Local guitarist performing with Bret Michaels

Jul. 6—CUMBERLAND — Guitarist Dean Cramer, formerly of LaVale, has joined the band of rocker Bret Michaels, former frontman of Poison.

After years of performing in the tri-state region's clubs and taverns, Cramer has reached the big stage performing before thousands per show.

The son of Charles and Marlene Cramer, Cramer is a 1983 graduate of Allegany High School. Many know him from playing with local guitarist Tim Haines as well as the combos Cramer & Ivy, and the Cramer Brothers with older brother Gary, a lead singer.

Things took a big change for Cramer, who lives with wife Sherry in Leesburg, Virginia, in early June when he received a phone call asking him to join Michaels' band as a guitarist and backup vocalist.

"It's surreal," Cramer said. "I'm real thankful to be doing this."

A photo of Cramer, 30 feet tall on a Jumbotron screen, has been circulating on social media from a show he did recently with Michaels in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.

"I didn't know Bret prior but he has been nothing but gracious," Cramer said. "He's a great entertainer and gives 110% and I'm honored to work with him."

Michaels gained fame as frontman for the rock band Poison which sold over 50 million albums worldwide. The band also charted 10 Top 40 singles on the Billboard Hot 100, including a No. 1 with "Every Rose Has Its Thorn."

Michaels starred in the hit VH1 reality show "Rock of Love with Bret Michaels." He was also the winning contestant on NBC's reality show "Celebrity Apprentice 3" and featured in his own reality docuseries, "Bret Michaels: Life As I Know It," which inspired his solo album, "Custom Built," which reached No. 1 on Billboard's Hard Rock chart.

With Cramer aboard, Michaels is currently embarking on the nationwide 2023 Parti-Gras Tour which kicks off on July 13 at the Pine Knob Music Theatre in Clarkston, Michigan.

Cramer said his journey into music began in high school.

"The first real musical inspiration that I ever had I would have to say is the Osmond Brothers without a doubt, particularly their record "Phase III,'" Cramer said. "To this day it's still a record I can put on and feel like a million bucks.

"Then when I was a freshman in high school ... even before that, I wanted to be a drummer."

However, he soon switched to guitar and singing and became part of his first band Ariez in 1980 with Tim Haines, Jeff Sears and Dave Klein. In addition to becoming a solid guitarist, Cramer had the talent for hearing and singing vocal harmony parts.

"Some of the others said I can't hear harmonies ... well I did," Cramer said. "So I ended up singing harmony all the time."

Through the 80s and early 90s, he played in the local bands Rox, Cat House, Kramer, Idiots Rule and SOS. In the mid-1990s, he was given the opportunity to play with lead singer, and Piedmont, West Virginia, native, Steve Whiteman of KIX in his off-shoot band, Funny Money. Cramer spent the next 18 years in that band.

"We've done it for decades and decades which is insane to think about," Cramer said. "It's all about perseverance."

Cramer cites guitar influences as Ace Frehley of KISS, Brian May of Queen, Eddie Van Halen, Nuno Bettencourt and Jeff Adams, guitarist with Face Dancer.

Cramer began to make even more connections when he and his wife Sherry moved to Leesburg, Virginia, in 2007.

"Funny Money played in a place called Jaxx in Springfield, Virginia, and we had opening bands," Cramer said. "One of the bands that played was Evick, led by Pete Evick, a lead singer and guitarist and musical director."

Cramer was impressed with Evick which also works as the backup band for Bret Michaels.

As fate would have it, Cramer recently saw where Evick was playing in Ashburn, Virginia. He went and Pete Evick invited him to play on stage at the show.

After a successful evening of playing together, Evick began reaching out to Cramer to play various gigs, including with an act called, "This, That and the Other." It was Cramer's relationship with Evick that led to the phone call in early June.

"I got a call from Pete and I thought he wanted to talk about 'This, That and the Other,'" Cramer said. "He said, 'Can you come down to Mississippi and do a show with Bret?'" Cramer rearranged his schedule to do the show, which was three days away.

"And even before the show, Pete said Bret wants you to do the next show coming up in Iowa as well. Pete was the one that brought me into this whole thing," Cramer said.

"None of us deserves this," added Cramer. "None of us are entitled. But I definitely worked hard to get it. I kept putting in the time.

"People will ask me for words of advice. I have a mantra, that is, 'Don't settle.' In my life, there are things I settle for and I don't put 100% into, but when I'm into it ... it's 110%."

The Parti-Gras tour is advertised as "a celebration of fans, bands, music and all killer, no filler night of hit songs. Special guests will include Night Ranger and Jefferson Starship, with appearances by Steve Augeri and Mark McGrath plus surprise guests and celebrity friends."

Cramer said a show in the local region will take place on July 15 at the Pavilion at Star Lake, in Burgettstown, Pennsylvania. For more information, including ticket availability, visit BretMichaels.com.

Greg Larry is a reporter at the Cumberland Times-News. To reach him, call 304-639-4951, email glarry@times-news.com and follow him on Twitter @GregLarryCTN.