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Where to start with Benny? It's really hard not to come off like bragging but how do
I not toss around phrases like "local legend"? As a wide-eyed,
young musician, I remember Benny from back in the Mythril days. Looking like maybe 100 pounds with long black hair that
seemed to just spill off the top of his head like water. He was great and those are great memories. Though Benny's
been around quite a bit since then - touring in France with Ocean (you can YouTube that), and more recently, The B-Side Band.  But now we're talking about Steppin' Out. I know they're just a cover band playing OPM but we're
going to set all the bullshit aside. Bullshit you hear about music scenes or record deals. The guys in Steppin'
Out have all been in that world, both together and individually. Trust me, that doesn't make for better musicians. You
got it or you don't and Benny's got it BIG. And that's all I'm going to say about that. Of course you can hear
it in his playing but I'll take up some of this space by mentioning the likes of Paige, Beck, Allman (Duane, that is), and
Santana as his most important musical influences. Suffice it to say he channels them all incredibly.
We can't leave out the fact that Benny represents half of one of the most impressive 2-guitar bands anywhere,
local or otherwise. "I love playing guitar songs with Phil just because it's so much fun. And I also
love to see people dancing and smiling," he says, and Steppin' Out definitely gets a lot of that. Okay,
but when I see him launch into his solo in "Good Times, Bad Times", I know he's doing Jimmy proud - real proud.
I've seen it many times and it's a thrill every time.
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