The new single is posted and available. Listen at www.myspace.com/gerrystanek and buy it HERE! These three songs clock in at less than 9 minutes total. Good things come in small packages.
The new single is finished, folks. There are three cuts on this release from Bituminous Records. The record includes an appearance by my friend Chris McKenna. Chris plays piano and sings harmony. Quite frankly, he did an amazing job. I’m proud of this record.
Tracks include “Apple of My Eye” and “Dress Me Like a Fool.” You’ll hear ‘em very, very soon. Promise.
As always, write to bituminousrecords@verizon.net
A new demo has been posted for your perusal at www.myspace.com/gerrystanek. “Around to Me” is something that was written five or six years ago, played into an old boom-box and left to fester. Well, I say, “Fester no more!” The song lives in a version recorded at home on Saturday 1/24. Give it a listen and let me know what you think.
And check out my friends in Vanna White Stripes. You’ll find them at www.wehateraylamontagne.com.
It was great to hear from Charlie Farabaugh, a person who was very much involved with my music and life for a long time. Take a look at Simple but Startling Facts for more on Charlie!
I recently got to hang out with my friends in the band Vanna White Stripes. They came to Jerry’s Tavern in Carrolltown, PA. I was also privy to their untitled new album. What a listening session! It sounded great, even on the less-than-perfect car stereo in Fitz J. Kennedy’s ‘89 Skylark. That’s all I can say.
Although there’s no music posted yet, you can see more about Vanna White Stripes at www.myspace.com/vannawhitestripes or at www.wehateraylamontagne.com
Since I got a couple of new CD’s for Christmas and since Elaine P. reminded me that I hadn’t updated since early November…Ahem.
Santa delivered “Blame it On Gravity” by the Old 97’s, “Failer” and “Back to Me” by Kathleen Edwards and “Dylan” by some guy named Bob Dylan. That got me thinking about some of the essentials; albums or CD’s that are pretty much necessary for any collection, at least from my humble perspective.
Though the list may be incomplete, it would include “Squeezing Out Sparks” by Graham Parker, “This Perfect World” by Freedy Johnston, “Can You Fly” by Freedy Johnston, “Baby I’m a Want You” by Bread (don’t laugh; listen to the musicianship) and a couple of things by this little combo called The Beatles. You might also check out “Rule Number One” and “Iodine in the Wine” by Dennis Brennan, Boston’s finest son (yes, he’s way better than Aerosmith).
How’s that for an update? I’ve listened to the above records more times than I can count. They reside permanently in my brain and I wouldn’t be complete without ‘em. That is a simple but startling fact. Speaking of which, check out the new section on this site called “Simple But Startling Facts.” It’s a compendium of all the information you’ve wondered about for years.
Happy New Year to you and yours. Have a prosperous and fun ‘09. Tell all your friends to buy Gerry Stanek records.
Write to bituminousrecords@verizon.net and listen at www.myspace.com/gerrystanek
The Tascam 234 is a dinosaur; a 1980s cassette multi-track recorder. This old workhorse was a desirable item back in 1985. I scrimped and saved to buy one at the time so that I could become a songwriter; as though without the 4-track, I couldn’t write songs. I practically wore it out back then. Someday I’m going to release those old, 80s demo’s. Some of ‘em are good!
Anyway, I blew the dust off the the old Tascam when it was time to record the latest release from Bituminous Records. With an old 16-channel mixer and a couple of microphones, the basic tracks for “Demo’s From a Long Winter” were recorded to, yes, magnetic tape: a cassette. With my Dad’s old drum set and my trusty Fender Bass, I started work on the songs that would become “Demo’s…”
The strings on the Fender Bass haven’t been changed since 1998. Seriously. Outcry’s final tour ended that autumn and I haven’t changed the strings since. They almost sound like flatwounds now. Likewise, the heads on my Dad’s drums are probably 1970s vintage. But I think the old stuff sounds pretty good when you listen to “Gravity” or “Red Haired Girl.”
Mind you, overdubs were done digitally on a Korg D1200, but it’s much easier to use the analog equipment. Just hit play and record and you’re working! The digital stuff gets far too complicated and I’m really not a fan. When the inspiration hits, you don’t want to have to think about HOW to record a damned guitar part. You just want to plug in and play.
Hear some of the results now at www.myspace.com/gerrystanek
As usual, write to bituminousrecords@verizon.net
On election day, the Sean Hannity myspace page finally posted a bulletin and noted “I’m in Love with a Girl Named Sarah Palin.” Having worked for nearly two months to promote this song, I wasn’t lost on the irony of the timing. I mailed Sean Hannity a CD back in September; I sent countless e-mails and tried contacting the people at his myspace page, hoping to get a boost in publicity. The election day post from Hannity’s page brought a significant boost to the number of profile views at www.myspace.com/gerrystanek.
It looks like we’ll have to put the song in storage until 2012, despite this last minute acknowledgement from Mr. Hannity. Sean…Where were you six weeks ago?
Write to bituminousrecords@verizon.net
The “store” at this site is finally complete. That is, if you’d rather have a CD in your hands because MP3s just don’t cut it with you, then you’ve come to the right place. With the help of kunaki.com, Gerry Stanek’s entire catalogue is available on CD. That includes “I’m in Love with a Girl Named Sarah Palin,” the latest release from Bituminous Records.
The sales figures aren’t in yet and the ranking at Amazon.com has fluctuated wildly since the song was introduced in September. It’s been as high as 1,100. To me, that was fairly encouraging. I’m an unknown, one-man operation. How many “signed” bands are out there, struggling to sell ANYTHING?
This song has had a life of its own. The election on November 4th will tell the tale as to how long it might keep breathing. Excuse me, over here…Does anyone have any oxygen for this song????
Oh…iTunes has it now. Go there to download.
Write to bituminousrecords@verizon.net
I’ve let too much time go by without coming to this site to write. And I didn’t get to tell you about the 12th of October. That was the day that brought Sarah Palin to Johnstown, PA. My wife and I arrived in the Friendly City at around 6:15 AM, bleary-eyed after only three hours of sleep. We shivered and waited with thousands of others, impatient but happy.
The rally has been covered in the media and I won’t go in to the details. But, it was an exciting, inspiring day. At the end of Sarah’s speech, she came to the audience to sign autographs and shake hands, surrounded by secret service guys. I wondered what they might do if I tried to hand something to Sarah, but I threw caution to the wind.
When she approached the area where Jenn and I were standing, I quickly thrust a CD toward the Governor of Alaska. She responded by grabbing it—it looked as though she would autograph the thing. With loud music playing and hundreds of people screaming and yelling, I said, “No, no. That’s for you! THAT’S FOR YOU!!!”
With those words out of my mouth, Sarah Palin stepped back and looked at the cover of the CD—My smiling mug and the title of the song: I’m in Love with a Girl Named Sarah Palin (An Open Letter to My Wife). What Sarah Palin might have been thinking at that moment will probably never be known. And despite the people I know who insist that she must have already known about the song, I seriously doubt that. She smiled and moved on. There were other voters to attend to.
Somewhere in my mind, I knew that Sarah Palin would hear the song I wrote in my kitchen. From the day I wrote it, I had envisioned that very possibility. And now, she owns a copy. Maybe the song has blared through her tour bus as she and her family roll across the fruited plain, with Trig and Piper and Willow doing the waltz as I sing, happy that Americans love their mother. I’ll never know.
Each day I ponder this Sarah Palin song, wondering how to make it live and breathe. That is, what else can I do to make more people listen. The support I’ve gotten from local media and radio stations is pretty astounding. When I consider that the song was written less than a month ago, it’s hard to believe that I’ve just about exhausted every outlet in the Altoona/Johnstown, PA market. TV, radio and the newspapers have gone out of their way to promote this song.
Tommy Edwards at Rocky 104.9 in Altoona joined the fray this week, talking at length about the song and spinning it on his morning show; a silly little country song sandwiched between Nickelback and Pink Floyd. Tommy is someone I’ve known for a long, long time. It all goes back to my radio career—I worked the microphone in my early 20s, playing 45s (yes, records on a turntable that you had to cue) at a few stations in Altoona and at WNCC in Barnesboro.
WNCC was possibly the only 500 watt powerhouse in the country. It absolutely dominated the area surrounding its tower with a mix of strong local news coverage, on-air want-ad’s presented on “Dial and Deal” and even “Radio Blackout Bingo”, which I was lucky enough to host circa 1983.
When I hit the Altoona airwaves in 1981, I was working the only country station in Altoona: WVAM, 1430 on your dial. Country wasn’t anything like it is now. At that time you felt cool playing country on the radio because not many people were doing it and the music was still REAL. Tom Reilly hired me after I showed up for my interview wearing a suit. Reilly said, “Anyone who shows up here in a suit is OK with me.” It was the summer of 1981 and I was 18.
Soon I was on the air at WVAM, playing Johnny Cash records about cobras and George Jones songs about drinking. Why doesn’t country radio play those songs now? As for Mr. Reilly, he was incredibly patient with the young DJ who kept saying, “WNCC”, even as WVAM’s tower boomed his voice over the Allegheny Mountains (Get it? Voice of the Allegheny Mountains equals WVAM). Tom had to tape a big sign on the newsroom window to remind me of the call letters; to help me forget my former career at WNCC as I introduced Karl King and the news.
If the timelines don’t make sense, it’s because I did two stints at WNCC: 1980-1981 and later in 1983 and ‘84. Somewhere in between I did mornings at WPRR and at Q-94. And what ever happened to Darrel Ray?
The music director at WVAM was Stan Davis. Stan, all wild-haired and bearded (at the time) was one of the funniest individuals I’ve ever met and local country-heads loved him. Stan is Tommy Edwards’s older brother; that’s the reason for all my rambling on this. And sometimes I wonder what happened to the shelves full of 45s from WVAM’s studio. Where are those great records by Ferlin Husky and Ray Price, Stan? Where’d they go? God, I’d love to listen to every one of ‘em.
It was nice to hear that Tommy mentioned me this week. I hope to see him soon. Thanks for sparking some great memories, Tommy. And say hello to Stanley.
Hear “I’m in Love with a Girl Named Sarah Palin” at www.myspace.com/gerrystanek
Write to bituminousrecords@verizon.net
