ABOUT

I learned to play guitar when I was eight years old after seeing The Beatles on The Ed Sullivan Show. Soon I had my first electric guitar and began to learn songs by the British Invasion rock groups and folk artists like Bob Dylan and Phil Ochs. When high school began I turned out to be the only kid willing to sing in a band, so I did quite a lot singing in my teens. I loved playing and singing and did it as much as I could. When I was seventeen I left New York for Boston’s vibrant music scene. In 1980 I became a founding member of Private Lightning and signed a recording contract with A&M Records. Private Lightning produced two hit singles, “Physical Speed” and “Song of the Kite” both of which can still be found on Youtube. During this period I began to study voice with Boston voice teacher Merrill Shea. I worked with Merrill for three years and became much more confident as a vocalist. When Private Lightning broke-up I formed The Souls and began to concentrate on my songwriting. The rock anthem “Shoot for the Moon” was nominated for a Boston Music Award for best song.

After eight years of playing clubs with The Souls I decided it was time for a break from the music business and began to focus on my other love, painting. While painting I listened to jazz and slowly began to wonder if I could sing jazz standards. I was turned on to Chet Baker by a friend and began to experiment with different vocals styles. I wrote the song “January, February” with a jazzy, Chet Baker feel and shot a video directed by Jeff Hudson (Youtube). At this time I released my first critically acclaimed solo album “Songbird”. My interest in jazz singing inspired me to attend a jazz vocal master class taught by the sought after performer/teacher Shawnn Montiero. Shawnn taught me so much about performing and finding my own voice. I felt I had gained enough knowledge to share with young musicians and started teaching voice at my own studio Voice Lessons Cambridge. I’ve been teaching now for twelve years. Rock & Roll never left the picture and in 2018 I began writing songs that would become “River of Dreams” my second full-length solo recording. I formed the Adam Sherman Band and released the album with a celebratory performance at the Cloud Club in Boston.

When the pandemic hit I found that rather than being shut down creatively, I was inspired to write new music. “Hope,” written during the first days of lockdown is a plea for strength during dark days. “Justice Lies” is a response to the murder of George Floyd. These songs formed the core of my third solo album “Triangle Sky” released in 2021. As the pandemic wore on a small group of musicians began to meet socially on Zoom. The desire to make music together led to the formation of Back Porch Carousel and monthly livestream shows on Facebook. Back Porch Carousel has recorded five singles remotely that can be found on all major streaming services.

I’m currently back in the recording studio beginning work on my next collection of songs. Creativity keeps me going and I’m thankful that music provides me a way to reach out and stay connected with the world.