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Getting to know the 2016 LA Music Critic Award winners – Brian Whelan

We are having such a blast interviewing the winners of the LA Music Critic Awards for the first half of 2016.  Today’s feature is on Brian Whelan, former sideman for Dwight Yoakum and the winner of Best Country/Americana album for Sugarland.  Thanks to Melissa Dragich-Cordero of MAD Ink PR for the nomination.

Sit back, enjoy the interview and learn things about one of Americana’s new generation of amazing artists.

IVB:  How long have you been performing?

BW:  Basically my whole life.  When I was in kindergarten I first got up on stage at an Assembly.  I convinced them to let me do three songs with a Karaoke machine.  I got the music bug early on and just wanted to be on stage.   I first learned piano at the age of 8, followed by electric bass and electric guitar in my early teens, as well as singing all along.  I consider my as my main instrument.   When I was working with Dwight, I learned pedal steel, mandolin and accordion, but don’t consider myself an expert on those instruments.  These days I prefer to play piano and guitar.

IVB:   Who are your influences?

BW:  My first influences were the stars of 50’s rock and roll, like Chuck Berry, Jerry Lee Lewis, Buddy Holly, and Eddie Cochran.  As I grew up, I was influenced by the British Invasion bands and then country and bluegrass during my 20’s.  Since I attended high school in the 90’s, I also love the bands from that era.

IVB:  What made you decide to DIY?

BW:  Watching Dwight perform was such an inspiring experience that I decided to quit the band and do my own stuff.   I found it hard to juggle being a side man with being my own front man.   I finally realized that at one time Dwight had to do the same thing to get started, so I went out and did it too.

Working with Melissa (my publicist) has been a blast.   I love that she represents so many great guitarists, like  John Fogerty, Joe Satriani, and Jeff Beck, to name a few.  It is so cool to be a part of her team.

IVB:  Are you seeking to be a mainstream artist?

BW:  The short answer is yes, but probably not.   I think most indie artists want it but think that it would be too much trouble to have someone else dictating where your career is heading.  I want to be able to do what I want without limit and make enough money doing it to be able to live comfortably.  Studio work, side man work and the like have helped pay the bills lately, but I still want to be able to tour more on my own without losing control (of my career) by being a mainstream artist.

IVB:  What are your future plans?

BW:  The big news is that I’m heading out during the month of September on tour.  I’m planning 15-20 shows during the month.  I’ll be visiting places I’ve been a few times before, plus a few new places including AmericanaFest 16, where 200-250 acts are scheduled to perform.  It seems like most of the acts are relatively new, but there are some more experienced legacy acts performing, including Dwight, Rodney Crowell, John Prine, Shawn Colvin & Steve Earle and the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band.  Another one of Melissa’s clients, Alice Wallace is performing.  Not sure why Rod Melancon (also Melissa’s client) isn’t.  He would be a great addition.

I do want to do a tour through Seattle, Montana and the Northwest.  I played Salt Lake City last year – the audience was great, very polite and attentive to the music.  It was a special show.

IVB:  Any good stories from touring/recording/performing?

BW:  Once I was the voice of an actor in an episode of Mad Men.  The cast was at a show for a Lenny Bruce like comedian, which was followed by a Bob Dylan like singer.  I was his voice.

I do have quite a few stories from the road, but most of them can’t be published.  My favorite one is getting to play piano for Chuck Berry at a casino show on April Fool’s Day.  My friend was playing the drums for him, and got me the gig.  I thought it was a joke because I never heard from the Casino or from Chuck’s band, but it was real and it happened, fulfilling a childhood dream.

IVB:  How can your fans keep up with you?

BW:  Well, the best places are my website and Facebook pages.  I also have Twitter and Instagram accounts.  Although I don’t yet have a YouTube channel, some of my performance videos have been posted by other people.