about

“Fantastic! You guys are tough.” – Buckwheat Zydeco

“Those guys are nice, really nice.” – Angelo Moore

“A rocking big band out of Baltimore/ DC, the Players Band can hit all the styles and are a must-see live!” – Alternative Press Magazine

“The Players ooze class and the horns are just damn big. The living vibe of their fun music is what really helps you hear why you need to go see them. A must listen, clearly an accomplished organization with a tight sense of groove that makes such music so damn good!” – Music Monthly

“[The Players Band] exhibits a near-encyclopedic knowledge of classic soul that mixes nicely with a rocking take on reggae and ska. They do the ska thing, and do it well, with horn-heavy choruses and chicken-scratch guitar on exuberant tunes – Ain’t no hatin’ these Players.” – Baltimore Magazine

“This could be the hottest act in the area. The music has p-a-r-t-y written all over it! I knew from the first notes I heard that these guys are the real deal. This is the stuff that good times are made of!” – 103.1 WRNR

“The Players just lock into grooves and rock them for all their worth, an unstoppable live experience!” – Washington City Paper

“Near-virtuoso level instrumentation!” – Rude Roots Magazine

WJZ TV Baltimore
“Players Band” Performs At New Year’s Spectacular

In just a few days, Eyewitness News will be at the Inner Harbor to welcome 2008 to Charm City. This New Year’s Eve Channel 13 will be joined by some new friends. Peggy Lee has more on the band performing at the New Year’s Eve Spectacular for the first time. As the clock winds its way to midnight this New Year’s Eve, it will march to the beat of a different drummer, saxophonist and bass guitarist. It’s “The Players Band,” a Baltimore-based eight-member band. “We play ska, reggae, some rock-influenced music. Music is really characterized by the horns and the upbeat guitar, so it’s dance-able upbeat music,” said band member Andy Schneider. “The Players” made an appearance this summer at Artscape, but they plan to ring in the new year with more of a bang. The band will be taking the main stage for the New Year’s Eve Spectacular, joining thousands of folks at the Inner Harbor. “This is our first time doing the New Year’s Eve down at the Inner Harbor and we’re proud to be from the Baltimore area and promote music we like,” said band member Nick Rider. “Cherish any opportunity to play for the city of Baltimore and any opportunity that our family and friends can come out in a public setting,” said Pablo Fiasco, band member. They’ve opened for some pretty serious bands and performed more than 350 live shows in Maryland, Pennsylvania, Washington, D.C., New York, Delaware, New Jersey, Rhode Island and Virginia. “The Players Band” has a CD out titled “Half-Time.”

The Catonsville Times
Community banded together to make concert a success
Thanks to The Players Band for making Friday night’s benefit concert for Lazarus Caucus such an outstanding success. If you missed the concert, you missed one great band. This was the first time I had heard them play, but it won’t be the last. I was so impressed I had to have the band’s CD and T-shirt. A special thanks to Tom Schneider, who coordinated the event. Without him, none of this would have been possible. Even with the rain on Thursday night, we had a wonderful turnout and over $2,700 in donations. This money will be used to help the homeless men, women and children who reside at the Westside Cold Weather Shelter in Catonsville. Again, none of this would have been possible without The Players Band, Tom Schneider and, of course, our generous community. Thank you so much. ~Gloria Powell, treasurer Lazarus Caucus Inc.
Other notable press
Lynn Strader, T. (2019). “Summer fun with Jamaican Ska music.” The Journal.
Conlin, B. (2012). “Frederick Road Fridays adds sounds of Appalachia and Caribbean.” The Baltimore Sun
Associated Press (2008). “Performers announced for Phelps celebration.” The Associated Press
Campbell, E. (2008). “The Players Band goes live.” The Baltimore Examiner
Lee, P. (2007). “Players Band Performs At New Year’s Spectacular.” WJZ-TV, CBS Broadcasting
Baylor, A. (2007). “Soundcheck, The Players.” The Baltimore Sun
Campbell, E. (2006). “Group plays benefit for homeless in Catonsville.” The Examiner
Sattler, D. (2006). “Hungry for help.” The View
Sattler, D. (2006). “The Players are playing for big money. But not their own.” The View
Ames, M. (2006). “Brothers play for homeless.” The Catonsville Times
Lewis, J. (2006). “The Players Band, Halftime.” Baltimore Magazine
Unknown. (2006). “The Players Band will rock Alive @ Five event.” Gazette
Schaffer, S. (2004). “The Players.” The Baltimore Sun
Wollan, L. (2003). “The Players Band.” Music Monthly
Lewis, J. (2003). “The Players Band, Hate the Game.” Baltimore Magazine
Buckley, M. (2003). “The Players Band.” Chesapeake Music Guide
Unknown. (2003). “The Players.” Viking Remedy Magazine (France)
Trawinski, J. (2003). “Hate the Game’ is a jam driven album.” Towson University Towerlight
Scruggs, S. (2003). “The Players, Hate The Game.” Music Monthly
Wollan, L. (2001). “The Players, Instrumental.” Music Monthly
Jones, D. (2001). “The Players, Instrumental.” Rude Roots Magazine
In retrospect…..During the summer of 1999, TPB came to fruition when drummer Andy Schneider decided to form a new ska band to replace his recently disbanded ska band The Mobtown Beat. The original 5 were Andy on drums, his brother Dan on bass, Mike Gorman on bari-sax, and ex-Mobtown members Joe Ross on guitar and Colin Leech on sax.  The group practiced, wrote material, and solidified the lineup with the addition of Bob Thorp on trumpet and Tim Bosworth on trombone.  Unable to find a vocalist, the band decided to play instrumental until finding a singer.  Joe eventually switched to keys and Dan took over on guitar.  Soon after, Jorge Banales joined on bass and left after a short stint.  Former Unidentified bassist Keith Jackson joined while Tim moved on.  Bob introduced trombonist David Blackstone and trumpeter Paul Weiss to fill out the horn section and Annapolis percussionist Jason Booze was invited to join.  In 2000, TPB began recording material for their first album ‘Instrumental’ which was released in 2001.  Soon after, Joe (temporarily), Colin, and Paul left the band.  Jason experimented with some vocals and eventually became lead singer while continuing on percussion.  The group also discovered local hip-hop artist KB (Kevin Brooks) who joined for short stint.  In 2003, further writing and recording produced a second CD, ‘Hate the Game.’  This album leaned more towards a rock-heavy ska-influenced feel, as opposed to the more traditional-ska ‘Instrumental’.  During production, Dan began experimenting on vocals, and Bob decided to move to Boston to further his musical education.  After playing for a period with only two horns, the band invited former Mobtown Beat trumpeter Nick Reider to join.  The band also welcomed Joe back on keys.  Keith decided to move on and Joe filled in on bass, eventually rejoining full-time.  The band invited friend and ex-Pietaster Pablo Fiasco to perform on keys.  When Jason decided to leave the group, singer Ian Maddy joined to share vocal duties with Dan.  TPB’s third album, ‘Halftime’ was released in 2005.  Shortly after, Ian left the group to pursue a solo career, Unity Reggae Band’s Mark Leary was invited to join as a percussionist, and vocalist, and guitarist ‘Lady Hatchet’ Kristin Forbes joined full-time. ‘Halftime’ was followed up with the band’s fourth album, ‘Live & Direct’, released in 2008.  David Saunier has since joined on sax, Marc Levine joined on aux percussion, and David Blackstone left the group.  TPB celebrated their 500th show in 2018, released their 5th album Skamörgåsbord in June 2020, and was recently featured at the 2021 Supernova International Ska Festival.  More recently, Joe Ross left the group, Kristin has assumed full-time bass duties, and All Mighty Senators trombone legend Craig Considine joined full-time on trombone.  The band is working on their to be named 6th album with release plans in the fall of 2024.