On his new album, Morris said, “On past projects, I have always had the radio in the back of my mind. Today’s radio is as far as it can be from my mind. This allowed me to write from experience and emotions without concerns of airplay. To me, it makes the music more real. It is also stripped down in the final cut is just me and my guitar. The duet with Alyssa Bonagura gives me chill bumps every time I hear it. I’m in Church and Paint Me a River tells you who I am.”
“The songs almost spewed out of me,” Morris said, about the song selection process for the album. “The opening song Jenifer Dreams was written years ago with my co-writer Jeff Rea. I never recorded it and I think it sets the tone of the project. We also wrote paint me a river and I’m in Church together.”
On this studio effort, Morris collaborated with Michael Bonagura and Kathie Baillie and their daughter Alyssa. “Michael and Kathi and Alyssa are now my extended family. I practically lived with them through the whole project. Michael listens. Michael plays. There was a collective effort to get what I was hearing in my head. Kathi was another set of ears and of course amazing voice. Alyssa is perhaps the most gifted artist that I have ever met. Her voice is pure silk,” he said.
His love of nature and the outdoors is a theme in some of the new songs. Outdoors as a church. “For years and around the globe I have heard people say about a sport or activity that this was their church. Hikers, kayakers, swimmers, photographers, hunters, fisherman, and many more I have believed for many years that God does not live in a church. A church is a place for believers to gather together. I live in Colorado and I’m surrounded by 13,000-foot peaks. When I’m outside my house, in my river, we’re headed up the mountain I feel close to God through nature,” he explained.
Over the years, his voice has been a “golden ticket.” For up-and-coming musicians, he said, “Your voice is your voice but your whole being is your instrument. If you can’t feel what your singing, then don’t sing it. Stay in the moment,” he said.
Morris expressed his desire to tour, especially since he loves performing live. At the moment, he is looking for the right agent.
Digital transformation of the music business
On the impact of technology on the music business, Morris said, “Technology has changed the way the music business operates. It also makes it literally impossible to know anytime what kind of sales and performances you have. Because of technology and the fact that record companies were not out in front of technology, there is the notion that music is free to the consumer. The art of songwriting is dying. The songwriter who cannot perform his songs in public has little chance of surviving in the music business.”
Morris continued, “Back in the day, a songwriter could survive with an album cut. That no longer exist. The hit is downloaded. While I embrace the advantages of technology a programmer today is more valuable than a musician. That pisses me off. Entire records are programed without a musician in sight. Live performances are carried with track help and pitch control on vocals. What would it be like to go to your symphony and find one violinist and hear a full track-based orchestra? It’s a different day.”
Regarding his use of technology in his daily routine as a musician, Morris said, “Everything today is digital. I wrote songs with people in other countries because of technology. They are as close as a button on my iPhone. We exchange lyrics and melodies. My ear tells me my guitar is out of tune. My in-line tuner tells me where. No more legal tablets and flair pens. That’s a daily dose of unrelenting technology.”
To learn more about iconic singer-songwriter Gary Morris, check out his official website.
