Eric Mangum Biography

Eric was born in Salt Lake City, and has lived there most of his life.

He began on the piano around the age of 5. "It was my babysitter," quips Mangum adding that when his parents were working, his sister was supposed to be watching him but would leave with friends. So Eric passed the time by learning songs from the radio, or teaching himself how to read music and playing from songbooks left around the house.

Eric first tried the trumpet during the 5th grade, but his mother would not continue paying the rental fees when there was a perfectly good working alto saxophone at home. So starting in the 6th grade, Eric took up the alto sax and never looked back. He played the instrument well, and it won him awards in high school, and eventually a scholarship to the University of Utah. He played in the marching band as well as pep and jazz bands during his two years at the U.

The guitar was an instrument Eric paid little attention to until the last year of high school. Mangum adds, "Rock bands didn't want keyboard players much, and I wanted to play. So I bought an old Les Paul copy from a pawn shop and started learning. I actually lost a friend early on because he was supposed to be the lead guitarist in a band, and I was to play rhythm or backup guitar. A few weeks into rehearsals, the rest of the band decided I should be the lead guitarist because I could play the solos better. Oh well... what do you do?" Eric kept up with the instrument, eventually adding to his collection a custom Canadian made Signature guitar, and five more electrics and two acoustic guitars.

( Here's Eric w/Ed Van Halen 1988)

Eric played in a couple of heavy metal bands from 1985 through 1989, when the band he played in decided they wanted to join the trend of hair bands and wear makeup. Since playing in bands was never about "being a rock star, or the appearance," Eric quit the band. Very shortly after, Eric's friend Brent Reed asked if he would join his group. "But you play COUNTRY MUSIC," snorted Mangum. Reed reassured his friend that it would not be like what Eric was thinking. And he was right. So began a long career playing in several country groups for Eric. He played in clubs steadily from the late 80s through the year 2000 - even touring with a few national acts including Deanna Carter, Chris LeDoux, Tracy Byrd and more.

After leaving the last country group, Midnight Rodeo, in late 2000 to "get off the road," Eric began playing in a Funk/Soul group called Remedy. He played weekends in local Salt Lake Clubs until the opening of the Tavernacle Social Club - Salt Lake's only dueling piano bar. The experience was excellent and there would be no more hauling around and setup/teardown of large PA systems. "Dueling Pianos is the best musical and performance experience I've ever had," he states firmly.

Eric spends his time now with his own private endeavors, performing on the road and at theTavernacle, playing ice hockey, and spending time with family (including a new grandson).

3/12/07