"SO MANY HAPPY YEARS"

BIO

Jon Richard McCarrison IV was born in a very remote area of the Midwest on a small, self-sustaining farm/ranch started by his great grandfather (JRM Sr). Jon’s grandfather (JRM Jr) was a brave and decorated WWII Veteran who worked for three and a half years (just prior to going to war) for the Federal Civilian Conservation Camp Program during the great depression. JRM Jr traveled to California, Nevada, Idaho, Montana and several other states digging trenches down mountains (with pick axes and shovels, by hand) for controlled water runoff to prevent flooding in communities TO THIS DAY! JRM Jr and the men he worked with (there were many) were AMAZING Individuals and also fought forest fires during that time! Jon attributes his grandfather’s ability to survive the overwhelmingly harsh conditions of the second world war to the fact that he performed such hard labor for 3.5 years, every day, just prior to entering the war.

Jon’s father (JRM III) was also a military man so, by the time Jon was just old enough to begin school, they left the family’s beautiful, Midwest ranch bound for New York where Jon attended his first school. Jon also went on to attend school in California and Florida as well. His father’s orders changed enough to have Jon attend 12 different schools in all as a child, not including two colleges.

Jon always LOVED Music and as other interests in his life changed, music was ALWAYS in the forefront of his mind. Jon grew up loving the sound of the trumpet and would revel in the opportunity to watch his two Musical IDOLS on TV (Louie Armstrong and Herb Alpert) or, listen to their records over and over again.

In the fourth grade, Jon’s music teacher had a PHD from Juilliard School of Music and played the trumpet. When asked by his teacher, “What instrument would you like to play?” the answer was (of course) “TRUMPET!” Jon’s teacher was AMAZING and had Jon playing like a pro in virtually no time at all.

At around the same time, a friend of the McCarrison family (who was a professional musician in a cover band that toured the US & Canada) recognized Jon’s talent for music early on and gifted Jon a Goya, nylon string acoustic guitar, which Jon still cherishes to this day! During Jon’s early trumpet days, he picked up the guitar, started teaching himself and hasn’t put it down since.

Currently one of Jon’s favorite hobbies is listening to COMPLETE albums of 50’s, 60’s, 70’s & 80’s music. Jon says that, “I now enjoy listening to all these non-mainstream esoteric and not-so-popular songs of all these bands and artists over the decades. I feel that it enables me to connect to these writers and performers on a much deeper level and enables me to get a “Bigger Picture” of their personalities, writing styles and emotions, etc”.

Jon has an unusual talent as vocal imitator. He is known for being able to sound like MANY popular artists over the years such as: Ringo Star, both singers from the groups America and the Cars, John Lennon, Alice Cooper, David Gates, Neil Diamond, Sting, James Taylor, Three Dog Night, Hurricane Smith, Glen Campbell, The Bee Gees, lead vocalist of R.E.M., the list goes on and on. He can also deliver their songs with mesmerizing and unparalleled precision! Jon says that he is extremely grateful for this ability, considers it a gift from divinity and is himself, always amused by the fact that he can sound like so many different singers. He doesn’t have any understanding of how or why this is possible but just thanks God every day for granting Jon this ability.

Jon is a true lover of all animals however, oddly enough, he doesn’t like to keep many pets. “I have two dogs because I simply MUST, I couldn’t be without the companionship. But, I don’t keep lots of pets. I am WAY too hypersensitive and have an EXTREMELY hard time dealing with the loss when they pass on! It’s virtually impossible for me to accept the loss of a creature that has so much love for me. Most animals have much shorter lifespans than humans and it’s just too emotionally taxing for me to lose such a devoted loved one. I consider the death of a pet to have as much of an impact on my soul as I do the death of a relative or any human loved one.”

Among his many hobbies, Jon most of all enjoys writing Music & Comedy, watching good movies (“I watch MOSTLY documentaries.”) and constantly praying for a better world for us all to live in! “I like staying at home and being barefoot in the sand or grass, with the bright warm sun shining down on me and cooking, I REALLY ENJOY Cooking!”

Jon doesn’t really like to appear in live performances. He is extremely humble and does not enjoy being the center of attention. “You can call me weird but, I feel like it’s showing off and I do not like to be envied or idolized in any way shape or form. I’m most comfortable as just a ‘part of the crowd’ and feeling equal to everyone around me at all times.” :-)

Jon is a respectful man that loves all people, at first meeting, right from the start! He has been quoted many times saying… “Whenever I meet someone (anyone) for the first time, I get very excited for the interaction between us and the thought always enters my mind that, ‘At this moment, I just may be meeting one of the greatest people in the world to me right now and possibly my new Best Friend’! When I meet someone new, I don’t care if they are male or female, young or old, what nationality or religion they are. If they are nice to me, then I am nice to them, it’s that simple!

As Jon's entire family before him was in one branch of the military or another, Jon always felt a sense of duty, growing up, that he should do his part for our country and after his first semester as an electronics major in college, he enlisted in the US Navy. "From the very beginning, I intended to make a career out of it so, I originally signed up for two years with a four year extension, intending to do AT LEAST Twenty years, possibly more if I could." Jon scored extremely high on the Armed Forces Aptitude Test and entered the Navy in the Advanced Electronics Program (or A.E.P., at the time). He was extremely pleased with this opportunity, as this program offered extremely rapid advancement through the ranks very quickly and the perfect job that was exactly what he wanted to spend his time doing for the rest of his life. "I remember thinking what a 'dream come true' this was for me, as I was completely captivated and facinated by the field of electronics. While in High School, I got the book 'Electronics Projects for Musicians' by Craig Anderton and built almost every guitar effect in the book! However, my 'Naval Career' was extremely short lived as I was forcibly (but Honorably) discharged for having 'bad knees'. The Naval Doctors told me that they thought my legs were 'not sea worthy'. I fought to stay in, talking to several doctors and other officers on the base but, it was to no avail and it was 'back to civilian life' for me once again." So, I stayed near San Diego, returned to college and changed my major to mechanical drafting but, I was HUGELY disillusioned and lost interest very quickly. So, I found an interesting and well paying job totally by accident".

As previously stated, Jon LOVES to cook! So, while attending that first semester as a drafting major in college, Jon took a job in a FINE, family owned, Gourmet Mexican Restaurant near San Diego, CA. "I was actually recruited by one of the owners, face-to-face in person one day, as we ran into each other by accident. She said would you like a job (who turns down an offer like that)? So, I immediately said YES! No, interview appointment, no hassle AND when I worked there, I made EXCELLENT money on a weekly basis, I was making more money than a lot of people in my town who had been working at their jobs long, gone to trade school and colleges, etc. So, that was a HUGE stroke of luck for me and introcuced me to waiting tables. If you work in a good restaurant, you can make serious money!" So, seeing how much money there was to be made, Jon left the drafting courses behind and continued to wait tables for the next eight years in three of the TOP Restaurants in New York City, as he moved back to NY after working there for aproximately two years. Jon learned A LOT during his restaurant years and met MANY wonderful and helpful people. “Looking back, I cherish EVERY Moment of my restaurant days. It was lots of fun, and I made some AWESOME friends in the process!”.

Jon’s IDEAL Life would be to return to the farm where he was born. However the property was sold years ago by his parents, when his grandparents died, they just didn’t want the memory of going back and missing them so badly. On more than one occasion, Jon kind of got the impression from both of his parents, that they felt somewhat “guilty” about leaving the farm and the perfect family life, in paradise, to travel. Jon’s grandparents didn’t seem to have a problem with it and were always proud of their son (Jon's father) for making it a career out of the military. Jon didn’t mind the traveling at all, he always saw it as an adventure and a fresh start and time to meet new people and learn new things! So, as far as Jon is concerned, he doesn’t feel he has a home to return to because of the sale of the property and the house being removed for a more industrial farm now. He always says that the planet is his home and constantly looks forward to meeting new people and having new experiences every day!

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