Insert cliche` apology about not updating often enough here. I’ve had plenty of thoughts but it seemed embarassing to try to update again saying “hey, the CDs are almost ready!” But I believe they’re at Headphone Treats now – end of story! I’ll have them at a show soon, at least by the EP release show… er, well of course. Of course! Ha ha. Hm.
My family and I are moving to Atlanta. It has been ten years here in Nashville and I’m going to miss it – a lot. I’ll most likely get together a nice big post about things I won’t miss, but for now I just wanted my friends, acquaintences and mentors know that I’m going to miss you people a lot. They say that one can have 99 supportive comments and 1 negative comment but you’ll only remember that one negative comment. No, I’ve held each and every one of your words very closely. Every time I see your faces at a show, a party, get an email… anything – it means a lot to me. Thanks for letting me be a part of your life. I was really down about something a couple weeks ago and a lot of you gave me some kind words to cheer me up. I even got a call from Pat Buchanan (again, the guitarist and not the politician), who listened to my bitching and offered words of advice and reassurance – every musician looks up to someone, and I’m lucky to have someone who’s as good at being a mentor as Pat. All of the people I play with are irreplacable (no matter how many times I’ve changed lineups!), they all make me laugh, they all bring something amazing to my music… ok, a few aspects of moving really suck. I love all of these people. And I’m trying to keep the blog music-related but ya know, eff it. There are a lot of people that I love in this town who have nothing to do with music whatsoever (in fact, most of them) and I’m hoping that somehow I can learn to live without seeing them on a regular basis.
The great thing about moving is that it will help to end a funk I’ve been in lately. Bad things happened here when I was in my very early 20s and I can’t seem to let go of them – I often allow the cloud to follow me around. I have my recent houseguest to thank for a major mental change – Tony Moore, take a bow. Yes, Tony is from England and came to me via Matt Backer (Matt’s a buddy of mine from England as well) – Tony’s doing a U.S. “tour” (he’s taking over all of the major markets in week-long visits to each town) and his trip to Nashville was both hilarious and inspiring. Tony makes things happen, and he carries optimism around in a large rolling suitcase. He’s seen enough to have become as jaded as ten Adam McIntyres, but he tends to be very positive about his experiences rather than hurt by them – and that’s the key, folks. I always think of myself as a positive person – when I get bad news, I reassure everyone around that things will be okay, I solve problems quickly, and I put on a smile for everyone to see. But it seems like for every dozen reassuring smiles I give, I quietly decide more firmly that yes, the universe is out to get me… which is silly because frankly, the universe has better things to do with its time than get me. Tony, as politely as possible, gave me a swift kick in the rear and ended a little streak of bad luck that I’ve had with booking. I “blagged” a gig that very next night (hey, see you all at the 5 Spot tonight!) and I’m remembering how fun spontanaeity is, and confidence. In fact, maybe I should just nix that future blog post on things I won’t miss about Nashville. HA! No way, man. That’s going to be some good blogging. I can’t handicap my journal like that – I’m the agony of defeat at its funniest… I hope.
In other news, the entire family has the flu right now. Paul had a flu shot back in the fall, so this is clearly some horribly mutated strain. Heather has a terrible headache but the worst seems to be over. I’m on TamiFlu, which is what they’re giving me to keep me from getting the fullblown flu. I feel “a bit odd” but ya know, it could be the combination of amphetamines and mushrooms. Just kidding. We’re all taking a lot of naps. I would imagine that we’re on Wilferd Brimley’s schedule at this point, “get some g*ddamned sleep, it’s the right thing to do! Oatmeal! Arrrgh! Our House!” Ahem.
One day when things slow down a little bit and I can get some rest from these naps, I’ll tell you about my travels with Les Honky More Tonkies. Every. Single. Trip. I swear, it’s all gold. We need cameras following us at all times because if we’re not in mortal danger (ex: stuck all night in the van in the snow and ice on Lookout Mountain), some seriously funny stuff is going down. We’ve even had the cops after us a couple times but like the Duke Boys, we always seem to get off the hook. Blogging GOLD, I tell you… just not this week.
So yes, I’m moving to Atlanta probably in June. Fresh start, new optimism, completely new music scene and way of working. I’ll need a new band, obviously. What kind of musicians am I looking for? Oh, good ones. But ya know, ones I can laugh with. Being able to get along with people is kind of more important than style and skill… but just in case, I’m going to copy my musician wish list from the myspace page:
I will put two musicians for each category. I would like for the person I’m looking for to actually count one as an influence and have an appreciation for the other. Ready?
Bass: John Paul Jones, Carol Kaye
Drums: Glenn Kotche, Steven Drozd
Keyboard: Billy Preston, Roger Manning Jr
Whew, do I feel like a jackass now? Yes. And how. But maybe someone knows someone who knows someone in Atlanta (or Athens) who fits a description. It’s worth a try!
That funny warm feeling that you get when you’re sick and are being told by your body that it’s time to lay down for a nice post-Thanksgiving nap (except that it’s March) is taking hold. I’ll blog again soon and please don’t forget to grab a copy of the new EP when it comes out on April 11th via headphone treats OR iTunes. Whichever. Or ya know, come to a show. I think I’m only going to do a handful of Nashville shows before I become an Atlantan.
So, in conclusion… goodbye Nashville (I’ll miss you), hello Atlanta (I’m scared to death of you but all change is scary at first).
Adam
