About ARIEL
ARIEL was formed in 1982 when George Petersen and JJ Jenkins, who had been playing together in successful top-40 bands for a couple of years, decided they needed an outlet for their increasingly prolific songwriting. Hooking up with what was to become a revolving door of local musicians, ARIEL soon became a favorite in the San Francisco bay area’s club scene. During the eighties ARIEL became a northern California live music staple, playing every kind of venue from intimate clubs to large festivals. Their 1985 single release “In Mendocino” received massive airplay on the west coast and brought the band some national attention. On the strength of this popular single and their solid reputation as a live act, ARIEL has been lucky enough to have been a featured performer in large concert venues supporting such luminaries as Santana, Eddie Money, Starship, and John Lee Hooker.

Wanting to devote more time to songwriting, ARIEL officially became a duo again in 1990 and recorded their debut album “Greetings from ARIEL” featuring the singles “Stuck in Traffic” and “An American Girl.” They followed “Greetings” up with “International World” in 1994. The album’s title song quickly became ARIEL’s signature piece. Since it’s release, it has been heard in one form or another in every country around the world and has been recorded in multiple languages. The “International World” disc also yielded the haunting hit “Poem for Cassandra.” 1994 also saw ARIEL taking up residence at a local coffee house in their hometown of Alameda, California. What started out as a weekly informal jam quickly turned into a four year residence, bringing in fans from all over the country. “An Acoustic Evening with ARIEL” ran for 4 years, during which time they released “Every Wednesday Night,” a recording made at their 100th performance.

ARIEL has since become a four piece band again, recording and performing with new permanent members, Walter Bush and Chris LaRocca. Walter primarily signed on as bassist, but his amazing multi-instrumental skills have added new dimensions to ARIEL’s recordings and live shows. Chris is no stranger to most ARIEL fans. His many appearances opening up the “Every Wednesday Night” shows is legendary. Now he adds his guitar virtuosity to the new ARIEL.

The four members of ARIEL are currently working on their new studio album, which will be offered in a variety of formats including standard CD, SACD, and 5.1 surround DVD-Audio format. Meanwhile, you can preview songs from the new disc by catching ARIEL live in the San Francisco area.