Tim Cashion is the current

keyboardist A keyboardist or keyboard player is a musician who plays keyboard instruments. Until the early 1960s musicians who played keyboards were generally classified as either pianists or organists. Since the mid-1960s, a plethora of new musical inst ...

for the classic-rock band

Grand Funk Railroad Grand Funk Railroad (often shortened to Grand Funk) is an American rock band formed in 1968 in Flint, Michigan, by Mark Farner (vocals, guitar), Don Brewer (drums, vocals), and Mel Schacher (bass). The band achieved peak popularity and succ ...

. He was born in

Charlotte Charlotte ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of North Carolina. Located in the Piedmont region, it is the county seat of Mecklenburg County. The population was 874,579 at the 2020 census, making Charlotte the 16th-most populo ...

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and ...

. His father played acoustic guitar and wrote

country A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state, nation, or other political entity. It may be a sovereign state or make up one part of a larger state. For example, the country of Japan is an independent, sovereign state, while ...

songs, recorded 78rpm singles, and played with his friends in a local band. His mother was the

pianist A pianist ( , ) is an individual musician who plays the piano. Since most forms of Western music can make use of the piano, pianists have a wide repertoire and a wide variety of styles to choose from, among them traditional classical music, ja ...

at the local church. Tim started playing drums at age five, playing with his older brother Pat. When Tim was nine, he started playing piano. Heavily influenced by the music of the 1960s, Tim began writing his own music. After 2 years of attending Appalachian State University, Tim was invited to join the

University of Miami The University of Miami (UM, UMiami, Miami, U of M, and The U) is a private research university in Coral Gables, Florida. , the university enrolled 19,096 students in 12 colleges and schools across nearly 350 academic majors and programs, i ...

's School of Music, from which he graduated with a master's degree in Studio Music/Jazz Vocal. He is referred to as "Dr. Tim" during performances, due to having a doctorate in music.
Official Biography
When Cashion graduated, he was offered a job as the

percussionist A percussion instrument is a musical instrument that is sounded by being struck or scraped by a beater including attached or enclosed beaters or rattles struck, scraped or rubbed by hand or struck against another similar instrument. Ex ...

for the Japanese artist Takanaka. After that, he joined Robert Palmer for his US tour. In 1993, he joined friend and fellow

alumnus

Jon Secada Juan Francisco Secada Ramírez (born October 4, 1961), better known as Jon Secada, is a Cuban-born American singer. He has won two Grammy Awards and sold 15 million records, making him one of the best-selling Latin music artists. His music fu ...

on his debut tour. In 1996 he joined Bob Seger and the Silver Bullet Band for their US tour. In 1999 he once again joined Palmer for a US tour. Cashion currently plays the keyboard in the classic-rock band

and tours with the band. He released his first solo album titled ''Wake On Up'' in 2003. He has since released two more solo albums and has received 3 Carolina Beach Music Awards.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cashion, Tim American rock keyboardists Musicians from Charlotte, North Carolina Grand Funk Railroad members Year of birth missing (living people) Living people University of Miami Frost School of Music alumni 21st-century American keyboardists