If you could break the last year down into highlights, what would stand out most?
Oh, it's not going to be any single moment or event.
Going to Memphis for the IBC was an honor and just mind blowing. Even though we didn't place, it led us to our gig at the Arkansas Blues and Heritage Festival in Helena. We were on the Emerging Artist stage and had a pretty good draw. I think Chris was the youngest performer there. Next time, we want to be on the big stage with the big crowds!
With the CD... Chris, Mikey, and I had never been in a recording studio before July, so it was pretty exciting work with all the headphones and overdubs. Then, after the CD came out, it was picked up by Blues Deluxe Radio, which has over two million listeners. From there, we ended up on a compilation CD from Blues Revue with Robert Cray, Ike Turner, Aynsley Lister... really, that pretty much exceeded all our expectations.
We've been sending out CDs to Europe for play on radio there, too. We did an interview with a British blues magazine, NOW Toronto magazine, played NXNW, the Beaches Jazz Festival, and were nominated for a Toronto Independent Music Award (in the blues category).
Along with being chosen for the 2007 IBC, our CD was submitted for the Best Self-Produced award. And we'll be performing at the Millenium Music Conference in Harrisburg, PA. just two weeks after Memphis.
There was also the trip to Hartford, Connecticut, where we taped an episode of The New Music Showcase (a public broadcasting TV show). We performed for 45-50 minutes and then did ten minutes of interviews.
And then there are the charity benefits we've played or are going to play. It's such a privilege to be asked to perform at these events. Getting on stage, setting the mood for the crowd, and hoping to get a lot of money for good causes, we get to do what we love to do while giving back to the community. It's a win/win situation.
It sounds like the "summer" job and occasional winter gigs has grown a bit.
I guess so. [Laughs] We always want to do more and this is what comes of that.
I'm still surprised at the response we've had to our shows and the CD. Sometimes I have to wonder what we got ourselves into.
What role does the Internet play in all of this?
Article comments
1 - Connie Phillips
Congratulations! This article was an Editor's Pick this week.
2 - John Cotton
Great write up, Thank you,
We consider it a honour to be listed as "One of The Top Ten Blues Bands To Watch"
The only thing I forgot to mention when we were talking on the phone was a big part of our "Shut The Front Door" recording session involved our engineer D'Arcy McGilligan he is on the Berklee College of Music advisary board for recording and has worked with Rick Derringer and George Wallace Jr (Lt Gov of Alabama) and we were both written up in the Berklee newsletter, Here is a link to that newsletter.
Also the "A Guy Out In Hollywood" is Skip Adams of Global Graffiti Music here is the link to his website Global Graffiti Music
John Cotton (The Bluesers)