Top Dog

SUMMARY:
San Diego Radio and TV Broadcasting Emmy Award winners Top Dog is an aggressive heavy blues southern rock trio. Members have toured the U.S., Japan, Hawaii, and Alaska. Members have opened up for DEF LEPPARD, BLUE OYSTER CULT, ROBIN TROWER, GARY HOEY, YNGWIE MALMSTEEN, LYNYRD SKYNYRD and other national acts. Playing original rock compositions, written by Brian Lee, Joey Moore, and John Klemmer. TOP DOG is primarily a concert band having performed tunes from their CDs at San Diego’s House of Blues, 4TH & B, and the Belly-Up. Outside of recording sessions band practice is conducted at Club Rileys in San Diego. Club Riley is the exclusive Media Partner for the band. TOP DOG is listed as one of the best unsigned acts in the U.S.

DETAIL:
Formed in 2000, band members include:

'Smokin' Brian Lee - Lead Guitar, Vocals
Lead Guitarist for several bands on the East and West Coast since the 80's - never forgetting his roots as a blues rocker - his influences include Jimi Hendrix, Eric Clapton and Muddy Waters.

BACKGROUND: Brian Lee started playing guitar at the early age of 11 in Japan as a military brat in 1967 listening to the sounds of Jimi Hendrix…it wasn’t long until he did his first gig at a boy scout jamboree for an audience of 1300. Later on his influences included doing covers of Hendrix and Cream songs in several bands in the Annapolis Md. area. Throughout the early seventies, Brian now in Jacksonville Beach Florida, played in CALIBER, a southern rock band warming up for MOLLY HATCHET and 38 SPECIAL. Brian took over on guitar for a few weekends with MOLLY HATCHET when one of them got sick playing venues up and down the Fl. Coast from Daytona to Ft. Lauderdale enhancing his southern rock roots. After a tour in the U.S. Navy, Brian took off to visit Kauai, Hawaii and lived and surfed with brother Earl for awhile and realized the island is way too small for a career in rock and roll-so he set his sights on San Diego to be close to the L.A. music scene. Around 1980 Brian took on the cover scene and made great money throughout the 80’s playing current hits in bands such as ROX, BANDIT, and ACE DAGGER. It wasn’t until 1985 that Brian helped form the band FRANCE that toured Japan, Alaska, and the entire southwest U.S. including Las Vegas, Phoenix, Yuma, L.A. and concerts with great bands like DEF LEPPARD, QUIET RIOT, JOAN JETT and many others exceeding crowds of 13,000. FRANCE recorded and sold out all their copies of their first LP “Cool Moves”. They stayed together as a top cover/circuit/ concert act for 12 years and recorded several albums, being offered 3 record deals. Continuing into the 90’s and outlasting many of the clubs they played in, FRANCE had a change of pace and hired on a new frontman still in jail on a work furlough, got him out to do shows! He had to call the band SCOUNDREL because of this…the band now went on to record several heavy/southern rock songs and toured the far east- this time playing for 5000 in Kinser, Okinawa and all over Japan, Alaska doing concerts along the way. Now Brian is exclusively playing original southern style rock in a lil’ ol’ band from San Diego called TOP DOG, he has completely returned to his southern roots performing concerts at larger venues in the southwest. TOP DOG is currently in the studio recording their second CD after releasing their first CD “Unleashed”, they are listed as one of the best unsigned acts in the U.S.

'Jammin' Joey Moore - Lead Vocals, Bass Guitar
With that raspy voice of experience, Joey is a true bluesman. His influences include Elvis, Cream, John Mayall and Eric Clapton.

BACKGROUND: Joey was born in Portsmith, Virginia. He was the fourth of six kids, or as his mother liked to say "the baby of the first litter". His father was an officer in the Navy so the family moved around a lot, finally settling in San Diego, CA when Joey was seven years old. He saw the Beatles performing on the Ed Sullivan show when he was nine and he asked his father if they got paid for doing that. When his father said, "Yes they do", Joey's fate was sealed. At age eleven, he wrote the lyrics to, "Hungry Lil' Boy". When he was thirteen, he joined his first band, TEEN SYMPATHY. The band had a keyboard and guitar with Joey singing lead vocals. They would perform at Masonic Temple dances, school functions and family parties singing originals, Doors and Santana. A few years later the other band members wanted to add a bass player but he disagreed and left the band. Joey then went out, bought a bass guitar and learned how to play it on his own. He was then able to put his own music to his song "Hungry Lil' Boy". Joey went on to help create a band called BIG MOUTH, The drummer was ex-Navy. One guitar player was an ex-Army sergeant, the other guitar player was an ex-Marine sergeant, the lead singer was an ex-sergeant from the Natn'l Guard, and 17 year old Joey played bass and shared vocals. For three years they toured all over