|
|
 |
|
|
Letter from Tracey K. June 15, 2010 Yikes! I can't believe it's been since September since I made my last update. This is crazy. Ok, updates... in October I went into the studio to start recording my new rockabilly album. The session players were killer! Singing with them in the studio created such a great energy in the room giving me more confidence and made me sing better than I expected! :-) Chris Casello on lead guitar and lap steel, Rodger Morris on piano, Steve Holland on drums, Joe Spivey on rhythm guitar and fiddle, Dave Roe on upright bass, John Heinrich on saxophone. Backup vocalists Darrell O'Donnell and Jennifer O'Brien (backup vocalist for Dolly Parton). Special guest artists include Marti Brom and James Intveld. James also played piano on one song. Teri Joyce (writer of Blue Tattoo) joined Marti and me in the studio and hung out with us. I recorded the album at Bayou Studios in Nashville, Tennessee in the big room, the analog studio with 2-inch tape. It was great! Such a warm sound. I produced the album with George Clinton as Associate Producer lending me a hand, and Jesse Poe as Engineer. We recorded, overdubbed, mixed... did everything on the analog tape, and then once it was all done we dumped it to digital only to put it to CD. This way we didn't lose any of that warmth in any part of the recording and mixing process. After some delays I finally have the finished product in my hand and it is now available. The album is called "Rockin' Little Angel." I should have it up on the site in a few days. It will be available through CDBaby, the usual online outlets (Amazon.com, iTunes, Rhapsody, etc.) shortly, plus directly through me if you want it signed. There are 14 songs on it, and the cost is $15.00. I need to update my General Store page, don't I? I have a bunch of different pictures and other stuff available. I went out to Southern California for the first time over the Christmas Holidays and New Year's. Did my rockabilly photoshoot out there the day after Christmas, the weather was much warmer there for an outdoor shoot than here in Nashville, where it was very cold! (Below freezing.) Tim Hunter was the photographer, and his team mate Heaven was the hair/makeup lady. They both did a fabulous job! That night after the photoshoot, some friends and I headed over to Joe's Great Bar in Burbank to catch James Intveld's show. It was great. He shocked me though and got me up to sing with him, that had never happened before so I was very nervous, I wasn't prepared mentally to get up onstage and sing. Yes, I have to prepare myself mentally and psych myself up in order to get on that stage without being shy and nervous. Went out to Los Angeles again in May and played the Rockabilly Showdown with The Lone Gunmen, the rockabilly band I use on the West Coast. Check them out! Other acts on the lineup included the Jackpot Club and The Palaminos. I absolutely fell in love with The Palaminos' music! They're not rockabilly but they're sure great honky tonk music! Check them out on Myspace. Just finished with Fan Fair 2010 last week. Appeared on the Reunion of Professional Entertainers (R.O.P.E.) show on Wed, June 9th. Other artists appearing included Crystal Gayle, Lorrie Morgan, Leona Williams, W.S. Holland Band, Little David Wilkins, David Frizzell, David Church, Tugboat Jerry, Jesse Lee Jones, John Conlee... who am I missing? Oh yeah, me with my special guest James Intveld. That reminds me, here's a nice review that Marty Martel (President of ROPE) wrote, that was truly humbling and overwhelming:
Then on Friday, June 11th I did a Fan Fair show at Layla's Bluegrass Inn in the afternoon. The place was packed. The Chris Casello Trio backed me up as I featured songs from my brand new rockabilly album and my latest country album (Just The Way I Am). They were awesome, as usual. Check them out! I've just been running insanely busy, taking care of all this stuff, recording a new album, getting it ready for release, trying to get show bookings, etc., so I'm going to take a little break for a few days (what's that???) heading out to California and get away from this insane heat in Nashville for a few days. Until next time, Tracey K
September 4, 2009 As usual, it's been super crazy busy and I haven't updated this News page in a timely fashion. I like being busy, but I don't like it this chaotic! I hope my schedule eases up a little. The Canadian tour in June/July 2009 with my tour-mate James Intveld went very well. We had shows in Saskatchewan, Alberta and British Columbia, and played to some packed houses. It was very nice being back "home" and seeing lots of my family members. The benefit show in Nashville on April 1st for Ernie Ashworth & Ray Griff went off without a hitch and we raised lots of money for both of the beneficiaries. Except, unfortunately on March 2nd, Ernie Ashworth passed away unexpectedly, so his share of the proceeds went to Ernie's Estate. Several artists appeared: Crystal Gayle, Jesse McReynolds, Jim Ed Brown (we did a duet), Troy Cook Jr (we duetted too), Stu Phillips, Jack Greene, Lonzo & Oscar, James Intveld, Stonewall Jackson, and David Ball. April 1st was also Jim Ed Brown's 75th birthday! He's still singing great! Since I returned from the tour, I've been fairly busy with working with a rockabilly great, Carl Mann, and we've been doing some shows together. I played on the main stage at the International Rockabilly Festival in Jackson TN in August with Carl, then on subsequent weekends I've been doing some shows with him too. I'm trying to play "catch up" now that I'm back home from tour and not having to deal with tour preparations, so I'm only doing a few shows here and there the rest of this year. However, I'm working on some dates in Europe for next year. Hopefully that will pan out. Somehow or another I have to squeeze in the time to have a photo shoot done and start work on my new album project. This one is going to be a rockabilly project, and I'll have a surprise special guest doing a couple duets with me. I'm VERY excited about that!! :-) Until next time, Tracey K
Feb 19, 2009 Well... I sure have been super busy since I last posted a letter. Let me fill you in a little on what I've been doing! 1) Booking a Canadian summer tour. Tour stops include Shellbrook, Sask, Drayton Valley, Alberta, and Calgary, Alberta; James Intveld is my tour mate. Check out his music, it's really great! 2) Organizing a fundraiser Benefit/tribute show for Ray Griff (recovering from throat cancer) in Calgary, Alberta, Tues, June 30th, 2009 at the Stetson Saloon. Several Canadian artists are confirmed to appear, including Monika with a "K", Gene Gebo, Blaine McKenzie, Mary Resek, Toni Lynne, Doug Jones, Peter Pshyk, Shane Chisholm, plus three headliners from Nashville, myself, James Intveld and Grand Ole Opry Star, George Hamilton IV; 3) Putting together a dual Benefit show for Grand Ole Opry Star, Ernie Ashworth, and Ray Griff here in Nashville. Ernie lost his wife to cancer in Nov 2007 after a long battle with cancer, and he recently had triple bypass surgery. (Added: Mar 4, 2009: We just lost Ernie on March 2, 2009 due to a heart attack. He will be missed! The show is still proceeding.) Confirmed to appear are: Crystal Gayle, George Hamilton IV, Jim Ed Brown, Stonewall Jackson, Stu Phillips, Jesse McReynolds, James Intveld and David Ball. That's being held here in Nashville on Wed, April 1st, 2009 at The Texas Troubadour Theatre (Ernest Tubb Record Shop) on Music Valley Drive; 4) Putting together a new production called "Icons In Concert" which has many of the finest tribute acts and professional impersonators in the world. Check out the Icons In Concert myspace for details. See my Calendar page for details. Hope to see you at some of the shows! Until next time... Tracey K
Dec 8, 2008 Today marks a sad day in history. On this day in 1982 we lost Marty Robbins. I'll never forget that. I always loved Marty's music, but never got to meet him. I'll never forget when I heard the news that he passed away after his bypass surgery.... I cried. His hit on the charts around that time was "Some Mem'ries Just Won't Die"... boy, isn't that the truth? Also on this day in 1980 the world lost John Lennon. Several things going on with my music. As of Nov 24, 2008 my new album, Just The Way I Am, was in the "Top 5 Most Added" on the Americana Music charts here in Nashville. At the time of this writing it hasn't made it to the Top 40 on the chart yet, but with any luck and requests and nice Music Directors, hopefully I'll get lots of airplay! :-) The current single is "Just The Way I Am" although some Americana stations, Public Radio and Triple A stations play whatever they want off the album.... kinda sorta like what DJ's did in the old days. So start calling your radio stations to request whatever song you like off the album! :-) The new single reached #12 in September in Europe. Yeah! Thank you DJ's and listeners. :-) I'm working with a couple business partners in a new music venture, which will also involve booking other artists into shows. I believe we'll be starting out doing some shows in Ohio in the Spring. I'll keep you posted on that more as things evolve. I was recently contacted by the manager of a Conway Twitty tribute artist, Dave Parsons, asking if I'd be interested in joining forces and combining our respective Conway and Loretta tribute shows. After much discussion we decided to put a show together, so we're working on bookings for that show right now. The show is called, "Hey Loretta, Hello Darlin'" and we should start touring with that in the Spring. It's more of a Legends-type show instead of my usual "Hey Loretta, The Girl From Butcher Holler" tribute show, which is a story & song format. If you want to see this show brought to your area, contact me. I've had a few changes in my band since I last posted. I bid Manda Lou farewell and encouraged her to spread her wings with her own band and brand of music. She had her first two gigs on Thurs & Fri, Dec 4th & 5th, 2008. Nice to see the young 'uns spreading their wings. :-) My drummer, Keely, has basically quit the longer road gigs to go back to school, so I wish him luck with that, but it still means me having to find another drummer. I'm in the process of going through rockabilly songs for my next album project I'll be starting on next year. I used to sing rockabilly and country when I lived in Calgary, but since I moved to Nashville 13 years ago, I mainly focused on country, so I need to get my chops up on rockabilly again before I go into the studio for this project, which is why I added a rockabilly element to my regular show. Now I do country and rockabilly. :-) Going to Canada next summer to do some gigs. So far we have a couple shows in Shellbrook, SK confirmed for the Shellbrook 100 Year Homecoming which runs from June 27 through July 1st. Our show dates are Fri & Sat, June 26 & 27th. Other acts include Canadians Leah Durelle, Brian Sklar (& The Tex Pistols), me, and another act to be announced. So now I'm working on booking some other dates in other western Canadian cities while we're up there. :-) There are other things in the works right now, which will be announced at a later date. That's all I can think of for now! Until next time.... Tracey K
Aug 1, 2008 Well, I've been a busy little bee trying to get everything done! In mid-July my brand new album, "Just the Way I Am" became available. I haven't "officially" released it yet (ie., had a CD release party) because I've been busy working on the behind-the-scenes stuff that has kept me busy. I'm hoping to get that put up on my Music page soon. But in the meantime you can go to CDBaby and listen to clips there, as well as purchase it. We are working on some gig dates, so if you want us to come to your area, please contact us and we will do our best to accommodate you.
I have just put a brand new band together, still doing the classic/traditional country, but I've also added a rockabilly element to it. We present classic country from the 50s/60s, fresh traditional country music, and rockabilly music from the 50s. I've asked Harry Fontana to join the band and lend his rockabilly talents to the group. He is a bundle of energy on stage and he wears me out just watching him! I can't help but dance when I hear his music. If you can sit still watching him perform, you must be deaf or dead ! LOL Both Tracey K. and Harry have recorded albums, and their own music is performed as well. We are available for "non-smoking" venues, including clubs, cabarets, casinos, theatres, house parties, etc. If you would like to hire the band for a private party or other venue, please feel free to contact us.
I'm still doing my "Hey Loretta" tribute show, but that's suitable for theatres, cabarets, casinos, etc.
Let me introduce my new band members to you:
BAND MEMBERS:
Tracey K. Houston - vocals Harry Fontana - guitar/vocals Chris Casello - guitar/steel Scott Icenogle - Upright Bass Keely Lane - Drums Manda Lou - Keyboard/Sax
If you are on Myspace, please add me as a friend, www.myspace.com/traceykhouston or by clicking HERE, and add a blurb in the friend request that you found me on Myspace through my website. :-)
Also, I'm just about to start a promotional campaign for my first single I'm going to release off my new album, and I need your help on that. Please visit my Myspace page and click on the "Listener Poll" blog to view the choices for singles. Then listen to the FIVE songs from the new album that are posted, and post a BLOG comment as to what your choice is. This will help me a great deal in deciding which songs the fans prefer and getting your opinion heard!! :-)
In early July I made a special trip up to Calgary, Alberta to spend time with my "Uncle" Ray Griff, who has throat cancer, as I reported in my last letter. I'm happy to report that he's been showing some progress. He has completed his radiation treatments and it's been a very rough road with excruciating pain for him. The feeding tube has been removed, he is finally starting to speak a bit (he had lost his voice), but he still cannot eat solid food yet. He still needs your prayers for his continued recovery, as he's getting better, but he's still not well. A benefit/fundraiser show in Calgary is in the works, of which I will be a part of, date TBA.
I guess that's it for now! Until next time, Tracey K
June 13, 2008 Fan Fair (CMA Music Fest) is behind us now for another year, whew! Had a great time, although I wore myself out completely. Did a couple shows during the week, plus two days of signing at the Classic Country Fan Fair booth. And.... I actually took time out to have fun and not be the Artist, so I attended some shows of other artists. On the Thurs after my afternoon show, I went to the Moore & Moore fanclub party with my buddy Rollie Stevens. Rollie performed on my afternoon show, and since he works with Lynn Anderson he wanted me to go to the Moore & Moore party since Lynn was supposed to be there and he wanted me to meet her. We cut out of the Moore & Moore party a little early and headed to the ROPE (Reunion of Professional Entertainers) Show, where Stonewall Jackson, Jim Glaser, Roni Stoneman and others were playing. I hadn't seen Stonewall in a long time so I wanted to see him again. After that we cut out and headed back downtown to Robert's on Broadway. A friend of mine, David Tanner, and his band were playing that night. He invited me up to sing a few songs, which I did.... some Merle Haggard and Tammy Wynette songs. It was fun jamming. Friday night I went to the show of James Intveld at The Basement. Now let me tell you something.... if you want to be entertained, this guy will do it! Awesome talent! Great voice, great choice of songs, great writer, very versatile. He does his own style of old country sounding songs and also rockabilly. All around a very nice guy. Saturday afternoon I took the day off from being an Artist and melted in the hot sun enjoying the entertainment at the Chevy Plaza.... Michael Peterson, Deborah Allen, Jedd Hughes, Trent Summar and James Intveld again. Sunday afternoon I was back in Artist mode and signing at the Fan Fair booth, along with Rollie Stevens, Todd Sullivan, and James Intveld. We all had fun meeting and visiting with the fans and each other. Mel Tillis' booth was right next to ours so we had a nice little chat and I had a good picture taken with him. I plan on putting some pictures up on this website soon, but until I get them up here, please check out my Myspace page for LOTS of pictures! www.myspace.com/traceykhouston Now I'm trying to play "catch up" now that Fan Fair is over. Working on getting some more bookings for the summer. I'm wanting to get back up to Calgary, Alberta (one of my old hometowns) and see my dear friend, "Uncle" Ray Griff, who is not in the best of health right now. Hoping to get up there this summer with or without a show booking. I've finished recording my latest album, "Just The Way I Am", we're just mixing and mastering it right now, and working on the graphics. It's VERY country... classic country... and bluegrass. :-) It should be ready for shipping by the end of this month. It is available for pre-sales. $14 USD including shipping. Just mail a USD money order or check to me and I'll send it out as soon as I get the CD from the pressing plant. If you wish to pay via credit card, you may pay via PayPal.
May 30, 2008 Well, it's that time of year again!!! Fan Fair (now known as the CMA Music Fest) is upon us!! I've been a really busy time of year for me, with preparing for finishing recording my new album, preparing for Fan Fair, getting the band all organized, doing all the pre-production stuff for the album, including the behind the scenes stuff of what pics to choose for the graphics, the theme, etc., etc. The recording of the final songs for the album went really well this past weekend (Memorial Day weekend). We are currently mixing and mastering it, and working on the graphics. Hopefully it'll be ready to ship by mid-June, or July 1st at the latest. I'm really busy this coming week for Fan Fair. Have a couple shows I'm doing, plus signing at the Classic Country Fan Fair booth (booth #800) a couple days. Shows: Tues, June 3rd, 8pm, Texas Troubadour Theatre (Ernest Tubb Record Shop), Music Valley Drive, Nashville, TN; Thurs, June 5th, 2-4pm; Layla's Bluegrass Inn, 418 Broadway, Nashville TN (next to Roberts). See my calendar for more information. Booth signings: Fri, June 6th, 1:30-3:30pm, with my friends Rollie Stevens and Lonzo & Oscar; Sun, June 8th, 12:00pm until whenever, with Rollie Stevens (he does a mean Marty Robbins tribute). Every day and evening this coming week is booked solid. Wow, I can just imagining how I'll be collapsing with exhaustion by next Sunday night! LOL
====== This year Tracey K. will continue touring across North America with her show, 'Hey Loretta, The Girl From Butcher Holler', a tribute in song and story to Miss Loretta Lynn. Please look around Tracey K.'s web site... learn what she is currently doing... read her bio... listen to sound clips... view photos... sign her guestbook... join her internet fan club... shop for her merchandise. We hope that you enjoy your visit and will return here frequently.
|
|
Proud Member of: |
|
The Country Legends Association |
The Americana Music Association
|
|
 |
|
|
|
|
||
