Biography

Life is a circus, or at least it is for me. I have spent the last twenty years traveling around the country with small tent circuses as a wild animal trainer. Growing up on the circus I had a lot of different musical influences. My biggest influences were probably Bob Dylan, Willie, and Merle. Because the people on the shows change every year I would have new friends who listened to new music all the time. I was also lucky enough to have some great musicians in my family. Both my grandfathers were musicians that played just about anything you handed them. Merle Jones, my mother’s dad was a studio drummer and toured with Jerry Lee Lewis and Hank Williams Sr. I was taught my first chords by a clown on a circus when I was fourteen. He taught me to play Bob Dylan’s Knockin’ on Heavens Door. I spent the rest of the year learning the "Highway 61" and "Blonde on Blonde" albums. Then I put the guitar down for along time. I moved to Paris, Texas in 2002. Hanging out with a friend of mine he told me I had to go see this guy play at open mic. The guy was Michael O’Neal. He was playing a bunch of songs I hadn't heard (because he had written everyone of them) - and they were great. I instantly wanted to play in every bar in Texas. So I learned some more songs and started hanging out at the local open mic. After some time I had these songs put together about things that happened on the road and the people I have known. Someone suggested I go record them. So while traveling with a circus through the western states I went into a studio in Pheonix, Arizona and put them down. That was how "The Show Must Go On" came to be. If you have not heard it yet, make sure to stop by my Music page and give it a spin.