Ken Whisler

My page was graced with a comment from my favorite guitar player! His name is Ken Whisler and you can check out his site at http://www.geocities.com/kmaaj@swbell.net/ for information on what he does.

You will see pictures of Ken in the photo gallery under Brett And The Hitmen and Rat Race. He started The Hitmen and recruited me to sing, thanks to his wonderful wife Mary. Hitmen turned into Rat Race and it is the most professional band I ever had the pleasure of singing for.

Ken started out playing with a Strat and a Les Paul. He eventually went with two Les Pauls, one tuned down and one tuned normal. He would play that Les Paul through a Marshall stack and cost me 20% of my hearing on my left side. :) That is my favorite sound in the world! With Ken being classically trained, it really took a great guitar player or a big change in our set list to have anyone else play in the band. This guy just plain rocks!

Ken has told me that he sold off the Les Pauls. I know that Mary almost cried and I just about did, too, when I heard this news. Ken has really focused in on his classical playing and handcrafting guitars. He has been able to meet classical guitar making luminaries and keep in touch with them via e-mail. I did receive an e-mail the other day stating that he and one of KC's finest drummers are planning some prog-rock trio music, so I'm anxious to hear what they come up with.

Ken's wife Mary was extremely supportive of Rat Race. She even hired me as a donut maker in her shop when I had no experience whatsoever. She would work the weekends that the band played. She supported us financially with the purchase of a van and trailer and she and Ken owned a large portion of the gear. They even set up their garage as a rehearsal room after the living room got too crammed. She helped Ken get one of his Les Pauls, I believe, as a gift. She would video tape some shows and take plenty of pictures, too. She was our 5th member. Maybe later I will tell you about her first gig back after the birth of their son. :) I'm sure Mary has tried forgetting that night!

I'm also not-so-secretly hoping for a Rat Race reunion gig some day. Rat Race was a very tight band and we had some great shows together. I am certainly thankful to Ken and Mary for inviting me to audition for the band and for the years we played together. Check out Ken's site and pass it along!