Leon Forrest experimented with various musical instruments during the 1960s but he found a dulcimer and Jews-harp did not work with his R&B music tastes, so he took up piano. Leon was especially attracted to Wilson Pickett. His inspirations came not so much from Pickett’s music, but more in adoration for Wilson’s sister, Jenny Pickett. He concluded that the only way he could possibly get a date with Jenny was if he worked his way into the music business. In 1969 founded the band FIREWIND, a thrash punk / Creole quartet. Gabriel Meckler, the legendary producer behind such acts as Steppenwolf and Three Dog Night, noticed the band’s commercial appeal. After a few years, the Hollywood music industry and ‘star-maker’ demands and expectations left Leon disillusioned in a chaotic lifestyle, so in 1976 he fled to the idyllic mellowness of the Central Oregon Coast.
   In 1980 he established a recording studio facility in the Taft Village of Lincoln City, OR. Over the years, he produced a large number of projects with many of Oregon’s finest musicians and songwriters. Leon specialized in arranging and collaborating with his clients to fulfill a common vision.
  In 1991 Leon expanded into visual media. He immersed himself scoring scenes for a “Soap-Opera” type “Eco-Comedy” called “WHITEWATER”, and found he had a knack for script and screenplay production. Acting also became a newfound love. Thus, Leon Forrest Productions was born, offering a full range of audio, visual and production services.
   Today Leon’s studio in full operation and many video and musical projects are in various stages.