Tom Macan - drums
Tom, a native of Cleveland, Ohio, grew up listening to Dixieland Jazz, thanks to an older brother who was an avid jazz record collector. A trip to the Palace Theater in Cleveland to hear the Benny Goodman band with Gene Krupa kindled Tom's desire to be a drummer. He studied with "Army" Armstrong, a noted vaudeville and pit band drummer. Further percussion study was interrupted in 1945 by a stint with the Army Air Corps, which included assignment at Hamilton Field, north of San Francisco. This provided the opportunity for frequent visits to the Dawn Club in San Francisco to hear Lu Watters and the Yerba Buena Jazz Band. After service, he attended Ohio State University and later joined the "old" General Motors in Detroit, where he stayed for 37 years. He played with big bands and small groups in the Detroit Area, even some rock 'n roll bands. He was also a percussionist with a regional symphony in Michigan for 13 years. He settled in Sun City West in 1996 and currently plays with the "Sun City Concert Band," the "Desert Brass," the "Music Makers Big Band," and - his real love - the "Sun City Stomperz."

Kevin Krull - trombone
Kevin has played with a variety of swing and traditional jazz small groups for the past 30 years. In addition, He has played with the following people and groups:
Steve Allen, Robert Goulet, Jerry Vale, Ray Charles, Gladys Knight and the Pips, Jazz Cowboys, Clyde Beatty-Cole Brothers Circus, Little Anthony and the Imperials, Great America Theme Park, Great London Circus, Messiah Brass Ensemble, Mary Lou Metsker, Jimmy Dorsey Orchestra, Chicago Six, Harry Blackstone Jr. Kevin has a BA degree in Music Performance from Cal-State Hayward.

Ernie Landes - Trombone
Ernie Landes took up the trombone in high school and began jamming with neighborhood musicians. While attending Stanford University, he heard the bands of Bob Scobey and Turk Murphy and spent many Friday afternoons playing for free beer in college hangouts. He helped form a band named "South Bay Seven" which was popular in the San Jose area in the sixties.
In 1973 he was recuited by Frank Goulette to join the "Monterey Classic Jazz Band" of Santa Cruz, CA. With this band he attended most of the West Coast jazz festivals and enjoyed an eight-year run of Sunday afternoon gigs at the Dream Inn in Santa Cruz.
Retiring to Washington State in 1995, Ernie joined the "Dukes of Dabob" which played for twelve years at the Valley Tavern near Dabob Bay. He has moved to Peoria, AZ, where he helped form the "Sun City Stomperz" in 2006.

Ray Templin -piano, drums, vocals
Ray hails from Chicago where he played in many jazz, comedy and show bands, including The Riverboat Ramblers of Milwaukee, which also featured Bob Schulz on trumpet. In 1979, he moved to Los Angeles, and became a favorite at local jazz clubs playing both piano and drums. He joined the Great Pacific Jazz Band, shortly after its formation, in 1980. He is a member of the Screen Actors Guild and may be seen often in reruns of NBC's long-running TV series "Matlock". His voice can also be heard on many "Married...With Children" episodes. Ray appears regularly at Disneyland, playing piano in New Orleans Square and alternating between piano and drums with the park's various show bands. In 1986, he formed his own group, Ray Templin's Chicagoans. He also plays with several other bands, including Bob Schulz's Frisco Jazz Band.

Jim Nickerson - trombone
Jim moved to AZ from the NW beginning his career with  US Navy bands.  In the NW he was associated with George Haviland, Johnny Lewis and others.  Since moving into the Rio Rico/ Green Valley area he has been active in nearly every band in the region and was a first choice when the DixieCats needed a replacement for their longtime dixie boneman, Jim Hockings.  Jim said he enjoys the  different challenges of the many bands in which he plays but enjoys playing with the DixieCats the most.

Anthony Bartlett - trombone
Anthony was born in Sydney, Australia and is a third-generation professional musician with extensive experience in both jazz and classical music. He started playing piano at the tender age of three before moving to trombone and tuba in Junior High School. Since then he has studied jazz at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music and has had the privilege of working with some of Australia’s favorite artists including James Morrison, Don Burrows, Tina Arena, Human Nature, Marina Prior, Don Lane, Frank Bennett and Tommy Emmanuel. Anthony has toured Australia with Sir Cliff Richard (“Summer Holiday”), Wilson Pickett (“Mustang Sally”) and jazz singer Barbara Morrison, performed with Elvis Presley’s original band, appeared on Australian network television and radio and can be heard on numerous TV and radio jingles and CD releases. Professional theater credits include Hot Shoe Shuffle and the Australia and South East Asia tour of Buddy – The Buddy Holly Story. Anthony is a former winner of the prestigious Australian “Mo” Entertainment Award. In his “other” career as the owner of a successful Sydney recording studio, Anthony has produced and performed on CD’s for artists such as Boys In Black and written many well-known advertising jingles.  Since moving to Arizona in 2003, Anthony has had the pleasure of performing with Igor’s Jazz Cowboys, tuba great Sam Pilafian and Joe Hopkins’ 52^nd Street Jazz Band Band.  He is currently adjunct faculty in the music department at Mesa Community College.

Ron Plude - piano
For Ron, Music has always been a hobby.  His first piano job after high school was playing for a tap dancing school.  He used playing to finance college at the U of Minn. Was told on his first job after college that he'd be much too busy to play and should drop it. 
He didn't of course, but kept it to himself. He played some jobs with Doc Evans in Mpls, some were Dixie jobs and some were casuals. He spent about 20 years with a Jewish band, playing mostly weddings, bar mitzvahs, and Jewish country clubs. He retired and moved to Phoenix in 1980, and got into the convention work thru the various agencies. For ten years or so he worked 4 to 5 jobs a week. Joined Cheryl Stevens Vintage Jazz Band in 1991, was with her for 5 years. Also played with Jeff Woodhouse, Bill Tinklers Dixie band, Hal Kelly and the AZ Classic Jazz Band.

Cheryl Thurston - Piano
Cheryl began playing stride piano professionally at age 14 in Canton Ohio.  She got influenced by her father John Lewis who played cornet in various Dixieland bands around the Cleveland/Akron area. She starting playing piano in her Dad’s band, the “Rainbow Ramblers” until he passed away in 1981. At age 16, she toured Europe playing the trumpet with the American Youth Symphony. While living in Ohio, she was a member of the New Orleans Stompers and got recognized as one of Cleveland’s most interesting people. She has played with the Earlville Jass Band, Rubber City Retreads, Ted Witt Trio, Dixie Ramblers, Eagle Jazz Band, Preservation Hall Jazz Band and performed at the EARLYJAZZ Jazz Festival. She moved to the Phoenix area in 1990, and was a member of the Sun Lakes Stompers, Sun Lakes Dixieland Band, and Sun Lakes Big Band. Currently, she plays at L.J.’s Pizza weekly and has her own group the Cheryl Thurston Combo. She occasionally subs in the Gary Church Band, Joe Hopkins Band, Bob Wardlaw’s Swingtime Jazz Band, and the Bob Beck Trio. She is also a member of Music Al Carte. She has played the Tucson Jazz Festval and Arizona Classic Jazz Festival.

Larry Crinklaw - Piano
Born in Arizona, he has worked with every major musician in hte Valley of the Sun. He is a graduate of The School for the Blind in Tucson. He has been with Fantasy Jive for 9 years.

Marg Burg  - Piano
Marg (Marguerite) started picking out tunes on the piano at age 4-5. After studying piano, she added voice and cello along with organ to her musical experience. Marg comes to Sun City West from the Philadelphia area. There she played with "The Wally King Orchestra," "The Swing Street Band," and "The Stardusters," as well as in the percussion section of the "Tri-County Concert Band. "
A classically trained pianist and organist, she received her Certificate in Church Music from Westminster Conservatory in Princeton, NJ. She is thoroughly enjoying her involvement with the "Sun City Stomperz" in Dixieland Jazz and Ragtime Piano. Marg plays with the "All Stars Stage Band", the "Encores Dance Band" and several other groups in the West Valley area in addition to her work at the Congregational Church and other churches in the Valley.

Gary Church - cornet, piano, trombone and guitar (Click Here for Gary's web page)
Gary started his musical career in Phoenix and after 25 years has returned. He has performed at countless jazz festivals and clubs. He was with the Silver dollar Jazz Band, Boondockers, Desert City Six, Fulton Street, and many others. Although jazz is his main love, Gary performed and recorded with such Country greats as Roger Miller, Willie Nelson, Mel Tillis and Merle Haggard. He is currently on tour with the Mel Tillis Show.  In 2002 Gary was the 23rd musician elected to the Western Swing Hall of Fame.
His career has taken theses twists and turns.
1970-1974- Jeff Woodhouse Dixieland Band, Desert City Six, The Barehanded Wolf Chokers Oldtime Dixieland Band Inc.
1974-1976-  Walt Disney World -Orlando Florida, Bill Allred's Reedy Creek Jazz Band, Sammy Gardner's Dixieland Band at Rosy O'Grady's in Pensacola Florida, Central Florida Hot Jazz All Stars with Jim Maihack, ( backing up Bobby Hackett in Orlando).
1975-  Worked as a replacement trombonist in Jim Cullum's Happy Jazz Band in San Antonio, Tx.
1976-  Crazy Ed's Place in Deer Valley with Igor, George Rock, Bruce Leeland and The Desert City Six and Igor’s Jazz Cowboys.
1977-1979 Went on the road with the Freddy Powers Show from Nevada, while with Freddy got to work with, Al Hirt, Peanuts Hucko, Milton Quackenbush, Wild Bill Davison, Tiny Moore, Jimmy Ivers, Roger MIller and Willie Nelson.
1980-Walt Disney World in Orlando Florida worked with the Pearly Band and The Banjo Kings, with Lee Floyd, Eddie Erickson, Randy Morris.
1981 - was in the house band at Willie Nelson's Jazz club in Austin Texas called DJANGOS with Ray Benson's Band "Asleep At The Wheel".
1982-1991- traveled with Merle Haggard's Strangers playing Western Swing and the Sac Jubilee each year with Jimmy Rivers, also subbed in the Fulton Street Jazz Band and Jan Sutherland and Custer’s Last Band.
1991-2000 worked with Mel Tillis and The Statesiders in Branson Mo. and with The Creole Jazz Band from Springfield Mo.
2001- Joined the Boondockers in Sacramento Ca, returned to Phoenix and worked with his own groups , The Desert City Six, The Joe Hopkins Quartet, The 52nd Street Jazz Band Band, Bob Wardlaw’s Swingtime and others.
2004- returned to the Mel Tillis Band.
He has recorded with;Larry Joiner And the Mavericks,,The Desert City Six, Freddy Powers, Bill Allred, Willie Nelson, Merle Haggard, The Joe Hopkins Quartet.
 

Bill Oakes - trumpet, cornet and flugelhorn
Bill was a professor of Experimental Psychology at Brooklyn College and the Graduate School of the City University of New York when he retired. In his youth, before giving up playing professionally in 1952 in order to study for his PHD in Psychology, he spent a number of years playing lead trumpet with big bands, most notably the Henry Busse Orchestra. Around 1980 he again unpacked his instruments and began playing with dixieland groups in New York. In 1982 he put his band, The Canal Street Dixieland Jazz and Blues band into the Cajun Restaurant in the Chelsea District of Manhattan as their Friday night band. Although Bill retired to Scottsdale in 1988, that band is still playing at the Cajun. Since moving here he has been a member of a number of dixieland groups, including Dr. Sasparilla, Desert City Six, Cheryl Stephens Vintage Jazz band and currently the AZ Classic Jazz band and the Swingtyme Jazz band. He has also played lead with several big bands in the area.  

Doc Chaney - trumpet, flugelhorn, valve trombone, vocals
Played with Benny Goodman -1980, Wayne King band,  Jim Nabors and many others.  Leader of the Crazy Ed's band for 5 years,  With the Mike Dunham Quintet in Laughland, Nev.,  Kay Star voc.,  Many dates with the Army band,  Mini fest at San Marcos with Mike Vax,  The 52nd st.Revival Dixieland Band, Fantasy Jive Band,  Wolf Chokers at Nick Fink's,  Jed Nolan's,  Desert City Six for many years.  He has lead The Fantasy Jive Jazz Band for 10 years.

Len Fontana - trumpet
 Originally from upstate NY, Len began trumpet at 12.  He spent four years in one of the top Army Bands followed by college and a teaching /band director  career of 30 years, retiring to Tucson.  Locally, Len has blown lead or ride horn in 3 dixie bands, bigbands and many small combos.  His diminutive stature is in contrast to the big sound from his horn.

Sid Gire - Trumpet
Sid picked up the trumpet again in the 1980s after giving it up for about 25 years to pursue his business career. After playing for dances and jazz festivals in Washington, he started the "Three Rivers Jazz Band" which performed at jazz festivals and parties around Washington, Oregon and British Columbia over a period of six years.
Sid now spends six months each year in Surprise, AZ. He keeps busy playing trumpet and bass guitar with two 17-piece dance bands, several combos and of course, the "Sun City Stomperz". Although he is extremely proficient on bass guitar, his favorite musicians are Harry James and Louis Armstrong.

Ted Babcock - banjo
Ted has played locally in polka bands which has included playing with Frankie Yankovic. He has also played guitar with a local Hawaiian band. He has worked with the Desert City Six which involved playing in the Netherlands and Scotland along with five jazz cruises.  He has played many jazz festivals on the West Coast, including the Sacramento Jubilee ten times. He played with Cheryl Stephens Vintage Jazz Band for five years and has been a part of five recordings with various groups.

Al Farmer - banjo
Originally from Illinois, Al played with several local bands moving to Tucson in '54. He attended the UofAZ, majoring in electrical engineering, minoring in music.  He has worked with a variety of bands and styles locally including for Mel Torme on a Tucson appearance.  Al doubles on vocals and guitar.

Matt Mooney - banjo
Matt's only exposure to traditional Dixieland music came from listening to his father's jazz record collection while growing up in New Lexington, OH. Living in a small town, there was not an abundance of Dixieland jazz music, but the local Lion's Club put on an annual minstrel show for their spring fund-raiser. That was Matt's first introduction to this "alternative music" and eventually led him to taking up the banjo. Little did he know that some 21 years later he would be playing with the 10th Avenue Jazz Band, which was formed nearly 4 years before he was born...!While in high school, Matt did mostly solo work performing for club meetings, dinner parties, and school function. One of his favorite places to play was in Lancaster, Ohio at "Old Bill Bailey's" with the owner and piano player, Ben Smith. As is the case with many musicians, he used the banjo to help "play" his way through college and graduated from Ohio State University (B.S. Mechanical Engineering) and moved to Phoenix, Arizona in 1986. During his first several years in Phoenix, Matt could be found "sitting in" at various jazz clubs before he really became aware of the Dixieland festival circuit. In 1992, he took over the banjo seat in Dick Knutson's Desert City Six. After three years with the DC6, Matt hooked up with the 10th Avenue Jazz Band in December 1994.

Madelyn Roberts - guitar, banjo
The eldest child of late jazz and studio guitarist Howard Roberts, Madelyn Roberts began her musical career in childhood as a violinist. Having played with the Michigan Youth Symphony, she became popular in the Detroit area as a "ringer": someone who performs for hire in the string sections of community orchestras to help them sound more professional at their public concerts. Following a rotator cuff injury to her bowing arm, Madelyn took up the guitar in her early 20s but shortly thereafter put music aside to pursue a career in professional billiards. In the 1970s, she was one of the top competitors in the U.S., appeared on "Wide World of Sports" and performed billiards exhibitions with legendary players Minnesota Fats and Willie Mosconi. IN 1975, Madelyn founded and became the first executive director of the Women's Professional Billiards Association (WPBA), a group still playing matches that are regularly televised on ESPN.In the late '70s, Madelyn moved to Arizona, gave up billiards and re-discovered the guitar. Her first professional job as a guitarist was in a Western Swing band, "The Bar 7 Bunch". In order to continue to learn and to improve her guitar skills, Madelyn formed "Desert Seminars", an educational program that allowed guitarists from all over the U.S. and Canada to come to Arizona and study in a group with jazz guitar greats such as her dad, Barney Kessel and Herb Ellis. In 1981, Madelyn joined a full-time professional trio and went on the road.It was in this group that she met her partner and husband, drummer Caesar Rob. The trio later morphed into "KANDU", a variety band that toured the U.S. for 10 years. In the early '90s, Madelyn and Caesar returned to Phoenix and began performing at various private clubs and functions as a varity band. In 1996, Madelyn was elected President of American Federation of Musicians Local 586, Arizona's professional labor union, an office she currently holds. In 1994, she returned to billiards as an amateur player and in 2000 won the North American Senior Women's title, was a member of the winning North American Women's Open Team and was inducted into the WPBA Hall of Fame as its founder. Currently, Madelyn continues to play guitar as a member of  bands such as "52nd Street Jazz Band", "KANDU" and "The Robs".

Harry Schlafman - Banjo
Starting with piano at age nine. Harry moved on to play violin, banjo, cornet, string bass and soprano sax. He played banjo in a high school Dixieland Band, then co-founded the "Red Hot Stompers" at Cornell University. In Ohio, he performed with the "Docs of Dixieland," which appeared on national television. Harry spent about 25 years with the "Hermit Traditional Jazz Band," where he shared leadership with Ted Witt, an internationally famous clarinet player. Harry also appeared with Ralph Grugel's "Eagle Jazz Band." Moving to Northern California in the 1970s, Harry a joined a San Francisco jazz band, playing banjo and second cornet at jazz festivals mostly around the Western United States. That band also played on cruises and has taken many musical trip internationally.
Here in the Phoenix area, Harry has played with the "Desert City Six" and is now with the "Sun City Stomperz."

Danny Shannon - bass guitar (Click here for Danny's QWIK ™ SEAT web site)
Danny has been a key member of the Phoenix jazz scene for many years. He has also toured and appeared with Honky Tonk Pianist Big Tiny Little, Jazz Guitarist Mundell Lowe, and was even a member of the Grand Old Opry with country music legend Dottie West.  Danny has also played at 2 president's inaugurations, 10 USO shows, 5 jazz cruises, 2 European tours, 2 movies, 2 TV shows, 5 commercials, and 5 major recordings.
Eddie Fisher USO Show , Japan 1950
Famous "Make Believers" Phoenix 61-62
The Max Dan Trio 63-64
Owned "The Bucket Club" with live radio broadcasts 6 nights a week with "The Four More" 1964-66
Lloyd Eliss Quartet 1965-69
Merril Moor Trio at the Del Webb Townhouse in Phoenix 75-78
The Desert City Six 80s - 90. Played Sacramento Jazzz Fest. 9 years in a row.
Mike Dunham Quintet (Scopus Out) 80s
Steel Guitar International Festival with Terry Bethel & Milt Quackenbush
Gary Church - 2005
Dick Contino (Accordian) Trio Phoenix - 2003
Al Monty (Pres. of the Accordian Assoc.) 2002-2005
Gene Mason Trio - 50s
Ted Newman - 2002-2005
Blue Notes Dance Band (Bob Waters) - 80s
Parker Lund Band and Miss Pat Yankee in Iceland & Greenland - 1967
Phil Kirk, Bob Havens, Tommy Loy, Mike Vax.
Titan Hot Seven, Joe Ashworth, plus many more.