The Custom Taylor Band
Syracuse, New York, United States | SELF
Music
Press
Here's my Post-Standard review:
Chris Taylor's recording trip to Nashville paid off big-time.
The Syracuse country music singer put his 401k behind his dreams when he hired noted Music City producer Ray Barnette to put together a band of Nashville musicians to back Taylor on the 10-song CD "Chris Taylor -- Down at the Honky Tonk."
The players, which include 2008 Academy of Country Music musician of the year Mike Johnson on steel guitar and Travis Tritt band drummer (and Chittenango native) David Northrup on drums, indeed help carry the album to some very great places.
Still, Taylor's voice remains solidly in the spotlight -- smooth and comforting as honey on the ballads, rugged in the rough-and-tough songs, radio-ready all the way. Taylor displays the chops to dig deep in a traditional style and the catchy melodies to fit in with contemporary country.
Taylor had a hand in writing four of the 10 pieces, showing a sharp eye for time-honored country subjects such as break-ups, partying and soul-searching.
"Waking Up Next to You" draws tears as the character figures out how to tell his wife of decades he's found somebody new. "Somewhere along the way we drifted apart. It's like a dagger to the heart," he sings.
"Down at the Honky Tonk," an original he's played for years around Syracuse with his Custom Taylor Band, swings with feel-good swagger in the recording studio. He's "hangin' with cowboys and cowgirls just like me," he sings in honor of people who love trucks, Dale Earnhardt (senior and junior I presume) and beer.
The first single, "I'd Rather Have You," is a smart mid-tempo piece written by award-winning Canadian singer-songwriter Sean Hogan that'll bring a smile to your face.
Taylor's talents brought out notable songwriting contributors.
Barnette and country star Billy Dean co-wrote the rolling "Swinging for the Fence," a fiddle-and-guitar driven metaphor for reaching for the good things in life.
The CD wisely closes with the glorious "When We Begin," written by singer-songwriter Ellis Paul. Taylor's voice embraces the optimistic sentiment for his own as he sings the poetic lines, "So tell me the story of all your past glories, the lovers, the losers and the friends. Spill all your magic, the good times and the tragic. Tonight will this mystery end when we begin?"
Catch a show: Taylor and band play at 8:30 p.m. May 29 at the Pennellville Fireman Field Days on Godfrey Road in Pennellville. - Syracuse .com Post Standard
Discography
Still working on that hot first release.
Photos
Bio
THE CUSTOM TAYLOR BAND is central New York’s premier Top 40 country music band. With musicians that any band would envy, the group has incredible dynamics and stage presence that leave fans breathless on the dance floor and tapping their toes at the bar. With the help of local Syracuse radio stations B104.7 and BIG FROG 104 they have opened for Nashville acts such as Big & Rich, Craig Morgan, Mark Chesnut, Diamond Rio, Joe Diffie and Tracey Lawrence, just to name a few.
Mark Bialczak, of the Syracuse Post Standard wrote, "The Custom Taylor Band proved that Syracuse has a contemporary country band that fits on a big stage comfortably with the big national stars... Taylor’s own ‘Down at the Honkey Tonk’ is good enough to get air-play on its own."
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