When did the Rumors Band begin? The Rumors Band was founded in 1985. The band started out as a side project and appeared Wednesday afternoons at Chastain's in Oklahoma City. All of the band members were playing in other bands at the time. However, within just a couple of months Rumors became a full-time project.

Who were the original members of the band? The original members were: Susan Wright - lead vocals, Brad Ford - guitar, Dewayne Grissom - drums and vocals, Roy Midkiff - bass and vocals, Harold Ross - keyboards and vocals. When the bandmembers decided to make Rumors a full-time project, Susan Wright was committed to other musical projects and was replaced by Susan Ford.

Are Susan Ford and Brad Ford related? No. The identical last name was a coincidence.

Does Rumors Band still perform live? Yes, the band appears from time to time at private and corporate parties.

When did the Rumors Band perform at The Sports Page in Oklahoma City? Rumors was the "house" band at The Sports Page from October 1992 to September 1995. The bandmembers at that time were: Billy Paul - lead vocals, Beatrice Cole - lead vocals, Brad Ford - guitar and MIDI sequencing, Dewayne Grissom - drums and vocals, Roy Midkiff - bass and vocals.

When did the Rumors Band perform at Nikz in Oklahoma City? Rumors was the "house" band at Nikz from September 1996 to August 1998. The bandmembers at that time were: Beatrice Cole - lead vocals, Brad Ford - guitar and MIDI sequencing, Dewayne Grissom - drums and vocals, Roy Midkiff - bass and vocals.

I once saw Rumors Band perform songs like "Beauty and the Beast" that had orchestra parts in them. Did the band use backing tapes or something? Were they really playing live? The orchestra parts you heard were MIDI sequences (synthesizer parts "played" by a computer) - the Rumors Band did NOT and DOES NOT use commercially available "backing tapes". The MIDI sequences were recorded (programmed) by guitarist Brad Ford. In addition to orchestra parts, the MIDI sequences are used to generate horn parts and keyboard parts. Also, the MIDI sequencer controls the lighting system and some of the audio effects processors (digital reverb, digital delay, etc.) as well. This is why the band's lighting is "choreographed" with the songs even though nobody appears to be controlling the light system. The MIDI sequences are put together by Brad especially for Rumors - in fact, over the years, Brad has spent literally thousands of hours recording the MIDI sequences for the band's live performances. Brad also uses a guitar synthesizer to play some horn and synth parts "live" using his guitar. ALL of the vocal parts, guitar parts, bass parts, and drums parts are done live. Roy Midkiff, the bass player, also used a keyboard synthesizer for some "live" bass parts during the Sports Page and Nikz days.

I once saw Rumors Band perform and the drummer was using these weird looking "flat" drums. Someone said they were "electronic drums". What's up with that? Do they play themselves? Dewayne does indeed play an electronic drum kit - and no, electronic drums do not play themselves. Electronic drums are played like regular acoustic drums, but they offer some distinct advantages over acoustic drums - they have some disadvantages as well. First of all, electronic drums offer a "studio sound" in a "live" setting. Secondly, the "volume" of electronic drums can more easily be controlled - they can be "turned down" in smaller rooms. There is a third advantage of electronic drums over acoustic drums, but in order to appreciate it, you need to understand how electronic drums function. Electronic drums are actually composed of several components - the drum "pads" are the parts that look like flattened drums - these are the parts of the kit the audience can see from a distance. When the pads are struck, they send an electronic impulse into a "drum sound module" and trigger it to playback a drum "sample". A sample is a digital recording of a real or synthesized drum. For example, striking the "snare" pad triggers a "snare sample" - striking the "floor tom" pad triggers a "floor tom sample". The pads are "velocity sensitive" just like a real drum - the harder you strike the drum the louder the sound. One of the advantages of an electronic kit is that the drum sound module can have hundreds of different drum samples (sounds) in its memory - the drummer can use different drum sounds for different songs - it's like having a whole arsenal of acoustic drums. In other words, an electronic drum kit gives Dewayne the luxury of having many different drum sounds at his disposal. This is especially handy in a band like Rumors that plays such a wide variety of material. The disadvantage of electronic drums is that they require a very large and powerful sound system - both for monitoring the drums on stage and for projecting the sound into the room - electronic drums require a considerable amount of audio gear (amplifiers, speakers, processors, cables, etc.). This is one of the reasons why you see so much equipment on the Rumors bandstand. The Rumors Band believes the advantages of electronic drums easily outweigh the disadvantages for their particular application. As a footnote, Dewayne plays both his electronic drum kit and a regular acoustic kit in the recording studio - it just depends on the project and the particular song.

Are any commercial recordings of the band available? At the present time there are no recordings of the Rumors Band available for commercial distribution. However, Brad Ford has hundreds of hours of studio and live tapes in the vault, including tapes from The Sports Page days. Maybe someday... You CAN hear Brad, Dewayne, and Billy Paul together on The Big Idea CD. The Big Idea is an original music project recorded in Brad's recording studio - the songs were written and recorded by Brad and Dewayne and includes guest studio musicians. Brad brought Billy Paul into the studio to record some of the lead vocal parts on The Big Idea CD. The resulting tracks sound a lot like the old Rumors Band, but with all new songs written by Brad and Dewayne.

How long was Billy Paul with Rumors? Billy joined the band in July 1989 and left the band at the end of 1995.

Did Billy Paul record the song "Me and Mrs. Jones"? No. That was a different Billy Paul.

How many original bandmembers are still with the band? Two. Guitarist Brad Ford and drummer Dewayne Grissom have been with the band from the very beginning and have performed at every show.

Who were some of the lead vocalists with Rumors Band over the years? Vocalists who were with the Rumors Band included Susan Ford, Sherri Hammons, Jennifer Overbey, Stephanie Davis, Cara Blackwell, Billy Jean, Sharlene Rice, Billy Paul, and Beatrice Cole.

Which vocalist was with the band the longest? Beatrice Cole. She joined the band in February 1993 and still appears with the band.

Has the Rumors Band appeared outside of Oklahoma? Yes! The band has played many, many road gigs in Oklahoma, Texas, Colorado, Arkansas, Missouri, and Kansas. The band spent most of its time on the road during the period of 1986 to 1990.

Who handles the band's business affairs? Brad Ford has always managed the band's business affairs.

Why doesn't the band perform another long-term "house" gig like The Sports Page or Nikz? Because Brad and Dewayne are too busy with their recording projects these days. See The Big Idea and The Mandolin Wind Project.

Did Dewayne play mandolin in The New World Band? Yes! Dewayne was a founding member of The New World Band back in the 1970's. Brad Ford and Roy Midkiff were also members of The New World Band. See The Mandolin Wind Project.

Dewayne's voice sometimes reminds me of the band "Seals and Crofts". Is there a connection? Dewayne's brother Richard Grissom played bass in a band called The Champs, which had the hit song "Tequila". Jimmy Seals and Dash Crofts were members of The Champs. Later, they went on to form "Seals & Crofts". When Dash Crofts switched from drums to mandolin, Dewayne, who had always played drums, was inspired to take up the mandolin as well. Dewayne still stays in touch with Jimmy Seals. See The Mandolin Wind Project.

How can I hear Brad and Dewayne play these days? Buy a copy of The Big Idea CD or The Mandolin Wind Project CD. The Big Idea CD is an album project of original rock and R&B tunes written by Brad and Dewayne. The album features Brad on electric guitar, bass, and keyboards and Dewayne on drums and vocals. Brad plays some serious screaming electric guitar on this album and Dewayne's drumming and vocals are superb. Gary Riley performs several outstanding sax solos and Billy Paul sings his heart out. Anna Jordan contributes backing vocals on the songs Sunset Boulevard and Say It Isn't So. The songwriting and production standards are first-rate. This is a high-energy album. The Mandolin Wind Project is a fine collection of ACOUSTIC music - the songs were written by Brad and Dewayne and feature outstanding mandolin work by Dewayne. On this album Brad plays mostly acoustic guitar with a few electric guitar parts thrown in for embellishment. David Short contributes some fine violin performances. Gary Riley adds sax and Anna Jordan contributes backing vocals on two songs. This is a very cleanly recorded album.

Order THE BIG IDEA compact disc from CD Baby!

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