John Schmitt

John Schmitt headlined a set at Rockwood Music Hall last night. We used to see John frequently. I knew it’s been a while (with a couple of near misses recently), but I was actually shocked when I looked it up and saw that it was seven months ago. That’s just crazy talk. Glad to have corrected that.

Let’s the get the important stuff out of the way first. Either someone stole John Schmitt’s beard, and a sizable portion of his girth, or we actually saw an impersonator last night (a pretty darn good one if so). Now we can get on with more mundane things, like the music…

Since it’s been so long, let’s recap the three things that the real John Schmitt has in spades:

Great voice
Fantastic songwriter
Excellent guitar player

(that’s how I was able to judge the potential impersonator, since he possessed two of those qualities. Clearly, if he was stealing John’s songs, I don’t know if he himself is a good songwriter.) Winking smile

There were a number of firsts (for us) in last night’s set:

John introduced his brand new banjitar (that’s a six-string banjo, tuned like a guitar, that sounds like a banjo). It’s a great idea. Lots of excellent guitar players don’t have the time or inclination to study the banjo, but have a few songs that might benefit from that sound. That’s exactly what John did, to perfection.

John birthed two songs publicly (first live performance). Both songs were great. We look forward to hearing them more often and embedding them in our brains like we have the rest of his set list.

John played a solo cover of Cat Stevens’ How Can I Tell You. Wow! He was choked up introducing the song, because he’s currently in a long-distance relationship and singing this song is all too close to home.

John had a full band plus one guest. I knew it would be a full band show, but I admit to being surprised to see two of the members, as in super-delighted-happy surprised. Left-to-right on stage, followed by the guest:

Matt Simons on grand piano, electronic keyboards, and harmony. Surprise #1. We love Matt and we’ll be back at Rockwood on March 31st to see him perform his own stuff, but I didn’t know he’d be supporting John. In addition to being wonderful on the keys (as always), Matt sang a bunch of harmony with John, in particular on Going Back, since Lissa Farquhar (John’s regular singing partner) was very ill and couldn’t make it.

Matt just finished recording a new CD in Nashville. He told me last night that it won’t be available until June. But, in the meantime, he’s sharing bits of it with the world.

If I heard him correctly, next week he’ll be doing the same thing with a second song. I’ve already seen a few musicians tweet that they’ve heard the new CD and are in love with it. I can’t confirm or deny whether I’ve had a sneak peek at it, but if I did, I’m sure it’s fantastic. If I didn’t, then I completely trust the folks that said the same thing.

Back to our regularly scheduled programming.

Brian Killeen on electric bass. Brian was surprise #2, also an awesome one. Even though Brian (one of our favorite bassists) played with John the last time we saw him, that too was a fill in job for John’s regular bass player, Pasquale Chieffalo. Brian was great at that last show, but he was even better last night. Buttery smooth and constantly laying down sophisticated bass lines throughout.

Mike Sutton on drums (still can’t find a good individual link). Mike is John’s regular drummer and he’s done a great job at every show that we’ve seen him play. Clearly, he knows John’s music cold and it shows.

Scott Tofte came up to sing harmony and shake some shakers on two numbers. Beautiful job. He had to consult the lyrics on his iPhone, because he joined John for one of the brand new songs.

I couldn’t stop laughing throughout 7 Drunken Nights.

Lots of familiar faces in the audience, which Lois couldn’t help but document for our memories (and now yours). - Random Musings Blog

John Schmitt headlined a set at Rockwood Music Hall last night. We used to see John frequently. I knew it’s been a while (with a couple of near misses recently), but I was actually shocked when I looked it up and saw that it was seven months ago. That’s just crazy talk. Glad to have corrected that.

Let’s the get the important stuff out of the way first. Either someone stole John Schmitt’s beard, and a sizable portion of his girth, or we actually saw an impersonator last night (a pretty darn good one if so). Now we can get on with more mundane things, like the music…

Since it’s been so long, let’s recap the three things that the real John Schmitt has in spades:

Great voice
Fantastic songwriter
Excellent guitar player

(that’s how I was able to judge the potential impersonator, since he possessed two of those qualities. Clearly, if he was stealing John’s songs, I don’t know if he himself is a good songwriter.) Winking smile

There were a number of firsts (for us) in last night’s set:

John introduced his brand new banjitar (that’s a six-string banjo, tuned like a guitar, that sounds like a banjo). It’s a great idea. Lots of excellent guitar players don’t have the time or inclination to study the banjo, but have a few songs that might benefit from that sound. That’s exactly what John did, to perfection.

John birthed two songs publicly (first live performance). Both songs were great. We look forward to hearing them more often and embedding them in our brains like we have the rest of his set list.

John played a solo cover of Cat Stevens’ How Can I Tell You. Wow! He was choked up introducing the song, because he’s currently in a long-distance relationship and singing this song is all too close to home.

John had a full band plus one guest. I knew it would be a full band show, but I admit to being surprised to see two of the members, as in super-delighted-happy surprised. Left-to-right on stage, followed by the guest:

Matt Simons on grand piano, electronic keyboards, and harmony. Surprise #1. We love Matt and we’ll be back at Rockwood on March 31st to see him perform his own stuff, but I didn’t know he’d be supporting John. In addition to being wonderful on the keys (as always), Matt sang a bunch of harmony with John, in particular on Going Back, since Lissa Farquhar (John’s regular singing partner) was very ill and couldn’t make it.

Matt just finished recording a new CD in Nashville. He told me last night that it won’t be available until June. But, in the meantime, he’s sharing bits of it with the world.

If I heard him correctly, next week he’ll be doing the same thing with a second song. I’ve already seen a few musicians tweet that they’ve heard the new CD and are in love with it. I can’t confirm or deny whether I’ve had a sneak peek at it, but if I did, I’m sure it’s fantastic. If I didn’t, then I completely trust the folks that said the same thing.

Back to our regularly scheduled programming.

Brian Killeen on electric bass. Brian was surprise #2, also an awesome one. Even though Brian (one of our favorite bassists) played with John the last time we saw him, that too was a fill in job for John’s regular bass player, Pasquale Chieffalo. Brian was great at that last show, but he was even better last night. Buttery smooth and constantly laying down sophisticated bass lines throughout.

Mike Sutton on drums (still can’t find a good individual link). Mike is John’s regular drummer and he’s done a great job at every show that we’ve seen him play. Clearly, he knows John’s music cold and it shows.

Scott Tofte came up to sing harmony and shake some shakers on two numbers. Beautiful job. He had to consult the lyrics on his iPhone, because he joined John for one of the brand new songs.

I couldn’t stop laughing throughout 7 Drunken Nights.

Lots of familiar faces in the audience, which Lois couldn’t help but document for our memories (and now yours). - Random Musings Blog

His recent CD release, Ophelia, is a gorgeous album. John has a fantastic voice (very soulful) and he plays the guitar beautifully. Add a top band (which isn’t necessary, but always welcome!) and he too wows the crowd, every time.

We like a lot of John’s songs, but at the top are Ophelia and Ave Regina. If he hadn’t sung either of those we might have had to mug him in the (proverbial) parking lot. Thankfully, he performed both (more on each in a minute when I mention the guest stars). Both qualify as poems, not just songs. :)

Joining John on Ave Regina and Going Back was Lissa Farquhar on vocals. Lissa has a beautiful voice and did a great job on both songs. Ave Regina has stunning harmonies in it, in addition to Lissa taking a verse on the lead. What I particularly liked is the fact that Lissa belted out the harmony as well as the lead. Many backup vocalists think it’s incumbent on them to sing softly to let the lead vocalist shine. It’s a nice thought, but it makes the harmonies so much more difficult to appreciate. Let your voices ring out! Smile

Joining John for his last two numbers was Chris Ayer on vocals. Another wonderful piece of harmony.

John’s band, from left-to-right on stage:

Greg Barbone on keyboards (organ and grand piano). The Living Room has both a grand piano on stage and a double-decker organ (the size of an upright piano). They are on opposite ends of the stage. John joked that Greg was going to be running back-and-forth, but it turned out not to be a joke. So, I could have listed Greg first or last. Since he kicked it off on the organ, first it is.

Greg was great on both. We already knew he would be great on the piano, because he was also the pianist for the set before (covered shortly). The organ was covered up during that set, so I didn’t even know it was there (two feet from where I was sitting).

Brian Killeen on electric bass. We’ve seen Brian many times (mostly with Martin Rivas) and have enjoyed his play each and every time (last night included). When John mentioned that Brian had recently opened for Bon Jovi, Brian joked that it was a solo bass performance, and he did a quick and cute bass-rock-star like thing on stage.

Mike Sutton on drums (sorry, couldn’t find a good individual link to Mike). Recall what I said above, that I was expecting Stephen Chopek on drums. I was impressed with Mike’s play, but I need to hear more to form a better opinion.
- Hadar Pedhazur - Opticality Blog

His recent CD release, Ophelia, is a gorgeous album. John has a fantastic voice (very soulful) and he plays the guitar beautifully. Add a top band (which isn’t necessary, but always welcome!) and he too wows the crowd, every time.

We like a lot of John’s songs, but at the top are Ophelia and Ave Regina. If he hadn’t sung either of those we might have had to mug him in the (proverbial) parking lot. Thankfully, he performed both (more on each in a minute when I mention the guest stars). Both qualify as poems, not just songs. :)

Joining John on Ave Regina and Going Back was Lissa Farquhar on vocals. Lissa has a beautiful voice and did a great job on both songs. Ave Regina has stunning harmonies in it, in addition to Lissa taking a verse on the lead. What I particularly liked is the fact that Lissa belted out the harmony as well as the lead. Many backup vocalists think it’s incumbent on them to sing softly to let the lead vocalist shine. It’s a nice thought, but it makes the harmonies so much more difficult to appreciate. Let your voices ring out! Smile

Joining John for his last two numbers was Chris Ayer on vocals. Another wonderful piece of harmony.

John’s band, from left-to-right on stage:

Greg Barbone on keyboards (organ and grand piano). The Living Room has both a grand piano on stage and a double-decker organ (the size of an upright piano). They are on opposite ends of the stage. John joked that Greg was going to be running back-and-forth, but it turned out not to be a joke. So, I could have listed Greg first or last. Since he kicked it off on the organ, first it is.

Greg was great on both. We already knew he would be great on the piano, because he was also the pianist for the set before (covered shortly). The organ was covered up during that set, so I didn’t even know it was there (two feet from where I was sitting).

Brian Killeen on electric bass. We’ve seen Brian many times (mostly with Martin Rivas) and have enjoyed his play each and every time (last night included). When John mentioned that Brian had recently opened for Bon Jovi, Brian joked that it was a solo bass performance, and he did a quick and cute bass-rock-star like thing on stage.

Mike Sutton on drums (sorry, couldn’t find a good individual link to Mike). Recall what I said above, that I was expecting Stephen Chopek on drums. I was impressed with Mike’s play, but I need to hear more to form a better opinion.
- Hadar Pedhazur - Opticality Blog

John Schmitt - Sticking It to the Man

Posted by Stephen Smith on 04/12 at 12:03 PM

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John Schmitt informed the audience between songs that he had quit “slaving away for the man” to pursue a career in music. After hearing his set, I’d have to say I’m glad he told his boss to shove it.

The Buffalo-native performed for the SPA’s Noontime Concert Series last Friday. He did not bring any accompaniment for this show, instead relying on his vocals and acoustic guitar to do the job. That said, he created a very full sound by himself. His guitar (a Gibson Hummingbird Pro Cutaway, I believe) had an even, beautiful sound that meshed perfectly with his voice, which was spectacular in its own right. The stripped down solo set-up created an intimate atmosphere that complimented the overcast drizzle outside the HUB.

Schmitt shifted through several genres throughout his performance and became hard to pin down to a single genre. At times, funk and soul seemed to be favored. Other times, Americana or folk seemed more appropriate. Simple and expected chord progressions led me to believe it to be folk. Then, jazz and chromatic scale exploration left me not so sure. All throughout, I noticed hints of John Mayer, Dave Matthews, and even Jason Mraz in his style and sound. This unique, chameleon approach to genre kept the set dynamic from one song to the next.

Schmitt’s setlist contained a balanced mixture of original songs and interesting covers. He started with “Two Souls Meet in the City,” which immediately showcased his strong, smooth, and soulful voice. “Going Back” displayed his emotive lyrical style, describing divorce in a beautiful, yet painfully real way. He also made references in his lyrics to literature and history, including the character of “Ophelia” from Hamlet and a song titled “Song of Myself” after Walt Whitman’s famous poem.

The choice of cover songs was unique, too, which included David Gray’s “Babylon” (a personal favorite), Van Morrison’s “Domino,” and John Mayer’s “Sucker.” However, the best cover and highlight of the show was when he quietly began to sing, “7 a.m., waking up in the morning. Gotta be fresh, gotta go downstairs…” I joined the audience in laughing hysterically. Schmitt put on a face of sarcastic emotion while playing the song, struggling not to smile for the sake of the joke. The crowd even got involved, singing along and answering the refrain of, “Partying, partying…” with “Yeahs!” and fist pumps into the air. Thankfully, after one chorus of Rebecca Black’s “Friday,” he mercifully transitioned into a Motown-like original, “You Got Me Brother.” The joke was well timed and perfectly executed, showing Schmitt’s fun side and adding color to the show.

Schmitt could have ended the performance with more of a bang instead of playing his original, “Superman,” but it didn’t matter. He played passionately, and sung with soul throughout the entire set. His fingers deserve to be on a fret board in a studio—not on a keyboard in a cubicle. His sound was tight and he made the right decision by becoming a musician. Friday’s show proved that much.

While there is no concrete date set for an encore, he told the audience that he should be passing through State College in May. So if you see him playing, celebrate graduation with the highly recommendable John Schmitt. - Penn State University Newspaper

There are few things I enjoy more than finding a new artist that shows a certain special something for his or her craft. Lucky for me New York City is filled with indescribable fresh talent. What’s lucky for you, is I happened to land another wonderful interview with an up-and-coming singer-songwriter. And I like to share. Music people!

John Schmitt may not be a household name yet, but just you wait. His latest release “Ophelia” was produced by Caleb Hawley who just made it through the first round of Hollywood week on a little show called American Idol. Interested yet? Good.

This album can best be described as a little folk rock, and R&B with a whole lotta soul. The record starts with his song ‘Two Souls’ and it becomes immediately clear that this album is a personal journey. City life, love, and all the struggles and excitement that come with changes in scenery, relationships and work are expertly crafted within the melodies and lyrics. His music is fresh from start to end and his future is definitely looking bright.

John was nice enough to sit down with Examiner.com and share insight into his musical world. Without further adieu, here is what the talented wordsmith had to say.

Examiner: I love asking other writers about their creative space. So as a songwriter, do you have any rituals that kick your creativity up? Or any place you like going to get inspired?

John Schmitt: I blog! I find that writing my thoughts out in a stream-of-consciousness kind of way helps me get to the purest part of my mind. I will then go back and re-read what I’ve written and look for little bits that I think are insightful. Night time typically helps sharpen my inspiration – how “Phantom of the Opera” of me! haha

I write songs walking around the city. When working on a song, I put my earbuds in my ears, but leave my iPod off, and go about my day, running through a melody or some lyrics, and try to work through it. The city and all the people in it really help to push my inspiration.

Examiner: You mentioned earlier that you’re an entirely self-taught guitar player, which is very impressive. How old were you when you got your first guitar? What kind was it? And do you still use it today?

John Schmitt: My uncle gave me a guitar when I was 16. It was broken, had no bridge on it, and needed strings. It was supposed to be a nylon string, but instead I used steel, not knowing any better. My Dad helped me glue the back on it, and I made a bridge out of a whittled pencil. It was a Harmony, the brand sold at Walmart, and it is currently at home at my parents house. It was a train wreck, but it's what I learned on for the first year! I’ve since graduated to a beautiful Gibson guitar that it my main instrument.

Examiner: Being a full time musician, do you have any advice for up and coming artists that are looking to quit their day jobs and pursue a full time music career?

John Schmitt: Well, I am fairly new, so I don’t know how much help I could be. I get by playing weekly gigs in the city doing cover songs like “Mr. Jones” and “Wonderwall”. If I did not have the steady paid spots each week, I would not be able to keep this going. I am fairly lucky, as these sorts of regular things are not easy to come by.

Also, in terms of advice, I would say that you need to be scared. Very scared. And, use your fear to motivate you. I am not one to do anything unless I have carefully researched it, and this sort of career move took years of planning. As the day approached where I did this full time, I became increasingly more nervous, until the next morning that I woke up and didn’t have to go to work. It was an incredible feeling, knowing that I could be a musician full-time, and work on all the things I wanted to work on.

Examiner: I’ve been listening to your album “Ophelia” and you’ve got a lot of really good stuff on it. I know you said Caleb Hawley (of American Idol fame) produced it, would you mind sharing a little bit about how that happened? (Take us through the studio, the fan funding and all that good stuff.)

John Schmitt: Well, I went on a mini-tour with Caleb in November 2009, and while on the tour, and seeing his incredible ability to see songs in their entirety, the way Motzart was famed to do. He had never produced anything but his own work, and I decided I would ask him to produce mine, to see how it goes. He said he would think about it, and after about a week, he told me he was in, and excited to do the record.

I decided to appeal to fans, friends, and family to help finance the record. I created a website, and a business paypal where folks could donate on a tiered basis, the more one donated, the more things he/she would receive. The response was phenomenal, and I raised close to $10,000 to help me make the record.

We decided to track everything in Philadelphia, at MorningStar Studios, who were friends of mine and accomplished engineers and producers. The tracking took a - Examiner.com

There are few things I enjoy more than finding a new artist that shows a certain special something for his or her craft. Lucky for me New York City is filled with indescribable fresh talent. What’s lucky for you, is I happened to land another wonderful interview with an up-and-coming singer-songwriter. And I like to share. Music people!

John Schmitt may not be a household name yet, but just you wait. His latest release “Ophelia” was produced by Caleb Hawley who just made it through the first round of Hollywood week on a little show called American Idol. Interested yet? Good.

This album can best be described as a little folk rock, and R&B with a whole lotta soul. The record starts with his song ‘Two Souls’ and it becomes immediately clear that this album is a personal journey. City life, love, and all the struggles and excitement that come with changes in scenery, relationships and work are expertly crafted within the melodies and lyrics. His music is fresh from start to end and his future is definitely looking bright.

John was nice enough to sit down with Examiner.com and share insight into his musical world. Without further adieu, here is what the talented wordsmith had to say.

Examiner: I love asking other writers about their creative space. So as a songwriter, do you have any rituals that kick your creativity up? Or any place you like going to get inspired?

John Schmitt: I blog! I find that writing my thoughts out in a stream-of-consciousness kind of way helps me get to the purest part of my mind. I will then go back and re-read what I’ve written and look for little bits that I think are insightful. Night time typically helps sharpen my inspiration – how “Phantom of the Opera” of me! haha

I write songs walking around the city. When working on a song, I put my earbuds in my ears, but leave my iPod off, and go about my day, running through a melody or some lyrics, and try to work through it. The city and all the people in it really help to push my inspiration.

Examiner: You mentioned earlier that you’re an entirely self-taught guitar player, which is very impressive. How old were you when you got your first guitar? What kind was it? And do you still use it today?

John Schmitt: My uncle gave me a guitar when I was 16. It was broken, had no bridge on it, and needed strings. It was supposed to be a nylon string, but instead I used steel, not knowing any better. My Dad helped me glue the back on it, and I made a bridge out of a whittled pencil. It was a Harmony, the brand sold at Walmart, and it is currently at home at my parents house. It was a train wreck, but it's what I learned on for the first year! I’ve since graduated to a beautiful Gibson guitar that it my main instrument.

Examiner: Being a full time musician, do you have any advice for up and coming artists that are looking to quit their day jobs and pursue a full time music career?

John Schmitt: Well, I am fairly new, so I don’t know how much help I could be. I get by playing weekly gigs in the city doing cover songs like “Mr. Jones” and “Wonderwall”. If I did not have the steady paid spots each week, I would not be able to keep this going. I am fairly lucky, as these sorts of regular things are not easy to come by.

Also, in terms of advice, I would say that you need to be scared. Very scared. And, use your fear to motivate you. I am not one to do anything unless I have carefully researched it, and this sort of career move took years of planning. As the day approached where I did this full time, I became increasingly more nervous, until the next morning that I woke up and didn’t have to go to work. It was an incredible feeling, knowing that I could be a musician full-time, and work on all the things I wanted to work on.

Examiner: I’ve been listening to your album “Ophelia” and you’ve got a lot of really good stuff on it. I know you said Caleb Hawley (of American Idol fame) produced it, would you mind sharing a little bit about how that happened? (Take us through the studio, the fan funding and all that good stuff.)

John Schmitt: Well, I went on a mini-tour with Caleb in November 2009, and while on the tour, and seeing his incredible ability to see songs in their entirety, the way Motzart was famed to do. He had never produced anything but his own work, and I decided I would ask him to produce mine, to see how it goes. He said he would think about it, and after about a week, he told me he was in, and excited to do the record.

I decided to appeal to fans, friends, and family to help finance the record. I created a website, and a business paypal where folks could donate on a tiered basis, the more one donated, the more things he/she would receive. The response was phenomenal, and I raised close to $10,000 to help me make the record.

We decided to track everything in Philadelphia, at MorningStar Studios, who were friends of mine and accomplished engineers and producers. The tracking took a - Examiner.com

"With his uncompromisingly honest and simple approach, John Schmitt has the ability to find great beauty in the most insignificant of details. As a wordsmith, Schmitt can be both subtle and painfully graphic but always strikes a chord with his audience. Influenced by the likes of Tom Petty, and combined with a stirring vocal reminiscent of Damien Rice, he offers vivid, moving imagery of American life - both the good and the bad - which resonates with locals and strangers alike. A self-taught musician from a young age - and after years of experience performing with other bands - Schmitt is finally embarking on a solo career that promises great things." - Rebel Spirit Music

"With his uncompromisingly honest and simple approach, John Schmitt has the ability to find great beauty in the most insignificant of details. As a wordsmith, Schmitt can be both subtle and painfully graphic but always strikes a chord with his audience. Influenced by the likes of Tom Petty, and combined with a stirring vocal reminiscent of Damien Rice, he offers vivid, moving imagery of American life - both the good and the bad - which resonates with locals and strangers alike. A self-taught musician from a young age - and after years of experience performing with other bands - Schmitt is finally embarking on a solo career that promises great things." - Rebel Spirit Music