Session guitarist

Q: Tell us about a project you worked on you are especially proud of and why. What was your role?

A: I played guitar on the ABC Monday Night Football theme song on TV... just awesome!!

Q: What are you working on at the moment?

A: My solo project (99% original, maybe 1 or 2 covers, but mainly just me.)

Q: Is there anyone on SoundBetter you know and would recommend to your clients?

A: I'm not aware that I know anyone on here yet - I'd love to meet some of them, though, and maybe even collaborate on something.....

Q: Analog or digital and why?

A: Digital - much more portable and convenient to set up and store in a small area, and besides: there's not much you can't do digitally that you can do analog (if you're an audio savant, you MIGHT be able to tell the difference, but I seriously doubt it!)

Q: What's your 'promise' to your clients?

A: That they're going to get the absolute best that I can bring to their project...and that I will respect their ideas.

Q: What do you like most about your job?

A: Just touching the guitar...creating something from a small seed...bringing somebody else's idea to light - the pure joy of playing; it's just such a gift that I'm always grateful for and in amazement of...

Q: What questions do customers most commonly ask you? What's your answer?

A: "What do you think of the song?" or "what do you think it needs?" I tell them to wait until we've put all the parts in the song first, and then tell me what THEY think about it...if they're happy, then I'm definitely happy that I helped them.

Q: What's the biggest misconception about what you do?

A: That we just hear the songs and magically crank out the parts instantly; sometimes the parts do kind of write themselves, but mostly we have to try a few things first to see what fits the song without sticking out too much.

Q: What questions do you ask prospective clients?

A: Just what is the feel (or style) they're going for, or are there any hit songs that are in the same style that they want...

Q: What advice do you have for a customer looking to hire a provider like you?

A: Make sure you have a good idea about what you want your song to sound like (hear it in your head first), then work with the musicians on it - chances are, they'll already have a pretty good idea what it is that you wanted. The song will pretty much tell them what it needs.

Q: If you were on a desert island and could take just 5 pieces of gear, what would they be?

A: Hmmm... a Tele, a Les Paul, a Fender Deluxe Reverb amp, a Martin D-28 and a cooler full of iced-down beverages.

Q: What was your career path? How long have you been doing this?

A: Straight out of high school into a motor home and on the road!! Been doing this professionally for 41 years (been playing since I was nine!!!)

Q: How would you describe your style?

A: Chameleon!! I've done so many different styles in my life (but my 27-year stint with Hank Williams, JR. had me playing a lot of outlaw, edgy, southern-flavored material (loved it!!)

Q: Which artist would you like to work with and why?

A: I think Eric Clapton - just so soulful and simple

Q: Can you share one music production tip?

A: Don't play every single note you know when it's time to solo!!! PLEASE!! Play the guitar part almost like a vocal line - let the guitar sing the solo, not produce a note avalanche....just because you know where all the notes are doesn't mean you HAVE to use them all...!!

Q: What type of music do you usually work on?

A: Mostly demo tunes and lately, a lot of instrumental tracks; lot of Texas "red-dirt" style material, a lot of live performances here in the Houston area

Q: What's your strongest skill?

A: Listening to others' ideas and working with them

Q: What do you bring to a song?

A: A deep respect for the music, the joy of creating a specific feeling, and a successful conclusion to someone's hard work..

Q: What's your typical work process?

A: Unless the customer is specific about what they want to start with, I listen to the rough song first and get a feel for it (I let the song tell me what it needs) and provide my interpretation - always open to suggestion and/or changes.

Q: Tell us about your studio setup.

A: · Macbook Pro (SSD, 8GB RAM, Core i5 2.53GHz) · HP Pavillion p6754y PC (1TB HD, 8GB RAM, Windows 10, 3.00GHz AMD Athlon Quad Core CPU) · FOCUSRITE Saffire Pro 40 interface · Apogee Duet firewire interface (Mac) · Logic Pro X 10.2.4 (Mac) DAW · PRESONUS Studio One 3 Artist (PC) · Positive Grid BIAS amplifier modeling software · Addictive Drums 2 · 1965 FENDER Blackface Bassman amp · RED BEAR MK120 tube head (Russian Marshall-style amp) · Audio Technica AT4047 condenser · a closet full of guitars!!!

Q: What other musicians or music production professionals inspire you?

A: Tim Pierce, Brent Mason, Tommy Emmanuel, Eric Clapton, Jimmy Page, Steve Lukather

Q: Describe the most common type of work you do for your clients.

A: I provide electric and acoustic guitar tracks, chart the songs (if necessary) and help with arrangements if asked