Studio

I was back in the studio this month to start recording some new material. Spent a couple of days with Monroe Jones (pictured), Scott Dente, Mark Hill, Ken Lewis, Jeff Roach and Jim Dineen. We started working on Permanent, Foreign is Familiar, Dawn, and Blue Horizon. What a blast to work with this crew. All remarkably gifted and made me feel like a real chump…I mean champ. Tomorrow is Mardi Gras day and I’m missing my roots. Bacchus roled down St. Charles yesterday without me. The last couple of weeks have been crazy busy with trips to Hazel Green, AL, Meridian, MS, Clinton, MS and Flintstone, GA. I made some new friends from the most gorgeous island on earth. New Zealanders DETOUR180 rocked the Meridian event with a great balance as both artists and worship leaders. This past weekend was a reunion with the remarkably talented crew from HENCE THE HEARTACHE. Robert, Wes, Nate, Willy, and their traveling friend Robert kept me laughing the whole weekend. I always love hanging out with those guys. It was also a blast to catch up with Jonathan and his new bride, Erin. Great friends from our NOLA past. This week is a wonderfully relaxed chance to catch up on emails, the website, and some songs that are hanging around half finished. I plan on sleeping late, eating poorly, and watching Lost re-runs. It’s the best way that I know to prepare for the show this Thursday night at Caffeine in Nashville. Lazy now. Caffeine later. Maybe I’ll get motivated to record a new podcast this week. Got a suggestion for the feature song? LET ME KNOW.

New Music Recommendation of the Week

THE FRAY - HOW TO SAVE A LIFE. I think there is something in the air in Denver, CO. Great songwriting from this mile-high, four-piece, power-pop gem of band. Of course I’m a sucker for great pop songs with a piano core. The big radio single “How To Save a Life” chronicles a discussion with a drug-addicted teen that the lead singer was mentoring. Big songs and melodies that won’t leave you alone. While you’re shopping, check out my new friends DETOUR180. Transplanted New Zealanders that will no doubt make a splash in CCM in the days ahead.

Nashville Show

Nash-Villains! Come join me for a rare Nashville show, a casual 1 hour set at Caffeine Cafe, 1516 Demonbreun (next to Otters). I’m trying out some songs from the new record and trying to narrow down the list some. I need you to come and tell me which songs really hoover and shouldn’t be on the record. There are other folks that play at 7 and 8 and then I’m on at 9 PM for a 60 minute set. No Cover. All Ages.

Tealy Songcast 2 - Awake My Soul

Something new! People are always asking about the songwriting process and where the songs come from…now this…THE TEALY SONGCAST… it’s a podcast where I can tell you the story behind some of the songs I’ve recorded (or other people have recorded) as well as update you on songs in progress. The debut episode featured the story behind “She Burns” including a clip from the original worktape recorded in the summer of 2004. Episode two features the song “Awake My Soul” and several new songs in progress.

For those of you already neck deep in the podcast world CLICK HERE to subscribe to the Tealy Songcast.

For those of you new to the process of podcasting, let me give you a couple of links:

This first one will allow you to download the program iTunes. It works with boths Mac’s and PC’s and is the best way to listen to your CD’s, internet radio, audio books as well as podcasts. The latest version of iTunes even allows you to purchase your favorite TV shows for $1.99 a piece and watch them on your computer. I’m sounding like a salesman now. Just a dedicated fan!

PODCASTING FAQ. This next link will explain a little more about what a podcast is to help you get started.

New episodes will continue to be added as quickly as I can carve out time to record them. The great thing about subscribing to podcasts on iTunes is that you will automatically get new episodes whenever they are published. You don’t need to check back to my site to see if there’s a new one (or pester me about getting new episodes published!). Do you have to have an iPod to listen? NO! But isn’t about time you join us cool kids and BUY ONE. You can also just listen from your computer so click on the link above to download iTunes and then come back and CLICK HERE to start listening.

New Music Recommendation of the Week

BUTTERFLY BOUCHER - FLUTTERBY. Butterfly Boucher has a new record coming out in a month or two. In the meantime, it’s worth getting to know this first pop-gem. Butterfly played all of the instruments on Flutterby and her level of musicianship and songwriting is remarkable. I listen to this record over and over again and never get tired of her. Click on the album cover to check it out in iTunes. If you need to download iTunes first CLICK HERE

KIN-tucky

Had a great time this weekend in Elizabethtown, Ft. Thomas, and Murray. Concert Thursday night in Elizabethtown was with MATT AND JOANNA BLACK. That’s them in the picture singing some gorgeous acoustic bit of joy. Fort Thomas is just outside of Cincinatti and it was fun to catch up with students I’ve met two different summers doing camp. We had a huge snow Saturday (my first BIG snow of the season). Saturday night everything was wet and frozen but by Sunday morning there was a nice layer of powder to cover up the ice and it was just beautiful. The drive south was a little depressing. The wintery white slowly melted back into greens and browns the further I traveled. Had a good Cincinatti Coney at GOLDSTAR CHILI on my way out of town. Should have added the hotsauce. Monday night was an odd little show in Murray. It was fun to catch up with Jared, Stacie, the Staley’s and some new friends I met in Fort Thomas. Bo Harris did a great job opening. This will be a relaxing week as we prepare to get in the studio next week and start working on the new record. It feels like I’ve said “next week” fourteen times about this record. But I’ve been told the studio is booked. We’ll see. Keep praying.

New Music Recommendation of the Week

House of Heroes - House of Heroes. These guys have a remarkable melodic sense. Instead of a three-chording their way through stock rock they’ve built interesting songs around melodic guitar riffs. A great windows-down, volume-up listen. Click on the album cover to check it out in iTunes.

Also out this week (and on the complete opposite end of the spectrum) is Mark Lowry’s southern gospel release “Be The Miracle.” I wrote the title cut with Jeff Silvey a couple of years ago. If you dig your SoGo go grab some copies of Mark’s record and share with your friends.

January Update

January has proved to be an exhausting but invigorating month. February looks to be the same. After six weeks off this Fall because of Katrina I felt the need to say yes to every booking request and the result has been very little free time to be quiet and rest and dream. BUT it has been an exciting start to the new year. Shera and I saw our first Nashville snow. You can tell from the picture we had a good time playing in it. Fortunatley for Shera, the snow thawed the next day and she was finally able to remove her tongue from the mailbox. Made some new friends this month (and visited with old ones) in Mandeville, LA, Decatur, MS, and a crazy bunch of Vandy students that almost killed me playing Ultimate Frisbee. Okay, I almost killed me…but there was almost death involved!

Many of you knew we were scheduled to get into the studio in December to start working on the new record. We had to postpone twice, once for money, and once for scheduling trauma. Now it looks like the pieces are back in place for us to start recording next week. I’ve written a bunch of new songs this Fall and I’m eager to give them some oxygen. The INFAMOUS Monroe Jones is producing. He’s not just famous…he’s in-famous (watched The Three Amigos this weekend . Sorry). We have no idea yet about distribution or even the final song selection. People much smarter than I are arguing (I mean discussing) those issues even as I type.

I’ve launched a new podcast (explained in detail in a PREVIOUS POST) as a way of letting you inside the songs that we’ve recorded as well as the ones that are in progress. The second episode should post next week. Hope you enjoy that. My favorite part of the songcast is the ability to give you snipits of songs in progress. I write 30-40 songs a year and most of them will never be recorded by me or anyone else so it’s fun to get to share those.

I have set aside the second week of February to relax a little. I found the Lost Season 1 onsale at OVERSTOCK.COM and bought it. I am determined to sit on the couch in my pajamas and watch it all day for a couple of days. It may ruin my social life but It’s Worth It!

If you’ve taken the time to read this far why not jump over to THE CONTACT PAGE and write me a quick hola. Hope to see ya somewhere along the road soon.

Peace,
James