Friday, March 27, 2015

Saturday, March 21, 2015

Fan Fair 1995

As a graduation gift my parents surprised me with a trip to Nashville to attend what at the time was called Fan Fair.  This was a week long event when most country music artists would sign autographs and perform nightly as a fan appreciation.  I had a lot of video footage from our stay in Nashville but here's one that I thought was kinda cool. We noticed that Linda Davis was signing autographs, so we waited for our turn. Linda was not a huge name in the industry but had recently recorded big Grammy winning duet with one of my favorites,  Reba.  If you were a fan of Reba's you definitely knew who Linda was.  Needless to say we were pretty excited to meet her.  While mom was getting Linda's autograph she asked where she was from. Of course she didn't say Millsap because no one outside of our area has ever heard of our little town, so mom said Fort Worth.  Linda began to tell mom that she had a good friend named Gloria Gilbert who lived in Weatherford and then corrected herself by saying "actually she lives in Millsap!" Gloria was Miss Texas 1984 and apparently Linda had been in pageants with Gloria in the 80's.  "I've been to her house to spend the night."  What a small world it is


I noticed Linda's daughter Hillary sitting near the booth with her husband Lang (who played in Reba's band at the time.)  About 15 years later little Hillary would go on to become 1/3 of the trio known as Lady Antebellum. Too bad I didn't get her autograph that day.  haha 
Linda and daughter Hillary Scott

Gloria Gilbert


Thursday, March 19, 2015

John Conlee & Mandy Barnett


I'm stoked to see that John Conlee (Mr. Rose Colored Glasses) and Mandy Barnett will both be performing this August at Weatherford's Texas Opry Theater.  While in college I actually bought a CD of both of these amazing artists. In the mid 90's Mandy received critical acclaim for her performance as Patsy Cline in Always Patsy Cline.  The musical began in Nashville and toured all over the country. Some of you may not know John Conlee by name but you'd definitely recall mosts of his songs which were on top of the country charts in the late 70's and 80's.   I happen to see a flyer pinned up in town which had both Conlee and Barnett performing on the same bill.  I can't wait!  Be sure to order your tickets now for their August 8th shows.    



Friday, March 6, 2015

Snow Days 2015

I was beginning to wonder if we were going to have real winter at all this year. In the first week of March, 2015 old man winter finally decided to come visit North Texas. He was pretty entertaining but I'd definitely say he wore out his welcome. Here is my awesome family during our snow days 2015.

Sunday, March 1, 2015

Casey James: Fall Apart Video

It's hard to believe that it has been 5 years since North Texas native Casey James showed up on the hit show American Idol.  It was no surprise that after finishing top 3 on the show that Casey would go on to producing outstanding music (as he had already done for 10 years prior).  To land a deal from a major record label like Sony Nashville is an outstanding accomplishment.  The label is also the home of huge name artists like Kenny Chesney, Miranda Lambert, Brad Paisley, Carrie Underwood just to name a few.  I'd say Casey is in good company there.  It definitely shows how much faith Sony has in him and his remarkable talent, not only a vocalist, songwriter, but a killer musician. 

Just this week Casey released the video for his new single Fall Apart from his upcoming album (release TBA).  The fans have been patiently waiting for new material and from what I've heard this new project should take Casey to a new level.  We're all very excited what this year holds for him and will be cheering him on.






A couple of years ago I was asked to join Casey and the band on the road for a few live shows. These photos were to potentially be used as marketing and merchandise.  I was very honored to be asked and was pleased with how everything turned out.  I was even more excited to see my photos being used on T-shirts and various other media.  Pretty much the highlight of my professional career.  This was a bit different than a mutual friend asking me to shoot his local gig, but a business arrangement that involved management, booking flights, etc.  I was privileged for the opportunity and to see the behind the scenes workings of this guy! 

Here are a few of my favorite shots that haven't been seen.  




This was the first show I photographed when joining the guys.  It was at a pretty small but well known venue called The Bluebird in Bloomington, IN.  Initially I was not thrilled about the dark and plain background/surroundings.  After I began later reviewing the images I realized how much I loved the dramatic tone of The Bluebird.  

Senior Class of 2019