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Guitarist, vocalist, singer/songwriter, recording artist, producer & engineer, music instructor, record collector, archivist, graphic artist, lighting director, guitar & stage tech, videographer & photographer among other things are the description of what Minnesota Max does.
Max began playing guitar at a very early age, and began his career in the late 1970's performing Gospel and Christian Rock with many groups. Playing venues ranging from churches and coffee houses to youth conventions and Bible colleges. By age 16, he had earned creative study awards in Jazz improvisation and mass media from the University of Minnesota. Max then sought out the best guitarists in Minnesota that he could find. On a number of occasions, he begged bouncers at many seedy bars just to let him in to watch the band. After the show, he would hit up the guitarist for lessons.
In 1984, Max dropped out of high school, got his G.E.D, and began studying art in the Twin Cities. During that time, he learned all of the songs in the Led Zeppelin catalog at that time, and decided that maybe the music business would be a good direction.
Max then entered the "Rock'n'Roll" business in 1985, first as a lighting technician/roadie and later as a guitarist for literally dozens of agency acts based out of Minneapolis. The year 1989 brought Max to Nebraska working for a nightclub act. Striving at that time to be a musician instead of a tech, Max practiced daily, trying to keep up with the Hard Rock and Metal players of the day. During one of these frantic practice sessions, a friend said "Max, I don't know why you're knocking yourself out trying to play Metal, you're a Blues player!"
Living in Lincoln, Max found it almost natural to immerse himself into the Blues scene there. Participating in every open mic and Blues jam he could find, playing with different musicians every night, Max absorbed all that he could, tightening his skills with some of the best players in the area. It was at this time that Max began to sing a few tunes to double his skills. Before long, he was ready to try it on his own.
Returning to his hometown in central Minnesota, Max formed THE LAZYBOYZ in 1993. "The Lakes Area's own Rockin' Blues Band" performed hundreds of gigs, including a warm-up spot with Blues-Rock great PAT TRAVERS. After the release of their self-produced EP, and various member changes, THE LAZYBOYZ magic began to fade.
Max returned to Lincoln NE and joined BABY JASON AND THE SPANKERS IN 1998. Jason was a friend that Max had met during his prior residence in Lincoln, who had formed a trio a few years earlier. That trio had released three powerful CDs and was touring nationally. When Jason called Max and told him he wanted to add a fourth member to the group, there was no hesitation. The now completely re-vamped SPANKERS rehearsed every day for a couple of months, and hit the road late in 1998, playing a grip of shows on the Blues circuit. From down south juke joints to premier Blues clubs in major music cities all across the Central United States, from Beale Street in Memphis to Buddy Guy's Legends in Chicago, As far West as Salt Lake City to as far East as Indianapolis, as far North as Minneapolis, as far South as San Antonio, and every Blues festival in between. BABY JASON AND THE SPANKERS were a solidly consistent act, playing shows in support of many blues legends such as MAGIC SLIM, BUDDY GUY, COCO MONTOYA, TINSLEY ELLIS, BERNARD ALLISON, among many others, not to mention various opening slots for many Classic Rockers, such as TED NUGENT and QUIET RIOT. This chapter of BABY JASON AND THE SPANKERS climaxed with the release of Jason's fourth and strongest CD "DRIVE BY DISCIPLINE" in 1999. The group's members went their separate ways shortly thereafter.
In 2000, Max played guitar on C.A. WALLER's "MIGHT AS WELL RAIN" (Produced by Nebraska Legend SEAN BENJAMIN), adding the only electric guitar to a primarily acoustic delta-style Blues disc. Max attemped to form his own group in Lincoln comprised of some of the areas finest players. That band played one gig at the ZOO BAR as the MINNESOTA MAX BAND. Shortly after that, Max was asked to fill the 2nd guitar position in LIL' SLIM AND THE BACK ALLEY BLUES BAND, featuring SHAWN HOLT (the son of MAGIC SLIM) whose CD "LIVE AT THE ZOO" had just been released. The band was touring in support of that disc in a whirl-wind of national shows, then personal problems rendered Max unable to reasonably continue travelling. Late in the year, Shawn replaced Max with SEAN BENJAMIN.
In the next year, C.A. WALLER formed THE PICKLED BLUES BAND, that played a handful of shows and a small tour out west until the group folded in the fall of 2002. Max then returned to Minnesota to his family to sort out his life after such a roller coaster ride.
Taking a few odd jobs to make end meet, Max settled on a guitar teaching position at a music store in his hometown. Then Max revived a version of THE LAZYBOYZ in 2003, playing a few shows in the next couple of years, including a gig warming up STARSHIP (featuring MICKEY THOMAS). In the Fall of 2006, Max performed a show at a local theatre as a trio calling themselves the MINNESOTA MAX BLUES BAND, and a DVD is now available of that show.
Bringing us to today... he still performs live, sometimes as a solo act, or occasionally with the Lakes Area of West Central Minnesota's OWN Rockin' Blues Band, THE LAZYBOYZ, and most recently with Lincoln, Nebraska Blues favorites, BABY JASON & THE SPANKERS (of which Max was a member of in the late '90's), AND the internationally Legendary Chicago Blues Master, MAGIC SLIM, who is a recording artist on the Blind Pig record label. Minnesota Max is in Nashville now, finally!!! What comes next?? Please stay tuned!!