Alan Thomas Down The Line CD

Born and raised in the South Bay area of Southern California, an only child and stereotypical latch key kid, I graduated in the middle of my class from North High School whose most famous alumni is Chuck Norris.My first exposure to music was singing along with my mother’s record collection and beating time on the furniture with screwdrivers for drumsticks. I think the first “formal” efforts were in maybe the 2nd or 3rd grade with the Recorder or Violin. Those didn’t work out and there was nothing else until about the 5th or 6th grade when a few things happened: I wound up in the school choir, got my first guitar, and joined the school orchestra on Clarinet (at the encouragement of a friend). I was a horrible Clarinetist and I don’t remember how long I kept at it, but at some point I quit the orchestra. Before I did though, I got my first pair of real drumsticks by swiping them from the percussion section.I didn’t have any musical ambitions at all until I got a drum kit (a late 60’s/early 70’s Ludwig which I still own and used on "Down The Line"). I’d ditch school to stay home and practice all day. I started playing in bands, and of course thought I was going to be a rock star. My first band mates were a bit older and were already writing some of the songs we were doing. I sang back-up on their stuff and lead on some of the cover songs and started writing songs of my own a few months later.I’m mostly self-taught, though I’ve taken plenty of classes and workshops over the years: studied drums, guitar, piano, and voice with private teachers. Early on though, it was all public school/classroom learning. But some of the best teachers I’ve ever had were the good musicians that I’ve been lucky enough to play with.The Beatles had the first, biggest and longest lasting influence on me. My mother had some of their records, and around the 3rd or 4th grade I discovered “Back In The U.S.S.R.”. I could sing it word for word though I had no clue what the lyrics might mean. Through that song, I fell in love with Rock & Roll and discovered that I could sing.My parents also had a huge influence on me, musically. My father liked Jazz, Big Band, and Classical. My mother liked Rock & Roll, Rhythm & Blues, and Soul. So, between the two of them, I was exposed to a really wide range of stuff.