April 23, 2024

Living the dream with singer/songwriter Mell Schaer

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Dive into the rustic world of Mell Schaer, a San Diego-based singer-songwriter living under the ancient oaks of Campo. In this episode of 'Living the Dream with Curveball,' Mell shares the harmonious blend of life, nature, and music that fuels his creative fire. Discover how his project, Red Crown Tourists, is more than a band—it's a journey through faith, storytelling, and the rich tapestry of Americana music. Tune in as Mell reveals his upcoming album 'West of Nashville,' and how his deep-rooted influences shape the songs that he hopes will resonate through generations.

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> Speaker A>Welcome, um, to the Living the Dream podcast with curveball. Um, if you believe you can achieve Chee Chee.

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> Speaker B>Welcome to the Living the dream with Curveball podcast, a show where I interview guests that teach, motivate and inspire.

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> Speaker B>Today, I am graced with the presence of singer songwriter Mel Cher. He has created a group called Red Crown Tourists, where his plans were for all musicians who were involved to be tourists. So we're going to be talking about him, and so we're going to be talking to him about everything that he's got going on. So, meal, thank you so much for joining me today.

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> Speaker C>It's good to be here.

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> Speaker B>Why don't you start off by telling everybody a little bit about yourself?

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> Speaker C>All right. Um, I live in San Diego, California, and I live in a mountain, uh, small town called Campo, about 45 minutes out. So I live in the country, um, have chickens and dogs and goats and all kinds of other things. And, ah, it's just a great place out here.

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> Speaker C>I live under, ah, about twelve live oaks that are about 150 years old. And so it's just got a great vibe and, um, so just a fantastic place to think, uh, about song ideas and then develop them and create them. And then I go down into town with a buddy of mine named Jeff Forrest at double time studios, and he engineers and helps me produce the song ideas that I come up with out here in the country.

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> Speaker C>Um, I have, uh, three grandkids, four kids. They're all working, doing good. Grandkids are growing faster than I want them to. That's kind of the reason why I, uh, make music, is that hopefully someday my grandkids and great grandkids will be able to hear, uh, their grandfather sing about song ideas and hear my voice.

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> Speaker C>Hopefully digital holds out that long. So.

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> Speaker B>Okay, well, explain to everybody.

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> Speaker B>I know I kind of touched on it, but I'll let you do it in your own words. Explain to everybody about red crown tourists and when it was created, why it was created and what's the point of it and how it's doing.

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> Speaker C>Okay, so I'm a man of faith.

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> Speaker C>I've, uh, been a believer for, uh, probably all my life.

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> Speaker C>I think at ten years old. I acknowledge that there is a creator made a serious commitment about 40 years ago. And anyway, I was, uh, in my room, I lived in town, and, uh, I saw a thing on Bonnie and Clyde and they had gotten caught up by, uh, the law at a place called the red Crown tourist courts.

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> Speaker C>And they were little roadside motels. And I thought, man, that is cool, because being a believer. I thought, well, the Lord wore a red crown of thorns and uh, as believers were just tourists here. So that's really where the idea belonged.

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> Speaker C>And so it was a, uh, vehicle where I could write songs under, uh, that name. And uh, I just bring in musicians that I feel can add, uh, to a uh, song in a certain way.

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> Speaker C>And anybody who's ever contributed to any of the records, whether they've been a backup singer or harmonica, ah, player or a pedestal, whatever, um, I consider them part of it. And that's where the idea of they're just tourists, right? They're red crowned tourists. So that's kind of the inception, um, of it.

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> Speaker C>And as uh, time has gone on, I wrote a song called the Renegade and that was I playing country cover bands out here in San Diego. And we always play this roadhouse called the Renegade, uh, and so on hold I way 80. And so I wrote a song for the place as part of the, the other eight that were on my album and I submitted it to the San Diego Music Awards and it got nominated. The song of the Renegade got nominated for best country Americana song. And we will see the results on the 30 April.

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> Speaker C>Um, just great to be nominated and be part of the San Diego music scene. So because of that, we're starting to play my music live and I'm starting to see how it could develop into a full blown musical act. So we'll see how that goes.

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> Speaker B>So what's the genre of, uh, Red Crown tours?

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> Speaker C>Um, my first album was extremely eclectic.

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> Speaker C>If, um, if you go to my, ah, website, which is rct star.

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> Speaker C>So it's rct s t a r.

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> Speaker C>You'll see both my albums on there and the first album I produced and finished in 2016. And it's kind of all over the place. I was learning to write songs.

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> Speaker C>Um, of course I listen to it now and I'm like, man, I would love to re record that album because, you know, you get better over time and then you hear when you listen back on your older stuff, you're like, hmm, mhm. I don't play like that anymore. I play a little bit better.

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> Speaker C>So, um, that one's real eclectic. But this next one, because I play in country cover bands and I'm always in the roadhouses around town, la and Arizona, things like that. I've um, kind of bent towards the whole country idea, but, um, I'm not really a three chord and the truth person, um, I like to use, I have access to all seven chords in a key and I try to use as many of those as I can without, um, doing it, just to do it, um, because each chord creates a mood and it has a relationship to another one. And so as these ideas are developing, I'll, I'll pick a chord, you know, a minor or major, whatever, if anybody understands that. And I've even used a diminished chord in one of my songs on my album called stay on the phone. Uh, the bridge is a, uh, diminished chord because those are very hard to find a place for.

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> Speaker C>So I would say the short story of the long story I just told is I would classify myself right now as more country, americana, but I'm also a rocker. You know, I, I love good hard rock and roll and really just all forms of music because everything's, everything's got an idea, you know, as far as where it came from, the traditions that our american music came from, uh, it's all really based off of blues. Uh, and of course, blues led into rock and a jazz, and so it's all kind of the same thing. So, uh, the poison I picked, so to speak, was kind of country in Americana right now. So who knows what happens in the future? Maybe something different.

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> Speaker B>So, well, who are some of your biggest musical influences, who has influenced you throughout the years to do what you do?

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> Speaker C>Oh, cool. I am so glad you asked that question. Um, when I was younger, uh, when I was five, loved the Beatles and the Rolling Stones as a five year old. Cause I had older brothers and all that music was coming into the house. So I remember singing eight days a week and I can't get no satisfaction just playing around on the picnic table in the backyard. And then when I started listening to music, m my mom, my dad had, he was a navy guy out here in San Diego and they retired and they moved to Norman, Oklahoma. So I lived in the country out there against my will than I may do. Um, I was really into Stephen Stills, Crosby, Stills and Nash.

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> Speaker C>Um, oh gosh, those were the main two out there. And Leonard Skynyrd.

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> Speaker C>When I was twelve years old, we lived here in San Diego because we moved back and forth quite a bit. Fort Worth back to San Diego. San Diego is one of those towns you can leave, you can move, but you can't leave. You always tend to come back. It's just a great place.

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> Speaker C>When I was twelve, we lived out here. My brother knew a dj and so he was always bringing home albums that the DJ, you know, would cut the corner and didn't need it anymore. And I remember at twelve, I used to sneak into his room and play records when he was gone. And I remember playing that Leonard Skynyrd album. And, um, I discovered freebird before second helping came out, sweet home Alabama. So I was like the first kid on the block that even knew what free bird was. And I've been an avid Skynyrd fan my whole life. Uh, and in fact, in 2015, the actual drummer for Leonard Skynyrd, Artemus Pyle. Uh, I was in a Leonard Skynyrd tribute band out here in San Diego. We invited him out and he actually came out and sat in with us for three shows. So as a kid, being a Leonard Skynyrd fan, and then I'm primarily a bass player. Being able to play with my childhood hero was, uh, that was kind of the crowning point of music. So Skynyrd was big.

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> Speaker C>Also Bob Dylan quite a bit.

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> Speaker C>Um, I love John Hyatt and, uh, Lucinda Williams. Those are phenomenal songwriters. And I kind of write like them. I'm not really writing to turn, um, on the public. I just write the songs. And if people like them, great. And if they don't, that's okay, too. So when I sit down to write, I'm not really thinking about three minutes and 20 seconds for radio format. You know, I just write the story and, ah, sometimes it comes out to be four minutes.

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> Speaker C>The renegade was actually two minutes and 38 seconds.

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> Speaker C>I just wrote another song. Ah, it was actually. It's actually at three minutes and 20 seconds. But I don't think about the time. I just make sure I get the story in, um, Frank Zappa.

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> Speaker C>I was an avid Frank Zappa fan in college, and I would say my favorite all time band is tears for fears. I just love, uh, what they do.

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> Speaker C>And, um, my favorite tears for fears album is Raul and the kings of Spain, because, uh, Gail Dorsey, I believe her name is, played bass on that. And she's my favorite, uh, bass player. Uh, and my two favorite bass players would be, uh, gay Landorsi and then also Leon Wilkson from, uh, Leonard Skynyrd, because both of them were very creative as to what they did on the bass. So I would say those are my primary influences. And of course, I have other bands and things that I'll listen to from time to time.

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> Speaker C>But, um, that's kind of what's formed who I am as a musician.

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> Speaker B>Okay, well, tell us about any upcoming projects or current projects that you're working on that people need to know about and, you know, maybe what influenced it and what's driving that.

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> Speaker C>Okay, so I've got a. I'm trying.

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> Speaker C>I'm shooting for November to December to put out my third album. Um, I typically. I like to put out a nine song album.

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> Speaker C>I mean, albums is kind of old school, but I'm old school, you know, I kind of do it the same way, and then I'll single them out. I usually try to shoot a video to a song I want to put out there because people are more prone to watch a video than just listen to a song.

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> Speaker C>So the project I've got coming up is called west of Nashville. I have recorded in Nashville. I went back there. I'm in a. In a, uh, part of another band called Southern Rain. And we're an original band. When we.

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> Speaker C>When Artemis Pyle, the drummer for Skynyrd, brought his band, Artemis Pyle band out here in, uh, 2018, I believe it was, we, uh, opened for them at a place called the Cave in Big Bear. And the bass player, Dave Fowler, who lives in Nashville, he's actually a producer, works with a guy named Kent Wells. And Kent Wells is Dolly Parton's producer, from what I understand. I don't know that for a fact, but that's what Dave always tells me. Uh, Dave, when we opened for them, thought our music was pretty cool, and so he invited us back and we got to go back to music Row. And we recorded at a place called Ragtime Studios there. And with a guy, I think the engineer was Kelly, uh, Schoenfeld. So he actually did the recording, and Dave produced that, and we did about three of our songs. So that was a bucket list, being able to record on Music Row and peeing in Nashville. But the album is called west of Nashville that I'm coming up with because, you know, I'm a 63 year old man, and I doubt I'll ever be able to be invited to the party there in a place like Nashville. It's a ten year town and I'm running out of time, but I can do out here in San Diego what I could do back there. And, um, so I just do my thing and, you know, see how many songs I've got. I've got a goal of writing about writing and recording about 120 songs before I check out of this whole world. So I'm busy trying to accomplish that goal. So this next album coming out is west of Nashville. I'm planning on twelve songs. I'm at eight right now, so I've got four more to go.

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> Speaker C>And, um, if I get there, great. If not, I'll put out what I have. So that's what this year is. Uh, looking like, as far as that goes.

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> Speaker B>Okay, so your website is rct star.com?

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> Speaker C>Yes, sir.

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> Speaker B>Okay, we'll close this out with some final thoughts. Maybe if that was something I forgot to talk about that you would like to touch on or just any final thoughts you have for the listeners?

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> Speaker C>Yeah, I did a website. I have a lot of social media. You can find me, uh, as Red Crown tourist on, uh, Facebook.

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> Speaker C>I'm on Instagram too. But primarily, um, I put everything out through a website. And, uh, that's where I store, uh, all my music, so to speak.

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> Speaker C>And, um, you can buy the albums there or songs there, individual songs if you'd like.

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> Speaker C>Also, uh, I use a distribution place called Distrokid, and they put it out everywhere. Um, it's on iTunes. Uh, the cheapest place to get the album is on iTunes. And, um, I like the compression that they did on the songs. They just seem to play a lot better through my headphones and my iPhone.

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> Speaker C>So, um, if anybody's interested in buying a song or an album, uh, those are a couple places that they can do that, so.

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> Speaker B>All right, ladies and gentlemen, Mel bear up the band red Crown tourists. Rct star.com. Please be sure to check out their music follow rate review share this episode to anybody who loves their style of music. If you have any guests or suggestion topics, see Jackson 102 is the place to send them. As always, thank you for listening and supporting the show. And when you get into your favorite podcast out, but be sure to tap that follow button and like it and all that good stuff. Mel, thank you so much for joining me today.

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> Speaker C>Thank you for having me and enjoy Kansas.

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> Speaker A>For more information on the living the Dream podcast, visit www.djcurvefball.com.

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> Speaker A>Until next time, stay focused on living the dream.

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> Speaker B>Dream.