"My parents are music lovers. My
mother loves classical and my father listens to Mexican folk
music and plays Spanish guitar (my mother played clarinet).
My uncle Juan played French horn in
the National Symphony of Mexico and was regarded as the
finest they ever had. He worked on many recordings and
soundtracks.
My grandfather Juan played the tuba
in the military and after in various settings. He was a
master of the John Phillip Sousa style of tuba playing.
I actually started out on drums in
high school. They were the closest I could get to rock and
roll!
I received an electric guitar as a
gift from a friend but wasn't very good at it. I later
"acquired" an electric bass from a drummer friend of mine
and I sort of fell into it naturally. I started to notice
the bass more in the music I was listening to.
I was tremendously influenced by
John Entwistle, Geddy Lee, Chris Squire, Steve Harris,
Stanley Clarke, and later on Billy Sheehan in his Talas and
David Lee Roth Band days.
The bass became an extension of my
personality. I would walk around town on the weekends in the
summer with my bass strapped on so I could keep my chops up
and not be a social recluse locked away in my bedroom! It
took root in my being and character, not to sound to "new
age" mind you!"