aka:   The Columbus Skyline, The Skyline Duo
Original Members:    
Tim Fleischer   -   Keyboards and Lead Vocals
Randy Sprague   -   Drums and Backup Vocals
Joe Dodge   -   Lead Guitar
Asa McGhee   -   Bass and Lead Vocals

Changes:
Roger Alton - Lead Guitar, Vocals, Harp (early 81 replaced Joe Dodge)
Joni Wirtz   -   Female Vocalist (added March 1981 until late 1981)
Fred Goldstein  -  Bass (Replaced Ace McGhee early 1985)
Barry Foster  -  2nd Keyboard  (added early 1985 until Oct 1985)
Glen Cataline  -  Drums and Vocals  (May until August 1985)
Randy Sprague  -  Drums (rehired August 1985 until July 1987)
Paul "Shorty" Williamson  -  Bass (replaced Fred Goldstein Oct 1985)  
Mike Maiberger  -  Bass, Lead Vocals (replaced Shorty Oct 1986)
Mike "Whitey" White -  Drums (replaced Sprague in July 1987)

Bio:
Skyline, in some shape or form, was one of the longer running bands in
central Ohio; almost 20 years in all. Tim Fleischer formed the original Skyline band in 1979. Members at that time were Ace McGhee on bass and vocals, Joe Dodge on lead guitar, Randy Sprague on drums, and Tim on keyboards and lead vocals.

Joe had previously played in Tim's very first band - The Edicates during the 1960's, and again with Allspice in the late 70's. Ace played bass with Tim during the mid 70's in a band called Circus.

In late 1980, Joe left the band and the search was on for a new lead
guitar player. Roger Alton formerly of the G.T. Alton Band,  joined Tim,
Ace, and Randy as the new lead guitarist and blues harpist. Before the G.T. Alton Band, Roger had played in a band called The 4 o'Clock Balloon. Roger's entry into Skyline kicked off a long musical relationship with Tim that continued well into the mid 90's.

Though vocally the band was already relatively solid they felt that a female lead vocalist would open up new opportunities to expand the repertoire as well as add some visual enhancement. Roger's sister, Pam, had sang with him in the G.T. Alton band and was a very talented vocalist. She however, no longer had any interest in performing in a band. Tim's sister-in-law, Joni Wirtz, showed interest in the band and was soon auditioned.  Joni had sat in with Circus on occasion, so Tim knew she had a very good voice, particularly for Linda Ronstadt type material. Joni joined Skyline in the spring of 1981 and the band began playing frequently at local taverns especially Caesar's in Reynoldsburg
where they were a favorite.

Due to medical issues it was necessary for Joni to leave the band in late 1981 and the band was back to being a four piece group. They continued to perform with this arrangement until January of 1984 when Skyline temporarily split up.

In early 1985 Randy Sprague pulled two other musicians together with hopes of starting a new band. After convincing Tim and Roger to join them, Skyline was reincarnated instead. Barry Foster played keyboard and Fred Goldstein, Suzie Goldstein's brother, played bass. Two keyboard players made for some interesting and full bodied arrangements on songs that Skyline would not have attempted in the past. "Abacab" by Phil Collins and "That Was Yesterday" by Foreigner are a couple of examples.   

Personalities in the new Skyline band never quite gelled. Soon, Randy's new friends (Barry and Fred) found it too difficult to play music with him due to his sometimes "interesting" antics. Randy was soon let go. Since Roger and Tim were newcomers to the group they decided not to interfere in the decision.

On a whim, Tim contacted old friend and ex-band mate Glen Cataline, to see if after playing with regional super group The GODZ, that by some slim chance he would be interested in getting back into a Lounge/Party band. Much to Tim's surprise he was interested and accepted the offer. Only a few jobs however were played with Glen on drums and vocals. Glen is, and always has been an excellent drummer and vocalist. But the years on the road with The GODZ made playing drums with a weekend lounge band an awkward fit. Things didn't work out, and by the summer of 1985 this attempt at the reincarnation of  Skyline had failed.

It didn't take long for Randy, Tim, and Roger to get the core Skyline group back together. In October of the same year, they recruited a  bassist by the name of Paul "Shorty" Williamson and again were back out playing at the party's and pubs. Shorty was a good bass player, had a great attitude, and was a super nice guy. The band got along real well and the sound and song selection kept them busy. They often played at the Rally in the Alley, Planks on High Street, Brennan's, weddings, and private corporate parties. One fall night at Brennans in 1986, Shorty announced that he was being put on the night shift at work and could no longer play music. This was difficult for Shorty and the rest of the band as things were going very smoothly for the group up to this point.

Randy called an acquaintance named Mike Maiberger who managed  Coyle's Music Store. Mike formerly played lead guitar and sang for Fantacy and Galaxy; bands that Randy had sub'd for on occasion. Randy asked Mike if he'd ever considered switching to bass guitar.
Mike indicated that he'd never given it much thought but was willing to give it a shot. Mike was always a big McCartney fan. Tim and Roger had previously met him at a wedding where Skyline played and he sat in on a set. Mike was an exceptional musician and in  October of 1986, he joined Skyline as their bassist and vocalist.

The band stayed busy doing private parties, taverns, and festivals all
around the Central Ohio area.  Not even a year had past when personal differences again raised it's ugly head. Randy again was out.

Mike suggested auditioning a friend of his, Mike "Whitey"  White.  In July of 1987 Whitey became Skyline's newest  and last drummer. Once Whitey was worked into the group they again picked up momentum and opened for many national acts, including: Rare Earth, Gary Puckett, The Byrds, and The Buckinghams. They were working on completing a deal with WXLE; a new local oldies station when in 1991 they split up and the members of band went their separate ways. Tim went on to provide vocals and keyboards to an 8 piece horn band called Pyramid.

After Pyramid, Mike and Tim reunited again for a short time in The Works. After the breakup of The Works (January '96) They decided to again reincarnate Skyline. By May of  '96 they played their first gig as a duo at St. Mary's. Tim played keyboards and Mike lead guitar. Both handled lead and backup vocals. Tim had played in the very same auditorium 30 years prior while in high school.

Several duos were playing throughout Columbus at the time, but none were quite like The Skyline Duo. Most of the duos were acoustic (i.e. non electric - usually a couple of acoustic guitar players, and maybe a
harmonica or conga drum). The Skyline Duo combined the marvels of modern technology with live music, and by doing so developed a sound that rivaled that of much bigger bands. All of the piano, organ, keyboard, guitar, lead vocals, backup vocals, and harmonica parts were played live by Tim and Mike. Bass and Drums were electronic. Though most fellow musicians could appreciate, and even applauded the duo, Mike and Tim  were sometimes criticized and admonished by many bassists and drummers for obvious reasons. In any case the duo was extremely successful and filled a niche in the Columbus entertainment market.  

The initial goal of the duo was to play a couple of times each month. Soon, weekend and weeknight gigs became commonplace.  Skyline regularly appeared at Planks on Broadway, Gatsby's in Gahanna, and the Nike Sports Bar in Hilliard. They were extremely well suited for the over 30 / small tavern venues.

In 2000 after one of the busiest years in Tim's and Mike's musical careers, they decided to go back to the original goal of playing only 1 to 2 gigs per month. After much reflection and deliberation they reconsidered that plan and decided to retire from the live performance side of music altogether. On April 6th 2001 they played their farewell gig at Planks on Broadway to a packed house.