Once Rodney Ross had joined Thomas Lau and I to form a trio our playing skills were getting stronger at about the same time Tom was getting busier and busier with his studies. After two years as a group Tom left to concentrate more on his studies and Rodney and I became a duo. Rod was also a percussionist in the Hudson-Macdonald High school band and a bass player who also played some guitar (remember the “doubling”). Our repertoire started really expanding and we started playing more and more and he, in fact, would figure prominently in my musical growth. His tastes were far more eclectic than mine…I was into singer-songwriter stuff like JOHN DENVER, BOB DYLAN and JAMES TAYLOR and he was into YES, GENESIS and GENTLE GIANT with a healthy dose of DEEP PURPLE. This made for an ear opening experience and what looked like a complete disconnect of styles became a lifelong fascination for merging styles to me. Our time as a duo would culminate in our biggest performance at the NOTES TO YOU FESTIVAL (which I would eventually play as a solo artist over the next few years) on the grounds of JOHN ABBOTT COLLEGE. At roughly 7500 people all spread out Woodstock style on the immense south lawn it was the biggest audience I had ever played to. I had just turned 16.
