Jim grew up in Rochester, NY "I still remember sitting on the stoop of my Mom's apartment at age four and playing my student guitar till it rained. The face of that guitar is cracked with the silliness of a little boy who didn't have the sense to come in out of the rain. But I loved playing that guitar. It is still in my studio."
Jim's Uncle Vince remembers Jim and his brother sitting in the back of his Buick singing along with anything that came on the radio. It was a natural love for both of them. Jim started singing and playing in Bands, Choirs, Musicals, Church, and school parties, whatever came along at age four. His influences included many of the artists of that era like Randy Stonehill, America, Larry Norman, all the classic Rock bands of the seventies as well as the folk musicians of the day. He never seemed tied down to one style, but embraced the music for what it did to him and how it spoke in ways that were amazing to him all his like.
Life.....
Life as a city kid gave Jim a bit of the "street smart" that weaves through the lyrics, cultural experiences and histories. As he grew up he was seeing his families struggles and hearing others hearts and loves and concerns while also learning to portray his own dreams, ideas, failures and achievements. The inner city kid mixed all the influences with the burbs and the rural life of his friends, family, and then this thing we call church. The results are an energy with some very thought-provoking perspectives on life and many of it's quirks as well as it's wonder.
Schoolin'
As a student at Roberts Wesleyan College he brought his love for Rock into a purely classical environment. This was a bit of culture shock for him, though he did have previous reading and choral experiences. Jim read music well but this was different. This was an immersion into a different culture. Saturated with a new view on the whole process of musical interpretation and orchestration he adopted some of the ideas into his love for Rock and acoustic pop and started to see the chords and ideas expand. This injection of classic thought has found its way into some of Jims material, not turning it into classical music but enhancing the already edgy sound he had been developing. It freed up his song writing and vocals as he applied the training. It is still definitely his own Acoustic Rock sound but with a strength that only this training could have allowed.
Moving On
As lead singer for a regional band, Tradewind, Jim spent time on the skill of developing an honest and real rapport with audiences as he could let go of the guitar and sing and move about the stage. Tradewind was a regional band in the northeast states and at the time one of what seemed very few local bands doing this. That has changed a lot but because of this they played out continuously. After five years in that band and back on solo tour Jim learned to find those special moments of intimacy as well, guiding an audience through the time and space of an evening of music and humor and thoughts.
Jim continued to do small events and coffee houses to keep and hone his music while he also added a more defined flow to his concerts as he took on the role of developing and designing modern church services. In 1992 he took on the position of Worship/Arts director till 2004, putting together dramas, a rock style of worship, stage design and all the elements involved, including events and seeing how one element moved into another. All these experiencess layered on one another and he carries these things back onto the road.
 Along Jim's personal journey one special asset has surfaced. Jim has learned the “Art†of music, not just the passion and edge of the street, and not just the practical rules and ideas of professional training. He found a combination of the two that helps him play with confidence, but also that certain something that allows him to breathe life and energy into a time set aside for an audience. This comes across on both the guitar and the voice, giving an atmosphere of real presence to his performances.
"What is life all about?"
"Why am I here?"
Questions like these emphasize why artists exist. Artists provoke us, either through commentary or questions of their own, while so often many of us rush through life till we take a moment to listen, see, touch what an artist has taken time to create. When we do we seem to give artists the opportunity to connect with us and fill that hole. This is where people like Jim come in. He lives in a place where putting the art out there for all of us to observe and breath is his passion.
Cranking on a question like "What Colour Am I" or the whit of seeing our "Toys In The River"; the oddity of wanting to breath in "Give Me a Moment" or the philisophical pondering of "A truth is not a lie" with other verses like "A doubt is not a truth" and then stating an encouragement in "A heart is not a jail / though some lock it when life fails / If I offer up a key, will you let it set you free / A heart is not a jail." This eventualy leads to "My God is not a dream." Though Jim never preaches you sense he is connected to more than just nice lines in a song. Something about him is very real and shows in the passion of his voice as he sings and plays.
"My concerts are about the audience.
If it was about me I might as well sit in a room at home and play.
This is for those who come. This is about making a moment
together that we can all take with us and remember.
I love the folks that come.
They are the best part of doing this thing called music and art."
This is the Art of life
This is the Heart of it all
Musically, the guitar may bite or sooth.
The lyrics may dig or encourage, or make you laugh.
This is a time to feel and hope and explore the nooks and crannies. Jim likes his concerts to be a journey, reminding us to find another step or two forward, and that it is okay to ask big questions and fight the fight we all feel in our hearts. Come to a concert and laugh, rock and relax as he brings you on this journey.
Over the years, learning and working with many artists in recording studios has been a great teacher for Jim. Vocals, acoustic & electric rhythm guitar and arrangements are what he has most often been asked for, though recently he has produced several artists in the Upstate NY area.. A discography of his and other's projects are on the way.
Though Jim worked in many upstate recording studios as a studio musician his first personal endeavor into recording at home was with the famous Fostex 4-track cassette in the mid 1980s, then a Tascam reel to reel 8-track in the early 1990s with a small Mackie board and a few pieces of outboard gear while working at Ashly Audio. By the mid 90s Jim was getting into the digital zone as well and at this point He runs a studio with a Tascam M3500 and 32-track at once recording capability so full bands have been known to do a live recording. (Jim still uses the Tascam 8-track once in awhile). Sharing this equipment and experience with other folks who have wanted to do some recording on a more professional level has become a Joy for Jim, though he cannot let go the need to get out there and do his own music as well.
This is the purpose of Gracestone Studio. To help artists make great music.
This is the atmosphere of artists; warm and friendly with a bit of odd humor as well as some hard work and professional attitudes toward the music.
People love working here!!
We have had a number of great musicians through here including Craig Snyder (Lead Guitar) and Steve Curry (Drums) and Fred Stone (Bass). One of his favorites that I must have on his personal is Doug Egling. Doug is loved for his spirit and skill and love for the whole musical thing. (All saxes, flutes, midi wind and other such wind type instruments)
 I believe that some of us are made as artists to go where the preachers and lecturers cannot. The speakers and motivators in our lives may bluntly deal with things while artists tend to poke their hearts into places where people need to feel and see, but don't always know how to find.
I really love to do what any artist would, should, must, which includes the danger of wearing my heart on mysleeve. I've just found that it breathes better there. My passion is to reveal things in a way that is emotional, thought provoking and available to all, hopefully giving a sense of purpose to the moment and then to the possibilities. We all need to hear and see things in different....perceptions, senses, ways and avenues. This music goes to a different part of the soul. What I work for in any venue is allowing us to do art together; creating a living, breathing chapter on our page together. This is a time and place of experiencing some of life's facets; as many as that time allows.
Sipping coffee at a corner java shop, going to a concert or hanging out on the streets, we share our experiences and faiths by telling stories. By using music and a creative atmosphere we can all relate to, we get to laugh and think about "stuff". Though the music may cry out with a loud and off-beat voice, there is a gentle brush, a Creator's caring whisper that comes through.
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