Bill Zink, age 49, started out on the six-string just 40 short years ago, at the ripe old age of 9. That was in Stoneham, Mass. back in 1969...but he was playing air guitar long before that. He took lessons, and began developing his ear for hearing something and playing it himself.

His first gig was about age 11 at Carol's Hamburgers in Stoneham. His childhood friend, Angelo Gentile and Bill sang and played their guitars for a half hour at lunch time. (He thinks they got a dollar each!) They performed all original music. The pair was actually offered a gig as a result of their performance -- playing an all-girl pool party. He was in Heaven!

From that time on, the guitar was a part of Bill, taking up space in his parents' station wagons and Volkswagen busses on summer vacations to the Cape, and on every trip after that. It was such a natural desire... to play and to perform.

In the past 40 years, Bill has played just about every kind of music that you can imagine -- in every venue imaginable. He  won "Providence's Best Blues Artist" back in 1994 with his bluesy, acoustic, finger-picking style.

Smokin' Bill has been married to his wife Tammy for eight years and resides in Cape Coral, Florida. He has two children, Sarah Beth Kirinsky and Meagan Rose Zink, and a grandson, Sarah's son Billy with her husband, Bill Kirinsky. Little Billy is now 6 years old.