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Jewel and her band leader/guitarist
Mark Oakley
"It was always just guitar," smiles McKenzie native
Mark Oakley, now a resident of a beautifully unique,
hilltop neighborhood near Nashville where he lives with
his winsome blonde wife, Kristi, and their three boys,
Chandler, Carter and Henry.
In a career that has been blessed by the fruits of Mark's
flair with the guitar - termed "awesome" by his
contemporaries - he is now guitarist and bandleader for
the soulful folk singer Jewel.
His roots, however, remain deeply imbedded in his hometown
where he first learned to play the guitar and where he met
his childhood sweetheart.
"It was great; I loved growing up in McKenzie," says Mark,
who is still close to around "half a dozen" childhood
friends he maintains contact with, by e-mail when visits
are hard to come by.
Mark was born into a diversely talented family. His dad,
Thomas, majored in music at Lambuth University and was
band director in Kennett, Missouri before moving to
McKenzie. "He was always in a band when I was younger,"
says Mark concerning his father, who played keyboard in
the bands.
Mark began his own experiment in music on the keyboard,
until, in his adolescent mind of the time, he realized
"playing the keyboard was kind of nerdy."
He contented himself with his father's ukulele for a few
weeks before his parents bought his first guitar, a Fender
Stratocaster.
"Anything to do with music, they would just take care of
it," Mark says with matter-of-fact thankfulness, then
continues with a wistful gaze, "I wish I still had it; I
sold it years ago."
His mom, Patty, contributed an artistic influence of a
different genre in Mark's life as owner of Oakley
Photography in McKenzie. Walking into her shop is like
walking into a magical fantasy world where past and
present combine among canvases, curtains and props to
create a mystical aura of romance and splendor.
Mark's music education continued in high school as well as
at home as he played snare drum in the marching band as
well as getting his feet wet by playing his guitar in a
"couple of assemblies" at the school, along with other
band members.
"It was fun," says Mark regarding his drum-playing years,
"but I always played guitar."
After graduating from high school in 1987, Mark headed for
Los Angeles with his guitar. "In the late '80's, if you
did anything musical, you had to go to Los Angeles - or at
least that's what you thought," explains Mark.
He attended Musicians Institute in Hollywood (which has
its roots as the Guitar Institute of Technology) from
which he graduated before enrolling at Cal State
University in Los Angeles.
Mark characterizes the Musicians Institute as "all music"
in contrast with the comprehensive curriculum of the
university. At the Institute, along with rhythm, jazz and
rock workshops, for example, Mark gained stage experience
that would benefit future performances. "They insisted
that you play live a lot; read charts on stage and play,"
he describes.
At Cal State, Mark concentrated on "basic stuff - any
excuse to stay out there," he laughs. "Mom and Dad were
not going to let me stay out there unless I was in school,
or Sybil King was not going to let me!"
Sybil is Mark's vivacious, 80-something year old
grandmother who still works everyday in a family
partnership at Southern Scientific in McKenzie, as well as
performing in various community and civic activities.
Mark's rich family heritage is reflected in Sybil and her
late husband's first hand witness of the frantic day of
horror when Japanese bombers terrorized Pearl Harbor, as
Mark's grandfather was stationed at the Hawaiian naval
base. To Mark and his siblings - John, Heather and Holly -
the estimable lady is known simply as "Bamo", the youthful
articulation of a grandmotherly title.
"Bamo bought me a car while I was out there," Mark
recalls, his thankfulness still intact after years of
success in his art.
Mark was still living in the Cal State dormitories when he
got his first break playing guitar for the musical group
"Giant" whose best remembered song, "I'll See You In My
Dreams", hit 12 or 13 on the top-20's chart in the late
1980's.
"It was funny, that year Arsenio Hall was really big,"
Mark shares, his eyes flashing with humor. "We played
Arsenio Hall one night and a big limousine ran me back to
the dorm hall." His college friends shared Mark's
enjoyment of his prestigious and new found royal treatment
and went back into the dorm with him where they all
watched the show on television.
Mark was part of Giant's two-week tour of Europe where the
group opened for the well-known rock performers Peter
Frampton and Heart.
With other Giant band members also having roots in
Tennessee, the group relocated to Nashville around 1990,
when Mark was able to concentrate more closely on his
relationship with high school sweetheart Kristi, with whom
he had remained close while living in California.
"We dated the whole time he was gone," reports Kristi, who
was a year behind Mark at McKenzie High School where she
was a cheerleader and the daughter of Karl and Elizabeth
Barlow, former co-publishers of The McKenzie Banner and
Dresden Enterprise.
Kristi flew out twice to visit Mark in California, while
he also acknowledges, "I probably flew home a lot." When
the couple married in 1991, Giant played at their wedding.
After Giant, Mark performed with several Christian artists
including Michael W. Smith, Gary Chapman, and Amy Grant
plus country artists Martina McBride, Faith Hill and
SHeDAISY.
He continues to credit much of his success to members of
Giant, especially Dann Huff, now a major music producer in
Nashville, who introduced Mark to Jewel and other artists.
"He continues to do good things for me," declares Mark.
Last year, Mark "went everywhere" with Jewel, including
two stints in Europe plus Japan, Singapore, and Thailand.
"The only other person I toured with last year is Amy
(Grant)," continues Mark, who also performs in shows with
SHeDAISY.
Mark says Rome was the "coolest place" he saw last year.
"That was the most exciting place ever!" he enthuses,
sharing that the group had a day off in Milan, Italy and -
having visited Milan on two prior occasions - chose
instead to ride the train to Rome, taking the following
day to tour the historic location.
"We did Rome in a day," grins Mark, "We toured Vatican
City and everywhere; it was pretty amazing."
A scheduled trip to Australia was cancelled following the
October 12 terrorist bombings in Bali. "We were supposed
to go to Australia with Faith Hill. I was excited about
that; it was just a week in Australia but I've never been
there so I was excited about going," Mark relates with a
disappointed air.
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Kristi and Mark Oakley
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The majority of his time abroad has been spent in London,
a place he says "feels almost like home." Mark
particularly enjoys playing in the same places the Beatles
played; being in the same city where they were discovered.
"That's the first band I really listened to because that's
what my dad was into," he explains, continuing, "That's
where I want to take Kristi at some point, I've definitely
got plenty of frequent flyer miles."
The happy couple reminisces together about a trip to
Columbus Ohio when the family spent time at the zoo, and a
2001 Christmas trip to New York. "That was fun with the
boys," Kristi says brightly. The pair recounts other trips
to Canada when Carter was a baby; to San Francisco; and to
the Cayman Islands after Henry was born. "It was
beautiful; that was with SHe-DAISY," Mark recalls.
Kristi is a full-time homemaker in the couple's beautiful
country-style home with its breathtaking view of middle
Tennessee's craggy hills and lush vegetation. "She's the
only one with a real job," grins Mark, who is enjoying
time home with his family while awaiting decisions about a
possible pop tour for Amy Grant and a couple of shows in
February with Jewel before heading out on tour around May.
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