Alan Craig is a musician, songwriter and producer who has been playing and writing music nearly his entire life. While he leans toward Rock, he has a keen appreciation for many other styles of music. Alan was raised overseas and lived primarily in Asia and South America until he went back to the States to attend college (which might explain his eclectic taste in music). He currently resides in the Tampa Bay area where he has been performing in bands for many years as a bass and guitar player. Lotus, the St. Pete Mountain Boys and Full House (which later became the Charlie Morris Band) are some of the bands he played in. During that time he had the opportunity to hook up with some amazing musicians as well as participate in several recording projects, a couple of these he either produced or co-produced including Love Is Today (2009), Al's Pals (2008), and The St. Pete Mountain Boys (2002). He was also Executive Producer of the debut release by Tampa's Own SoupBone (Coming Soon).
His latest project, Not Black & White, has finally been released after a couple of years in the making. It is essentially a Rock, Blues and Fusion album featuring a mix of instrumental and lyrical tunes loaded with sax, guitar and keyboard solos. Once again, the level of musicianship is top-notch given the very talented players who participated in the project. The primary lineup includes Ross Rice (keyboards), George Harris (guitars) and Dave Reinhardt (drums & percussion). These guys have performed collectively with the likes of Peter Frampton, Brian Johnson, Ron Wood, Joe Walsh, Rick Derringer, Robin Zander, Don Felder, Buck Dharma, Joe Lynn Turner, Donald “Duck” Dunn, Steve Cropper, Adrian Belew, Mark Farner, Richard Elliot and many others. Other musicians on the CD include Kyle Rohde, Rob McDowell, Charlie Morris, Devin Rice, T.C. Carr, Ronnie Dee and Rob Stoney, all outstanding players in their own right. Two of the songs written for this album, Had My Jam and The Voo, spawned alternate versions that are featured on the latest projects by Tampa's Own SoupBone and New York-based Voodelic, respectively.
His previous release, Love Is Today, was truly a labor of love. It was inspired by the loss of a dear friend, Tom Pleasants, who succumbed to cancer in 2007. Alan teamed up with long-time friend and lyricist, Mike Thornburgh, to write a song in memory of Tom and a new album ensued. It is difficult to categorize this CD since each of the tunes draw from such different musical styles. It is basically a Rock album with some Reggae, Country, Tropical and Blues elements as well. What is constant, however, is the level of musicianship given the amazing ensemble of players who were involved in the project. The main lineup features Ross Rice (keyboards and vocals), George Harris (lead and rhythm guitars) and Dave Reinhardt (drums & percussion). Other musicians on the project include David Bawel, Kyle Rohde, Rob McDowell, Devin Rice, Charlie Morris, Todd Bowman, Ronnie Dee, T.C. Carr and Steve Middents.
Both albums are available online at CD Baby , Amazon and all the other major retail music sites.
Alan is putting the finishing touches on his next album, A Day Late.... This CD promises to have a little more edge to it than the first two albums and includes many of the same musicians who were involved with the prior projects. It will also feature some surprise recording artists who graciously lent their talents to some of the new tunes. Some of the preliminary mixes will be rotated here as well as on My Space until the CD is officially released. Stay tuned as more information becomes available about this exciting project.
