Bio
I had the great advantage of growing up in a family of musicians, and that not only gave me a great appreciation for the folk rock music roots of my parents but a love for the Bohemian/musician lifestyle that so many of the “village” who raised me practiced.
The home for our “village” was a South St. Louis bar known as “Frank Moskus’ In Exile”. The names on the billboard in the foyer said Bob Bodine, Jan Mahannah, and Linda Ladon – but to me they were “Uncle Bobby”, “Jannie” and “Mom”. And the music…it was beautiful. Some of the fondest memories of my life are the nights I was allowed to hang out in the beer garden, listening to my mom sing. On those rare occasions, I would always call out from the back for her to sing “Jolene”. And with all due respect to Ms. Parton, and anyone else who ever sang that song, I firmly believe that no one has ever sung it better. The list of incredible musicians who played in that bar goes on and on…John Thompson, Lon Wadman, Lon Gilbert, Don Cox, David Earl, Rickie Hart…I could go on forever. But the thing that really made me love that music, and the people who played it, was that it had a greater sense of purpose. It’s hard to define but I always got the feeling that the musicians who were picked by Frank to play the Exile firmly believed that if they could take that music, and the party that went with it, and stretch it out forever, that they could change the world.
Of course, all good things end, and the bar closed in the mid-eighties – long before a little punk kid named Brian Greenway ever got to live his dream of being the name on the flyer at the Exile. And while a large portion of that group stayed in touch and shared their music down the road, they never replaced Frank’s place. I grew up, and moved on to other musical influences – Springsteen, The Clash, They Might Be Giants, Digital Underground, Dave Matthews Band, Parliament – I sampled every genre, and found great music in all of them. But I have always come back to the music that my foundation was built on.
And that brings us to today. After 10+ years spent mostly away from playing music, I decided it was time to come back and embrace the dream again. So, I’m writing an album. Maybe playing a couple of gigs. And then…well, who knows. But I’m sure the journey will be exciting.
The Exile may be closed, but the dream lives on…
Brian
