The John Payne band is a versatile 4 to 8 piece band specializing in Classic R&B, Rock, and Motown, with the ability to play jazz, standards, Big Band, and/or ballroom dancing selections as well, if the client wishes. Led by Saxophonist John Payne, formerly with Van Morrison and Bonnie Raitt, the band has entertained at over 1,000 weddings and events, tailoring it’s music to individual needs and desires. The band members have years of diverse performing and recording experience as can be seen in their bio’s below.   What Our Clients Say Female vocalist Krisanthi Pappas regularly performs under her own name at top Boston area clubs such as Scullers and the Regattabar. She has put out three solo CD’s which have sold thousands of copies and receive national air play. Kris’ voice can be heard on many television and radio jingles. She has won songwriting awards from Billboard and ASCAP and currently has publishing contracts in Los Angeles and New York, which place songs in feature films and television. Kris also teaches piano, music theory, and vocal performance. Keyboard and male vocalist Brian Silva is a music producer and writer. He has been awarded a Gold Record (over 500,000 sold) for his work on Atlantic Records “Twisted Christmas”, a well-known holiday song parody album. Brian currently owns and operates a recording studio in the Rocky Neck Colony area of Gloucester, Massachusetts, as well as Sound Marketing, his commercial music production company that landed his picture on the front page of the Boston Globe. No matter where you are in the United States you have probably heard something on TV or radio produced or written by Brian. Bass player Dave Buda was the first (and so far the only) electric bassist to be a featured soloist with the Boston Pops Orchestra, which he plays with frequently. He beat out every bass player in town, in citywide auditions, to play the first national tour of the musical “Rent”. Dave has performed with James Taylor, Patti Labelle, Mary Chapin Carpenter, and John Williams, and also is a faculty member of the Berklee College of Music. Drummer Joey Scrimmer has performed with Connie Stevens, Frank Sinatra Jr., Taylor Dayne, Leon Russell, the Artie Shaw Orchestra, and at the Newport Jazz Festival. His studio work includes television shows such as “L.A. Law” and “Magnum P.I.”, and many national television commercials (including McDonalds, Honda, and Miller Lite), as well as percussion work for the soundtrack of the blockbuster movie “E.T.”. Bandleader and saxophonist John Payne has been performing and recording for over 30 years. He has recorded with Van Morrison on “Astral Weeks” (named #19 of the 500 greatest albums of all time by Rolling Stone and #3 by the London Times), Bonnie Raitt on “Give It Up” (for which he was nominated as best clarinetist by the Playboy Jazz Poll), and Noel Stookey (Noel is Paul of Peter, Paul, and Mary). John has put out three albums under his own name on Arista and Mercury records. He has performed at the Newport, Berkeley, Ann Arbor, and Vermont Jazz Festivals and has also appeared as featured soloist with Bonnie Raitt on Saturday Night Live, and with Phoebe Snow on Johnny Carson, Midnight Special, Merv Griffin and Don Kirshner’s Rock Concert. John is founder and director of his own music school (the John Payne Music Center in Brookline, Massachusetts) and has a degree from Harvard University in philosophy.