berkleebassist » My Bands

And then there were none

Jeff — Wed, 07 Jan 2009 20:47:31 +0000

Well, it seems I’m now left without any musical groups to participate in. The one person whose group I was performing with, Maria McNeil, has just informed me that she’s going in another direction with the group. Saddened by this, to be sure, but she made it clear it wasn’t anything personal or professional, and that she had enjoyed playing with me over the last few months.

My take? Stylistically she didn’t feel like I was a good fit for her music or her group. Or somebody else really wowed her on bass, perhaps? She didn’t go into that much detail, so I’ll probably never know, but I had a great time playing her music & performing with her & the band. I wish her the best of luck!

Maria McNeil @ Café Luna

Jeff — Mon, 08 Dec 2008 03:19:37 +0000

Maria McNeil, the R&B/jazz songstress I play bass for, has the first of an ongoing monthly engagement at Café Luna this coming Saturday. Details can be found to the right in the sidebar, or at the facebook event. Hope to see lots of folks out there!

Awesome gig last night

Jeff — Sun, 02 Mar 2008 07:50:50 +0000

So last night at the Midway Café, Tony Brown & his band (which includes me) celebrated the release of Music for a Shrinking World, and along with Keppie Coutts and another gentleman whose name I cannot recall at the moment, but both of them were great. Really randomly, Craig Brodhead, a guitarist who was in an ensemble class with me back in 2004, was accompanying Keppie, along with fantastic bassist named Jenny. Everyone really enjoyed the music, the intimacy of the Midway (it’s only about 20 or 30 feet from stage to bar) was great, and it marks the first time I’ve ever been called back to the stage for an encore by an audience. Really cool. Hopefully we’ll be doing lots more gigs like this with Tony! Here’s a favorite from that set:

Gigging like a madman

Jeff — Tue, 26 Feb 2008 19:16:30 +0000

So the last two weeks have been wicked hectic, but before I get into that, I want to mention that this Friday at the Midway Cafe the Tony Brown Band is performing, celebrating the release of the new album, Music for a Shrinking World. So come on out if you can, it’s $5 to get in and $5 for the album (one-time special this week!)

Now, continuing on with my currently crazy life, we (Tony Brown Band and Zili Misik) were in Buffalo & Rochester, NY, on the 15th & 16th. We were scheduled to play the 14th in Toronto, but we had some trouble with the work visas required to perform in Canada, and were turned back at the border. Disappointing, but you live & learn. The upstate NY dates were great; we played Nietzche’s in Buffalo, which is a great place that’s got a great built-in crowd. In Rochester, which is Tony’s home town, we performed at the German House, which is this big old theatre-type place, with a balcony and dance floor. First time I’ve ever performed on an actual stage! The PA and mix engineer were spectacular, and while the vibe at that gig was completely different from the previous night in Buffalo, it was still great. And I have to mention that Zili puts on a fantastic show, so if you enjoy roots, reggae, Caribbean, African, or just good dance music, you should definitely check them out!

In addition to all of this, I’ve joined the Video Game Music Club at Berklee. We ended up being invited to play a gig in San Francisco at the G.A.N.G. awards, which were held Feb 21 at the GDC at the Moscone Center. Very very cool to be flown all the way out there for that gig and put up in a hotel, even if it was only for a day & two nights.

I would’ve liked to stay longer, but the reason for the short stay was, of course, another gig, this time in NYC at the Living Room, with Tony Brown again. Unfortunately, due to the weather and some car trouble, Tony and Zili had to cancel that date, so Shota (a fellow member of VGMC Band & Tony Brown Band) and I arrived at JFK and proceeded to catch a Fung Wah bus back to Boston. A long day purely of travel, which, while no fun, was humorous because of just how much Murphy’s Law was called into being. I mean, we started off our day at 5am PST, had the gig canceled, couldn’t change our flights to stay in San Fran for anything short of $300, left San Francisco International at 7am, landed at JFK, spent 20 minutes just sitting in the plane on the tarmac because JFK was partly shutdown due to the snowstorm, finally walked out of the airport & headed to the subway at 4:30pm, spent 20 or 30 minutes waiting for an A train, then finally arrived in Manhattan in Chinatown at 6:30pm, where we got on a 7pm Fung Wah bus to Boston, which took an extra hour to reach Boston because of the snow on the way. And finally, to top it all off, RIGHT as we were rolling in to South Station, the front right tire on the bus blew. At that point, we just laughed, ’cause what else could we do?!

So for now, I’m going to try to stay close to home.

Musical Update

Jeff — Mon, 13 Aug 2007 23:07:21 +0000

So here’s an update on my musical life. John Cooke & I have begun a cover band, entitled The Common Good, made up of former members of Boston Common. As with any venture, much to do, but we’ve got some gigs happening, and some new booking is on the way as well. We’ve taken over the Thursday night slot at Paddy O’s for the time being, although once Jonnie reforms Boston Common, I have no doubt we may be competing for that gig.

As for Chet, Will & Joe have both moved down south to Atlanta, GA. They’ve both secured jobs at local recording studios, and I with them well, but no longer shall anyone be able to hear the dulcet tones of that which was live Chet. I am, however, closing in on creating the Chet album. Album title suggestions are welcome.

Amber moved out this past Sunday, which leaves me a bit lonely here in this place. The summer with her was wonderful, and of course there were ups & downs, but that’s just life. More ups than downs, for sure, and considering how small my place is (600 sq. ft.) we managed to fit everything quite well. Definitely need some more shelves though…

Last, but not least, is the Matt Germak Band. Matt’s been hectic with his education, as well a looking for a new day job, but we do have a gig in September in Bar Harbor, Maine. We’ll see how Matt’s life plays out.

So yeah…

Jeff — Thu, 21 Jun 2007 02:47:20 +0000

So I haven’t posted in over a month, which is a bit lame. Anyway, life has been a bit hectic. Doing classes full-time (16 credits folks), gigging weekly, occasional trips out-of-town for gigs or recreation, and on top of all that Amber moved in for the summer. So yeah, it’s been overwhelming, but in a good way, especially that Amber is here (no surprise I like my girlfriend, right?)

As for my previous entry, still a work in progress, but the Chet album slowly edges forward. Boston Common continues to gig every Thursday at Paddy O’s down by Faneuil Hall. And to anyone who reads this, feel free to leave comments, that’s what they’re there for.

New Chet!

Jeff — Tue, 01 May 2007 06:29:31 +0000

Hey folks, just letting all of you know that Chet just finished cutting 3 new songs in the studio; they’re available to listen both at Chet’s website, www.chetband.com as well as on our Myspace page. Enjoy, and keep an eye out for a full album soon!

Boston Common @ Paddy O’s

Jeff — Wed, 11 Apr 2007 22:15:12 +0000

So, I haven’t posted in a while, sorry about that; the daily grind has been getting in the way of my intarwebs. Anyway, just a heads-up to anyone who’s reading this in the Boston area, but the cover band I’m in, Boston Common (warning, page is NSFW due to audio that loads on start, so mute your speakers before clicking) is continuing its weekly engagement at Paddy O’s tomorrow evening, from 9pm to 1:30am. 21+, no cover, and we play killin’ dance tunes all night long! Hope to see some new folks there!

T T the Bear’s

Jeff — Mon, 19 Mar 2007 07:26:15 +0000

Taking the stage at TT’s this Wednesday with Chet. The Fens and Dann Russo & the Whiskey will be joining us, so come on out for a rockin’ good time! Doors at 8:30pm, 18+, and $7