JERRY POLK


I started playing drums at age 3, making my stage debut with a popular band out of Beaufort, SC called the Melody Makers, in which my father Gerald Polk was a member. I loved the Motown, R&B sound at an early age. My father was playing with popular bands at the time (The Swinging Medallions, Melody Makers) and I would beg him to take me to band practices with him just so I could hear the music…..Well, probably just to bang on the drums and sit in with the band if they would let me.
At age five, I started playing professionally with various bands my father headed up. I got the opportunity to perform on drums with Cornelius Brothers and Sister Rose whose hits were Too Late to Turn Back Now and Treat Her Like A Lady at the Colleton County Rice Festival. In 1982, I moved to Charleston SC and began playing drums with The Rivieras, a popular band in the Charleston area. I remained with the group until 1990, at which time the East Coast Party Band was formed and has continued to entertain crowds all over the continental USA.
I have found many great opportunities through my connections with ECPB and developed personal and positive relationships with other popular beach bands throughout my career. Some of the bands I have had the opportunity to perform with are The Embers, The Fantastic Shakers, The Fabulous Kays, The Swinging Medallions, and The Legends of Beach. I value these experiences and feel it has been a pleasure to develop such professional friendships that can help me prosper and grow as a musician. I have always loved the R&B Motown sound and feel that it is a style of music that will never die.
I love entertaining and playing the drums for our friends and fans because no matter if you are playing for ten people or ten thousand, you must give the same energy each time you perform. That is what will keep the people coming back for more! Not only is playing for the ECPB a career choice for me, we are all professional musicians that have formed a family and have performed together for over 25 years. This is what makes the ECPB so unique.
I reside in Walterboro SC with my wife Sandy and two children Ashlyn and Brandon.