IT’S THE CONNECTION!

To this day I’m not sure why, but at 5 years old I begged my father for a guitar. I couldn’t even tell you where I’d even see one before. This is how I know that I didn’t get into rock n roll just to meet girls. I was 5! I still had GI Joes I didn’t care about girls yet! Really though, I have no idea what struck me but I needed that guitar and one morning I woke up and there it was on the end of my bed. It was small and plastic and I’m not sure I even played it much but my dad had really come through for me!

One year later he had heart failure and died in the hospital. It was after that when I started to actually hear the music on the radio and feel the emotions of it. I still shiver when I hear the songs that were played the year he passed. “Seasons In The Sun” by Terry Jacks is particularly a rough on for me. I KNOW THIS SOUNDS LIKE A TOTAL BUM OUT BLOG but it’s just on my mind as I dig a little deeper at the core of why music has been my lively hood and therapist for over twenty years now.

It’s easy to see now, why as I grew older, I became fascinated with punk rock. Those were newer and more exciting emotions. Rage and aggression full of street wisdom and righteousness. Bands like The Sex Pistols, The Dead Kennedys and The Ramones also gave me confidence about writing and performing music. I realized you don’t have to be musically trained or a virtuoso to make great music. YOU JUST HAVE TO MEAN IT, EVERY TIME!

I had already been in 4 bands by the time I teamed up with my brother Toby and H2O. At the time I was bartending in New York City and I remember the day I quit to go on tour. I literally had a had about 80 bucks, no apartment to come back to and I didn’t care one bit. I’d finally found a place where I felt home. THE ROAD.

Twenty years later after many many birthdays, weddings and funerals missed, I’m still struck. That same nagging that made me ask my dad for the guitar.

SO WHAT IS IT? I have a wife and a daughter who fill me enough love to last a lifetime. So why do I still need to make music as a form of therapy; almost an exorcism. MAYBE IT’S THE CONNECTION to you and whoever is listening. Maybe after all this time I DO have some different emotions I need to share. Just to see who feels the same. Different influences that we may bond over. Over the years I’ve been lucky enough to do what I love but ironically I’ve used my side-guy, co-writer positions to fly under the radar. To pour my heart into live performances and records and then disappear into the shadows. It seemed the more I traveled and the bigger the crowds got the more inward I turned. No more. NOW I WANT TO KNOW ABOUT YOU! Fans of H2O, Juliette And The Licks, Operation MD and The Offspring, you’re the reason I get to do this, and why I need to say this!!! Let me hear from you, I promise I’m listening.

When I was writing my debut (sounds weird to say at 51) solo album LATE BLOOMER I was thinking a lot about a THE CLASH and how brave they were to try so many different musical styles while remaining punk rock heroes. I realize now that the common thread was that they felt everything they sang about and it gave them a relatable identity. That’s what bonds us all to an artist or band. If the Rolling Stones play “Miss You’ or “Dead Flowers” you know it’s the Stones either way. I admire that. So just maybe when you hear my tunes you’ll get to know me better and feel some kind of connection. If you haven’t heard my solo debut you can check it out here. I plan on making two more full length albums right away. It’s pouring out of me. Better late than never!

Hope to hear from you soon! Todd