William Hart Strecker
William Hart Strecker - Modern Rhythm and BluesBand/artist history
Originally from Long Island, New York, William Hart Strecker has been writing songs and performing for most of his life. A very funny guy, with a zest for life and an almost insane love for music, he has just released a debut CD containing original songs he has composed over the years.
Strecker began his music career at age 5 as a trombonist. "I was the worst trombone player in the world, so I changed to vocals and studied classical voice in my school years." While studying voice, he picked up guitar at age 10, and in High School, formed his first band. By age 19, he became disillusioned with the classical world, gave up his classical vocal training and went on to play country, blues, r&b and many different styles in many different bands.
Always a step away from stardom, his group New Hope released a single which lead to touring the US. He ended up in Florida, where he met his wife Peggy. Together, the two decided to head to London, and to do some recording on their own. After about a year in the UK, however, Strecker decided to call it quits. He and Peggy returned to the U.S., Strecker studied Landscape Design and started his own company from the ground up.
After years of success with his landscape design business, Strecker experienced a life changing event. An auto accident nearly took his life and he was injured so badly, he had to re-learn how to walk, talk and eat. It was during this time that he realized that as much as he loved the career he had built for himself, something was missing from his life. "You don't wanna play bars for the rest of your life. But the spirit, the magic [of music] - I just wanted to see if it was still there," said Strecker.
After his recovery, he returned to running his business. It wasn't until his son Aaron gave him a gift certificate from a local music store that he finally decided it was time to get back into music. He purchased a drum kit, "and now I'm a drummer!" From that point on, his home studio began to expand. People donated stuff: an old Hammond organ, a 4-track, and other items. At this point, he decided to release his first CD, "Keep on Lovin'". He has since picked up trombone again and also trumpet.
"This CD was the quickest project on the planet because Peggy and I really knew what we wanted." From a catalog of hundreds of songs, most for which he had already recorded the basic tracks, he selected his favorite material and contacted his old friends Al and Ted Hemberger who run the Loft Studios in Bronxville, NY (Ted plays drums on 5 of the tracks.) You can hear the wealth of experience and joy of music in Strecker's soulful vocals. You can also hear influences like Ray Charles, Robert Johnson and Stevie Wonder. And when you listen to this CD, you will agree that Strecker still has the spirit and the magic of music, and like him, you'll be thrilled that he's back.Your musical influences
B.B. King, Stevie Wonder, Robert Johnson