James Otto, Big Al Anderson, Chris Gelbuda

James Otto

There’s a certain chemistry that happens when a great vocalist collides with a hit song. Magic just explodes from the speakers and the impact is undeniable. It’s a phenomenon James Otto knows well. His breakthrough hit, “Just Got Started Lovin’ You,” topped the country chart and was the Most Played Country Single of the Year in 2008, according to Billboard magazine. Otto’s bluesy, muscular voice and dynamic stage presence earned him the respect of industry gatekeepers and the adoration of legions of country music fans. 

However, there’s more to life than chart success and constant touring. Real country music is fed by life experience and Otto stepped away from the spotlight to focus on family and pour his life into a new season of songwriting. Now he’s returned to recording with an infectious new single, “Somewhere Tonight,” that reveals a renewed commitment to creating his own unique brand of country music. “I really wanted to grab people’s attention with something that’s completely different from what they were used to hearing from me,” Otto says. “That’s why I gravitated towards cutting it. I’ve probably written several hundred songs in the last couple years. I really wanted to find something that was fresh for me; that felt like a new take on what I do. I felt like this song was the answer.” 

During his self-imposed hiatus, Otto penned hundreds of songs, but he says when he co-wrote “Somewhere Tonight,” he knew there was something special, and when he began performing it in his shows, that hunch was confirmed. “I watched the reaction of the crowd. It was obvious that ‘Somewhere Tonight’ moved people instantly,” he relates. “They didn’t know the song. They weren’t told it was a new single. It was just a song I was playing and you could just see the movement when that song hit the crowd, and I thought, ‘Okay, this feels really good and it’s fun to do.’ And that’s what I want. I want to have a song that you can’t ignore, that makes your head move, that makes you want to move, and that’s exactly what it did.” 

In listening to “Somewhere Tonight,” the groove is undeniable and Otto found fans embracing the message in the lyric. “We all get into ruts in life, especially with kids and all of life’s obligations,” he says. “With all the things that happen in life, sometimes you just need to break out and that’s exactly what this song is about. It’s saying, ‘I just want to go somewhere tonight. I wanna forget about all the stress and pressure at work and the busy schedules. I just want to get out, and have some fun.’” 

Otto has always had an uncanny ability to write songs that give voice to the hopes, dreams and simple desires of his audience. It’s a gift he began developing early in life. “I have lived in lots of different places growing up. So when people ask me where I’m from, I actually have a hard time answering, because it’s just not that straightforward. I was born in Washington State on the Fort Lewis Army base. My parents divorced when I was really young, so I flew back and forth between them and they moved a good bit. I spent most of my childhood in North Dakota. My grandparents had a 700 acre farm there, where I was raised by my mom and grandma. Later, I moved with my Mom to rural Alabama, and I spent my high school years with my dad in Washington State.” says Otto. Living in different places taught me to be flexible and gave me a broader perspective of the world. I got a real taste of diversity, and I never really got too accustomed to one spot. I would be in one place for a couple of years and then move. So, my upbringing certainly had a lot to do with who I am. It was filled with the farm in ND, rural AL where I first discovered country music, and apples and cherry orchards in WA, very agricultural. It was very country upbringing. It definitely set the tone for who I am and the music I make.” 

Before moving to Nashville, Otto served in the Navy for two years. The son of an Army drill sergeant, he was stationed in Guam while serving on the U.S.S. White Plains and the U.S.S. Haleakala, and traveled the world seeing over 20 countries. “I come from a military family. My Dad served in the Army for 23 years, my grandfather on my mom’s side is a Korean War vet, and by serving in the Navy, I was able to see the world by the time I was 20 years old. It gave me discipline and made me a man, and let me tell you, experiencing places all over the world made me really grateful to live in this country. Life may not be perfect here, but man, it could really be a lot worse. Ultimately, I think I gained the fortitude to move to Nashville and really pursue music.” 

Otto moved to Nashville and signed a deal with Mercury Records that introduced him to country radio and a national audience. However, it was when he signed with Warner Bros. and released the album “Sunset Man” that his career shifted into high gear. Otto became a part of the renegade outfit The Muzik Mafia, and developed a reputation as a riveting live performer. “Just Got Started Lovin’ You” became the biggest hit of 2008, and his vocal performance of the song was nominated for a Grammy. Otto’s star was on the rise. “Sunset Man” peaked at No. 2 on Billboard’s Top Country Albums chart and Otto began earning a reputation as one of Nashville’s most compelling young songwriters. He co-wrote the Jamey Johnson hit “In Color,” which was nominated for a second Grammy and won both the Country Music Academy’s “Song of the Year” and the Academy of Country Music’s “Song of the Year” awards in 2008. Otto has also penned songs for John Anderson, Trace Adkins, Randy Owen and many others including the Zac Brown Band hit “No Hurry.” 

“I was so grateful and overwhelmed by the success of ‘Just Got Started Lovin’ You” and “In Color”--so much so that it kind of put me in a creative corner,” he candidly admits. “Everybody wanted me to write and repeat those songs. I just felt like I had a lot more to say.” Otto started expanding his writing circle and working with a new group of talented songwriters. “They weren’t looking at me as just an artist. They were interested in me as a writer and that’s a freeing situation. It’s a different place to write from and I really enjoyed that. They helped me move ahead and get out of that box. I wanted something that was a new take on who I am musically. The sound that we’ve come up with really does that for me.” 

In addition to revitalizing his creative spirit, time away from the spotlight helped Otto firmly establish his foundation with his family. “I left Warner just after my daughter was born, which was a huge life change, a wonderful thing,” he smiles. “I didn’t rush out to seek another record deal because I really wanted to make sure that I was able to establish a relationship with my little girl, Ava, and to be there for the first couple of years of her life. That is such a precious time that you just can’t ever get back. I wanted to be there to help my wife, Amy, and to be a hands-on Dad and establish a new normal. If I had been on the road like I had been, I don’t think that would have been possible. Career-wise, it was a big risk, but now, I realize how important that time has been because we have a really strong bond. When I go away, I come home and Ava’s not wondering who I am. She knows that dad’s got to go to work. She doesn’t always like it, but she handles it really well,” he jokes. We started telling her: ‘Daddy has to go play shows to pay for your bows’ because she’s got a large collection of bows that she likes to wear in her hair. When I leave now she knows what I’m doing.” 

Otto has never been in a better place. He has a happy home life and creatively he’s on fire. He’s writing, touring, producing other new artists and working on a new album. And he’s enjoying the enthusiastic reaction to “Somewhere Tonight” as he embarks on a new chapter in his career. He admits success is definitely sweeter this time around. “When things first take off and you’re finally having success, it’s easy to lose yourself a little bit at first,” he confesses. “A little bit of grounding was a good thing. It made me a more humble person and more grateful. I’m also a more driven person. Once I decided I really wanted to put my own music out again, I examined my life. I had built a strong foundation with my child. I made sure that my relationship with my wife was solid and my life was in a place I wanted it to be. There’s just something that calls me to be making music. It’s who I am. That’s hugely important. It gives me purpose. It gives me the desire to prove that I’m here for a reason.”

He wasn't the first. He wasn't the last. However, Al Anderson did spend an amazing 22 years there - playing guitar in the college of muscial knowledge known as The New Rhythm and Blues Quartet or more simply, NRBQ.

Alan Gordon Anderson grew up in Windsor, Connecticut, the son of a bass-playing father and piano-playing / teaching mother. His ear tuned to radio station WWVA out of Wheeling, West Virginia, he heard the sounds of country music that would  later so much influence his guitar playing and singing. 'Though he did have some formal guitar training under Dick Provost in Hartford, Conn., most of his learning was done by ear. Early influences included James Burton, Duane Eddy and Chet Atkins. He has confessed to buying every record he could find by Mr. Atkins. (Later in his career, he wrote a song specifically for the guitar legend - regrettably, though, "In My Dreams," went unrecorded by Chet, turning up instead, on the Asleep At The Wheel release,  The Wheel Keeps Rolling (Capitol)). The first song he remembers hitting him in a big  way was Johnny Cash's "I Walk the Line". (Al and the band didn't record this Cash-penned tune but look for his "Get Rhythm" on the 'Q releaseAt Yankee Stadium - Mercury CD 824 462-2.)

The Visuals, Al's first band experience at age 11 were followed  by other high school bands such as The Altones and The Six-Packs. At 13, Al joined a couple of bands - an unamed jazz trio and the Blues Messengers. It was in the latter band that he cut his soul teeth.

Anyone interested in very early solo Al should look for Little Al (Red  Rooster EP-4) , featuring  a 10 year-old Al recorded on a family friend's tape recorder. Interestingly, the standard "Tenderly", found  here would later show up in the 'Q's repertoire documented on the  Red Rooster/Rounder release Kick Me Hard - The Deluxe Edition (Rounder CD 3030). The Everly Brother's hit "Bye Bye Love", later  played in performance by NRBQ is here as well.

In 1966, The Six Packs were re-christened The Wildweeds (Bob Dudek, bass; Skip Yakaitis, percussion; Andy Lepak, drums; Ray Zeiner, organ; Al Anderson, guitar), and the band got serious about their career in music. A teenage Al and  the 'Weeds out of Windsor, Connecticut, fought it out for the attention of local fans with The Squires (Bristol, Conn.) and The Blue Beats (Hartford, Conn.), playing Friday night teen hops and frat parties at the University of Connecticut (reportedly playing a killer version of Sam & Dave's "I Thank You").
In the summer of 1967, the bands' huge regional hit (and just the third song Al ever wrote)"No Good To Cry," was picked up by the Chess subsidiary Cadet .The song climbed to #88 on the national charts. As covered by the Florida band Hourglass, "Ain't No Good To Cry" later turned up on the Allman Brothers box set Dreams (Polydor), credited to "songwriter unknown"!

The next few singles failed to reach that height and with a switch to Vanguard, Al turned the direction of the band back to his first love, country music. The lp, The Wildweeds (VSD*6552), released on Vanguard in 1970, featured a new 'Weeds lineup - gone were Ray Zeiner and Andy Lepak. In their place were Andy's brother, Alex, (who came in on bass), and Bob Dudek who made the switch from bass to drums. A couple of better-known songs from this release, "And When She Smiles" and "Mare Take Me Home," were both covered on the Matthews Southern Comfort release Later That Same Year (Decca) and were both covered live in later years by NRBQ.

Those interested in more by the Wildweeds should seek out the "semi-bootleg" recording,Wildweeds Greatest Hits...and More! (CLUB 51 2). This LP, released in 1988, features most of the Cadet singles, a few Vanguard tracks and some unreleased songs.

"Flat Foot Flewzy" (Boppin' The Blues) was Al's introduction to NRBQ, leaving Al a fan of then-'Q- guitarist Steve Ferguson. "Steve Ferguson was a master guitar player. I used to study the records because he was one of the few guys who could play that style better than me."

'Big Al' ("I was big right out of the oven"), as he's been known for most of his career, first met the members of NRBQ at Electric Ladyland studios in New York City where the Wildweeds were busy mixing songs.  NRBQ later heard the Wildweeds' album and asked the band to play a show with them in August '71 at Folly Farm in Clinton Hollow, New York - really just an audition for Al as Steve Ferguson had already left the band and they were looking for someone to fill his formidable shoes.

The Big Man joined the band  December 10, 1971, just one week prior to the recording of NRBQ's Kama Sutra release Scraps (KSBS 2045).  Due to his ongoing contract with Vanguard Records, Al was unable to provide vocals on Scraps. He does, however, play guitar on all tracks (except for one recorded before his arrival), sharing guitar duties on three tracks with Ken Sheehan. Al's first vocal tracks with NRBQ wouldn't be heard until the departure of  lead singer Frankie Gadler and the release of WorkShop (Kama Sutra KSBS 2065) in 1972.

Al fulfilled his Vanguard contract obligations in '73 releasing the self-titled solo release, Al Anderson (Vanguard Stereo VSD*79324, Quadraphonic VSQ*40018) which featured NRBQ members Tom Staley (drums) and Terry Adams (keyboards) , Wildweeds' bassist Al Lepak as well as long time Whole Wheat Horn trombonist Donn Adams. Primarily self-penned (along with one Hank William's tune), it remains a much sought after LP (recently released on compact disc in North America on Vanguard).

His Vanguard days behind him, NRBQ's All Hopped Up (Red Rooster 101, 1977) contains Al's first 'Q songwriting credit - and what a song it is! A staple of the NRBQ songbook (still performed today even without Al, vocals by Joey), "Ridin' In My Car", makes it's first appearance on LP here. According to Al, he wrote this tune in five minutes - "They just come in the front door and go out the back." In the tradition of Jackie Brenston's "Rocket 88,"  it's the first instance of the 'Q's recurrent theme of autos in their songs ("Little Floater", "Me And The Boys", "Rain At The Drive-In", "Boys Life", "Green Lights" being others).

Nineteen eighty-nine saw the release of Al's second solo LP, Party Favors (Twintone - TTR88110-1). Including "Crazy Like a Fox," (a 'Q performance favourite), it's largely a solo effort with appearances by NRBQ drummer Tom Ardolino and former Lovin' Spoonful frontman John Sebastian on autoharp. Perhaps a harbinger of things to come, Al was also busy around this time in Nashville writing songs with, amongst others, John Hiatt. 
In 1993, Al was voted one of  "the top 100 guitarists of the 20th century"  by MUSICIAN Magazine, receiving accolades in the "team player" catagory.  Fully capable of the "big guitar solo" that characterizes many rock guitarists of the day, Al is equally adept at providing the rhythmic background upon which  many of NRBQ's own songs are built. Carefully crafted solos abound in the Al catalogue.

Unfortunately, most good things come to an end. Al's tenure in NRBQ ended New Year's Eve, 1993 following a show at New York City's Tramps club.

Earlier that year, Carlene Carter had asked NRBQ to sing on the track, "I Love You 'Cause I Want To," from her upcoming release Little Love Letters (Giant CD 24499). She and Al had a talk  about songwriting which resulted in Al making a trip back to California where the two co-wrote, "Every Little Thing." That song would turn out to be the biggest hit of Carlene's career (so far) and a top five hit around the world. Al confesses he never thought the song would be such a huge hit.  Success of this kind appealed to Al and he decided to get off the ride.

He admits to being dissatisfied in the band for maybe four years at the time of his departure. Playing the same songs in the same places was getting old to him. "No hard feelings. It was a great band before and it will be great after". As for NRBQ, they never missed a beat, picking up Johnny Spampinato ('Q bassist Joey's brother) from theIncredible Casuals and continuing on their musical marathon.

Pay Before You Pump (Imprint IMPCD10004), Al's third solo release,  was released to positive reviews in the fall of '96. The "Joined At The Hip Band"  (Reese Wynans, Glenn Worf, Chad Cromwell) provide solid backup with guest appearances on vocals by Elvis Costello, Delbert McClinton and Ron Sexsmith. Recorded during a two-day period in Nashville, it's a return to Al's hard-rockin' roots with dashes of country, zydeco and a trip to Muscle Shoals. "The record gave me a chance to stop doing country", explains Anderson. "After five years, I was ready to rock. Every song on this record is a first take, except  'A Change Is Gonna Do Me Good' because I decided to change a chord and 'That Thang' which is a second take because it was too much fun to play only once." Of the album, Al says, "This is the first good one. There were no hurdles on this record. That's what I like about it". Unfortunately, Imprint suspended its music operations in 1997. Al hopes to buy the record back, so it doesn't, in his words, "fall into the hands of some cutout guy in New Jersey."

Big Al's release, After Hours, arrived early 2004. On this independantly released CD, he's fully embraced his role as singer/songwriter, sharing writing credits with (amongst others) Jeffrey Steele (ex-Boy Howdy), Delbert McClinton, Miles Zuniga (Fastball), Tia Sellers (who co-wrote "I Hope You Dance" & "There's Your Trouble") and Gary Nicholson ("Better Word For Love"). Co-produced by Scott Baggett, After Hours features the same core band as Pump (Cromwell, Worf, Wynans) and horn charts by NRBQ horn man Jim Hoke. You'd be hard pressed to find a "guitar solo" on the whole album but the songs are uniformally great and the performances spot on. Al even shares lead vocalist duties with co-writers Tia Sellers and Sharon Vaughn as each take a turn a turn on their respective songs. Look to hear the NRBQ classic "Better Word For Love" and the song Al penned for Chet Atkins, "In My Dreams". This ain't no party album, but then, that isn't what it's trying to be, either. This is Al Anderson singing the Al Anderson songbook and includes some of the very best songs Big Al has written.

Big Al appeared on a total of 12 NRBQ full-length releases (13 if you count RC Cola and a Moon Pie which is essentially a re-worked Workshop - 14 if you wanna count the EPChristmas Wish). He also appeared with NRBQ on the Skeeter Davis release She Sings, They Play and the late, sometime-Whole-Wheat-Horn saxist Gary Windo's Dogface. Al and the band provide music on Stormalong, a children's story (narration by John Candy) as well as backing up John Sebastian on his tracks contributed to the soundtrack for the feature length cartoon, The Care Bears Movie ( Kid Stuff DAR 3901 LP).

These days, Al is working primarily as a song-writer. Hank Williams Jr. kicked off Al's songwriting career back in '88 (however, Big Al did receive the first annual "Connecticut Songwriter if the Year Award" in 1979), recording his "You're Gonna Be A Sorry Man" for his gold-award winning release Wild Streak.  His songs have since been covered by a veritable who's who of "new country" artists including The Mavericks, Hal Ketchum, Deanna Carter and Lee Roy Parnell. Also in demand as a session player, Big Al's guitar playing can be found on releases by various artists including Brothers Phelps, Kevin Welch, The Highwaymen and more. These days, Al splits his time between Connecticut and Nashville where he writes with some of the best tunesmiths in Music City. At this point in time, he has said he is not even slightly interested in forming a touring band. "I'm very reluctant to go on the road. They don't make a bunk long enough." He has performed with the "Hip" band in Nashville at clubs like the Birds Eye Cafe and the Exit/In. Big Al was also one quarter of Three Chunks and A Chick, performing at The Bluebird Cafe with writing partners Bob DiPiero, Craig Wiseman and Sharon Vaughn. Presently, you might find Al performing around Music City with his Nashville-based combo,Whitey, which also includes Jeffrey Steele, guitarist Scott Baggett, bassist Glenn Worf, keyboardist Reese Wynans and drummer Chad Cromwell. With any luck we'll see a new release by the group in the near future.

"Chris Gelbuda" is a singer-songwriter, producer, and multi-instrumentalist from Ottawa, Illinois. He is currently based in Nashville, TN and is a staff writer for Big Yellow Dog Music.^[1]

Gelbuda co-wrote and produced “3 A.M.” with Meghan Trainor. He also produced her hit single, “Like I'm Gonna Lose You”, featuring John Legend, which was certified Platinum in the U.S. and has reached #8 on the Billboard Hot 100 as of December 3, 2015.^{[2] [3] [4]}

Both songs appear on Meghan Trainor’s multi-platinum debut album, "Title.” ^[5] Other notable cuts include “Can't Blame a Girl for Trying” recorded by rising Disney star, Sabrina Carpenter (Co-written with Meghan Trainor and Al Anderson (NRBQ),^[6] and “Wingman,” recorded by country artist, Billy Currington.^[7] Gelbuda has scored song placements in various major network television shows including ABC’s Pretty Little Liars and TNT’s Dallas.^[8]

Gelbuda is also an experienced multi-instrumentalist. Trained in classical piano from age 6 at The Suzuki School of Music, Gelbuda is also skilled in playing many additional instruments, including; guitar, Hammond B3, Wurlitzer200a, banjo, mandolin, ukulele, drums, percussion, and bass. He has performed with various bands and musicians, including: Euforquestra, Japanese Cartoon, The Matthew Santos Band,^[9] Van Ghost, Everyone Orchestra,James Otto, and Secondhand Smoke: A Tribute to Sublime.