Instruments/Gear
Fender/Yamaha/Tom Anderson/Taylor/Martin/Paul Reed Smith/Tobias/Roscoe/Wilkes Basses
Volt ODS-RR (signature Head)/Session Blues Baby/Peavey Classic 30/Boogie/Fuchs//Mark Bass AER Amps
Okko GH overdrive/Custom Tones Ethos/Fulltone/TC Electronic/Barber/Hermida/Klon/Xotic/Budda/Boss/Ernie Ball/Zoom FX
Mesa Cabs Celestion Speakers
Joined The Band
Since the big bang (13.7 Billion years)...well, the start at least - 1996/97...still here 26 years later.
Musical Education
All my own study, apart from two years classical guitar from the age of 8. Comes to 53 years at it so far. Quite a few years spent working on musical theory, which is incorporated then "inconveniently" forgotten :-)
Influences Other Than Steely Dan
Carlton/Ford/Lukather/Beck/Holdsworth/Krantz/Zingg/Johnson/Rios/Khan
Haslip/Pastorius/King/laboriel/Rainey/Joe Pass/Martin Taylor/Tommy Emmanuel
Yellow Jackets
Weather Report
Chick Corea/Keith Jarrett
Joni Mitchell
All the Jazz greats Miles/Bird/Trane etc.
Stevie Wonder/Earth Wind & Fire/Toto/Eagles/Doobies/Todd Rundgren/TOP/Level 42/Hall & Oates
Storyville
Brothers Landreth
eclectically - Zappa/Hiatt/Waits
Plus most rock bands from 60's 70's
Zepp/Purple/Free/Lizzy etc
and of course Jimi Hendrix
The Barflys
Favourite Steely Dan Songs
Aja/Kid Charlemagne/Haitian Divorce (it changes... :-)
Favourite or Interesting Nearly Dan Experience
Those extra bit special gigs - Jazz Cafe/Stables/Glastonbury/Blue Note Milan/Liverpool Echo Arena/Festivals
Although, a great crowd can always make a regular gig completely extraordinary!
Interesting ND experience?...
...I did, rather naively, say to Jon Herington backstage at the Steely Dan Aintree concert "Hey man, I've got the same job as you!" Which was sort of true but, importantly..."NOT TRUE"! :-)
Essential Listening
Aja album - Steely Dan
Nightfly - Donald Fagen
Royal Scam - Steely Dan
Blue Hats - Yellow Jackets
Yellow Jackets eponymous first album (with Robben Ford)
Minor Elegance - Robben Ford/Joe Diorio
Hissing Of the Summer Lawns - Joni Mitchell
Kind of Blue - Miles
Heavy Weather - Weather Report
Live and Dangerous - Thin Lizzy
Rain Dogs - Tom Waits
Dog Years - StoryVille
Jing Chi - Jing Chi
of course there's tons more.........