Dr. John’s music career started back in 1972, when he wanted to learn piano. He took five and a half years of classical music lessons from his instructor, Grace Wielard, from Pella, IA. By the time he reached 10 years of age, piano wasn’t enough for him and he picked up the trombone. From 5th grade to his junior year at Pella High School, he played trombone for the Marching Dutch Band. When he reached eighth grade he debuted his talents at bass guitar for the school’s jazz band.  While in his junior year, he dropped school music activities to join up with his cousin Fred Reitveld to play in the “County Line” band from Pella. Only being able to read sheet music, he re-learned to play the bass guitar by ear and found his true passion for music. He went on to play in several local bands like “Back Roads” from Pella, “Southside Smitty” from Oskaloosa, and the “White Lies” from Knoxville. He took a break from playing for one year to pursue his career as a Doctor of Chiropractic Medicine. But his departure didn’t last long.  While in the the Quad Cities he found a number of talented musicians. He joined a local band called “Backflash”, which later became “Sideshow Bob”. Upon completion of Palmer College of Chiropractic, Dr. John Hoekstra moved back to Oskaloosa, IA and was reunited with his cousin Fred Reitveld in the band “Renegades”. Later he helped out two other local bands, “Heartbrake” and “Two Bricks Shy”, before joining Alliance. Alliance offered John the chance to play the instrument of his choice along with the music that inspires him the most, and he has been blessed with the friends and fellow musicians of “Alliance” that inspire him to be the best that he can be. “These guys are more than just a group of guys making noise, this band is like my family, I’ve been in a number of bands and nothing comes close or even compares to the amount of fun, good times, and great music that we make together!”.