
At age 14 his dad bought Tommy an accoustic guitar from a Sears & Robuck catalog for $12.99. He walked around in circles in his room wearing the windings off the Black Diamond strings for hours on end.
His first major influences were The Ventures, Jimmy Burton, Duane Eddy, and all the hot studio guitar players backing the stars of the time. He became well known on the local scene in Rochester, N.Y. with bands like The Angry Men, Gunther's Bus, October Young and Rain.
The Beatles made him realize that it was the whole group that gave the music it's style and power. He wanted to be a part of that. He also became an accomplished singer.
But it was Jethro Tull, Yes, Genesis, Pink Floyd, Emerson Lake & Palmer, Gentle Giant, Rush and King Crimson that reached out and grabbed Tommy by the kahunahs.
That's when he began to write music. And all of the above bands and players came out in a mish mash of Progresive Rock with a twist of Tommy.
Tommy plays Paul Reed Smith guitars almost exclusively