About the band – History of the Rich Hand Band (Bio)
Bio: The Rich Hand Band was formed in 1999. It developed from my deep inner passion for writing music, my desire to make a CD, and my fast approaching 40th birthday. To get the ball rolling I did what any inspiring musician does; I called on my musical buddies for help. Next, I had to get the OK from my lovely wife Justine, since she was the funding source. She agreed (God I love her).
I was very fortunate to have gone to college with some of the most talented musicians anywhere, so I didn’t have to look far. I had stayed friends with 3 of my band mates throughout the years. Our relationships had grown to become more than college buddies but true friends as we continued to share all of the important benchmarks in life. Weddings, Anniversary’s, the birth and adoption of children, 30th and 40th birthdays, and many, many occasions for holiday cheer. So after a little persuasion, they agreed to join me in my endeavor to record my first CD.
The only thing we were missing was a drummer. Pete (the peasant) Cassani (who I will discuss later), introduced us to Billy Close and we immediately clicked. The only regrets I have, is that we didn’t meet him sooner, and that he didn’t go to college with us. He would have made a great addition to our adventures at Binghamton University.
The logistics of getting this project off the ground had a number of challenges. Our bass player, Leif Benestad (who I will discuss later), lives in Michigan, our front man, harp player, keyboardist, clown, Mike Perkins (who I will discuss later), lives in Saratoga Springs, NY, and the rest of us lived in the Boston area (which has changed since that time). With all this space between us we had the challenge of getting studio time booked to accommodate everyone’s schedule. We would go into the studio with only brief practice sessions the 2 days leading up to recording. This challenge was not going to stop us. Right then I knew I had the makings of a great band. No challenge was going to be too big.
We recorded “Angels in My Basement”, and as far as I’m concerned it still sounds great today. We then had to have a party to release the CD and to celebrate the big 40. We played it live to about 100 close friends and as a band we really shined. In fact it went so well we recorded the 2nd CD, “Love Line” in similar fashion, except this time my lovely wife Justine (God I love her), agreed to let me purchase a 16 track home recording system (she knew she couldn’t stop the passion for recording that absorbed my bones, so this would be cheaper in the long run). We had a CD release party for Love line exactly 2 years from the 1st CD release party. Again, our closest friends showed up and we played the night away.
It was also a going away party since as a family, we were moving to Colorado Springs (where I currently reside) the following week after the party. Our drummer Billy Close was also moving to LA in the following month after the party. Most people would think that this would be the end of a band. We are not that shallow. But making this current CD has been an effort that includes mostly individual performances without the cohesion of going into the studio as a band. We will rectify that for the next CD.
