In the Summer of 1995 while attending a local event in his hometown of Alameda, Ca, Mark was invited up on stage to sit in with local heroes the Alameda All Stars. As a respected band in the Bay Area for many years, they hosted a revolving door of quality players. Their reputation was strong yet notorious. The occasional jams soon turned into Mark filling in on various shows for one member who was dealing with tuff family health issues. The occasional gigs quickly morphed into an updated and consistent line-up with McGee, Tommy Thompson, Tom Miller and Preston Thrall.  They began performing shows around the Bay Area doing blues, rock and funk songs with extended jams. The vibe was relaxed, loose and fun which was an appealing atmosphere for Mark. While not seeing this as a long term project, the lack of pressure involved seemed to facilitate a quickly developing and tight musical chemistry. The bands longtime followers were extremely enthusiastic about the new found energy within the band.

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In previous years, a few AAS members had been working with southern blues icon Gregg Allman. Soon when an available guitar slot bewcame available, Mark was offered an audition and by Fall of 1995, he was performing his debut show with Gregg and the band at Slim's in San Francisco, Ca. This led to a decade long run of shows for Mark as the lead/slide guitarist for Gregg Allman & Friends.

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As Mark was always an original music artist, he'd expressed his desire to write material with the All Stars for an original album but unfortunately the commitment needed just never seemed to materialize. In the end sadly, no official album was made. To capture the talent and chemistry that was happening during this time would have resulted in a most special album documenting the energy of the band, but unfortunately, it never happened.

 

The All Stars reputation is widely known and quite respected and they've always been involved in the community, donated their time to special events and causes throughout the years as well as being hired to back other big name artists.

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During their time together a very special and lasting bond would be forged! However, in summer of 2019 following a noticeably slow period for the band due to members departing and returning, Mark's path with Luvplanet was in full swing and demanding his full attention. And shockingly after 24 years together, he was asked to choose between his commitment with Luvplanet and the All Stars. Wishing them well, he moved forward focusing his energies on his original music career.

 

The brotherhood within the All Stars is a broad and diverse musical family that continues to deepen and widen as they move on with a new incarnation of the band. 

https://alamedaallstars.com