 While stationed in Korea, he auditioned for a USO show, and before being discharged, he had decided to become a professional musician.He studied for a brief time at the Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music and became a musician on "Midwestern Hayride" on WLWT, eventually taking over as the show's host until it went off the air in the early 1970s.He first recorded for Boone Records, then moved on to RCA in 1969, where he stayed until 1976.