Album Notes

Jerry Topinka began playing guitar in May 1954, quickly displaying a passion for the instrument. Jerry studied with two of the top guitarists of the time-Al Caiola and Joe Cinderella. At the age of 16, Jerry was playing professionally and in 1964 performed regularly in a Bergen County jazz club. Les Paul would stop by every Saturday night to hear Jerry play. Today, Jerry can be seen playing with Les Paul in NYC at the Iridium. In the mid to late 1970's, Jerry toured the country playing in the top Las Vegas clubs-the Stardust, Hilton, Aladdin, and Sands, playing alongside stars such as Buddy Rich and Gloria Gaynor. Jerry also accompanied Stephanie Mills and recorded a duet of "Danny Boy" with Al Green. He toured extensively with the band Chailo, whose 1978 song "Joanie" received significant radio play leading to an enthusiastic write-up of the band in Billboard magazine. Along with a busy performing schedule, Jerry did studio work in the 1970's for the CBS network with producer Artie Shreck, playing on commercials for Ford Motor Company and Comet Cleanser. Jerry also wrote, produced, and recorded a WABC commercial for Century Hardware. The album "Wind" by Tchin and Yovani features Jerry's playing on the instrumental song "Nostalgia," nominated in 2000 for a Grammy in the Native American category. Jerry engineered and performed on the "Kamban Oru Kannile" CD by Charan and Devan, an album achieving gold-level sales in India. Jerry's Indian friends sought him out to hire and manage musicians for the 2000 U.S.A. and Canadian tour of A.R. Rahman, an acclaimed Indian performer and composer who has worked with Michael Jackson and also Andrew Lloyd Weber on the Broadway musical "Bangkok Dreams." In addition to a busy performing schedule, Jerry continues to teach and owns a music school at Freehold Music Center in Freehold, NJ, employing 24 teachers with an enrollment of 600 students. Jerry's professional recording, mastering, and rehearsal facility, Contemporary Studios, is also located at Freehold Music. Jerry continues to record, write, and play with his trademark energy and passion. He can be contacted at Freehold Music Center Contemporary Studios at (732) 409-1140 or by email at email@contemp-studios.com. Visit www.jerrytopinka.com for more information.