Instead of taking you to the start of  J.T.'s career, we are going to start with the most recent events of his life, and touch upon a lot of different areas so you can get some general idea of how things came to be in the life of..... J.T.! 

From 2001, J.T hired into the Michael Harding Band as his rhythm guitarist. Now Michael Harding has attained Major Star status with the C.M.A. the A.C.M. and several other major Country Music organizations over a 25 year plus career. But early in 2002, J.T was promoted to Michael Hardings Road Manager, due to the previous Road Managers decision to venture in a little different direction of his own. This new position for J.T. gave another new direction that he had never traveled. but yet was a large learning experience. In 2003, J.T. had to decline this position due to ill health issues. But on July 1 of that year, J.T. started his own Music Entertainment Company and began a whole new chapter of the Life and Times of J.T. 

From the years of 1979 to 1984, J.T. was in several bands that tried to get out and play some of the nite spots around the St. Joe and Elkhart County area, ya he got to play a few places, but each band just had major problems that kept them from going to the bigger venues. But with each conflict came a learning experience that was instrumental to J.T's advancement to a whole different world of the Country Music business. J.T. has said that "those years of his career were like being a baby just learning first to crawl and was a prelude to learning to walk." 

Now, we want to take you back in time, to about August of 1985, when J.T. went out to California  to take on some new aspects of life that he had never had the chance to experience before.

It was at this time that J.T. had met a gentleman by the name of Pete Maddox, who would be probably be the greatest influence in his musical career.   The first month in California, J.T. didn't mess around.  He went right to work and put together his first band and within 30 days they were up and playing in some of the local bars in Santa Ana.  On or about the second band rehearsal, J.T. met Pete.  That day the temperature was about 95 degrees outside, and there was no air conditioning in the house where J.T. was practicing, so all of the windows were open and the whole neighborhood could hear their music; so did Pete, and being the inquisitive soul that he is wandered down the block to see where all the music was coming from. The band had just finished a song, when Pete stuck his head in the screenless window, and said "Who's the singer of this group?"  Thats all it took.  From that day foward, J.T. and Pete have been the best of friends and inseparable, even by geographics!

During the next 5 years, every place that Pete Maddox played, J.T. was invited to come and be part of  Pete's show.  J.T. didn't realize it then, but Pete was about to teach him the part of the music business that a lot of musicians would normally never get the chance to experience! And man, what an experience!    J.T. learned hard and fast that if your going to make it in the music business, that you have to work and pay "THE DUES".  This is a whole other chapter all of its own.

The years that Pete and J.T. spent together made J.T. buckle down and fine tune everything he had ever done, musically. Also during this time is when J.T. got to meet another mentor, Merle Haggard, the man that was so instrumental to J.T.'s vocal stylings today.

Unknown to J.T., one day Pete had finally become satisfied enough with the things he had taught J.T, that he felt confident enough that it was time to show-off J.T.'s talent. So Pete booked J.T.s first show and Pete also made one phone call to the man that J.T. had built his vocals around (it just so happened that Pete was a personal friend of Mr. Haggard and knew that Mr. Haggard was J.T.'s most favorite singer) and set up a secret meeting in that Corona, CA. night spot. Pete wanted Mr. Haggard  to come and listen to J.T. sing and play guitar the way that Pete had worked so hard to teach him to do. When J.T.'s first show was over with, Mr. Haggard came out of the little dark corner where he had been watching from since the beginning of J.T.'s show and walked up to J.T. and shook his hand and said to J.T. "son you have a very great thing going for yourself, and the thing that you have got to keep doing is practice, practice, practice, and don't be afraid to make each song your own in your own way." Well, the rest is history.  From that moment on, every call that J.T. made for a booking, he got those bookings with no problem. (Editors note) I guess that it pays to be in the right place at the right time, and in this business, its not just what you know, but also, who you know!

In August 1986,  J.T. found himself doing a one-man show for the Paso Robles, CA County Fair, where he got to do a once-in-a-lifetime 45 minute opener for a more nationally known group of highly talented musicians.     Does anyone remember Crosby, Stills and Nash? After the CSN show, J.T. was invited back stage for the per-diem party, where he got to take some time and really get to know CSN on a more personal basis, not to mention exchanging addresses and phone numbers.  J.T. said those were some of his more wild and crazy days in the business.

As a one-man show in California after leaving internship with Pete Maddox, J.T. got to play other shows in these California cities:                                  Anaheim: Cona Lanes.    Corona: Glenn Ivy Campgrounds.    Chino: Canyon Corral.    Costa Mesa: Holiday Inn, Shamrock Inn.    Dana Point: The Rib Joint.    Fullerton: Bananas, Country Corner.    Laguna Beach: The Hen House, The Sawdust Festival.    Newhall: The American Legion.  Newport Beach: The Rusty Pelican.    Ontario: My Place.    Santa Ana: The Barn, Ramada Inn, Sombrero Street.            The list of venues to J.T's credit goes on and on.

The story doesn't end here. As time goes by, we will bring to you more on the life and times of J.T.!  But, you have to come back from time to time to visit this website to get.........THE REST OF THE STORY!!!!