While in high school Rick studied with Mattie Shiner.

His first gigs as a musician was as a singer ($50.00 per gig – a lot of money for a poor kid in high school).

He attended University of Tennessee at Chattanooga as a Music Theory and Composition major.

Rick was a member of the Chattanooga Symphony from 1977-82 and with the DuPont World’s Fair Band in 1983.

He also did various gigs and sessions in Nashville.

In 1984, Rick moved to Jacksonville, FL and performed with the Jack Heard Big Band as well as with his own jazz quartet 1984-86.

He was a full time musician at Disney World 1986-2010.

Rick has performed with Bob Hope, Rosemary Clooney, Natalie Cole, Tony Bennett and many more.

He’s been a Broadway show musician for many years in the Orlando and Tampa areas and currently works with the band Rocky & The Rollers.