I began playing drums in 1964, at the age of 10. My father was a drummer, and my mother was a keyboardist/ vocalist, so I grew up in the music business. When I was 12, my parents were on the road full time, and so, out of necessity, they sent me to a private, military school. This is when I started playing in the usual assortment of school bands, including marching bands, the orchestra, and the jazz "stage band". My intentions at that time were to go into aviation, probably as an Air Force pilot. Music was important, but not my life. The band director was a "cool" jazz trumpet player, and we became friends. In 1967, he took me to hear Buddy Rich. I had only heard Buddy on TV a couple of times, and really didn't know his history or how great he truly was. This night changed my life.