Growing up in the Washington, D.C. area,  the first music I remember hearing was big-band, show tunes, and classical music which my parents listened.  My older sister and brother introduced me to the sounds of the British invasion starting with the Beatles.  I picked up the guitar when the instrument was almost taller than me.  I remember playing a song by The Byrds at a sixth-grade school function.   I suppose that qualifies as my first gig!   At the age of eighteen, I began to play the guitar more seriously.

In college, I was in a couple of bands which played the college scene.  We weren’t the best, but I learned how an energetic band and good song selection can help turn a social event into a memorable party.  After college,  I moved to Silicon Valley and began my professional career.  For the next several years, band activity was sporadic.  Starting in the late ‘80s, I played in a succession of part-time classic rock bands in Colorado.  After moving back to Northern California,  I was without a regular band for a few years.  That changed in 2000 when I found myself in two forming bands.  One band evolved into the talented but short-lived band SubQ.  I had the good fortune of connecting with another forming group which became Custom Neon. 

From the very beginning,   I noticed that my Custom Neon band-mates have good voices and a natural talent for vocal harmonies.  We also share common musical interests.   Custom Neon brings together the attributes which I really like in a band: energy, great song selection, full vocals, and even horns on a few songs.

Listen to Tom: