Joe Petrucelli is a founding member of the Mustache Band and our fearless leader.

Joe started at the Your Father's Mustache nightclub in Denver playing tuba when he was a music student at the University of Colorado. However, he soon switched to playing banjo because it paid $1.00 more per hour than playing the tuba. With the extra cash, he graduated from CU with a degree in Music Education. Instead of becoming a music teacher, he went to work for the police department, and has been with them for almost 30 years.

Joe has kept the band together since the club closed in 1975 and has guided its evolution from a sing-along (party) band into a respected Dixieland jazz (party) band. He is definitely the driving force behind - and out in front of - Your Father's Mustache Band.

Gary Buss plays all manner of woodwinds. He taught music at Shelby State College and the Univ. of Northern Florida, and currently teaches at CU Denver and in the Denver Public Schools.

Gary has performed in numerous symphonies, orchestras and over 30 Broadway shows, with Ray Charles, Johnny Mathis, Tommy Tune, and others. Gary’s an outstanding talent and we’re mighty proud he’s with us.

Roger Johns is an Illinois native who started playing with tenor bands at age 15. He received his BME degree from Illinois Wesleyan in 1974 and MME in 1977 from the Univ. of Northern Colo. Roger has been well known in the Denver area for years for his outstanding bass playing, and we’re happy he has joined the band. His ‘real job’ is with Ball Aerospace.

Craig Hugo came from a musical family and had his first gig at age 14 with an Elks Club sponsored dance band. After a tour of duty in the Army, he returned to CU in Boulder and earned a degree in Music Education. He met Joe while in college and the rest is…history. Craig taught music in the Denver Public Schools for 16 years, and his great playing and sense of fun make him a favorite of the fans — and us!

Meet the newest member of our band!

For the past 15 years Shelley has worked in musical theater around Colorado.

Over the past several years she has performed with a local R&B band, a Salsa band in Costa Rica, the Colorado Chorale and various local Gospel Choirs. Shelley has also done industrials, commercial and voice over work for national and regional spots.

Welcome aboard, Shelley! 

Ray Leake began studying classical piano at age four and has been playing professionally for over 30 years. While studying music at CU (where he met Joe and Craig) he found himself playing “honky-tonk” at Shakey’s Pizza which fueled his interest in ragtime and jazz. Ray has performed with numerous Dixieland bands and with such Jazz luminaries as Joe Venuti and Joe Darensbourg, as well as being a featured performer on the Mississippi Queen and the Delta Queen Riverboats. Visit Ray at his website: www.Music4Ewe.com.

Jim Moore started jazzin’ back in 1980 and traveled with the band to over 30 jazz festivals and events, including Sacramento, Victoria B.C., Monterey, San Diego, Oregon and the Bahamas! He has performed in warm-up bands for Bill Cosby and Rare Silk.

Jim’s in great demand as a drummer, and is a CPA with his own firm.

Charlie Smith is the heart and soul of our front line, and he continues to wow everyone...especially us! He started playing trumpet at the age of seven when his dad got him a trumpet for Christmas.

Charlie has a degree in Music Performance and has played with the Glenn Miller Band, the Woody Herman Orchestra, Frank Sinatra Jr., and Bobby (Don’t Worry, Be Happy!) McFerrin. We don’t worry, cuz we’re happy Charlie is with us.

Mike Johnson, our good friend, helped form the fabulous Your Father's Mustache Band 30 years ago when he and Joe Petrucelli were both working at the YFM nightclub in Denver. Although he has not been an official member of the band for years, he still crawls out of the woodwork now and then to sit in with us at local venues and jazz festivals. He established Washboard International in 1983 and organizes washboard concerts and festivals (believe it or not!). Visit Mike at his website: www.washboards.com.