Artistry

I came into this world a drummer, and as a young musician the motivating factor that kept me a drummer were musicians that utilized their music to do good. George Harrison coordinated the Concert for Bangladesh and raised money to aid starving people. Harry Chapin co-founded World Hunger Year and gave a substantial portion of his concert revenue to end world hunger. John Lennon enlightened the world with music that united masses of people, and encouraged them to live in peace & harmony. Give Peace a Chance, Imagine, Instant Karma, and other inspiring songs raised consciousness to end violence and war. Paul and Linda McCartney utilized their recordings and performances to promote vegetarianism, animal rights, and numerous other causes. Jackson Browne, John Hall, Bonnie Raitt, and Graham Nash, along with others, organized the no-nukes concerts through Musicians United for Safe Energy for a non-nuclear future. On September 23, 1979 I experienced first-hand the power of utilizing music to do good; I attended the charity concerts in Battery Park and Madison Square Garden.

Inspired by these musicians and others like them (too numerous to mention), in the early 1990s I worked together with John Hall to save the Winston Farm land in Saugerties from being a county megadump; I composed and recorded my song “Dump the Dump” with John and we performed at the Winston Farm Alliance Rally in Saugerties.

This humanitarian spirit poured into my heart, and this feeling of helping people through music released into my drumming.