| Rick Almeida Biography |
Rick began playing keyboards at age 8. His early musical influences were Ray Charles, Nat King Cole, Elvis and the Beatles. He is the Music Director at the Immaculate Heart of Mary Church in Harwinton, CT and has been playing keyboards and singing there for the past ten years. At that time he was also playing with Wildcard - a nine piece country rock band. Shortly after that, he began playing with The Trail Riders in 2000 and ended working with them in 2004 after opening up for country greats such as Charlie Daniels, Lonestar, and Chris Cagle.
He is also a song writer and has written several tunes for both religious "Remember Jesus" and country music "Can You Fly With The Eagles", "She Walks", "Parlet", and "You Walked Away With My Heart" - co-written with longtime friend Steve Marquardt. His favorite artists are Collin Raye, Alan Jackson, Toby Keith, Martina McBride, Jimmy Buffett, Vince Gill and David Haas. Whenever possible, Rick enjoys traveling and spending time with Christina, his daughter. He is currently studying for his Therapeutic Recreation Director state certification at Northwestern Connecticut Community College. He also entertains at various Assisted Living, Nursing Homes and Hospitals. His company, AlmeidaMusic also provides music and entertainment for parties, weddings, etc, and can provide entertainers for other venues.