NICO WIND
Photo by Bruce Polonsky
By Rae Gordon
The bright eyed, 13-year-old girl stands outside of a
tavern in the rain, huddled under her mother's umbrella. Any other soul
in this downpour would be grimacing at the drops that find their way
through the fabric. This spunky girl with the beautiful dark hair waits
outside of the White Eagle for scheduled musicians to give her a chance
to lug her trusty guitar up on stage and sing a tune or two to the crowd.
Years later, Nico Wind still has those stars in her eyes,
as she sings on stage at the popular Karaoke bar The Ambassador. Her
strong voice makes people's heads turn from their dinners. Clean and
clear, she has an engaging voice that hits you right in the middle and
leaves you with goosebumps through and through.
Even more engaging, is the story behind the beautiful
voice. No doubt you have heard the name Nico's Karaoke Pony. This small
shop in the heart of Sellwood is the only full service Karaoke store
around, not only as a dealer for the CDs that make this singing business
tick, but the equipment to run it as well. Another offshoot of the business
is the Karaoke (KJ) and DJ services.
As a KJ, Wind has enjoyed the opportunity to bring people
out of their shells, especially her favorites - the kids. She lives
for instilling a love of song into her Karaoke charges, while giving
them a chance to shine without having to be 21! It's a far cry from
her first Karaoke gig at the Farmhouse, another local Karaoke favorite
spot.
This was just the beginning of great experiences in helping
others enjoy their voices while gaining confidence. Although one of
Wind's greatest joys is helping others find that star within them, there
is more to this captivating woman than even a great storefront could
contain.
That brightness and enthusiasm for music planted itself
early on, even before Wind started writing her first songs at a mere
seven years old. This is due in part to a woman named Anne Morin, who
unselfishly held up an umbrella or two in the rain.
Morin, Wind's mother, was a high school English teacher
and believe it or not, it wasn't so awful to have had her as a teacher
on occasion, Wind says. Morin instilled a love of music in her young
child, even accompanying her to the Christmas carols at a home for the
elderly when Wind was 11. They exclaimed, "Such a small thing with
such a big voice." Now a retired teacher, Morin still remains a
pillar of strength for her talented daughter.
Wind also learned to play guitar from a gifted and patient
aunt, but the musical ties don't stop there. In the 1920s, her great
grandmother was one of the first of a group of women to play piano at
Carnegie. At that time, it wasn't always popular for a woman to be so
open with her passion, but her courage paved a less traveled road for
women to tread musically afterwards.
It even included her great granddaughter that she never
got the pleasure to meet. After Wind lit a fire under herself with that
first original tune, she continued on with strong family backing.
Going against the popular grain for her age, Wind aspired
to such greats as Aretha Franklin and BB King, setting a pace all her
own. She played many local coffee houses such as a now defunct place
near Portland State called Agora. It's now inhabited by regulars who
don't know what it had once meant to a brave young woman with just a
guitar and a determination to be heard. "These were the kind of
places where a Bob Dylan type could have just walked in," she remembers
fondly.
Wind graduated in spirit and in experience as a solo artist
opening for favorites like Ray Charles, BB King and The Coasters. She
continued on as a backup singer and then as a performer for her own
bands. She spent over 25 years on the road performing with these bands,
with some including up to 16 members, as well as the smaller set, including
herself and a guitar.
Wind's groups went on to tour the happening places like
the Nevada circuit at major casinos like MGM Grand and Caesar's Palace.
Her travels also saw her roaming the continent with stints in Alaska,
Hawaii and Canada, gaining more adventures along the way. On the road,
she sent letters back home to Mom, who, as the consummate teaching professional,
would send them back - corrected!
Although she has many original tunes under her belt, Wind
played mostly in cover bands, but continues to have a special soft spot
for the blues. For these incredible 25 years, she toured with a myriad
of personalities and gained memories to last 100 lifetimes. However,
the place she always happily came home to was Oregon, where her high
school English teacher mother taught her so much more than lessons found
in a book or on the road. Music has enriched her life and the people
she has met along the way.
Another enrichment that Wind has blended together with
her singing and songwriting talents is her ongoing connection to her
own Indian heritage. Starting with her enrollment in a high school on
the Fort Belknap reservation in Montana, her eyes became open to a culture
that she knew was always just below the surface.
Wind then went on to the Metropolitan Learning Center,
an alternative school that was modeled after one in England, where the
students have more opportunity to choose their electives. With her talent
and her connection to a wonderful ancestry, she has served on a board
for a non-profit group called Wisdom of the Elders, that specializes
in preservation.
She not only does what she loves best - singing, but uses
her organizational skills as a stage manager and coordinator. In addition,
Wind has produced for their radio program Respect and Honor for
the past six years. She wrote a song especially for the elders. The
founder of organization wanted it for the radio program, available on
Arrows on the internet worldwide, in association with KBOO and
KINK.
Upcoming projects on Wind's plate are a production by
Marv Ross called Celilo, which is a commemoration of the Celilo
Falls history and culture. She also has helped other songwriters with
their work by arranging vocals and en-hancing leads.
Wind continues writing music herself as she asserts, "The
flame hasn't dimmed for hearing your own words out in the open."
Some of her greatest inspirations are writing and performing her own
creations with other people. "Hearing the beauty of harmonies coming
together" is an especially big kick for her. It's all the better
when working with wonderful collaborators.
Some of her favorite experiences have come from joining
forces with such greats as Curtis Salgado. She also worked with DK Stewart
on Don't Call Home CD. In addition, she had a great time with
the Holy Modal Rounders on the soundtrack for Easy Rider.
Nico Wind has a lot on her plate, but with her undeniable
spirit, you know she's going back for seconds. And with a voice like
that, people are happy to share. As for who she sounds like, she is
an original, all rolled into one beautiful package. She has a husband
and children that continue the family support, who sing some tunes of
their own.
Wind has a lot of bright chapters to her life. From a
great singing voice, writing original music, to her unselfish enthusiasm
towards the next batch of talented vocalists through Nico's Karaoke
Pony, each page leaves you wanting to read more. And this book is far
from over. In fact, she might even say, the best parts are yet to be
written.
The Ambassador, located at 4744 N.E. Sandy Blvd., features
Karaoke nightly with Northern and Szechuan Chinese cuisine served until
2:30 a.m. A complimentary buffet is available from 4-7 p.m. daily. All
Oregon Lottery games are featured, as well as a game room and big screen
TV.
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