I met Greg at Sopranos Piano Bar in Aruba a few days before recording this episode in 2019. He is the ultimate piano bar entertainer and is an expert at keeping crowds of tourists from all over the world engaged and happy. Greg is the resident entertainer at Sopranos during Aruba’s busiest two months, Jan and Feb. He has been returning annually for over ten years now. When not in Aruba, Greg duels and plays rooms throughout the US.

We discuss playing on cruise ships, the role of BS on stage, blues scales, Amstel Bright beer, live sound, managing drunk audiences, staying up-to-date with pop, setting audience expectations, competing against iPhones for attention, the Yamaha CP33, and the island of Aruba among many other great topics.

Meeting Greg inspired me to pursue piano bar entertainment and quit the band I was playing with at the time. Fast forward to 2021, we are good friends and I consider him a mentor regarding all things piano bar entertainment. This episode is long overdue. Enjoy!

Jahrel Pickens and Thomas Cokinos during recording.

Keyboard veteran and Houston native Jahrel Pickens stops by to discuss the tricks and quirks of the classic keyboards we all love. Jahrel is a proper Hammond B3 organ player. He explains bass pedals, different Leslie speaker models, drawbar settings, and how to cover up playing the wrong notes on stage. We also chat about pianos, Rhodes, Wurlys, synths, getting shot at after gigs, Casio keyboards, accordions, and much more. His style is best classified as warm and soulful. He prefers to use real organs and pianos on stage despite the rigors of transportation and setup. Jahrel is the real deal.

Thomas Cokinos and Pat Kelly post interview

On this debut episode, I interviewed keyboardist Pat Kelly of the Suffers. The Suffers are a globally touring R&B group from Houston. Pat rocks dual Nords and stresses the importance of keeping his rig as simple as possible above all else. He is also a fan of in-ear-monitors as opposed to wedges. We discuss touring, playing techniques, practicing, Nords, Hammonds, reggae, and a whole bunch of other topics.