For me, this little project started as a demo of some video restoration software that we plan on using for some clients’ video projects here at the studio. What this little exercise has turned into is a virtual Christmas present for some old friends who I did some pretty cool stuff with a very long time ago.
For those of you who have been following me, my journey, and my content for almost two decades, please accept this video postcard from the past as my holiday “Thank You” for all of your support and patronage. There’s lot of cool new stuff coming in 2022!
For those of you who don’t know exactly what all this is or have never heard this song before, here’s the quick scoop: This version of “Till I’m Gone”, from the band Ocean Street, was originally recorded in 2005 and appeared on their now out-of-print debut album in September 2006. In addition to recording and producing that debut album (and several additional tracks), I was the drummer for the band from 2004-2007.
In those years (pre-Facebook, pre-YouTube, pre-iPhone, pre-everything-else-that-exists-today), we did some things as an indie band that were very rare at the time. I won’t go so far as to say that we started all of this stuff that’s commonplace now, but we were on the bleeding edge of what a band could do for themselves and their brand with the help of technology and willpower.
I had an amazing time during those 3 years with Andy, Mark, Steve, and Lance. We were also joined at different points along the way by some fabulous bass players including:
- “Kentucky” Joe Reda: Who played on all of songs on the band’s debut release & played most of the gigs for that year leading up to these recordings
- Todd Smallie (The Derek Truck Band, JJ Grey & Mofro): Who appears in this video and played lots of gigs with us during that first year of supporting the album
- Dave Webb: (Sugarland, Randall Bramlett, Micky Dolenz): A true “road dawg” and the only person I’ve seen sleep soundly while bouncing 3 feet in the air, off a dunk in an RV traveling 70 MPH down the highway.
- Bernard Lackner: Gifted Austrian bass phenom & composer whose child-like wonder at everything in the world around him is something I one day aspire to copy.
This band was my last effort at “making it” and becoming an International Rockstar. (I’m only half joking… they’d even given me a Rock-n-Roll nickname to go with my over-the-top Rock-n-Roll persona: “The Wall”.)
I hope you enjoy this trip down Memory Lane!
*Captured from the original DVD Master, this video has been upscaled, sharpened & and enhanced with some help from Topaz Labs’ Video Enhance AI software. The audio has also been remixed and remastered. All of this restoration was done at Secret Cove Studios in Atlanta, Georgia (where the band’s debut album was originally recorded). https://www.SecretCoveStudios.com
2006 VIDEO CREDITS:
Robert Haddad: Video Director
Brian Schultz: Director of Photography