GILBERT CASTILLO-part two

In May of 2001 my wife told me her pre-school’s carnival could use a band and asked if we would be interested. John & Khang have been in numerous bands but we had never performed in public. “Sure, why not.” As the date approached she began fielding questions. Fellow Teachers: “What kind of music do they play?” Joanne: “I’m not sure.” Fellow Teachers: “Are they any good?” Joanne: “I don’t know, I’ve never heard them.” Now Joanne was working on how she could distance herself if we bit the big one. I guess they figured we would show up with a boom box and a Mr. Microphone but we lugged in enough equipment to impress them. At that point we only felt confident in about 8 of our songs so we just repeated the set. Luckily, the constantly moving mass of pre-school kids proved enough of a distraction and enough people came and went to prevent our limited repertoire from being an issue.

From there it was a matter of confidence – it was intimidating singing with musicians with years of experience but they let me hang around since I was starting to book more gigs and we started getting paid. I never said it, but at that point, I was happy to play & sing for free just for the experience. Steve Swinehart joined us and provided a strong lead guitar and after Bob Diedrich joined up we were able to incorporate three part harmonies behind a lead voice. Singing in my church band and with these guys accelerated the development of my musical ear – leads are a blast, but so is weaving a tight vocal harmony.

I grew up in Texas so I heard a lot of country, and my dad loved the blues, Sinatra & Tex-Mex/Norteno music. I also discovered Bill Haley & Louis Jordon while I was high school so I listened to that along with Creedence and even some Black Sabbath. I want songs that make people sit up and, better yet, get them up on dance floor. It’s also a kick when the audience sings along.

None of my family knew this was a lifelong dream, and I still find it hard to believe I’m getting the opportunity. It’s a total blast.

I haven't quit my day job, though! I am an independent agent for State Farm.