Oral History Interviews

Jennifer Batten is often found at a NAMM booth checking out the gear or providing her feedback on products she has played over the years.  Washburn Guitars released a signature model that she took part in designing, which she has proudly played on recordings and on tour. While working with Jeff Beck, she began working with wireless MIDI systems, which led to a series of products and endorsements.  Her relationship with Line 6 resulted in the launching of the Variax series and the Batten String Damper, both cutting edge products first introduced at the NAMM Show.

Jason Miles is the musician and composer who took advantage of the developing synthesizer technology in the 1970s and 80s to create unique sounds for such artists as Chaka Khan, Michael Jackson and Aretha Franklin.  In the 1980s, Jason played an important role within New York recording studios by programming keyboards and synthesizers for Marcus Miller, among other performers.  Jason also wrote for film and television throughout his career.

Paul Peterson has served as band manager, promoter and producer for such bands as the Ozark Mountain Daredevils as well as a rep and promoter for RainSong Guitars.  Paul has also played a vital role in the expansion of the NAMM Oral History program by arranging interviews with key performers heavily involved with the music products industry.  Among those interviews Paul has arranged are BB King, Steve Vai, Dave Brubeck, Leon Russell, Sheila E and Leiber & Stoller.  Paul’s involvement with the Oral History program began in 2003, just a few years after the program began.

Mark Frink has been providing well respected and well attended sessions within the Tec Tracks programs during the Anaheim NAMM Shows for several years.  His background in audio engineering and touring has given him the ideal background to relate to those seeking to improve their skills on the road and in the studio.  Among Mark’s major concert tours, for which he provided sound engineering, were the Gypsy Kings in 1991, Tony Bennett in 1994 and Joni Mitchell in 2000.

Graham Nash has been an outspoken advocate for music education, especially with regards to programs that provide instruments to young students.  He has often mocked the thinking that allows school budget cuts to affect the music programs.  As a result, Graham has worked with NAMM on raising the awareness of arts education initiatives, both in the United States as well as in the UK and other countries.  While attending the NAMM Show in Anaheim 2016, he sat down to share some of his thoughts about music education and our need to continue to support our future.

Michael Hampton is also known as Kidd Funkadelic thanks to his long association with the funk band Parliament-Funkadelic.  He joined the band at the tender age of 17, having impressed the band members for his soulful guitar licks and feel.  Michael performed on each of the recording sessions and tours with the band until George Clinton disbanded the group in 1981.  Among his most requested solos is that heard on the 1977 album Brides of Funkenstein, the bands second album, on the song “Never Buy Texas From a Cowboy.”  Michael also enjoyed praise for his solo guitar work on the 197

Michael Bradford grew up in Detroit and found he had a deep passion for the electric bass.  After playing for local bands before and after school, Michael met guitarist Earl Klugh and the two began playing jazz together.  Michael later developed into a well-rounded musician having had the opportunity to work in recording studios, playing alongside a wide variety of artists.  Among those Michael recorded with were Anita Baker, Madonna; Kid Rock, Dave Stewart and Ringo Starr.  The Gibson 5-string models and Washburn basses are among several of the basses he plays, as both companies 

Ed Tree enjoyed his touring days with the Spencer Davis Group, which led to a series of bands and special gigs throughout his career.  Ed played lead guitar for Rita Coolidge, Juice Newton, Al Stewart and his band, The Bum Steers, among others.  Along the way Ed began endorsing the Big Joe Stompbox pedals, having first heard the Saturated Tube model and putting it to good use both on the road and in the studio.  In addition to his playing, Ed has produced and engineered over 120 CDs in his Los Angeles area studio.  

Vernon Reid was among the founding members of the cutting edge and influential rock band Living Colour.  The band helped break the color line in hard rock music by showcasing an all-black band can perform heavy metal rock with the best of them.  Vernon’s career has covered a wide range of musical styles including funk, rock and jazz.  As a guitarist, Vernon has played a role in the design of his Parker signature model, the DF824VR based on the Parker Dragonfly.  He has also been active in the launching of effects pedals, such as those by Roland, including the VG-99 and the GR-20 G

George Pajon Jr. is a founding member of the Black Eyed Peas and the musical producer and director for Fergie, Carlos Santana and Los Lonely, among others.  His music career began as a guitarist and over the years he has been active within the music products industry.  Among the companies he has endorsed for are D’Addario & Co., Mesa Boogie, Yamaha Guitars, Guyatone Pedals and Grosh Guitars.  In addition to the advertisements he has appeared in for these companies, George has also provided clinics in a number of music stores around the country.

Silvan Küeng was born in Switzerland and began a friendship in school as a young boy with Pirman Giger.  The two share a passion for music and guitars and began talking about how they would make changes to their electric guitars if they could.  By the early 2000s, the two launched their own company, Relish Guitars, to provide instruments with unique designs and materials.  Their first series, Jane, was introduced in 2010 with more models and series, happily named after girls, to follow.

Pirmin Giger is the luthier who partnered with Silvan Kung to form Relish Guitars. Located in Switzerland, the company creates electric guitars based on the “sandwich” design of several materials in order to produce the sound Pirman has in mind.  In 2010, they worked on the Jane series of guitars and later released the Mary series, with the idea that all good guitars should have a nice and appealing name!  Relish has been exhibiting at NAMM, where Pirman feels it is an ideal event to launch their new products into the market.

Nathan East is one of the most recorded and respected bassists in modern music, whose career reflects both extraordinary musicianship and a lifelong commitment to mentorship, collaboration, and music education. Inspired as a young musician by the soul records played by his father and uncle, Nathan discovered the bass as his voice and quickly developed a style defined by musicality, versatility, and unmistakable groove. Over the course of his remarkable career, Nathan has performed and recorded with an extraordinary range of artists across jazz, pop, R&B, and film music.

Will Champlin grew up in a very musical family, his father Ben is the songwriter and founding member of the band Chicago.  Will studied at the Berklee College of Music in Boston, Massachusetts and launched his musical career as a songwriter.  In 2010 he won a Grammy for writing the song “Ordinary Me,” which appeared on Heather Headley’s album Audience Of One.  Three years later Will’s singing career was underway with a performance on The Voice, he sang the Gavin DeGraw song “Not Over You.”

Obie Bermudez is the Grammy winning singer and songwriter from Puerto Rico who combined his passion for lyrics with his interest in musical instruments.  His first album, Locales, released in 1998 showcased his own songwriting skills.  His recordings also have always contained more instruments and solos than the typical Latin love song of that era, which was an influence on many other artists over the years.  In 2004, Obie’s Todo el Año album was released, which not only won the Latin Grammy for Best Male Pop Vocal Album, but increased his fan base far past the boarders of his lan

Dick Lippin is the president and founder of The Lippin Group, an international, strategic entertainment/communications public relations and marketing organization with wholly owned and operated offices in Los Angeles, New York and London.

Scott Page, the CEO of Ignited Network, played saxophone with the likes of Pink Floyd, Toto and Supertramp.  His father was a well-known musician in his day having played with Judy Garland and Lawrence Welk.  Being raised in such a musical family, Scott realized early on that music was in his blood and he began playing with his father at a young age.  In fact, his first TV appearance was on ABC when he was just six years old.  Scott can be heard on saxophone on the Pink Floyd tract “The Dogs of War” as well as on the live version of “It’s Raining Again” by Supertramp.  As the CEO

Juha Ruokangas is a luthier from Finland who set out to create a community of builders within Europe thus establishing the European Guitar Builders Association (EGB).  Juha designed his own series of guitars in 1997, beginning with the Duke model, which was the first instrument of his own company, Ruokangas Guitars.  Soon he followed up with other models including the Unicorn and the Aeon.  In 2011, he introduced his first electric bass, which he named the Steambass.  While exhibiting at the NAMM Show in 2016, Juha took time out for his NAMM Oral History interview to help us docum

Guitar Shorty was born in Houston with the name David Kearney, but found fame with his nickname in the blues world beginning in the 1950s.  He grew up in Florida, where he began playing gigs as a teenager.  After working with the Ray Charles band and Walter Johnson, Shorty released his first recording in 1957 with a song called “You Don’t Treat Me Right.”  A large part of his education as a musician came when he worked at the Dew Drop Inn in New Orleans as he played a wide variety of musical styles for artists such as Little Richard and T-Bone Walker.  Later in his career Shorty b

Bob Clearmountain is best known for his recording engineering, mixing of artists such as Bruce Springsteen, Bryan Adams, Toto, Simple Minds and The Rolling Stones.  It was on Springsteen’s 1984 album “Born in the USA” for which Bob might have gained his widest audience and greatest fame.  The tracks are still considered works of art, and are often the focus of analysis within trade magazines and blogs.  As a mixing engineer, he worked on David Bowe’s “Let’s Dance” album, Tina Turner’s “Back Where You Started,” Bon Jovi’s “Crush” as well as dozens of others beginning with Kool and

Frank Seta began his career in the music industry working for Baldwin Pianos before working for Gibson and then establishing his own retail store. Frank has built lasting friendships within the music industry due to his passion and drive; as a result, he was one of the most suggested people to be interviewed for the NAMM Oral History program.  Having worked for Baldwin in Cincinnati, Frank knew the music rich city would be ideal for a retail store. Seta Music specializes in grand, uprights, digital and player pianos as well as classical and theater organs.  A key element of the st

Maricella Juarez, lovingly known throughout the industry as MJ, has been a positive force along side Seymour Duncan for several decades. Together they have created lasting and meaningful relationships with dealers, musicians, and even their own competition. The sincerity of her efforts to create quality products has only been equaled by her passion for the industry and her friends with it.  Among her many duties for the company is heading the artist relations efforts, which she does with integrity and flair (think guitar-shaped glasses)!

Jon Anderson is best known as a founding member of the band Yes. His musicianship, arranging and songwriting helped catapult the band to international fame with hit records and sold out performances around the world. The band has had a remarkable ability to re-create itself over the years for a newer and wider audience, an element that was established as the foundation by Jon and the other original members.  He is also a gear head, which has endeared him to the music products industry over the years as both a clinician and endorsee.

Honoring Ernie Lansford for his invaluable service in assisting the NAMM Resource Center in obtaining fantastic interview contributions to the NAMM Oral History Program.  This video contains some of the highlight interviews that Ernie helped us gather over the years. Thank you Ernie!

This video is of our annual NAMM Tribute, created in honor of our members and music industry friends who passed away in 2015 and early 2016. This Tribute was shown for the first time at the NAMM Show in Anaheim, California in January 2016.  All moving images within this video, indicate those who have been interviewed as part of the NAMM Oral History program. Larger segments of their interviews are posted here on the NAMM website (use the "search this site" white box on the upper left and type their name).   Music Used for this video: Misty: Clark Terry - Clark Terry Sextet & O

Celin Romero and his younger brother, Pepe Sr., have performed together as a classical guitar duo for over fifty years.  They have recorded acclaimed albums and performed around the world, becoming a renowned and pioneering musical treasure.  The brothers were born in Malaga, Spain to the classical composer and musician, Celedonio Romero (1913-1996).  Among the material the brothers have recorded over the years is a long list of their father’s works including “Noche en Malaga” and “Guitarras del Museo: Para Quintarra y Orquesta,” which Celedonio composed in 1987.

Pepe Romero Sr. speaks very eloquently of his passion for music because it is, as he says, part of his blood stream.  Music has always been a part of his life and he takes great pride in his musical history.  His father was a classical guitarist and composer and along with his brother, Celin, Pepe has traveled around the world for over 50 years playing guitar.

Trond Braaten grew up in Norway, where his love for music developed at an early age.  He is in many ways a product of the 1960’s, being among the many that was taken away by the British groups that changed the music at that time. Taking up guitars, as well as other instruments for his own part, as well as engaging in the arts in general, was instrumental in what brought him into journalism during the 1980’s. His first NAMM show was in January 1986, where not so much the instruments, but rather meeting the names behind it all was the most rewarding, and educating experience for him

James Gadson is among the most recorded drummers in history!  His career began as a member of the Charles Wright band in the late 1960s and soon expanded to studio work.  James can be heard on thousands of hit recordings with artists ranging from Paul McCartney to Rose Royce.  His Hal Leonard DVD entitled “Funk R&B Drumming” offered his work for younger drummers to study, a fact for which James is very proud.  He has always felt that giving back is a big part of being a musician.

Mike Overlin always wanted to work for Yamaha ever since being introduced to the company’s philosophy and commitment to providing excellent products and services.  As an employee for over twenty years, Mike is proud to say he was right about wanting to be involved with a company that echoes many of his same deep seeded interests.  Mike purchased a 1957 Selmer Mark 6 from a local music store in Paradise, California to play in the school band.  When he joined the Air Force Band and was issued a Yamaha saxophone he really liked the way the instrument played, and sought to be involved