Rick has been making music almost his entire life. He started as a classically trained violinist at age three, added trumpet a year later, and became the youngest member of the Springfield (Ohio) Youth Symphony. By high school, he traded his violin for a bass guitar and discovered where he truly belonged.

 

After graduation, Rick joined the U.S. Army Band program, trained at the Army/Navy School of Music, and was stationed with the 76th Army Band in Kaiserslautern, Germany. During his five years there, he performed across Europe—including for Presidents Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush—and, of course, at more than a few memorable German beer and wine festivals.
 

Following his military service, Rick and his wife (a fellow 76th Band alumnus) settled down to raise their family. Once the kids were grown, he returned to performing and helped found Wichita’s popular 80s rock band EPIC. His journey with Prairie Smoke grew out of longtime friendships with Adam Gorman and Todd Gilmore, first formed in The Recess Band. When the lineup evolved to include Scott Bell, Prairie Smoke was born—and the rest, as Rick likes to say, is history in the making.