BRETT DENNEN PART TWO:  BROADCAST  1 / 7 / 2012
IN SEARCH OF A SONG originates in BLOOMINGTON, INDIANA and is sponsored by: THE BLUEBIRD NIGHTCLUB,  AIRTIME RECORDING STUDIO,  and VISIT BLOOMINGTON.COM
As a young adult, Brett Dennen was a Community Studies major at UC Santa Cruz. After graduation he met a visionary woman with an ear for raw talent. Her gift for getting people to listen and share her excitement about his music, were a perfect incubator for his unique voice & insightful songs. Their work together would change his life.

Brett started working with Leslie Merical in December 2002. She encouraged him to pursue music seriously and made sure he wasn't slowed by the challenges most new artists face. Inspired by the good in his lyrics and the reaction to his songs, Merical started by convincing promoters at venues to give him a chance to play, despite his inexperience. She connected with his fans at every show and made them feel like they were part of something wonderful while guiding him along the path most artists have to travel alone.

For fun, she invited him into her studio to record a few of his songs in December of 2002, and as they worked, she became convinced she could turn the songs into an album and help him get his music to a global audience. The result was Brett's self-titled debut, which they released on her Three Angels & A Saint label in late 2003. Although the album was initially meant for less public ears, it became obvious to Merical that people wanted to hear the magical, lo-fi recordings and were moved by the songs. Almost immediately, she found connections to KCRW DJ Chris Douridas, who spun the unknown artist's glorified demo on Valentine's Day 2004. It was a big break for Brett and Merical, and an encouraging sign they were on to something and on the right path!

In 2006, Merical told a friend, bassist/producer Kevin McCormick (Jackson Brown, Keb Mo', Melissa Etheridge), about Brett, hoping to interest him in producing the 2nd album. He'd picked up some melodic African bass chops while living in Spain, that lent themselves perfectly to the new songs Brett was eager to record, and a few months later they found themselves recording 'So Much More' at Groovemasters in Santa Monica.

Along the way, he's been invited to play on Dave Matthews' Music Cruise, and to tour and/or play on bills with John Mayer, Sheryl Crow, Shawn Colvin, ALO, Jackson Brown, Taj Mahal, Ziggy Marley, Xavier Rudd, Corinne Bailey Rae and others.

Topics discussed include: Taking criticism, and how it affects his songwriting, what makes a great song, how he sees his future songwriting issues, some of the challenges of being on the road and playing music, the ongoing challenge of handling criticism, what he thinks makes a great song and a great recording, insights on songs and production, the mindset of the performer and how it affects his performance, about his song "Comeback Kid" and "Dancing At A Funeral".

Musical selections include: Surprise, Surprise,Only Rain,Dancing At A Funeral,Frozen In Slow Motion,Sydney, (I'll Come Running), When She's Gone, World Keeps Turning, Comeback Kid.

This program is "Evergreen" and not date specific.

For more information, visit IN SEARCH OF A SONG CLICK HERE

BRETT DENNEN PART TWO:  BROADCAST  1 / 7 / 2012
IN SEARCH OF A SONG originates in BLOOMINGTON, INDIANA and is sponsored by: THE BLUEBIRD NIGHTCLUB,  AIRTIME RECORDING STUDIO,  and VISIT BLOOMINGTON.COM
As a young adult, Brett Dennen was a Community Studies major at UC Santa Cruz. After graduation he met a visionary woman with an ear for raw talent. Her gift for getting people to listen and share her excitement about his music, were a perfect incubator for his unique voice & insightful songs. Their work together would change his life.

Brett started working with Leslie Merical in December 2002. She encouraged him to pursue music seriously and made sure he wasn't slowed by the challenges most new artists face. Inspired by the good in his lyrics and the reaction to his songs, Merical started by convincing promoters at venues to give him a chance to play, despite his inexperience. She connected with his fans at every show and made them feel like they were part of something wonderful while guiding him along the path most artists have to travel alone.

For fun, she invited him into her studio to record a few of his songs in December of 2002, and as they worked, she became convinced she could turn the songs into an album and help him get his music to a global audience. The result was Brett's self-titled debut, which they released on her Three Angels & A Saint label in late 2003. Although the album was initially meant for less public ears, it became obvious to Merical that people wanted to hear the magical, lo-fi recordings and were moved by the songs. Almost immediately, she found connections to KCRW DJ Chris Douridas, who spun the unknown artist's glorified demo on Valentine's Day 2004. It was a big break for Brett and Merical, and an encouraging sign they were on to something and on the right path!

In 2006, Merical told a friend, bassist/producer Kevin McCormick (Jackson Brown, Keb Mo', Melissa Etheridge), about Brett, hoping to interest him in producing the 2nd album. He'd picked up some melodic African bass chops while living in Spain, that lent themselves perfectly to the new songs Brett was eager to record, and a few months later they found themselves recording 'So Much More' at Groovemasters in Santa Monica.

Along the way, he's been invited to play on Dave Matthews' Music Cruise, and to tour and/or play on bills with John Mayer, Sheryl Crow, Shawn Colvin, ALO, Jackson Brown, Taj Mahal, Ziggy Marley, Xavier Rudd, Corinne Bailey Rae and others.

Topics discussed include: Taking criticism, and how it affects his songwriting, what makes a great song, how he sees his future songwriting issues, some of the challenges of being on the road and playing music, the ongoing challenge of handling criticism, what he thinks makes a great song and a great recording, insights on songs and production, the mindset of the performer and how it affects his performance, about his song "Comeback Kid" and "Dancing At A Funeral".

Musical selections include: Surprise, Surprise,Only Rain,Dancing At A Funeral,Frozen In Slow Motion,Sydney, (I'll Come Running), When She's Gone, World Keeps Turning, Comeback Kid.

This program is "Evergreen" and not date specific.

For more information, visit IN SEARCH OF A SONG CLICK HERE