Damir Simic-Shime

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I moved to Los Angeles in 1991. I had visions of great things - destiny had finally arrived! I had a nice job, and made some great new friends. But, I was anxious to get out to the world-renowned Sunset Strip, that I had visited so many times before. For you tourists out there, the strip is actually a stretch of Sunset Boulevard, that is filled with rock-oriented clubs, restaurants, and tattoo shops. I had visited there many times, and the streets were always filled with long-haired rockers, (and their scantily clad counterparts), who were into good times and great music. This area had so much activity, even on weeknights, that the police would often close the area off to thru traffic.

Well...you can imagine my surprise when, come 1991, I took my triumphant stroll down to the Strip, and found...nothing! Just a bunch of deserted clubs and businesses. The scene that we had read so much about in our youth, was gone. You can imagine how silly I felt, in my snakeskin boots...

I spent some time mourning the loss of the rock scene. All this work to get here, and it was all gone. For awhile, I had an old girlfriend move in, with her son. Well, that was more punishment than anyone deserved...and I felt the need for something new.

For the next two years, I placed a bunch of ads, and went on countless auditions. I played with a pile of LA bands; some of them were excellent, and some, well...needless to say, each one eventually fell apart. It seemed like everyone was either playing Guns & Roses songs, or living them...

One afternoon, after a particularly good audition, I got a call from some guy named Shime (pronounced shee-may). He sounded Japanese. I had just hooked up with some decent players, and I'm thinking, what do I need with this Japanese dude? I call him up, and it turns out he's playing instrumental guitar music. Now, I'm a huge guitar fan. Everyone knows I adore Vai and Satriani. But, most guitar players out here only go instrumental when they can't find a decent singer! So, you can imagine my reluctance...

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Damir Simic-Shime.

Well...I finally went down and met with the guy. (At that point, I'd do anything to get away from my situation at home!) The guy, absolutely, is a virtuoso. As it turned out, he's not Japanese at all! But from Croatia - and yeah, I knew where that was. He, too, had left his homeland in '91, to find the same empty stretch of Sunset that I had. We both loved the same guitar heroes; and, we were the only two musicians who still thought of Coke as just a great soft drink! With that in common, we began rehearsing for several months.

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Me & Shime taking it to a whole new level.

As you might guess, my "roommate" wasn't too pleased about that. This music is at a whole other level, and the chord structures were more difficult than anything I'd played before. I practiced every day, just to be ready for my biweekly sessions with Shime. I wasn't quite the virtuoso; but, I worked very hard to learn his songs, and our friendship blossomed.

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Shortly after we met, Shime got a publishing deal with Warner Chappell. We recorded a slew of songs for them, some of which have ended up on soundtracks in different parts of the world. Along the way, Shime began building his own studio, and picking up on various recording techniques.

[tricky & me]

Me and Ricky, mugging it up for the fans

It took some time to find other musicians who could play this caliber of music, and also the commitment to stick with it. And, Shime would not settle. (He always tells me, "In Croatia, they say you can not afford to buy something cheap!" He pursues the same excellence when it comes to his music - and it's infectious.) Most of the seasoned players out there are "hired guns", and are always running off to play some great world tour. (It was not unusual for us to think we'd finally found the "missing piece", only for the guy to leave the following week for a tour with someone like Yngwie!) It was during our tenure with Black 13 that we finally came across Ricky Riccardo. Once Keith Graham came aboard in 1996, Shime's band finally had the talent and stability to really get down to business.

The unmistakable Keith Graham on drums.

During this lengthy search for the right people, we had a lot of down time. I seemed to find enough side gigs to keep me busy - but, when it was time to work, we worked. Nothing was going to keep me from playing in this band.

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Ricky, myself, Mike Terrana, and Shime, on Mike's last night in the U.S.

Associating with Shime has been a real blast. Besides being a great friend, playing with him has opened a lot of doors. Shime has played with the best of them - and has befriended a lot of these guys along the way. One such friend is Mike Terrana. Mike has played on a pile of albums, including Shime’s early demo’s. After a stint with Yngwie Malmsteen, Mike went on to play with Tony MacAlpine - this is where things got interesting.

Tony MacAlpine, at our record release party, January '98

Any student of rock guitar knows that Tony MacAlpine was a pioneer of guitar instrumental music. Tony had been writing for his new album, Violent Machine, which was to be released on his own Metropolis Records label. Mike approached Shime about handling the recording of this important album in MacAlpine's career. The record was recorded in our studio, and engineered by Shime. Shime finally had the opportunity to put his recording knowledge to good use - and, the experience he received gave him the ability to produce his own album, The Quest, a year later. Both Tony and Mike are featured extensively on this great album, released on Metropolis Records.

Throughout the recording process, we began playing opening spots for MacAlpine, which was great. This string of shows eventually concluded, at a full house at the world-famous Whiskey a Go-Go. This was a special victory, as the Whiskey is the center of the same Sunset Strip that deserted us back in '91. From the Doors, to Van Halen, to Motley Crue - all the great LA bands started here at some point, and went on to great heights.

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Exactly one year later, Damir Simic-Shime and his merry men returned to the Whiskey, this time to headline their CD release party, which included a 75 minute show. I call that night a party, because that gig (and every one since) has been a running celebration of this band's friendship - and a group of songs we have been working on together for, well...a long time!

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The thunder that is The Quest

On a Saturday night, where LA Guns was playing just a few doors down, and Steve Lukather (from Toto) was putting on a show with some friends across town, we did the unthinkable - we quite literally packed the Whisky to the rafters! Sunset was filled with people, and it seemed like we had finally found what we had come out for - and, we were at the center of it.

Me & the crew know how to do it.

Our friend Richard Black was there, as well as Tony MacAlpine andMike Terrana, who joined us onstage for a few songs, much to the amazement of the crowd. Our families were there. My sister even flew in to surprise me. Old friends and recent admirers showed up in full force, bringing friends of their own.

But best of all, my good friends Shime, Ricky, and Keith were there. Keith is great, and has always been a comfort to have around. Ricky - even though he took off to tour with MacAlpine for awhile - brings magic to every stage he stands on. (You can hear the magic they made together on MacAlpine’s new Live Insanity record.) But most of all, there was Shime. He & I have been through a lot these last five years. He has been an inspiration in my life, not just through his playing, but because of his strength of character. This show was a testament of what we've endured these last few years, and a sure sign of things to come.
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Striking a now-familiar pose.

Shime has given me a lot of room to try new things in the music. He asked me to write an album opener, which is the title track of the new album, "The Quest"; and, encouraged me to record a solo piano track, "Lights of Agoura", which I have been doing in our live shows since the first Whiskey show.

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Looking out at that first Whisky show.

Since the release of The Quest, the reviews have flourished - and not a bad word among them. Even the prestigious music trade magazine, Music Connection, was extremely positive. They made it sound like we were bringing technical excellence back to the Sunset Strip. (Jeez, when is the last time you saw a band get a stellar review in Music Connection?!?)

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The band, and the music, is tighter than ever. We’ve been gigging constantly, as The Quest continues...

Sounds from The Quest
Wav FilesReal Audio FilesMP3 FilesTitleComments
The QuestThe keyboard track that opens this massive guitar album.
The Lights of AgouraMy chance to shine on this great CD.

To hear a longer sound clip, in "CD quality", try the Real Audio or MP3 files. If you have never done this before, you may need to download the

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To hear some more rocking clips from this great new album, click on the image above.

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The Quest is now available at various record chains, as well as several online outlets. To find more information about this exciting project, (including reivews, sound files, and all kinds of great information), please visit The Official Homepage of Damir Simic Shime. It was built and maintained by our good friend, Tammy Ross.

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Tammy has always been supportive...especially when I'm falling over...

Special thanks to my dear friends, Jasna Simic, Jennifer Morris, Sue Graham, and most especially, Rob & Tammy Ross, for constantly providing us with great pictures for these web sites!