A Nashville review on the Mac Davis, Jeffrey Steele, Chuck Cannon and David Pack show. Whew hoo! What a party! Ok, ok I know that there were some great rounds to go to in Nashville, but the one that I choose to go to was brought to you by TIN PAN SOUTH’S own….NSAI (Nashville’s Songwriter’s Association International) at THIRD AND LINDSLEY. We were there to see the Mac Davis/Jeffrey Steele/Chuck Cannon/David Pack songwriters showcase. My new NSAI songwriting friends and I stood in the TPS pass line and we anxiously waited for the first show to clear out. Our line started moving and we were reminiscing about our favorite Mac Davis songs…just the fact that Jeffrey Steele,Chuck Cannon and David Pack from Ambrosia would be kickin’ out their hits too was a major buzz! Once inside… past all of the “reserved seats” for NSAI staffers, Gibson Guitars and friends we took a seat stage left, ordered our drinks, someone said something funny about a shirt I was wearing and all of us being songwriters at our table, before the start of the show were so inspired to start a 4-way co-write. A drink was spilled on our table and the bartender had givin me a stack of napkins and thus started a very unplanned review of one of the best “rounds” I have ever rocked out with… ever! The show rocked, rolled (once Chuck Cannon nearly rolled off his seat with laughter from a comment that Mac had made…ok well there was a lot of humorous banter going back and forth on stage…there were jokes jokes and more jokes that flailed around to all in the “hot seats“…ah but the music…not to sound cheesy, but yes Mac…”I Believe in Music” and for the filled to the capacity…standing room only THIRD and LINDSLEY crowd we were entertained and all believed in the music that provided the very electrifying night! Chuck Cannon kicked off the show with his Toby Keith hit “We were in love” and just to tell ya how cool Nashville is at TPS time Chuck’s co-writer on this song Allen Shamblin was down the road playing at another round. When Chuck got through with his song He let out a deep sigh “I think this is one of the coolest things ever…man and he called Mac his hero. Mac turned out a real “rib tickler” in true Mac Davis form he sang a song “like a bat outta hell… “Here I come back from the dead” He said if he ever needed to make a comeback that’s what the song would’ve been…I say, you can’t come back if you never really left Mac…You still rock! Then Jeffrey Steele erupted the crowd with one of his many Montgomery Gentry hits “Help Somebody” and then…it was David Pack’s turn of the harmonizing mystifying band from the 70’s “Ambrosia” fame he said he felt like the “black sheep of the family” cuz he was behind the keyboards and from the stage you heard one of the other players say “but we loved him tearin’ up the stage singing …and you’re the “Baaaaaaaaaaaaad Sheep!” He may of said he felt like the “black sheep” but he traded off songs in this round like nobody’s business…his voice is incredible! More jokes ensued as if you were watching “the Blue collar comedy team” only in musical format! Mac busted through with a slow cool ballad that touched the crowd and me…ok I‘ll admit it as a teen- ager in the 70‘s I would hole up in my room alone and sit amongst the pops and clicks of my Kenwood stereo listening to Mac Davis albums! Then Mr. Jeffrey Steele hit us with a freshly penned tongue n cheek groove about a Drunk Girl (he’s just such a lean mean writin’ machine these days!(oh whoops wasn’t that the title for the JS/co-writin’ Rascal Flats hit?) He’s everywhere…but on this particular night myself and a standing room only crowd were amongst the lucky in Nashville to experience this rare occurrence all of this under one very rockin’ roof located at the 3rd and Lindsley Bar and Grill. Mac even shared with us his very first song he ever wrote… which was a touching little song ”I Like You” then he made the crowd laugh and sing along on the chorus of that extremely “humbling” song from the 70’s “OOOOOOOOh Lord it’s hard to be humble…! Then Mr. JS unleashed his Larger than life Montgomery Gentry hit “Gone” crowd participation ensued! Then David Pack played us all a song on guitar that he was embarrassed to bring to his band…but what a smash hit it became…the whole crowd was singing along… the song…”How Much I Feel” Then Chuck shared a new song with us from his new cd. Mac’s turn…Lubbock In The Rearview Mirror ahhh, then JS takes us back to his younger years and let’s loose with his emotional story song “20 Years Ago“. I had to take a potty break and wait in line so I missed the last couple songs…then I heard a guy and girl outside of the bathroom door arguing over which version of Mac Davis’ “In the Ghetto” was better…Elvis’ or Mac’s! I came out grooved on some more songs… JS started to play a familiar Led Zepp tune and we heard a little voice from the audience stage right yell something out… and we were all treated to an impromtu duet of “Something in the Water” by the vocal stylings of a cute little blonde “firecracker” named Becka Bramlett (her daddy Delaney Bramlett and Mac Davis were stage sharing,song writing partners from “back in the day” and probably still are!) Then David Pack “raised the roof” with his Angelically Male falsetto voice when he reached the chorus of “Make a Wish Baby” Then Chuck kept the emotional train running with his Victoria Shaw co-written “I Love the Way You Love Me” recorded by John Michael Montgomery, to which Mac puts his hand under his shirt and pats his heart! Then Mac jokes about his T.V.show back in the 1970’s where he used to make up silly songs on the spot from the audience suggestions…and he played a few of his favorites….and then he hit us with “the Motherload” the song that put Mac over the top…the song that to this day still hooks us in and keeps us coming back for more….”Baby Don’t Get Hooked on Me” after he let us have it for old times sake with that one…the other players in the “show-down of songwriters” kinda just threw up their arms in defeat! Chuck Cannon picked up a yellow piece of paper with the set list on it and just started pickin’ songs for Mac to play! I still get chills thinking’ back on the whole evening, it was both inspirational for all of the songwriters in the room attending this very cool performance as well as just a fun time hangin’ out with Mad Mac and his Rockin’ rowdy Rebel friends! Thanx Ya’ll for the memories!

by KK Ryder

Tags: Allen Shamblin, Ambrosia, chuck cannon, David Pack, Jeffrey Steele, K.K. Ryder, Mac Davis, Montgomery Gentry, Nashville’s Songwriter’s Association International, NSAI, rocktheblues, Toby Keith

What do ya do if your Daddy is a Pentecostal preacher when you’re just a young boy in the church pew? You capture some of those Bible stories in your soul, listen to the Beatles and Johnny Cash turn to your rebel side…you grow up ,write songs for some pretty huge Country Stars, get awards and go in the studio to record your own CD’S co-written by yourself and your co-writing buddies! CHUCK CANNON LOVE AND MONEY is Chuck Cannon’s Follow up to GOD SHAPED HOLE which was a true to life brilliant creation in it’s own right, from the eye catching and thought provoking cover with the slightly tilted cross as if God Himself were scoping out what all His little Children were up to on this big blue marble called Earth, to the songs inside, that were also thought provoking and very truthful lyrics all rockin’ in their own special way. I highly recommend that CD and you will find more of my comments on itunes soon about GOD SHAPED HOLE, however, this review is about Cannon’s follow up, CHUCK CANNON LOVE AND MONEY appropriately titled. Cannon reveals both sides the Rebel and the God Lovin’ Soul searching songwriter with in him telling stories about…you guessed it LOVE AND MONEY!
A lot of this CD gave me those comforting goose bumps from the song choices to the detailed painting of the lyrics, not too mention every song relaxes nicely through and through with Cannon’s deep sexy and rich voice and shining, ribboning through are some pretty tasty backing vocals!
LOVE AND MONEY starts out with a short suspenseful instrumental that readies the listener for what is to come! Cannon makes sure to give it to you straight on two very different points of view songs about the Devil, and two of my very favorites were “swamp” rockers that immediately get your blood pumping called BET YO MAMA and the CHUCK JONES/CANNON co-write STRANGE (check out the you tube on STRANGE and you can read my comments and see Chuck rockin’ out acoustic style) the lyrics are tounge in cheek entertaining and the music is a great rocking match on both of them.
Cannon reveals a taste of his crooning sexier softer side on OUTTA THIS TOWN (co-written by MAC DAVIS and JEFFREY STEELE, LOVE ON YOU and also BEAUTIFUL GIRL which he penned with co-producer LARI WHITE. One song that you truly have to experience for yourself that made my goose bumps jump for joy was OH MY LORD and when you hear this song in its entirety you will understand why.
I love this CD and enjoy crusin down the road getting a little bit of life’s lesson’s along the way on LOVE AND MONEY CHUCK CANNON STYLE… way to go Chuck you have done it again two thumbs rockin way up high and a Ha-lay-lu ya to match here is the link to download these songs and read a bit more on CHUCK CANNON http://cdbaby.com/cd/chuckcannon2
cd review by KK Ryder http://kkryderentertainmentreviews.wordpress.com/

Tags: chuck cannon, chuck cannon kkryder rock the blues rocktheblues.com, K.K. Ryder, kkryder, Love and Money, Rock The Blues, rocktheblues.com, Ryder