Shawn Royer

I began writing songs at age 18 when attending Arizona State University, forming a band with friends (percussionists Lonnie Ward of Tempe band Grey Matter and Chuck Lucas studying Business Finance, floutist Eric Zang and chromonica player Greg Brown who was studying Architecture). We called it "Spare Change," performing at local tempe coffehouses and restaurants as well as on the ASU campus in the mid '90's. I didn't make any recordings until about 2001 when I was working with a local guitarist/keyboard player named Mary Kibbler and formed a trio with Greg Brown (Spare Change) called Solidspace. We performed at Coffee Talk a couple of times in the late '90's. I also gigged for a brief period with Apache Junction resident and Native American Flute performer Dick Saggio at Essenza Coffe House in Mesa and the Mesa Border's Books doing largely improvisational gigs where nothing was rehearsed before hand. Oddly enough, people liked it. Around 1999, I met up with Len and Dave Rosen of Tempe band Radio Theory, playing with them for a brief stint in the Phoenix/Tempe club circuit. After this, I chose to regroup with Greg Brown for a reformation of "Spare Change" with new musicians including bassist Warren Unruh, vocalist Dan Lepianka and other guitarists Gene Davis and Chris Rostad. After a few months of this lineup, personnel changes occurred and the group eventually met up with singer/songwriter, mandolin and guitar player Mike Galli (now of Jasper's Clue), percussionist Tim Melendrez and bassist Tony Sheesley to form a new band called Rhumb Line in 2001. This band played the Tempe bar scene for only a brief time until disbanding with Galli forming Jasper's Clue and myself carrying on Rhumb Line until forming "The Juniors" with guitarist Ron Bowen and singer Jeannie Chang in 2003. This band eventually came to include Jimmy Lee Boggs (keys) and Jeff Simminger (Bass), giving birth to "Ono Grindz" a few years later. I left "The Juniors" in 2004 to begin recording the forthcoming CD, "20 Hours From Memphis" which also features such original songs as:20 Hours from Memphis Would You Blame Me? She Loved Me Lost in New York Carried Away Hoping Everyday Hit Single Married Man Wasted Time, Wasted Money If I'm a Winner (Why do I feel like a loser again?) "20 Hours from Memphis" should be available for order by September. We will keep you all posted. Thanks for stoppin in!