Off The Record Original Retro Rock Band
Judges By Day - Musicians By Night
Off The Record performs original retro rock. Their music has elements of Pink Floyd, The Rolling Stones and the ’60’s through ’80’s. Included on their album are “20th Century Man”, “Save The Children”, “Taking It All The Way”, “Politics”, “Water of Love”, “Ode to the Sixties” and 4 more original songs
Members at the time of recording were John Gibson (Drums), Peter Heide (Guitar), Jim Dorr (Guitar), Bob Fowler (Keyboards) and John Sanchez (Bass). Most of the members take turns on lead and background vocals, and also contribute to the group with their individual original songs.
Their original album was recorded at Road Records recording studio and produced by Conrad Askland. They will be featured on the Road Records CD compilation release New Faces Volume Four.
UPDATE 08/01 - After a long wait the final mixes for the album have finally been mastered. The band also has a demo of cover tunes available.
The Daily Press
Victorville, CA
September 7, 1999
By Silvio J. Panta - Staff Writer
BARSTOW - He may not be as famous as Ringo Starr, but Superior Court Judge John Gibson showed he is just as witty and talented a drummer as the famed ex-Beatle.
“I’m so ground in the 60’s, it’s painful, “Gibson said. “We’re allowed to play twice a month.”
Gibson wasn’t the only one who was tuned in to the past as he and other local jurists exclusively played oldies from the ’50’s and ’60’s during a sun-drenched Labor Day at Lake Dolores Water Park.
While patrons milled about and played in the water, the band of musicians who cleverly call themselves Off The Record, entertained whoever passed their way. Superior Court Judge James Dorr played rhythm guitar and sang like a pro during four long sets.
Barstow Superior Court language interpreter Peter Heide was also in the mix, playing lead guitar as well as attorney bob Fowler, who was jamming on the keyboards. Playing bass was none other than new band member John Sanchez, a GTE employee.
Dorr and Gibson did most of the talking. All the band members credited their wives for tolerating their hobby to entertain crowds.
Having played since he was a boy, Gibson recalled a now-defunct coffee house on the Sunset Strip in Los Agneles called “Ben Franklin’s”, where rock ‘n’ roll was a lot simpler.
The judge looks up to the late great rock drummer John Bonham of Led Zeppelin, and especially drummer Jim Keltner, as sources of inspiration for his style of playing.
But the musical taste of today’s youth isn’t anything like Gibson’s as he found out during a past gig when a little girl asked whether Off The Record played requests. “She asked me to play something from the Spice Girls,” Gibson said. “Yeah, and after that I became “Old Spice”, Dorr interjected.
Dorr is credited for starting the 1 1/2 year old rock band, but Gibson would say it was really Heide and Dorr who got the ball rolling.
Regardless of who initiated the band, the happy members of Off The Record love what they do when they aren’t working at the courthouse and showed that enthusiasm when they played nearly every signature song of the oldies period from Jerry Lee Lewis’ “Great Balls of Fire” to the Rolling Stones “You Can’t Always Get What You Want.”
