Bio

“can we get a copy of your bio for our blah, blah, blah?”

do you know how many times i’ve been asked this question in my career? too damn many. and every time, somebody writes a bio that nobody gives two shits about because who really cares, right? well, here’s my bio as i see it now.

i started out in this business when i was about 15 in hernando, ms. i played clubs in memphis in high school, started touring in college and got signed to geffen records in 1996 at 21. since that time, i’ve been signed to 2 other record labels and have been touring consistently in all kinds of capacities, sometimes thriving, sometimes failing miserably and wanting to quit this business and crawl in a hole. i’ve been disillusioned, bitter, beat up and to hell and back in my career, but i’ve never lost faith in music. how it heals me all the time. and what it means to all sorts of people.

to this point, i’ve released 6 full-length records and several eps in between. i’ve toured with my idols in amphitheaters and i’ve played for 12 people in charlotte, nc. (i did get a standing ovation in charlotte! it’s amazing how loud 12 people can be when they’re really excited.)

these are really the particulars, aren’t they?

i’m an artist. it’s what i do. i love my job, but i hate the music business. my goal is to work as hard as i can to make the best music i can and to represent myself in the most honest and authentic light possible. if i’m doing that, i’m happy.

it’s challenging to keep a foot on the machine pedal but also keep a foot grounded in the soil of inspiration and perpetual hope.

sometimes it’s not possible. but you keep moving forward because that’s what keeps us going. something magical. that’s what i live for. what everybody lives for, i think. there’s a line in “a beautiful mind” that i always remember… the wife is at the end of her rope with her husband’s disease, his disillusionment, and she says “i have to believe extraordinary things are possible”.

indeed.

i feel grateful to have survived and maintained a career for almost 20 years in this business, and it never ceases to amaze me how many times you can reinvent yourself if you’re willing.

thanks,
garrison

SUNDRY ACCOMPLISHMENTS & CAREER HIGHLIGHTS

  • I am very clean
  • Have lived in Memphis, Nashville and Los Angeles
  • Have driven 547 cars, owned 2 of them – the first i bought with my own money was a 1990 mitsubishi eclipse
  • Co-produced music for Margaret Cho’s record with my pal Meghan Toohey
  • Have loved touring, recording, and playing Scrabble with Mary Chapin Carpenter
  • Have had music in TV shows like “Life Unexpected” and “The Hills”
  • Accomplished hypochondriac with road rage
  • Toured opening for Melissa Etheridge
  • Steve Earle produced 2 tracks on “Songs from Takeoff to Landing,” toured and sang with Steve on and off for about a year and a half
  • After I watched “Super Size Me” I went straight to McDonald’s.  Twice.
  • Recorded “Plover” with Glen Phillips (of Toad the Wet Sprocket) and Neilson Hubbard.
  • Formed the band Among The Oak & Ash with Josh Joplin
  • Definitely hit on Katy Perry before she got famous
  • Started the North LaBrea All Star Conquistadors with Gabriel Mann, Jay Nash, and Adrianne
  • Played in the band This Living Hand where I met Neilson Hubbard and Clay Jones
  • Made records for Geffen, Back Porch (Virgin), and Vanguard
  • Had a hit song Superhero – kinda fun when it aired in ABCs coverage of the Women’s World Cup Soccer
  • I own “Remember The Titans,” “A Few Good Men,” Jerry Maguire” and “Lady and the Tramp” on VHS.
  • Played the first two years of Lilith Fair (when it was cool)
  • Went to Ole Miss – for a little while anyway, though I’m not sure if that’s really an accomplishment as much as a fact
  • Worked at Ardent Records and got to hang out with Jody Stephens of Big Star