First, I would like to say that it is a very fun and learning experience to play with my fellow members.

To start off, I think it was 1983 when I was first introduced to Rush's music. Considering I had only been in the USA for 3 years, their music was a culture shock to my ears not to mention their long hair. I can still remember those days when I had to look up vocabulary words in the dictionary to understand what every word meant and then trying to unlock the story Neil was trying to tell in those lyrics. That year, I met a neighborhood friend named Joe. Joe always banged a giant drum set to the song "The Camera Eye". As I watched him play over the months, I was exposed to more and more of Rush's music. So I started to buy all of their albums for my own collection.

It was not until late 1985 that I finally decided to purchase my first bass guitar and play Rush because Geddy has his unique way of playing the bass and his fingers are always on fire. After about 2 years of intense practicing by myself and taking only one lesson, and many times locking myself in my bedroom for days that I finally was able to play some of the songs. Over the next 5 years, I played on and off and was able to figure out Rush songs better.

1990 Presto tour. I was able to see Rush 1ST ROW CENTER AT NASSAU COLISEUM!!!  To see Geddy so close was an honor. It inspired me to play my bass with the same passion I had when I first started. I played briefly with my friend Joe for about a year and then because of traveling distance was not able to form a band. But I keep that inspiration I had and played and practiced just about every chance I got. I also widened my musical taste and started to listen to other bass players like Dave LaRue of Steve Morse Band and also some of BIlly Sheehan's stuff. It has helped me a lot to listen to those guys because their style helped me develop my finger speed.

2001 March. I was on the internet checking out the newsgroup alt.music.rush on AOL when I came across an ad seeking a bass player to form a Rush tribute band on Long Island. I was a bit hesitant in the beginning but my girlfriend (now WIFE) convinced me to just answer the ad. So I did. And here we are.

Jack