Bobby Lenti

Just a little history: It all started when I saw The Beatles on The Ed Sullivan Show. That was it for me so I threw away my baseball, my glove, and my accordion and proceeded to “con” my mother into buying me a guitar. As I muddled my way through high school, I worked with a number of garage bands in my hometown of Brooklyn, NY, playing high school dances, “sock hops”, summer street parties, the occasional bar; you name it---I did it! In 1971, A friend of mine opened up a four-track recording studio right next door to where I lived. I ended up doing a ton of demo sessions there not only as a guitarist, but also as a vocalist; playing piano, organ, bass, drums, dobro or whatever was needed for the session. Through my work in my friend’s studio, I got my first “break.” In 1972 I was hired as the guitarist for Robert John, who had charted with his recording of “The Lion Sleeps Tonight.” As a matter of fact, the record went to number three on the Billboard pop charts; and of course, 21 year old me was in the touring band reaping the rewards of being on the road with a “hit artist.” It lasted off and on for six months. Then I was back home to Brooklyn. B U T I had met a lot of very talented musicians (Smokey Robinson, Al Green, James Brown, Helen Reddy, The Grassroots, Stevie Wonder, to name a few) and my fate was further sealed. In 1974, after answering an ad in the Village Voice, I joined a band out of Philadelphia called JOHNNY’S DANCE BAND. We ended up on RCA-Windsong Records and were the “darlings” of the Philadelphia area from 1974 through 1978. We were going to be the next big thing after Bruce Springsteen. Yeah Right, Ah Huh, Oh Sure. In 1979 I left the group and started my own band, Blue Eyes. We tried without success at securing a recording contract, but I kept us on the road and working for five years. In 1983, I went the family way and had to curtail my gigging for the “straight life.” I had children now. From 1983 through 1993, I went back to college, worked as a computer programmer, accountant, bookkeeper, etc., all the while still playing and singing. In 1993, I had enough of the “real” world and began again performing full-time. For the last 14 years, I’ve been the “hired gun” with a number of musical organizations. Most recently, I’ve been writing, producing and publishing my own material . If you go to “THE MUSIC” page of my website, www.bobbylenti.com please give a listen to some of my new tunes. Thanks, Bobby Lenti