Hey! I'm John, I play drums. I've lived in San Francisco, Omaha, Pensacola, New Orleans, Bainbridge Island, Seattle, Ellensburg, Boston, Brooklyn, Greece, Seattle again for a while, now Los Angeles. I'm lucky to be able to do what I love for a living. My wife and I also own a pet supply store in Santa Monica called Tails of Santa Monica, we're dog fanatics. Please visit my site, http://www.johnwicks.com/ or http://www.tailsofsantamonica.com for more info.
Here is what James Hale at Downbeat Magazine was nice enough to write a couple of years ago...DOWNBEAT MAGAZINE "YOUNG DRUMS: 13 WHO WILL SET THE BEAT FOR THE FUTURE"
Seattle's loss is L.A.'s gain. After establishing himself as one of the most distinctive and supportive drummers in the Northwest, John Wicks has made the move south-no surprise, really, when you consider his laid-back style and its origins. "I was a Navy brat, so we moved a lot," he says. "When my dad was stationed in New Orleans, my mother took me out to Mardi Gras, and I just fell in love with that sound. My parents were also really into Ahmad Jamal, so Vernel Fournier was a big influence. I loved him, along with Levon Helm and Paul Motian" With his mother's encouragement, Wicks pursued private lessons with Dave Coleman Sr., a former Billie Holiday sideman, and attended Berklee for two years. In Boston, he took additional lessons with Joe Hunt, Alan Dawson, and a few with Fournier in New York. Wicks' instrumental voice has a definite southern drawl, just slightly behind the beat, with planty of room between strokes. As he likes to describe it: "It's slow and relaxed the way southerners are because it's humid."Rock it...jmw
