Moonlighting. It doesn’t have the bad rap it used to. Today people find ways to make a living and make a life.
Moonlighting is our series about Lehigh alumni who are successful in two areas of their lives where a secondary “job” is primarily fun and fulfilling.
In this edition, we meet two alumni who have been successful in business and music, where fixed asset meets Freebird, where corner office meets crowd surf, and where gig economy meets the live gig.
Jim Stanard ’70
Mathematics
Musical beginnings
I was inspired to learn guitar while in high school as I saw artists like Bob Dylan and Peter, Paul, and Mary. I lived near The Main Point, a historic coffee house that hosted many top names in folk, blues, and rock. I saw Joni Mitchell, Linda Ronstadt, a young Bruce Springsteen, and Tom Rush perform there. I also made the long, strange trip to Woodstock in August of ’69.
Music at Lehigh
While I did play guitar at a small coffee house located inside Packer, music was not my focus at South Mountain. Class wasn’t either it seemed. I lived with a bunch of bridge players and went to many bridge tournaments. I drifted in my major, eventually deciding on math. I did take a year off and worked as a computer programmer on second-generation machines at Insurance North America (INA).
When I returned from that real-life experience, I took Spanish and four math courses. I would be given 10 math problems a week to stare at and maybe, if I was lucky, pound out an answer to six of the ten. I am an obsessive finisher. Once I learn how to do something, I don’t give up until done. It is one trait I attribute to my time on campus.
Career trajectory
I planned to take my actuarial exams. I started back at INA as an actuarial trainee. I passed all of the exams by 1978. In that time, I held positions at Chubb and Prudential. In 1983, one of my mentors left Prudential to form a startup: USF&G. I went with him.
I earned my MBA at NYU and then my Ph.D. in finance, blending math, finance, insurance, and computer simulation programming. I worked in executive management at USF&G until I left to form Renaissance Re, a company that specializes in property, casualty, and specialty reinsurance following a natural disaster. I served as CEO and retired in 2005.
Music after Lehigh
When I retired, I wanted to start playing again and get back to where I had been. So I attended a rock and roll fantasy camp in Los Angeles that included musicians like David Crosby and Ginger Baker. Campers were broken into bands and played a set at the famed Whiskey a Go Go. I was nervous to play but shocked at how well it went.
I then wanted vocal lessons so I could begin to compose and sing. A friend introduced me to Kip Winger from the ’80s rock band Winger and recent Grammy-nominated classical composer. Kip said he’d only give me six lessons, but I put in the work and slowly impressed him. I’ve now become his project. I learned to sing and write songs.
Kip then suggested it was time for an album. My obsession kicked in, and I put out an album. A second record came out six months into COVID-19. It featured a guitarist from the Afghan Whigs and vocals from Peter Yarrow of Peter, Paul, and Mary.
Still Rockin’
I’m writing my third album now with plans to record it in the summer and fall. I treat the business side of the work very seriously and have worked to get airplay on Americana stations and programs. My songs are all works of fiction. My songwriting style has a ’60s influence with a strong attraction to what I aspire to from the likes of Warren Zevon, Robert Earl Keen, and Jason Isbell. I perform at local bars and work to find an appreciative audience.
Joe Long ’88
Industrial Engineering
Musical beginnings
I grew up in York, Pennsylvania. My father, Charles Long ’59, played trumpet with several groups in town, including the York Symphony Orchestra, so I grew up watching him perform. I began on piano, but my main passion became trumpet. At age 13, I played with my father and grandfather on stage in a trumpet trio with the Spring Garden Band, the fourth-oldest continuously active band in the U.S., having formed in 1855.
Music at Lehigh
I was involved with everything at Lehigh, including jazz band, concert band, brass quintet, and Lehigh University Very Modern Ensemble. While there was no Zoellner Arts Center when I was on campus, I was surprised by the depth and range of musical opportunities on campus. I came to Lehigh to be an engineer and never expected the training in music I received or the talent of the faculty, especially Professor Paul Salerni, who was a huge influence for me.
Bob Cole ’88 and I quickly became friends, a bond that lasts to this day, and he asked me to join his wedding band called By Special Request. Bob and I also were part of another group called The Connection that played rock covers. During our time there, the group included me, Bob, his future spouse, Janet Pickens, Patty Weber, Ken Young, Bill Beam, Dave Nadeau, and Dave Sacks. We played at campus parties and events. We even won a Battle of the Bands. I also was part of a jazz/fusion group called Sync with Brian Dorsey, Ted Box, Leonard Lee, and Rich Mistretta.
Career Trajectory
I started at JP Morgan as part of a technology and operations training program designed to leverage technology, engineering, and computer science to deliver financial business solutions with real impact. I then joined Goldman Sachs and worked in fixed income, currency and commodities (FICC) technology in New York City for a decade. I then transferred to Japan to manage the FICC technology group in Asia and then as the chief of staff for Asia technology. I returned to New York in 2007, and around 2017, after 25+ years with Goldman, I joined Wells Fargo on the West Coast, where I work today as the COO for the digital technology and innovation group.
Music after Lehigh
I continued to play in the wedding band with Bob as we started to transition into an all-original rock band we called Common Ground. During that time, I played keyboard and also learned bass. We recorded and released an album in 1997 and an EP in 2000.
At the same time, I didn’t neglect my trumpet. I drove back to the Lehigh Valley to continue my trumpet lessons with Larry Wright. I met guitar player Ben Goldberg while working at JP Morgan and was part of several original rock bands that played many of the clubs in the Village in New York City.
It was a difficult decision to leave for Japan in 2000, but I found music quickly when a group of Goldman Sachs employees that had a cover band needed a bass player. I joined them and played at a few corporate events.
I got married in 1998, and we welcomed our son in 2004, so that altered my performance schedule for a number of years. Of course, I still practiced. I am proud to say that my son picked up the trumpet and at age 13, like me, did play alongside his father and grandfather in another trumpet trio with the Spring Garden Band.
Still Rockin’
When we moved to the West Coast, my son was older, and I had a little more time. My wife knows how important it is for me to have a hobby besides work and found the Walnut Creek Jazz Band, which I joined in 2019.
It was ironic that Ben also lived in California about 20 minutes from where we lived. We began to collaborate on music again and have released about 12 songs since 2021. This summer, we are slated to return to The Blasting Room studios in Fort Collins, Colorado, and record, mix, and master three songs, working with a Grammy-nominated engineer named Andrew Berlin.
Learn more about the Walnut Street Jazz Band and The Malignant Narcissists. Listen to The Malignant Narcissists on Spotify, SoundCloud, or Apple Music.
