The Tater Blog

Posts Tagged ‘friends’

I made some updates to the Taters page this week, including adding pages for each of the albums along with lyrics, etc. Next will be complete liner notes – who played what on what tracks, dedications, etc – I’ve got these done for menagerie so far but I haven’t made it to the others yet.

I’ve been wanting to get some of this stuff on the site for some time, not only so it’s big enough to read – 6pt type isn’t easy for anyone! – but also so I could correct a few errors that made it thru the editing process, no matter how many times I looked at it, or showed it to others! F’rinstance, in this web version I’ve finally corrected a terrible omission from the printed booklet – special guest victim screamer – Rebekah Gribik! Don’t know how that got left out, but this goes a little way toward correcting it!

Also, for those who’ve asked for it – here is a large blow-up of the back cover of menagerie. Kind of hard to see things on the back of a 4.75″ CD cover, so here is a bigger graphic (your browser may resize it to fit on the screen, but it’s about 15″ wide so you might have to click to zoom in on it!)

By the way, if any of you are web designers, I’d love to know how to fix the CSS on this site so it displays better at any resolution. I’ve figured a lot of it out, but I can’t afford a “real” designer, so some things just ’sort of’ work! I’m always happy for any help!

OK, that’s it for now…

things have been quite busy in Taterland over the last few months, and most times I clean forget to add updates! Sorry, I promise I’ll try to try harder. Or at least I’ll try.

I’m sitting in the studio now listening to final and near-final mixes on menagerie. There have been a few setbacks, but it’s still alive and kicking, just taking longer (always!) than I thought it would. I’m also working on finishing the cover art, liner notes, all the publishing stuff, etc, and working with the pressing plant to get that all setup. But all that notwithstanding, I’m hoping for a Halloween release, so keep your bony fingers crossed!

On a related note, watch for the October release of  Virginia Creepers: THE HORROR HOST TRADITION OF THE OLD DOMINION.  It’s a documentary featuring stories and clips of classic Virginia late night horror show TV shows. The Taters have a song in the soundtrack, a menagerie cut called “Wolfman Told Me Tonight”, so you’ll want to get a copy of the film ! A lot of you know the song from our shows over the years, but this is the debut of the recorded version. On an inexplicable note, the website for Virginia Creepers lists our tune as a “romantic ditty” (??), so I don’t know what to tell you about that. Not a big Valentine tune to my way of thinking but hey, it made the cut so we’re happy!

Spread a little Tater around

Think about the last time you bought something from a friend’s recommendation, or because you read a review of a book, movie, album, whatever. Chances are that review or recommendation made more of an impact on you than any “official” advertising from the manufacturer. One of the most beneficial aspects of the web is this ability to spread “word-of-mouth” recommendations across a much larger audience.

Same is true with Tater tunes. We have all sorts of people who come to see us or buy the CDs because someone told them about us, or they read a recommendation from someone. You could be a big part of spreading the word about The Taters, not only by telling your friends but also by posting reviews of our music or shows on the web. Nearly every place that sells the music online – CD Baby , iTunes , Amazon , you name it – has some way for you to post reviews and comments. It would be a great help to what we’re trying to do (merely get every single individual on the planet to hear us) if you’d add some reviews of your own. Say whatever you like, tell about your favorite song on an album, what you like about the music, etc. If you use iTunes, make a playlist that includes the Taters music and share the list so others will find it! Every single voice helps, believe me!

Just finished listening to Jim’s guitar part on “Feet Start Walking”, and it’s great. Right now suffering thru listening to Bill solo my bass & piano bits to get them all EQ’d nicely… sure sounds better when the rest of band is around it! Ah well, that’s the beauty of the studio – I can play just like me, and Bill can make me sound just like I do in my head (which is always better!).

Overall I’m loving what everyone has come out with on this. There’s been a lot of work done by everyone, and I hope it shows.

or, sounds, I guess…

We’ve had dozens of shows over the last few months, and that’s kept us out of the studio quite a lot, but I’m hoping we’re nearly wrapped up on this. 4 shows this weekend, including a very fun “Christmas in July” day to help raise money and awareness for the Central Virginia Food Bank. We got to play a whole evening of Christmas tunes, in the middle of summer. Ho ho ho! We also got to do this with our pals from Offering, so we had the benefit of Jeanine’s beautiful voice and a whole stage of very talented players – even strings & flute, so we were truly culture filled! These folks did a beautiful job on the music, and with organizing the whole thing. Chris had a relaxing 15 hour day of setting up & running the stage sound, so I know he was wiped out by the end of it! A big Tater thanks, though, for all his hard work. Mike came down from Stafford to help out for the evening, we even pressed Cole into service, and everyone’s help was needed and appreciated. The event was by all accounts a big success, and I think the Food Bank got lots of donations and exposure.

OK, back to work. I’ll try to post some of the results of the mix later this week

Another unexpected and much appreciated gift towards the new CD, this one from “Anonymous Fan” came in the mail today! Don’t even know who to thank for this one, but I hope whoever it is reads this blog so I can say how much all the Taters appreciate it! It’s no exaggeration to say that this will really help us keep things moving, especially as we enter into the bleak midwinter (or, as I like call it… January!). The gift came with a great poem as well, and I’ll post that as soon as I can type it all out (or persuade other family members to help

I’m always happy when people come up at the shows and say how much they enjoyed it, or when I hear from people who’ve enjoyed the CDs. It means much more than a lot of people probably realize. When you consider how much music is out there in the world, how many shows there are to see on any given night, and all the competition from TV, radio, etc, it’s pretty encouraging to know how many people are actually choosing to spend their time with us. I don’t often take the time to thank everyone individually, especially those who come out regularly, or who buy all of our music, but just know that it’s all absorbed and appreciated. I’m sure the other Taters would echo me on this!

So, “Anonymous”, thanks again for your gift, and I hope you’ll enjoy the fruits of it when the CD comes out!

I think you will!

And I’ll leave you with a quote from the good Dr. himself,

"Welcome Christmas, Bring your cheer
Cheer to all Whos far and near
Christmas Day is in our grasp
So long as we have hands to clasp
Christmas Day will always be
Just as long as we have we"

Just a quick posting to say thanks to Ruth for the very nice gift she sent. It will certainly help with getting the work done on the CD, and it’s much appreciated! I’m really grateful to know people are interested enough in what we’re doing to help support it like this. Came as a total surprise, and that made it all the more… Christmassy!

For those of you who don’t know Ruth, she is a music lover who hosts a great series of house concerts in VA. We played one of her House About Tonight shows this past Fall and had a blast with it.

As Clarence said, “Remember, George: no man is a failure who has friends.”