Episode 26
The Distinctive Music of Chris Standring
In today’s episode, your host Carl Brown is joined by Chris Standring. Chris is a guitarist and composer and is one of the most successful artists on the smooth jazz scene. He has 14 CDs to his credit and he’s had 13 billboard top ten singles including 6 billboard number one hits. His music is a blend of jazz, soul, retro, pop. He has one of the most distinctive sounds out there. When you hear his guitar, you know it’s him.
Carl and Chris talk about Chris growing up on a farm and starting studying classical guitar at age six, his defining moments, cultivating his sound and style over the years, and writing.
They discuss performing again, traveling, what he’s like before going on stage, and running a record company. In the ‘Bout It or Doubt It' segment, you’ll learn more about his interest in coffee and sushi. Listen to this episode and enjoy some of his music – Change the World, How Insensitive, Shake it up.
Episode Highlights
01:37 I remember having toy guitars from age two and when I was six, I was old enough and big enough to hold a classical guitar. My parents sent me to have guitar lessons. It was very torturous as it always is but it’s a good foundation and once I started getting into rock and roll and pop music, it was a foundation that was already there. Playing the guitar and everything was just playing music.
What is it about guitar that captivated you so much?
02:24 I remember some defining moments, I remember being up in my room and my parents called me down and said “there’s this guy playing a guitar on the tv, come and check him out”. And I saw this guy playing solo guitar and it was just amazing. It turned out it was Glen Campbell, playing guitar on his own on a TV show, black and white. Totally defining moment for me. I thought, “this is amazing”.
How do you know when one of your songs is ready to be released to the world?
28:53 When I write a piece of music, I’ll write something but if it doesn’t speak to me it doesn’t get finished. When I know something’s good, it comes pretty much right away.
Tell us about running a record company
32:36 It’s intense during certain parts of the process. Once the record is done then I have to set it up for release, do marketing, radio and publicity. It seems like the to-do list never ends.
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