I‘m a songwriter who‘s written a few hundred pop, rock and R&B songs, including some you may know, like #1 pop hits “Crush” by Jennifer Paige and “That's What Love Is For” by Amy Grant, and Top 10 rock hits like “Nothin‘ At All” by Heart (both words and music), with Ann Wilson on lead vocals.

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I also wrote two theme songs (words & music again!) for the popular Disney TV animated shows, “DuckTales” (the original series plus the reboot) and ”Chip ‘n Dale: Rescue Rangers” (the series as well as the film). The shows can currently be seen in 162 countries around the world. I've always loved to travel and experience as many cultures as possible, so to hear songs I wrote be sung in 34 different languages is rather mind-blowing.

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When Billboard magazine published their “100 Greatest Disney-verse Songs of All Time,” those 2 songs were on the list at #19 and #63. Billboard's rankings feature Disney classics ranging from “When You Wish Upon a Star” to “Circle of Life" and include music from film, TV, stage and theme parks. To be included in the company of so many great songs and songwriters... ones I have always admired... is a genuine honor.

 

My “Chip 'n Dale: Rescue Rangers” theme song was covered by rap artist and singer Post Malone for the Disney+ film. It's an excellent version and so different from the original. The film won the Emmy for Outstanding Television Movie after debuting at #2 on the Nielsen movie streaming charts (and #5 on the overall chart). It was really fun to walk the red carpet at the Hollywood premiere at Disney's El Capitan Theater and hear my song blasting on speakers in that historic space.

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One of my favorite projects has been a stage musical I wrote with my dear friend, actress Lesley Nicol. “How the Hell Did I Get Here?” features 9 original songs and is based on her life and show biz career. Lesley stars as the memorable Mrs. Patmore on the international hit TV show ”Downton Abbey," as well as the 2019 worldwide #1 box office smash film, its 2022 sequel and 2025's "grand finale."

 

Lesley and I opened our show Off-Broadway in New York City and it was nominated for an Off-Broadway Alliance Award after just 10 performances. It was an amazing, one-of-a-kind experience... a blur of activity (maybe even a duck blur?) which made me appreciate the energy (8 shows a week!) that goes into live theater more than ever.

 

Before we got to NYC, we performed our musical in London, Hong Kong and Chicago. What's special for me is that I get to accompany Lesley onstage on piano every night for the songs we wrote together. We had the best time creating the show. Basically, all we did was laugh. It was also pretty cool to play one of our songs on top of the World Trade Center. (Fortunately, there was a piano handy).

 

I've always loved musicals. I've written them for stage (“Butterfly” at the Goodspeed Opera House), film and TV (an all-sung CBS pilot titled “Shangri-La Plaza”), but for years pop songs were my main focus. It was great to come full circle.

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One of the most gratifying things I've experienced in my career are the reactions I get when people find out I'm the writer of the “DuckTales” theme. I hear wonderful stories about their happy childhood memories of the song. Since the reboot, parents not only share their thoughts about the original version, but tell me about the joy their own kids get from the song today. It's a great feeling.

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I also enjoy checking out YouTube performances of “DuckTales” done by fans. There are more than 350,000 of them on there and new ones pop up every day. As a writer, there is no greater compliment than having that many people cover your work. I appreciate everyone's fondness for the song (& show) and their creativity.

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I live in LA and love Southern California, but grew up a few hundred miles north in the Bay Area. (In the photo above, I‘m taking a ferry ride from Tiburon to San Francisco). I wrote my first musical there for my fifth grade class to perform. That production actually made the local newspaper when it we put it on.

 

My love of music started even before writing that first musical at the age of 10. I remember writing songs on our living room piano when I was 5. Music has always been in my blood, but I was fortunate to have parents who encouraged me to pursue my dream.

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Creating music professionally for a few decades has been a fantastic experience. I do what I love and love what I do... and I‘m grateful my songs have resonated with enough people to allow me to have a career that continues to be so satisfying. 

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