One on One: Dennis Gorman, attorney at Fletcher Tilton; guitarist for In-Expensive Winos

WORCESTER -- By day, Dennis Gorman works as an attorney at Fletcher Tilton, PC, assisting clients in areas that include estate, trust, tax, charitable organizations and corporate practice.

At night, he can be found jamming on his guitar as a member of In-Expensive Winos, a band that plays classic rock tunes by the Rolling Stones, Aerosmith, Jeff Beck and Foghat, (to name only a few) in clubs and events largely in Central Massachusetts and surrounding communities. In-Expensive Winos will be performing a fundraiser on Oct. 18 at Fiddler's Green, 19 Temple St., Worcester, to benefit the jazz, non-profit radio station WICN.

After graduating from St. Peter's High School in Worcester, Mr. Gorman received his undergraduate degree in accounting from Nichols College, a master's degree in taxation from Bentley University and his J.D. cum laude from Suffolk University. He joined Fletcher Tilton in 1998, Worcester's oldest law firm.

Why did you go into law and was it something you always wanted to do?

I'm a CPA as well as a lawyer. When I was working in public accounting, one of my friends was going to law school and I got the idea to go into the field from him. Clients, when they were in dire straits, would call their lawyers before their accountants. It looked more interesting and challenging than what I was doing, so I decided to bite the bullet and go to school at night. I probably did 90 hours weekly for five or six years between getting my CPA and law degree.

What are your specialty areas and why did you focus on them?

Because I'm a CPA and had my master's in taxes, I was able to get back to advising businesses and doing estate planning, estate and trust work. ... It was just a natural fit for my background.

When did your interest in music begin?

I was 7 or 8 when the Beatles came out in 1964. I've always loved music. My generation grew up with all the British bands. I took lessons in the early and mid-60s for a while but then dropped it and always regretted that. About eight years ago, my son bought me a guitar for Christmas and so I immediately started taking lessons ... and went from there.

Then I formed a band almost right from the beginning because the only way you are going to get good at playing is if you get up in front of people. The band has evolved over time.

Tell us about the band and the music you play.

The band is called the In-Expensive Winos. Keith Richards is my favorite musician and the Rolling Stones is my favorite band. One of Keith's side projects was called Expensive Winos, so I used a variation of that name. We play classic rock from 1965 to the 1980s.

Janis Joplin, Credence Clearwater Revival, ZZ Top ... a lot of mainstream stuff. Largely we play in Worcester and surrounding towns. We played in Greenwich Village in New York City at the Bitter End. ... That was a blast. It's the oldest club and we played there a month and a half after Lady Gaga went back to perform. It's where she started out.

We just did a big show at the new Beer Garden Pavilion in Worcester, a really cool place.

What skills do you need to do both jobs? Are there similarities?

I'm kind of a front person in the band although I have two lead vocalists. I sing a little bit but I tend to be the person on the microphone working the crowd.

I'm an outgoing person. In my profession, I think most successful lawyers are outgoing and at ease with people and able to communicate with them. I've been able to help develop a good following for the band ... being engaging and schmoozing.

Is there a standout experience from a concert you can share?

There was an instance when I was singing a song early on in my career and I completely forgot the words. I got brain fry so I just sang anything.

After the show, I asked people in the audience whether they picked up on that and they said, "geez, no, we didn't." My guess is that musicians do that a lot and just have to wing it.

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