It all started back in 1989. I was a nightclub disc-jockey and one of the clubs where I worked was inside of the original Riverside Holiday Inn, next to the campus of UCR. One night I came to work and a Japanese company was there installing a leased karaoke system. I was told we were the first inland California club to try this new form of entertainment. They had just started to make songs in English.

   I can’t claim any credit for the idea and I was totally afraid to sing in public. The rest of the staff and most of the customers were too. I managed to get only two people to try it the first night, which turned out to be about average at first. The very beautiful bartender suggested that the waitress and I should stay after work with her, have a few drinks and try some songs ourselves. It was a life changing experience! When we finally left after dawn, I said “Wow, I love karaoke!”

   The experiment was slow to catch on with the public, partly because it was so new and partly because the song selection was extremely limited in the early years. Slowly though, we kept adding devotees. A couple years later, other local clubs started trying it too. I was still afraid to sing in public without the benefit of alcohol for a long time. Now I don’t mind at all. It becomes second nature. Just remember: “No one is going to throw tomatoes at you if you make a mistake” and you’ll be fine. I’m no great singer and sometimes that works to our benefit. I’ve had many a customer tell me “I was afraid to go up there until I heard you.” (It's hard to call that a compliment.)