Chip Auchincloss is a Monitor Engineer and Backline Tech based in Brooklyn, N.Y., who’s spent the last 20 years living his dream of working in the live sound industry.
I met with Chip at his Brooklyn studio where we dove deep into his upbringing in Philadelphia, his obsession with concerts, and the crazy coincidence of our family connection.
Mark Agnesi is General Manager of Norman’s Rare Guitars, located in the heart of the San Fernando Valley in Los Angeles. Mark is an expert on Fender, Gibson, Rickenbacker, Gretsch and Martin guitars, making him one of the youngest authorities on vintage guitars in the world. Since starting at Norman’s in 2009, he has sold guitars to every major name in the entertainment business.
There are many types of successful people out there; those who fell into their position, those for whom luck comes easy and often, and even those that lie, cheat, and steal their way into opportunities until they find themselves in a position of power, leaving a trail of heartbreak and deceit along the way.
Yet there’s another group, who climb the ladder of success in a most understated way. Day in and day out, they quietly do their jobs, learning, getting better, being forthright with their peers and employers, their innocence and naïveté coupled with a pure love and passion for their career, eventually leading them to the highest ranks within their chosen field.
Guitar Tech Steven “Charley” Cohen is a member of this aforementioned group. His approach is simple, his love of his job is pure and palpable, and his sense of self and his ability is straightforward and clear.
For over 30 years, multi-instrumentalist Michael Lardie has traveled the world and rocked stage after stage as the keyboardist and guitarist for the band Great White. He's ridden every high and low that comes with rock stardom, and through it all he's kept the same passion and love for music that prompted him to move to Southern California in the late '70's.
Singer-songwriter Jeff Slate is an internationally recognized recording artist and music journalist. He co-founded the band the Mindless Thinkers, founded The Badge and has performed and worked with countless other rock luminaries, including Pete Townshend of The Who, Sheryl Crow and others. His band with David Bowie sideman Earl Slick, and his current band Jeff Slate & Friends, are both mainstays of the Northeast music scene.
Robert Compton is no stranger to life-changing events. As you'll hear in our interview, he's had quite a few. In fact, Compton's knack for surviving a few of those events is what's led him to focus his passion and channel his creativity into building guitars out of his home in New Jersey.
With twenty-five years of touring experience under his belt, Production manager/Tour Manager Chris Wrightsman certainly know his way around a venue or two. The Cleveland native is also not afraid to mix FOH, monitors, or even lend his hand as a lighting Designer. At the end of the day, it’s about putting on a great show, keeping a level head, and getting to the next gig.
Welcome to our 65th episode! In this special installment I thought I would honor famed booking agent Ian Copeland, who not only changed my life, but changed the lives of countless artists and musicians, and forever left his imprint on the music industry.
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