Surely you’ve seen this guy around.
He’s almost never in front of a microphone, seldom in the spotlight. More often in the back row, grooving his heart out on a five-string fretless bass or a slick standup that looks like some kind of blues harpoon. He’s played in so many bands. Betsy and the Gene Pool. Chad West Trio. Panther Band. Siberon. Foolaloof. Usually on bass. Usually running sound. Usually the first man to show up at the gig and the last one out. A Bisbee Music Hall of Fame inductee which, as one of the hardest working men in our music scene, is richly deserving of the honor.
I’m talking about Frank Tornoe, a real load-bearing pillar of the Bisbee scene.
We’ve talked about how Bisbee makes people have to be, or become, their true selves. So it was with Frank. A Philly native, he’s called Bisbee home since 2012, crossing the country from North Carolina with his bride Naomi. He got his big break within a year of relocating, landing about as big a fish as anyone could hope for: playing bass for Bisbee legends Buzz and the Soul Senders in their last lineup from 2013 onward. Buzz took to Frank right away, admiring his even keel and chill demeanor, qualities he still possesses. For his part, Frank says playing with Buzz “gave me the [“courage”–family blog!] to feel like I could do anything in this town.”
From there he got in pretty close to the ground floor with One Ghost, a Bisbee rock and roll institution, and with the Carolyn Toronto Trio, being a frequent collaborator in her high-energy music ever since. I asked him to list the bands he’s played in and many of them are mentioned here. But Frank says there are “at least 10 bands I did not mention that deserve it but I get to feeling like I’m bragging.”
For a time he had a studio in Brewery Gulch where he began his Bisbee music production work. That studio has since moved to his home but the name, Chasing Light, has stuck. Chasing Light is Frank’s mad scientist lab and it’s a busy one. Currently Frank is hard at work on a solo album by Juniper Djinn’s Jessica Smith, and another by May Eddington of the Barn Swallows. He has also recorded for the ever-wandering Jason Dea West. Chasing Light is a rehearsal space as well as a production studio.
And its where he brews up his own concoctions, for Frank is a composer of super cool ambient electronic music because of course he is. He’s set up fanstastical light/soundscape experiences at Club Kilimanjaro, the Bisbee Royale and other venues over the years.
When I asked Frank about his most memorable accomplishments since coming to Bisbee he didn’t hesitate. That first chapter with Buzz and the Soul Senders would always be at the top of the list. Knowing that was a softball question I pressed him. “Besides the obvious,” I said. After a gracious nod to the many collaborations he’s been part of over the years, he said his new project with Carolyn Toronto called Andante is his real source of joy. Here you can see the fruits of this project, long in the making, performed earlier this year at the Bisbee Grand. Its usually a duo, but this performance features local stalwarts TS Henry Webb and Brian Mullins, as a treat.
The real treat though is seeing him out of his element, yet totally in his power. Here is Mr. Frank Tornoe, so often in the background, making everything happen so smoothly no one notices, first man in last man out, thumping that bass as one half of Bisbee’s most storied rhythm section with Sam Panther and…why, Frank is right there up front, where he belongs. Offering up his own compositions, with the rest of the band backing him up for a change. Frank has paid his dues in the local scene like few have, and here he is, bringing seriously cool music of his own design.
No wonder he’s so fired up about it.
You can catch Andante, Frank and Carolyn’s newest project, at the Grand on May 21st with special guest Serena Gabriel. See you there.
