Hey…we’re back. Life has been busy and lately we have been failing our duties here on Shayd Radio. We have compiled some info and bios about our current artists to shed some light on what makes these guys tick.
(In alphabetical order…)
Aries Road
(Ashley & Ryan McCarty)
“We write how we feel and every song has its own meaning, some may like it and some may not. If we sat around worrying about what people might think…then we probably wouldn’t write anything at all.”
When you listen to a new artist…the first notion that usually comes to mind is who the artist sounds like or what genre they fall under. When you hear tracks from Aries Road’s debut release Keyholder – you just might catch yourself scratching your head. Influenced by classics such as Led Zeppelin and Fleetwood Mac to artists up through the 90’s alternative rock era, but their musical style is not what makes them special; they are also husband and wife! The couple covers all aspects of songwriting and production from conception to completion, including publishing their 9-track album under their own record label TõnEscent Records. Stationed in Broken Arrow, Oklahoma, this songwriting duo has already started to make some waves around the country as their self-produced release has landed tracks on multiple terrestrial and internet radio stations. “We are proud of Keyholder, but this is only the first step…just like life, you live and you learn…we will always strive to be better.”
Doug Swindell
(Doug & his wife Barb @ Beaver Lake)
We live on 160 acres near Wellston, OK in the heart of red dirt country…me and my loving and beautiful bride of nearly 36 years, Barbara. (We were married somewhere around age 7). Of course there’s the 4 dogs, couple of cats, some cows, geese and ducks and all things wild. Family and friends make our world go round, and we’re blessed with lots of both. We have 2 sons and daughters-in-law, Dustin and Ashley, and Ryan and Laura, and 5 grandkids, Dylan, Owen, Ayden, Presley, and Lizzie. We’re fortunate…they live nearby, so we get to spend good time together. Barb and I own a custom plastics fab and sign shop in OKC, Eaton-Quade Co….It takes a lot of our time, but we’ve got a great crew and love what we do…never a dull moment.
Like most, I’ve loved music since I was a kid, listening to everything I could get my hands on. It influences and shapes the way we think, feel and react, and at what ever level, is one of the things that bind us all together. Guitars and drums just do it for me…any kind, any style, fast, slow, loud, quiet, hard, soft, they take me where I need to go. And although I listen to and respect all forms of music, I,m not a huge fan of techno, electronica, dance, rap, etc…(it’s like the drone of a casino, not my style). I like classical music, but opera doesn’t do much for me. Growing up, I was exposed to a wide variety of music, classical, pop, jazz, folk, R&B, soul, heavy doses of rock, but it was the blues and its raw emotion and groove that have anchored my style as my playing developed over the years. When I was a kid, my dad actually had a hi-fi component stereo, with a Philco tube amp, a turntable, and two 10″ speaker cabinets. I wore out his record collection (stuff like New Christy Minstrels, Herb Alpert, Leonard Bernstein, Chet Atkins, Ricky Nelson, Boots Randolph, Elvis, Nat King Cole, Miles Davis, Crosby and Sinatra, Johnny Rivers, Henry Mancini, Johnny Cash, Hank Williams), and begged for guitars and drums early on, and Mom, bless her heart, came through. After the folks split up, she found a way to get drums and a guitar in my hands. I passed lots of time learning to play along with my favorites and friends, then on to garage bands, jam bands, duos and bar bands, and all the while, harboring this nagging need to do my own thing…and when it speaks, you listen. This is my first original CD, and things are in the works for another. A wise old man once told me, whatever your passion, keep listening, and feed the soul. I’m a Bartlesville OK native, now residing in Wellston, just outside OKC. Actually, I’m just another workaholic control freak wannabe, who enjoys his proper share of well brewed beers and fine maduros, hanging out in the home studio in eskimo joes plaid flannel pants and an old HD t-shirt, writing, playing and recording songs, stealing from all those bits and pieces flying around in my head. I’ve always played in some kind of band and nothing is more fun than playing good music with good people, but eventually I just burned out on the scene, retiring to the studio to take on this kind of schizoid persona, where I’m a different member of the band everytime I power up my little hideaway. I have to say however, that still, some of the most fun I have, is jamming with my son and nephew, Dustin and Adam….They both also write, play guitar, bass and drums, so our sessions consist of swapping instruments and letting it fly. In my mind it’s a beautiful thing….
I know by now you must be thinking…what else is this guy passionate about. Well it’s certainly not any form of activism….just not my style. I’ll leave that for folks who aren’t content with just being passionate about something, but feel compelled to get you on board and drag you along. And discussions of politics or religion under the guise of a good debate don’t do much for me either. So with that being said…. I really like to drink GOOD beer, and I drink my fair share of it. My favorites are Pale ales,IPA’s, ESB’s both American and English sytle, and nice hoppy lagers, Octoberfest style and winter lagers as well. Me loves the hops! I like to brew beer too and my old HS bud and long time friend, bro Steve at the 305 club, partnered up on a 20 gal brew rig and been having “big beer” fun. Enjoying your own beer is quite satisfying. Bro Steve is the brewmaster of our little operation, but I’m learning. I also enjoy fine cigars, and smoke my fair share of them as well. A good maduro suits me just fine…The Rocky Patel Edge is my current smoke. I have 2 Harley’s and love to ride the open road every chance I get. Theres just nothing like 5 gallons of gas and some horsepower between your legs. When I need an attitude adjustment, that sound and the wind in your face at 70 mph does the trick…two lanes, no traffic, sunshine and miles and miles of big blue sky. My good friends Axel and Del, and another old HS bud and long time friend, bro Chuck share my passion for the big v-twin, and we like to hit the road together whenever possible. I have a thing for old muscle cars too – my favorite, a 71 hemi challenger – ever see Vanishing Point? Not a great movie otherwise but watching that car haul ass for an hour and a half is just beautiful. I like designing and building mixed media pcs, functional art pcs, especially with acrylic, neon, and LED’s, which is part of what I do for a living, everything from furniture to custom displays and lighting to signage to stage and studio props, the list goes on…If you’re still reading this I’m impressed. I like working in the city, but living in the sticks. Good bar-b-q (I love the pig) and a rare filet are hard to beat, of course followed by a big beer and a fine cigar. Relaxation is setting around a campfire next to a rushing stream in the mountains or sitting on a quiet sandy beach under an umbrella in a reclining position listening to the waves crash. It quiets the voices. Whatever your passion…listen to it….it feeds the soul.
Jamie Saunders
All original music 35 years in the making.
Influenced by a wide range of styles, from The Beatles, Pink Floyd, Joe Walsh to George Jones, I strive to continue the tradition of Oklahoman’s such as Woody Guthrie, Wanda Jackson, Leon Russell, J.J. Cale, Jimmy Webb, David Gates, Vince Gill and Garth Brooks crossing genres, with a laid back sensibility and life-storytelling.
I hope these songs touch on something that brings back memories of good times, old friends or creates new memories for the future. You’ll find songs about love, life’s sorrows, triumphs and emotions that encompass us all.
Jim Ragsdale
Long-time Tulsa Musician….got my feet wet with the “Tulsa Sound”…namely Leon Russell,JJ Cale, David Gates, Rocky Frisco, etc…Drummer by trade, but also play guitar,percussion,6 string Banjo,Bass and a little keyboards. Played for Jana Jae, Roy Clark with the Jim Halsey Company back in the 70’s. Now doing original acoustic music.
Joshua Yarbrough
(Joshua blowin’ harp @ Willie’s)
I’m living in Stillwater, OK and have spent the last 3 months working on home recordings in our back bedroom. I spend most of my time devoted to my music and I hope you dig what you hear. Stay tuned for more to come soon! My cousin Brady Wells he has the courage of a hundred men . You see he has fought an ongoing heart problem and now is on a transplant list. For being so young his plate sure is full , but he is stayin strong . So when u think things suck just remember Brady could use a prayer or 2.
Sounds Like – Blues, Folk Rock, Alternative Country, Traditional Country, Classic rock
Little Joe McLerran
(Little Joe @ King’s Palace Cafe)
Little Joe was born in Boulder, Colorado in July 1983. By the time he was 9 years old Joe and his younger brother Jesse Son Piedmont and the Blues Krewehadstarted their first band, “Buddy Hollywood”. With Jesse on drums they would set up on the Pearl Street Mall in Boulder playing Beatles, Bob Marley and all those great old blues songs Joe was learning. The mall patrons were amazed to see these young kids playing songs by Big Bill Broonzy, Skip James and Mississippi John Hurt followed by Ob La Dee Ob La Da or Redemption Song. They could make a couple hundred bucks in a couple of hours. They always filled the hat whenever they made an appearance on the mall, much to the dismay of the homeless guys hanging out playing Eagles songs.
When Joe turned 15 the McLerran family moved to Tulsa, Jesse took up the washboard and they started playing the old blues songs again. Jesse patterned his washboard after that of an old family friend, Washboard Chaz Leary from New Orleans. Chaz was Jesse’s godfather and Jesse had been watching Chaz play all his life.
Little Joe….Joey changed his name to “Son Piedmont”, taken from the term Piedmont Blues, a style popular in the southeast USA in the 20s and 30s, and Jesse became “Washboard Jesse”. Without a street mall in Tulsa, gigs were hard to come by and they’re tender young ages, 16 and 17, the bars were out of the question. They finally landed a steady Sunday afternoon gig at the Rivers Edge Bistro in Tulsa and began to catch the attention of many of Tulsa’s finest musicians. This led to a few restaurant gigs and private parties. That year Jimmy Junior Markham invited them to play the Oklahoma Blues Festival and gave them a lot of encouragement.
On February 7, 2009 Little Joe realized a goal, four years in the making, by taking 1st Place at the 25th Annual Blues Foundation’s International Blues Challenge [IBC] held in Memphis. With three stellar sets in his fourth consecutive trip to the IBC, Little Joe walked away with the crown, all by himself.
Since winning the IBC, Little Joe has traveled from coast to coast and to Europe playing festivals and club dates. These dates have included the Waterfront Blues Festival in Portland, Oregon, the Illinois Blues Fest, the Heritage Blues Festival in Wheeling, West Virginia, the Rootsways Blues Festival in Parma, Italy and the Legendary Rhythm and Blues Cruise into the Pacific. Another 2009 highlight was the release of his fourth album, “Believe I’ll Make a Change”, on the Roots Blues Reborn record label. The new CD is being hearlded as Little Joe’s finest work to date. highlight
Little Joe McLerran, “Perhaps the finest Piedmont Blues player on the face of God’s green earth”, writes Billy Austin, editor of “Blues News”. No small wonder. Little Joe has spent 16 of his 24 years on God’s green earth working on his Piedmont chops. For his first public performance Joe sang a Leadbelly song and played another by Rev. Gary Davis as his 4th grade classmates provided theatrical support.
