Loaded Dice Earn Hall of Fame Nomination

(SCOTTSBLUFF, Neb.) — A legend in the making… at least we’d like to think so. Several past and current band members are friends of many of us at Panhandle Scanner and we are rooting for them to make it into The Nebraska Music Hall of Fame. Here is a message from their lead guitarist and original band member on how it all got started.

By Jeff Winker

Loaded Dice enters our 25th year of performing and this year we are excited to announce we have been nominated for possible induction into the Nebraska Music Hall of Fame. The Nebraska Music Hall of Fame includes some of the finest musicians, bands and venues in the entire state and includes our areas very own Randy Meisner and The Driving Dynamics. It is such an honor to just be nominated and would go beyond our wildest dreams to be someday included along side these great musicians and bands.

The following is the Loaded Dice bio submission to the Hall of Fame board and includes the names of the musicians who have shared in shaping the band these past 25 years.

It all started in the 80’s with two childhood friends emulating their rock star idols, using a couple tennis rackets as guitars, a cranked stereo and the dream to play music to crowds of people.

The dream of being a musician on a stage and performing to a crowd of people would not be realized until the year 2000, when those same two childhood friends Matt Fuhrman (lead vocals, drums) and Jeff Winkler (lead, rhythm guitar) formed the band Loaded Dice. With the addition of friends Thomas Jones (lead, rhythm guitar) and Ed Mendez (bass guitar, backing vocals) the lineup was complete. The band played their first paying gig at Jack’s Lucky Chance in Bayard, Nebraska on October 7, 2000 under the name Nowhere Fast. Before the next gig the name Loaded Dice was agreed upon and as they say, “the rest is history.” The original lineup played together for five years and set the foundation for the band to build on. After the departure of Matt, Tom and Ed in 2005 Jeff decided to keep the dream alive adding new members through the years. The band has enjoyed the talents of some of the finest musicians in Western Nebraska.

Loaded Dice is primarily a rock n roll cover band, but also plays a variety of genres that can give everyone something to enjoy and dance to. Our song list includes such bands as Van Halen, Journey, Bon Jovi and Def Leppard to name a few. We love to see people smiling, singing, dancing and enjoying the music with us.

In the words of Jon Bon Jovi, “we have seen a million faces and rocked them all!!” Well maybe not a million, but it has been a lot in the 25 years we have been performing. There has been much growth and success through those 25 years.

In 2012, Loaded Dice became officially sponsored by Jägermeister. Nationwide, Jägermeister only sponsored 200 bands including national acts out of the thousands of applicants they would receive each week.

Loaded Dice has played clubs, casinos, fairs, weddings, graduations, charity events and opened for national acts through the years. We have traveled to Colorado, Wyoming, South Dakota, North Dakota and our home state of Nebraska. We have played the Sturgis Bike Rally, The world famous Saloon #10, Bobstock, 2024 Nebraska Cattleman’s Ball and several Casinos in South Dakota and Colorado. We have opened for several national acts including Styx, Stray Cat Lee Rocker, Grand Funk Railroad, Blue Oyster Cult, Three Dog Night and The Little River Band. It has been quite a ride as we celebrate our 25th year anniversary.

Current members of Loaded Dice include Debby Wagner (vocals), Chris Gordon (drums), Shawn Oakes (lead, rhythm guitar, keyboard), Jeff Winkler (lead, rhythm guitar) and Joel Kuxhausen and Derek Johnson splitting time on the bass guitar.

The band was built on a close friendship and that same mentality has carried us through the years and made Loaded Dice what it is today. We have always been more of a family than a band.

Past members also include:

Jessie Ramirez (guitar)*

Scott Fernau (drums)*

Phil Kearney (guitar)

Kevin Soto (drums)

Larry Athey (guitar)*

Nicole Smith (vocals)

Rodger Ormiston(guitar)

Christopher Camacho(drums)

Kacey Miles Sell(vocals)

Jack Schaaf (guitar)

Neil Miller (drums)

*members of less than 3 months