BIG MIKE MOTHERSHED
LEAD VOCALIST
Born in a beautiful small town in Southeast Kansas, he started out as a child prodigy gospel singer. He then spent 8 years in the U.S military while working part-time as a studio background singer. His talents allowed him to be pursued to sing all over the nation. He has performed and competed natioanally and it finally grew to a conclusion because he was asked to be a judge and not a contestant.
He has competed and won countless vocal contests nationally and is renowned for being able to recreate the Motown, Stax and Philly Sound of balladeers, past and present. His sound has been heavily influenced by the likes of Barry White, Luther Vandross, Jeffery Osborne and David Ruffin. His tenor and baritone command of vocals along with his confidence is entertaining and allows him to engage any audience who loves r&b/funk/soul/jazz/blues/classic rock and 40's/50's big band or just good dance music!
GREG KINDVALL
Guitarist & Band Leader
Greg started playing guitar at the age of 15 after seeing The Beatles on Ed Sullivan 6 years earlier he knew that music was going to be a big part of his life. By the time he was in High School in the early 70's, he started playing in local rock bands which included 50's and 60's rock and roll, and classic 70's hard rock. In the mid 70's he and the other members in the band quit their day jobs and hit the road touring the upper Midwest and Canada. In the early 80's after having a spiritual awakening with the Lord Jesus he started playing in the worship band at his local church and has continued in the ministry of music for over 30 years. In the early 2000's while playing in the church worship band he met bass player Ken Look wanted to put together a band for the wedding of his stepdaughter. Greg, Ken, and other members from the worship band then formed Retro Soul and the Westside Horns. They had so much fun performing the music they loved from Stax records, Motown, Classic rock, and Blues, they decided to continue. After all these years Greg still continues to play music with the same passion and energy he had when he started at 15 years old. He says "As long as we're having fun we're going to keep playing."
PAUL DICKIE
Guitarist - Vocalist
Paul is a NY native who came to MN after a 20-year stint in IN. He has been playing guitar since the 60’s when he realized the Beatles made it more popular than the trumpet he had been playing. He has played with various worship teams and bands since the 1980’s and has been playing with Retro Soul for the last 8 years.
KEN LOOK
Bass
Ken hails is native of the windy city - Chicago and brings all the soul and blues required to make it authentic and come to life. He started as a drummer and converted to the bass - a match made in heaven. A disciple of blues - he has put the B in the Blues!
CRAIG MESENBRING
Trumpet
Craig has been playing since he was 10 years old. He started his musical career as a school band “nerd”…hardly…then started playing in horn bands, and eventually became seriously interested in classical playing with a brass quintet. His most influential mentor in music was his college trumpet professor, Al Moore. Bands that influenced him the most include Blood, Sweat, and Tears, Chicago, Tower of Power and Maurice Andre.
Craig’s impressive background includes playing for several great bands, including Top Brass, Open Road, Octopus, Chance, and even played a gig with Smokey Robinson and the Miracles.
MARK SEELY
Drummer
Originally from Spirit Lake IA., Mark moved to the Twin Cities after graduating from the University of Iowa with a Bachelor of Music degree in 1987. He has played in a variety of bands in the metro area including several tribute acts that featured the music of such artists as Roy Orbison, Patsy Cline, Loretta Lynn and Creedance Clearwater Revival. Mark has also played on worship teams for a variety of churches including 20 years as a member of the praise band for Speak the Word Church International, he has been a member of Retro Soul since 2014. Mark is a very musical and versatile drummer with a rock solid groove and smooth feel that propels the band, his influences are Jeff Porcaro, Steve Gadd, Neil Peart and Louie Bellson.
SCOTTY SMITH
Trombone
Scott too, is master reader and player of music. He can stand alone and overwhelm you with solos or can lead a horn section ala Tower of Power and Chicago. Thou he has laid back demeanor - his sense of rhythm and soul will make you wanna move.