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Veteran musicians and Bay Mills tribal members Steve and Skip Parish dusted off their rock-n-roll gear recently throwing themselves back into the limelight to play a weekend gig at Golanka's Bar, "The Bird," in Sault Ste. Marie on March 9 and 10. With more than 15 years of experience together, their band, Crossfire, can still pack the house.
Crossfire, known back in the 90s for their performances at the Tumble Inn in Eckerman and Boomers in Harbor Springs, evolved from a few guys playing music back in high school. Their first "live" performance was in 1989 at a Brimley High School dance.
Crossfire itself originally formed in 1992 and was named by Kurt Perron, the group's alternate singer. Perron left the group a short time later, while bandmates Skip, Steve and Jonah Brockman continued to play on a regular basis almost every weekend until 1997.
"We were way burnt out," said Steve, referring to the group's disbanding.
The band, which has opened for a number of well-known bands including Vixen, Warrant, Slaughter, Blackfoot, and Ted Nugent, has been on hiatus since 2002.
And while the group hasn't been playing regular venues together for a number of years, it's hard to tell they were ever separated. But one thing is for sure, they've come a long way from singing in a high school gymnasium.
Crossfire hit the stage for the first time together since 2002 last fall when Steve expressed interest to bar owners Nicole and Gary Golanka about a performance. The Parishes were joined onstage by original band mate Jonah Brockman on drums and new addition Al Montgomery on bass guitar, playing classics such as AC/DC and Motley Crue.
"It's hard to get the group together on a regular basis," said lead vocalist Skip Parish. "Jonah lives downstate and so does Al. Everyone has families and other priorities. But it's cool when we do get together."
While the Parishes both work full time and play on the side, bandmate Brockman has turned music into his full-time career. Last fall he signed a recording deal with November Entertainment and recently released a CD. Steve also plays almost every weekend with his other band, Bigg Tyme, at downstate venues, and can also be heard as a member of Brockman's touring band. He has just finished mastering his recording of original tracks and expects his CD to debut in the coming months.
"Our fans have been incredibly loyal through the years, following us from Harbor Springs to Eckerman and Traverse City," said Steve, who attributes the band's success to their fans. ""We're just like everybody else. We're just as loyal to them as they are to us."
While no immediate performance dates are in the works, Crossfire is currently working on new music and will soon be adding original material to their set list.
