Attention!
Barn member Roger Wheeler will be featured this morning
on Atlanta's WRFG 89.7.
Tune in at
His music will be featured from 9 to 11 am this morning.
Congratulations Roger!
At the age of 5 I was “playing” a
tennis racket while I blasted Beatles music on the old Magnavox stereo in the
living room on S. 4th St in the mill village of Lanett, AL. I was the
youngest of 4 kids and my brother had a really cool Harman Kardon stereo in his
front bedroom and all the cool albums of the 60 and 70’s that I listened to
constantly He also had a big right handed cheap classical nylon string
guitar that he had restrung since he was left handed. Being left handed
myself I thought I’d try it out and the rest is history. I was 12 years
old and I’ve never looked back!! I will never forgot the day a buddy of
mine pulled out the weirdest looking album cover I have ever seen with the
strangest title of “Quah”. I had never heard of Jorma Kaukonen but
I was mesmerized!!!! I literally wore that album out and he became
my hero along with my other influences such as James Taylor, Dan Fogelberg and
Pure Prairie League. Wrote some tunes in high school but went to college,
got married, had kids and my music was put on hold. In the year
2001 I got my copy of “Acoustic Guitar” magazine and saw an ad for Jorma
Kaukonen’s Fur Peace Ranch. I knew at that moment I was going to go
and in 2004 I was lucky enough to get in Jorma’s class. Drove all
the way from Birmingham to Meigs County OH. nervous as a cat laying next to a
rocking chair and found a little slice of heaven on earth and my musical self
was reborn! Had never played mandolin before but saw that Chris
Hillman of the Byrds and Manassas fame was going to be teaching a mandolin
class. I signed up, bought a lefty Collins MT mando and hit the road back
to heaven. This weekend literally changed my musical life and Hillman’s
Mad Mountain Rangers was born. Not only did I get some excellent
instruction but I met someone who was to become a great friend and influence,
Marty Zundel as well as Dan Chute. The Rangers assembled 2 more
times at the Fur Peace with new friends made in Walt Sample and Kate Nord among
others. My writing came back alive and I started getting out and
playing and having the time of my life. Became friends with Anthony and
Savana Crawford of a local duo called Sugarcane Jane. Anthony is originally
from Mountain Brook, AL and was a member of and toured with Neil Young’s
International Harvesters band as well as Steve Winwood, Dwight Yoakam. He
has a studio in his Dog Trot house in Loxley, AL and has been kind enough to
record some of my songs. I continue to write and play and feel
extremely lucky to be included with the other talented musicians on this web
site!
Check out all more of roger's songs in Baragie Hall.
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