 |
- PICTURES:
First things first, here is my link banner graphic for those friends that link to my site:
Too big? Here's an avatar I often use, in MySpace's favored 90-pixel wide format:
Okay, enough commercials; On with the show! :
Me and my brother, Dan, layin' into some harmonies.
|
A Straits Area Open Mic "finale". Left to right: Jeff Pope, Mike Welch, Mark Halverson, Travis Peterson, Randy Binger, Mike Pierron and Jimmy Fitzpatrick. Foreground backs of heads: Sunshine and Willie.
|
My wife, Deb, helping out an Open Mic Night.
|
Me hosting the Breaker's Open Mic in Topinabee.
|
Regular Open Mic rat, Archie Reno.
|
Most of Bionic Fonzy performing at Breaker's Open Mic Night. My friend Jeff Lynn, barely visible in the background, fills in on drums.
|
A Straits Area Open Mic. Left to right: Crazy Moose (Mark Halverson, Sarah Halverson and Mike Pierron) collab-ing with Chris Barker of C&T Express.
|
Me at Breaker's, "jangling out" with my 12-string guitar.
|
Me at Breaker's, singing in my favorite "Blues Brothers" shirt.
|
Camping jam, with my chosen iconic symbol "party lights" I like to use in my promotional image material in the background!
|
A collab going on at Open Mic. Left to right: Me, Sarah Halverson and Teresa Fowler. Mike Pierron in left foreground.
|
Me playing at Bayside Live, St. Ignace's weekly outdoor summer music show at the marina. It later rained!
|
Me hosting an Open Mic Night at Rock Bottom Tavern in Moran.
|
"My name in lights"! Okay, maybe it makes me a bit of a goober, but I just HAD to take a picture of it!
|
The photo eventually used for the cover of my CD "It's Time".
|
Me and Matt Serwach, on slide dobro, collab-ing for a church Christmas program.
|
Another campfire gig. I "used" these friends and their families over the early years to get over stagefright and hone my playing to professional caliber, and for that I am greatful!
|
I don't go on and on about gear on this website much, since most find this boring, but fellow musicians are often interested in this, so for them, I'll indulge: My floor rig consists of the Digitech Live Vocalist 4 vocal harmonizer, an Akai Headrush E2 real-time looper (I am philosophically against the use of any pre-canned "karaoke-style" recordings in my performances), and a Digitech overdrive pedal for when I play leads on top of my just-laid-down chord progression loops. I house it all in the Boss BCB-60 pedalboard. Downstream, for my "big rig" (for large room and outdoor venues), I use 15" JBL EON's with a Yamaha 600W power mixer. For smaller places, I use powered Yamaha MSR100 speakers with an Alesis MultiMix 6FX mixer. I hear myself onstage with a "monitor on a stick" Roland CM-30. Mic is the "me-too" Shure SM-58. Main guitar (affectionately called "Number One") is the Taylor 514ce; Many pictures of it are above. I also have a Washburn Oscar Schmit 12-string, a Seagull S6, an Ovation pre-amped mandolin, and a slide dobro. I use various Kyser capos, some customized, which are a big part of my distinctive playing style.
|
|
Live well,
|
A good silhouetted "mood" photo, but eventually rejected as the back image of the "It's Time" CD.
|
and CREATE!
|
Me on the second-from-the-top rung of the Mackinac Bridge's north tower. This beautiful view of the Straits was a very special treat, since bridge tower tours are now only given out for charitable auction, and often bid for hundreds of dollars.
|
Me on top of the International Bridge in Sault Sainte Marie.
|
Me on top of the Blue Water Bridge in Port Huron. (The high winds were scary that day!) This is the newest picture, completing my goal of having a photo of me at the top of all three of Michigan's toll bridges; Just one of the unique benefits of where I work!
|
What it's all about, above career and even music: Family. The rightmost four are me and my family, and the rest is my mom and dad, my brother and his family, and my sister.
|
- LINKS:
- "IT'S ALL ABOUT ME":
-
Gene Perry Facebook Profile
Internet social networking websites are very hot right now, and Facebook has presently emerged to be the #1 one of these, so of COURSE I have a Facebook profile! If you're not on it, I recommend it highly, and if you are, well, be-friend me!
Gene Perry News Message Board
I send out an e-newsletter approximately monthly, linking to this site. Swing by and check out my latest news (or OLD news), or even go farther than looky-loo and register up for free and post something to have a public, dialog-type exchange with me. This not only lists my latest adventures and coming ones, but it also contains a lot of other interesting Straits Area live music goings-on. (Thanks to the good folks down at northernmichiganfun.com for housing this!)
Gene Perry MySpace
Back in the millennium decade, it was the rage that all musicians had a MySpace profile. (Even the "serious" musicians that believed enough in their product to pay for a "real" website had one, too.) I personally think this fad is over, but if you disagree, here's the link to my old profile.
Gene Perry Feature in Petoskey's Graphic
The Graphic, the arts and entertainment sub-paper of the Petoskey News-Review, did a short feature page on me in early 2008. Very cool!
- LOCAL MUSICIAN NEWS:
-
Petoskey News Entertainment Calendar
Who's playing where in the Petoskey area (hopefully, me!). This link shows the present month's snapshot.
Northern Express Nitelife Listings
Northern Express is Northern Michigan's largest arts and entertainment free publication out of Traverse City. This listing is updated on Tuesdays, and lists entertainment goings-on in a broader area, stopping at approximately Cadillac and Mackinaw City.
- LOCAL MUSICIANS:
-
Cedar Straits
A newer duo from St. Ignace that I got to be good friends with through my musical travels. Nick Roberts and Will Springsteen are generating a lot of good buzz lately, with the relaxing vibe they lay down. When the secret gets out about them, I'll be able to say "I knew them 'when'"!
Catholic Girls Gone Bad
Another famous St. Ignace duo who you are likely to see at many local festivals, parties and open mics, if you're lucky. Ann Marie Dewey and Mary Beth Powers are proud of the term "lounge music", and sure know just how to dish it up!
Tricky Dicky and the Spoonmen
These Mackinac Island guys certainly need no endorsement from me, but I can't contain myself! This band has experienced, seasoned pros and is TIGHT, but all that pretense goes out the window when they start to play, since they prove to you quick that they know that it's all about the FUN of it! Paul Bedour is in this band, who is probably my favorite local singer of them all (and I've seen a LOT of local bands!).
Charlie Reager
Charlie is a very good drummer and recent acoustic guitar entertainer from Cheboygan that's "living the dream", with no day job and playing out a lot in various music projects, including solo, 2-piece, 3-piece and full quartet acts. He's a busy guy, and if you have a chance to go see him, you're in for a real treat!
Nate King
Nate's another great acoustic entertainer out of Cheboygan, and also plays in a side project called Those Transatlantics. He's building quite a name in the Cheboygan area during the summers, and if you check him out, you'll see why!
Billy Jewell
Billy is a Cheboygan area legend. He's pretty much a country music purist, and the rural venues he plays at in this area love him for it! He's another one definitely worth checking out, especially if you prefer your music a little "southern-fried"!
Hipps 'N' Ricco
I'd probably have to call it that Hipps 'N' Ricco is flat out the hottest new act in Northern Michigan going right now. If you haven't heard of them, oh, you will! Along with their full band project, Charlie's Root Fusion, this blues act keeps very busy, and is definitely one of the things RIGHT with our local music scene!
The Bait Shop Boys
I think the term applies to both the loose affiliation of musicians that get together Sunday afternoons at various places in the east U.P., and the core band that plays out professionally that you can usually find there at that time. Whatever it is, it's great; Pop in and check it out sometime to see what I mean!
Stephanie Sabatine
Sault Ste. Marie area musician and friend, and honorary Bait Shop "Boy". Her side project, the all-girl, old-timey bluegrass band No Strings Attached, is a real charmer, too!
Dave Morrison's "farfenoogan"
Pickford Bait Shop Boy musician Dave Morrison's all-purpose website. Check out his Music page for some free audio clips and the Pictures page to see many local musicians being caught doing their thing, and find other local musician links here, too.
Petoskey's Graphic, Local Bands Page
The Graphic, the arts and entertainment sub-paper of the Petoskey News-Review, has done SO much to nurture the local live music scene and making it what it is. They're "my guys"!
- OTHER MUSICIAN FORUMS:
-
Michigan Bands
I never endorsed this one before, since it had no forum for people to contribute in, but that's all changed now! A good friend of mine moderates a real forum here. It looks to be mostly Grand Rapids and Lansing based, but it's trying to branch out state-wide. Looks to be promoting, educational, and fun!
Acoustic Guitar Magazine's Guitar Pro Forum
A favorite internet "hangout" of mine, where I go under the moniker of "Guitarminator". Great internet culture and a bunch of fun and knowlegable guys. I have learned so much from here, I doubt I could ever repay it, but I try to by offering advice myself to newer members. It's a great thing! They also have Gear, Playing and Players sub-forums as well.
Acoustic Guitarist's Talk Talk Talk
Once an off-topic sub-forum of the above, it broke off to go out on it's own, with some interesting results. It's mostly acoustic musicians talking about non-music things. I don't contribute there (mainly because it looks so addictive!) but I lurk there. Has a lot of funny moments; A bunch of chuckleheads. It has sub-forums for Performing and Songwriting as well.
Northern Michigan Fun
This also isn't a music forum only, and is more targeting to the local area audience generally, but this up-and-comer is giving a lot of attention to the local music scene with band features and a few other music features, too, so keep your eye on this one! They featured me with an interview in late 2007 (link given above on this page), so they are definitely on my good side!... Definitely worth checking out!
- OTHER MUSICIAN FUN:
-
Virual Guitar Chord Tool
If you have speakers, this is an awesome little experimentation tool (when you don't have a real guitar around right now) and a great theory learning tool. Very cool!
|
|
