It's In The Can!

We're done! The audio portion of my new CD is done, done, done. Finally. Here is a look back down the long road that led me to this point...it's a good case study for anyone planning on making a bigger-budget independent record.

Spring, 2004 I have a dream of an acoustic country album! I begin asking around and doing online research, searching for the right person to co-produce.

Aug. 31st, 2004 After meeting with at least four other producers, I have my first meeting with Mitch Dane and find that I enjoy his production demo reel. He has some time open in February of 2005, and it seems like a good fit, but it's gonna take money...

Fall, 2004 I play at 66 colleges and universities, mostly in Wisconsin and Minnesota, and save up $25,000 for the record. I see some random things along the way.

Jan through March, 2005 The CD is tracked and mixed at Sputnik Studios. I'm thrilled with the overall tracks, but feel that the mix (which Mitch and I did together instead of hiring a mix engineer) fell short of my expectations.


June 30, 2005At Telluride Bluegrass Festival in Colorado, I meet engineer Gary Paczosa (Allison Krauss, Nickel Creek, Dixie Chicks) and ask him about re-mixing my record. He suggests, considering my practically non-existent budget, that his assistant do it under his supervision.

August, 2005We recut vocals on 9 songs to achieve a better vocal sound, replace some electric bass parts with acoustic bass, and finish it up.

After spending a year and a half and almost $30,000, I finally have my vision on tape! Which means all that's left to find is a photographer, graphic designer, record deal, booking agent, publicist, radio promoter, and live band. But tonight, if you don't mind, I'm just going to kick back and listen to my record.... :)

Spendin' Money to Make Money

Well! Just got home from my first-ever "label showcase" here in Nashville, and it was OK. The band was great, and the audience was appreciative--- the only down side was that there weren't near as many fans or industry folks there as we were hoping. Must've been a bad night for people. Which is no big deal, but music is one of those financial wonders where sometimes people pay you to play and sometimes YOU pay THEM. In this case by the time I rang up bills for musicians, sound guy, and posters, I probably spent $400 just to play this little gig! I could have gone to see 50 movies with that money! Or bought like two gallons of gas!

Definitely doesn't seem worth it when only 30 people show up, but you know it's hard to say...we got some good video footage, and that might help me get a NACA showcase which would pull in $40,000 or more. Plus there WERE industry people there, and they'll talk about me to their friends, and who knows where the word might spread in the long run. Farther than it would if I'd stayed home anyway. Or watched one of those movies. :) All in all, I'd call it a qualified success. Most of the time that's the way it is in the music biz---not what you'd hoped, but still fun.

Speaking of which.......we've had a few hiccups with the E-Bay van. The most serious of which was that last weekend it wouldn't GO. Not to worry though, it was just a bad set of batteries and we're back up and running. Installation of the veggie system should be in a month or so, and I want it so bad I can smell it. No, wait, that's just Jodi fryin' up some green tomatoes.

And finally, I apologize for the lack of photos in this post---we seem to have misplaced our digital camera for the time being, and I miss it. I would've taken a picture of the showcase tonight, and I would've taken a photo of a nasty grease trap and digitally inserted myself taking a bath in it. As it is, we'll just have to use our imaginations and be happy with that! Thanks to everyone who made it out tonight, and I look forward to doing it again as soon as I sell my extra kidney!! Peace,

Hangin' with the Judge

Several months ago I decided to really work on playing out more in Nashville, honing my live show with a band, and building up a local fan base---easier said than done, but slowly but surely I'm getting that ball rolling. I've been lucky to get great players lined up for all my local September shows: Judge Bean's BBQ, a label showcase at the Basement, and "Americana Tonight" at the Sutler.

I'm hoping to turn the Judge Bean's thing into a semi-regular event, so if you find yourself in there sometime make sure to ask when Zane Williams will be playing again. And try the brisket tacos, because they're freakin' awesome. :)

We had a sweet band last week---Billy Contreras on fiddle, David Spicher on bass, and Matt Raum on mandolin...

Even the bobcat was diggin' it. (He's deaf though, so that's not saying much...)

And, for those of you who don't mind a 4 MB download, click here for a short Windows Media Clip from the show. Well thanks, keep in touch, and start thinking about coming to that label showcase on the 20th if you're in town! Peace,

I Feel Like a Brand New Van!!

So here's a transcript of a recent phone conversation I had with my parents in Texas...

(mom) What are you all up to?

(me) Well, we're driving to pick up a van we just bought on E-Bay!

(mom) Oh, you are. Hmmm.

(me) Yup, and in about a month or so we're going to get it converted to run on vegetable oil!

(mom) (long silence)

(me) (more silence)

(mom) You're kidding right?

Nope! Introducing our new mode of transportation, purchased on E-Bay for $4,500. You'll notice it's not the same van I was looking at a few days back---that's because only diesel engines can be converted to run on vegetable oil. Plus I think this one is more practical for our purposes. Here's the story in pictures...

We bought the van from Ina and L. C. Heathcott in Newbern, TN. It's a 1993 Chevrolet G20.

When Jodi saw its old-fashioned charm, and thought about all the happy hours we will spend together collecting waste vegetable oil from back alleys, she glowed with excitement and pride.

After taking care of a little business with L.C. and Ina, and loading up some fresh tomatoes from their garden, it was time to hit the road in our new chariot!!

As soon as we entered the highway and felt the steady rumble of the van's rock-solid diesel engine, we knew we had made a good investment...

At which point the "Water In Fuel" light came on and we had to pull over. Luckily, L. C. and Ina had warned us about the bad fuel they sometimes get and we knew just what to do to quickly solve the problem...

Soon we were back on the highway, and Jodi wasted no time in getting on the cell phone and telling her family what a raving lunatic she had married.

On the way home we stopped to buy fuel---a soon-to-be-extinct ritual. That's right OPEC. I'm bootin' you off this gravy train... :)

We've already put about 800 miles on the van, and so far it's running like a top. The mechanics who are doing the conversion have started working on the parts, and plan to have us running on veggie oil in a month or two. I'm looking forward to loading it up with some world-class musicians, some sleeping bags and some Doritos, and heading your way. When you hear that guttural diesel engine and smell french fries wafting on the air, you'll know we're almost there...