33 years ago I first stepped on stage with a guitar and earned money for playing music. 3,000 gigs later, I'm still at it. Now, in 2004, I mainly perform as a sideman/session player/producer for artists who write their own material. But my internal song list of covers comprises a large repetoire of standards: from the Real Book, the Beatles catalogue, Bill Monroe...whatever. I am at home playing many styles of American "Roots" Music. When people ask me what my favorite music is, I reply "the next song".
On that first club date 33 years ago I was 15. My Dad hauled me and my gear--a single pick-up, arch-top f-hole, no cut-away 1965 Guild Starfire guitar, and a 1968 silver-face, aluminum trim Fender Bassman piggy-back amp--to the gig. He drove an Oldsmobile Vista Cruiser station wagon--which, after I got my licence, would become my gig vehicle; the stoners used to like to sit in the back with the gear so they could look out the windows in the roof. That band played what would now be called cocktail music at dinner-dances: a mixture of the day's top-40 hits and standard 'charts' read from fake books (Sinatra ballads, Ellington-style swing, bossa novas--I LOVE bossa-nova: Astrid Gilberto, if you're out there, will you marry me?).
Prior to turning 'pro', I cut my musical teeth playing garage band rock & roll. As a teenager, of course, that was my real passion: tunes by the Beatles & the British Invasion bands, hits from Motown, folk-rock, and later on the blues rock of Cream and psychedelia of the San Francisco scene.
It was during my freshman year of college that I first 'heard' bluegrass music. Goodbye electric guitar! For the next 10 years I did nothing but study and practice the 5-string banjo until my fingers bled. That's when I started playing with with "The Archduke of the Dobro" Stacy Phillips. We appeared together in a few bands in those days, Plexigrass, with WPKN's Chris Teskey, being one of my all time favorites. It was at this point that I learned to play the mandolin, the dobro, and finger-picked acoustic guitar as well.
In the 80's I re-discovered the electric guitar and began to collaborate with artists in the highly creative New Haven, Ct original music scene. I played guitar with BadBob for a couple of years, did 3 records--I think???--with him. We appeared regularly in town at the infamous Grotto. In fact we had the 10:30 slot the night that place closed. There must have been 2,000 humans shoehorned into that cellar that night!!!--in addition to the line of people trying to get in that extended down Crown Street and around the block. It was at about this time that I developed an addiction to the incredible genius of jazz guitarist Wes Montgomery. When I play Real Book jazz gigs--like I do from time-to-time with the Brian Butler Quartet--the question becomes "how would Wes do it?" and I hope that I can conjure up a thimble full of his creativity. And speaking of New Haven, for 8 years I was a member of James Velvet's mighty Mocking Birds. During that time we released somewhere in the vicinity of 7 cd's. James is uniquely original, a remarkable and prolific artist not afraid to follow his muse wherever it leads. We used to perform sets of James's original compositions on the final Saturday of every month at New Haven's cafe 9; this was a very good band. I now perform with James and his new outfit The Mighty Catbirds; check his site for info.
Focus for the 90's switched from the stage to the recording studio. Got work as an engineer at a bunch of different places, learned record production from the inside, recorded with many talented and creative musicians--many of whom I still have rewarding relationships with. Met, recorded, and performed with Chris Berardo, who, besides being an incredible songwriter, singer, and performer, has been a personal tour guide to the inside of what seems like thousands of saloons in thousands of states in thousands of countries...Produced some stuff for Chris's brother Marc Douglas Berardo, including his recent cd AS YOU MAKE YOUR WAY. Marc is a gifted artist who is rapidly becoming a fixture on the national singer/songwriter scene.
Realized a lifelong ambition to work with my brother Chris Neal. I mixed a couple of his solo things and one (there may have been others...) Mill Valley Taters project. These guys wrote and recorded the most interesting stuff, instrumental music with a wicked sense of humor: it's so difficult to play that way. They're the masters. I also became a regular in the Bill Lopez fronted Definitive Soul Project. I started playing with Billy in the 80's when he was a high school whiz-kid prodigy who sang and played the shit out of the keyboards. He was incredible then. You should hear him now.
This century, Plexigrass morphed into Stump Jumpers, featuring Chris, Glenn Behrley, Liam Bailey and Steve Combs on upright bass. Stacy played with us from time to time, too.
And now, finally, I recorded and released my first solo project: HOE--all acoustic, no drums or percussion, it's contemporary old-time string band music: a bit of bluegrass, country, pop, old-time. We converted my house into a studio for a weekend, and Liam, Steve, Chris and I picked for about 3 days straight. We also perform live as a band going by the name HOE--you can book us through the HOE website.
It's been an honor to be involved with the talented musicians I've met over the years. They've taught me that it's a matter of "taste over technique" (not that I don't have a bit of technique...) And it's still a thrill to be invited to share a stage or studio with these artists.
