Jay Wanamaker found his passion for music as a member of a drum and bugle corps and eventually honed his skills while attending the Crane school of music at SUNY Potsdam University in Pot...
DJ Imperial JayCee first played records in the parks back in 1974. The world of Disco had created a career for DJ Kool Herc, a hero in JayCee's Bronx neighborhood, which inspired him to t...
Christie Z is an arts advocate who, lucky for each of us, focused on encouraging young artists and musicians in the Bronx, New York. She organized park concerts and later DJ battles that ...
Garth Hudson sat down at the piano and played several classical works as the NAMM Oral History crew set up the camera and lights. He began by playing, stopping every once in a while, to r...
Peter Yarrow is the Peter in the wildly successful popular folk music trio Peter, Paul, and Mary. During his often musical NAMM Oral History interview, Peter spoke of the role music playe...
Charlie Feldman was inspired to play the guitar thanks to this father. While a teenager, Charlie formed several bands and over the years played with such great named bands as The Bassmen ...
Linda Lorence Critelli is an active and inspiring leader within the music publishing industry who continues to seek opportunities to strengthen relationships and encourage networking for ...
Laurie Spiegel joined Bell Labs in 1973 wanting to explore what digital computers could offer for musical composition beyond what she'd been able to do with traditional acoustic, written ...
Desmond Child is the songwriter behind such hit collaborations as "Livin' On a Prayer" with Bon Jovi, "Dude Looks Like a Lady" with Aerosmith, and "Livin’ La Vida Loca" for Ricky Martin. ...
Ian Goldrich grew up with a father who knew the Beatles and Jimi Hendrix, making him one of the coolest kids in school. As the owner of Manny's Music, his dad, Henry, knew everyone in mus...
Larry LeBlanc was just 14 years old when he wrote a story about the local music scene for a Toronto newspaper. He was soon asked to write for a monthly magazine for teens called the Canad...
Larry Dvoskin can trace his passion for music back to an early age when he was classically trained on the piano. He purchased a guitar while in high school to gain the attention of girls ...
Rudy Perez was born in Cuba and arrived in Florida when he was eight years old. Soon after, he purchased his first guitar from Ace Music in Miami and formed a touring band. Along the way,...
Michael Cotten was the original keyboardist for the band the Tubes, which took full advantage of the innovations in synthesizers of the 1970s and 80s. Michael experimented with electronic...
Jake Connolly has fond memories of working with his father, who became his mentor in life and the music business. Together, father and son grew their string distribution company from a sh...
Mary Jo Mennella is the president and founder of Music Asset Management, Inc. She studied trumpet in college and landed her first job in the industry working at ASCAP in New York, then Lo...
Bud DiFluri enjoyed a long and successful career in the music industry in both retail and manufacturing. He managed the Yamaha band and orchestra department in New York City with a focus ...
Vinnie Bell was a studio musician in New York who often was asked to create new and unique sounds. As a luthier, Vinnie built several innovative guitars including one tuned like a sitar. ...
After 40 years in business, dealing with almost every brand and every manufacturer, Camille says she still enjoys the thrill of finding the perfect piano to suit her customers’ needs. And...
Brian Marsh joined his brother, Robert, on the ground floor of his DJ retailing business. The two brothers sought to grow the store and provide the best customer service possible. Their a...
Robert Marsh came into the music retail business following a frustration of purchasing equipment as a DJ. He was inspired by the role the DJ brings to a party, a nightclub, or family gath...
This audio only interview was conducted for a radio program by Dan Del Fiorentino and donated to the NAMM Oral History program: Trummy Young was a noted jazz trombonist who performed and ...
This audio only interview was conducted for a radio program by Dan Del Fiorentino and donated to the NAMM Oral History program: Eddie Miller was asked to take a break from his road travel...
This audio only interview was conducted for a radio program by Dan Del Fiorentino and donated to the NAMM Oral History program: Frankie Carle fondly told the story that his parents could ...
Cindalee Hall first attended a NAMM Show in the late 1960s and recalls being the only women she saw that day on the trade show floor. Since that time not only has her own career in the in...
Bob Harrison tells many stories of his father and aunt working in music retail when he was a child. His aunt, Mary L. Spence, owned a store with her name on it in Plainview, Texas. She wa...
Jim Salzer opened his first store in 1966 with a focus on selling records. At the time Jim was a concert promoter in Southern California and really understood what teenagers and young adu...
Danny McKinney is a fourth generation musician who grew up with a passion for music and a fascination with audio. As a kid, he recalls seeing Standel amplifiers and dreaming of owning one...
Tommy Roe wrote most of the hit songs for which he is best known, such as "Dizzy," "Sheila," "Everybody" and "Sweet Pea." Each were hit songs in the 1960s and were part of the early days ...
Ronny Cox is the actor who played the guitar in the famous Dueling Banjo scene during the 1972 movie Deliverance. That movie moment led to a big boom in banjo and acoustic guitar (and can...
