The Price Of Dope was formed in 1995, and has increasingly gained popularity and respect among audiences and peers alike. They have been featured in numerous articles and music journals, and are reckoned to be the top jazz band in San Diego. The Price Of Dope has opened for The Artist formerly known as Prince, The Long Beach DUB Allstars, The Brand New Heavies, Digital Underground, The Roots, Ozomatli, and other internationally known bands. The Price Of Dope has featured Harold Todd (tours with Lenny Kravitz) and Robert Walters of The Greyboy Allstars. They were nominated for "Best Acid Jazz Band" at the San Diego Music Awards by SLAMM magazine in 1997. Their CD, The Price Of Dope, held the number one spot in San Diego for 6 consecutive weeks and remained in the top five for months. The Price Of Dope is guaranteed to keep the excitement high and the audience grooving.

The First Strain (Jeff Kelley, Christian Schinelli, Todd Davidson )

This was the start of it all… The idea behind the inception of the original POD was to play danceable acid jazz music. In San Diego, there were very few bands trying to accomplish this aside from the Greyboy Allstars, who were our primary local inspiration. The band was completely instrumental, using the Moog and samples to add flavor to the funk grooves laid down by a tireless and sometimes hypnotic rhythm section. It was also common to feature a live DJ or rap artist to spice up the set. Being a very groove-oriented band, guitarists, horn and sax players were also eager to sit in with us. Some guests in the early days include: DJ's Greyboy and Ratty, Alex Vargas and Cochemea Gastelum both on saxophone, and Brian Jordan on guitar...to name a few.

The Second Strain (Kelley, Schinelli, Dave Carano, Davidson)

After many auditions for guitarist, the band unanimously decided on David Carano. David Carano was playing with Wise Monkey Orchestra and Plump when he joined. David and Todd both took band together back at Mission Bay High School, which made for a comfortable environment musically, and subsequently took the band to a new level. Not only did Dave bring years of experience in his playing, but there was now a fourth element to songwriting. Although the solid groove was still there, the songs started to become more melodic, and it had become a soloists heaven. Some guests during this lineup were: Ivory & Giovanni from B-Side Players, Andy Geib & Jason Whitmore from Wise Monkey…

The Third Strain (Kelley, Schinelli, Carano, Davidson, Cheme Gastelum)

The lineup was now complete. With Cheme on the saxophone and flute, we now had all of the elements to perfect our acid/soul jazz style of music. Cheme had a very wide knowledge of groove jazz music, and turned us all on to some jazz greats. Cheme brought to the table amazing chops, original music, and some great cover ideas. After a short while, Todd Davidson moved on to other projects he was involved in. Although Todd was one of the three founding members, the rest of the group decided to continue on. Some of the guests for this time were: Harold Todd on flute, Robert Walters on Rhodes, Joey Bowen on vocals…

The Fourth Strain (Kelley, Schinelli, Carano, Gastelum, Harold Todd)

This short-lived lineup was a blast! Since we were now short a keyboard player, Cheme, Dave, and Harold would take turns playing the Fender Rhodes. The solos during this period were amazing. With Harold playing the flute primarily, the band had a raw sound but easily digestible with all audiences. With the Green Circle Bar now closed, a cool live music venue in San Diego was hard to find. The G Lounge was one of the Price Of Dope's frequented hot spots, and one of the songs on the first Price Of Dope CD was recorded live there. While recording locally, we met keyboardist/organist Ben Moore……

The Fifth Strain (Kelley, Schinelli, Carano, Gastelum, Ben Moore)

With Ben Moore now in the group we had a pretty good thing going. Jeff owned his own sound company, and Ben worked and engineered at a studio. During this lineup we played a lot around town and everyone was still engaged in outside activities (other bands, jobs…). Our playing earned us a nomination for best Acid Jazz band, which of course went to the Allstars. Dave and Cheme were now starting to play with Robert Walters 20th Congress and there was some tension in the band. One day the expected news came that Dave and Cheme were going to leave the band. At this point, the CD was recorded but the dope vibe was diminishing…but far from gone!

The Sixth Strain (Kelley, Schinelli, Andy Holmes, Jason Whitmore, James Cummings, Skip Howlett)

After being through movement in the band previously, Jeff and Christian were ready to pick up the pieces and continue again. This time the lineup included a permanent percussion player Skip Howlett, who has played with the likes of Herbie Hancock, Tito Puente, Cal Tjader… We also were lucky enough to find a perfect guitarist Andy Holmes (at the time with the band Mosaic), who brought a Grant Green influenced style which really brought up the energy. Jason Whitmore and James Cummings were great players, two of the easiest guys to work with, and loved being a part of the Price Of Dope experience. It was during this 6th lineup that we finally released our CD at the G Lounge. The CD was soon number one in the local charts for 6 weeks and remained in the top 10 for months.

The Third Floor (Kelley, Schinelli, Holmes)

Although the band was once again sounding good, movement was inevitable. Jason and James had lost the balance between the band and their personal lives as we played out and practiced frequently. With this news, Andy, Jeff & Christian decided to start a three piece. Aside from loving the freedom of a three piece band, they wanted to eliminate any future movement. After a very short while the three piece named The Third Floor had their first few shows. One was with the Allstars at the Casbah, and another opening for Dave Wekyl at Victor's. While the music was good, the idea of starting from scratch seemed more difficult then they had expected. The dope experience had to continue……

The Seventh Strain (Kelley, Schinelli, AHolmes, Gianni Staiano, Ryan Matzinger)

The Price Of Dope had now been transformed. While we were still playing groove music, the rhythm section had more freedom. As opposed to the earlier days of hiding behind the groove, Jeff and Christian played off of the soloist creating more of a fusion style sound at times. The music was still as funky as ever, and the crowd was no stranger to the dance floor.

pocket

Jeff Kelley and Christian Schinelli are keeping the groove alive with their new project: Pocket. Pocket consists of former members of The Price Of Dope Andy Holmes and Ben Moore.