Okay... you heard it here first!  On April 5, my long awaited second album will be released.  Very excited..! ..but for the first time in over two years I find myself with nothing to obsess over (for a few days...)  I've decided to take an even broader look back over the groovy decade we just passed....

Here are the top 20 fabulous things that happened to me in the 00's

1) 2000 - I woke up January 1 2000 in Hong Kong.  After ringing in the millennium with the Kokomo  Beach Band the night before we recovered on our last day in this incredible local and feasted on the same pig that was carried around live and well during the ceremonies the night before.

2) 2000- Before I could even grow a decent beard... I hopped in the Tercel and headed off to Lancaster PA to make my dinner theatre debut in "The Buddy Holly Story".  I made instant friends with my new band "the crickets" and enjoyed one of the happiest times of my life immersing myself in what was an entirely new environment.  (If I only knew..)

3) 2001 - The Roy Obison Story- Perfromed by Bernie Jessome and narrated by Roy's brother Sam Orbison.  We toured the mid west.. Tulsa, Kansas city,.... played some amazing theatres to great crowds with me opening up the show.  I don't remember all the cities except that the last show was in Carbondale IL on September 10. 
The ride home the next morning made for a long day...

4) the DVD revolution- Classic film, amazing concerts, Star Trek, Star Wars and Superman... commentaries and special features.... surround sound and letterbox... sometime early in the decade all my dreams came true.  I've yet to recover... ...oh and "paperback writer"..

5) New Star Wars - okay... say what you want... but those openings made for pretty great days.  I'm not sure if I'll ever again experience that kind of anticipation. And lets face it, for all the faults, it was a lot of fun.

6) 2003 - I started the year with a 12 week run at Legends in Concert playing Buddy Holly.  This return to our old family vacation gettaway after 20 years was cathartic and as affirming as it was exciting.  I loved every cast and crew member I met, survived war breaking out, wrote 10 songs.. (two finally appear on the new album!) and spent some down time with my dad. 

7) 2003 - After 7 years, it was time to take a vacation.  Where to but Lubbock Texas, the home of Buddy Holly.  Does that really make for a vacation??  Picking up on a vibe in the west Texas fall, we cruised around this amazing city, and saw some amazing sites.  The highlight was  personal one on one tour of Norm Petty's studio in Clovis New Mexico.  Not only did we touch on a peace of history, it was in that little room that I realized the possibility of making records the way I wanted in my own home.

8) Surf's Up - the offspring of the Kokomo Beach Band.  Having longs since abandoned Canada, those loyal to our homeland kept the beach band vibrations going.  Shawn Hebb, Guy and Alex Schryer, Brad Holy, and me... along with some passer's by.  Always a great time and a fun show we made our way across Canada and back into the US.

9) ELVIS and more ELVIS - what started out as the back section of my "TRIBUTES" binder, now is a massive volume that rivals my phone book.  Dozens of shows with as many Elvis tribute artists (ETA's!?) made for some great nights and a celebration in music between audience and musicians.  I could not help but learn a great appreciation for those great musicians and songwriters.

10) Comic Con - what began as  a wacky idea has become an annual tradition for me and my oldest friend, the brilliant artist Frank Lintzen.  'Cool' stuff as far as the eye can see and one on one face time with people I grew up with on television and movies.  The list has gotten pretty long, but my most memorable encounter had to be the guy who played BIGGS in Star Wars.  The guy had a pretty big part but it was left mostly on the cutting room floor.  When I asked him a about it he simply said... "Well needless to say, I was disappointed..." Yeah, no kidding.. I'll never forget it.

11) 2005 - So began my relationship with Trey Mills and Zoe Bentley.  That spring we hit the road and crossed Canada, traveling as far as Victoria to promote Zoe's album "Stride".  We played some cool gigs, hit lots of radio stations, hung with Randy Hutchings, and had lot's of great times.  Since then I've worked with both of them on various projects and have enjoyed some great musical moments.

12) 2004 - Bowser's Rock and Roll Party at the New York State Fair.  I was called in last minute to play piano with this icon from Sha Na Na.  I was sight reading all day and my brain nearly melted.  Bowser puts on a great show and that day his guest included Sam the Sham, popular for the classic "Wooley Bully"  The crowd was in the thousands and it was the most perfect of summer days.  I spun these guys records endlessly as a kid... rarely does one have a chance to fulfill a dream so literally.  We reunited the following summer at the CNE bandshell  and one more time at Copps colesium in Hamilton.  

13) 2005 - Shreveport Louisiana.. me and Bernie headed south just weeks after Katrina hit New Orleans.  Little did I know when we rolled into this little city that it had such a deep tradition in music and song.  You might even run into Elvis' guitar player James Burton at the Louisiana Hayride!  We played some great music, I wrote some of my best songs, I lost at Scrabble, and my life has never been the same.

14) 2006 - Palm Springs, California - 10 weeks of random tribute shows in millionaire country clubs was merely a footnote of my strange California adventure.  I was put up in a tiny guest casita, a guest of one of favorite people Vickie Cimino.  This 78 former dancer would regale me with stories of old Vegas and her life in Califonia.  I spent weeks writing and wondering the neighbourhoods of California's elite, (TV's Eleanor Donahue lived across the street!)  Now I know why the American dream lives in the west coast.

15) 2006 -  I spent the summer after California recording my first album and all those songs I'd written in these cool places.  It was a lot of hard work, and I learned a lot but it was amazing to hear those songs come to light in the hands of my amazing musicians and friends.  "Like Super Man On Krypton" was released December 22, 2006. This was followed by some great shows - some with the amazing Shawn Hebb - and I met a whole new group of amazing people in the process.

16) 2006 - Australian tour - once again Bernie Jessome was responsible for one of my great trips.  We traveled down under like rock stars, hitting a new city every day.  I caught up with some old friends and saw some amazing sights... even a kangaroo!

17) Dakota lounge, Toronto. - I show up with nothing but beer money and rock the upright piano for Dave Callender's Chuck Berry tribute, Monkey Business.  By the end of the night the club is rockin', and we have educated the masses in the power of this rock and roll legend.

18) 2007 - Bahamas with Surf's Up - massive confusion and disorder nearly unraveled the gig.  We arrived at separate times in different places and without Alex.  The show was a bit of a mess and poorly planned but we were left with a couple of days to ourselves in the aftermath.  This turned out to be a once in a lifetime experience.  We had an abandoned resort to ourselves and owned the beach.  No phones or computers or cars made for a resourceful couple of days. It was an incredible time.

19) There's no place like home - working in a series of shows at Stage West in my city not only broke me from a musical rut I'd found myself in but opened the door for a whole new world of friends and challenges.  This led to shows with Drayton where I ultimately immersed myself in country music. An ironic twist that should happen 10 years since I first put that country mix tape in my deck.

20) Loosing one's father is an awful experience but the outpouring of love and support from the Town of Newmarket and beyond was overwhelming.  I thought I had some idea how much Bob Scott had affected people in his lifetime but to see all those people face to face was not only comforting but inspiring.

...I guess that's 20.. but what about the Cayamo trip.. hanging with Pete Best.. shows in Newmarket... Holy Joe's.. and Bruce Springsteen...!

Next decade I need a longer list....!

Stay tuned for new music!!!