I was always crazy about music. I bought a French harp when I was too young to remember. That harp was in my pocket at all times. I got real good on it. My sister played piano. We played and sang World War I songs and had a big time.

Dad bought me a baritone horn. I got a 25-cent book from Sears and Roebuck that showed how to play. My family lived in Oklahoma and Kansas before moving to Colorado. The town there hired three brothers to form a band. I got in on that. Was I happy! The brothers soon left, and I tried to get up a high school band. I changed to trumpet. After moving again, during my 4th year of high school, I formed a band, and we played for football and basketball games and dances.

I worked my way through college, so I didn't go out for music, which I regret to this day. When I came home, I was picked up by a traveling dance band. In 1927, I went to Denver. I was picked up right away by a band. That job lasted through the winter. I played that summer at a ballroom in Phoenix. Then, I was invited to play at a ballroom in Prescott, Arizona. I also played with the city concert band, for pay. I volunteered with the American Legion drum and bugle corps. I loved Prescott and made it home.

During World War II, I worked at military camps around Arizona. Wherever I went, I played with local bands. I entered the service in 1943. I was shipped to Supreme Headquarters in London, where they were forming a band to take Glen Miller's place. One of my duties was to play for the lowering of the flag each evening. After the war, I returned to Prescott and soon was booked into the "Pine Cone Inn," where I still play. I also play bugle with the American Legion color guard. I love to entertain and make people happy. I look forward to each gig. And that makes me happy.