"Explore the roots and break the rules," so goes Brett Simons' musical motto. "Don't be confined as an artist by the limitations of genre and style," those are the rules of the versatile bass player and producer.

Brett was born in northwest Indiana. His musical gift doesn't come from a musical family. No father playing the piano or mother singing. It was the result of a happy accident and...a lot of work. At 13, Brett fromed a band with some neighborhood friends. A friend lent him a guitar with the two high strings broken. "I was limited to the lower four strings and that's basically how I started playing bass," Brett remembers. It worked for the best - the other guitar players weren't planning give up their desire to shred anytime soon.

Pretty soon, Brett started hearing and exploring more... A teacher in High School recognized the sound of talent and encouraged the musician by sticking a double bass into his hands. At 14, Brett fell in love with jazz.

A couple years later, Brett was offered a scholarship to study at the University of Miami. A whole new world opened up. Under the guidance of the university's amazing faculty - Brett studied with Dr. Lucas Drew, Don Coffman and Ron Miller, among others - the bassist immersed himself in the institution's many offerings, eventually playing with the reputable Concert Jazz Band. At the same time, outside the university's walls, he found a vibrant ethnic music scene, in which he quickly blended. "I just played whatever I could," Brett says. And he played... Reggae, Haitian "Ra-Ra", Brasilian, Salsa.

In the midst of all these stimuli came another revelation. "While rehearsing or recording, I would always hear things finished already. When a group was struggling with a part of a song, a timbre or an instrument, I was compelled to give input to help the group accomplish its' vision," Brett explains. That's how Brett was introduced to the role of a producer. At 21 he gained his first co-production credit with Uruguayan harpist Roberto Perera's Passion, Illusions and Fantasies. Roberto Perera's follow-up Dreams and Desires earned Billboard’s Contemporary Latin/Jazz Album of the Year (1993).

After a fruitful post-collegiate career in Miami, Brett relocated to Chicago. The city's vibrant music scene put him back in touch with his Midwestern roots - Bluegrass, rock and folk - to which he applied his new wealth of influences. As a member of the Slavek Hanzilk Trio, Brett toured Europe and in 1995 showcased at the International Bluegrass Music Association (IBMA) convention. At the same time, he was playing jazz on a weekly basis at the legendary jazz room the Green Mill with bands such as Brasilian group Som Brasil and singer/pianist Patricia Barber.

Always on the move, he also toured and recorded with media-darlings the Mighty Blue Kings for their second-album, Come On, Come All. And continued to refine his production talents, working at studios all over the Midwest.

Rhythm and Blues, gospel, jazz, salsa - that was just for a start. What else could the musician dig into in the Windy City? Irish music of course. And soon enough, Simons became one of Chicago’s most sought after bassists for Irish music, playing and recording with artists such as Jim Dewan, Liz Carroll, flautist Larry Nugent and fiddler Brendan Bulger.

When asked what it does to be involved in that many types of music, Brett answers, smiling, "It makes you manic-depressive," he breaks into a manic laughter. "But it really helps. Now I'm ready stylistically for almost anything be it on stage or in the studio," he says, insisting on the word "almost". "You're always learning more and that's the beautiful thing, it's infinite."

While in Chicago, one of Simons' significant musical encounters was working with insurgent country singer/songwriter Robbie Fulks. "The guy is a genius," Brett says, remembering their first meeting. "I couldn't believe what he was going for." Brett worked with Fulks on his critically acclaimed debut Country Love Songs, recorded by Steve Albini. Their collaboration hasn't stopped since. Brett was most recently featured on Fulks' latest CD, Couples in Trouble.

While getting more involved in the country music scene - in 1999 he toured with platinum-selling country artist Lila McCann - Simons started wondering what his next move should be. Nashville or Los Angeles? Nashville definitely rang a bell but Los Angeles took the prize. His recent and extensive work with L.A. based musicians, such as Pop-singer Josie, folk-band Lowen and Navarro and the Irish group Gaelic Storm helped inspire his move.

The eclectic city offers great opportunity for a musical chameleon. Brett's focus is now on working as a sideman and producing. Brett has fallen quickly into a varied group of musicians: singer/songwriters Gary Jules and Alexi Murdoch, Greg Kurstin's Action Figure Party, Janet Robin and a new trio with keyboardist Deron Johnson (Miles Davis, Alanis Morrisette) and drummer Oscar Seaton. Meanwhile, Brett is finishing his latest production, long-time friend John Fournier's third album is expected in early 2004.