Oral History - all
Russ Hamm has a passion for electrical engineering and began his career working in recording studios around the Boston area. In 1968 he left Boston for New York and worked for Bob Fine at Fine Recording Studios. Russ was a part of many technological advances in sound recording, such as the switch... more
Benmont Tench was drawn to music at an early age playing piano and being interested in composing and songwriting. He would frequent local music stores and check out all the new instruments. During one of his music store visits he encountered a group of older cool kids, who worked there, one of them... more
EveAnna Manley grew up around music and played several instruments. Attending college she discovered that she preferred the more mathematical side of music theory after she was introduced to electronics and developed an interest in audio. Hearing Bill Graham speak in one of her classes inspired her... more
Charles Fox started his music education at an early age, finding an interest in arranging and composition. As a child he loved the opera and would go to as many shows as possible paying $2 for standing room. A chance encounter with a piano teacher led him to an experience of a lifetime studying... more
Chad Smith developed a great sense of rhythm at an early age and attributes that to having music constantly surrounding him. He was in love with the musician’s lifestyle and knew that he wanted to make drumming a career. After putting in the work playing clubs six nights a week and playing in... more
Roger McGuinn got a transistor radio from his parents as a young kid and was never the same after hearing Elvis Presley. He instantly picked up the guitar and it changed his life forever. Roger co-founded The Byrds in 1964 with David Crosby and Gene Clark and recorded amazing versions of “Turn!... more
Dennis Chambers has always had music in his life and started playing professional gigs before he was ten years old! He joined the group Parliament-Funkadelic in 1978 and is considered to be one of the best funk drummers out there. Dennis has a playing style that is unmatched which makes him a great... more
Lana Negrete grew up in her father’s music store and always had a passion for music and the arts, but she wasn’t sure if music retail was for her. Everything changed when she became a mom and saw the need for more robust school music programs. She wanted to ensure that all kids were given the same... more
George Augspurger is the award-winning studio designer who began his career as a product engineer. George was hired by JBL in 1958 and served as Technical Service Manager and later as Manager of the newly formed Professional Products Division. Over the years he worked with several leading recording... more
Michael Feinstein is a student of the American Songbook as well as its cheerleader and Pied Piper! Throughout his career he has specialized in promoting the songs and songwriters from the Tin Pan Alley era of American popular music and as a result assisted in keeping those wonderful tunes in the... more
This video is of our annual NAMM Tribute, created in honor of our members and music industry friends who passed away in 2020 and early 2021. This Tribute was shown for the first time virtually at NAMM Believe in Music Week on January 21, 2021. All moving images within this video indicate those who... more
Birth Date: January 25, 1952
Deceased Date: August 17, 2021
Dan Slick grew up in Johnstown, PA playing the family’s upright piano but soon switched his focus to the organ. He began his career in the music industry working at Fulton Piano and Organ and has since worked with several other companies over the years including Baldwin and Technics. In 1984 he and... more
Michèle Vice-Maslin has always had a passion for music and songwriting. She grew up with her family in Queens, NY and started playing instruments and writing poetry at a young age. After high school, Michèle moved to Arizona to study music and creative writing at the University of Arizona, and... more
James “Peaches” Hergen has always known that he would have a career in lighting. He remembers at a young age going to roller rinks with his family and would get lost in admiring the lights. The passion exploded when his parents got him a DJ light for Christmas and James was set on his journey. He... more
Dave Lauser accidently discovered the drums while helping clean out a friend’s room and was allowed to keep the sticks he found as a reward. His curious nature developed into a passion for drumming that grew even more when his parents got him his first drum kit, and ultimately Dave turned that into... more
Ketty Lester sang several ballads while in a recording studio in Los Angeles in 1963, under the assumption that the point of the session was an audition to explore her musical range and style. In fact, that session was recorded to tape and at the very end when the producer asked for one more song... more
Birth Date: October 7, 1968
Deceased Date: August 19, 2022
Dan Miller grew up with music all around him and joined the school band the first chance he got. Dan was the first to admit how fortunate he was to have opportunities to go to many clinics in Chicago and meet some incredible and influential musicians. One of these musicians, Bobby Shew, became not... more
Beeb Birtles developed a passion for music at a young age when his parents bought him a piano-accordion while growing up in Amsterdam. After emigrating to Australia with his family, Beeb started singing and playing bass in bands with friends from high school. This passion for music eventually... more
Derek Brown is best known for playing the style of music known as Beatbox Sax. This way of playing the saxophone incorporates percussive playing techniques that were developed by Derek. He grew up in southwest Michigan and graduated from Hope College with a degree in jazz and classical performance... more
Gail Muldrow is a vocalist and guitarist who grew up completely surrounded by music. Living in the Oakland area, she would often take trips into San Francisco to experience the vibrant music scene. One of her close friends while in high school was Sly Stone of Sly and the Family Stone. Sly allowed... more