It is with such great sadness that I must tell you that the world lost one of the greatest, most talented, funniest, kindest souls May 15, 2021. Scott loved performing and we (the band) enjoyed every minute on and off stage playing music with him. Always with a smile. Rest in peace “Buda”
Bass Guitar and Vocals
Scott’s musical journey began at the age of 9 when his mother bought him a Ludwig Snare Drum and he began taking drum lessons in school. He continued to play drums for nearly thirty years , landing his first paying gig with an Elvis Impersonator when he was still in high school. At that time, Scott was also playing regularly with a popular local band called American Standard.
“They were sneaking me into gigs because I was underage.” he recalls. “I had to go out to the car during breaks.”
His musical interests expanded though, when a friend left a bass at his house. Shortly afterward, Scott bought his first bass.
“I started teaching myself to play because I thought it might be something I’d be good at. I wanted to learn more about music than just drums.”
In 1981, a reformed King Crimson released “Discipline” which was a big turning point for Scott.
“When I heard Tony Levin playing on that album, there was no turning back. That dark, watery sound hooked me. I remember playing the record for people and telling them ‘I want to learn to do THAT!'”
Mistakenly thinking the Levin got his fluid sound from a fretless bass, Scott purchased and old Fender Bass with a broken neck and fitted it with a fretless neck. He went straight to work trying to emulate Levin’s sound.
“The fretless thing was HUGE for me. I felt a lot more comfortable without the frets. I’ve since learned that he (Levin) was playing a Stick* but by then, it didn’t matter. What I wanted was that sound and I had already achieved that with my fretless.”
Scott attended Bucks County Community college majoring in Modern & Electronic Music Composition. There, he met Steven Berkowitz; a musician and photographic artist who would become his long-time mentor and collaborator. For several years, Scott immersed himself in the avant-garde music scene in both Philadelphia and New York, playing bass, guitar and drums (sometimes all three) with experimental bands like The Floating Texture Ensemble and Museum Zero.
But then, he met a girl…
Scott put music on the back burner when he married in 1992. He played in public very little until he was asked to join a classic rock band called the Roadkings in 2003. Thus began Scott’s “second music career” of permanent and fill-in work with several notable area bands including The Robert Eric Band, John Forth, Ken Cree and Mike Greer & Friends. Which all brings us to Yesterday’s News…
“I’ve done a lot in my career. I’ve performed in tiny bars like John & Peter’s in New Hope (PA) and I’ve opened for Billy Joel at the (former) Wachovia Center in Philadelphia. I’ve played just about every type of music you can name. Believe me when I tell you the Yesterday’s News is a rare situation: just good people who are good musicians, playing good music. As a musician, you can’t hope to get better than that.”