OK, fast-forward almost 20 years (mostly devoted to career and family) and half a world away to a place I never imagined visiting in my wildest dreams. I think it was sometime in early 2005 that I meet jazz pianist vocalist Lynn Hilton who was playing the Borsalino Brasserie in the Hotel Angleterre (a real woop-tee-doo 5-star joint in st. Petersburg!) We became friends and my wife and I rescued her from hotel life many Sunday afternoons, which she rewarded with her not inconsiderable cooking skills.

Anyway... during her 3-6 month gigs in St. Petersburg Lynn found herself in demand for jazz festivals, concerts, and clubs. She was able to beg off with the hotel if she could provide a suitable subsititute. I played her breaks one night and sat in on some vocals, and next thing you know I'm playing a full evening while Lynn is off to Moscow for a festival appearance. Much to my surprise the patrons and the management liked what I did. I stuck pretty much to well-known classic pop stuff - hey, it was just a lounge gig and if anybody knows how to do one of those, I should!