Tommy Rock’s Life Story

The Many Lives of Roeck-n-Roll

Tommy started his quest at age 2 doing the twist to his half sister Linda's Beatles and Chubby Checker records. At 5 he began singing along with his parents' Johnny Mathis, Frank Sinatra, and Nat King Cole records. Encouraged by his Mother, he accurately mimicked the popular songs of the era, and began playing guitar at age 8. Tutored by his older half brother Bobby, he learned very quickly, and began rivaling his mentor's skills within a few years. With his Sears cassette recorder and his Silver tone guitar and amp in case always in hand he would practice singing and playing for endless hours, until his parents made him go to bed. While in grammar school, he excelled in the arts. Drawing, painting, creative writing, singing in choir, playing clarinet and saxophone at school functions, he won many awards. At age 15 he began pursuing the guitar with a mad passion. He was influenced at first by John Denver, Jim Croce, and Elton John and then later by bands like Aerosmith, The Who, Led Zeppelin, Rush, and The Stones. With the warm tube tones, and screaming vocals of the 70's at hand, he was star stricken and vowed that music would be his life. His younger brother David was also a gifted student, and made good grades, especially in metal shop and auto-mechanics.

In 1977 His Father Robert Roeck, a Veteran of WW2, hailing from Chicago, and a Journeyman Maintenance Machinist of 30 years, with Bethlehem Steel Corporation, retired and moved his family to the resort community of Hot Springs, Arkansas. Because he loved lake living and his wife Mildred's family the Hunter's and the Hamilton's were from nearby Sheridan. Robert worked hard and gave his family everything, while they were living in Buena Park, California. He got a long thirteen week vacation every 5 years as one of his regular perks along with incredible bonus packages. This is when he took his family all over these United States. Exploring, seeing, and doing. Growing up only minutes from Disneyland, the boys had a season pass, and Dad loved to go as much as they did. Roller coasters were their thing, Robert made it a point to take them to everything within driving distance, and then some. He would rent large RV's for the summer and the family would go to parts unknown and stay gone for months. They saw Yellowstone, and all the great national parks in the USA: Florida Everglades, Disney World, Sea World, all the worlds; Busch Gardens, all the shows, Knott's Berry Farm, Universal Studios, Six Flags, Magic Mountain, The California Redwoods (Drove through a tree), Carlsbad Caverns, Dog Patch USA and Silver Dollar City. Anything there was to do they went there, and did that.

Robert outfitted the family with nice clothes, shoes, and the boys always had great birthdays and Christmas's He made a great living which would be comparable to nearly $2000 per week today. He brought home the bacon and Mildred fried it up in the pan. She was a stay at home Mom and took great care of her family, and was a cooking machine. She kept her house spotless, hot dinners on the table, three times a day, clean clothes ready to go, She also knitted, sewed, darned and crocheted. A truly idyllic upbringing.

The Roeck family had many amazing summers together on Lake Hamilton, Not to mention the wonderful life that Robert given them filled with love and adventure; spelunking, water skiing, fishing, swimming, and a smorgasbord of down home southern cooked delights prepared by Mother Mildred and her Sister Venita. Many relatives came to visit them at their lake house that Robert built, from both sides of the family tree. Much love, laughter, and adoration was had by all. Robert had realized his retirement goals. He loved his family more than himself, and felt content, successful, happy, and proud of his life, wife, boys and grandchildren.

He passed away unexpectedly in September of 1980, leaving the love of his life Mildred Louise to carry the load. After much grief, Tommy and his brother David experimented with music and bands. Tommy had been playing guitar and began to sing lead, David began playing bass and singing backing vocals, and yes they harmonized like brothers. Michael Stacey played drums with them most of the time, and Mike Lovelady filled in occasionally on drums as did Dave Harvey on guitar. They began playing small venues such as, The Club Car, Jessieville Summer Music, and competed in several battle of the bands, of which they won three. Two at the Club Car, and one at the soon to be Gator's Bar. There were not many places to play in Hot Springs, so they played a lot of parties. Their Mother was so cool, and loved her sons so much, she just wanted them to be happy. She knew they were missing all their friends in Southern California. And besides she thought they sounded great and were really talented.

She allowed them to have jam parties almost every weekend at their home on Rock Creek Road. She knew this would help them make new friends quickly, and have a safe place for them to play from 1981 and into 1982. She supervised all the kids who came, and made sure everyone was safe all the time. She would sway back and forth in her rocking chair to the beat of her boys playing rhythm and blues and rock & roll. while always watching, listening, laughing, talking, smiling and sometimes scolding the kids who came in and out of the parties. And if a fight broke out, you could hear her voice over the thunder of Mike Stacey's drums, John Allen! As he was the self appointed bouncer and the older, stronger half brother. And he would gladly break it up, and kick some butt if he had to! Yes John Knowles was tough! He had to be, growing up in Buena Park, southeast of Los Angeles, right next to Anaheim; constantly fighting with Southern California gangs of the mid 1970's; for his lunch money, and sometimes his life. He later lived his dream and moved to Anchorage Alaska, and lived an Indian fishing village, and has an unknown amount of offspring there, as he contributed vastly to the local gene pool. He passed away in 1999, Horny, Scirostic, and Happy.

Mildred's open door policy for the boys went on, until Garland county got wind of things, and required it to cease and desist in late '82. She still let them to rehearse there in Tommy's bedroom, a 22 x 18 space that his Dad had designed to be a game room, when he built the house in 1977. This helped Tommy further develop his ear and musical talent until 1983. With the help and friendship of Mike and Angie Sheets, they lent him a small P.A. system that he used in his early gigs and rehearsals. He had many jam sessions with people like Joe Glaeser, Robert Trimune, Dave Harvey, Robert Howell, Doug Hobby, Laurie Lloyd, Dennis & Rick Goss, Geoff Elaison, Tommy Kemp, Bill & Doug Harper, and Mark Mason to name a few. He then had an opportunity to relocate to Detroit "The Rock City" with his buddies Michael & Richard Stacey. They wanted to reunite with their Father Richard Stacey Sr. whom they had not seen in over ten years because of their Mother's Divorcing him. At age 23 Tommy Roeck left home. Then he, Mike, and Rich made their move to Detroit in October of that year. Brother Dave stayed, no matter how much he might have wanted to go with them. Dave took a job at Jordan Oldsmobile, made top mechanic, got married to Traci, formally adopted Tracie's son Joshua and looked after his Dear Mother, Traci, & Josh.

Things were tough at first for the rock and roll brothers in the North, sleeping in cars and the very welcomed couch touring at Richard Seniors and Bob Cibulka's houses, but Tommy was determined to be a success. A friend named Tony "Paquido Man" Genoa got all 3 of them jobs at a restaurant called Shenanigans and that's when the fun began! Tommy began Starving himself, lost over 100 lbs, and became bulimic and thin. Completely determined to make it or die trying.

Somewhere along the way Richard junior decided the party was over, and came home to his Mother Diane Williams. While Mike and Tommy stayed in the frigid north, sometimes it could get 60 below and you had to bundle up so you could go out in the dark frozen morning, take off your air cleaner, and spray starting fluid into your carburetor to start your car an hour before you even could leave. This meant that there was plenty of time to warm up in the shower and dry off, and put on two extra pairs of long johns before carefully hustling out to the car without slipping down in some ice. Getting into that warm car made it all worth while. Mike got into a blues band and was playing backyard summer events while Tommy was going to the gym and working out regularly. He investigated all kinds of hot prospects, musically and spiritually. The Out of Hand Band was the first stepping stone on Rock's road to Motor City stardom, with virtuoso youngster Matt Mansour on bass and Dave "Mongo" Lyons on drums they were a formidable force.

Playing tons of Led Zeppelin covers accurately, they could draw an awesome crowd. There were many nights in 1985 when Roeck could look out off the stage and witness a virtual sea of bic lighters, literally hundreds of them. It seemed that the fans brought a pocket full of them as they always seemed to be burning brightly. Especially during their versions of live "Dazed and Confused" and "Whole Lotta Love". Performing first at indoor / outdoor keg parties, and then larger clubs, like Joe Sgroi's "The Main Act" and "New York New York". It was like a dream come true for the trio, Roeck was now being called "Rock", the fans made this decision by adoring his talents and flamboyance.

Mongo the drummer liked to drink Tequila, Jack Daniels, head-butt, and was truly "Out of Hand". He had the most amazing, perfect teeth. He could chew glass, tear apart beer cans, chew on 2x4's etc. without breaking them or hurting his mouth. Every time "Out of Hand" played a new bar, he had to leave his mark on the door jam. He would chew on it for several minutes until there were definite human teeth impressions left behind. Like a WW2 pilot keeping track of the kamikazes they shot down, he chewed on the door jams of all the dressing rooms at the "Ritz", "New York New York", and "Blondies", to name a few, keeping track of every new performance. New street signs in his neighborhood were fair game also. They would be driving, and he would yell- "stop! There's a new sign over there!" They just shook their heads and said "make it quick Dave, we got to go!" And he would jump out and do his business! If any of the structures are still standing today, you can bet that Mongo's chew marks are still there, darkened and worn by weather and age, but nonetheless a lasting statement that David Lyons had been there, and it was good.

As the "Out of Hand" legend manifested, the fans became obsessed, and even the road crew got too wild and crazy. One night they got stoned drunk on Tequila and demolished one of the nicer dressing rooms at the Main Act. The Roadies smashed tables, glasses, bottles, mirrors, and a television monitor the management had hooked up to watch the

bands privately. "Out of Hand" was on stage opening for Mike Edwards band "SNM" which stood for "Show No Mercy" when the mayhem went down. Sgroi was really pissed off when he found out what the roadies had done! after a blistering performance of Originals and Zep covers, the band walked off stage, and Joe followed them up to the dressing room and chewed them out like an overbearing, freaked out Italian Stepfather. He yelled at the top of his lungs and screamed at them; "What the frack is going on here? Just look at this mess! What the hell were you thinking? Tommy said "We didn't know what was going on Joe! We were on stage, We'll clean it up man" Sgroi said; "Don't bother, Just get your shit, Get the hell out, and don't ever come back to any of my fucking bars!" They worked in a second guitarist named Paul Wright there towards the end of the "Out of Hand" days, played several more basement parties, and In mid 1986 "The Main Act" changed it's name to The Ritz.

The early to mid 80's were a lot different than it is today, there were no cell phones and Aids was not a public scare. You could catch an STD, pass it around, and go get a shot and get rid of it! No Big deal! Compact discs were just going into production, there was no internet, and only the big cities had cable. MTV had just launched, video was killing the radio star, and live music ruled supreme. The fans wanted to go out all the time. And the groupies were the best and most uninhibited of all time! oh man! Anywhere, anytime! Tommy was just happy he lived through it all unscathed! Now that Roeck knew The Out of Hand Band was permanently barred from the Sgroi domain, the limitations of singing and playing all the time became more relevant. Tommy decided he needed to become the singing car salesman. So he could connect with the audience and the women in greater detail.

He joined "Rockdog" as the Singer/ Front man, with Gary Pitts on guitar, Chris Scaglione on drums, and Donny Yacos on bass, they made a big stir as they rocked their butts off in full drag like Poison. Well, just imagine testosterone flying in full drag, spandex pants, and what seemed like armadillos in their trousers? Tommy may have accidentally slept with most or all of his "Rockdog" band members so called trampy girl friends, and they hated him for it. The chicks came after Rock, and there was a long line. He only did what any other young studly, Sammy Hagar/ Robert Plant look alike lead singer would do in the prime of their lives; he worked out and took a lot of vitamins! Tommy learned that the freedom of not wielding an axe improved his vocal range and sex appeal. which helped sharpen his front-man skills to a fine edge. No longer was he thinking about chord changes and breaks. Rather he was thinking what can I do to grab their/ her attention and keep it? From the pit in front of the stage to the back of the room, as far as he could see and make eye contact, he would connect with each and every fan, as personally as he could. After much success and drama, he was fired from "Rockdog" and replaced in mid to late 1986. The band did not even last long enough, to get any honorable mention anywhere, as the fans began to follow Tommy's new band "Hunky Dory"

Rock then joined up with former Out of Hand band mate Matt Mansour, Mattley introduced Tommy to guitarist Jac Glasgow, percussionist Mike Alonso and together they formed "Hunky Dory". After the experience and exposure that Rockdog gave him, he, Mike and Jac easily managed to book "The Hunk" all over the Detroit metropolitan area at clubs like "New York New York", "The Ritz", "Blondies", "Harpos" and "The Token Lounge". Which helped them achieve super bar star status in less than a year. Opening for local superstars "Seduce", "Mommies Dearest", and "Sweet Teaze", catapulted them to the top of the Detroit talent pool. The Hunk began opening for major national acts such as; Humble Pie, Head East, and others. They were playing the same venues as Robin Trower, Gary Moore, Rough-cut, Femme Fatale, Lita Ford, Joan Jett, and The Vinnie Vincent Invasion, to name a few. They got into all the shows free, and partied with many of these visiting national acts. Scott Sacharczyk aka Spots designed much of the bands artwork, flyers, roadied, a did alot of hanging out, with and is still a friend of Rock's today. Spots has helped Rock much with web design, picture manipulation, and all around computer skills. He would not be able to do the things he can today, if it were not for the Spacey Hippie at Dudeman.net. The Hunk-Ras were having a rough time of dealing with their new found popularity with nicknames going around the scene like Hunky "Frack Me Hard" Dory, Hunky "Fracked up" Dory, Hunky "Frack Me Like a Monkey" Dory etc., and they had been headlining some very large outdoor 5000+ Summer festivals, and were just getting way too much attention.

Things were about to implode, or get sucked down the Sgroi drain. The fans knew it, either they were gonna blow up, or break up. Everybody was rooting for them, and their popularity skyrocketed, because all the fans thought it might be their last chance for some Hunk-Ra glory. The pressure was building up, and they were bickering over petty crap like Tommy wanting to play some rhythm guitar on a few tunes, and Jac and Mike did not want him to do anything but front, sell the band and connect with the fans. When they were asked to open for Cheap Trick at the State Fair, Jac asserted his executive founder privilege, and declined the invite. All Rock wanted to do is expand his horizons a little, and it seems that if they would have given in, he would always want more. But that's a Leo for ya, a Leo Rising at that.

Steve from S.M.A. sound and lighting referred to them as "Rock Gods" every time they graced his presence on stage, and the fans loved them, but their collective egos eventually broke them up in the summer of 1988. Friends Hilda and Leti Cortez took Rock down to Cleveland one weekend and he performed at “The Agoura Ballroom” they had a great time because Cleveland does indeed rock, and Tommy will never forget those girls! He was then invited to start a band with infamous Detroit guitarist Phil Hawley called "City Boys". They did a few gigs, but nothing really happened for them except a great friendship was formed between Hawley and Roeck. Big nose Bob the Bass Player got barred for being caught peeping in the women's bathroom from the rafters above the dressing room during a gig at "The Ritz". They got a new bassist and continued on as "Street Elite" with Tommy on 2nd lead guitar and the singing garbage man Steve on vocals. But this was short lived also, because the fans wanted Rock on the frontman spot where he had proven his worth time and time again.

Tommy was recruited by Bassist Skid Marx and Percussionist Mickey St. Claire to sing for their Dearborn based group "Auntie M". These guys were killer and super heavy. They showcased at "Blondies" and the usual places, and they didn't mind if Roeck played guitar. In fact they encouraged it! They had some really cool tunes that Tommy loved like "Bible Benders" and others. Skid fell off the wagon after a few shows and disappeared. After a few months of doing nothing Glasgow called Rock wanting to play again, and wanted to know if St. Claire might be interested?

Mike Alonso split to L.A. for a chance to play drums for Flotsam & Jetsam, and then landed a deal with "David King" of "Fastway" and "Fast Eddie Clark" of "Motorhead", and recorded an album and 2 videos as "Katmandu" they were on MTV and KNAC rotation in 1989. He also played in "SpeedBall", "Five Horse Johnson", "The Christ Punchers", and "Aquarius Void" with many, many album credits to his name. He is now touring the world and loving life with "The Electric Six"

At "Red Lobster" Debbie Dietrich introduced Tommy to Snake. He, Tommy & Mad Dog became Roomies. They all worked together at "The Lob" in Warren and they affectionately called their crib on Peoria street "The Snake Pit". Almost every weekend they would throw wild after hours parties, because all the bars in Michigan closed at 2 AM, and with their popularity all they had to do is hit the bars and tell everyone they were having a "Blind Pig". Snake would hit The Ritz and Tommy would hit New York New York. these parties only enhanced both of their legendary statuses. They were Best Friends and shared a killer Rock and Roll lifestyle. They worked, lived, and jammed together, shared a few women, and drugs. Snake said they were like the G-N-R of Detroit. With their performing, partying, and countless girlfriends, which led both of them to go get aids tested in late '88 when that scare became an epidemic. Once they found out they were clean, they immediately got a fifth of Jack Daniels, rode the bus downtown together, got drunk and danced in the fountain at "Hart Plaza" fully clothed with their leathers and hats on. They rode the people mover around for hours, way past midnight, until they finally dried off while freezing to death that Rocktober, and finally caught the late bus home.

Rock got Mickey St. Claire to play drums for one final farewell Hunk-ra show in December of 1988. They all knew the Detroit hay days were over and Los Angeles was their best shot. One year later they were all living in Hollywood, Ca. pursuing different interests, but always remaining friends, and are still in touch on Face book today. Most of the best friends that Tommy had made while in Michigan were at that show, because they knew it was goodbye. Motor City Bar legends, Phil Hawley, Mike "The Snake" Edwards, Cornell Van Wikey, Paul Wright, The Captain, Carol Green and Tina, Ronnie Masters, Dave "Mad Dog" Masterson, J.D. Hogg, Tracey Brown, Spots, Dave Press, Matt Matthews, Angela Edwards, Jesus Everett, Bobby & Tom Hernandez, Mark Lowe, the entire cast of "Sweet Teaze", "Few & Far Between", "Sheer Heart", "Halloween", Heaven's Wish", "Matriarch", "Savage Grace", "Murder City" who later became "Sponge", "The Meanies", "Red Hush", "Back Track", "The Big", "Seduce", "Zeus" and many more that cannot be recalled. All friends who supported each other, and partied together through the mid to late 80's.

He loved his fellow rockers like family, but he had to go, there was nothing for him there except more "Joe Sgroi Bars", and the freezing winters. Rock smelled adventure, a warm climate, and a chance at a real record deal out West. Joe Sgroi was already trying to talk him into a 5 year contract.

They were trying to say that he couldn't go, Detroit needed him, and the even brought up some old flyer bills from the printers, that Jac was suppose to have paid months before. Because he handled all the money, paid the rent for our studio, bought and built back drops, gave the S.M.A. sound and light guys their cut, and hired the road crew for every show, of which Tommy never saw a red cent! Jac said the money was spent before he got it, with radio ads, agent fees and all the extras. Glasgow did a great job managing that band, and Bobby Hernandez (Jumbo Sunshade), Mark Lowe (Chomp), and the "Hern boys" were the best road crew ever. Roeck did say this, "and I quote" "I never had to move one piece of gear, or do sound check, drank free, never paid a cover, showed up 40 minutes before show time, to get dressed, was treated like royalty, and had the greatest Rock & Roll experience ever in Detroit, it changed my life and I made life long friends and memories. "The Motor City Rocks" (Hell to the Yeah!)" "End Quote"

It was during that last year in Detroit that Rock had struck up a friendship with the singer from "Madame X" Sebastian Bach. The two of them supported one another by going to each others shows, drinking, and devouring groupies together. If Rock was out performing with the Hunk, Bach was up in front of the 6 ft. stage at the Ritz or Harpos, screaming right along with Tommy doing "Van Halen", "Led Zeppelin" and others, Tommy would put microphone to his mouth and vice versa. If Bach was on the Madame X bus or was backstage in the dressing room, Rock would be there sooner or later and would usually bring some extra girls for Sabby, just in case. Bach had to go home suddenly because his mother Catherine Bach aka "Daisy Duke" was in a near fatal car accident. That was the last time Tommy Rock ever saw his friend Sebastian Bach in person. Rock went home to Arkansas see his own people and regroup before he went on to Los Angeles. The next time Roeck saw Sebastian was on the cover of "Hit Parade" as the singer for "Skid Row". His exact words were "That MUTHER FRACKER! HE MADE IT!" and Rock's X-girl friend Stacey said "what are you talking about honey?"

It was the spring of '89, and he was in love. He couldn't say he wasn't glad to be home again! No more cold Detroit winters. He was safe among family and friends, and he had found a really nice young girl friend who was sexy, smart, and sweet! His Mom liked her a lot, and they got along great! If he would have stayed in the South he would probably still be with her. But the music was in his blood, really bad. He wanted his shot. He promised his Momma Rock that if he didn't make it, he would be home in a few years. She was growing older, and he was worried about her age and health!

This was it! Make or break! He stayed around long enough to treat his Momma Rock like a Queen, cooking specialty dishes he had learned in the soup kitchens of Warren, Utica, and Sterling Heights like; Veal Marsalis, Sautéed Mushrooms, Stuffed Lamb Chops, Lasagna, Chicken Meatball Soup and many more. Stacey pitched in and helped get the house cleaned up completely spotless before they left. Now married, Rath is a great lady. Tommy should have treated her better when they were together.

Roeck was home just long enough to get bored, He took a job as an ice cream truck driver for a while. The truck had a P.A. and he would drive around cranking Van Halen, you know the song. He was too full of life to stick around Hot Springs very long, but many local players sought him out to jam. He ended up joining a Rock-n-Roll/ Blues band called Baby & the Blues Boys featuring Erica Jones on Lead Vocals, Dave Harvey on Guitar, Chris O'Rourke on Guitar, Mike Stacey on Drums, and he was playing a Stein Berger Bass. There was also a sound guy named Gregg Dodd, he had the P.A. and he sort of formed the group because of a St. Patties Day Party at the Saugatuck Bar (Oyster Bay) on Lake Hamilton and the owner was paying real good money and hired them. Rock figured what the heck I can jam with my friends and make some extra cash! The gig went stupendously and the memories made have lasted a lifetime, plus it was one heck of a party! Recently they had a 20 year reunion jam on St. Patties '09 at Lucky's in Hot Springs with Area 51 & The Old School Players.

After saying his good byes he hooked up with his main squeeze Stacey, and convinced her that L.A. was the place to go, and not Dallas, like she had planned. She consented and off they went, California or bust! Tommy never realized how much he would miss all of his Michigan and Arkansas friends, but little did he know, in less than a year most of them would be out in California together! It was a mass migration of jacked up, and talented longhaired rockers! I'll never forget Ralph's supermarket, or Denny's. You could go in either place, any hour of the day, and all you saw was brethren baby! Long hair, tattoos, leather bike jackets, bandannas, and hot bleach blonde, scantily dressed women! We were home! at least it felt like it. You never knew when you were going to run into somebody famous, or an old friend from a previous life. People like Rodney Binginhimer, Christina Applegate, Patrick Swazey, Lemmy, Ozzy Osbourne, Billy Idol, David Hasslehoff, etc. were all regular customers. Just living the Hollywood life as normal as they could.

Tommy searched the vast Southern California music scene for the right combination of people to produce a viable product. Rooting around at huge rehearsal wherehouses in the City of Industry he knocked on many doors, where he actually got to jam with people like Jimmy Swann, Andre Troxx, Izzy Stradlin, & Duff Mckagan as they were trying to reform "Hollywood Rose", because G-N-R was breaking up as User Illusion was being released. Chris Holmes & Blackie Lawless introduced Rock to Freddie Katzman a rich Jewish producer who was backing the new "Wasp" record, (Roeck actually got to do some backing vocals with Lawless, but never got a copy), Tommy partied with Vivian Campbell of then "The River Dogs" and soon to be in "Def Leppard" at The Rainbow and the Whiskey on several occasions, and Mick Sweda & Mark Torein of "The Bulletboys" were friends he made through Dog town, to name a few.. After many experimental ventures such as; Dog town, Z-Boys, Jimmy Steiger's Ways-n-Means, and many others, he struck what seemed to be gold with Beggar's Day in late 1989.

Raul Campos and Erick Onofrio were a killer bassist/ drummer team and the trio auditioned guitarists until they settled on two compatible players, Ozzy Stricklund & Russ McCabe. They began writing songs and playing all over Hollywood. The Whiskey, The Anti-Club, The Troubadour, & Exposure 54, were all favorite venues they performed at regularly. The group recorded a demo in early 1990 and began shopping it around. Duff used to come and sit in with them, but he was usually too drunk to play. Chris Holmes had a Rehearsal space 5 doors away from theirs, and they used to crank up all 10 of his marshall full stacks, open the door and piss off the entire where-house, after they were considerably wasted on Tequila and Vodka.

As Beggar's Day, they were so anti - poser that the big record companies like WEA and Atlantic said their music wasn't radio worthy, and after much frustration Ozzy left the band. He said he was going back home to Wisconsin where he could be a big fish in a small pond. They tried to carry on, but without that gutsy riffing of Ozzy's Les Paul Custom & his grinding Marshall, there was a spot too naked to fill and Tommy called it quits. Nirvana, Pearl Jam, and Stone Temple Pilots had exploded onto the scene, Grunge was in and Hard Rock was out, as were many of the true Rock and Roll bands of that era. Campos, McCabe, and Onofrio continued on for awhile with Raul on the Beggar's Day vocals, and after a 7 year hiatus, they are now back writing, rocking, and jamming again. Tommy has recently spoken with all of them and actually pointed Matt Mansour in their direction to play bass.

Hollywood is a drowning pool, full of broken dreams and expensive living. With this and the urgings of his girl friend Stacey in mind, Tommy elected to give the bright lights in Las Vegas a try. Right off he joined an established metal band named Xavier, performed several gigs with them around Vegas which opened a lot of doors. Club Rock, Eddies, Shark's were all regular haunts. A few months passed and he realized that Xavier and Myca were hard to work with, very lax, and constantly late. Tommy hit a brick wall esthetically and left the group due to artistic differences. Meanwhile back in Arkansas, Tommy's brother's Wife Traci Roeck became pregnant and Dylan Robert Roeck was born in December of '92. Momma Mildred was beside herself with joy, and in December 1993 along came Paul Hunter Roeck. Once again Mama was ecstatic! Later in 1998 Dave & Traci realized his father Robert's dream of owning and operating a machine shop. He named it American Eagle Machine Shop and Metal Fabricating Inc. and now in 2010, has been going strong for 12 years.

Tommy then hooked up with Greek/ American Guitarist Georgios Bartsillianos and the two hit a groove. George had been practicing with a drummer named "Dirty Toes" because he played barefoot, and a Bass player named Marx. They did a few shows as "Alley Lane" but people yelling "you suck' at Marx made him play badly, so they decided he did suck and went in search of new talent. They found a bassist right off named David Hasinfeldt, what a talented nutbag! He listened to the police scanner, and if there was a fire, he would chase fire trucks in his hopped up 1973 Chevy van. He had that thing painted flat primer grey, rigged up with a siren, flashing lights and had "Volunteer Fire Department" painted on the sides and the back. He told Rock that Stu Hamm was a pussy and after hearing David play, he believed him. They were planning on using Dirty Toes but guess who showed up in Vegas, just at the right time, but none other than Mike Stacey. His Dad Richard senior had just moved there from Michigan a few months earlier. So Stacey, Bartsillianos, Roeck, and Hasinfeldt formed a working cover band called "Bounty Hunter" and they played several gigs in the lounge lizard circuit in Henderson, Parump and the Vegas suburban areas.

Bounty Hunter did a biker gig one time, and the dude who booked the band was trying to stiff them on their pay. Dave never flinched, he just went out to his volunteer fire truck van, turned on his siren and lights, and pulled right up to the front door of the bar revving his motor. Tommy told the head biker dude what was going on, and that Hasinfeldt was going to ram the van through the front door if they didn't get paid. Well 3 minutes later they came up with the money, and the guys packed up their shit as fast as they could and got the hell out of there! LOL! David eventually quit Bounty Hunter after a few months because he kept saying they didn't have enough gigs, and he "wasn't going to flip burgers at Mcdonald's" to suppliment his wages! He was weird!

He stayed jacked up on Garlic all the time, you could smell it! He used to let Rock's 125 lb. Black Lab Buster Lick his private parts when Tommy wasn't looking. Rock would scream "NO BUSTER NO!" And Hasinfeldt would say "yea Buster OOOh" "hey can I borrow your dog for the weekend?" LOL! of course Tommy said "Hell No Freak!" Georgios and Rock were tight, they knew they could write some cool Whitesnake/ Van Halen type of originals, so they kept in touch, and always will be friends for life. As a matter of fact they were laughing about David and Buster just the other day! Months later, Mike Schdicks got his uncle to take the dog, he renamed him "Dumpster" and he lived a happy life on the ranch chasing horses and eating anything he could find, and only recently died in '08

A friend at work told Tommy that Van Halen was staying at the Sahara and were gambling in the casino. He had just seen them at The UNLV Arena in late 1993 and had to go see, hell it's Vegas anything is possible. He casually walked around and spotted Alex sitting at the dollar slots, pulled up a seat next to him, dropped a few coins, and pulled a few arms and said "hey Alex Van Halen you freaking rock my world man!", Alex looked at him and smiled, and said "thanks man! geese you look just like Sammy!" Tommy said "I get that a lot, I'm a singer too, especially in the San Diego/ Riverside area". "Will you sign my cassette sleeve, and where is everyone else?" Alex gave him his signature and said "Sammy and Mikey are out with their wives, but Eddie is over there playing blackjack, you want to meet him? Let's go freak him out!" Roeck said "Okay!" So they walked over to where Eddie was playing blackjack and Alex says "look who I found!" Eddie kind a glanced up and said "I thought you went with Mike and your old lady to the MGM?"

Tommy said "Hey dude I got a bone to pick with you!" Eddies eyes popped open, took a good look and said "You ain't freaking Sammy! WTF?" Alex said laughingly "He sure looks like him doesn't he bro?" Eddie says "kind a, so do you play or sing?" Roeck says "yeah! for about 20 yrs now! but y-you're my favorite!" So Eddie Van Halen gets up and says "I'm tired of this shit! You want to go upstairs and jam for a little while?" Tommy says "Oh yes! Oh my god" Eddie said "calm down and put on your sunglasses, pull your hair down around your face, and act like you belong, and if security doesn't stop you, you're in!" But if they ask you for your I.D. you got to go!" Well security didn't even give a second look and needless to say they were some of the most treasured moments of Rock's entire life! EVH showed him a bunch of his signature licks, the Eruption taps, and they had a blast jamming and partying until Ed said "I got to get you out of here before the real Sammy does come back or my road manager Bob will have my ass! He's such a little Dick he said, he spells his name frontward and backwards, nya! nya! he'll slap a fine on me for not going through proper channels!" Tommy got him to sign his cassette sleeve and Eddie walked him out to the elevator, shook his hand, gave him a pick and said "see ya man, keep on rockin' Tommy was high on cloud 9 for days!

After much trial and error, Roeck finally found a drummer and bassist team in Kendog Ardiaz and Mike Schdicks. But they had been playing with a dude named Dano and he was such a geek! Dano would come straight from work in his Dockers dress pants and dress shirt and tie, and play the gig like that. He was pretty good, but they were all laughing at him. "Book him Dano" They'd say behind his back. LOL! He finally got sick of the pranks and jibbing and quit the band. Thank God! Because Georgios was waiting in the wings, and when he got in the group there was a vast improvement! Now they had a real band! Writing, playing originals and partying hard at "Slots of Fun" on the strip drinking $1.25 cocktails was a lot of fun until they raised the drink prices. While consuming a bottle of Jack Daniels at their rehearsal studio one night, they stumbled across the name of Old Number Seven right there on the label of the bottle, and the band was thereby christened. They did it up! The Vegas scene was no match for their impressive songwriting skills, or charisma. They played every venue they could manage and received much respect from local rock patrons. Mike Schdicks was replaced by Bobby Gallagher for tardiness and lying out his ass. Mister drunken excuse we used to call him! D.J. Freddie Woods loved the band and helped them immensely. He got them gigs in Denver and Phoenix. They Headlined The Hurricane Club and blew it away! But the party never stops in the town that never sleeps, and it took it's toll on the boys. Tommy couldn't take the coke, or the crank heads anymore, or the unstable club situation. It's hard to compete with the shows in Vegas or the strip in general. Clubs would open for awhile, then close suddenly without notice. this made it hard to stay booked. Frustrated and broke, Roeck moved back home to Hot Springs in 1994. though he keeps in touch with the boys via e-mail and the occasional phone call. Kendog is married with 2 mini-ken-boys and still in Vegas, along with Bobby Gallagher. Bartsillianos is currently in Dallas Fort Worth area rocking suburbia with "DFW Riff Raff", and Schdicks was touring in several different bands, at last report.

Upon returning to his Arkansas home, with much celebrating and rejoicing by his family, Roeck formed Misbehavin' with old high school buddy Richard Stacey on bass, and local Tattoo Artist and drummer Red beard. By this time Richard had earned a Captain of the waterways license and was driving an amphibious Duck and doing tours on the lake. Which earned him the nickname of “Duck”. They rehearsed in Beard's studio for months, and played at the "Hog Heaven Jam" until they landed house gigs at the Ohio Club & Brewskies. Between Red beard's tattoo clientele and Tommy and Duck's wild antics on stage they developed a rather large following of fans. In 1995 They started the hard rock movement in Hot Springs, said John Talley, a local singer/ songwriter and then owner of Brewskies. "This town needs an enema" was the band's credo as they performed covers by Led Zeppelin, Van Halen, & Metallica. Red beard met Angie and the two fell in love. They married and opened The Living Canvas Tattoo Studio in 1996 which left Beard no choice but to pursue his life's ambition and build a thriving business. With Angie's help they now have one of the most popular and busy tattoo shops in the states. Kudos to them! Tommy then called local percussionist Shannon Summit and the group continued to play. After some time they were the talk of the town and hard rock fans came out of the woodwork to see their favorite local band. The Ohio Club changed hands and musical formats, & Brewskies burned down which left the group disheartened and they disbanded.

Then Tommy received a phone call from old partner in crime Dave Harvey, asking him to join his group Second Nature with vocalist John Wolfe, & drummer Gary Rauss in the summer of 1996. Roeck agreed and soon they were once again setting new trends in the musical world of Hot Springs, but with a new name, Area 51. They performed in Little Rock a lot and the surrounding areas, but could always pack the house at Johnny's (now Odie's) in their hometown and had quite the following. Gary got married and moved to Kansas City, which left the door open for Shannon Summit to come on board for awhile. Dave found God and left to pursue a Christian influenced project 3:16, Shannon lost interest, and John just gave up and started drinking. Which left Tommy no band and several gigs left on the books to fulfill. He scrambled together what would soon be the new incarnation of Area 51, featuring Ben Thompson on vocals, Jerry Beasley on drums and Scott Bowes on bass. This package was raw, but awesome in it's own right.

Area 51 became one of the most popular acts the sleepy town of Hot Springs had ever seen. Performing regularly at Player's (Crosswalk's) throughout Race meet they could always pack the house and set new attendance sales records for the bar. With Darryl Larson running sound for them, Ben's propeller style and screaming vocals, Tommy's guitar flipping and harmonies, and Jerry and Scott's awesome backbone, they set the mark for hard rock in the region. Often imitated but never duplicated, their set list showed up at more than one band's table for the next few years. They wrote and recorded a demo, entitled "First Contact" and released it locally. After it was all said and done, Area 51 is still remembered.

Tommy was working at local music store Banjo Dan's teaching guitar & bass and repairing all types of musical equipment when the call came in from the Spa City Blues Society's then President Roger Menifee. They needed a house guitarist for the weekly Wednesday night blues jam and asked Tommy to fill the position. He agreed and with that he began a love for the blues in many forms. Jamming with Steve Danger on drums, and Rooster Meeks on standup bass, they had a great time performing in front of an always packed house. Tommy coined the phrase "Hump Night Blues Jam" and met many talented players and formed Alias Jones with bassist Jerry Wallis, Drummer Larry Sorter, & Vocalist Raven Cooper. He then left the Jam after 7 months to pursue his new band's endeavors. They performed all over the Arkansas area in many blues venues and were well received. Raven left the band and was replaced by Harp man Wayne Galbavy. They won the Spa City's blues Talent Competition as Tommy Roeck & the Alien Blues Band, went to Memphis, saw Graceland, competed, lost and came home. They said his name is Tommy Rock, not Tommy Blues, and they were right! With Scott Bowes on bass, Jerry Beasley on drums and Wayne Galbavy on harp, they drew quite a crowd playing on Beale street and had a blast, but they were too rock to win at the blues challenge! The band continued on until Tommy met Jody Johannsen in the summer of 1998. Banjo Dan took him and Beasley out for a Summer boat ride and ended up at Docker's (they called it knockers). That night he met his future x-wife bartending on the deck.

One look and Tommy knew she was his type; (Blonde, Beautiful, & Slutty). They immediately coupled. Banjo Dan passed away 3 years later. His funeral was one of the largest in Garland County history. He was loved by many, including Tommy Rock, and Banjo is sorely missed.

Tommy Spoke with Snake (Mike Edwards) in May of '99. He said; "He was playing a house gig in Key West Florida for $600.00 week, and he really dug it. He was going to Vegas to meet his girlfriend "Austin" to do some relaxing and partying because he had some time off". He asked Tommy; "If he would come down to the Keys and sing for his band when he got back? It was easy money, house sound, and they had a band house on the beach that they could split 5 ways, and it would be a blast to be back together again". Roeck told him; "He was getting married in July, and had a house gig at "The Ohio Club" and he couldn't get away. Then he asked Mike to be his best man. Snake said; "He would love to, but he wasn't sure if he could?" They ended up having a great visit on the phone, and talked for hours, they hadn't seen each other in nearly 10 years.

A few weeks later in June, Mikes Dad called Tommy's Mother and left a phone number for him to call about Snake, he said; 'it was important". When Tommy got the message he was with his Fiancé Jody at her house. Roeck called, and his dad said that Snake had passed away in an auto collision, and he wanted him to know that Snake talked about their friendship a whole lot, and truly loved him. Mr. Edwards wanted him to come to Snake's funeral in Michigan. Tommy couldn't get away, and really couldn't afford the trip right then, and his future Mrs. was full of jealous questions, because some of the stories he had shared with her didn't fit into her idea of being married. Nevertheless he grieved for weeks over his dear old friend, and still misses his old compadre. Tommy later asked his brother David to be his best man and he consented.

During 2000 after marrying Jody, Roeck formed a hard rock quartet, Deep with Larry Sorter, Scott Bowes, and guitarist Chris O'Rourke. Deep was a killer band, they were the first group in the area to perform covers and originals with seven string guitars and five string basses, again the people loved them and flocked to their shows. They recorded a demo "Wrong Side of the Traxx" in that year and started to shop it to major labels around the country. With limited interest and Tommy's time running short having to divide his time between his wife Jody, her children, Wendi, Miranda and Jake, a solo career performing with his acoustic, Alias Jones, Area 51, and Deep, he decided to take a hiatus from music for a few years and concentrate on his new, instant family.

Putting his electronics degree to good use, he sought a career in digital satellite technology and had his own subcontracting and home entertainment business Aero Satellite Home Entertainment with his former wife Jody - He worked for Directv in Texarkana managing a local office for Comm-Craft through the winter of '03 and left in '04 to work for Ironwood based out of Little Rock because he was tired of the long drive to Southwestern Arkansas daily. He performed occasionally with virtuoso friends Shannon Summit and Kristen Hunt in the "Hanging Chads". One day while working for Directv on a rainy day in March of '04, he shattered his left ankle in a freak accident, and was on Workman's Comp and rehab therapy for 7 long and grueling months. In December 04, he formed a new band, Victim of Change with old buddy David Harvey and Drummer Tommy Long and played many local Spa City venues, with a "no Squirrels" attitude that was their battle cry to no avail, as the polotics of the limited venues and talent pool of the area got the best of them. He then returned to work, but was never able to move as fast as he once could and was not able make the kind of money he was used to, and had to turn down countless jobs because of his limited mobility.

Directv then laid him off in June of '06. He had left Jody after valiantly trying to make things work for several years, but Daddy was never Tommy's name. He started living his version of life again - writing, recording, playing gigs - where he met up with Mark Hill at a local music store after playing together on the spot in Spa City Music's acoustic room and doing enough songs - they booked some gigs as Rock-n-Hill. Mark Hill was a flake and after a year or so Tommy knew it would never work out. Hill was constantly late for gigs, until one day he just didn't show up and Rock never heard from him again.

Tommy continued to play with many different 2nd's including; John Talley and Chuck Smith, until he was forced by 2720 club owner Jeff Jenkins to either get a steady acoustic second or play solo. Well the stars were shining and he was lucky enough to get renowned local guitar guru Bobby Rogers to join the gig. Now after nearly 3 great years, the duo share a musical connection and direction unlike anything either of them have ever experienced before...and an unmatched sound and brotherhood. As long as the gigs keep coming they will be playing together for a long time to come.......at first they called the act Rock & Rogers it was a natural thing, and landed the Thursday night house gig at Lucky's bar for over 7 months. Just by chance a new name came to unfold and they now are known as "The Acoustic Merlin's" and are by far the best sounding working acoustic situation either of them has ever been associated with. They plan to be playing together way into their retirement years...until the wheels fall off their wheelchairs.

After Mr. Hill disappeared, Spa City Music store owner Chad Carter approached Tommy about coming in as a partner, and he jumped at the chance. For over 2 great years they made a go of it buying, selling, fixing, trading, doing all the things you do in a music store, and developed a lifelong friendship. With the passing of their dear friend and harmonica player Joe Colvis, they mourned and carried on. Chad was concentrating on his music more and more, and coming in less and less. Busy with his 2 new children, he was losing interest in retail music fast. The shop is located right next door to McClards, and Joe Perry being a BBQ aficionado actually came into the shop one day after he just had to come get a case of McClards BBQ sauce while "Aerosmith" was on tour in Little Rock in '07. He and Roeck traded a few licks on his '59 DC Reissue Dan electro guitar. It was 5 glorious minutes that Tommy will never forget, the limo was waiting and Joe had a show to do at Alltel Arena. With the slipping economic times making it harder every month to make it, they elected to just close the shop and use it for a recording studio/ rehearsal space. And they are still great friends that would take a bullet for one another. Carter has since has released a C.D. with his group Unseen Eye and is tearing up the local Southern Blues circuit.

In the 2007, Tommy formed The Old School Players - with long time bassist friend Scott Bowes and master percussionist Steve Avary on drums. The trio was everything Tommy had been searching for at that time, but again he was limited by being the lead singer and lead guitarist. They opened up for David Allen Coe that summer at Club 2720 to a standing room only crowd, and rocked the house as a trio. Tommy relied on his experience and worked the crowd very well, they were singing, clapping, and dancing along with Avery's beat and Bose's thump, and many fans said that they enjoyed themselves immensely, and after DAC pulled his disssapearing act 30 minutes into his set, they wanted TOSP to play more.

After he had a bout with laryngitis he called his old front man from Area 51- Ben Thompson to help out. Well this was it they thought, the musical magic was back. With a booming economy, and good pay, a need for a second guitarist arose, they called Chris O'Rourke to come and join the band. Now they really had a great sound. Big and thick, lots of vocals, and tons of charisma and talent. They performed all over the natural state kicking ass and taking names. They performed at "The West End Smokehouse" and The "Nightflying 28th Anniversary Party" at "Midtown Billiards" in December '08, and at Club 2720 on New Year's Eve to sold out crowds. They had a real rock and roll band or so they thought until the economy went south. In 2009 the venues couldn't afford a quintet anymore with faltering attendances and drink sales, so they were forced to form 2 separate groups and go their separate ways in order to survive.

Area 51 had several reunion gigs in 2009. Starting at Lucky's on St. Patrick's Day, and Bogart's through the summer. At the request of old time friend, and then Bogart's bar manager, John Dean, they brought Drummer J.D. Beasley out of retirement. But with booking conflicts arising due to Bowes and O'Rourke's new pet project "Riff Raff", this did not last long. But the boys still packed the house, and maintained their timeless Spa City reputation!

During this time Beasley and Roeck formed The Ferguson Rock Project on the side, with Jim Ferguson and Dona Rankin. This was fun for awhile, and helped pay the bills, but it didn't last, as Beasley and Roeck are hard rockers, and the Rankin/ Ferguson team prefer the lighter side of rock and country. Rankin then formed "Midnight Parade" with the owners of Big Event Music. Thompson, Roeck, and Beasley were sick of dealing with all the bullshit, and the band-whores. They wanted to form a solid band of guys that were dedicated to that one group only. With Bose out gallivanting in "Riff Raff" and whoever else, Chuck Smith was called to play bass. Smith, Thompson, Beasley, and Roeck then formed "After Eden" in December of '09.

So far so good, 4 months in, Roeck stated that this is the very best quartet of his life! Chuck Smith is a much better match for this group musically, spiritually, and mentally. All is well, and the 4 of them are happy and content. The band is booked all over the state and is getting great reviews. They are in the process of writing a new c.d. which is tentatively set to be released late in 2010 or early Spring 2011. If you get a chance, go see them as you will surely not be disappointed! They are just loaded with all the magic that God gave them, and 4 individual lifetimes worth of experience. Their energy and overall sound is impeccable, and they can eventually coax the most solemn audiences to their feet, screaming and dancing with sheer delight. Please visit After Eden Group.Com

Tommy has been undergoing a lot of soul searching since the passing of his Mother Mildred Roeck on Cinco De Mayo of '09. She gave him a Mother's love, life and everything else including his first guitar. His only wish is to make her proud of him as she watches from heaven, perched there with his Father Robert on angels wings. Thankfully his arrival home in '94 allowed him 14 great years and holiday seasons with his mother and family, but the last one without her was the hardest of his life. This video was taken in 2008

Now just recently Roeck has launched his own e-zine called Southern Rock Star Magazine influenced by Master Rock & Roll/ Music Man/ Journalist/ Humanitarian Peter Read, and is working very closely with Arkansas Internet Radio, Little Rock Entertainment, and Night flying the Entertainment Guide in an effort to help improve the Southern Rock Music Scene for all.

He has many old and dear friends from Arkansas, California, Michigan, Arizona, Alaska, Ohio, and Nevada. And has made many new friends in the Little Rock and surrounding areas such as; Cliff Maze, Todd McGee, Robert Lowrey, Daniel Karz Wagman, Danny Clinton, Jay Clinton, Peter Read, Wes Jeans, Jeremy & Kasey Kimmons Nelson, Kim Austin, Wayne Willems, Mary Holt, Jim & Mary Collier, Richard Stacey Sr., Chris Moran, Gene Posik, Greg & April McCuin, Bill Keck, Curtis Clark, Erica, Joe & Eric Glaeser, Bill Kozy, Bobby Doherty, Brian Teague, Brian Martin, Dave & Camille Tackett, Karen Gorden, Gary, Judy, Michael, & David Magers, Charlotte Taylor, Guido Ciardetti & Rodney at Hot Spring's Music, Mike Fraz, Doug, John, & Mark Bryant, Sharpe Dunaway, Darryl Yates, Erik & Diggit Johnson, Franklin Warfe, Tim Bird, Skinny, Cami Henderson, Patrick & Holly Reedy, Frankieann Kelly, Calvin Minor, Tim Yarborough and his Dad, Mama Shirley and her girls, Joe Gargano, Connie and Jody at Lucky's, Brett Everett, Dave Swineford, Woody and Froney Grace, Charlie & Cindy Wilson, Geroge Schwass, Steve Watts, Dr. Twist, Mike & Angela Chiarelli Sheets

Greg Cardenias, Jamie Burrell, Jamie Diles, Jason Greenlaw, Jed Clampitt, Jennifer Evans, Chris Mosher, John Cooksey, John Fox, Julia Brown Lovell, Karin Hopkins, Kelly Dodson, Linda & Richard Humphries, Matt Wildside, Maxx Anderson, Michael Heitman, Craig Karnesky & Elvis, Kramer, Nancy & Steve Harnar, Tony Buck, Rodney & Wade Ledbetter, Rena Wren, The Roach Brothers, Teresa Hunt, Blue Zulpo, Cody Cbum & Byron Yancey, Alison Harbour, Joe Colvis, Danny Smith, Chuck Dodson, Toni Nardi, Aaron Owens, Joe Churchwell, Michael Doc Davis, David & Sherri Hughes, Tonya Hunt, John Dean, Heavy, Sherry Myers, Mike Parker, James Foard, Andy Tanus, Dan & Doug Wilhite, Roger Scott, Suzanne Hickman, Tiffany Woods, Ronnie Neighbors, Daniel Lipinski, Dave Press, Dayton Waters, Dean & Stephanie, Agus, Tommy & Dean Kemp, Doug C. Williams, Everett Bonner, DeeJays - Freddy Woods, Debbie T., Chuckie P., Chuckie D., Kramer, and Denny G., Andy Rose, Conan at Midtown, and Danny Milsaps to name a few.

He is thankful for all your love, encouragement, and support. His only plans are to pray, play, live, eat, drink, sleep, breathe, create, produce, record, dream, journalize, personify, and defecate music, while happily eek-ing out a living, and treating people honestly and fairly, until the good lord decides its time to bring him home. Then he can be with his parents and loved ones forevermore. God bless you all! He will meet you in the Afterlife for the 1000 year reunion tour! Your name will be on the list plus infinity!

www.southern-rockstar.com