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Player
In 1999, my good friend Dave Amato asked me if I would be interested in checking out a band that he was going to do some gigs with during his time off from REO Speedwagon. He told me that they were a great bunch of guys and that they sang great. He also told me that I would probably recognize some of their songs. One song in particular is a song that just about everyone knows, it's called "Baby Come Back" and it was a number one song for this group several years ago. The name of the band is Player. I always enjoy playing with Dave and I respect his judgment when he tells me that something is pretty good so I decided to go and play with the guys and see what happened. As it turned out, Dave was right, they are really nice guys and a lot of fun to work with. We all hit it off and started to do some gigs together. The band features singer/songwriter/guitarist, Peter Beckett and singer/bass player, Ronn Moss, both founding members of the band.. Peter, a native of Liverpool, England has written lots of great songs (including the aforementioned "Baby Come Back") for a wide variety of artists over the years. In addition to playing with Player, he also spent several years touring with the world renowned Little River Band and has worked extensively on various studio projects in Los Angeles. Ronn, after having moved on from the original incarnation of Player, made his mark in the world of acting. He has done several movies over the years but is probably best known for his role as Ridge Forrester on the enormously successful CBS daytime series, "The Bold and The Beautiful". The band also features Tony Sciuto (Little River Band) on keyboards and vocals and Ron Green (Kenny Loggins Band) on percussion and vocals. When Dave Amato has not been available to play guitar, he's been replaced by such notables as Steve Farris (Mr. Mister), Elliott Easton (The Cars) and Michael Hakes (Natalie Cole, Brenda Russell, Cher). When I have not been available to work with the band, drummer Craig Pilo has filled in and done a great job. I have really enjoyed playing with this band and, with any kind of luck, you'll be able to catch us in a town near you sometime soon! |
