Revelation #1: He's called J. Peter, regardless of what anyone tells you.  As an exception, you may refer to him as "Chief J. Peter" at formal gatherings.

J. Peter was destined to play in an Americana Acoustic FolkGrass band.  In fact, he says it's his birthright, which will be explored hereafter...it just took about 40 years to finally happen.  Now, early on, J. Peter's primary goal was to play in ear-piercing, metal bands and spend all earned gig money on black leather, bandanas, and platform shoes. Success was nearly his.  While still a strapping teen, his first trio, with local legends, Mike Eck and Todd Hurley, suitably called The Garage Band, lived up to its austere name.  The lads actually played in the garage, basement or living room.  Recordings were made and rumored to exist in such cloistered locations as The Vatican, Fort Knox, and the KFC Secret Recipe Vault.  Who's to say where they truly are…

How is it, then, that J. Peter went from there to here??? While the origins of J Peter’s musical genius is often heatedly debated within music circles, and conflicting news articles continue to be bandied about, this exclusive Google biopic serves to settle the mystery once and for all.  Now, for our hero's back story...

'Tis true.  Both Royal blood and music flows within his artistic veins.  Circa 1944, J. Peter’s father was amongst many brave-hearted US Marines in the struggle to liberate the tropical islands dotting the South Pacific.  Vanuatu, an island of recent “Survivor” fame, situated near New Guinea, was firmly in the grasp of Imperial Japan, a South Pacific island fighting for its very survival.  Neither US aerial or naval assault was possible, due to supply and troop bottlenecks between Fiji and New Caledonia.  Meanwhile, the Vanuatu villagers were suffering daily.

An audacious plan was needed, and it arrived in the form of Marine Corp Private Francis Yakel.  While heating a can of K-rations on the exhaust pipe of an idling Amphibious Weasel, Yakel offhandedly offered an idea to his buddies, that most thought was a suicide mission: capture the stronghold's Imperial Commander, Yomamazkuki (pronounced Yo-Mamma's Kooky), nullifying the nearly 18,000 fortified Japanese soldiers in the process, and liberate the islands inhabitants.

The US Naval Fleet Commander, who happened to be in the Weasel, overheard the remarks, and was stunned by its simple brilliance.  A secret mission was rapidly developed, and in short order, Yakel was brought within 4,000 yards of Vanuatu Island on a submerged Narwhal-Class submarine, where he was then launched from the sub's forward torpedo tube.

Swimming to shore, Private Yakel secreted his way to the Camp's Command Post under cover of night, camouflaged as a coconut tree.  The following morning, as the camp commander stepped into the tropical woodline for his morning constitutional, the audacious Yakel burst from the combat coconut tree, and single-handedly captured the commander.  In a matter of minutes, the entire Jap Army surrendered, without a single shot fired.

A 3-day celebration, today called the "Toka Festival", ensued, in which lavish gifts were presented, along with food, traditional island "Napen Napen" dancing, and of course, music.  While his pocket harmonica was ready for celebratory action, Private Yakel's Glockenspiel was unavailable, being in his brother, Seaman Peter Yakel's care, aboard the USS Wasp.  Undaunted, the resilient Marine managed to fashion a wooden variant from local fauna, now called a Panpipe by the locals, and while playing both instruments, conducted the tribal orchestra throughout the festival.

Liberated, the local Chieftain and tribe were so thankful, that the Village was renamed in Yakel's honor, and remains known as the "Village of Yakel" today.  In addition, Private Yakel was titled as a Sovereign Royal Island Chieftain, with all rights and privileges of the island King, including hereditary titleage to all male heirs.  Thus, J. Peter is a bonafide Vanuatu Chief!

Factoid: Marine Private Yakel's camouflaged combat coconut tree design, or COCOCAT, was so ingenious that the Marine Corps adopted its use Pacific theatre-wide, and later, it served as the basis for the development of the Sniper's "Ghillie Suit".

After the liberation, Marine Private Yakel returned to America, and married his high school sweetheart.  J. Peter's mother was a church organist from the age of 12, and between the two of them, a symphony of musical traits filtered into J. Peter's DNA.  So there you have it.  The musical genius of J. Peter is in the blood.

Move forward to recent history.  Looking to increase the odds of reaching his 18th birthday, J. Peter switched to the relative safety of playing surf music, skewered with maximum distortion and feedback.  A short time later, as with dad, military duty beckoned.  However, recalling his father's regret of not having his Glockenspiel by his side, J. Peter packed up his '72 Strat and used it to assault multi-national forces with reckless abandon across Europe and later, coast-to-coast North America.

On June 12, 1985, in the midst of his highly successful Western European tour, “Folk You Russia”, J. Peter took advantage of a brief gig break to attend a Springsteen Concert at Feyenoord Stadion, in Rotterdam, Holland.  While 75,000 boisterous fans filled the stadium to see “The Boss”, it wasn’t until an unwitting cameraman panned to J. Peter, clandestinely seated in a roped off nose-bleed section, that real pandemonium ensued.  With his cover blown, throngs of fans (some estimates put the number in the tens of thousands) bolted from their stadium seats, in an attempt to reach Yakel. 

Were it not for the quick response of the Danish Security whisking J. Peter from the bleachers, there’s no telling how many autographs would have been written…certainly, far too many for Springsteen’s show to have gone on with any semblance of command.  As it were, the show did go on and The Boss delivered the American goods as expected. 

However, J. Peter’s unsolicited attention did have a silver lining.  When stadium cleanup was finished, over 14,000 pairs of wooden shoes were donated to local charities, under the auspices of J. Peter’s celebrity.  He was subsequently praised by the US Ambassador to Holland.

J. Peter served 22 years in the US military, retiring as a Chief Warrant Officer 3.  Throughout his storied career, bands came and went, casualties mounted, but the music lived on.  The Chief crossed paths with an assortment of artists, such as Alice Cooper, Joan Jett, and Billy Joel, but alas, none were of sufficient mettle to maintain his musical drive.  For years, he went it alone, on the cusp of grandeur, walking that lonely road toward world domination, one gig at at time.

Today, J. Peter plays acoustic guitar as the founding member of an iconic Americana FolkGrass band known as Flood Road, aka the Flood Road Boys, or FRB.

Revelation #2: J. Peter is the only member of FRB who has fired Claymore mines and anti-tank rockets while listening to Black Sabbath's, The Mob Rules.

For more information on J. Peter the writer, visit his book page.

INFLUENCES: Johnny Cash, Rob Halford, Ronald Reagan, J. Peter, Underdog, The Hulk, Matchbox Cars

DISCOGRAPHY:

J.. Peter Yakel - “'Til The Cows Come Home” (2006)

J. Peter Yakel - “Flood Road” (2007)

J. Peter Yakel & Flood Road - “Pickin' On Park Ave” (2008)

Grain of salt.  Take as necessary while visiting the Flood Road Band website. Copyright@2009 by J. Peter Yakel and Flood Road.

Visit "Chief" J. Peter Yakel's Reality Page

Return to Flood Road's Page!

Return to Flood Road's MySpace Page!
J. Peter croonin' the the deliriously music drunk crowds at the Parting Glass in Saratoga Springs, NY.