Transcription of Sam Chase for the show Music Mastery #187
Dr. Lisa: People who are familiar with the Maine and in fact I’ll say Northeast North England music scene are becoming increasingly familiar with Sam Chase. I know Sam Chase because he happens to be the fiance of the managing editor of Maine Magazine, Kelly Clinton.
Sam is a guitarist, drummer, and award winning singer/songwriter originally from the South Shore of Massachusetts who’s now based in Portland. Who is now based in Portland. He was named top songwriter at the 2010 Connecticut Folk Festival and is currently working on his 3rd studio album.
He shared the stage with some of the finest artist in the genre, including Mark Cone, John Gorka, Laurie McKenna, Alice Paul, and Jonathan Edwards. He’ll be performing once again at this year Kennebunkport Festival on June 8. It’s so great to have you here today.
Sam: Thanks Lisa. Excited to be here.
Dr. Lisa: The last time I heard you perform you were at the art gallery right across the street here. We were celebrating a different sort of art. Your genre though your art is music.
Sam: Yeah, I got an acoustic guitar, kind of mixed up with some blues, and folk, and country, and rooty kind of thing. It’s a big kind of mixture of a lot of the influences and artist that I like. Like acoustic bass.
Dr. Lisa: You grow up in the South Shore of Massachusetts.
Sam: Yup in a town called Scituate. You would know about Scituate because it’s always on the news, anytime there’s a major storm. I was surprised you may have seen my house. Because the house I grew up in is right on the beach in minute. Every time there’s a nor’easter or hurricane they always show the waves crashing in houses, and like devastation.
It’s funny growing up, we used to just watch the … Our house is sort of the only house would setback a little bit from the water. We sit in the porch and you just watch the water, the ocean like roll through the yard. It could be scary for someone who didn’t know what was going on.
For us we’re so used to it, that you just know that the ocean would go through the yard, and wouldn’t touch the house. That’s Scituate. It’s a beautiful town, but during the storm it’s always like the place to be for the news people.
Dr. Lisa: That’s intense.
Sam: It is, it is. It’s fun though, it’s makes for interesting storm days. I don’t think my dad likes the fact he has to get rid of the rocks every year.
Dr. Lisa: How did you get interested in music?
Sam: I always been interested in music I definitely come from a musical family like my parents used to sing at different events. It was either like a Christmas eve mass or something or friends party or something like that. My brother he’s also a big influence for me. He was 9 years older than me.
He played music, he went to Berkeley, my uncle is a guitar player. He went to Berkeley back in the ’70s. I just … I had the bug early. I wanted to play drum so bad, I just would bang on.
I couldn’t wait to get my first drum set. A lot of my siblings, I’m the youngest of 5 kids and everyone took piano lessons. I took piano lessons starting at 8 and gotten into the drums when I was around 10. Kind of follow with my brother’s footsteps when I was about 12 with guitar. I love music, always wanted to do it, always have the bug.
Dr. Lisa: I’m thinking about having … Come from a family of 10. I can’t imagine having a child in my family who wanted to be a drummer so badly, that they were running around banging on things on purpose. I wonder how your mom felt about that.
Sam: To have a drummer as a child you have to have a room for the drums. That’s kind of step number 1. We had the 3rd floor, and my dad like soundproof that baby up, and you could still hear it. At least it was a place for me to go and not be in people’s faces, when I’m banging on the cymbals and making loud noises up there.
It’s cool though my parents have always been super supported of me, as musician. I also playing a band with my parents. It’s me, my parents, my brother. We have our bass player, that plays with both man and a 3 piece horn section.
Not every kid wants to necessarily hang out with their parents. I actually play the band with my parents. They’ve … They’re big supporter of me, and we’ve always had a really close relationships. It’s actually fun to be able to sing and harmonized and play music with your parents too.
Dr. Lisa: I love that, I think about when I’m in the car with my daughters, and we’re singing because they sing, and I sing. We’re harmonizing and it’s just very informal but it’s such a great to be able to like do that. I don’t know there’s something about that, that’s really special.
Sam: Music is not just meant to be like make money at. I do it as for a living, it’s like this therapeutic fun way of communicating. In addition to playing music, I teach a lot of music lessons. It’s like you try to get through the kids, at different ways.
Sometimes kids pickup, they have a natural talent, other times kids struggle with that mechanically rhythm. They don’t have that rhythm thing. You got to try to like find it for them and sometimes it takes a long time, and sometimes people don’t last. Other times it’s like you get through the certain people, all of the sudden you see that person that come in the next pick and they’ve learned something completely on their own.
Now you know that they have that … On a little light went off or something and they have that bug now. That to me is cool, because I always have that. To try to get somebody else to experience that, I think that’s fun.
Dr. Lisa: Yeah, that’s pretty great. I think about … Often people say to me, “Well I’m not artistic. I can’t do art. I’m not … I’m not good with languages so I can’t speak French, or I’m not good with math.” I always enjoy thinking about well maybe your brain isn’t naturally inclined that way, but maybe there’s a natural inclination of your brain that will help you understand art, music, math in a new way.
The way that you’re talking about trying to get through to somebody’s brain, kind of like taking an in run.
Sam: Yeah, I mean … because music is … Can be a bunch of different things, you know what I mean? For me I based it on the instruments that I play, it would be piano, guitar, drums, any kind of percussion. I always tell people if they’re going to start taking music, or if they’re going to … they’re trying to figure out what to play first.
Always I’m okay, play piano because piano is like this fundamental instrument and who doesn’t like sitting around the piano singing songs at a party. I mean it’s like always when somebody is like at that moment, they’re like, “I wish I kept playing piano.” It’s just like people love that like sing along, like fun experience. To be able to have that, to be able to connect with people through a song is … It’s a unique experience I think.
I can’t speak for painters and artist of that kind, because I don’t do that. I imagine that there’s some kind of connection with an audience too. More probably through their own experience of like actually making that creating the art.
Male: There was a time when the “apothecary” was a place where you could get safe, reliable medicines, carefully prepared by experienced professionals, coupled with care and attention focused on you and your unique health concerns. Apothecary by Design is built around the forgotten notion that you don’t just need your prescriptions filled, you need attention, advice and individuale care. Visit their website apothecarybydesign.com. Or drop by the store at 84 Marginal Way in Portland and experience Pharmacy care the way it was meant to be.
Experience chef and owner Harding Lee Smith newest hit restaurant, Boone’s Fish House & Oyster Room. Maine’s seafood at its finest. Joining sister restaurant the front room, the grill room, and the corner room. This newly renovated 2 story restaurant at 86 commercial street on Custom House Wharf over Luxonic Portland Harbor.
Watch lobster man bring in the daily catch, as you enjoy baked stuffed lobster, raw bar, and wood fired flat breads. For more information visit www.theroomsportland.com.
Dr. Lisa: I’m sitting here. I just have so many thoughts that are running through my mind because you’re right. If you’re playing music with someone, and you’re actually with someone, then there’s something very present about that. If you are doing art the way it’s appreciated it’s just different.
It’s not quite the same as not like you’re sitting there watching the person pain.
Sam: Right, although that be kind of cool, although I don’t know how long that would take.
Dr. Lisa: That’s true. I do think you hit on something which is this appreciation that really anyone can have for music that it doesn’t, we don’t have to all go, you went to Berkeley. We don’t all have to go to Berkeley to have an appreciation for music.
We can sing in the shower, we can go to mass, we can go to a pub and listen to a band. I mean we can really listen to it in whatever way make sense for us.
Sam: Absolutely. I think a lot of people think that music is what we hear on the Grammy’s or maybe what we hear on the radio or this little kind of 1% of the music business thing, that’s music. There’s really a giant amount of music out there specially locally.
I come from playing a lot of … I like to … I’ve met a lot of local musicians both in Maine and in Massachusetts that they do what I do. They play the pubs, they play a few nice gigs that open for a good artist or something like that. They have a really good show and then they’re back playing some pub or some bar again the next night. You’re doing your thing.
I think if people take a little bit more time to look … Go and see something local. Go see what your local scene has to offer. There’s so many like talented people and songwriters, and people that are working on their craft, that’s their only outlet right now.
That doesn’t mean that they’re not worthy of being heard kind of a thing. I like trying to get the word out, go see who’s playing at your local spots or whatever.
Dr. Lisa: I’d like to hear what you are going to play for us right now. It sounds like maybe you can temp some people where when to listen to your song to come out and listen to you play in the Portland area, or even maybe other parts of the Northeast because I know that you’re out and about quite a lot. What are you going to play for us?
Sam: I figure that I would do like the one song I have written so far that has to do with Maine. We’re on the Maine show here, this is a song I wrote recently it’s called Pine Street which just so happens to be the Pine Street over in the West End.
I read a lot of love songs, I kind of write what I feel. There might be a certain place, or a certain spot, or a certain word that kind of like jumps into my head, and I tend to just think of a story that I’ve experienced or something like that.
Pine Street is sort of a love strong about falling in love in Maine and never wanting that to end. Wanting, I guess wanted to relive that love all over again.
[music 44:23]
Dr. Lisa: Sam that was really great, as I was listening it was … It’s this interesting thing that always happens with me, and probably it happens with a lots of people. There’s like a bypass, you’re not intellectualizing what’s going on, you’re just listening to the music.
There’s something that is very … it just made me happy, the song made me really happy.
Sam: I’m glad, I think … I guess we just kind of exchange off the air here. It’s like you could tell that I was feeling happy or whatever, sort of exchange through my body language maybe. For me I’m … When I sing and perform my own songs. I mean I write what I feel.
It’s probably natural that it comes across the way I guess just because it’s me expressing. It’s probably me and my most vulnerable sensitive state. Just because like I have a hard time writing about objects like an apple. Making art, making an apple like a lyrical song about that, or something, you know what I mean?
I find it amazing, I mean there are songwriters that can just write about anything and they write really good songs and I kind of wish I could do that. Maybe I just wish I had the patience to do that. For me it’s always just easier for just like something that I feel or think about and I’m sort of in my element when I’m performing my songs I guess.
Dr. Lisa: Kelly Clinton whose one of the producers for the radio show, and also now the managing editor for Maine Magazine. She moved up here about 15 months ago or so. At that time, you had to shift with her. You were both based in Massachusetts and she decided to come up here and take this job, and great opportunity for her.
You have to make that shift too. What was that like to leave a place that you are familiar with in the music scene that you are a familiar with, to try to build a new life in Portland.
Sam: Well it was both frightening and exciting at the same time. I mean Kelly and I have always … My lovely fiancé Kelly, and I have always talked about try to live somewhere else. Kelly is the adventure type. I’m sort of the practical like, “Wait, I have a job.”
She gets me out of my shell a little bit which is great. For me, I’ve been teaching and performing and have my whole … I have a really, pretty extensive network of students and gigs in Massachusetts it’s where my family is, and where my brother plays and blah, blah, blah all that stuff.
Coming to a new place was kind of scary for me, because I have to basically start over. But Kel, Kel was basically starting her career, and she has supported me doing my thing and I would definitely support her doing her job. For me we weren’t moving too far away, I could sort of sustain the message, the commute to Massachusetts thing until I’m able to be up here full time.
For me, it’s we’re young, and it’s a chance for us to meet new people and experience new place and that can only be good for a songwriter. It’s been definitely an adventure, and we’re settling into Maine. I love living in Maine, Portland has exceeded my expectations. I have been to Portland one time before moving here.
That was for like Mumford & Sons concert on the Easter Prom. I literally came here, and went to the Eastern Prom, and then I left. I really didn’t even know that like the rest of it existed. Getting to live here has been definitely a joy for me.
Dr. Lisa: My daughter [Abbie 51:23] was at that concert. It’s funny the number of intersections that occurred are result of music. The number of …
Sam: I wish they would do more. That was such a cool show. It was such like a unique show too. I mean they did the whole festival, long day festival and that’s setting. The backdrop of the bay, behind the stage is just like crazy. That was a lot of fun.
Dr. Lisa: We’ll put that intention out there into the universe and see what happens as a result of you saying that.
Sam: Yeah I mean it’s going to be the right person. I mean it really has to be the right act. I don’t think like, “I don’t know if you want …” I don’t know … You don’t want the wrong band there. You might upset some people. I thought they were a good fit.
Dr. Lisa: I agree.
Sam: Then again they did have like the Dropkick Murphy’s play that day too. They had quite of mixture of [inaudible 00:42:12]
Dr. Lisa: Actually aren’t the Dropkick Murphy don’t they have a Red Sox connection like a Massachusetts connection?
Sam: Yeah, they’re like the unofficial band of the Boston sports teams.
Dr. Lisa: We’re just continuing this Maine Massachusetts team that’s been around for a long time. That’s a good thing. You’re going to be playing at Kennebunkport Festival in June 8.
Sam: Yup excited to be back for that.
Dr. Lisa: Tell me about that.
Sam: I did it last year for the first time. I played at one of their parties and this year I’m playing at the opening party I supposed like the party on Monday. I got experienced the Kennebunkport Festival for the first time last year. It was really cool. I mean it’s very … The festival supports artist, chefs, musicians, it’s like this whole like conglomerative of just really good art and food music that Maine has to offer.
Especially in a setting like Kennebunkport which is so beautiful and peaceful and serene and I feel right at home, because it’s that harbor, it’s the boat sits … it reminds me of home. It was definitely, and I’ve gotten to spend a little bit of extra time at Kennebunkport and that’s … It’s definitely a cool little place to be able to have a festival that’s for sure.
Dr. Lisa: What does it like to be engaged to a person who also works with words, but works with words really from just a writing standpoint. You’re a songwriter, she’s a writer/writer and an editor. How does that collaboration or partnership or just even, well how does that work?
Sam: Anytime I need one of my bios to be edited I know who to go to. When it comes to writing a lyrics. I mean I am not a patient person. I don’t go through a draft process, I sort of I open a computer screen and I have songs they’re unfinished.
I just haven’t gotten back to them. For me, it’s like it has to like hit me in the moment until I finish it otherwise I just leave which probably would drive Kel crazy if she were the one writing it because she would probably go through draft, after draft.
As an editor you’re trained to just like try different things. I’m just … I’ve never been in a lyrical guy. For my just listening to growing up as a fan of different people. I never was … I never heard the words. I was a big Dave Matthews fan. I didn’t care about the words. I just love the music. I’m a huge Pearl Jam fan. I barely know what Eddie Vedder says half the time.
I don’t think anybody really knows half the time what he says. He’s a beautiful lyricist too, it’s only since I’ve gotten into songwriting that I’ve actually started paying attention to it and then you start to find your own voice and sort of trying to figure out what you would say, and how you want to come across. For me it’s like, if I don’t believe in the words, I can’t … I don’t want to commit to it.
I kind of just wait for it to happen and then hopefully it’s good.
Dr. Lisa: I would agree with you. I know one of the reasons that Kelly has made her work with the radio shows so successful is that she’s very much about getting things done. She’s got her checklist, she make sure the people are scheduled, and she’s great at connecting with people.
It interest me this is not the first time that I’ve heard somebody say that she’s adventuresome. That’s just an interesting thing that we can all be so complex as human beings that we can be really good at getting things done but we also can adventure and create a new life in Portland.
Sam: Absolutely, I mean with Kel, she’s traveled the world, and we’ve gone, we go to Costa Rica. It’s like one of our most, it’s one of our favorite places. Costa Rica is the most beautiful peaceful place ever. It’s like I’ve never like felt so relaxed, going there. It’s like no TV.
I bring my guitar, I just like hang out, we just sit on the beach, and being able to have someone in your life that pushes you. Pushes you a little bit to try new things, and experience new things. It’s going to be healthy. It’s like a healthy way to live I think.
Dr. Lisa: I absolutely agree. Sam I know people could listen to you at the Kennebunkport Festival on June 8. Where else can they find out about the work that you do, or the music that you play and where you’ll be playing for the community?
Sam: My website, samchasemusic.com. That’s basically where I post all my shows, any updates and news and stuff like that. Social media is really big for me just in terms of letting people know, on a more current basis, day to day basis you can find me on Facebook which is Sam Chase Music on Facebook. Those are basically the 2 mecha’s of music for me.
Dr. Lisa: I really appreciate you’re starting the day with us here. It’s been a really great experience. We’ve been speaking with Sam Chase, who’s a guitarist drummer, and award winning singer/songwriter who is originally from the South Shore of Massachusetts now making his home in Portland Maine. We really appreciate you’re being here.
Sam: I enjoyed it, thanks Lisa.
Dr. Lisa: You’ve been listening to Love Maine Radio. Show number 187. Music Mastery. Our guest have included Bob Ludwig and Sam Chase. For more information on our guest and extended interviews visit lovemaineradio.com. Love Maine radio is downloadable for free on iTunes. For a preview of each week show, sign up for our e-newsletter and like our Love Maine Radio Facebook page. Follow me on Twitter and see my running travel, food and wellness photos as bountiful one, on Instagram.
We love to hear from you, so please let us know what do you think of Love Maine Radio. We welcome your suggestions for future shows. Also let our sponsors know that you heard about them here. We are privilege that they enable us to bring Love Maine Radio to you each week. This is Dr. Lisa Belisle I hope that you have enjoyed our Music Mastery Show. Thank you for allowing me to be a part of your day. Now you have a bountiful life.
Male: Love Maine Radio is made possible with the support of the following generous sponsors. Maine Magazine, Marci Booth, of Booth Maine, Apothecary by Design, Mike LePage and Beth Franklin of RE/MAX Heritage, Harding Lee Smith of The Rooms and Bangor Savings Bank.
Love Maine Radio with Dr. Lisa Belisle is recorded in the studio of Maine Magazine at 75 Market street Portland Maine. Our executive producers are Susan Grisanti, Kevin Thomas, and Dr. Lisa Belisle. Audio production and original music by John C McCane. Content producer is Kelly Clinton and our online producer is Ezra Wolfinger. Love Maine Radio is available for download free on iTunes. Se the Love Maine Radio Facebook page or go to www.lovemaineradio.com for details.