The Sunset Grooves - About The Band

MEET THE CREW

CHARDONNAY DEVILLE
(VOCALS/PERCUSSION)

Chardonnay grew up on a small dairy farm in a part of the French Alps renowned for its delectable cheese, which, as a teenage girl, she learned to blend into an amazing fondue recipe. She worked at the nearby ski chalet as a sous chef, and on occasion would sing with the house band.

When world-famous recording artists, Kenny Loggins and Jim Messina visited the Alps to assess the apres ski scene and listen to the chalet's band, they stumbled upon Chardonnay's astonishing gifts and invited her to come to Santa Monica to prepare her delicious fondue... and maybe even sing some backing tracks on their forthcoming record.

Chardonnay fell deeply in love with the West coast, spending every available moment carousing among the yacht clubs and the nautical elite, from Chula Vista to Vancouver, BC. It didn't take long for her musical talents to catch up with her culinary skills and she soon formed a band with some like-minded sailors who also happened to share her appreciation for cheese.

RUSTY "RED" SINCLAIR
(DRUMS/VOCALS)

Raised by Moonshiners in the foothills of the Ozark Mountains, Rusty learned to play the drums by banging on pieces of his parent's copper still and half-empty whiskey barrels. But, as he approached his early teens, he felt the calling of the sea and knew he must leave behind his miserable Missouri roots. So, he hitch-hiked his way West to greet the Pacific Ocean.

He ended up in Cardiff Reef, San Diego and spent several months as a beach bum, hanging with the surfers and sleeping on the sand - but he quickly discovered that his fair skin did not agree at all with the harsh rays of Californian sun. His constantly sunburned complexion earned him the nickname "Red". Though he craved the salty seafarer lifestyle but could not abide much sunshine - naturally, he settled in Seattle. He has been rocking among the yachts ever since.

Ignacio "NACHO" Wurlitzer
(Keyboards/VOCALS)

Ignacio redefines smooth. He holds the Guinness book of world records for cleanest shave, even though he often wears a beard.

Orphaned at birth, he was raised near the Galapagos by a rare species of tree monkey. While combing the beach one day, he stumbled upon his first grand piano that had washed ashore with other flotsam and jetsam, and he never looked back.

Once he had received his first product endorsement from Cuervo Gold, he understood his destiny: a dedication to the music that inspires dreams and lays hearts to the wayside. After responding to a "keyboard player wanted" ad in Fine Columbian Monthly, he found his true home among the waves with The Sunset Grooves crew... and now his voyage begins.

TEDDY EXOTIQUE
(BASS/VOCALS)

A child of the 70s, Frederick "Teddy" Exotíque was swabbing decks and raising sails before most of us were walking. Growing up on the mean seas of the Atlantic, off the coast of eastern Massachusetts, Teddy cut his teeth working in the shipyards by day, in the taverns as a musician by night. As a longshoreman's son, Teddy thought that his future was down by the docks... however, the smooth siren sounds of yacht rock had different ideas.

As the years passed, Teddy grew bored with the roughneck lifestyle of the shipyards and headed west, ending up in the seaside town of Seattle, land of coffee, flannel and grunge (not a disease). Back then, the only thing smooth or groovy in the Pacific Northwest were the westbound lanes of 520 during a downpour. Despite the gray skies overhead and brown notes in the clubs, Teddy stayed true to his roots, perfecting his art of the bottom end while searching out his musical soulmates.

Before long, Teddy struck AM gold with the Sunset Grooves and is now having the time of his middle-aged life, holding up the bottom for his mates while they deliver the goods topside.

BURT FANDANGO
(GUITAR/VOCALS)

A 14th generation Fandango musician, Burt hails from a long line of lute playing minstrels. His ancestry can be traced back to 12th century Byzantia where the first Fandango to pick up a stringed instrument is rumored to have originated. The Fandango lineage is both gifted and cursed with a rare genetic deformation wherein the children are born with just one extra digit. An eleventh finger. This affliction is sometimes frightful to behold, but serves as a unique advantage, and is perhaps why many Fandangos have played stringed instruments throughout history.

Burt lost his 11th finger while pursuing his other favorite past time, sailing. His hand caught in the rigging on a particularly squally evening off the coast of Barbados and when the spinnaker halyard broke loose from the jib, it took his famous finger with it. Nonetheless, he appears to play the guitar effortlessly using only 10 fingers and doesn't let his handicap hinder his smooth rock solos.