Karl Marinko 1961 - 2007

Walking into the 505 Club in Santa Rosa, California, the first thing that hit me was the sound. The smooth organ-rich jazz/rock sounds coming from the bandstand would get any one's attention.

The quiet, unassuming man sitting intently over the red keyboard (a Nord) was effortlessly blending a soulful blues lead over the rhythm of the bass, guitar, sax, and drums.

I only saw Karl a couple times, but his talent as a keyboard player truly left a lasting impression. He had a knack of filling the space with floating melodies. I watched and tried to learn.

Of course, at that time I had no way of knowing that a year later, I would play with him on one of the last songs that he would play as a Pulsator.

The Pulsators came to Saint Louis (Saint Charles) in late September, a week later Karl had died.

The details of his death aren't as important as the details of his life. Obituaries have been written which will tell more about him than I know. But for the few, brief times that our paths were the same, it was great to be around Karl.