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Jerry Mariani Lead & Rhythm Guitar, Vocals |
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| Growing up in the Bronx and Westchester NY, Jerry has been involved in some form of entertainment since the age of 7 when he started with piano and voice lessons and later adding theory, composition and performance. Soon he took a turn on guitar towards "Boogie Woogie" and finally Rock n Roll via Bill Haley and the Comets. At the same time, Jerry was pursuing an acting career that took him to Off-Broadway, some television appearances and as a stand-in on a Walt Disney movie. In addition to Rock n Roll, Jerry found a voice in the Folk and Protest movements of the 60s. Jerry played Bassoon in his High School and College orchestras as well as the Yonkers Pops Orchestra. Jerry learned arranging from the Orchestra Conductor (who was also Arlo Guthrie's piano teacher for a short time) and arranged music for the Jazz Band where he played guitar. Jerry took a turn towards family life, but never gave up the dream, and continued to study guitar with singer/songwriter Don Cooper and sessions musician Barry Kornfeld (who played with Tom Paxton) as well as taking part in an impromptu jam session with Eddie Simon (who has a famous brother). He also studied banjo under Roger Sprung in NYC. In 1995 he studied with famed Blues great Taj Mahal. Jerry has performed as a solo who's act can best be described as "music for the taste impaired" (to borrow a phrase from a Seattle DJ). He brings equal parts humor, seriousness, and sometimes an offbeat approach to music. In the spring of 2004, Jerry met Jaye and together they started the journey down the path to the Whirlitzer 45s. | ||||||