Color Me Gone....

For the past 15 years I've lived in Lebanon, 30 miles east of Nashville. Lebanon is a small town in many ways. It is a successful city, a great place to live and a fantastic place to raise kids. However, due to a lot of factors that I don't really need to talk about any more. I lost contact there. I lost contact with myself, and I lost contact with many of my good friends.

For the past few weeks and months, I've been reconnecting...reconnecting with friends in Nashville and most importantly....reconnecting with myself. The biggest reconnection I've made lately is....my love for music. I love music of all kinds, I love to listen to it (my Zune and I are inseparable, though I did let my neighbors borrow it while they were stuck in the hospital) and I love to see it performed live.

I've also reconnected with many friends from high school. I was an athlete in my early years, but instead of playing varsity sports in high school, I joined the marching band. What a tremendous experience that was. I was a Charter Member of the marching band. This incredible group of people went from a rag-tag bunch of people learning to walk in a straight line, to a polished corp that won 4 consecutive State Championships.

Facebook has been priceless in my reconnection efforts. In the last 3 months I've reconnected with about 35 people from high school. We have spread across the country, but facebook let's us keep up with each other just like we were still stuck on the endless bus rides to the distant football game or contest.

One of the guys that I've reconnected with is a fellow by the name of Adam Hampton. Adam and I were two of the few in my graduating class that went to Goodpasture from the grades 1 through 12. In junior high and high school, Adam and I were in the band together, we played music together, even dated the same girls...what I'm saying is, Adam is one of the guys that I've known for the longest time.

Adam and I were both keyboard players, we both planned to make music for a living. There was one difference between Adam and I. I liked playing music....Adam LOVED it. He was willing to put more effort into it than I was. Today...I am a computer programmer...Adam plays keys for Ronnie Milsap (and others), has his own studio (Kokopelli Music) and a video business (ANR Productions) (Darn good web sites Adam!).

When Adam and I began an impromptu effort to reunite the members of the Marching Band, I visited his studio web site. I noticed that Adam's wife Rhonda (who sings with Ronnie Milsap) had a CD that was recorded and produced by Adam. Even though country music is not really my thing, I ordered it. An autographed copy arrived in my mail Thursday. (Thank you Rhonda!)

I began listening to it on the way to work Friday morning. As I listened, I busted out laughing. Knowing Adam like I do, I could hear his fingerprints all over it. I loved it...it is priceless to me now.

Here's a side note about the music business. I've only been loosely attached to it, but I know a little bit. Most often the artist and musicians get the credit for the music. In reality, it is the producer (in conjunction with the artist) that develops the vision of what the project will ultimately sound like. They select the songs, develop the sound for the song (it is many times very different from the way a songwriter presents it). And even though the musicians play the parts, it is the producer that works with them to develop the parts to be played.

This is the first time that I've listened to a CD where I knew the producer so well. The project is amazing. It is six years old, but to me, it is a classic (probably a little biased here).

The style of music is country....kind of. I've already let 3 or 4 people listen to my copy. Usually their first response is "I don't like country"..my response is "this is not your typical country album....just listen to the title track" after that...they are hooked and listen to the whole thing.

The reason it is not your typical country album is because (I'm guessing here) is because of Adam's early musical influences. Adam and I and our group friends listened to rock early on, but we didn't listen to the typical 3 chord rock, we listened to Rush, Yes, Emerson Lake and Palmer, Steely Dan and jazz influences like Gino Vanelli and Jeff Lorber.

First, let me say that Rhonda's vocals are amazing. She brings a lot to the table (she absolutely nails Patsy Cline in the bonus tracks, anybody that can do that is amazing) But when I listen to music, I typically listen to the background more than the vocals and lyrics. I busted out laughing when I heard some of the instrumentation, and musical techniques used on the album. The best example would be "Better Be Serious" there is tremendous amount of syncopation in that song (we did a lot of that in high school) and it also features a lot of the Hammond B3 organ (a classic instrument, not used much in country music). Somewhere on the album I heard a clavinet a clavinet is a funky sounding keyboard (not sure I've ever heard a country song that used one). Also there is a Supertramp/wurlitzer sounding electric piano used in "Color Me Gone". The piano fills in "I've Been Run Over By This Train Before" will make anyone that appreciates the piano laugh out loud.

I'm sorry...I could go on and on. The album is amazing...samples and online purchase are available here. Just in case you think I'm biased, there is another review of the album here.

Thanks guys...I hope to see you at the Ryman on Nov. 6.

P.S. "Color Me Gone" is my new theme song ;-)