Spencer MacLeish
P.O. Box 2484
New York, New York 10009
(917)679-2903
gsmac55@yahoo.com

Name of spouse/partner:
(divorced)

Children and Pets (number, type, names, ages):
Jamie, male,age 13; 8th grade. Drummer, skateborder, ballplayer

Something memorable/highlights about your days or years at Marshall-U High:
I think Dan Tetzlaff was a great music teacher.He was only there for 7th& 8th grade before he got fired,and was a bit of a wacko, but was inspiring for me . . . In 8th grade when we merged with U-high,and had new students coming from North and Central—wow, those were turbulent, intense days. There was the jocks vs. the freaks and the way that all kind of melted together by time we were seniors. Remember that crazy homecoming that year? The unfortunate egg throwing in the auditorium, and the fight at the end of the football game between our team and some racist assholes on the Mahtomedi team . . . John Holmquist, Karl Ausland, and Stu Anderson had a good power trio and I still remember them sometimes when I hear Cream. Dan Melford was part of that, too.

What have you been doing since then?
After graduation I began working as a musician in funk/r&b, jazz, and lounge bands. In ‘75 I moved to Boston to attend New England Conservatory of Music.After that I did commercial work with bands in the Caribbean and Bermuda for 2 years. In ‘81 I moved to New York City with the dream of playing jazz and latin music for a living. The first band I joined here was the Wallets from Minneapolis! I also worked with the Four Tops, Etta James, Otis Rush, Dizzy Gillespie, Louie Ramirez & Ray De La Paz (for a long time), Hector Lavoe, Tito Allen (I played with Tito Puente once). When I got married I started doing more “society” work (at the Plaza, Waldorf, PierreHotels, Palm Beach, Beverly Hills,etc.) mainly because it paid better than salsa/merengue/cumbia gigs and I could get home before dawn. I worked for many years with Lester Lanin in mansions in Newport , Paris,Scarsdale,etc. I also got involved in Jewish music, playing for Hassidic, Orthodox, middle eastern, and not-necessarily jews. These bands work in NY and everywhere. Once I played a bar mitzvah in Panama,and weddings in Australia, Belgium, Passover gigs in Hawaii, Bermuda,etc. One of the more fun musical experiences I’ve had is working as a sub with the Klezmatics, a group that mixes Klezmer with funk, rock, ska, avant garde, etc. In that band I also play keyboard and sing harmony parts in yiddish.

I also sing a lot of pop, standards, blues and bebop. New York is fascinating because there are so many cultures mixed together, and being a musician who is willing and able to play the musics of these varied ethnicities can be interesting. This week for example I
did a Jewish/ funk/jazz recording date; a restaurant gig where I play jazz and sing Sinatra tunes; a society gig in Atlanta, and another in Newport. Every week is different. Even though I got sidetracked from my dream of playing improvised music and having a career as a “creative artist,” I feel fortunate that I’ve been able to make a living as a musician. My greatest fear was always having a real job.

I have a boy, Jamie, who I try to spend as much time with as I can (it’s not easy since I’m not living with his mother). Raising a child in Manhattan is a challenge and a joy. I coach baseball for his team,Greenwich Village Litle League. He hits the curve ball better than I ever did. I play softball on teams in Central Park and East Village. Coaching kids has made me a better player.