The author’s life trajectory resembles that of a Picasso drawing – disjointed and disconnected vertical, horizontal, diagonal and curved lines that do not necessarily make sense. 

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He was born and raised in Brownwood, Texas not that far from the Rio Grande and the Texas-Mexico border.  The first 18-year line of that life trajectory was vertical and fairly normal; except that it did serve as his introduction, along with the rest of the world, into the recreational drug era. 

 

That period was followed by a series of pretty much useless college degrees, a Bachelor’s degree in government from the University of Texas at Austin and Master’s degree in social work from Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond.

 

The next line certainly did not connect, as the author literally fell into the music business, first working with his lifelong friend Van Wilks and then ZZ Top’s management company.  That was the beginning of a long trajectory related to music and the music business.  Although he loved music, he never saw it as a career path. 

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After banging his head on the ceiling at that management company, the author took another disconnected turn and earned yet another degree, this time in law, at the University of Texas School of Law.  This line actually DID connect to the next.  He then wrangled a position in the entertainment department with a law firm in Los Angeles.  This was followed by a position in the music department of the high-powered entertainment law firm in LA, then known as Bloom, Dekom and Hergott.

 

After getting his fill of the southern California lifestyle, the author returned to Texas in the early 1990s.   He opened his own music-focused law firm practicing for the next 28 years in Houston and Austin until his retirement in 2018.  A side-turn during that time included the opportunity to teach music business and music law courses at St. Edward’s University in Austin, the University of Texas School of Music and School of Law in Austin and Austin Community College.

 

During his time practicing as a music attorney, he was fortunate enough to work on legal projects for a wide and diverse range of clients including the Beatles, Lucasfilm, Joe Cocker, the Bangles, Bruce Willis, Kim Basinger, Chamillionaire (one of his favorites), Los Lonely Boys, The Knack, Steppenwolf and the estates of Davy Jones and Doug Sahm. He was also involved in music legal work for many film and television projects including “Thelma and Louise”, “The Hunt for Red October” and “Mississippi Burning”.

 

After retirement, the author moved to Costa Rica.  He is currently traveling like a nomad with his girlfriend through South America.