3 Legged Monkey began its evolutionary cycle with inspired guitarist Dave Skinner and his decision to experiment with alternate tunings. In the early stages, patterns and "riffs" were developed then crafted into foundations. With the building blocks of songs that would later come to be known as Egypt and Augusta, Dave called upon Chris Atkinson and his djembe for an impromptu jam. The extemporary session became ritual and originated such pieces as Nudje and Name That Tune and with the acquisition of a four-track digital recorder, the compositions were given birth to copyright and development. That purchase developed into G.A.S. (gear acquisition syndrome). Along with the update of recording equipment came outboard processing, synthesizers, samplers and multifarious percussion. Soon an arsenal of apparatus draped a makeshift studio and wondrous sound was captured and there was much rejoicing. And the mammals said, "It is good".

Dave bestowed upon Mark Dorman an open invitation to socialize and jam and Mark accepted. Mark made the journey from South Texas up to Enid Oklahoma, where Dave provided nourishment and acceptable lodging accommodations with his dogs Angel and Heidi-Ann. After a well-balanced meal and much needed rest, Mark accompanied Dave to the studio where they met Chris for an evening of musical creation. Mark had been playing primarily acoustic guitar for the past few years but sat down at the piano for one of the songs that evening and it just fit. Dave and Chris had planted the seed and soon they were collaborating with Mark across state lines via zip disks, cds, and cassettes. Mark was flying up for visits and recording sessions but soon moved back to Enid and the three completed recording the tracks to their self-titled debut cd - 3 Legged Monkey.

Daves credits the British rock bands Free and Humble Pie as his first major influences, in particular, Steve Marriott. Though at a time when he was developing as a player and learning to compose, Dave cites Rush as the most influential band overall. The last major influence was Michael Hedges. Dave states: "He had a bit of magic in his soul that very few have. It showed in much of his music."

Mark attributes progressive rock groups Kansas and Rush as early influences. Then, he discovered jazz/rock/fusion guitarists DiMeola, Holdsworth, Morse, and E. Johnson. The key turning point in his approach to piano was Chick Corea's - Elektric Band â??Eye Of The Beholder' cd. Mark comments, "Tasty performances all around and I really dug those chords".


Chris states his major influences have been Kansas, Supertramp, REO Speedwagon, Rush, Neil Peart in particular.