CARLOS CRUZ on MySpace Music - Free Streaming MP3s, Pictures & Music Downloads

MY STORY Its a long one, Enjoy!

I have a Beautiful wife Rebecca and 3 Awesome kids, Kayla, Aspen, & Christian

We have 3 little dogs, Cookie, Sugar & Baby!
I am a Business owner

I love to write, record and perform in my band

I love to spend time with my family at Venice Beach riding bikes

We also Love going snow skiing, we use to go every year to Colorado, maybe thats why our daughter is named Aspen! Now we go several times a year to Big Bear Mountain California! We love it so much up there!

We also like to go camping, go to amusement parks, kids have to have season passes for Magic Mountain every year. Disney, Universal, Knottsberry, The kids are Roller Coaster Fanatics, especially Christian! We also enjoy swimming in our pool, going surfing & boogie boarding at Malibu Beach, BarbQing, hiking, going to concerts, checking out local bands, and just hanging out as a family!

I was born in Santa Monica California, around age 5 I moved to Detroit, and spent a lott of summers with my grandma & uncles in Detroit! My dad was a International YO-YO champion for Duncan Yo-Yos, so every 6 weeks i was in a different school in a different city and state, I can remember going to school in places like, Beaumont Texas, The Bronx, New York, Nashville Tennesee, Davenport Iowa, Anderson Indiana( Thats where my little sister Chavela was born) and all places in between!

I remember in Davenport Iowa, I went to junior high at a place called Frank L Smart, I remember a place called the RKO Orpheum theater, I remember seeing my first concert there, it was the Flying Burrito Brothers, Every week I would go see bands at the Orpheum like Rush, Reo Speedwagon, Cheap Trick, Head East, Starz, Sweet, Angel, and AEROSMITH, Thats what changed my life! I remember coming out of the Aerosmith concert and I said IM GONNA BE A ROCK SINGER!

I would always spend time at my grandmas house in Detroit, thats where I learned my licks, I got this 4 track recorder, some Headphones, a Microphone, and i would sit in her attic for hours, days, just singing along to bands I liked, recording my voice. My poor grandma all she could ever hear was just my voice coming from the attic!

Joined my first band at age 15, lets see I remember a guitarist named Ernie Orta & a kid on drums from the hood called Chris Cupski, we would set up at chris's house and play about a half hour untill the cops came, then we would go set up at ernies untill the cops came, then we went to my grandmas & practiced untill the cops came, 3 shows in one day just to practice, thats where I learned about Touring, set up and breakdowns. We did our first gig at the Snack N Rack arcade in Dearborn Heights Michigan, It was Awesome, we did songs like, 3 steps, Ice Cream man, head first, and we only knew like 7 songs, but we rocked! (or we thought we did) we were called TRIAXE we had 3 guitarists, then we changed the name to ONE STEP BEYOND!

That band never went anywhere, so I packed up and moved to Austin, Texas, there I joined a band called Satryre, we were your typical 80's Hair, Glam,Metal Band, We played the Austin Scene for a few years, opened for some headline acts like Vixen, The Romantics, Saxon, Dangerous Toys, ect, I also was a dj and a manager at strip clubs in Austin at this time, I got my first strip club job at age 17, at Honeys in Austin, then I worked at The Yellow Rose, The Red Rose, Sugars, and I was a Dj for the Male Strippers show as well. I started my own TV show called Rockline TV in the 80's it was a Tv show that played music videos & interviewed Rock Bands when they came to town, I got to interview a ton of cool Rock Stars, I still have the tapes somwhere, people like Molly Hatchet, Foghat, Skid Row, Bon jovi, David Lee Roth Dio, Extreme, Vixen, Dangerous Toys, ect ect,
Man this must have been the good ole days, It was like 1988, I had a succesful TV show, I was friends with Rock Stars, I was a singer in a popular Band Satyre, I was a Dj at strip clubs, but I still felt like something was missing! So one day I just up and quit it all, the band, the tv show, the job, I moved to Dallas,Texas ( To this day I dont know why I did that)

While in Dallas I formed a new band and recorded a CD, that band never went anywhere either! But I continued to be a DJ in Strip Clubs, I bet I worked at like 20 clubs in Dallas, The Million Dollar Saloon, The Fair, Caligulas, Southern Belles, Wild Orhids, Caberet Royale, ,and so many I cant remember! I also worked at the male strip club in Dallas for a few years called LABARE( as a dj). I slo got in trouble with the law and spent 5 months in the Dallas county Jail, while in Jail I grew up in my mind, and knew whe I got out I had to get a new band and record some of these songs I was writing in Jail! As soon as I got out I went to HOLLYWOOD

I tried so hard to make it in Hollywood, I lived on the corner of Sunset & Labrea at a hooker/drug infested motel, I got a job selling vacations over the phone, and I walked the sunset strip & Hollywood Blvd every night, I played in a few Hollywood Bands, but none worth mentioning, I had no Car, No home, and I was like Man I gotta go, so I called a buddy who owned a string of clubs in Miami so off I went!

I kicked it around Miami for a few working as a dj in more strip Clubs, The Dollhouse, Solid Gold, Pure Platinum, Labare Miami, ect, I got a chance to travel for the Dollhouses of America as a Corporate DJ, I would go to a town, open a new club, hire the DJs train them and leave them there to to run the club while Im off to the next town. I was working in places like Lexington Kentucky, Raleigh North Carolina, Hilton Head, South Carolina, and while I was in Fayettville North Carolina when my whole life changed, I met this little 18 year old waitress named Rebecca Webb, We started dating, and when it was time for me to leave Fayettville, I couldnt leave her, so I took her with me all around the country, while I worked as a DJ, Somehow, I dont know how this happened but she wound up Pregnant! We were so happy, We decided to get married November 25th 1992, we have been married 16 years now!

Kayla Marie Bates was born on Febuary 27, 1993, in Raleigh North Carolina, she was so beautiful, she was so little, I couldnt even hold her I was so scared because I thought she was so Fragile! Its hard to look at her today 16 years old, always asking for money, always needing a ride, allready trying to borrow my car, and not think about the first day I met my little Kayla Bear!

We spent some time in lexington Kentucky while I was a DJ at Pure Gold strip club, so Rebecca could be closer to her family in Louisville, where they could see our daughter, but Kentucky is cool and all but you know the saying its a nice place to visit but i wouldnt want to live there, I had Rock N Roll in my blood and there was none in Kentucky! So we once again packed up and moved to Tampa Florida!

I worked for a guy named Michael Peters for years, he owned all the Dollhouses, Pure Platinums,Solid Golds, and Labares nationwide, so as soon as I got to Tampa I went to work for him, I worked in so many strip clubs in Tampa, Mons Venus, Tattletales, Diamond Dolls, Ybor Strip, Thee Dollhouse, I had been working in the club buisness so long, I went from being the DJ to the Manager of these clubs, then we found out we were gonna have another baby, I was so tired of the night club scene, my wife hated it, and we had kid number 2 on the way, I had just got a new band together and we called ourselfs the SOUTHERN BAPTIST BUSHHOUNDS, I really wanted to continue with this band,and stay in the Tampa area, we had a awesome little house right on Clearwater beach, right next door to Hulk Hogan,we totally loved it, Kayla was 5 and played at the beach everyday, and went swimming in our pool, So I decided I had to change Careers for my family & get out of the night club Business!

I answered a ad in the newspaper, and when I showed up it was for a door to door steak & seafood salesmen, I was like no way, theres no way Im gonna go door to door, and try to sell stuff, but I talked to some guys who worked there and they said they were making like 200 to 300 cash a day, thats what I was used to making, it was a day job, and it was Cash Paid Daily, so I tried it out!! In two weeks I was making a grand a week cash!

The band I was in the Southern Baptist Bush Hounds was doing good, playing shows, we started opening for bands like Nazareth, & Marshall Tucker, and we signed a record deal! The record company had us drop the Southern Baptist, and just go by BUSHHOUNDS , we started touring and this day job gave me the flexibility to work on and off between touring and shows ect!

The BUSHHOUNDS, was a national touring rock band that delivered a unique sound of Hard Rock with a Southern Edge. While in the BUSHHOUNDS I recorded 3 Cds

I also toured the nation opening for many major headline artists such as: Lynyrd Skynyrd, 38 Special, Marshall Tucker ,Molly Hatchet, ZZ.Top, Cheap Trick, Nazareth, Alice Cooper, Bad Company, Steppenwolf, Dr.Hook, Pat Travers, Grand Funk, Motley Crue, Black Crowes, Tesla, Staind, Linkin Park, Tantric, Firehouse, Ratt, Great White, Sebastian Bach, Every Mothers Nightmare, Enuff Z Nuff, Offspring, A.P.B, Southern Rock Allstars, Classic Rock Allstars, Iron Horse, Roxx Gang, Kid Rock, Rob Zombie, Puddle Of Mud, Sevendust, Earshot, Adema ect.

Opening for 38 Special at the House of Blues Orlando Florida

Opening for Great White Tampa Florida

Jamming with Dave Hlubeck on guitar(Molly Hatchet) & Jackson Spires on Drums (Blackfoot) while on tour somewhere in the Carolinas.
(RIP Jackson Spires, Had some great times with you man, your spirit will live on FOREVER)

We also performed at a variety of special events like the Superbowl Bud Bowl Party, WWF Wrestling Events, State Fairs, Festivals, Radio Station Events, Daytona Florida's Bike Week & Biketoberfest, Tampa Florida's Festivals like Gasparilla & Guavaween.

Me and Bun E Carlos Drummer for Cheap Trick after we opened for them in Tampa

The Bushhounds also performed at Tampa Florida's 98 Rock Livestock 11 Concert with Staind, Black Crowes, Tesla, Offspring, 3 Doors Down, Linkin Park, Mudvayne, Tantric, ect.

And we performed at Livestock 12 sharing the stage with Kid Rock, Rob Zombie, Puddle Of Mud, Soil, Sevendust, Stone Temple Pilots, and more headline artists.

Partying with Shaun from Soil & Greg from Puddle of Mud when we played Livestock with them.

Me and Lejon from Sevendust!

There use to be 3 Blues Brothers but I went on for the solo career!

Hanging out with Adema, after a show!

Opening for Cheap Trick in Tampa Florida Outdoors the night before the Superbowl!

Me & Jack Russell from Great White after we opened for them in Tampa at Jannus Landing.

In the studio with Charlie Hargrett from Blackfoot

Hanging with Tantric, I dont remember when & where we played with these guys, I just remember the after party!

The Bushhounds with Steve Mongo Mc Michael ( 85 Chicago Bears) in the studio recording the track "4 Horesmen" for his WWF Wrestling Theme Song

Me & Artimus Pyle Drummer from Lynyrd Skynyrd/ Done tours with Arty & many shows, got to play with Artimus numerous times including filling in on vocals in The Artimus Pyle Band while touring the East Coast!

Here is a video of me singing Sweet Home Alabama with Lynyrd Skynyrd's Drummer Artimus Pyle on Drums, Mike Estes from Skynyrd on Guitar, Mike Barril on Guitar & Bird Dog on Bass! This was fun stuff!
While I was in the Bushhounds and living in Clearwater beach we had our second daughter Aspen Lee Bates, she was born August 17,1999, and 2 years later our son was born Christan Carlos Bates on Febuary 3, 2001, So now we have 3 kids, and still living in Florida, Im in the Bushhounds, I went from door to door salesman to the manager of the Steak Company, but we kept changing drummers in the band, and that eventually led to the break up of the Bushhounds, after 6 years, 3 cd's, countless shows, and tours, we shut it down! My company was looking for a manager for the Austin location, my sister had a house we could live in, and my family could be around their Grandma, so we packed up and moved to Texas!

I worked as a manager, and started a new band, and lived in Austin for awhile, but the band never really did anything but a couple of shows, and some demos, my company told me they would promote me to a district manager if I moved to California, I jumped at that chance! Packed the whole family up again and traveled to Los Angeles!
More coming soon!