Biography
John Glenn Jr. circled the earth pulling G's a few weeks before my lungs first pulled air. This was in the middle year of JFK's tragically abbreviated almost three year's in office. Kennedy met with Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. that year. The civil rights movement was in full motion and King would deliver his visionary I Have A Dream speech at the Lincoln Memorial the following year. That’s when it all started - at least for me.
Dad was a mechanical engineering professor and Mom was a nurse. Born and raised in Rolla, Missouri (Go Bulldogs, Go Miners!) in the heartland of the USA, the first of four kids. Dad taught me how to fix things and that anything, but not everything, is possible. Mom made bug jars for the crawly things I took hostage, encouraged me to look up at the stars and made me finish my homework.
My first guitar arrived at Christmas when I was eleven (I had requested drums) and I started writing songs when I was twelve. At thirteen, I asked if I could get a motorcycle and received a horse. Writing songs is something I’ve enjoyed ever since.
A singer songwriter is a composite sketch. My early influencers were a mix of the iconic songsters of the era. Others lesser known had greater influence - those who played guitars and laughed with me - names like Feeler, Knight, Hauth, Freter, Johnson, Pointer and Icenogle.
And before these were my grandfather's Chester and Lester (not the Chester & Lester others know and admire). Chester played an older model Gibson and Lester played the saw with a violin bow or a felt hammer. There's more on Chester and Lester in the back of the songbook.
These sounds and the stones under my steps became the cadence and rhythm of my tunes.
We live in an 1800’s era home in the Kansas City area (Go Royals, Go Chiefs, Go Roos, Go Sporting KC, Go Mavs!). They say our home has lots of character - which is a nice way of saying it has a lot of boards that need repair, but it’s a pleasant sort of place.
Sheila and I will celebrate our 40th anniversary in 2024. Our kids aren't kids anymore. Still with us at the house are an army of moles flanked throughout the yard protecting the perimeter from evil forces.
I’ve always found moles to be interesting creatures, though they don’t seem to receive the respect to which they are due. From many perspectives they appear to make excellent pets. Though rarely seen, they’re fuzzy and cute, aerate the lawn, are self-feeding, provide pulverized topsoil for gardening or other uses, do their business underground and, unlike dogs or cats, they never leave your yard.
We appreciate the hills and the fields. Missouri is a mix of rivers and lakes, caves, fresh water springs, wildlife and various wonderment that we've traveled and enjoyed through the years.
God's mercy and grace are gifts, not something earned. We are believers and receivers of the Nazarene, Jesus, the risen Christ - with recognition that each day requires tuning or being tuned, just like my guitar.
John Glenn Jr. circled the earth pulling G's a few weeks before my lungs first pulled air. This was in the middle year of JFK's tragically abbreviated almost three year's in office. Kennedy met with Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. that year. The civil rights movement was in full motion and King would deliver his visionary I Have A Dream speech at the Lincoln Memorial the following year. That’s when it all started - at least for me.
Dad was a mechanical engineering professor and Mom was a nurse. Born and raised in Rolla, Missouri (Go Bulldogs, Go Miners!) in the heartland of the USA, the first of four kids. Dad taught me how to fix things and that anything, but not everything, is possible. Mom made bug jars for the crawly things I took hostage, encouraged me to look up at the stars and made me finish my homework.
My first guitar arrived at Christmas when I was eleven (I had requested drums) and I started writing songs when I was twelve. At thirteen, I asked if I could get a motorcycle and received a horse. Writing songs is something I’ve enjoyed ever since.
A singer songwriter is a composite sketch. My early influencers were a mix of the iconic songsters of the era. Others lesser known had greater influence - those who played guitars and laughed with me - names like Feeler, Knight, Hauth, Freter, Johnson, Pointer and Icenogle.
And before these were my grandfather's Chester and Lester (not the Chester & Lester others know and admire). Chester played an older model Gibson and Lester played the saw with a violin bow or a felt hammer. There's more on Chester and Lester in the back of the songbook.
These sounds and the stones under my steps became the cadence and rhythm of my tunes.
We live in an 1800’s era home in the Kansas City area (Go Royals, Go Chiefs, Go Roos, Go Sporting KC, Go Mavs!). They say our home has lots of character - which is a nice way of saying it has a lot of boards that need repair, but it’s a pleasant sort of place.
Sheila and I will celebrate our 40th anniversary in 2024. Our kids aren't kids anymore. Still with us at the house are an army of moles flanked throughout the yard protecting the perimeter from evil forces.
I’ve always found moles to be interesting creatures, though they don’t seem to receive the respect to which they are due. From many perspectives they appear to make excellent pets. Though rarely seen, they’re fuzzy and cute, aerate the lawn, are self-feeding, provide pulverized topsoil for gardening or other uses, do their business underground and, unlike dogs or cats, they never leave your yard.
We appreciate the hills and the fields. Missouri is a mix of rivers and lakes, caves, fresh water springs, wildlife and various wonderment that we've traveled and enjoyed through the years.
God's mercy and grace are gifts, not something earned. We are believers and receivers of the Nazarene, Jesus, the risen Christ - with recognition that each day requires tuning or being tuned, just like my guitar.
