Smitty: Well, it’s a very cool thing because I think we live in a world today where people look for opportunities to laugh and they don’t have as many opportunities as they used to, if you know what I mean.
NC: Yeah. I come to the gig to have fun, though, you know?
Smitty: I’m there.
NC: And I try to amuse myself. (Both laugh.) It’s like, hey, how silly can I be? But I’m trying to amuse me and have fun and hope people are having fun with me, man, because I basically just…I like people, I love performing, I love the people out there.
Smitty: And they love you.
NC: And we as musicians sometimes take everything a little too serious and I’m like “It ain’t that serious, man.” When this stops being fun, ya’ll be listening and saying “Well, Nick Colionne done hung his guitars up. It ain’t fun no more.”
Smitty: I totally feel ya, man, because what you have, Nick, that is rare or are two things that are good for the soul: great music and the ability to make people laugh and have fun, and I think when you have those two together…because let’s face it, people totally feel the healing effect of music because it makes them feel good.
NC: Right.
Smitty: And when you can make a person laugh, man, it just doesn’t get any better than that.
NC: And that’s what music is about, man. It’s that feeling. You go up there, you start playing and you get engrossed in what you’re doing. Of course, I laugh a lot while I’m playing because sometimes I just tickle myself.
Smitty: (Laughs.)
NC: Sometimes I might play something and I say to myself “I know I just didn’t play that.” You know, it’d be funny to me.
Smitty: Oh yeah, man.
NC: But I like to get up there and just really do it, you know?
Smitty: Yeah, well, and I know you already know this, but you have always been one of my favorite cats to hang out with because I know we’re gonna have some fun (Both Laugh.)
NC: Oh yeah, you know, me and you, we’re gonna clown wherever we go.
Smitty: We do. I’m laughing before we even say a word because I know we’re getting ready to cut-up.
NC: Yeah, I come looking for you as soon as I get there. I’m like, “where my man?”
Smitty: But that’s one of the cool things, and I wanna go back to the record because I wanna say that the record brings all of those elements, because people feel your music. They don’t just hear it, they feel it. And I think when people can elevate to that level of listening to music, then they’re really getting the full import of it.
NC: Yeah, and that’s always been important to me, is that you hear me with your heart instead of your ears, because anything that you hear with your ears goes in one ear and out the other one for the most part.
Smitty: Absolutely, yeah.
NC: But if I can reach down there and touch you where you hear it down inside of you, you won’t forget it.
Smitty: Right.
NC: Because you’re feeling what I was feeling when I was creating the song and that’s what the whole thing is about, is me coming up with a song and when I perform the song on a record or live, you can feel and hear what I’m trying to say and feel what I was feeling at the moment that it was created, whether it be a happy song, a sad song, or a get out my face song or whatever.
Smitty: Absolutely.
NC: It’s what I was feeling at that moment and that’s what I’m trying to bring to you so that you can feel that.
Smitty: Yeah, man, and two of the songs that really remind me of that on this record are “Steppin’ Back” and “Headin’ Wes Before Dawn.”
NC: Yeah.
Smitty: Whoo! That’s killer stuff, man.
NC: Actually, “Headin’ Wes Before Dawn” was something I was practicing real late at night like usual and the little lines started coming to me and I was like, man, and I was thinking about Wes [(Montgomery) and I was like “How would Wes approach this,” you know? In this day and age if he was here to do it.
Smitty: Exactly.
NC: And so when I finished doing the tune, like here at home, the preproduction that night when I was writing it, I didn’t have a title, and I looked outside and the sun was starting to come up. I was like “Headin’ Wes Before Dawn,” okay.
Smitty: That is too cool, man. Now, the record’s drop date is what, July 8th?
NC: July 8th is the street date, yes.
Smitty: Whoo, man, if people only knew what they have coming at ‘em with this record, there will be long lines like there was a new state-of-the-art cell phone on sale, you know what I’m saying? (Both Laugh)
NC: It’ll be nice if they can line up for the record like they do for the video games for Christmas.
Smitty: I’m telling ya, this has gotta be one of the top three records of the year, in my opinion, because it’s got everything. It’s got something for everybody. If you had ten children, there would be a song here for every Child and Mom and Dad.
NC: That’s it. That’s what I was trying to get to.
Smitty: Yeah, it’s that good, man.
NC: Thanks, Smitty. It means a lot, man, coming from you. Because I know you hear a lotta music all the time, so to hear you say that, man, touches me deeply, believe me.
Smitty: Mm, well, the record touched me deeply, brotha. (Both laugh.) That’s why I said that, I’m serious, I mean…
NC: Maybe me and you just got that vibe, period.
Smitty: (Laughs.) Hey, man, well, we’ve got that great vibe in common. Radio will embrace this record. I already know that.
NC: Well, I think a lotta the guys out there, programmers, you know, will hear that I’m trying to bring it from a little bit different place this time.
Smitty: Exactly.
NC: And you know me. My whole thing is just trying to keep the music growing, especially the things that I try to create. I try to expand upon whatever I did the last time and not become a one-dimensional artist. So that when you buy a Nick Colionne record you don’t feel like you’re getting the same record you bought the last time. I don’t wanna keep making the same record over and over again.
Smitty: Exactly. That’s like serving barbecue every night.
NC: You know what I mean?
Smitty: Yeah, you’re gonna bring something different to the table.
NC: Bring some hot links or something.
Smitty: That’s what I’m talking about. (Laughs.) Or some hot wings!
NC: Got the whole plate there. You got your coleslaw, your wings, your ribs.
Smitty: Well, I tell ya, with this record you’re gonna need something to wash it down because it’s hot. It’s hot, man. It’s a great record and I congratulate you on going in the studio and really doing your thing with it.
NC: Good. I’m glad you feel that way, man, because if you feel like that, then I know a lotta other people will feel that way too because I think you’ve got your hand on the pulse of what happens in the music business, you know?
Smitty: Thank you.
NC: And so I respect that, you know?
Smitty: I got my hands on a lotta stuff, man. (Both laugh.)
NC: I feel ya.
Smitty: But the other thing too, Nick, is I think the fans are gonna be even more excited too about getting the record and then getting to come out and see you do some of these or all of these songs live, because I visualized already the live show with this new music and it’s just gonna be a something to enjoy and remember.
NC: Yeah, I was telling the guys. I was like, you know, generally when you’re doing a show you take out one song and you add a new one. I was like, we’re gonna have to take out more than one song. We’ll have to take out a few because we’ve got some stuff on this record that really needs to be heard live.
