Page 17 - Susan Taylor

Huey graduated a year early from high school, at age seventeen, soul of the band. Starting in the late1980’s they donated hun-
because he skipped second grade. He claims it was because dreds of thousands of dollars to fund a program to train doctors
he was “great at sandbox.” His Dad advised him to travel after to deal with aids patients through the University of California-San
graduating. Taking his Dad’s advice, he hitch-hiked across Francisco. Over the years they have played to sold out crowds to
Europe and all the way he played his harmonica. This was the raise funds to support crucial education and mentoring programs
beginning of being paid for what he knew was his passion. Once for at-risk-youth, pediatric cancer patients and many others who
he returned home, he was accepted at Cornell University in New need help from coast to coast. Huey is a longtime supporter of
York State and, as he says, “I attended Cornell for five minutes Bread & Roses and continues today through his music and his
in a two year period.” So, the engineering department lost a great golfing skills, playing celebrity benefit tournaments world-
student and we gained three plus decades of Huey Lewis and wide, to raise money for worthy causes.
The News. We win! While at Cornell, he formed his first band
and covered the top 40 songs on FM radio. His passion for music Huey does not fall short on talent. He has stretched his creative
comes through when he quips, “I like listening to certain music self when he starred in the Broadway show “Chicago” as the
but all music is fun to play.” rapscallion lawyer Billy Flynn. He also appeared in the television

San Diego Woman

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The music business has gone through many changes in the last series, “Just Shoot Me”, “One Tree Hill” and movies “Sphere”,
30 years but Huey and The News feel their timing was good. “Shadow of a Doubt”, “Duets” and Robert Altman‘s “Short Cuts.”
Their experience, as Huey says, “We went from obscurity to This is just a snapshot of the man behind the music and how
number one and that only happens once and it’s like a rocket he has brought his talent and smoky bluesy voice to us. He just
ship ride and then life is different.” The band has been known keeps getting better.
over the years to satisfy loyal fans and young converts alike
with their full-tilt musical shows. I asked him about the success
they have enjoyed and how their music has a life of its own. Huey Lewis and The News recently performed at Pechanga
Huey spoke confidently about making choices that speak to him Resort and Casino. Visit their site at http://www.hueylewisandthe-
creatively. “Ultimately you stay in the business to play music but news.com/ for upcoming performance dates.
you also have to be a good businessperson. There is the band,
including four founding members, and then thirty plus people that
have bills to pay. In the long run, they have economic consider-
ations and they meet them by playing music.”
Generosity and giving back has played a role in the heart and