I'm Joe Smid. Started playing drums when I was 16 although my first drumset I got was when I was four years old. It only lasted a day but it's tough having brothers.

   After my first summer job at 16, I snagged an old Ludwig kit from a garage sale and my mom knew the mother of the seller and it was mine for $75. A five piece with one floating tom like John Bonham. It was originally purple. I could keep a beat and got to jam with my older brother Jim's friends and the attention of my first band mates Frank Rutledge (RIP) on guitar and Isaac Garcia on bass. Isaac opened my eyes to the realm of progressive rock and I was hooked although my drumming skills were lacking. My bro's friends suggested lessons which I took at the Conservatory of Music Chicago on Michigan Ave across from the Art Institute. My teacher, Peter Rogala, got me going along and it was great fun and truly a learning experience. I am still friends with him today. I painted the kit white and bought some new cymbals and hi hats at Drums Ltd in downtown Chicago. Add some roto toms and I was Neil Peart!

    Sadly, I stopped after two years and life pushed me in a different direction. I moved from my mother's home to a mobile home and no room for drums. I left them at my brother's house and they were lost to a flood.

  Years later, I met a gal whose brother was a drummer in a metal band. We hit it off and got married She got pregnant and we bought a home. She bought me a drum set with all the money she had. It's the five Piece Tama Rockstar that I'm currently playing on. Well small kids and drums don't mix and I didn't play them much until we moved to our next home.

    The kids were older and the neighbors were musicians! Beautiful! At the block parties, they talked of hearing me play and I said, "we should jam". The next year, the same thing. Then one day I walked over and said "Let's do this". We called ourselves the KenilDogs because we were on Kenilworth street.       https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AVoOax9VitY

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