Charlie grew up in Santa Barbara, CA. He started playing bass in his early teens and attended Cabrillo College in Santa Cruz, CA where he studied with trumpet player Ray Brown. Charlie has worked with celebrities like Rosemary Clooney, George Burns, Rich Little and many more. Among jazz players he has backed up you will find Clark Terry, Mel Lewis, Buddy Tate, Buddy De Franco, Allan and Warren Vaché, Ken Peplowski and numerous others. Charlie is one of the most sought after bass players in Florida. He has played in the Buddy Morrow (Tommy Dorsey) and Woody Herman Orchestras, and locally with Terry Myers Orchestra, Bill and John Allred, Don Scaletta and many others and also on many jazz cruises.