Gene's Bio                           

Hello, my name is Gene Thorpe. I sing and play Guitar and Keyboards among other instruments.















I was born in New York City and began my trail toward the music profession as soon as I was old enough to get up to the piano. While this was happening my environment was Brooklyn New York. Even then it had it’s own rhythm. Cars, Trucks and all the sounds of the city. We lived on Stillwell Avenue near Coney Island. My family made Kewpee Dolls the Carney's gave out as prizes to the carnival customers. Many weekends were spent in the exciting world of the carnival.

As early as I can remember I loved to sit at the piano, some of my first possessions were a Xylophone and a record player. My family always had a wire or tape recorder around.

In 1953 my family moved to Stockton California. My grandfather , Gene Greene had gotten a job as the manager of a West Coast Tractor Company called Harris Manufacturing. He was a very dynamic and interesting guy and I miss him a lot.

We had a family friend who had his own country music TV show his professional name was Singing Cherokee, I spent a lot of time watching his band as they played live in the area. They played a lot of Hank Williams, Web Pierce and Ernest Tub.

In the mid `50's, to early 60’s my family was in the service station business and while working at the station I would observe the older teenagers, the cars, the dances and the clothes, it was a blast. Working with the public in those days was a great experience and I learned a great deal about music, style and people.

I remember when my family stopped at the Nut Tree Restaurant and gift shop in Vacaville. It was around 1957. At that gift shop I got my first Honner Harmonica. It was freedom you could do music as you moved about. I spent many hours and late nights playing the harmonica. Later the guitar and drums were added to my list of instruments as I spent much of my time listening and enjoying the old time Rock & Roll and country music that radio brought to us in those early years of pop music. Roy Orbison, Bill Haley and the Comets and the young Elvis Presley were the kings of the airwaves.

When I saw my first live Rock-N-Roll band live, that was all it took to hook me on music as a full time passion. I knew that would be my life. Something about how the electric guitars, and the drums sound live in the open night air, just swept me away.

Around 1960 I met a felow who worked as a piano salesman named Carl Corben. He was a great guy that played music and taught me the basics of being an entertainer.

Shortly afer being mentored by Carl  I met some fellows that shared my love of music. We hung out and started jamming around the neighborhood and it didn't take long before I was playing with a good many other guys and attending the many  jam sessions around the area. Most of my gigs were out of the Sacramento area because the musicians that I played with lived out of town. I wanted to sing without playing the drums (I started as a drummer) and to play locally.

We soon of organized our own group, "The Persuaders", we played in the 1965 California State Fair Battle of the bands. From there we went on to play many parties and dances. We picked tomatoes as a band and bought guitars, amps and a Army Surplus P A System. A lot of work and a lot of fun. The Persuaders dissolved in 1966.

This was the beginning of my serious guitar playing because I knew if I could play all of my songs on the guitar and sing them I wouldn't have to have a larger band to get a full sound.




Then came the band Yellow Submarine, This group was a trio that featured Frank Sorci on keyboards. I still love to play with Frankie. Frankie and I would love to hear from our drummer at the time. Bill, are you out there somewhere?

Then came a band called The Concern, This group featured Gary Powell, Verlen Thom and Laura Flowers. We had a lot of fun in that band. Gary really inspired me with his great playing and singing.

I started working at the Vox Room Guitar Center and I joined a young band called "The Yukon Daily" and we rehearsed like machines. Night after night, song after song. We were steeped in the blues and early rock styles. I can still play a whole night on the songs I learned from that peroid of my life. Those were great times, and we were just paying our dues. Music was the core of our lives.  The band was Dave Williamson, Lead Guitar, Ron McElroy, Bass, Ron Cook, Later Rick Taylor, Drums, and myself, Guitar & Vocals.

There were these guys who went to Sac State that put on music shows. Rick Schultze and George Gosling. Now these guys really had rock and roll in their harts. We all became great friends. These guys had a great light show and were called Simultaineous Avalanche. They began using The Yukon Daily as an opening band at the many concerts they put on, and for the next few years it was a wild time.                                                  

Later came a short lived band named Pann and lots and many more hours of jam sessions, recording and wood-shedding.



Pann broke up then there was a band called Movie which In 1971, while still working at Dick Rossi’s Vox Room Guitar Center, in Sacramento, 



                                       

Went on the road spent a summer season in the Tahoe & Nevada area got all it's equiptment stolen, got high speed wobble and broke up. Some of the members and management went on and put together the band, "Simultaneous Avalanche". This group decided to see the world. During those years we toured twenty nine states including, Alaska, Hawaii and Canada. We had a straight-ahead rock, blues and pop style.

       

"Avalanche" came off the road in 1976, 1 came back to Sacramento and returned to the music store. I also found a job with the Sacramento Valley Entertainment Guide and Directory, but my musical career and the band were always my first priority. When the magazine started my monthly column we were covering only 20 clubs and later we built 'it up to coverage of over 100 clubs and events each month.

In 1980 the music scene was quickly changing in Sacramento. I left the Vox Room to start a new talent agency called "GTA". The headquarters for the talent agency was Skip's Music, one of the largest and more progressive music stores in the United States.

    

1981 was a busy year, I started the band "Powerglide" and that year we won the Shire Road Battle of the Bands. We went on to play many of the top Northern California nightclubs, and also became on of the more popular corporate (one niter) bands on the Sacramento music scene.

     

1984 Was the year I got into the real estate business. I did this to regroup and it was my intention to back away from the music business. That didn't happen because the fellow I sold my talent agency to, (Stephen Grace), kept right on booking me with a group of great guys, Scott Davis, Loren Hass, Glade Rassmussen and Brian Clark. What a line up. We still called it Powerglide and it was a lot of fun.




I also met a fellow Realtor (who loved music) that year named Ron Barringer and that was a good meeting.

1985 Coldwell Banker Real Estate in Roseville

1987 Project Manager for Rancho Ganadaro (Later to become Lincoln Crossing)

1989 Terrico Development Jan Warshuis Development  madness.

1990 Lincoln Area Chamber of Commerce President.

1991 Gulf War starts Real Estate goes in the dumper Band starts playing a lot.

1995 Start playing Gold Country and Placer fairs

2000 Played New Years at Del Paso Country Club

2001 Met and started playing with Vel Selven

2003 Drew Sallee

2004 Ernie Apodaca

2006 Brian Earl Warrensford, Richard Dart, Jeff Jambor added to the DeVille's

2008

2010 Jim Gallegos, Clark Calvert, Skip Craun, Ernie Apodaca & I.