Animal

Being the child of a traveling bluegrass musician, Animal grew up spending a lot of time at festivals on the south eastern circuit. With music running through his blood it was only a matter of time before he began his own musical journey.

His instrument of choice turned out to be the drums and was all but kicked out of the bluegrass circle. (no drums in bluegrass) That did not squelch his ambition and he trained diligently. His natural talent for rhythm assembly and hard work paid off when in the late 80's he landed his first “real” gig with Bob Margolin (who played with Muddy Waters). He then started traveling with various blues acts including Loose Shoes with alligator records and Soul Dressing of DC. After getting a taste of what it felt like to play with some of the pros he was hooked.

When Animal was just 25 he had become a full time musician and took the last plunge by moving to Florida to join a national band called Half Baked Guru. Signed by Sony as a developing act they toured with the Spin Doctors and even had Smash Mouth open for them. After that he played for Line 9 who performed at the very first Harvest Fest and released one CD. (A short lived but very cool experience he explains.) Animals eclectic style, diverse training and ability to improvise has landed him on the drum riser of many notable acts such as P Funk, Food, Loose Shoes, Tony Castellano, Slash, Dag, Buddy Lee Rodgers and Bruce Hampton.
And of course there is Electric Slinky a great band with a sound and edge that made its way through the streets of St. Pete and Tampa Bay for years and still holds a special place in Animals drum stick case of life.

In 1997 Barney showed up at one of Animals jam session. The two were both in musical transition and looking for the next adventure. (It was a jam fest he explains) With Animals eclectic drumming and Barneys innovative guitar styling?s, jamming together was effortless. Animal excepted Barneys invite to sit in at the East End Coffee House and before long they laid the foundation for the Urban Gypsies and the rest is history.

These days Animal describes himself as a happy drummer and piano player. He continues his education through private lessons andclasses in theory whenever possible. His career revolves around his family and the love of music. ?I believe music is an expression of my soul. It is very important to me who I play with and why I play. There has to be good people and good purpose. Without a pure and true expression of soul I believe our world would be a dark and unhappy place.? Animal