Brooklyn-raised. Happily carried away.
Live music that gets everyone dancing, from grandma to the groom.
OUR STORY
Dad said don't get carried away. I did.
I grew up in Brooklyn with Sinatra at the Sands and the Count Basie Orchestra on the stereo. That sound got baked into my soul.
My father gave me guitar lessons, with one caveat: "I don't want you to get carried away."
In ninth grade, I quit the freshman basketball team for band practice. My coach said I was wasting a lot of potential. I doubt I was headed for the NBA, but I did turn pro in a different league.
I never meant to be in the wedding business.
I studied at the extension division of Manhattan School of Music, then graduated from City College's Leonard Davis Center for the Performing Arts. I wanted to write and perform.
At City College, I played in the small ensemble directed by John Lewis, founder of the Modern Jazz Quartet. We performed one of his orchestral jazz pieces at Town Hall, with the great Richard Davis as guest artist on bass.
At the dress rehearsal, Richard walked in wearing an elegant tuxedo, double bass in hand. When John asked about it, he said, "I thought it was a dress rehearsal!"
John's idea that jazz could be both elegant and deeply swinging shaped how I lead a band to this day. Then friends started getting engaged, and they asked me to play their weddings because the bands they kept meeting were schlocky.
Some experienced musicians asked, "Why would you want to do weddings?" I didn't know enough to be intimidated. " What’s wrong with it?” I said. We get to play Ellington and Gershwin, Motown favorites, and a little Latin in the mix.
My real education was on the bandstand.
I toured the Mid-Atlantic with a big band, then joined the Red Parrot Orchestra at the nightclub on West 57th Street, a live big band sharing the stage with a club DJ. New York packed the place, from celebrities to everybody else. The Red Parrott orchestra leader gave me a feature on the swing classic “Cherokee”. What a time!
The night I almost played with a Beatle.
The Hit Factory heard me at the Red Parrot. One night after 11pm, I was in bed when Ed Germano called: "Come down with your acoustic guitar." I said it was late. He said I'd regret it if I didn't. He was right.
Walking in, I passed Yoko Ono coming out. The great studio sax player George Young was in the room, and he warned me, "There's no written music for you." That was fine. I'm schooled, but I love playing by ear. I put on the headphones, and there on a prerecorded track was John Lennon, talking to his fellow musicians. (His rhythm guitar playing is great, by the way. It was a” Sitting On The Dock Of The Bay” kind of thing which ultimately had a children’s chorus on.
Then I found out what I really loved.
Jingle dates and other studio work started rolling in, but I loved playing for real people, not in the sterile environment of a recording studio. Around then, Claudia [last name] of The Wedding Library invited me to join her roster. I was happy to bring a high level of music to some of the city's most special events.
Meanwhile, I was teaching guitar.
I taught at Spence and Collegiate. One day I opened my music room door and found Mick Jagger on a private tour of the school. "Hey, man," I said. "Hey, what's up," he said. His daughter enrolled the next year. I received a check for guitar lessons from Mick's own checkbook, with "guitar lessons" in the memo line. After that, the payments came from his business office.
Over 1,000 events later...
My passion has outrun my dad's concern, and I'd like to think he's proud. Today, Manhattan Swing plays the Plaza, the Rainbow Room, garden ceremonies, and Soho lofts. Elevate the heart, mind and spirit. That's still the mission.
[Let's get carried away] → Contact
