NESP Forum

Liz asked me to post the info I've "dug up" on the boys.  I researched them all for a thread I started on another site & I'm bringing all I found,  over to NESP!!


There's more to these boys , than you know!!!

Ok,  let's start w/ Brian!  I'm a huge admirer of his,  any of you that attended the last 3 New England shows,  probably figured that out.  And judging from the line waiting for photo opps w/  Brian & Josh in Concord,  it's safe to say Brian has an ever-growing   "admiration society" developing!

When I talked to Brian in Concord,  I told him he was the hardest one to research.  I told him all I found on him (when I googled him),  was mainly the info about his work w/ Prince.  His reply was, "You googled me?  And you found info on me?"  I told him, "Yes"!  He was so excited!!  He couldn't believe he was on GOOGLE.  Too Cute!  He said he played w/ Prince from 1991-1996.  He also played w/  Mandy Moore.

He plays sax & flute.  And from something I read today,  he apparently sings,  plays guitar & piano!  Who knew??

Why not show this sweet & talented guy your support,  & make a visit over to Brian's Myspace page:


http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fus...d=20431657



Anyone have any more info on Brian?  This is the place to put it!

I forgot Loren wrote the Runaround!

Checkout LOREN@

http://www.lorengold.com/


Keyboardist / songwriter Loren Gold obtained national exposure as Musical Director for pop sensation Tiffany in the 1990s, which lead to more extensive work and creative control with other artists. Loren established himself as a top session musician in Los Angeles working with Hilary Duff, Mandy Moore, Skye Sweetnam, American Idol, Aly & Aj, among others. By 2003, Loren became the keyboardist and then Music Director for Hilary Duff. Currently working with Taylor Hicks, Loren has written the first song entitled "The Runaround" off of Taylor's Billboard top ten debut CD.

Working with such multi-faceted artists, Loren has traveled around the globe playing stadiums and arenas, and performing on radio and television, including multiple appearances on The Tonight Show, The American Music Awards, The Today Show, Good Morning America, The Late Show, Ellen Degeneres, and MTV. Loren's composition have been featured in several feature films on HBO, Cinemax, Showtime and television programs including Melrose Place and Beverly Hills 90210. Loren has also performed as a musician and actor on daytime television (CBS The Bold and The Beautiful) and behind famous comedians at The Comedy Store in Hollywood, CA

Loren endorses some of the top sound equipment manufacturers, including Yamaha, Korg, and M-Audio, and has been featured in Keyboard, Proview, and other industry magazines. KORG says, "Music as we know it is evolving and changing at an alarming rate. Fans are always on the lookout for something new to tickle their eardrums. This fact forces musicians to continually evolve, and those musicians versatile enough to keep pace with the audience's sonic needs, thrive. One of these masters of versatility is Loren Gold."

After gaining recognition and critical acclaim as a songwriter with his debut CD "All Around Me," Loren Gold released "Keys" in 2005 (Gemini Sun Records / Ryko). His second instrumental CD features some of today's young stars and seasoned veterans; Alphonso Johnson (Weather Report), Ron Wikso (Cher), Michael Chaves (John Mayer), Tom Evans (Rod Stewart), Nicholas Gunn, Mindi Abair, Jamie Bonk, and others.

A native of Palo Alto, California, Loren Gold began fingering out Beatles songs on the piano at age seven and subsequently started his classical training. The rest of his musical life plays like an eclectic mix from both of these art forms; he played rock in high school, loved R&B (Stevie Wonder, Ray Charles) and jazz (Herbie Hancock) and began playing Mozart piano sonatas a la Fats Domino and the Beatles. "After all these years of playing and composing, I love to create a simple melody with a theme and a twist that makes it unique," he says. "If you listen carefully you'll hear in my songs some of the composers I love, but the music comes from my heart and fingers."




When I first saw Loren on tour,  I thought he looked so familiar,  and I couldn't figure out why.  He was on my soap opera & I can remember the scene he was in!!!  So cool!!

Josh Smith- This man has accomplished alot!!!! First cd at the age of 14. (WOW)!!!  His site doesn't seem to have been updated for quite a while, but theres still a ton of info/music to pour through!!

Check out Josh @

http://www.joshsmithandthefrost.com/index.html 

Josh Smith

With the release of "Woman” his 4th CD release on Maddog Music by the age of 20, Josh Smith has established his reputation as one of the most formidable and youngest guitarist/vocalists on the blues/rock scene touring today.

Smith was born on October 7th, 1979, to Janie and Joel Smith in Middletown, Connecticut. Before his 1st birthday Josh's family moved to Coral Springs, Florida, and soon thereafter settled in Pembroke Pines, Florida, in Broward County, one of the new suburbs growing out of the Fort Lauderdale/Miami area. At age 3 his parents bought Josh a student guitar and by age 7 he started taking guitar lessons.


Notice his birthdate,  look familiar???  Seems to me ,  we know someone else w/ the same birthday!!!

Been busy, busy, busy , researching these guys!!!! I found the following write-up on Felix "D-Kat" Pollard on a site for Aviom Inc, that makes & sells monitors & audio equipment that Felix uses! Very interesting guy!! And a total sweetheart & joy to watch & listen to!

AVIOM
Personalities | Press Room | Events

Drummer Felix "D-Kat" Pollard


Felix "D Kat" Pollard, on the road with American Idol Taylor Hicks, chooses Aviom to deliver the perfect Monitor Mix.


Anyone who recalls the original Felix the Cat cartoon character will remember him as having a grin that spanned the width of his face and beyond – very much like Felix Pollard, aka Felix D Kat, drummer and groovemeister par excellence. But where as the original Felix resided in two-dimensional black and white, this Kat lives his life in glorious 3-D Technicolor.


Felix ‘D-Kat’ Pollard is a drummer whose propulsive style and versatility have enabled him to play alongside some of the greatest musicians in the world. His roster includes Lionel Richie, Anastacia, Shelia E., George Duke, Chaka Kahn, The Staple Singers, Jessica Simpson, Brian Culbertson, Phil Upchurch, Clay Aikens and a host of others. There is no doubt that Felix is one of the most sought after percussionists in the music industry.

A versatile drummer, Felix is impossible to pigeonhole as just a specialist in one or two areas. His versatility allows him to play everything from pop to jazz to gospel and rock. Whether playing with Buddy Guy or Destiny’s Child, his talent is recognized by the best in the business. It’s this talent that landed him his current position touring with Taylor Hicks, the 2006 American Idol winner.


Felix came upon Aviom during a high-profile gig he was playing and, once he experienced the system for himself, there was no going back. “When I’m playing, I like to be able to do what I want to do with my mix without having to rely solely on the monitor guy. I first got a chance to use the Aviom system at the Rockefeller Center Tree Lighting Ceremony in New York and, once I did, I knew it was what I needed to get that level of control over what I hear in my in-ear system,” he explained.

Felix is not only a drummer extraordinaire, he’s also an extraordinary person. His talents were obvious at an early age. From the time he was two he was banging away on anything in sight. At the age of 10 he began to play on a Ludwig drum kit and made his professional debut in the gospel choir ‘Voices of Deliverance’. Even though his roots are found in gospel and Jazz, he has performed for a wide range of audiences including the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and Savion Glover’s ‘Bring Da Noise, Bring Da Funk’. Felix’s notable TV appearances include the HBO special Midnight Mac, with Bernie Mac, The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, and Late Night with David Letterman; he even performed for former first lady Hillary Rodman Clinton at the 1996 Democratic National Convention.

Felix aspires to continue his journey into song writing and fronting his own band. “I want to continue to work and perform with the best musicians, and make everyone around me feel good about what I bring to the music industry as a true musician”.

When not playing music, Felix studies ASL (American Sign Language). He also enjoys cooking, Jet Skiing, snowboarding and spending time with his son Dillon. Anyone who is fortunate enough to meet and listen to his music quickly learns that Felix is one bad Kat.

Another hard one to research:

Al " Boogie" Carty


Short item from Boogie's myspace page:


About Al "Boogie" Carty
Hey everybody. Welcome to my ever-evolving space-o-boogie. For those who are unaware (?), I am a musician.... an instrumentalist and creator of music. My primary instrument is the electric bass, and I have been blessed to be seen and heard working with artists such as Rob Thomas (of Matchbox 20), Taylor Hicks, Alicia Keys, Ashanti, Amerie, Lou Reed, De La Soul, Carrie Underwood, Gavin DeGraw, Joe, Donell Jones, Case, Me'shell Ndegeocello, Leela James, Toby Lightman, Deitrick Haddon, The Clark Sisters, Byron Cage, Marvin Sapp & Donald Lawrence. I'm involved in some new and exciting projects where I am doing much more than playing bass, so stay tuned

Boogie was named Artist Of The Month for the month of Oct "2006" by Aguilar Amplification!

Judy, Thanks for posting all the info. It's really interesting to read about their backgrounds. Taylor has put together a very talented group
of guys! Will check out the links too nice job on
pulling this all together1

I'm also including Clay in this thread!!


Was so excited to discover that Clay isn't just a great guy & sound tech, but a gifted musician as well!! His site contains access to his youtube videos & talks about his CD. But the cd doesn't seem to be available, not sure what happened with that.

Check out CLAY @
http://www.clayconnor.com/

Background:


Clay was born and raised in Atlanta, Georgia. Clay then moved to Jacksonville, Alabama to attend college and that's where Clay's musical career was born. Heavily influenced by the likes of R.E.M. Jay Farrar & Son Volt , Bloodkin , Widespread Panic , Little Feat , and Public Enemy , etc... Clay formed Cool Beans in 1994 with fellow band member Beau Nolen. And that's when the wheels began to turn. Several band members fluctuated over the years to finally solidify to create their CD " Pipe Dreams " with members Daniel Belk , Paul Crawford , Derek Day , and Craig McGriff. Clay has since fluctuated around playing in The Taylor Hicks Band and with Daniel Hutchens & Eric Carter of Bloodkin. More recently, Clay has returned to Birmingham Alabama after playing down in Orange Beach , Alabama with Johnny Barbato & The Lucky Doggs. Clay has since been performing around Birmingham and the surrounding area.

Now, Kris Russell!

Can't find anything on him. Just know he's a really nice guy. Maybe Karen will be able to help get some info on him!!!

There's a lot of pretty interesting info there. Thanks Judy.