Departures & Arrivals

I was the kid in 'Almost Famous,' dabbling in rock criticism in college and studying musical minutae but ultimately giving it up to find my own musical path. I've been writing songs and gigging since my SUNY Potsdam days in the late 1970s and early 1980s. I was raised on the Beatles; however, it was my discovery of Bob Dylan and Bruce Springsteen in the mid-1970s that fueled my desire to create music. Through them I learned that music could be more than entertainment; it could provide an avenue for expression and act as an agent of change. Bruce and Dylan also led me to other great artists. By tracing their influences, I found my way to Elvis Presley, Buddy Holly, Johnny Cash, and Hank Williams. My style of music is either rock and roll with a twang or country with a rock-and-roll edge. It depends on the audience, the venue, or my mood at any given time. Many of my favorite songwriters hail from Texas. These include Steve Earle, Guy Clark, Nanci Griffith, and Townes Van Zandt. Other Other influences include John Hiatt, Nick Lowe, and Tom T. Hall. I have played in various Long Island bands since the mid-1980s, among them the Rockerfellers, the Lincolns, Roy Wilson's Honky Tonk Boys, and Good Dog Nigel (named after a particularly twisted John Lennon poem). I have recorded three CDs, 'Every Country Road . . . Every City Street,' 'Departures and Arrivals,' and the unreleased 'Nice Problem to Have.' My wife Linda and I live on Long Island with our thre cats Fonzie, Mookie, and Ella. Influences: My big four: Bob Dylan, Bruce Springsteen, Elvis Presley, and the Beatles. After that, in no particular order: John Fogerty, Neil Young, Chuck Berry, Rolling Stones, The Band, Nick Lowe, Dave Edmunds, Rockpile, Los Lobos, The Jayhawks, Johnny Cash, Hank Williams, Tom T. Hall, Buddy Holly, Joe Ely, Townes Van Zandt, Lyle Lovett, Steve Earle, Lucinda Williams, Nanci Griffith, The Mavericks, Tom Waits, Merle Haggard, Buck Owens, Dwight Yoakam, Gram Parsons, Woody Guthrie, Eagles, Rodney Crowell, Guy Clark, Everly Brothers, Roger Miller, George Strait, Eddie Cochran, Ray Davies, Ron Sexsmith, Chris Isaak, Sam Cooke, John Prine, Roy Orbison, Ryan Adams, The Smithereens, Squeeze, Jimmy Cliff, James Maddock, the Decemberists, Brendan Benson, Elton John.