, Foreigner. Go to the GIGS page for all the details, and to find out how to get your tickets for $14.75 off the regular price!! There will some very special musicians playing with Foreigner on this tour - Jeff Pilson of Dokken fame, Jason Bonham (son of Led Zeppelin drummer John Bonham) and Kelly Hansen, a well-known metal singer who is killer on vocals. If you are familiar with the movie "Rock Star", you are definitely not going to want to miss this show because this line-up includes half of that band!

Back in April, I played a gig, then made a quick change and drove like mad over to The Downtown in Farmingdale, Long Island for a visit with the band Danger Danger, and the former guitarist for IronHorse - Robert Marcello, who replaced Andy Timmons. They put on a fantastic show and seeing Robert in his element was fantastic. Robert even pulled me up on stage near the end of their set and 'forced' me to sing along! Sorry, there are no pictures - in my haste to get there I forgot my camera - damn! But we will see them again and I'm sure it will be a night to remember, as this one was. I must not forget to say hi to Robert - HI ROB!!

March 21, 2005

SPRING HAS SPRUNG!!!!

So, is it any wonder that I'm so spoiled? I have so many wonderful people out there saying such incredibly nice things to me via email, and then I go out into the public domain and you shower me with more of your affections and praise. I tell you, I am truly one of the luckiest people on the planet to be able to sing for you all, and I am going to keep on keeping on.

The reason I am so full of love is because my producer, who is the "da bomb", let me in on a huge secret a couple of weeks ago, and this past Thursday night (which was also St. Patrick's Day) I got to enjoy it - it was The Black Crowes playing a secret gig at Toad's Place (where else?)...where the legends come to play. My whole band got to see this show, along with 700 or so very lucky peeps, and it was a huge lovefest, and for me and some of my mates, a Tequilafest as well. The Crowes billed it as their old moniker, Mr. Crowe's Garden, and it was a dream to see them in a club. This will be the start of what will become a world tour, and it would be a dream come true for things to work out so I can open for them someday on some part of that tour. Oh, what dreams have I...Anyway, a few of our very close friends were there, as well as some we haven't seen in a bit, and weren't we all just feeling fine. I also want to say a big hello to those of you from WPLR who were on hand making me feel like a million airplays...here's to ya!

My band's waistline will be expanding a bit very soon; more on that later. Things just keep getting more and more interesting...

March 1, 2005

We have been enduring a very snowy winter here in the Northeast, and worse are the constantly fluctuating temperatures, which have your immune system going up and down, and up and down, battling to get used to something that won't remain stable. So what happens? You get sick, that's what happens. That's been my M.O. for the past two months, as well as almost everyone I know. I caught strep throat in January, and a few weeks ago it came back with a vengeance and had me laid up for a week. Being that I've been so busy for so long, I almost didn't mind having to stay put for a bit. But I'm much better now.

I have a few GIGS booked, with one very special performance on the horizon to be announced as soon as it's made official. We are merrily rolling along on the music train, and I will keep you posted with any news, of course! Until then my friends, be well, and stay in touch.

January 15, 2005

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

There has been a huge response to the airplay I've been getting on WPLR, and the station has been plugging my name repeatedly over the last month. In addition, a recent article appearing in the New Haven Register focused on the station's best Connecticut artists of 2004, and I am very happy to tell you that they have named me as one. We have started scheduling some new GIGS as well.