Now Playing: What's going on?
Topic: Update
I know I have been exceptionally lazy about adding to this blog... I'll make no excuses this time, or claim that I'll get better in the coming months (though I'll try).

I just wanted to give a little update to anyone that might be interested in what's going on with The A.M. Band lately...

Some of you might have noticed our playing scedule has been incedibly light since December, let me explain what's going on... Our drummer Brett Roberts had surgery on his wrist in mid-December and has been out of commission ever since. Brett has been putting 110% into his rehab ever since and is hopeful to be back up and drumming by April/May. In his absence, A.M. Band alumni Stuart Stahr has been kind enough to take time from his busy schedule and fill in for Brett so we don't have to stop playing completely.

As Matt and I anxiously await the return of our buddy Brett to the (drum) throne, we have been enjoying the opportunity to play, and hang with Stu again.

I will add updates as info comes to me, Peace Out!
Bryan

What's been going on?
Topic: Pointless Ramblings
Hey All,

Wow, it's been quite a while since I'v e written anything here! Just thought I'd give you guys an general update, so you know what's been going on lately.

It looks like THE A.M. BAND might be returning to The Striped Bass in Tarrytown, perhaps as early as August. The person that has been booking for the last few years has moved on and the management has asked us if we would be interested in returning. There are still a few details to work out, but I should know something in the next week or two.

In the next few months the band will also be returning to Horse & Hound in S. Salem, and playing for the first time at Southbound BBQ in Hawthorne, and Putnam National Golf Club in Mahopac.

Starting in June I will begin performing solo at Somerfields in Somers, and in August I will start doing some solo happy hours at Southbound BBQ.

In addition to all of the gigging, I have started recording what will be a "Bryan Gordon" album. Though it will include performances by (at least) Matt and Brett of "A.M.", it will contain my original songs that I tend to perform at solo gigs. The collection will definitly contain "Better on Our Own", "Don't Tell Me The Truth", "Gone", "Just Like You", "Spinning 'Round The World" and perhaps a non-Beat Poets version of "Juliet, Juliet". I don't know how soon it'll be released, but I will keep you up to date.

That's all for now!
Bryan

Now Playing: The Best Concert I've Ever Been To
Topic: Pointless Ramblings
Hey All,

Looks like I've fallen pretty short of my goal to write here ever few days, there just isn't enough time... but I'm working on it.

In the past few years I've been going out of my way to try to see some concerts. In the past I was always a bit lazy when it came to waiting on line for tickets... that's on "a" line, not "online" for all you digital youngsters... remember waiting outside a record store for Ticket-tron to open? (I'll explain what a "record" is another time).

Anyway, in addition to the modern bands I like now, many of the bands that I used to love when I was growing up have gotten back together and are playing small venues. This has been a treat because if I had actually seen them when they were in their heyday I would have had to deal with lousy seats (if I could have gotten tickets at all). In the last few years I have seen, The Stones, Springsteen, Radiohead, Weezer, The Knack, The Romantics, The Joe Jackson Band, Cheap Trick, Cake, Southside Johnny and the Jukes, Evan Dando (of the Lemonheads), Travis, and this coming July I'll be seeing the Raspberries (personal all time fav)... I'm sure I'm missing a few here, but you get the point.

Last Wednesday Kate (my wife) and I hopped a train to Manhattan in a pretty shitty snow/sleet storm and made our way to the Hammerstein Ballroom to see another one of my favorite bands, The Black Crowes. As with many of the other bands I mentioned, I thought I had missed my chance to see them when they broke up a few years back. This show was to be their 2nd official show since regrouping and 1 of 7 nights that they were doing at Hammerstein.

Kate and I got there early and decided to look for a bar to hang out in until it was a bit closer to showtime (I saw Radiohead completely sober and that was a mistake... even though they were great), The only place around was Friday's. We were Friday's about 2 minutes when someone stepped away from the bar to give us room to order our drinks... this is when I got the first sense of what the night was going to be like. I'd have to say that half of the people at Friday's were there to see the Crowes and were just having a ball talking about it... we were included in their conversations like we were old friends.

After about an hour we said goodbye and good luck to our friends at Friday's and through the sleet made our way back to Hammerstein... the ticket takers were helpful... the ballroom was beautiful... the beer was expensive ($7 for a can of Bud)... and once again the fans were friendly. There was no pushing and shoving, everyone was just in a great mood. Kate and I made our way to the center of the floor right in front of the stage and set up camp. We quickly made friends with Gary and his girlfriend Devon and chatted away until the lights went down...

It is at this point that I was glad I'd experienced going to concerts in the 70's because the vibe was exactly the same... The lights went out, the smoke ;) went up, the bouncers left everyone alone, and the show started. Let me say that I LOVE Rod Stewart and Mick Jagger, but I think it's time they bow down (not out) and start giving props to Chris Robinson because I have NEVER seen a front man like him... I was absolutely mesmerized. Before the fist song was finished I leaned over to Kate to proclaim "this is the best concert I've ever been to!". They didn't play a hit until close to the end of the night and I didn't care, they jammed on album filler tracks and I was completely sucked in with everyone else in the room. Heads down, eyes shut (well sometimes), just taking the whole thing in.

What I experienced that night was something that was impossible to feel from the mezzanine of Giants Stadium or Madison Square Garden... we were part of the show. The Black Crowes were playing for us, and with us... not at us. We might just as well have been on the stage with them (or they in the audience), it was that personal.

As I write this I am hoping that my excitement comes through, but I really don't think I write well enough to convey the experience. All I can do is urge all of you, if you get the opportunity, to go see these guys yourself before the brothers Robinson self destruct (again) and band disappears... maybe for good.

How can the Raspberries in July ever compare?

CD Sales
Now Playing: CD Sales Outlets
All I have for you all today is an update of what's being done to promote sales of "Eight Hit Wonders!".

Our first (and most successful to date) promotion was our CD Release Party which, thanks to you guys, was a tremendous success. That day we sold close to 100 CDs, much better than anyone in the band imagined. So much led up that night that when it was over we just kinda sat around dazed and wondering what to do next.

I think it's safe to say that we didn't quite know where to go after that... I mean, how do you sell an album of original music by a band which by it's very definition plays outdated music? I never really considered what to do outside of selling it at gigs, but to be honest we have such a loyal audience that I think pretty much everyone that sees us regularly was already at the party.

We did have a great article written about us in the NORTH COUNTY NEWS, but other than making The A.M. Band a bit more recognizable locally I don't think it did much for sales.

Remembering some past advice from my brother Bill I began considering doing some selling through www.CDBABY.com. I couldn't imaging why anyone would go there to by our CD if they could buy it at gigs or directly from our website, and why the hell would anyone that didn't know us or see our show want to buy this CD. I had no answer, but at the same time I didn't think we had anything to loose by trying.

Here it is a week later, 3 long distance sales to people that have never heard of us and a spot this Saturday on a Virginia radio show and something is starting to occur to me... perhaps we are so far out of the mainstream that it's easy for people to find us (if they are looking)...

Bear with me here for a minute... if we were classified as "Pop/Rock" we would be just one of thousands of bands hoping to get noticed in a sea of bands, most likely many of them better than us. But how many bands would willingly label themselves "Bubblegum", or list they're influences as Edison Lighthouse, The Partridge Family, or Bobby Sherman? I don't think many.

So here's some guy in Japan or Germany typing "Bubblegum" or whatever into the CDBaby searhbar and what's the first thing that comes up? That's right... the little old "A.M. Band". I know it'll never make a million, but it certainly makes us stand out a bit... AND it's an honest classification.

We now have the album in jukeboxes in Croton-on-Hudson and Peekskill, and according to the counters in the jukeboxes they are actually getting played!

My next goal is to get our album into some record stores, more specifically "FYE". They have a "local band" section in their stores that's is pretty damn visible and once again "we don't have anything to loose".

In the end I think our best "gimmick" will be word of mouth. We have always had the best, most fun loving audience around, so just keep talking about it, playing it in those jukeboxes, and who knows...

Bryan

Weekly Happenings
Now Playing: A.M. on web radio/Mahoney's gig in Pougkeepsie
Morning Everyone,

I'm quite tired this morning (busy weekend), but all in all I'm in a pretty good mood...

First...

This past Friday we played a gig at a new place in Poughkeepsie, NY called Mahoney's. This is a very LARGE club and there was a huge crowd. I generally like to come out of a gig saying "we tore the place up", but I don't quite know what to make of Friday's show. Here is a quick list of first impressions I had of the evening as they came to me...

* Can't find a parking spot...

* Big crowd, varied ages...

* The beer tastes good (I was drinking Smithwick's)

* LOTS of cute girls (Hey! I'm not blind and besides this list is for historical purposes... it has to be accurate!)

* DAMN! We have a lot of lights to set up...

* 2nd beer tastes even better...

* Room sounds good...

* I'm only halfway through the set and my beer is empty... how the hell am I gonna get the waitresses attention?

* What's Stu doing here?

* Why didn't they make platform shoe more comfortable?

* My throat hurts and I still have an hour left to play...

* We played our asses off (I have no complaints about our performance, I don't think we could've played much better), but I have no clue as to what the management thinks of the night.

Now here it is, Monday and I still have no idea how the night went. We did everything we could've, plenty of people came up and told us how much they enjoyed it, BUT, I would have liked to see more people dancing, People could've made a bit more noise between songs, I didn't even see the management after we went off... so I have no idea how it went. I will let you all know when I do.

News...

In addition to selling another CD though CDBABY, this time in California, we have been contacted by DJ Alan Haber of WEBR radio in Virginia, who loved the song samples that he heard from "Eight Hit Wonders!" and wants to feature "C'mon, C'mon Sunshine" on his Saturday afternoon show. I got a CD out to him today and the song will be played this Saturday (3/12/05) between 12 noon and 1pm. You can hear his show streaming live on the web at Alan Haber's Pure Pop . Once again I am amazed that the album has gotten any attention on CDBABY at all. I know that two CD's doesn't sound like much (and it isn't compared to the local sales), but I am just happy that we are reaching people that would ordinarily not have any access to us.

We now have albums sold in Japan, England, Switzerland, and Germany... that would never have been possible for a little Westchester bar band 10 years ago. GOD BLESS THE WEB!


I'll write again in a few days,

Bryan

Our first CDBaby.com purchase!
Mood:  happy
Now Playing: Our first CDBaby.com purchase!
As I'm sure you all heard The A.M. Band has recently become affiliated with CDBaby.com, the world's largest independent indie music distributor. My hope when I signed up with them (and paid their small fee) was that it would lend our new album a little extra credibility and perhaps be another outlet for people to purchase it (in case anyone was concerned buying directly from our site). The web page that CDBaby.com created for "Eight Hit Wonders!" was completed and posted only this past Tuesday. To be completely honest I didn't hold out a lot of hope that we would reach many people this way, but I figured "what the hell".

This morning I received an email notifying me that we just sold our first CD though them to someone in Japan! Japan of all places! The good thing about CDBaby.com is that they give you info on the purchase, ie: buyers location, email (for follow-up), how they found your album, etc. This info is extremely helpful when you are trying to figure out what your market will be. Apparently this person was browsing around their site and came across our album, listened to some of our samples, read our bio and decided to purchase a CD!

It's so strange to think that someone a world away would be interested in what your doing in your little corner of Westchester, NY... it makes the world seem a whole lot smaller.

I know it's not a huge milestone in our careers, but it is a milestone none the less and I'm gonna spend the rest of the day enjoying it.

Have a great weekend!

Mood:  spacey
Hey,

I'm very tired this Tuesday morning, but I really want to get in the habit of posting something new on this everyday (OK almost). I'm sure I'm not the only one in the world that partied too much on a holiday weekend. Because of where I live in Croton-on-Hudson I'm lucky enough to be across the street from 2 of my favorite bars, so it's not like driving is an issue for me... just standing. Once I can't stand anymore it's time for me to go home, and so far I've always made it back.

On Saturday night after my first favorite Croton bar closed (Justin Thyme Cafe), I took the short walk to my 2nd favorite Croton bar (actually after 2pm it's my favorite because it's open) The Grand Stand. Whilst holding up the jukebox with my forehead I made an amazing discovery... "Eight Hit Wonders!" the soon to be huge album by that going nowhere 70's band "The A.M. Band" is on the jukebox! Of course I pumped some quarters in figuring I'd sit back and wait for some reaction from the crowd... and I sat... had a beer... sat a bit more... had another beer... after about 15 AC/DC songs I had come to conclusion that "Here Comes Melanie" or whatever tune I played was not coming on before I went home or passed out. Not wanting to be known as the type of guy that can't walk home from The Grand Stand, I made the choice to leave before they closed. Sad moment because after waiting for 42 years I didn't get a chance to hear one of my songs played on a jukebox, but a wise move because I was able to get up at a reasonable hour the next day and function.

The only moral I can extract from this evening is "get to the Grand Stand earlier next time and bring some quarters". I know it's not worthy of Confusious and would make a lousy fortune cookie, but it's all I got and I plan to live by it. I would also ask that if you are in the Grand Stand with a pocket full of quarters, take a trip to their jukebox and play one of our tunes... you'll make this bald man very happy.

Now Playing: Album Credits
OK, today's topic is...

I've had a bunch of people ask about a few of the people listed in the "Thanks" credits. We were trying to give "props" to people that have influenced the band, our look, our original tunes, etc. Obviously David Cassidy and Cousin Brucie are pretty well known so I don't need to tell you who they are, but their are a few people and a band listed that some of you might not recognize, Edison Lighthouse, Tony Burrows, Stuart Edwards & Dave Taylor.

Edison Lighthouse recorded what I consider the greatest one hit wonder of the 70's "Love Grows (Where My Rosemary Goes)" and also one of my favorite songs 'til this day. Stuart Edwards & Dave Taylor played guitar and bass in Edison Lighthouse. They live in England and have just recently started playing together again as Edison Lighthouse. Stuart E. and I email each other occasionally and he really enjoyed the "Eight Hit Wonders!". They are considering having the authors of "Love Grows..." pen a new tune for them to record.

Tony Burrows has been a bit of a hero to me. Though he sang "Love Grows...", he never toured with Edison Lighthouse, he preferred to remain a studio singer. There were many early 70's tunes that I loved as a kid, but a few always stood out. They were:

Love Grows/Edison Lighthouse (Obviously)
My Baby Loves Love/White Plains
Beach Baby/First Class
United We Stand/Brotherhood of Man
Gimme Dat Ding/The Pipkins

It wasn't until I began The A.M. Band and started to do some research on the songs of that era that I found out that Tony Burrows was the singer on all of these songs, as well as the "I'd Like To Buy The World A Coke" T.V. commercial! He never officially joined any of these bands, but still his voice is known to millions!

Tony doesn't have a website and there isn't a whole lot of info available on him. One helpful site is:
The Voice Of Tony Burrows
This site is run by Hiroshi Asada of Japan. I sent Hiroshi a copy of "Eight Hit Wonders!" as thanks for the great site and he really enjoyed it. If you want to learn more about Tony, check Hiroshi's site out.

That's all I have to write about today... I'm very anxious for everyone to check out the updated website, I'll announce it on Monday.

Now Playing: The Selling of "Eight Hit Wonders!"
Good Morning Gang!

I realize as I'm typing this that most of you don't know this new feature has been added to our website. In my last email I mentioned that I was "gigless" for a few weeks so you would get a break from the emails... since I don't want to break my promise, I guess you can read these posts next week when I let everyone know about the updating of the website.

This morning (and most mornings since the release of our CD) I am busy trying to think of new ways to get the album "out there". Yesterday I added a feature to our site that would allow people to buy the album directly from our website with a credit card or PayPal...

Today I signed The A.M. Band up with "CD Baby", the world largest independent online record distributor. They will provide us with a website dedicated to "Eight Hit Wonders!" that includes song samples, bios, and provides us with a means to reach a much larger audience than we're reaching now.

It's quite possible that it will not be the best outlet for us, but we figure we have nothing to loose and perhaps we'll find some new fans in the process. Check out www.cdbaby.com. If you already own the album, CDBaby gives you a place where you can write your own review. The site should be up and running sometime next week.

More useless chatter to come...

Mood:  celebratory
Now Playing: Welcome
Hey All,

All I've been hearing for the last month is "blog" this and "blog" that and to be honest, until this morning I had no idea what the hell a "blog" was... now I do.

WELCOME TO THE A.M. BAND BLOG!

This is the place to get up to the minute information about the band and it's members... It's basically a place for me to sound off more often than I already do. The good news is that here you can sound off too... tell me I'm on the money, tell me I'm full of sh*t... whatever. Let's all just try to keep a little clean so I don't have to do any extra work editing.

HERE WE GO!