Scott Gates and Pacific Ocean Bluegrass Band consists of four core members - Scott Gates, Paul Davis, Jessica Johnson and Dave Gooding, though the band often brings in a seasoned, master musician, such as fiddler Phil Salazar or banjo player Jonathan Bluemel, adding a fifth string to this all bluegrass-all the time band. Pacific Ocean Bluegrass Band won 1st Place at the prestigious Topanga Banjo/Fiddle Contest (2007) in the band category.

Scott, age 15, from the High Desert of California, leads the band, sings lead and harmony vocals and plays the mandolin. Scott came to the mandolin first through his grandfather who played old country Italian style, and through Evan J. Marshall of Los Angeles, master of the duo-style solo mandolin. (solomandolin.com)

Paul Davis, 18, is from Santa Cruz, California. Paul picked up the guitar at age 13 and began playing as though he was born with it in his hands! Paul won 1st Place at the Topanga Contest (2007) in the flat-pick guitar category.

Jessica Johnson, 16, lives in the San Diego County. Jessica was raised on horseback, but realized her dream of singing in a band when she joined Pacific Ocean Bluegrass at age fourteen. Jessica brings in lead and harmony vocals and rhythm guitar.

Dave Gooding, also from the San Francisco Bay area not only brings in the strong driving bass, but offers the band his maturity and expertise in raising up a band in the way they should go, so that when they are old, they will not depart from it! Dave sings harmony vocals as well as his one lead vocal, which everybody loves, and it touches the hearts of all the band families. Whether or not Dave mentions it from the stage, we all know that the song is forever dedicated to his wife and family. Listen for it.

In 2003, Scott and a young up-and-coming fiddler got together to play a few shows. With their fan base in California, Scott called them Pacific Ocean Bluegrass, and from there, the fan base grew. By age 13, Scott was ready to bring a whole band together. While the band members have changed from that first group of five players, the higher level of performance has propelled the fan base to stretch throughout the Americas and Europe.

In January 2005, Scott released his first CD, “Legacy” at a classical and bluegrass concert with Evan Marshall at The Master’s College in Santa Clarita, CA. “Legacy” seems to be timeless and sales continue to climb. Pacific Ocean Bluegrass released their first CD, Festival Kids, in April 2005, named for the title cut. The song, Festival Kid, an original, is written about these kids raised up on bluegrass. Scott is rehearsing Pacific Ocean Bluegrass Band to record a new CD.

Performances are listed on www.ScottGates.com (also known as www.PacificOceanBluegrass.com). Scott Gates performs monthly at the E-Street Café, Encinitas, CA on every 3rd Saturday of the month (www.estreetcafe.com) -- as always, confirm before embarking upon your journey. Would you like to be on Scott’s mailing list? Email ManzolinRecords@aol.com.