When I was in sixth grade, I would sneak into the band room to play drums during lunch. Though I instantly loved them, the drums weren’t my primary instrument at that time. Instead I was playing trumpet, and I would continue to do so for the next eight years. The trumpet took me to Northwestern University, where I enrolled as a performance major. Around the same time I bought my first drum set and got serious about jazz. Still, it took me a while to summon the courage to shift instruments. After all, there was a history of classical music in my family. Most notably, my grandfather, George Goslee, played principal bassoon in the Cleveland Orchestra for 44 years. How could I throw away all that I had worked for, to switch to an instrument that it seemed I could play, but essentially was brand new to me?
By my third year of college I did just that. I became an ad-hoc jazz major at Northwestern, studying composition and arranging while working on the drums on my own. I worked hard, replacing the typical college experience with one spent in the practice room to make up for lost time. I was already getting called for local gigs, and by the time I graduated in 1998 with a Bachelor of Music degree, I had gained quite a bit of professional experience. Performances with Von Freeman, John Campbell, Jodie Christian, Ron Perrillo, Bobby Broom, Dan Trudell, Judy Roberts, and Dennis Carroll at clubs such as Pete Miller’s and Andy’s made for a wonderful local school of jazz.
Another important connection I made around this time was with pianist and fellow Northwestern graduate Dan Cray. Along with bassist Clark Sommers, a childhood friend of mine, we formed the Dan Cray Trio in 2000. Since its inception, this group has had the unusual fortune of playing together several nights a week. Working so closely with like-minded and wonderful players has been a terrific musical and personal experience. Highlights over the last nine years include performances at The Idlewild Jazz Festival, The Chicago Jazz Festival, The Jazz Showcase, Pops for Champagne, The Morse Theater, Baker’s Keyboard Lounge 75th Anniversary celebration, and our ongoing steady gig at The Rhythm Room. Our music has been featured on the hit TV series Gossip Girl twice, and we worked under the direction of Michael Keaton in the major motion picture The Merry Gentleman. Our four CD releases, Who Cares, No One, Save Us!, and Over Here/Over Heard have received strong critical acclaim both here and abroad.
Being in the studio is a fabulous growing and learning experience, and I have been fortunate to record with a wide variety of other musicians as well. I appear on 20 full-length albums, including releases by vocalists Marc Courtney Johnson and Typhanie Monique, and instrumental releases by the NIA Quintet and guitarist Tony Do Rosario. I couldn’t even count the demos, audition CDs, and other projects I’ve recorded that have never seen the light of day.
Still, playing live is hard to top, and I continue to have quite a range of experiences on the local, national and international stage. I toured the US with a swing band called Three Cent Stomp in 1999. I played both festivals and dive bars in much of Western Europe with the eclectic country-pop band Utah Carol in 2002. I have performed for huge audiences with The Mighty Blue Kings, and for intimate gatherings with Ira Sullivan. I have played great jazz for not-so-great money at Smalls in NY (and a lot of other places). Lately, in addition to my regular groups, I have been the house drummer for a jam session at the Jazz Showcase and playing the blues at Buddy Guy’s Legends. Finally, I have recently moved to San Francisco, and now maintain a dual-city professional footprint by coming back to Chicago regularly. New, exciting musical events are brewing on the West Coast, so check back here for updates and gig information.
