ABOUT THE BAND The Rocket Fuel Haulers are comprised of six West-Michigan natives, including Andy Patterson on vocals and guitar, Jeff Forner on vocals and guitar,  Melissa Fuehring on vocals and keyboard, Steve Winczewski on drums and Dean Hodges the sound and lighting engineer.   The band brings a variety of genres to their performances, featuring Blues, Rock and Country.  RFH also plays several original tunes ranging from the light-hearted and humorous to classic sounding Rock and Country-Blues numbers.

History

The "DisEduK8ed" Days

Link to Jeff's Page	Jeff Forner Born and raised in Oceana County, Jeff brings a lot of personality to the band as well as strong vocals, especially on blues numbers like "Mustang Sally," and "My Babe," which always fill up the dance floor. He also switches between lead and rhythm guitar, depending on the song. Jeff's musical influences range from Oldies to Country to Classic Rock and even Motown. To listen to him belt out Wilson Pickett, you'd swear he grew up listening to the blues, which has been more of an influence upon him recently. Jeff also serves as the bands promoter and is responsible for booking all of RFH's gigs. Jeff, began his guitar playing days while serving a stint in the U.S. army. He furthered his guitar playing after the army, while living and working in Key West, Florida, where he was influenced by the master of "island music", Jimmy Buffett. Jeff's voice and personality shine the brightest on the numerous blues numbers RFH performs. Jeff's renditions of "Mustang Sally", "Roadhouse Blues", and "My Babe" are highlights of RFH performances. These three songs alone are worth a trip to an RFH performance.
undefined undefined Link to Andy's Page	Andy Patterson In college Andy always had a guitar somewhere near.  In 1993 his musical interests were pushed further by his friends Pete Terryn and Jason Gale.  Andy and Pete would sing with Jason, who was quickly becoming a very talented guitarist.  It was Pete who helped Andy write RFH's signature song, "Rocket Fuel Hauler."  Though Pete and Jason would go on to play together in a Alternative/Metal band for a couple of years, It was actually "Run with me Tonight," that first got Andy, John and Jeff playing music together.  All three were teaching in Walkerville at the time, when they would meet in the band room after school and try to play Andy's original number.  This of course was the beginning of RFH.  As the guys continued to get better and learn more songs,
Link to Melissa's Page	Melissa Fuehring Melissa's a West Michigan gal, having grown up in the Hart area, close to the shores of Lake Michigan. Her keyboard abilities and very strong vocal skills were honed over the years by playing in weddings. She has since learned how to play a mean tamborine. Melissa brings a lot talent and energy (and good looks) to RFH. To start with, she has temendous vocal range and power, a fact highlighted in her rendition of "Ode to Billy Jo". More important yet to the RFH sound, her musical knowledge allows her to provide solid background vocals for Jeff and Andy. Melissa also brings outstanding musicianship on the keyboards, providing bass lines, solos, and chords for the RFH sound. Most importanly of all, Melissa brings some great upbeat songs, usually in the genre of country. "Reckneck Woman" and "Down in Mississippi" gets the crowd involved and revved up. RFH took a huge leap forward in the West Michigan music scene when Melissa joined forces with 'the guys'. Prior to joining forces with RFH, Melissa's claim to fame was a front row "wild girl" scene in a Motley Crue concert video.  It wasn't planned, but it was her 15 minutes of fame.  Rumor has it that she also sang on stage with Kenny Chesney on one occasion, or was it Kenny Rogers?  Or was it.......
	John Adams
Link to Steve's Page Link to Dean's Page	Steve Winczewski Steve, originally from Ludington, spent several years performing in the Lansing area, where he played extensively in "working bands", most recently in a funk-rock band. More recently, he spent time honing his percussion skills in California, prior to relocating to West Michigan two years ago. Steve's drumming takes RFH's sound to "the next level" with his knack for layin' down just the right beat, rythym, and accent to their songs. Steve's background includes both touring and studio work for recording artists. When Steve isn't with the RFH gang, he is busy working on his teaching degree at GVSU and teacxhing his newborn son, Alexander (Pork Chop) how to properly hold a pair of drum sticks. Dean Hodges Since Dean has come on board and taken charge of sound and lighting for RFH, they have never sounded or looked better. Dean has an extensive bandground in music. He played bass in a "working band" back a few years ago that was based out of Grand Rapids, but toured much of the Midwest. Dean has handled sound for a host of other bands, and may very well play the most vital role of any of the Rocket Fuel Haulers. Dean has recently been joining the rest of the band on stage for several songs (when John is too busy on the harp to also play bass). Dean currently resides in Chicago and makes the long commute back when RFH performs. The band really enjoys it when Dean gets Skippy (from Grand Rapids) to come up and assist him with lights. He always takes the 'fun meter' up a notch or two.