Keith Urban’s New Guitar

I probably won't be buying one of these mirrored Teles, but it's pretty interesting nonetheless.


Keith Urban’s New Guitar Has Arrived

NashvilleGab

Okay, so I'm not really much on the whole celebrity gossip thing. I could really care less who's dating whom, what the latest rumour about adoption is, and all that other stuff, but I do like some good country music news every now and again. Recently I found a nice website/blog that posts some good information and videos, along with its fair share of gossip, and I really like it. (Not the gossip -- the other stuff.) Oddly enough, it is written just up the valley from me in the 1P, so who knows whether I've run into the writer at some point or not! You might get a kick out of it, too, so here's the link:

http://nashvillegab.com

Sara Evans In Sun Valley, Idaho

If previous experience at a Sara Evans concert has taught us anything, it is that we should attend one whenever possible. We really did enjoy her last Fall when she came to Nampa, so when a date was posted for Idaho's Sun Valley Pavillion, we made our plans and set them in stone.

If our experience with setting things in stone has taught us anything, it is never to set things in stone. After a series of mishaps, we almost missed the show, and at the last minute, I ended up taking my oldest daughter with me. As it turned out, this was one of the greatest times of all her 7 years, and we all agreed after returning home, that this was most certainly for the best!


The day was beautiful, the venue is a visual treat, and the music was simply superb. This was our first trip to Sun Valley for a show like this, so we weren't entirely sure what to expect, but even though the rains fell in Noahic proportions, the sound under the heavy canvas canopy was still clear and clean, and we stayed dry and mostly warm. The evening featured many new songs from the upcoming album, and did not rely quite as heavily on Sara's classic hits from the past few years. The new songs are all good, from the upbeat opener, "Desperately" to the winsome ballad, "What That Drink Cost Me", and all the tunes in between. It makes a person quite optimistic about the coming disc, and the songs on it -- particularly after the sad fortune that befell the extremely good "Low"!

The band was as good as ever, but with a slight modification. Electric guitarist Clint Chandler has opted to leave the road behind for the time being, and has been replaced by Kansan Justin Ostrander. As much as Chandler's individual playing style (and Tom Anderson Strat) will be missed, Ostrander is a fine player as well, and he gets bonus points for using an ES-335 as his sole electric during the show. The fact that the show was a fly date may have worked into his decision, but between his hollowbody and Brent Wilson's Anderson Tele, the guitars were simply topnotch. (Unfortunately, the amplification obscured the Gibson from our hearing more often than not, but what can you do?) Combine those with Jonathan Lawson's Breedlove acoustic, and you can round out the guitars as among the very finest models on the planet. Oh, and their players weren't so shabby, either.

There were just two disappointments on the evening. One simply centered on the responsiveness of the crowd. The concert was a part of the Governor's Cup, so the Pavillion was full of politicians and government officials who were trying to pass off their Wrangler jeans, yoked shirts, cowboy boots, and shiny buckles as authentic. In fact, hardly any of them that I spoke with even knew who Sara Evans was, and greeted each song with all the warmth of a mildly interested stranger. There were plenty of people present who actually knew the score and enjoyed themselves, but overall, one got the same effect as they would at an opera performance where local bigwigs gather to be seen in an upscale setting, regardless of whether they care about Rodolfo and Mimi or not. Posers....

(It was quite a treat to have our own governor, Butch Otter, who actually belongs in a room full of country folk, introduce Sara to the audience. Also entertaining was seeing the infamous Larry Craig bump into a friend from out of town. Good thing he didn't try that with me!)

The second thing that disappointed me was hearing tracked-in mandolin and steel. I know, you can only have so many people on stage at a time, but I have an adversity to tracking instruments like... well, like mandolin and steel. They were well played, and sounded just fine in the mix, but when you have some of the finest players on stage in Lawson and Wilson, you want to hear them play -- not a recording. Then again, maybe I'm just jealous that management didn't ask me to play. I was free that night!

Speaking of mandolins, mando players, and music played from a computer, it was truly a treat to be present when the pre-show PA started into "Battle Scars" by Tin Cup Gypsy only to be followed soon by their new song, "Wildfire". It didn't hurt that the songwriter/leadsinger/fiddler/guitarist is a member of Sara's band as well, but the acoustic sound fit in perfectly with the rest of the music being played, and was hopefully some great exposure for those kids from the desert who have such great talent. You all know that I'm a big fan, and I absolutely loved it!

All in all, my little girl and I enjoyed the concert immensely. "Little Mama" took her sign (reversible -- one side said "I *heart* Sara", and one side said "J-Law" for Lawson, her current crush), and after bouts of shyness, took to waving it proudly. She got smiles and waves from both, and charmed everyone she met with her smile and delicate kindness. I couldn't be prouder of her, and just love being able to call myself her dad. It was the best part of the weekend!

Pics follow. The last lesson I learned... my new camera stinks at taking concert pics! The thumbnails are actually better than the fullsized versions, so click with care.

My date was a bit impatient to get to the venue, so we were the first ones there by a long shot. No problem, though. We just hung out and looked beautiful.

Sara, backlit and almost occluded. This would have been such a cool picture.

Sara plays a little air guitar with the boys.

Lawson rocks out a little "Want You To Want Me" with the crew.

Last song of the night. That's my little girl's head you see in the middle. She was standing right at the edge of the stage, and loving every second of it!

She's coming to Boise in November. We're there.

Must Be An Idaho Thing....

Ruddy Duck At The Ponds

On our most recent trip to the ponds we didn't catch too many fish, but we stumbled upon a pretty rare bird for these parts - a Ruddy Duck! These aren't exactly coffee table shots, but we were only able to sneak a couple quick pics before he swam out of range. Look closely for his "smile" in this shot:



He cocked his tail up at us as he got far enough away to consider himself out of danger. You really have to squint to see it here, but we think he was definitely sending a message:



Since we hardly ever see these around this area, we were pretty excited to find this quirky little critter sitting right in the middle of our new favourite fishing hole. Next time we're going to be a bit more sneaky going in, and try to get a better shot at him. (Camera shot, that is -- it's only May, and five more months 'til duck season!)

One Flew South In Boise... Without Me

This trio called One Flew South has become a favourite group of mine ever since hearing them last Fall. Since then, they've been back to town and I missed them due to a scheduling conflict of some sort -- I don't even remember what at this point. Well, tomorrow they're back in the Boise area to play again, and while I had every intention of going to see them this time, it turns out that the 10-Year-Old Waterfowling Wonder's Babe Ruth baseball team is pushing their playoffs toward the championship round. Since they won tonight, their game will be tomorrow evening, and I'm going to miss Bush, Roberts, and Reed again, dang it!

Hope it's a fun show - go enjoy it for me!

Fattest Bluegill He's Ever Caught

Or so he says. Good enough for me to take a pic!

Josh Turner - Baby's Gone Home To Mama

This is a pretty busy song on the album with the 6-string bass and all, so it's pretty interesting to hear it reduced to two acoustics. I like this:

Josh Turner   More CMT Music   More CMT Music Videos

84West's Latest Studio Goings-On

The past few weeks have seen 84West at Boise's Mix House Studios pretty frequently. I'll wait until the project is complete to tell the whole story, but thought I'd share some photos of the process just for fun.

We brought a bunch of guitars and amps with us, but ended up using a Bogner Alchemist 40W that was there in the studio, owned by one of the engineers. It is a thing of beauty, and let us get everything from sweet twang to some cutting, driven tones. Danny seemed to get the most out of it with his reissue Tele, as shown here.


This shot features Andy in the pocket and the reflection of Starbucks coffee in the window. Both kept us going. We're so proud of Andy, whose studio experience started on this album. After it all, we're still pretty sure we'll keep him!



This is really why I wanted to be there. Truth is, I absolutely hate my piece of junk mandolin, and would love nothing more than to replace it with a better quality instrument as soon as possible. Of course, the entire budget went into recording, though, so that will have to wait. This little A-model import is just killing me, and turns even the simple portions into a challenge.



Phyllis mastered the art of the single take. She covered piano, B-3, and the ever-popular string sound. It's amazing how so few notes can make such a big difference, and her organ stuff is going to be a real boon to the record!



Andy in the main tracking room on that eventful first day. (Long story!) My main regret was that I did not notice his position when snapping the photo. If he had moved just a couple inches to his right, that nice Peavey 5-string on the wall would have made perfect bunny ears on him! Next time, I suppose....



Thanks to my crummy mandolin, I felt really tied to my charts. This made it all very distracting, and left me pretty dissatisfied with my own work. If anyone knows where to get used mandos for a decent price (dad of four here in a construction-related job, remember!), I'd love to hear about it! No excuses, though -- I'm always dissatisfied with my playing. And my singing. And my songwriting. You get the point.



High-strung (Nashville tuned) guitar is always fun to play. We have a variety of acoustic tracks on this project, from standard-tuned to Drop-D, high-strung, high-third, and we even got to use a really cool old Framus 12-string loaned to us by a friend. We were going to throw a gut-string into one of the songs, but it never panned out. It won't matter, though. Between us, we had more than enough acoustic playing to keep us busy!



Here's the electric man with his Washburn. This thing has some hot Seymour Duncan pickups in it that really got the most out of the amps as well as Danny's nimble fingers. I played it on a couple songs, but you'll be hard pressed to single out my playing in the final mix, which is just as well.



No country album would be complete without some banjo. Don't expect to hear bluegrass style, though. It's not in-your-face, clanging banjo, but really acts as another rhythm track, almost like a guitar with serious twang.

Long days, sleepless nights, a lot of work, and a lot of money so far. Soon we'll have some overdubs in hand, and then it's on to the mixing process. This is the most frustrating fun I've ever had, and the most fun frustration I've ever experienced.

Anytime, baby. Anytime.

Keith Urban - Defying Gravity

Ordinarily I jump at the first chance I have to post a review about a good album. Occasionally, though, immediacy is not the friend of accuracy, and such is often the case with Keith Urban's work. Make no mistake -- I would readily identify myself as a fan of his, for his singing, playing, songwriting, production, and a variety of other reasons. He has talent virtually falling from his fingers and vocal cords, but for whatever reason, it takes me awhile to warm up to his CDs. You can ask why, but I cannot explain.

So, a couple months later, my thoughts seem to have settled, and maybe my ideas have sufficiently formed to make a fair evaluation of the album. To tell the truth - I'm not sure why it should take me this long to like a record! This is a fine work with a variety of sounds and subjects, and it is both well-produced and well executed. All in all... good stuff!

The songs all show Urban's clever writing skills (he is credited on 8 of the 11 tracks), and carry his unique vocal and guitar stylings. The fact is, you simply cannot confuse an Urban song for anyone else's, and it is that distinction that has made him one of radio's predominant artists and a consistent stage draw. His first two singles released are evidence of this: "Sweet Thing" and "Kiss A Girl" both show his upbeat, fun-loving side, perfectly suited to introduce the disc. Neither one are particularly surprising or unusual, but they are still entertaining and interesting. The radio-friendly sound with catchy lyrics and predictably fun hooks may not be indicative of the album as a whole, but they are a good intro nonetheless.

"Defying Gravity" also contains more emotional songs like the percussive "If Ever I Could Love" and the sincere ballads "My Heart Is Open" and "Only You Can Love Me This Way". Love songs are not at all difficult for Urban to pull of with his soulful voice and inflections. This is where his vocal work may be at its very best, as his millions of female fans may attest and his fellow male vocalists display pure envy. The songs push the sappiness button just a bit on this particular record, but then again, they weren't intended to be appreciated as much by middle-aged married men, either. Frankly, even though I'm still madly in love with my wife of 12 years, I still think that if I sang one of these to her like he does, she'd say, "Come on, really, cowboy?"

The exception to this is "Thank You", a raw piece that is clearly and deeply personal to Urban, but avoids the esoteric nature that often accompanies these songs. It has much in common with "Got It Right This Time" from his previous album, both being unmistakeably directed to Mrs. Urban. If you hadn't figured it out soon enough, he spells it by calling the object of the song his wife, but it really won't take you that long. If being so close doesn't make you uncomfortable, you might just appreciate the look into what makes this artist tick. It's not a great song, but you have to respect the man's public appreciation for the woman he loves. Besides, he married Nicole Kidman!

They aren't all slow love songs, though. Urban's singing may shine on the sugary stuff, but his guitar comes to life on songs like the pop-tinged fun of "Standing Right In Front Of You" which combines the odd tandem of a laid-back feel with driven riffs. True, it ends awkwardly, but it tells a compelling story and makes you smile. Going from good to better, "Why's It Feel So Long" combines a retro steel sound with bouncy rhythms and ultimate memorability. This is the one song you will be singing over and over again, and I would not be surprised to find this as the Summer anthem of 2009... it just has that feel to it.

For my money, the best song included in the set is "Hit The Ground Runnin'" for both its unexpected lyric twist (courtesy of harmony vocalist, "The Ranch" bandmate, and apparently, songwriter, Jerry Flowers) and great guitar riffs. This song is perhaps the most musically interesting of the eleven, and gives a little bit for Urban's inner rocker. It's the kind of song that makes you want to pick up your six-string, and has probably contributed wasted movement to many air guitarists around the world. Session guitarist Tom Bukovac is certainly in on the fun, here, and can't be ignored in the process.

That takes care of ten out of the album's eleven songs, leaving just the one, "'Til Summer Comes Around". Suffice it to say that this song came off my media player almost immediately. It tells a story of lost love, but with such melodrama, it is almost unlistenable. I'm pretty sure the seagulls are the same flock from "Marina Del Ray", but maybe Urban should have heeded George Strait's regret about using bird sounds in his similar song. Fortunately it's the only one in its category, but it just doesn't work. Everything else is much, much better.

The same session crew is back to play again. The aforementioned Flowers and Bukovac take their usual places, as do Chris McHugh, Eric Darken, Jimmie Lee Sloas, Dann Huff, and Russell Terrell. Some old friends are back, too, in the persons of Bruce Bouton and Stuart Duncan, who are certainly welcome to the traditionalist's ears! It is always interesting to follow the evolution of a set of studio players that a lead artist uses consistently, and no less so with Urban. His pattern has been to use the same session players, and it has paid off for him in spades. They're good, and they're reliable for "the" KU sound.

The biggest problem with this album is the same problem that Strait had with "Troubadour" and Josh Turner has with "Everything Is Fine". When your previous album is so remarkably good (as was "Love, Pain, And The Whole Crazy Thing"), it just makes a hard act to follow. This is not the artist's fault -- it's just a matter of timing. As long as you know this going in, you will still appreciate the disc, and any fan of good country music is bound to enjoy the album.

One last warning: it's Urban and Huff. Don't try this at home! (Okay... go ahead and try it. It's fun!)