I began playing guitar in the mid 1960's at the age of 10.  My first real guitar was a Silvertone electric guitar, which I still have to this day!  In my early teens, I began to train under Gene Shiverdecker and also played with a 23 piece orchestra through high school.  Like most musicians, I started out in garage bands and jamming with friends from school.  In the mid 1970's, I joined a band called T.C. Mayton, my first real experience playing in bars and clubs.  We played for a few years until things fizzled out and people moved. 

In 1980, a couple of friends from high school and a neighbor of mine formed a band called Quickfoot.  We hit our big time with a catchy song called Born to Be.  We took our act to the studio to lay down some tracks for selection for the WTUE Homegrown 3 album.  Stumps member Mark Fraze produced us and Steve Common was our engineer.  Along with our selection on this album, we were invited to perform a 1 hour live concert on WTUE in November of 1982.  Born to Be caught on and became a regular radio tune, what a thrill it is hearing yourself on the radio!  From there Quickfoot began a long stretch of shows in the tri state area for around a year until going our separate ways.  After a small break, I started playing in a band called Cling that included Mark Fraze and Tom Davis.  We played classic rock sounds about the town in clubs and at parties for awhile before everyone went their separate ways.  After Cling split up, I enjoyed a little rest and relaxation from rock and rolling to help raise my son Andy. 

About 4 years after Cling, I was strumming my 12 string on my patio when a neighbor came over and introduced himself as a bass player.  I called up Tom Hocker and Steve Kelch from Cling and we formed Under Pressure.  Our music was very similar to what we are playing in the Stumps. We played several shows a month for over 10 years and finished 5 votes short of a victory in the Canal Street Taverns Dayton Band Playoffs in 1990. 

In 1991, I sent a demo tape into Third Lock Records hoping to appear on the Tribute to Todd CD that was being made in tribute to the music of Todd Rundgren.  Rhino liked the sound so much that myself and Tom Hocker were chosen to play the song Cliché for the record.  The tribute CD went on to sell over 10,000 copies and is widely thought to be one of the top 5 independent tribute CD's on the market!  Under Pressure split up as several members moved about the country.  I began teaching guitar lessons and joined a revived version of Quickfoot after getting together with the members at our rhythm guitar players passing in 2001.

In 2002, Quickfoot went into the studio and produced a full length CD to go along with a some local appearances. Much like the Stumps have weathered 40 years, we entitle the CD Skatin' by for 20 years as a tribute to our ability to maintain friendships and love for the music.  Quickfoot quit playing following an illness of our longtime singer and I continued to teach guitar and jam occasionally with buddies. Late in 2007 I got a call asking if I would like to join the Stumps for a reunion.  The rest will be history!

Kenny Collins

Kenny@stumpsdayton.com

www.myspace.com/kennycollins1956

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