Phil Marsh, Patti Maxine & Richard Saunders
Phil Marsh has been a fixture in Bay Area music for almost 50 years. Songwriter, singer, guitarist, kazoo player, and bandleader, he was the original music director of the Pickle Family Circus and Circus Flora of St. Louis, singer/guitarist in The Cleanliness and Godliness Skiffle Band (Vanguard Records), bandleader and guitar playing singer for Country Joe McDonald, and an organizer and driving force for the notorious Masked Marauders rock super star spoof on Warner Bros. A longtime Berkeley and Santa Cruz resident, Phil is featured on the Folkways collection "Berkeley Farms" (rumors that he is dead are as yet unfounded.) With Phil Greenberg, he was half of the imaginatively named country duo, Phil and Phil in the 60's, and was a charter member of The Honey Baked Hams, legendary Paris street singing group in 1963 and 64. His tenure with Berkeley's East Bay Sharks rabble rousing street opera group should not go unmentioned. Phil has lived for 30 years in New York City where he has been singing, writing songs, performing, and providing soundtracks for documentaries.
Patti Maxine is a lap steel virtuoso and vocal stylist and has become a household word in the Santa Cruz area. She has played with countless bands, established and up-and-coming musicians and visiting Hawaiian players. Audiences love her incredible musicianship and unique vocal interpretation along with her comfortable and fun stage presence, and undeniable oneness with her music. She always leaves 'em wanting more.
Her achievements include: World Championship Steel Guitar 1955 (Ohio - age 17!), induction in Sacramento Western Swing Society Hall of Fame in 2011, Gail Rich award 2017, San Lorenzo Valley Woman of the Year 2018, Good Times cover story 2018, and participation as a master player at the Lap Steel Festival on Maui from 2014-2018.
Richard Saunders was born in New York City in 1945. He grew up in Great Neck, on Long Island's north shore. Suspended from high school for a year, he applied to U.C. Berkeley because it was 3000 miles away and had a reputation as pinko. Arriving in Berkeley September, 1964 Richard got there in time to participate in the events of the sixties, build a washtub bass, and commence a musical career as a bassist. Oh yes, he received a BA in history in 1969.
Richard studied music composition, harmony and counterpoint with Bill Matthieu from 1968 to 1970 when he bought his first upright bass ($275 with bow and bag). He has played and recorded with Country Joe and the Fish, Freddie Hubbard, Joe Henderson, Jessica Williams, Cat Anderson, the San Francisco Mime Troupe, various TV shows and ads, and movie scores. He is proud of his work with Klez-X (formerly San Francisco Klezmer Experience). He currently is on the faculty of the San Francisco Community Music Center.
