Born in Creston, Iowa, John 'JR' Robinson is called ‘the most recorded drummer in history’ and known in New York and Los Angeles as the First Call percussionist.  Currently touring with Barbra Streisand, JR’s most recent film music credit includes Pirates of the Caribbean I and II.  Some of contributions include, We Are The World and All Night Long by Lionel Richie; I'm So Excited and Slow Hand by the Pointer Sisters; I'm Just A Gigolo and California Girls by David Lee Roth; Higher Love and Back In The Highlife by Steve Winwood; Express Yourself by Madonna; Off The Wall and Bad, and the new upcoming CD for Michael Jackson; the new Natalie Cole CD Stardust; Change The World by Eric Clapton; Quincy Jones' The Dude, Q's Jook Joint and "From Q With Love; and Ray Charles, Genius Loves Company.  In 1983 JR won a Grammy with Rufus and Chaka Khan for Ain't Nobody.

 

JR has been first call drummer for Quincy Jones since 1979.

 

JR has also played on a number of motion pictures, besides Pirates, including, My Cousin Vinny, Grand Canyon, Pure Country, Phenomenon, The Body Guard, First Wives Club, Celtic Pride, Dave, Denise The Menace, Evening Star, Father's Day, Free Willy, Hercules, How Stella Got Her Groove Back, Independence Day, Jerry McGuire, The Mirror Has Two Faces, Little Rascals, Nothing To Lose, Nutty Professor, The Preacher's Wife, Quest For Camelot, South Park, Space Jam, Tin Cup, The Waterboy, Dinosaur, America's Sweethearts, Rush Hour 2 and That Thing That You Do, Hollywood Homicide, Raising Helen, Starsky & Hutch, Mr. 3000, Garfield, Ladder 49, 13 Going On 30, Dodgeball, Colateral and Team America.JR also has his two signature series snare drums out with Yamaha.  John just released his solo CD, "Funkshui" and is producing several projects. 

 

Please visit  http://www.johnjrrobinson.com.

Born in Cleveland, Ohio, Mike is famous for his appearance on Jimi Hendrick’s Electric Ladyland  and closely associated with Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, Mike Finnegan is one of the most prolific session, stage, and studio keyboard players of our time. A member of Dave Mason's band through much of the 70s when he wasn't doing sessions.  Mike also played on several records of Big Brother records after Janis Joplin died.

 

Projects have included:

Ø       Tracy Chapman, Telling Stories, King Biscuit Flower Hour Presents David Crosby

Ø       Crosby, Stills & Nash, CSN; After The Storm

Ø       Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young

Ø       Christopher Cross, Windows

Ø       Dan Fogelberg

Ø       Peter Frampton, Signed, Sealed, Delivered (I'm Yours)

Ø       Jimi Hendrix, Rainy Day, Dream Away/Still Raining, Still Dreaming and In From The Storm

Ø       Etta James

Ø       Los Lonley Boys

Ø       Dave Mason, Dave Mason; Certified Live; Mariposa de Oro; Old Crest On A New Wave

Ø       Rod Stewart, Blondes Have More Fun

Ø       Steve Stills, Right By You

 

Please visit http://www.mikefinnigan.net.

Born in San Francisco, bassist Bobby Vega began his professional career at age 16 with Sly and the Family Stone. With well over 100 albums to his credit, he continues to explore new ground. Co-founding KVHW in the late 90’s, his musical craft continues to develop into a complex and heady blend of rhythm & blues, rock funk and improvisational jazz. He is instrumental in laying down thick grooves as well as being a driving creative force in all of his musical endeavors.

 

An accomplished composer, Bobby has collaborated on various movie soundtracks, including the documentary film, “Vietnam, a Television History”, the Francis Ford Coppola Film, “One from the Heart”, and even composed music for the Sega video game, “Sonic, The Hedgehog III”.

 

Please visit http://www.bobbyvega.com/ . 

Born in Modesto, California, Jeff Tamelier started playing guitar at the age of 9, Joining his first band at age 11 with his then teacher and mentor Jim Phillips, aka “Blind Gym.”  In fact, Phillips was born blind, but played all instruments, in addition to participating on the track & field and wrestling team in high school.   “He was a huge inspiration, no doubt about that,” says Jeff.  Sports and music have played a huge part of Jeff’s life, from playing various sports, being an avid fan, and teaching guitar to legendary sports figures.

 

In 1982, Jeff had his first brush with stardom when “Jefferson Starship” vocalist, Mickey Thomas, formed his own band “Little Gadget and the Soulful Twilights” and asked Jeff and several members of “Pacific Brass and Electric” to join.  The band played regularly from 1982 to 1984, when the “Starship” was off the road.  In 1985, Jeff joined “Lydia Pense and Cold Blood,” another popular EastBay band from Bill Graham’s San Francisco label, along with “Tower of Power.”  In 1991, Jeff joined “Starship” touring five years with other 80s icon bands, including Cheap Trick, Kansas, REO Speedwagon, Survivor, and Styx.

 

In 1996, Jeff joined his childhood idols “Tower of Power” where he played with the band until 2006.  While not touring around the world with TOP, Jeff made his first critically-acclaimed instructional video, “Funk Guitar with Tower of Power’s Jeff Tamelier” and produced his first solo record “Strat Got Yo’ Tongue.”  In July  2006, Jeff became President of House of Hansen Productions, LLC,  an online collaborative digital music entertainment company, which owns http://www.netmusicmakers.com.

Over the years, Nick has recorded on hundreds of CD’s including recent pop artists such as Coldplay, Green Day, No Doubt, Pink, Macy Gray, Tim McGraw, Babyface, The Offspring, The Wallflowers, Ziggy Marley, Fastball and Joe Cocker. He is active in the L.A. recording scene and attributes his continued involvement with the music of TV, movies and commercials to a low threshold of entertainment and high tolerance for inflated egos.  Lane still finds time to travel and has been filling in with the group Chicago the last few years, most recently doing a series of concerts sharing the stage with Earth, Wind & Fire. He’s slated to do several weeks of concerts with Neil Diamond this fall, but is heavy “road days” included five world tours with Rod Stewart, several with The Who, and numerous gigs with Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers and Etta James, among others.

 

Please visit http://www.nicklanemusic.com/.

A former member of the NBC Jay Leno’s Tonight Show Band, Lee is one of the most recognized trumpet and flugelhorn players of our time.  Lee has been playing and charting blazing horn parts since the 1980s. In spite of his intense schedule in studios, on stage, and nightly gigs, he manages to find the time to share his fearsome chops and congenial enthusiasm with multiple artists.  Prior to joining The Tonight Show band, Lee spent four years on the road with the legendary Wayne Cochran and C.C. Riders, and earlier traveled with Nicolette Larson's band and Lowell George of Little Feet.

 

Additionally, Lee has toured with numerous music legends including Rod Stewart, Tom Petty, Aaron Neville, Ray Charles, Bonnie Raitt, Huey Lewis & The News, Etta James, Dwight Yoakam and Clint Black. He is a founding member of the "blue-eyed soul" band Jack Mack and the Heartattack and joined "The Tonight Show" band in July 2001.

A virtuoso saxophonist, Eddie M. has made his name touring and recording with Prince, Stevie Nicks, Sheila E., Teena Marie, and most recently, Eric Benet. With his new self-titled album, Eddie M. intelligently bridges the gulf between sensuous R&B, fat-bottomed funk and soulful jazz. Eddie discharges his duties as co-producer, saxophonist, keyboardist and singer with impressive aplomb, emerging as a composer in his own right with pop classics like Jr. Walker & the All Stars’ What Does ItTake. Says Eddie’s dear friend, Sheila E: “Great album, great musician, great person.”

 

Eddie’s career path was determined at age eight when his mother took him to a Duke Ellington performance at the Berkeley Community Theater. “I sat there digging the way the sax players had this cool vibe,” Eddie recalls with childlike enthusiasm. “I told my mom, “That’s what I want to play!” “That was the night it all began.”

 

Throughout high school, Eddie was tutored and encouraged by his music teacher Phil Hardiman. Not content with blowing sax in the school band, Eddie hit the Bay Area clubs playing alongside Sheila E, among others. When the glamorous Ms. E became a part of Prince’s musical stable, she recruited Eddie M. as her saxophonist. Eddie so impressed Prince, the superstar scooped him up for his own band. Throughout the ‘80s and ‘90s, the saxophonist continued to work with a broad range of artists including pop diva Stevie Nicks, smooth jazz bassist Waymon Tisdale, urban dance stalwarts Confunkshun and Eric Benet.

The world’s most recorded baritone saxophonist, Doc Kupka has been the anchor to the legendary Tower of Power horn section for nearly 40 years.  While not on the road with TOP, Doc is in high-demand as a session, studio, stage, and touring musician, playing with hundreds of the world’s leading solo acts and established bands.

 

Doc is just completing two (2) CD projects, produced by House of Hansen Productions, LLC.  On Bumped Up To First Class, Doc has assembled the top R&B/Funk horn section around, featuring good friend and Musical Director of Saturday Night Live, Lenny Picket, with lead locals provided by Huey Lewis, Lydia Pence, and Edgar Winter.   On Doc Goes Hollywood, Doc teams with Hollywood musical director, William 'Bill' Ross, fresh from his tour with Barbra Streisand and the Osars. 

 

Please visit http://www.strokeland.com.

Born in Glasgow, Scotland, Alex Ligertwood’s voice is recognized the world over as the lead vocalist of Santana.  For over 16 years with Carlos Santana, Alex provided his unique sound and interpretation on 12 albums. He earned Gold Records for four of those Santana efforts, and scored Top 40 hits with six albums and/or singles.

 

Alex shares Santana's soulful R & B style, which is clearly evident on the Santana hits "Winning" (Zebop), "All I Ever Wanted" (Marathon), and "Hold On" (Shango). His live rendition of the classics like "Black Magic Woman" and "Oye Como Va" scored Gold with Santana's "Sacred Fire: Live In Latin America Album." 

 

Alex has been musically associated with Santana for more than eighteen years. This clearly exhibits the regard that Carlos Santana holds for Alex's musical talents. A perfect showcase for Alex's vocal power is "Somewhere in Heaven", a ballad from "Milagro", co-written by Alex that brings both sides of Alex and Santana together -- the lyrical and the fiery -- in a passionate, spiritual tour-de-force. His vocal talents have also been featured on the Spyro Gyra album "Dreams Beyond Control", an honor considering that Spyro Gyra is strictly an "instrumental band". Alex has also recorded on albums with Ben E. King, Didier Lockwood, Carly Simon, The Dixie Dregs, Michelle Colombier, Jeff Lorber, Billy Squier and many others. 

 

Alex currently resides in Southern California where he is working on solo projects and performing with his band Metro. He is also working on side projects with various other bands, including live performances with the David Garfield and Friends Band, Billy Cobham and Friends Band, and with Jason Scheff in the bands Painted Rhythm and Border Patrol.

 

Please visit http://www.alexligertwood.com .

Michael Spiro is an internationally recognized percussionist, recording artist, and educator, known specifically for his work in the Latin music field. He has performed on thousands of records, co-produced and played on several instructional videos for Warner Bros. Publications (including Talking Drums, Changuito, Giovanni Hidalgo, and Ignacio Berroa), and produced seminal recordings in the Latin music genre, including Orquesta Batachanga, Grupo Bata-Ketu, Mark Levine and the Latin Tinge, and Grupo Ilu-Aña.

 

Michael’s recording and performing credits include such diverse artists as David Byrne, Cachao, The Caribbean Jazz Project, Dori Caymmi, Changuito, Richard Egues, Frank Emilio Flynn, Ella Fitzgerald, David Garibaldi, Gilberto Gil, Giovanni Hidalgo, Ray Holman, Toninho Horta, Bobby Hutcherson, Dr. John, Mark Levine and the Latin Tinge, Machete Ensemble, Bobby McFerrin, Andy Narell, Ray Obiedo, Chico O'Farrill, Eddie Palmieri, Lazaro Ros, David Rudder, Carlos Santana, Grace Slick, Omar Sosa, Talking Drums, Clark Terry, McCoy Tyner and Charlie Watts. In addition, he has recorded soundtracks to such major motion pictures as Soapdish, Henry and June, True Stories, Sworn To The Drum, Walker, Eddie Macon's Run, and Dragon-The Life of Bruce Lee; and wrote several arrangements for the Tony Award winning Broadway show BLAST! which was released on video by PBS in 2002.

 

Michael’s has a Bachelor's Degree with Honors in Latin American Studies from the University of California, and three and a half years of graduate work in ethnomusicology at the University of Washington. His practical education consists of a seven year apprenticeship with Francisco Aguabella (a relationship which continues today), and extensive study throughout Latin America. He has studied annually in Cuba since 1984 with musicians such as Jose Luis Quintana ("Changuito"), Esteban Vega Bacallao ("Cha-Cha"), Daniel Diaz and Juan "Claro" Blanco of Orquesta Ritmo Oriental, Regino Jimenez, Los Muñequitos de Matanzas, and Grupo Afro-Cuba de Matanzas. In addition, in 1986 he spent two months training at G.R.E.S. Portela, the famous Escola de Samba in Rio de Janeiro.

 

Please visit http://www.michaelspiro.com/.

Jon Smith, Saxophone

Born in southern Louisiana, Jon, along with childhood friends Edgar Winter and Jerry LaCroix, formed the now legendary Edgar Winter’s White Trash band in 1969. Jon’s dominant tenor sax sound and solid horn arrangements played a key role in the overall sound and success of the group.  For over 40 years, the unique and powerful sound of Jon Smith’s saxophone has been sought by some of the biggest names in the music industry, including Edgar Winter’s White Trash band, the Grammy Award-winning group Toto, Albert Collins and European superstar Peter Maffay, just to name a few. A self-taught musician whose first job came at the age of 13, Jon plays as if he was born with the saxophone in his mouth. Some who have heard him play compare his rich sound and solo ideas to that of King Curtis and David “Fathead” Newman.  Please visit http://www.jonrsmith.com/.

 

Mic Gillette, Trumpet

Although Mic Gillette is best known for 30 years of stellar horn work with Cold Blood, Tower of Power, and the Sons of Champlin, not as many people realize that he has appeared on several hundred albums and CDs for some of the biggest names in the music business, including Santana, The Rolling Stones, Quincy Jones, Rod Stewart, Elton John, Jefferson Starship, Huey Lewis and the News, and hundreds more.  Mic also enjoyed brief stints with Blood, Sweat & Tears and The Fundamentals, an R&B/Motown band.  Please visit http://www.micgillette.com.