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On Halloween day, 1991, I had the incredible opportunity to audtion for the legendary British mock-cock-rock group Spinal Tap . . . at the LA Coliseum, no less (it doesn't get any more epic than that!). Tap (as they are known to those in the know) were auditioning drummers as part of a publicity stunt to promote Break Like the Wind, the followup to their fabled Smell the Glove.

The auditions were held with practically no advanced notice, and the first 50 drummers who showed up got a shot at jamming along with the track "Big Bottom." I was attending the Dick Grove School of Music in Van Nuys, CA at the time, and someone posted the audition information at our school. The flyer simply showed Tap's skull monster head logo with the words "Drummer died. Need new one immediately" and included information on where to call.

Being a lefty drummer, and knowing the kit was gonna be set up for righties, I borrowed a buddy's double pedal the night before the audition, and practiced the song for hours using the slave pedal for my dominant foot!

Yamaha provided what was probably the biggest drumkit of all time - it took up the entire eastern endzone of the Coliseum! The enormity of this kit worked to my benefit, as I was able to play the entire song "backwards" without having to move a single piece of gear. Members of the band judged us from a table set up at the 10 yardline.

Being a Tap fanatic, I dressed to the nines for the occasion, putting on my best British accent and tucking the requisite "Armadillo" into my trousers. My sister Rachel, also well versed in the ways of "Tap-dom," threw on a killer Joan Jett outfit and came along for the ride.

In addition to the 50 auditioners, celebrity drummers of all sorts sat in and had a go at the tune - from Steven Perkins of Jane's Addiction to Gina Shock of the GoGo's. Mick Fleetwood showed up in a flame retardent suit (I guess he heard how many previous Tap drummers had died from spontaneous combustion).

Unfortunately, the whole thing turned out to be a publicity stunt. The band had already lined up its drummer, who turned out to be Rick Parnell, the same guy from the film (he became "Rick Shrimpton," twin brother of the dearly departed Mick). Still, that Halloween has to go down as one of the most incredible days of my life as a musician. And I'll never forget the drum advice given to me after the audition by Tap lead vocalist David St. Hubbins. "Always remember," he said. "It's 'one' first, THEN 'two, three, and four'" Wow, has any greater truth ever been spoken?

Auditioner (me) doing my best Joey Ramone impersonation with David St. Hubbins (Michael McKean) and Derek Smalls (Harry Shearer).