Meet The Band
Melissa Oakes - Lead Vocals
Coming from a musical family, it's no surprise that Melissa found herself in front of a microphone. Her love of music started early on, however, it wasn't until her 20's when she finally got the courage to sing in front of a crowd. Karaoke broke her out of her shell and there was no turning back! She moved on and started singing for DJ companies, doing private events and weddings and then joined"Playing with Fire" in 2010. It wasn't until December 2012 when she found her home with the guys of "American Cover Story". Whether she's singing Evanescence or belting out some Janice Joplin, her love of music shines through and its amazing to see!
Jay Giaccio Lead / Rhythm Guitar / Background Vocals.
Active in the local music scene throughout the 90s and 2000s, in original bands such as "Eternal Nightmare", "Damned Cause" and "System Torture", Jay brings 30+ years of performance and playing experience to the fold. The Founding Father of American Cover Story, Jay is responsible for not only bringing everyone together, but for using his phenomenal talent to inject his original (and occasional Metal) music sensibilities to the group. He weaves his creative flair into your favorite tunes all while backing up Melissa on vocals and using his one of a kind dance moves to liven up every gig!
Jimmy PInto - Drums/Background Vocals
The glue who keeps us all together, Jimmy Pinto is a phenomenal drummer who has been around the music scene for a long time. He’s been in a number of cover bands, including the well known the 80's metal band "RedRum" who we often shared shows with. His superior drumming skills never disappoint, as he is the only man known to be able to order AND eat a sandwich during a set without missing a beat!!! lol
Anthony Davis - Lead/Rhythm Guitar
Seasoned veteran Anthony " Chainsaw" Davis has been playing since he’s 8 years old and in bands such as “Gamut“ and “RedRum”, we feel lucky that he has found his way home to American Cover Story! His attention to detail, experience and pure talent add a much needed dynamic to our sound. Influenced by Metallica, Alice in Chains , Tool, Volbeat and Avenge Sevenfold, his metal edge definitely keeps us on our toes! His love for playing guitar , which radiates in his stage presence, is simply Amazing to see and you definitely don’t want to Miss it!
Tony Garcia - Bass
Please help us with giving the warmest welcome to our newest addition to the band, Tony!!! Tony brings 20 years of experience playing bass , starting at the young age of 13 . Once he picked it up , he never looked back! He spent most of his years playing live in original bands including “ Glass-Bombs” and “Boardwalk Saints”, but we can’t tell you how excited we are that he has decided to join the world of cover music and that he chose American Cover Story as his home… His influences range from punk
bands like the Ramones, Clash, Bouncing Souls and Alkaline Trio …. to the golden age of Motown/Soul , such as the Staple Singers and the Funk Brothers Band . They even range all the way to Rush and 50’s/60’s classics like The Four Seasons, Eddie Cochran, and The Animals. Add in additional influences like AC/DC , CCR and the amazing James Jamerson, Donald "Duck" Dunn, Bryan Kienlen and Matt Freeman and we have ourselves a well rounded musician who can play anything we basically throw at him. He is definitely the breath of fresh air we needed!
Kenny Glass - Retired Bass
Kenny will forever be an American Cover Story legend! There was no way we couldn't mention him, even though his last show with us was on January 18th, 2020. An Original member of the band, Kenny was always the most professional. He lent us his house for our many rehearsals and provided us with our amazing sound. Although we always joked because he generally stood in the background, there was nothing background about him. His bass playing was always present and he will definitely be missed! He has aspirations of joining the famous spoon guy, so watch out Florida, Kenny is gonna take you by Storm! <3