I’ll be in Nashville are this Friday for a house concert. Sammy Barrett will be singing with me……she sang on “Fireworks”……it is in a private home, but you are invited. Space is limited so reserve your spot now!
House concerts are awesome. Kids are free and welcome if they can shut up during the performance. Ha! ha!
You can RSVP on the Facebook event invite, too! Hope you can make it!
This is Sammy singing with me on “Fireworks”………she nailed it.
UPDATE–as we had hoped……the studio has been saved by conservationist Aubrey Preston!!!! Great work Nashville!!!!! Imagine Memphis without Graceland, or Sun Studios……or Abbey Road being leveled to build a Starbucks or a high rise condominium. This is what is happening right now to Nashville’s historic RCA Studio A.
RCA Studio A was literally the epicenter of Nashville’s Music Row at one point, and to this day hosts artist’s such as Hunter Hayes, Miranda Lambert, among others. Some of you may have already seen the emotional plea of Ben Fold’s, the current occupant…..who has in fact plowed over a million dollars of his personal money into the maintenance of the studio.
It is simply a musical treasure that is in danger of being leveled. What will replace it? Most likely a high rise condominium complex that will remain mostly empty, or be filled with Vandy students.
The closing day is set for this coming Monday. We have limited time to impress upon the new owner, Tim Reynolds of Bravo Development in Brentwood, TN, what this building and Studio A means to the Nashville, and in fact, international music community.
Who would want the onus of being the man who leveled an international musical treasure? The guy that leveled Sun Studios…………or Abbey Road. I would not want that on my head.
When the Ryman Auditorium was on the chopping block Emmylou Harris led the charge to save it…..and Nashville won. It still remains. This moment in history is no less significant!
This coming Monday morning, June 30th at 9am is the moment to gather at RCA Studio A to show the world that Nashville and Music Row is willing to stand up and protect our treasures. Ben Folds and the Studio management have graciously agreed to open the doors of the studio to the general public. On Tuesday this might never be possible again. Come join us and let your voice be heard.
This is personal to me. My mom sang with Elvis on “Suspicious Minds” on that hollowed ground……..I sang a duet with Mary-Chapin Carpenter on “Wishing” in that studio……..Dolly Parton, The Everly Brothers, Chet Atkins……..the list is too long have all recorded there.
Please don’t let it be destroyed. Join us for the “Love in” this Monday, and please share this with your Facebook friends, and tweet this with the hashtag #SaveStudioA. 9am Monday morning is your moment to get involved. See you there! 30 Music Square West, Nashville, TN……..be there!
Also, please share your personal story about working or recording in RCA Studio A in the comments below?
Join the Help Save RCA Studio A Facebook group!
Join the Facebook Event page!
UPDATE:
After the meeting yesterday morning, and the coverage of the meeting my Chris Bundgaard from New Channel 2 WKRN…….the buyer released a press release. We are all heartened by what he said. Awesome……but…..we don’t’ really know if he is a music fan. It seems like this is an educational process for him.
From Ben Folds in reaction to Tim Reynolds’ press release:
Here’s an update on the status of the possible sale of historic RCA Studio A:
my office just received a phone call from Bravo Development LLC, a Brentwood TN-based development firm led by Tim Reynolds..Bravo Development is the firm that was planning to purchase the land and the building that houses the studio…Mr. Reynolds informed us that his firm will only buy the property if his engineering and architectural team can figure out a way to feasibly re-develop the property while protecting and preserving the studio for future generations to enjoy..he went on to say that if it’s not feasible for him and his team to do so, he would not move forward on the purchase..
All I can say is that this speaks volumes about the character of Mr. Reynolds and demonstrates an appreciation and respect for our city’s great music heritage..
Thank you Mr. Reynolds..
I look forward to learning more about the studio’s ultimate fate, and will pass along any further information I receive..
When I say “education process”…….I don’t mean that in a demeaning way. I’m a native Nashvillian and a child of the row. I literally grew up on the Row. My mom sang with Elvis on “Suspicious Minds” on that block, and I recorded the duet of “Wishing” with Mary-Chapin Carpenter in RCA’s Studio A, and even I learned so much in that two hour meeting about the historical significance of Studio A. It simply cannot be changed. It is the last of its’ kind in terms of studio architecture and history.
So, the “love-in” will continue on Monday morning at 9am regardless of the very positive press release from Mr. Reynolds. Word is that Ben Folds is delaying his European trip to join us.
Why is it important that you show up? Well, for me, Monday represents a moment where the sons, daughters, brothers, and sisters of the Row, and world in general can start standing up for these iconic music landmarks. They are quickly being bulldozed and turned into high rise condos, that in fact, as history shows us……will most sit half empty. So, we are letting Music Row, one of the world’s iconic music destinations be destroyed for “progress”……
I would argue that tearing down The Cavern Club and then billing the place next door as “The Cavern Club” was not progress for the tourism business in Liverpool. And, can you imagine if they had not preserved Sun Studios in Memphis? It would be a travesty.
It wasn’t too long ago that the Ryman Auditorium was on the chopping block, and only after Emmylou Harris spearheaded a movement to save it are you now able to enjoy that part of musical history.
This is our moment to stand up. The developers around the world that are coming into Nashville and bulldozing our history will be watching us on Monday morning at 9am. This is the time to demonstrate that we will stand together.
UPDATE as of Saturday, 12:53pm:
Just got off a conference call and I can confirm that Ben Folds, Lee Ann Womack, Ronnie Milsap, and a few others will be a part of the gathering at 9am sharp on Monday. Everyone is welcome and we are open to hearing from artists that have recorded in Studio A? Get in touch.
WKRN News 2
In 1994, I toured 70 US cities with Peter Himmelman. He is the most brilliant live performer I’ve ever seen. He has the quick wit and spontaneity of Robin Williams, and his music has strains of Elvis Costello, Tom Petty, and Bob Dylan. He’s also Bob Dylan’s son-in-law, but that has no real consequence in his demeanor……just an aside.
I knew Peter’s name from working at Cat’s Records on West End in Nashville. We sold quiet a few of his records. When Bob Garcia from A&M mentioned me opening his tour I was all for it.
So, I opened up for his “Skin” tour. Basically, I had 70 days to learn from a master at connecting with an audience. I saw him get 300 people to lie on the floor and do breathing exercises during the show at the WOW Music Hall in Eugene, Oregon………………I saw him get at least 500 people out of 2000, at the Vic Theatre in Chicago, follow him out the door and through the city streets to an all-night cafe after a couple asked him if they could take him to breakfast. He said “yeah, if you will take me and EVERYONE else here”………..
I watched his show every night. Learning.
So, jump 20 years. I’m still watching.
A few months ago he came out with a kickstarter campaign to put out his new cd. I had been wanting to do exactly the same thing, but was too afraid of failing.
Being afraid of failure has been a constant theme in my creative life. I’ve sat on good songs for years…….unfinished, because if I finished them then I would be “judged”…………I’ve sat on good ideas for years…….i’m getting too old to do that now.
I watched how he conducted the campaign, shared it for him on my Facebook wall, tweeted about it………rooted for him.
Then he shared a video that put me over the edge.
His son, Isaac, interviews him. It was poignant to me because I have a son. There are times when I struggle with being a creative person that sometimes has to leave home for stretches of time to take my “art” into the world, and sometimes i’m the strange man that wears funny clothes meandering around the house, struggling with juggling dad stuff with being the “artist”……it hit home.
The obvious love and respect Isaac has for his father, in all his falterings…….was very cool to watch. Suddenly, Peter Himmelman was more human. I kind of figured that Peter had it ALL figured out, but with this interview……I could see he struggled with some of the same demons that I struggle with. (Spoiler alert-I cannot find the video of Isaac interviewing Peter…..bums me out. Inspirational. I’m sure it will appear again, but they’ve taken it down it seems)
So, this interchange between father and son put me over the edge. I HAD to go ahead and push the button on the Indiegogo campaign “Giving Wings to Some Comfort”………I knew that I couldn’t move forward as an artist until I gave “Some Comfort” a chance.
I’m 24 hours away from the end of the campaign, and am so thankful that I finally pushed the button on it. I’m 27% funded…….far short of the goal, but happy. I’m a few house concerts away from reaching the goal. It could happen. Either way, I can move on now. I have Peter Himmelman to thank for that.
He was open and honest about his life…….and that gave me strength.
In the absence of the interview video……i’ll leave you with “Impermanent Things” from the Strength to Strength cd.
This year i’m going to move forward without fear………try it for one year and see what happens…………thanks for everyone who has contributed to the campaign.
We made it to Honolulu, Hawaii for the 50th night of the 2012 50 States in 50 Days tour. We are tired, but relieved, and excited to be here finally. The photo was taken this morning in Bel Air……sunrise over Hollywood. It represents the other 49 states in my rearview mirror!
It was a long tour with some moments where I wasn’t sure if we’d make this one, but we stuck it out.
Ok, so before we go to our house concert tonight here in Waikiki……we will webcast live from the hotel. Normally, we accept tips in drinks sent to the room, but this place does not seem to be that sort of place……cheap is good.
Ok, come visit us in the chat…….going on air at 5:15 local Hawaii time…….that is basically now!
So tune in tonight at 8pm Pacific time…. You can always watch, but if you want to “chat” via the chatroom, then I think you will need to create a profile with Ustream.tv……which takes about 5 minutes. Some of the most fun is had in the chat room while the broadcast is going on………you can find me show at http://www.ustream.tv/channel/kevin-montgomery-s-50-states-in-50-days If you’d like to tip (just like you would if you were in the Hogsbreath and you walked up to the tip jar, then you can do that right here on this website via paypal….here.
Or here is the embedded link…….but if you want to chat, or see the chat…….I would follow the other link.
Streaming .TV shows by Ustream
Join the chat here………
