LENNY SOLOMON and the BAND

Long ago and far away, Lenny Solomon broke into show business as a solo folk singer. Recognized for his unique approach to songwriting and his outstanding collection of hats, he played in many of the Boston/Cambridge venues such as the Turk's Head, Brandy's, the Rusty Nail, the Club Casablanca, and the Catacombs. At Passim he shared the stage with Carolyn Hester, Larry McNeely, and Carol Hall, among others. A fixture at the now defunct Idler Coffeehouse, he played there regularly on Friday nights for over eight years.

He hummed and strummed with Chris Smither at the Back Street Coffeehouse at Boston University and shared the stage with Bonnie Raitt at another BU concert. He entertained at Six Steps Down at Simmons College and was a participant in a benefit concert for Nicaragua held in MIT's Kresge Auditorium. He shared a bill with Spider John Koerner at a concert held in Christ Church, Cambridge, and performed on several radio and TV shows (Spider's Web, WGBH and channel 5). Since Lenny doesn't listen to music, he has no musical influences. His favorite color is transparent.

Dennis Gurgul grew up in a musical family in lovely, cosmopolitan New Jersey. His father, also a drummer, was in a band that had two accordions. His sister is a noted cabaret singer. Dennis, too, began his musical career as a folk singer in Berkeley, CA. Eventually, he became honest enough with himself to admit that he couldn't grasp the complicated rhythmic skills needed for blues guitar and gave up everything for a long, long time.

Dennis first rejected playing drums as corny, but one day in the late 70's, while attending a silent Yoga retreat, he snuck away during an afternoon lecture, drove to Rhode Island, and bought himself a real trap kit from a pawn shop and has been drumming ever since. He took lessons from Gene Roma on the South Shore for about a year and then joined several rock bands ("The Seals", "Urban Eyes", "Septic Shock", and "Hogs On Ice") playing a mix of cover and original songs, British invasion to blues. In the Boston area he played shows in a variety of places including Uncle Sam's (Hull, MA), The Channel (Boston), and Jack's (Cambridge).

He then played with swing bands for several years and played twice at the Hatch Shell on the Esplanade (Boston). One day when he realized he couldn't stand Maynard Ferguson, he quit and joined a Zydeco band for a couple of years. Beside performing with Solomon, he also is involved with a jazz flute player/poet doing occasional projects and coffee-house/poetry-reading type gigs. He also does occasional gigs with a piano trio led by Bud Albrecht of Charlotte, NC.

Dennis' primary musical influences are Brahms' "Variations On A Theme by Hayden", the Beatles, his sister, and, of course, Lenny. His favorite color is yellow.

Bill Gibbs spent his formative years as an overly intellectual, anti-social only child of the South Shore. His mother, blessed with artistic talent and an appreciation of music, had amassed an enviable record collection which occupied Bill until his teens. Unlike Dennis, Bill's first instrument that displayed his lack of musical aptitude was the drums. Upon facing this sobering reality, he immediately turned to the guitar and, by age 14, was trying the patience of music store owners everywhere.

Bill's musical experiences have ranged from bass in a metal band, to guitar- based jazz combos, to a few years gigging with the popular South Shore band "The Accelerators." Bill's musical influences range from Holst's "The Planets," to Billie Holliday, to ZZTop, to the man of the hour, Lenny Solomon. His favorite color is tobacco sunburst.

Don Barry was born in the small Massachusetts hamlet of Cambridge. While just a lad he was forced emigrate from Cambridge after being label a terrorist threat when it was discovered that one of his close relatives was a Republican. By then, a teenager, alone and depressed, he took to playing electric and acoustic bass in order to earn a meager living as a street urchin. In the process, however, he learned where practically all of the notes on the bass were located and now can even play most of them from memory.

During his rise to the top of the musical ladder, he learned to fiddle around on various guitars, mixing consoles, and computers. Starting out playing in various rock and roll bands too infamous to mention here, he eventually spent a number of years gigging with various blues and jazz bands, the majority of which still owe him money. His favorite clubs to work were the Speakeasy in Central Square and the Belle Star in Buffalo.

For the past few years he has been providing bass, vocals, and guitar work, for the band called "Just For Fun" while enjoying the nightclub life south of Boston. Coming full circle he now earns a meager living as a street urchin bass player for Solomon. Don’s influences range from here to there and his favorite color is off.