Tom Kraack: Acoustic 6 and 12 string guitars; lead vocals.
Tom began playing guitar in his teens. He was heavily influenced by acoustic rock musicians such as Bob Dylan, Paul Simon, and Neil Young. More recent influences include the Wallflowers, Bruce Springsteen and Jason Isbell. His earliest claim to musical fame came when he won second place in the White County Indiana 4-H Fair talent contest, losing to a baton twirler. In the 1970s, Tom played with John in a small acoustic group in Milwaukee. He migrated to acoustic electric instruments about 10 years ago, which opened up a whole new avenue of gear acquisition.
Sarah Bassett-Kim: vocals.
Sarah’s vocal chops were first explored with a Fischer Price cassette recorder and the song library from The Little Mermaid (™, of course). Her vocal abilities haven’t changed much since then, to be honest, but we’re ok with it. Sarah keeps exploring with different musical projects, choirs, musicals, a 10-piece funk band, a cappella groups, worship bands, and singing backup for Josh Groban. She studied voice at St. Olaf College and always looks forward to learning more.
Tim Kraack: Keyboards, mandolin, vocals.
In addition to The Patience Band, Tim’s musical projects also include the band Dead Kings of Norway. He is a classically trained pianist, with a BM degree in piano performance from St. Olaf College and an MM in Piano Pedagogy from the University of Illinois. Tim began his piano studies at the age of 6 at St. Joseph’s School of Music, where he is currently a full time piano instructor. He also is the Music Director for Twin Cities Theater Camp, a summer music programs for children 8-14.
Mark Cosimini: Electric guitar.
Mark started playing guitar in high school. His budding musical career had a 30 year interruption due to life. He began playing again some 15 years ago, and quickly linked up with several bands in the Twin Cities, including The Blueshounds and the Third Rail. Growing up Italian on St. Paul’s east side, he couldn’t escape the musical influences of Dion and the Belmonts, Bobby Rydell, and even Nelson Eddy/Jeannette MacDonald. In addiion to guitar, Mark plays bass guitar. Most recently, Mark has returned to his artistic roots, oil and acrylic painting.
John Sakowski: Acoustic & electric guitars, backup vocals.
John’s grandmother gave him his start in music with the gift of a drum set at an early age–either she loved him very much or she wasn’t so fond of his parents. In his teens, he played the pipe organ at Mass to make going to church more bearable. One of his proudest musical moments was sneaking Iron Butterfly’s “In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida” into the post-communion repertoire. John’s first guitar was a ukulele–he was too young to know better–but the real thing finally came one Christmas, and a performance of “(I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction” in an 8th grade band followed soon after. After performing with Tom and his wife for a few years, he lapsed into Being A Grownup and entered a period of musical dormancy that lasted about 20 years, when he decided it would be fun to play classical piano. That dream is currently on hold, but his guitar callouses are back.
Brian Johnson: Electric Bass.
Brian started in music with the trombone in sixth grade, graduating to the tuba in seventh grade, and finally settling on the much cooler electric bass in eighth grade, buying a Fender Precision Bass in 1970, which he still plays. Brian’s first paying gig was in 1970 with a polka band playing at the Chisago City Community Center for $5. He was hooked! He formed a band in high school with friends called Take Four, and played gigs nearly every weekend. Brian was the first electric bassist to compete in the Minnesota High School League state music contest, and in 1974, he earned the highest superior rating playing the bass line of Bach’s 8th and 14th Inventions. During college and for 20+ years thereafter, Brian played bass in the Sunset Band, playing weddings, nightclubs and special events. After a hiatus, Brian has returned to music joining The Patience Band in 2016. Musical influences for Brian include Maynard Ferguson, Count Basie, and of course, the incomparable Jaco Pastorius.
Charlie Cosimini: Drums.
Charlie started playing drums in elementary school, much to the chagrin of his parents, after years of banging on tables, much to the chagrin of his teachers. In high school he started the duo Les Deuce Punks de Faux (LDPDF) with Tim, which focused more on music than ease of acronyms. Charlie also played in the school jazz band and periodically for the orchestra and in the pit band for school musicals. In college, Charlie branched out from drum-set percussion and taught himself as much Bodrhan (a traditional Irish drum) as one can learn by watching YouTube videos. Charlie is currently a patient of Dr. K’s.