| Every town across America in the ’80s and early ’90s had its own unique local hard rock and heavy metal scene, and Nashville was no exception. During those years, there was one mainstay that ruled the Nashville hard rock scene, regardless of the countless name changes, formations and breakups, and revolving doors of musicians. The core of that mainstay was the Simmonz brothers: Mike, Paul, and Jamie.
To fully tell the story of the Simmonz brothers would require a book in itself, so here we will merely touch on their brilliance and that of a few of their bandmates in the next few paragraphs. With numerous band names such as Speed Limit, Aura, Dreamer, Ezekiel Steel, Mad Habit, Dorcha, Passion Temple, Assasin, Assault, The Rock, The Stand, and many more, the Simmonz brothers were the kind of rare musicians who make you stop and wonder why they weren’t headlining arenas.
Many incarnations of Nashville hard rock bands throughout the ’80s and ’90s featured a Simmonz brother. While the list is long, several notable musicians passed through bands alongside them. Dreamer, for example, featured Kenny Earl, later known as Rhino in Manowar, along with Bobby Lee Morgan. Assasin included drummer Jim Phipps pounding the skins; he would later go on to play with Every Mother’s Nightmare. At one point, the Simmonz brothers also played with Mike Easlo, who would later join Lust, the band that gave Ron Keel his start.
Another version of the group, known as The Rock and later The Stand, featured Gus Palas (GVPIII). At one point, the brothers teamed up with Paul Ebersold, who later wrote “Kryptonite” for Three Doors Down. They also recorded with legendary hard rock producer Michael Wagener of Dokken.
While headline tours and front-page fame may have eluded the brothers, they have hardly been idle. In recent years, Paulie has performed with artists such as the Legendary Shack Shakers, Reverend Horton Heat, Petra, and Black Oak Arkansas, while Mike has played with Nashville’s Big Rock Show featuring members of Winger, Hair of the Dog, and Skid Row.
This only scratches the surface of what the brothers have accomplished, but it gives the reader an idea of what has transpired over the past 25 years and why the time has come for the world to see and hear some of Nashville’s finest hard rock.
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