Greg Noll - Guitars and Vocals
Hi, I’m Greg. I play guitar and sing for this wild, wonderful, three-piece entity known as Crazy Ivan. I also write and co-write a good deal of our songs. I’ve been asked to use this space to tell you a little bit about myself. I’ve never been that good at talking about myself like this, but I suppose I’ll give it the old college try. I never actually attended college, but here’s the old college try nonetheless. Scout’s honor, I was never a Boy Scout either. You know what? I always wanted to do this. I always knew that I wanted to be a musician. ALWAYS. There was always music in my house when I was growing up, and somehow I just seemed to know that this was what I would end up doing. There was never any question. Oh, when I was younger there was the usual “I’m gonna be an army-man” kind of thing, but music was always the thread that ran through my life. I guess my very-earliest influences we’re my grandfather, who was a killer piano player, and my uncle, who also tickles the ivories, and picks a pretty mean guitar. I started out playing the drums (me like drums), and I can remember these cool family jams in this groovy parlor we had when I was growing up. They were big parties with lots of people and lots of music. Those were good times. I began playing guitar when I was ten or eleven. I was listening to the normal 70’s stuff back then. You know, Elton John, Peter Frampton, etc. Frampton’s licks were responsible for a good portion of my early development on the guitar. And then it happened. I heard KISS. These guys changed my life. They also changed the way I played. Suddenly I couldn’t live without huge, molten waves of distorted guitar. I still can’t. I started playing professionally in high school, when I was sixteen. I remember my grandmother helping me change my birth certificate (bless her heart) so I could get into the bars to jam. The club owners didn’t seem to mind that the darned thing looked totally fake, just as long as I did my job, and didn’t get arrested in their esablishment. This was about the time I really learned how to drink as well. Lots of local bands followed throughout and after high school. Blah blah blah. My first real taste of all things rock & roll came in 1984 when I joined Villain. What a cool band. I made some life-long friends in that band, as well as playing with two of my best buds Carl Albert (R.I.P., bro), and Rob Quillen. Villain was my first recording experience, my first taste of opening for big-name acts, and a huge dose of heavy metal. We released one album called “Only Time Will Tell”. Villain broke up in late ’86, and I drifted hard. I came home, played in more local bands, drank, blah blah blah de blah. We reformed Villain in 1995 and landed a Japanese record deal, which enabled us to release “Only Time…”on CD, as well as an entire new album (with a partially new line-up) called “Chequered Past”. Some things never change however, and another disappointing break-up soon followed. You know, I love heavy metal. I mean, I really love it. And I loved playing it, but I always felt that I needed more. I have a lot of different musical influences, and a lot of those aren’t metal. Cray Ivan lets me tap into those influences, and use what I’ve gotten from them. I freakin’ LOVE this band. It truly is the only reason I get outta bed every morning. I still get to play metal. I thrash. I bang my head. I hurt myself, and jump around and make my ears ring. But, what I love most about Ivan is the fact that if I wanna turn down and play some blues, who’s gonna stop me? NO ONE. Well, there you go. Now you know a little bit about me, but to be honest, these bios don’t mean smack. If you really want to know what Jim, Mike, and I are like, grab the CD and listen. Or, better yet, come to a show see what we’re all about. Then you’ll truly know. Thanks for lettin’ me rant… Greg's Equipment: Epiphone, Gibson, Michael Kelly, Ibanez, Peavey, Dean, Cort and Taylor Guitars; ISP Technologies amplification:(Theta 300 watt head & Vector 112 powered subwoofer), and Peavey speaker cabinets; Tone Pros guitar hardware, WCR Pickups, Shure Wireless, Dunlop Delrin 500 Picks (1.5 mm), Dean Markley Signature Series Nickelsteel Electric Guitar Strings (10 - 46); Nut Sauce tuning lubrication, V-Picks and Various Top-Secret Effect Pedals.
Jim E Anderson - Drums and Vocals
Since my childhood days, I have had a deep love and fascination for rhythm in music. The drum set especially caught my attention. I was fortunate to live in a home where a variety of music was listened to and appreciated. The various styles of music I play reflect those early musical influences.
I learned to play drums from a friend and his family that lived "across the holler" from my childhood home. My friend’s family all played instruments and we would wait for everyone to come home from work or school to have
jam sessions. I think the first song I could play all the way through with them was called "Peanut Butter". I saw the Beatles on the Ed Sullivan Variety Show like all my friends did, but before I saw them I saw Gene Krupa, Louis Armstrong, and Buddy Rich on the same TV show. The Beatles sealed my fate but Gene set me on the path. Buddy blew my mind. And Louis Armstrong was the greatest. I still love trying to sing like Louis. I practiced to all the great 60’s music in addition to some great 50’s jazz and R&B when I was young. Ginger Baker, Mitch Mitchell, Ringo Starr, John Bonham, Buddy Rich, Joe Morello and the mighty Tony Williams were some of the drummers from that era that really caught my ear and whom I emulated.
My earliest musical performance experiences were in school bands and choirs and Christmas Caroling with my church. I began playing and studying drums in the fifth grade. I continued and was a featured solo performer in a summer high school Big Band class while still in the eighth grade. In high school I played in Pep Band, Concert Band and Marching Band with and later performed in an award winning Stage Band. I also sang in Chorus. One of my own notable high school era bands was the called "The Mission Street Overpass".
I continued my music studies at Cabrillo College in Aptos, CA where I majored in music. I studied jazz and took lessons from George Marsh in San Francisco. I was a regularly featured solo performer in our award winning Jazz Ensemble directed by Lyle Cruse. I also was a member of the popular Jazz/Rock group "Fafner". "Fafner" consisted of most of the first chair players from the Cabrillo College Jazz Ensemble, and was quite possibly the most creative band I have ever been in. That was a period in my life where I was involved in music 24-7. If I wasn’t in class or rehearsal, I was at a lesson, or a gig, or on my way in between one of those. And of course all we talked about (besides the great looking girls at Cabrillo) was music. I also tried my hand at
playing guitar and concentrated on my singing with an acoustic duo called Gemini. The last band I had in Santa Cruz was Chameleon. Chameleon was a hybrid band with some heavy Latin influence. The band consisted of guitar, bass, keyboard, trap set and percussion. I learned a great deal about Afro-Cuban music from my partner and fellow drummer Michael Spiro. Most important for me, this band included Todd Epstein on and guitar and vocals. Todd and I wrote several of the bands original songs and went on to write many more songs together. Todd was my first song-writing collaborator. We traded ideas and music knowledge back and forth freely and both learned a great deal. Todd passed away a few years ago and I miss knowing he’s around.
My professional performing credits include tours, TV and recordings with: The Pointer Sisters, Maria Muldaur, The Cockrell-Santos Band, Elvin Bishop, The Tom Johnston Band (original and founding member of the Doobie Brothers), The Texas Chainsaw Band, Hearts on Fire (a Bammie Award winning Country band), Peter Rowan, Norton Buffalo, Roy Rogers (the blues guy), songwriter Alex Call, as well as a recent stint with Johnny Colla and the Lucky Devils.
Crazy Ivan is just a logical extension and continuation of my musical pilgrimage. In a way Ivan is like a return to what I know best. I love Jazz and Afro-Cuban music but the power of Rock’n’Roll is undeniable. And Rock’n’Roll is fun. At least that’s how it was originally designed. Did Little Richard look like he was having a bad time when he played? Jerry Lee Lewis, Chuck Berry, Bo Diddley, did they look like they were bummed out when they were Rockin'? I don’t think so. That’s why I love jammin’ with Crazy Ivan. All my musical influences, as
well as those of my partners, get expressed. But most of all it’s great fun. We have a ball when we’re on stage. Sure it’s work to keep a band together and make it happen. But anything that’s great takes work. I gotta go now. I’ve got work to do so I can have some more fun in the sub.
JEA uses the following equipment: Tama Starclassic Maple and Birch Series Drums, Tama hardware, Bosphorus hand made cymbals, XL Specialty cases, Aquarian heads and Vic Firth sticks.
Mike “Gonzo” Gonzales - Bass/backing vocals
I am one of 10 children, yep, 10. We are a close ‘Bunch’ and I would watch my two older brothers dabble with guitars. Under brotherly guidance, there it started, my love affair with music at age 7. Everybody’s got to have something, mine was music. When I heard the Beatles I knew I found a beat and groove that I needed to play!
I started off playing guitar, moved into drums, but found the pocket on my bass, been there ever since!
I bring over 30 years of experience. My first gig was in junior high, a Christmas concert for the guitar class. From there, being shy, I hid in the closet and played throughout high school until I discovered my ultimate, the bass! Out of high school I began playing bass in local garage bands, even got the name “Gonzo” from a garage band called Ricky Wow and the Flames. It’s then I found out I’m not so shy on stage!
Time passed, many garage bands later and the influences of musicians such as Francis Rocco Prestia, Jaco Pastorius, Stanley Clarke, Sting, Chris Squire, John Entwhistle, James Jamerson, Getty Lee and many others, along came the professional bands, record deal, and becoming a signed artist. I have played and toured with some very talented musicians in a wave of music styles such as rock, heavy metal, blues, funk, salsa, jazz, even country. I’m pretty much diversified, I like it all. I played bass/backing vocals in a variety of successful bands such as Rocket City, Stiff Jones, Tabu, RockHaven, Bobby Escovedo & Friends and in the 90's joined Greg Noll in Villain which through Alfa Records we released "Chequered Past". I’ve shared stages with many national bands and, now, I am currently recording country rock with Colt Taylor band and joined CRAZY IVAN… love it!
After a decade, this brings Greg Noll and I back together again. Joining Crazy Ivan feels right, just right. Walking into our first rehearsal together, we immediately clicked. I knew of Jim Anderson’s unbelievable talent and Greg’s awesome skills (even back in the 90's Greg was “just too darn loud”) ha, ha, ha. At the end of our very first song came slow up-down headshakes, THAT’S IT…IT’S ALL THERE! The fun, the laughs, the groove, the down right just phenomenal playing, it’s all there.
It would be an honor to meet the fans of CRAZY IVAN and ROCK with you!!!
Gonzo’s equipment: Ibanez bass, Jackson bass, Gallien-Krueger power plant, LINE 6 wireless bass pack, Sennheiser microphones, EBE ALIEN pics, Elixir strings {5 string bass}, Carvin strings {4 string bass}, Carvin guitar straps.