Jo Alice in her own words . . . continued . . .

I found a place on my own in Amsterdam, folk singing my way through the continents. . . London, France, Belgium, got a record deal on EMI and didn't really want to do the music thing on my own, as I met Jan Jacobs, and Daoude a percussionist, also from New York, and flautist.

Jan asked for a name, I came up with "SAIL" as we were rehearsing on a house boat in Amsterdam. Jan got gigs. Maureen Gray joined the group and sent for singer Karen Harvey. We were great at singing very close harmonies and became regulars in the multi media center and club The Kosmos and The Melkweg.

Karen and I were living in Europe We did recordings and record producers from America were ready sign the band SAIL then to Virgin Records, then EMI and so on. Karen Harvey and Maureen Gray were convinced that the band was the next Beatles and that if we could not alter our contract with them in any way, for artistic license and so on that we wouldn't sign with them. Guess we did not sign !!!!

We had a great band... Maureen and Karen were close to Steve Winwood, Traffic, and that Apple scene, and when we went to London, Steve gave us some studio time at Island Studios. Karen still has the recordings.

Steve and Maureen had a thing, Maureen was going to get Steve and be his woman, but she had to choose, either him or the band, well she chose him for a while. When she came back to us, Karen, Jan and I and Kim Hayworth, were much more relaxed and tight without her, so she was not back in the band. (Three years was long enough) We went on touring, and then we met up with Joia, a Portuguese brother band, previously known in Belgium as "Jesse and James" before the more organic, Jobim Brazilian style, Joia formation. The band Sail-Joia evolved and became an even more eclectic musical entity. There were musicians from South Africa, Mozambique, Brazil, Belgium, Scotland, Ambonesia, and us two U.S. of A's ! We continued regular gigs all over Europe.

My back up singing with Michael Boltin, was through his brother Oren; we had a huge R & B Band in Amsterdam, and he invited me to join in , this was years before Michael Boltin became famous as Michael Bolton, who was then into Glam Rock, before that even became a thing !

Sail-Joia became quite busy, got a record deal with Biram records , a sub label of Polydor. We got artistic license thanks to Karen and her business savvy, to stipulate our conditions and get them accepted .During my stay with them, we did 2 albums and had some pop hits mine was the tune "Searching" his was "Amsterdao".

I met up with my mate, and sound engineer and we decided to move to California, where my dad, and his 3 children were. Sail Joia went on without me, and Karen has the rest of that story !!!

I wanted to study at a jazz music school. In Studio City, I got a degree from the "Dick Grove's Music School"

more