SLIM MAN (aka SLIM MANICOTTI)

2018! It’s been a good year so far for the Slim Man!

He just won Best Jazz Vocalist at the Coachella Music Awards! Third year in a row. Threepeat!

How did Mr. Man arrive at this point? What’s the skinny on Slim Man?

It’s a long story. Settle in, Slim People…

When he was 5 years old, Slim Man’s dad showed him a movie. That film was The Five Pennies, and when Young Slim Boy saw Louis Armstrong play the trumpet and sing, he told his Dad, ”That’s what I want to do.”

Slim Man studied trumpet for the next 9 years, and also taught himself how to play piano and guitar. After studying classical piano, composition, and harmony at Peabody Institute of Music in Baltimore, MD, Slim Man got signed as a songwriter to Motown Records. He’s had songs recorded by the Temptations, Angela Bofill, Carl Anderson, and other artists.

Slim Man also recorded a CD for Motown, which gave birth to his signature style–a unique blend of jazz, soul, and pop..

Slim Man went on to form the band BootCamp,who had two of the first 100 videos ever played on MTV. Those videos catapulted BootCamp into a successful concert career, performing with The Tubes, TheB-52s, Squeeze, Split Enz, Johnny Winter, and tons of others.

After BootCamp broke up, Slim Man organized and hosted a nationwide talent contest sponsored by Marlboro. It was during this contest that he got the nickname Slim Man. Slim’s big discovery during the talent contest was in Tulsa, Oklahoma, at a honky tonk called Tulsa City Limits.

The guy who won the contest that night was named Ronnie Dunn, who went on to win the national finals in Nashville, and later hooked up with Kix Brooks to form the multiple Grammy award-winning country music duo, Brooks and Dunn.

Slim Man then started writing songs for Brian Jack, a singer from a band called Child’s Play. The 12-song CD that Mr. Man wrote and produced landed Brian Jack a management contract with Dee Anthony (Frampton, J. Geils, Basia) and a recording contract with Epic Records, but the record company decided to cut Slim Man out of the deal.

Undaunted, Mr. Man went back into the studio, re-recorded some of the songs, and released his debut CD End of the Rainbow. This CD made many Top Ten lists for the year, and inspired JD Considine (Rolling Stone) to write…

“A near-perfect example of how jazz and soul can be combined as pop.”

That started the ball rolling, and it hasn’t stopped since. Slim Man has released 12 CDs; the latest is called “Young at Heart”. It’s a collection of Rat-Packin’, toe-tappin’ swinging songs from the 60s that sound like Vegas at the height of coolness.

In the late 1990s, Slim Man started another band, Bona Fide, an instrumental group whose combination of funk and jazz brought forth the Number One single “XRay Hip”. Bona Fide received the Best New Artist Award at the Smooth Jazz Awards. They’ve released 4 CDs, the latest produced by Marc Antoine.

Not content with just writing music, Slim Man has written screenplays, the latest of which, Marlboro Men, is currently being pitched around Hollywood.

Slim Man recently released a cookbook, Slim Man Cooks, which features 52 recipes of his own creation, and 52 funny stories about growing up Slim. There are links in the cookbook to more than 50 cooking videos.

And we thought we’d close with this…Slim Man sang for Pope John Paul II at the Vatican on Christmas Day, 1999.

REBECCA WHITMAN

Rebecca Whitman is originally from Cincinnati, Ohio and currently resides in Los Angeles, California. She graduated from Princeton University with a degree in English Literature and Italian Language and Culture. As an Executive Director for the direct marketing company Equinox International she developed and trained a salesforce of over one thousand individuals in 14 national offices. She was ranked number 3 out of 100,000 sales representative in personal sales volume. She went on to be a top producer at Mike Davidson Ford dealership in Jacksonville, Florida, where she helped them to develop new marketing strategies for their internet marketing division.

She moved on to the internet start-up company, FreeTaxPrep.com, where she was the Vice President of Business Development. In this company she not only exceeded her quarterly sales quota by 425%, she also hired and trained a sales team that developed a client base of over281 car dealerships in ten cities in a period of 90 days. As a Talent Coordinator for the Hollywood Group, she developed anew marketing strategy that increased the revenue of the company by $250k per year. She achieved between 100%and 400% of her sales quota for the Hollywood Group.

As the Vice President of Sales for Be Entertainment,she created a sales force that took the company from 0 to$15 million is sales revenue in the first year. She assisted the company’s expansion to 7 offices and managed 30sales reps. She also increased price points from an average of $1400 to $5000 per sale.

Rebecca is currently working for The Playground – A Young Actor’s Conservatory, where she increased the sales revenue of the company by $1 million per year for 5 consecutive years.In addition to her business acumen, Rebecca has done extensive study in the area of meta physics with such great teachers as Reverend Michael Beckwith, Esther Hicks, and Marianne Williamson. She has delved into the study of personal relationships with Dr. Pat Allen, Allison Armstrong, and Landmark Education. In addition, Rebecca has over 25 years of experience in the 12 Steps.

TERESA JAMES

Teresa James was born and raised in Houston, Texas where she was introduced to music at an early age by her father and grandfather, both guitar players in the old tradition. She starting playing piano at 5 and hasn’t stopped since.

Called a singer’s singer by many. (When the SAG Singer’s Committee got together to honor composer Randy Newman, Teresa was chosen as the soloist to perform his favorite song to him.)  She has recorded with Walter Trout, Eric Burdon, Spencer Davis, Tommy Castro,  Stephen Bruton, Randy Newman, LeeRoy Parnell, Neil Diamond, and many others. She has performed live with lots of other artists, including: Al Anderson, Marcia Ball, Levon Helm, Delbert McClinton,  Lloyd Jones, and the Derailers to mention just a few.

Blues Matters magazine in the U.K. is quoted “the girls voice does the talking alright with a knife edge when she wants rip your ears off or your heart out!”

The Pasadena Weekly said…”She is one of the most honest, gutsy, incredible singers you’ll find. The Texas-bred James takes creative chances, investing amazing soul and spirit in her music.”  

Levon Helm of  “The Band” said  “Teresa James is a true original. When she sings you can feel it in your bones.” 

         Here’s a little of what Bill Bentley from Sonic Boomers said about Teresa and her recent “You Know You Love It” cd. “This is the stuff they don’t teach you in school….. These are the keepers of the unknown language. Teresa’s voice is all-knowing, like she’s been to the places most of us aren’t able to go. It is a mixture of rejection and redemption, … be glad there are still people like Teresa James and the Rhythm Tramps who care enough to do this and share their spirits. Each and every one of them should receive a letter jacket with a big “S” for soul on it. Class dismissed. “ Teresa’s latest cd “Come On Home” landed a hard to get 4 Star Review in Downbeat magazine. 

            Teresa and her band the Rhythm Tramps are a Los Angeles based band 6 piece band made up of players that have either played or recorded with such artists as Eric Burdon & the Animals, Bonnie Raitt, Delbert McClinton, Jimmy Reed, Lightin’ Hopkins, Jimmy Vaughan, John Martyn, Big Al Anderson (NRBQ), Johnny Nash, Dixie Chicks, Jennifer Warnes, Smokey Robinson, Tom Jones, Tower Of Power, just to name a few and have had their songs recorded by Paul Rodgers, Kathy Mattea, Eric Burdon, Tommy Castro, Marcia Ball and others. As one critic said, “there are no clichés in this band”. They move easily through Texas style grease and blues into Memphis soul or New Orleans flavored grooves and all points in between with fun and abandonment.

            Teresa and the band have toured all over N. America and Europe and have played such music festivals as The Nottodden Blues Festival in Norway, Moulin Osprey in Holland, Tampa Blues Festival, iFest in Houston, Tx. Main St Arts Festival in Ft. Worth, Tx. Portand, Oregon’s Waterfront Festival and she has been one of the featured acts on Delbert McClinton’s Sandy Beaches Cruise for the past 14 years along with Delbert, John Hiatt, Keb Mo, Lyle Lovett…to name a few. She was nominated by the Blues Foundation in ’08 for “Contemporary Female Blues Artist of the Year”. She is now working on her 9th cd which should be out by mid-summer 2016. 

The Rhythm Tramps

The Rhythm Tramps, has a long history: The first band to be called ‘the Rhythm Tramps’ was formed by Terry Wilson and Tony Braunagel when they were living in London back in the 70’s. They were touring at the time with the rock band, Back Street Crawler (which also featured the legendary Paul Kossoff on guitar and John ‘Rabbit’ Bundrick who has been a long time keyboard player with The Who) and they missed playing the Texas style blues that they had grown up with, so they formed the ‘Rhythm Tramps’ and performed in local pubs. 



It got to be quite a hang for London musicians – legendary singer, Frankie Miller was one of the regulars, which also included whoever happened to be in town. The transient nature of the players spawned the name, ‘the Rhythm Tramps’. 



In the years since Terry and I have re-established the Rhythm Tramp tradition, we have also had a lot of amazing players that have played with the band – some for several years at a time, some for just a few nights. Even though we have a steady group of players with us now, there are still occasions where we have the opportunity to bring in other players. 



Below our current roster, you’ll find a partial list (in no particular order) of some of the people that we have had the pleasure of working with over the years.



TERRY WILSON  born: Warren Arkansas plays: bass and vocals has played with… ERIC BURDON, JIMMY REED, JOHNNY NASH, BACKSTREET CRAWLER (PAUL KOSSOFF)

“Terry is the soul of the band. It is his vision and his songs that make up the essence of our music.”



BILLY WATTS  born: New Brunswick, Canada plays: guitars and vocals has played with… JACKSON BROWNE, BONNIE RAITT, MOJO MONKEYS, JENNIFER WARNES “Billy is a true musician and a joy to have in the band. He always seems to know just the perfect thing to play to bring out the heart of our music.”



HERMAN MATTHEWS  born: Houston, Texas. plays: drums and percussion

has played with… TOM JONES, TOWER OF POWER, KENNY LOGGINS, GEORGE DUKE Herman has an eclectic style that is unlike any other drummer that I have ever worked with. He brings a wonderfully unique flavor to our music.”



LEE THORNBURG  born: Danville, KY plays: trumpet, flugelhorn /arranger

has played with… RAY CHARLES, ETTA JAMES, TOM PETTY, SUPERTRAMP, TOWER OF POWER and many others. A member of the Tonight Show band for several years.

   

RON DZIUBLA  born: Gary, IN plays: saxophones, guitar, keyboards has played with… DUANE EDDY, RICKY MARTIN, ROYAL CROWN REVUE, JAMES INTVELD, LOS STRAITJACKETS, DEKE DICKERSON 



Together LEE and RON have performed with ROBERT CRAY, THE CRYSTAL METHOD, BETH HART and lots of others… 



RHYTHM TRAMP ALUMNI

I’m sure that I have forgotten somebody, so if I left you out or if you know of anyone that I didn’t include – PLEASE let me know and I will fix it – I don’t want to leave anybody out.  



(The * beside a name indicates active Rhythm Tramp status or special recognition for their contribution to the Tramps’ sound and the part they have played in the band’s legacy) 



Drums: 

Tony Braunagel* / Jim Christie* / Debra Dobkin* / Tom Fillman* / James Cruce* / Willie Ornelas / Jack Bruno / Lynn Williams / George Perilli / Dave Hunt / Dennis Edwards / Jack Kelly / Jay Bellarose / Brian Head / Sinclair Lott / Eddie Tuduri / Michael Jay Dohoney / Richard Millsap / Gary Ferguson / John Molo / David Raven / Jim Varley / Steve Hunter / Moon Calhoun / Gary Ray / Michael Clark / Brie Darling / Brannen Temple 



Guitar: 

Tommy K* / Stephen Bruton* / Jimmy Don Smith* / Josh Sklair / Paul Warren / Johnny Lee Schell / Stevie Gurr / Don Evans / Dave Lewark / James Pennebaker / Rob McNelley / Dean Parks / Snuffy Walden / Mark Shark / Mark Karan / Carmen Grillo / Pat Thrall / Jim Gibson / Jon Woodhead / Randy Mitchell / Stuart Ziff / Bob Hawkins / Randy Cobb / Patrick Pearsall / Gurf Morlix / Larry Knight / Danny Weis / Ricky Zahariades 



Keyboards: 

John Herron / Marty Grebb / Danny Timms* / Mike Finnegan* / William ‘Smitty’ Smith / Lee Michaels / Red Young* / Lewis Stephens* / John ‘Rabbit’ Bundrick* / Kevin McKendree / Dillon O’ Brian* / Glen Clark / Michael Murphy / Tom Canning 



Horns: 

Jerry Peterson* / Sean Holt* / Joe Sublett* / Daryl Leonard* / Bill Churchville* / Mark Pender* / Warren Ham / Bill Bergman / Les Lovitt / Ron Dziubla / Paulie Cerra / Lee Thornberg 



Bass: 

Steve Mackie / Bob Glaub / ‘Hutch’ Hutchinson / David Jackson / Mike Mennell / Peter Freiberger / Taras Produniak / Will MacGregor / Ric Cortes

STACEY ROBBINS

Stacey Robbins is a Renaissance woman who lives life by inspiration as an Integrated Wellness Coach, Speaker, and Author of An Unconventional Life: Where Messes and Magic Collide, You’re Not Crazy and You’re Not Alone, and Bloom Beautiful.

Her career began as a professional musician when she was 15, working as a songwriter, pianist, and vocalist in solo performance as well as with many other talented artists, but when she was 27 hit a health bump that dramatically shifted her life. After gaining 100 pounds in a year and becoming so ill that she could barely get out of bed, the doctors told her to get her affairs in order.

Stacey began pursuing her health from a deeply spiritual angle that led her to shine a flashlight down all the corridors of her life: Thoughts, Beliefs, Patterns, Relationships, Spiritual Practices, Self-Care, Food and Exercise. Through that experience and years of research of a diagnosis with Hashimoto’s (an autoimmune condition that affects the thyroid and therefore every cell in your body) she has been able to speak all over the US and reach people all over the world with her healing insights that she discovered through her own sacred journey.

Now, in addition to her coaching and book writing, Stacey creates gorgeous, transformational experiences through her international retreats and workshops, empowering women to live from what she calls their “Brave Soul Place.” Stacey resides in Southern California with her author, tech-geek, musician husband and their two amazing, curly-haired teenage sons.