ojo profile picture

ojo

Do few things, do them well.

About Me


Written by Jerry Wilson, who is also working on a book about the era and context Undercover flourished in. Visit his MySpace page for info (he's in my friends list). Thanks, Jerry.
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It would seem to be a paradox, cutting against tradition by embracing same. Yet this fundamental is at the heart of Joe Taylor: musician, businessman, pursuer of Spirit and truth.
Taylor was born in Pennsylvania in the mid 50s, a child of both strict Catholic upbringing and rock music. In time his father's work took the family to Orange County, where the young Taylor's interest in athletics was superseded by dusting off childhood piano lessons to play along with high school chum Gym Nicholson in what after his embrace of evangelical Protestantism would eventually become Undercover, the seminal Christian alternative rock band whose music and legacy of exploring both light and shadow reverberates to this day. Taylor worked as fervently behind the scenes as on stage; his contribution of production work on vital albums and oversight of record labels bringing legitimacy to the Christian marketplace cannot be overstated. He was one of the principals along with Gene Eugene and Barry Hill, of Brainstorm Artists.
As the 80s slid into the 90s, his pursuit of truth led Taylor once again to go against the grain, this time by entering into the institutions one would automatically assume to be anathema to an edgy rocker. He returned to the Catholic Church, and prepared for the next level of his future by studying Arts Management at UCLA and building Treehouse studio at his home. He has reached into the musical legacy he loved as a child by studying composition at CSU Fullerton with Lloyd Rodgers while still relishing the occasional get-together by Undercover for shows and recordings here and there. He is now Assistant Professor of Music Industry Studies at James Madison University in Harrisonburg, VA.
A father of five above all (plus owner of two Pharaoh Hounds), Taylor is a man of many accomplishments. These duly noted, one of his greatest is that he is a friend of many, respected and loved by his peers. Taylor lives his beliefs.

My Interests

Music:

Member Since: 9/21/2005
Band Members: Last lineup was Ojo on keyboards, Gym on electric guitar, TK Gardner on baritone guitar, Amber Peters on vocal, Gary Olson on vibes, Sabrina Cabral on electric viola. But it could also be Undercover, or on any given weekend, any combination of friends - or just me tinkering.
Influences: Morton Feldman, Lloyd Rodgers, Igor Stravinsky, Mahler's Kindertotenlieder, Steve Reich, LaMonte Young, Radiohead, NIN, Led Zeppelin, Erik Satie, Beatles, Yes, Henry Purcell, John Cage, Arvo Part, Henryk Gorecki, Leonard Cohen, Bach's Passions & Mass, Josquin, Palestrina, Soundgarden, Black Sabbath, Georg Handel, The Chopin Preludes, Zen & The Art of Motorcycle Maintenance, Thomas Merton, Viktor Frankl, Erich Fromm, B-52's, Claude Debussy, Charles Ives, Peter Gabriel. I love counterpoint - the lifelong study.
Sounds Like: Ummm....
Record Label: Quaint...
Type of Label: Indie

My Blog

Steve Reich at JMU

Steve Reich came to James Madision University in February, 2008 for the annual Contemporary Music Festival.  I heard about it when I first arrived here in August, 2007 and thought it was quite a ...
Posted by ojo on Fri, 22 Feb 2008 11:08:00 PST

Book of Waiting

Book of Waiting is a four-movement work written for string orchestra.  This is a live recording of the second and third movements from my graduate composition recital, complete with chair noises...
Posted by ojo on Thu, 21 Feb 2008 11:51:00 PST

My Friend Flaven and Come Away With Me

The afterglow of the Rick Griffin opening continues... After not having seen or spoken to any of the Griffin clan for probably 15 years or more, it was so great to see them all again.  I've alrea...
Posted by ojo on Wed, 11 Jul 2007 11:33:00 PST

Rick Griffin

Last night I attended an opening of Rick Griffin's work at the Laguna Beach Art Gallery ( www.lagunaartmuseum.org/current_exhibits.html ) with my friend Chris Brigandi.   I cannot begin...
Posted by ojo on Mon, 25 Jun 2007 04:20:00 PST

My Graduate Recital at CSUF

Dear Friends,   Please join me at my Graduate Recital for the Master of Music degree in Theory and Composition to hear what I've REALLY been up to for the last few years and to help me celeb...
Posted by ojo on Tue, 19 Jun 2007 01:26:00 PST

Footnote to 3-26-06

My God, music is loud in my life and in my head right now.  I believe.
Posted by ojo on Mon, 27 Mar 2006 08:50:00 PST

Diary for 3-26-06

Coming off of 3 or 4 hours sleep, I woke up to get ready to attend a conference at Cal State Dominguez Hills for a music fraternity Gym and I were being initiated into today.  Gym's mom has been ...
Posted by ojo on Mon, 27 Mar 2006 05:28:00 PST

Notes on

The song is a complete overhaul of a Boys Club song.  It was recorded sometime last year I think, at the Treehouse.  All the music tracks were done by me and Gym.  Rob Gallas sang. ...
Posted by ojo on Mon, 27 Mar 2006 05:15:00 PST