Oral History - all
Jack Bruno was just 16 when his rock band, Apple Pie Motherhood Band, landed a record deal with Atlantic. The band was based in Boston and drove down to New York to record there, and even after the two albums were completed Jack decided to stay. He later moved to Los Angeles in the mid 1970s where... more
Jimmy Edwards grew up in a musical family. His father was a singer in a rock band and Jimmy began playing drums by the time he was five and later picked up the guitar. After serving in the United States Air Force, Jimmy was hired to work in the loading dock at Marshall Music in Lancing, Michigan.... more
Glenn Rieuf worked for a radio station repairing and building their equipment, which was the perfect foundation for his role as a recording engineer. He was hired by Chip Young, who had just purchased Monument Studios from Fred Foster and changed the name to Young’Un Studios. Glenn engineered... more
Barry Rudolph was always interested in electronics and music. During high school he played drums in a surf band and worked full time in the aerospace industry while putting himself through college. After graduating in 1970 he happened upon a job at a recording studio in Santa Ana, CA. The job... more
Terry West started playing in bands at an early age and continued throughout his twenties and thirties. He was always one to maintain a day job, and his many roles at an outdoor advertising company combined with his experience as a working musician turned out to be the perfect training path for his... more
Myno Jackson grew up surrounded by music. Her father was the jazz bassist Chubby Jackson who played with Woody Herman, had a hit children’s television program, and toured with Louie Armstrong. Her brother was the drummer Duffy Jackson who played with Sammy Davis Jr and Count Basie. She too had a... more
Eugene Moles grew up surrounded by music. His father was a studio musician who also had a guitar repair shop in Bakersfield, California (he was an expert on refinishing, he added the famous red, white and blue colors to Buck Owens’ instruments). Eugene developed his playing skills playing in clubs... more
Mike Lawson always wanted to become a musician as a child. The process was not easy as his family could not afford an instrument for him, but his desire was always strong. He worked hard to earn the money when he was a little older, cutting grass and other odd jobs, and finally purchased a guitar. ... more
Jay McDowell, known as Smilin' Jay, is the Multimedia Archivist for the Musicians Hall of Fame in Nashville, Tennessee. His father worked with Guild Guitars and was friends with Duane Eddy, who is like an uncle to Jay. As a result, Jay was able to attend the NAMM Show as a kid. As a musician, Jay... more
Joe Spann joined the Gruhn Guitars crew in Nashville, TN to assist in writing appraisals. Appraising musical instruments is an important part of the retail store's business, and has been increasing ever since George Gruhn opened the store in 1970. Joe’s passion and growing expertise for the Gibson... more
Robert Yates is known as Uncle Uke for a very good reason - he plays, builds, and sells ukuleles. Robert opened his own store, HUG Ukulele, on the big island of Hawaii with his wife Patricia which began as a handmade jewelry store with a few ukes and has evolved into primarily a ukulele store with... more
Titus is the cat you will meet when visiting Gruhn Guitars in Nashville, TN. Titus was a rescue, and has grown into a big, friendly, and beautiful boy. George spoke of the many customers who often visit the store just to pet Titus! George also pointed out that he does not own the store, Titus does!
Jonathon Breen’s grandparents opened The Music Shoppe in 1961 in Bloomington, Illinois. Back then the name was spelled without the second P and the E, which were added later by his Uncle Randy when he expanded the business by opening other locations. Jonathon’s interesting intro into the business... more
Cowboy Joe Babcock is a singer and songwriter whose career in country music spans over sixty years. As a vocalist he and Hurshel Wiginton formed a backup studio singing group called The Nashville Edition. With The Nashville Edition and on his own, Joe sang on thousands of recordings such as Marty... more
Larry Noto’s father, Joe, opened Music Land in 1971. Back then Joe wanted to create a store that would provide instruments and repairs to both the gigging musician and students. Larry grew up in the store and has memories of playing in the empty boxes as a child, but he didn’t work in the store... more
Kevin Ray Clark grew up with music in his home and played in a family band at church. He was inspired by the musicians playing at Disney World and pursued the trumpet in his school band program. As he got older, Kevin started playing with the Ringling Bros. & Barnum and Bailey Circus Band. As... more
Jason Mraz has won the hearts of millions by the way he expresses himself musically. During his NAMM Oral History interview, Jason displayed that same passion as he recalled the important role his music teachers and choir directors played in fueling his love for singing. Jason recounted the looks... more
Chuck Jacobs played bass in Kenny Rogers’ band for more than 40 years and enjoyed every minute of it. His roots in music go back to the Dixieland group his family formed while he was too young to play. He heard the music and was inspired to begin playing instruments as a child. At the age of 10 he... more
Bill Koepnick is the co-founder of Advantage Audio in Burbank, CA where he specializes in creating and recording sound effects for movies and television. Bill got interested in music at a young age and was an avid fan of The Ventures. His instrument of choice was the drums and he played in the band... more
Jeff Berlin has always been surrounded by music and considers it the most important element of his life besides his family. The first instrument he picked up was the violin at age five, which he pursued for ten years before switching to the bass guitar. Jeff had the opportunity to see some... more