The Bingtones

The songs of singer/songwriter Bing Richard Collora provide the cornerstone for Bing & The Bingtones' sound, a musical experience that has been described as Today's Big Band Dance. Influenced by the likes of Elvis and Frank Sinatra, Bing has been described as a having "a totally original voice," while the band, with its big brassy sound has been compared to Chicago, Tower of Power and Blood, Sweat & Tears.

Affected by the events of 9-11, Bing began writing new material that would become 'American Dream,' the band's first CD. Released in 2005, 'American Dream,' is a filled with songs of relationships, spirituality and the state of the world today. Bing delivers songs shot through with tales of love, simpler times and the pursuit of the American dream. According to Bing, "After September 11th I realized the world had changed, and with that change I decided to revisit my music and write songs that talked about the everyday issues that people face. I wanted to produce music that would inspire people and lead them to re-evaluate their lives."

The music isn't the only unique aspect of Bing & The Bingtones, the make-up of the band and the way it was assembled is its own interesting story. A serendipitous meeting between Bing and drummer Jerry Pellizzer lead to the formation of Bing & The Bingtones. Bing was searching for a musical partner and Jerry was looking for an opportunity and after listening to Bing's demo Jerry was sold on the idea of working with Bing. Before he knew it Bing had a drummer, partner and a co-producer. From that point on the band began to fill in around them.

In addition to Bing and Jerry, the band is comprised of a solid rhythm section of some of the finest musicians the Bay Area has as to offer. The band's five piece brass section, known internally as Brass Knuckles, reads like a "who's who" among session players. Members have played and/or recorded with the likes of Carlos Santana, Van Morrison, Tower of Power, Boz Skaggs, Huey Lewis and the News and Billy Preston. And the list goes on.

As a boy growing up in Buffalo, New York Bing would lay awake at night listening to his portable transistor radio. Often he would fall asleep with the music still playing and without failure his mother would check on him and turn off his radio.

"Life is about more than just 'getting things done', it's about stepping out of the box from the everyday routine and reaching for something within yourself that you can share with others. With me it's the music inside that I want to share. I'm just trying to take the American dream one step further."

Bing stills falls asleep with the music playing. . .but this time it's his own.