FEELIN' THE VIBE: TAMMS, ILL., NATIVE, BANDMATES BACK UP FAITH HILL

Keyboardist Steve Hornbeak and a guitarist used to play as a duo at the now-defunct Griffin's in downtown Cape Girardeau. Many years earlier he was a member of the long-running Cape Girardeau band Mike Smith and the Runaways. But for the past six years the Tamms, Ill., native has been playing keyboards behind Faith Hill, one of country music's biggest stars.

Hornbeak returns to downtown Cape Girardeau tonight with three other members of Hill's band. But don't expect country music from the Vibe, the name the band goes by. Pop rock, funk and rhythm and blues hits from the '70s, '80s and '90s are more their style. "It's party music," Hornbeak says.

The Vibe will perform at 9:30 tonight and Saturday night at Mudsucker's, at the corner of Independence and Main streets. Other members of the band are Trey Gray on drums, John Howard on bass and Kevin Marks on guitars. All four sing, with Hornbeak carrying the lead vocals.

The 37-year-old Hornbeak grew up in a family whose members performed as a quartet at the United Methodist Church in Tamms and still do. At Egyptian High School, he played saxophone and sang in the choir.

At 16 he joined his first band, the Pacemakers, whose members were from Tamms and Mounds, Ill. "We would rehearse three nights a week and play one job a month," Hornbeak said, laughing. "We'd have to wait for somebody to get married to play."

His first nightclub performance was at was the Purple Crackle., in East Cape Girardeau.

Hornbeak has never taken a piano lesson, but began playing some keyboards after joining Mike Smith and the Runaways while still a teen-ager. Eventually he went to Florida with another band. He was playing in a band in a hotel bar when Lee Greenwood heard him and hired him. He stayed with Greenwood for 5 1/2 years.

He also has played with Eddie Rabbitt, Tracy Lawrence and Jo Dee Messina.

Hornbeak sang background vocals on Hill's "It Matters to me" CD. He is featured in the November 2000 issue of Keyboard Magazine.

Hill is as sweet as her image, Hornbeak says. "If you play in a band for six or seven years, it speaks very highly of the boss. So many artists change bands very often."

He and drummer Trey Gray helped Hill move from one house to another. "She's still our friend as well as our boss," he says. "... She's an awesome boss."

The Vibe plays original music and are shopping for a recording deal, but Hornbeak says the main reason for touring now is so they can stay together while Hill is on hiatus. She is taking the year off after spending 2000 with husband Tim McGraw on the "Soul to Soul" tour.

Behind Hill, the members of the Vibe usually are performing at sold-out arenas or "The Late Show with David Letterman" or "The Rosie O'Donnell Show." More recently they've been playing lots of casinos and soon will back up young new star Jessica Andrews in Orlando, Fla. The band decided to play in Cape Girardeau because they like to play near their hometowns and Hornbeak's was the closest.

His brother, Mike, lives in Jackson, Mo., and operates the Hornbeak Insurance Agency in Tamms.