Bands

The Spanner Big Band – I’m a regular in this great big band run by Dan Spanner, which plays every other Wednesday at The Three Compasses pub in Hornsey, north London. We’re also playing once a month at the Jamboree near King’s Cross. I’m also on their 2018 album ‘Still Alive at the Gunners’.

The Reliables – I’m a co-founder, with guitarist Robert Pfeiffer, of this London jazz quartet that played original material and choice jazz standards. We put out an album in 2019. As of 2023 we’re working on new material.

earRotator – I’m a co-founder, with Mark Schleunes, of this rock-electronica project that made an anti-war album called “Holy Empire”, and videos in the mid-2000s.

Drew Jam – I do occasional London gigs with multi-talented singer-songwriter Drew Jam.

Iain Hornal – I’ve done some London gigs with The Hornal Family Band, a project of Iain Hornal, whose day job is touring with Jeff Lynne’s ELO. He also sang lead & backing vocals on my 2019 album “The Species That Knew Too Much.”

Richard Lobb + Toybox – I was part of the Toybox Band at Richard’s legendary Thursday night sessions at the Ranelagh in Bounds Green for about five years, and he co-produced my 2012 album “Dead Man’s Cake”.

Living Sounds – I was a regular in the early days of Living Sounds, which is a band and an ongoing series of London jam sessions run by singer-songwriter Derane Obika.

Quique Cruz + Quijeremá – I was an integral member of Quijeremá for many years, a band based in Oakland, California, led by Chilean artist Quique Cruz. I made several albums with them, and toured the Americas, including Chile and Venezuela.

Rafael Manriquez – I collaborated with the late great Chilean master of nueva canción, Rafael Manriquez – we set Pablo Neruda poetry to music on our 1999 album Canto al Poeta.

Richie Lawrence – I played some sax and did some gigs with my good buddy, singer-songwriter & pianist/accordionist Richie Lawrence, and his band The Loose Acoustic Trio.

Jack Gates – I’ve done some gigs and played on the 1997 album New Geography by this master of Brazilian and jazz guitar.

Maria Fernanda Acuña – I played for years with Maria in the band Quijeremá and played on her album of songs in Spanish for children. She is a master of Venezuelan percussion, maracas, cajón and cuatro.

The Klezmorim – I did a six month tour in the early 90s all around Europe, playing small clubs to big festivals like the North Sea Jazz Festival, with this band that started the klezmer revival. I played alto and soprano sax with the band.

Undercover SKA – I played tenor sax for a couple of years to packed clubs in San Francisco with Undercover SKA. We also toured No. California, Oregon and Washington and once opened for Jefferson Starship.

Oakland Opera Theater – I contributed several compositions for two shows for the Oakland Opera Theater, including a play by Federico Garcia Lorca that we set to music, “Once Five Years Pass”, and played sax for a number of other shows.

Pure Honey – I played baritone sax in a horn section with this San Francisco Bay Area R&B band run by pianist Dan Daniels, doing function gigs, street fairs and summer festivals.

Lucy Nuff – I played tenor sax in this Motown / R&B band fronted by 3 women singers with a rhythm section consisting of people from the Oakland Opera Theatre. I later went on to form earRotator with guitarist Mark Schleunes.

Maximum Wage – I played tenor and soprano sax and contributed compositions to this jazz-rock fusion band that played around the SF Bay Area in the late 80s / early 90s.

Big Bones – I played tenor sax every Sunday night for a few years at the Grant & Green club in North Beach, San Francisco, with this singer-songwriter and harmonica master Big Bones, and his blues / funk band, Big Bones and the Bonafides.

Klezmania of San Francisco – I played soprano and tenor saxophone for 20+ years with Ben Brussell and his band Klezmania of San Francisco, doing concerts, radio shows and function gigs all over the Bay Area, and was on his 1992 album The Wailing Wall.

Blue Swing – I played tenor and soprano sax with Blue Swing, a jazz band formed by me and my piano player friend Michael Rutchik, from our days studying music at San Francisco State University.

Rakshasa – I played sax and synthesizers, and wrote lyrics and music, for this first band of mine which was formed in Santa Fe, NM, then spent six years in the club scene in L.A.