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What were your thoughts
after performing on national television at the American Music
Awards in February 1989?
I was completely star struck. It was a night like no other! I sat behind the Judds in the audience. We were talking to
Axl Rose right before we went on stage to perform. It was great meeting the guys from G' n R. 
How did you join the Young Rumblers?
Paul Slivka (who I have known since we were in the 9th grade) and I were in a band called The MIB (Men in Black)…..(p.s. Will Smith was not the frontman!). We were playing around the University of Delaware area, which at the time had a big punk scene. Tommy was attending school at the University and had seen us play. Tommy asked us to join his band. Paul had joined the band before I did. One night I received a call from Paul who was doing a gig with Tommy at the Ambler Cabaret when their current drummer had car trouble and could not make it to the show. Quickly I got my gear and went to the Ambler Cabaret. The club was packed. I nervously setup my drums and we played. That was my first Rumbler show and from there I became a permanent member of the band.
When did you first recognize the Young Rumblers were
special?
Tommy had a huge draw and I knew it was going to be big! When Chris Day (guitarist) and Rob Miller (keyboardist) joined around ‘86, I recognized that the band could go all the way. It sounded much fuller after that.
I once read that you played drums with the cymbals facing upside down. Why?
An article once said that I played the symbols in reverse order. This is partially true because my setup is unconventional. Basically it's a left-handed setup that I play right- handed. The symbols were off position, but not up side down.
 What was the relationship between
the Hooters and the Young
Rumblers?
Dave Uosikkinen,
drummer in the Hooters, and I are good friends and he was in the studio to make sure I didn’t screw up. He made me nervous, so I played good. 
What is your reaction
today when you listen to some of the vintage Young Rumblers?
It was often difficult to capture the live sound on the records. I liked our live sound.
Who
are your favorite bands?
U2, Third Eye Blind, Foghat (who we played with one night when I was playing in Chris Day’s Band), Beatles and
Patti Loveless (who is a country performer). |
