Marcus Eaton "Story of Now"

[Fluffy]

Not sure if you guys have heard of Marcus Eaton. He has been doing alot of solo TouRing opening for Tim Reynolds. He and TR have become fast friends and TR is a big fan of Marcus'. In fact, whenever they play a show together TR always brings Marcus out for the encore and they play one of TR's solo acoustic songs together. As I am sure you are aware there aren't alot of folks who can keep up with TR note for note. A perfect example of Marcus' ability on a TR song I offer a cover of TR's "Stream" played by live by Marcus:

http://www.archive.org/download/meat...sbd-d2t02.flac

If you would like to see Marcus play one of his own songs here is link to him playing his song "Still Standing":

http://youtube.com/watch?v=qpIw-GjAd-A

He has a brand new CD out called "Story of Now" and it features Derico Watson (Victor Wooten Band) on drums, Garrett Sayers(The Motet) on Bass and Kyle Aho from Boston, MA on keys. Grammy Award Nominated Vic Anesini mastered the CD at Sony Studios. You can hear the entire album streaming on his website:

http://www.marcuseaton.com/

So open up his website, shrink it down and give it a listen while you jump around a message board, work online or whatever. You will not be disappointed. Here is a review of Marcus Eaton "Story of Now":

The Graham Weekly Album Review #1479
Marcus Eaton: Story of Now
by George Graham
(independent release As broadcast on WVIA-FM 4/4/2007)

The music world is rife with "one-album wonders" -- performers and bands who release one brilliant recording and then are not heard from again, either because the band broke up or because they were dropped by their record label. This sort of thing happens a lot more these days, since most of the major labels will drop an artist from their roster if they don't sell hundreds of thousands of copies of their first album almost immediately, and that's a shame. But at the same time, the ease with which independent recordings can be made and sold by means of the
Internet, means that losing one's label contract does not mean the end of making records.

But even with that possibility, almost every serious music fan has his or her own favorite one or two album wonders, who have largely disappeared from the recording scene.

In 2003, I reviewed for this series a recording by a superb, musically sophisticated acoustic rock band from Idaho called Marcus Eaton and the Lobby. I was beginning to think this was going to be one of those flashes in the pan. Fortunately, now four years later, Marcus Eaton is back with a new CD, minus the Lobby, but with musical quality even higher. Eaton's solo recording is called Story of Now.

Marcus Eaton grew up in Pocatello, Idaho. The son of a guitarist and songwriter, he naturally gravitated toward music, taking up guitar at age nine. He formed a band called E.S.P. with a drummer named Nate Keezer in high school in 1996. Eaton continued playing in bands while attending Idaho State University in Boise. The band which came to be known as the Lobby also featured a prominent sax, and was initially a kind of jam band, who did what they did out of necessity: without a great number of compositions to play, they jammed on each one for a long time. They released a couple of independent CDs before issuing The Day the World Awoke, which spotlighted the band's creative, musically complex compositions, almost all by Eaton, along with Eaton's pleasing tenor voice and impressive acoustic guitar work, which could sometimes hint at Latin American and flamenco styles.

Now, four years later, the Lobby has apparently gone their separate ways, and the 26-year-old Eaton spent some 40 days in the studio in Boise to bring to realization his new songs. Derico Watson, who plays in Flecktone Victor Wooten's band was brought in to play drums on some tracks, while Tony Sereduk plays on three other pieces. Garrett Sayers is heard on bass, and Kyle Aho is featured on piano. While the sonic emphasis of Eaton's music remains acoustic, he does play some electric guitar and there are some tracks that include the electronic rhythms of contemporary pop music, but the result is anything but conventional. I suppose that if you wanted one of those glib rock-critic capsule catch-phrases, one could call this "acoustic art rock singer-songwriter music."

Eaton's lyrics are intelligent and generally optimistic, though they do largely center around the perennial subject of love and its permeations. Musically, Eaton's writing is intricate and sophisticated, yet very appealing, despite the majority of the tracks being in unconventional meters, with five, seven and even 13-beat rhythms. Eaton is one of a relative few who, like Sting, who can create music that is this complex and yet make it sound easy and natural. Before recording the album, Eaton also spent some time with a vocal coach, and his already appealing vocals are stronger than before, an airy tenor who can impart a good deal of energy when he wants to.

While Eaton's vocals and guitar dominated the sound of the Lobby band, this CD lacks the sax and flute that were prominent in that group. It's mainly Eaton himself this time on the various guitars that are the basis of the sound. Some tracks run toward the more acoustic and with lighter or absent drums, while others can rock out.

Leading off is one of the rockers, Candle to the Sun. It's one of Eaton's generally optimistic love songs. The piece is typical of his almost art-rock composing style with complex shifts of meter and effective use of dynamics with the contrast between acoustic and electric sections.

On the Lobby album Eaton showed some reggae influence, and on the title track of this CD Story of Now, a hint of reggae figures into the elaborate arrangement. It's another appealing and quite musically interesting piece.

Four years ago on the Lobby album, one of the more interesting influences that turned up was Latin American rhythms, and even Spanish-style guitar. Story of Now also draws on that source on the track Victims of What Is Available, which also features some oblique social commentary. The piece is one of the highlights of a uniformly outstanding album.

Eaton's tendency toward rhythmic complexity is evident on several tracks. In fact there is very little in a conventional rock or folk meter on Story of Now. A song called Drug, which compares love to chemical addiction, rocks along in seven without sounding too abstruse.

As mentioned, Sting is also known for creating songs in unconventional rhythms. Eaton's song Disposable shows some definite influence from Sting's old band The Police.

Somewhat more laid-back in sound, with more of a singer songwriter style is Road to Home. Lyrically, Eaton continues his optimistic direction.

Another of the album's most impressive tracks is Burn It Down, which features mainly just Eaton's acoustic guitars accompanying his words of lost love. He again draws on Latin influence, but in a rather un-Latin-like 13-beat meter on the verses.

Also quite appealing, though with a somewhat less rosy outlook, is Four Seasons Turn to Rain. Eaton features a little sitar on the track, as he does from time to time elsewhere on the CD.

On Story of Now, Marcus Eaton, a still quite young Idahoan, has created a really outstanding album that surpasses the excellent recording by his band The Lobby four years ago. He creates music that is outwardly appealing, but is full of classy, high-level musical ingredients that would likely endear this recording to art rock and even jazz fans, with his rhythmic and harmonic sophistication. And this CD could also come across as a singer-songwriter recording with its often acoustic sound and thoughtful lyrics. It has been a long time since the Eaton's last recording, and once he started, he spent a long time making this CD. But his labor definitely paid off, with every track on the CD having a lot to offer.

Sonically, we'll give the CD a grade "A." The mix is first-rate, skillfully blending the acoustic and the electric, Eaton's vocal is generally well-recorded, and the dynamic range of the recording, which was a problem on the last CD by the Lobby, is much improved, allowing the volume to be soft when the music calls for it.

Marcus Eaton has been looking for a record label to distribute his CD. For now, he is making it available in limited numbers on his website. It's definitely worth seeking out. A recording that maintains such a high musical level and that's so downright likable is rare indeed.

(c) Copyright 2007 George D. Graham. All rights reseved.

Tim Reynolds played a show in Wilkes Barre, PA at River Street Jazz. I passed off a copy of Marcus Eaton "Story of Now" to the promoter/owner for him to check out. He was so impressed with the CD that when Marcus came out to NYC for a showcase on Nov 2nd, 2006, he booked Marcus for a gig at River Street Jazz as well site unseen. Following Marcus' performance in Wilkes Barre, PA he spent 5 weeks as the Number 1 requested artist on WVIA-FM and remains in the "Top 20" all these months later.
Here is a link to his myspace page as well:

http://www.myspace.com/marcus_eaton

ENJOY!!!

[Rob]

Thanks for the info, Fluffy. I'll check this guy out.

[Fluffy]

JANUARY 25, 2006
Story of Now
Marcus Eaton is destined for stardom
by Amy Atkins

When I got to the coffee shop where Marcus Eaton and I had agreed to meet at for an interview, I realized that I didn't know what he looked like. I ordered a latte, and, with pen nd reporter's notebook in hand, I sat down and waited. Each time the door opened, I looked up expectantly. I had not met Eaton before and I had only an e-mailed photo as reference. Several men who walked into the coffee shop looked a little nervous as they got a raised-eyebrow "are you the guy I'm waiting for?" gaze from me. When Eaton did arrive, I knew it had to be him because, one, someone had told me he was quite handsome, and, two, the guy walking in the door gave me the same look I'd been giving everyone else.

Eaton's easy smile, short, wavy blonde hair, cool glasses and casual attire give him a boy-next-door appearance. But on closer inspection, the carefree boy-next-door looked like a tired grown-up. Understandable, as he just finished work on his latest opus, Story of Now.

Story of Now is scheduled for a spring 2006 release. It's an hour of emotional, engaging and complicated music. He spent six months at the Tonic Room Studios working on the album--three recording it and three perfecting it. As the first full-length album for both the studio and Eaton as a solo artist, it was important on every level that this project be as close to perfect as possible. To achieve that, Eaton followed what he believes to be one of the most important rules in music: recognize talent. On this album he made sure to surround himself with musicians, producers and managers as dedicated to the process as he was. He even had the CD mastered by Grammy Award-winner Vic Anesini. From the first notes on the first track of the CD, it is clear that the production value of each song is as important as each performance.

No song on the CD is less than four minutes long and several contain complex time signatures. The songs blur genres lines right out of existence with a multitude of instrumentation and thoughtful, thought-provoking lyrics. "Burn It Down" has Latin beats, surprising and elegant chord changes, and Eaton's signature lyrical content. "Victims of What's Available" has a dizzying range of percussion, much of which Eaton performed himself. His songs have layers upon layers of sound and have a fullness often lacking in modern pop music. Every note and beat is sharply defined and exactly where Eaton wants it. His best instrument, his voice, is perfectly tuned and is somehow raw and refined at the same time.

As hard as Eaton worked to maintain his artistic integrity, he still (intentionally) created a commercial product. He's no dummy: He knows that to be a successful, professional musician his album has to sell. To sell the album, people have to hear it. To hear it, people have to know about it, which is why as he shops around for the right label, good promotion and touring support has to be part of the deal. Fortunately, he loves playing and touring so the more live performance dates a label can arrange, the better. And, unlike many musicians, there's not a disappointing difference between his live and recorded performances. With Eaton, what you hear is what you get whether it's from a CD in your car stereo, live on a small stage or from across a huge arena. And it's always good.

On January 12, the Egyptian Theatre premiered the locally produced film, Autumn Angel. Making it a full night of performance, Eaton was slated to play before the movie began. There were some obvious technical difficulties, and most of the crowd had come out to see the film and were not shy about voicing their disappointment about sitting through Eaton's performance. People talked and milled around while he was on stage. Some loud-mouth even screamed "Start the movie!" Eaton had to start and stop and re-start several songs. But, when everything was finally in place and he began to play, it was beautiful. Watching Eaton play is poetry in motion. Even loud-mouth mellowed out. Eaton has an uncanny sense of timing, plays a mean guitar and boy, has he got a set of pipes.

At 25 (yes, he's only 25), Eaton has a worldliness about him that belies his young age. He has been playing guitar since he was 9 and shows no signs of stopping. He has seen his share of success (with his band, The Lobby, and with a live solo CD), but Story of Now may just be Eaton's ticket to the big time. He better get rested up, though, because once the CD hits the shelves, there's going to be little time for sleep.

from The Boise Weekly
http://www.boiseweekly.com/gyrobase/...d=oid%3A157890

[Fluffy]

from an email to Marcus Eaton's email list today:

Hello everyone!

The past few months have been a whirlwind and I've hardly had any opportunity to catch up with all of you.

I had a great time at NAMM representing Baden Guitars. It was a funny first moment when I showed up and saw the larger-than-life banner of me with one of the guitars! I will post a picture of it soon. Thanks to everyone at Baden and Fishman for their continued support.

The latest and greatest news is something that has taken me quite some time to put together. I am so damn thrilled to announce that I will be joining the Dave Matthews Band at the Gorge this weekend for sidestage performances! I will be playing a full set each night; Friday, Saturday, and Sunday prior to the mainstage performances. You must be ticketed for the DMB show to attend my sets. Performance times have yet to be announced...watch my website or MySpace page for details.

Friday Aug.31 thru Sunday Sept.2
The Gorge Amphitheatre in George, WA...exits 143 or 149 off I-90

I hope to see you all there!!

[invisigal]

Hello Everyone,

Marcus' CD, Story of Now, was chosen as the "#1 CD of 2007" by George Graham! And he was up against some heavy hitters like Joni Mitchell, Bruce Hornsby, Norah Jones and many others. You can read the review, listen to the broadcast and more at www.georgegraham.com.


DATES - SOLO ON THE EAST COAST
3/23/08 - Sellersville Theater, Sellersville, PA
3/29/08 - University of Hartford, Hartford, CT
Other dates to be added soon

LINKS TO MARCUS ON THE WEB
Website: www.marcuseaton.com - stream both albums, look at pics, and you can sign up for the newsletter and street team there
Video: www.youtube.com/marcuseaton - video of Marcus solo and video of Marcus playing duets with Tim Reynolds
Fan Forum: http://burnitdown.proboards58.com/
Marcus' Myspace: www.myspace.com/marcus_eaton

: )

Kitty

[skinuts]

i"m from Boise and have been lucky enough to see Marcus and the lobby many many times including when he opened up for Tim a while back. His music isn't all Tim or all Dave but rather somewhere in the middle. check him out!

[invisigal]

Hey Everyone,

I just wanted to let you all know that the Marcus Eaton Trio will be tearing it up sidestage this year at the Gorge. Some of you may have caught Marcus last year at the Gorge - this year he'll have his band with him, and they are phenomenal!

Marcus will also be featured in the upcoming July issue of Premier Guitar Magazine. It is an interview with lots of pictures of both Marcus and the trio.

Marcus' latest jaunt with Tim Reynolds was on the east coast in March - Marcus was doing some solo acoustic support for Tim's power trio, TR3. Here are some photos from that tour.

If you want to know more about Marcus or check out the music:
www.marcuseaton.com
www.myspace.com/marcus_eaton

Tour dates are posted there - they'll be in SoCal this month in LA and San Juan Capistrano.

If you go to the DMB Gorge shows this year, come and check out Marcus and the band on the sidestage - it is located to the right of the lawn when you're walking in. Their set starts as soon as the gates open. Hope to see you there!

Kitty

[invisigal]

Hi Everyone,

Here are the tour dates for Marcus Eaton Trio. I'll add more as they are confirmed. Hope to see you out there!

6.18.2008
MARCUS EATON TRIO - LOS ANGELES, CA
AURA - 12215 Ventura Blvd, Studio City, CA 91604 (818) 487-1488
Set Time: 11pm - 12 midnight
More info: www.auranightclub.com

6.21.2008
MARCUS EATON TRIO - SAN JUAN CAPISTRANO, CA
The Coach House 33157 Camino Capistrano, San Juan Capistrano, CA (949) 496-8930
$13 21+
More info: www.thecoachhouse.com

6.22.2008
MARCUS EATON TRIO - LOS ANGELES, CA
Molly Malone's 575 S Fairfax Ave Los Angeles, CA (323) 935-1577
$6 21+
Set time: 10PM
More info: www.mollymalonesla.com

7.11.2008
MARCUS EATON TRIO - PORTLAND OR
White Eagle Saloon
More info: http://www.mcmenamins.com/

7.19.2008
MARCUS EATON TRIO - EAGLE, ID
Eagle Knoll Winery, 3705 N. Hwy 16 Eagle, ID (208) 286-9463
http://www.thewineryateagleknoll.com/index.html

8.15.2008
MARCUS EATON TRIO - Manmouth Lakes, CA


8.21.2008
MARCUS EATON TRIO - PORTLAND OR
White Eagle Saloon
More info: http://www.mcmenamins.com/

8.22.2008
MARCUS EATON TRIO - EAGLE, ID
Eagle Arts Food & Wine Festival


8.28.08
MARCUS EATON TRIO - THE GORGE, GEORGE, WA
Sidestage for the Dave Matthews Band
Set starts when the gates open.

8.29.2008
MARCUS EATON TRIO - THE GORGE, GEORGE, WA
Sidestage for the Dave Matthews Band
Set starts when the gates open.

8.30.2008
MARCUS EATON TRIO - THE GORGE, GEORGE, WA
Sidestage for the Dave Matthews Band
Set starts when the gates open.

9.4.2008
MARCUS EATON TRIO - MCCALL, ID
Common Grounds Cafe
More info: http://cgc.hotspotsolutions.com/

9.16.08
MARCUS EATON TRIO - SANTA BARBARA, CA
Soho
More info: http://www.sohosb.com/

9.27.08
MARCUS EATON TRIO - EAGLE, ID
Eagle Knoll Winery
More info: http://www.thewineryateagleknoll.com/index.html

[Fluffy]

The interview with Marcus Eaton in Premier Guitar Magazine has finally come out. Amongst discussion of his influences and such he mentions Tim Reynolds alot. Fascinating & informative read, well worth your TIMe. You can see for yourself at the following link:

http://www.premierguitar.com/Magazine/Issue/2008/Jul/Northwestern_Exposure_Marcus_Eaton_Interview.aspx

ENJOY!!

[invisigal]

Here is the latest newsletter folks. Tour dates are at the end of the post. Also check below for info on tuning in to the live broadcast tomorrow morning at 8:30am PST on 95.5 KLOS.

Hey Everyone,

Just a quick reminder to let you all know that Marcus and the band are playing this week in southern California, in and around LA and also San Juan Capistrano this Saturday night! Check the schedule below for details.

Marcus' interview is out in July's issue of Premier Guitar Magazine - www.premierguitar.com - check it out at newsstands or you can read the entire magazine online. You can also stream a couple of Marcus' songs from their site. Great pictures too by Dave Kugler - www.davegkugler.com

There is a new rough mix of a song called You Can't Close Your Eyes up on Marcus' myspace (www.myspace.com/marcus_eaton) - down near the bottom of the player - check it out!

Hope to see some of you this week at the shows!

Cheers,
The ME Crew

THU 6.21.2008
MARCUS EATON TRIO -
SAN JUAN CAPISTRANO, CA
The Coach House 33157 Camino Capistrano
San Juan Capistrano, CA (949) 496-8930
$13 21+ Doors: 6PM Set: Show: 8PM
More info: www.thecoachhouse.com
_____________________________
FRI 6/20 8:30AM
LIVE SOLO ACOUSTIC - ON AIR KLOS 95.5
Live from the Hard Rock Cafe Hollywood
1000 Universal Studios Blvd. Universal City, CA
Not open to public, but you can win tickets on 95.5 KLOS all week long mornings with Mark & Brian, or stream live, 8:30am on Friday - www.955klos.com
_____________________________
6.22.2008
MARCUS EATON TRIO - LOS ANGELES, CA
Molly Malone's 575 S Fairfax Ave LA, CA
(323) 935-1577
$6 21+ Set time: 10PM
More info: www.mollymalonesla.com
_____________________________
7.8.2008
MARCUS EATON TRIO - SEATTLE, WA
Green Room at the Showbox
More info: www.showboxonline.com
_____________________________
7.11.2008
MARCUS EATON TRIO - PORTLAND OR
White Eagle Saloon
More info: http://www.mcmenamins.com/
_____________________________
7.18.2008
MARCUS EATON TRIO - BOISE, ID
Pengilly's Saloon 513 W Main St Boise, ID
(208) 345-6344
_____________________________
7.19.2008
MARCUS EATON TRIO - EAGLE, ID
Eagle Knoll Winery, 3705 N. Hwy 16 Eagle, ID (208) 286-9463
www.thewineryateagleknoll.com
_____________________________
7.24.2008
MARCUS EATON SOLO - BOISE, ID
The Knitting Factory (formerly The Big Easy)
EqualEyes CD Release Party!
More info: www.bigeasyconcerts.com
_____________________________
8.15.2008
MARCUS EATON TRIO - Manmouth Lakes, CA
More info tba.
_____________________________
8.21.2008
MARCUS EATON TRIO - PORTLAND OR
White Eagle Saloon
More info: www.mcmenamins.com
_____________________________
8.22.2008
MARCUS EATON TRIO - EAGLE, ID
Eagle Arts Food & Wine Festival
_____________________________
8.29.08
MARCUS EATON TRIO - THE GORGE
GEORGE, WA
Sidestage for the Dave Matthews Band
More info: www.dmband.com
_____________________________
8.30.2008
MARCUS EATON TRIO - THE GORGE
GEORGE, WA
Sidestage for the Dave Matthews Band
More info: www.dmband.com
_____________________________
8.31.2008
MARCUS EATON TRIO - THE GORGE
GEORGE, WA
Sidestage for the Dave Matthews Band
More info: www.dmband.com
_____________________________
9.4.2008
MARCUS EATON TRIO - MCCALL, ID
Common Grounds Cafe
More info: http://cgc.hotspotsolutions.com
_____________________________
9.16.08
MARCUS EATON TRIO - SANTA BARBARA, CA
Soho More info: www.sohosb.com
_____________________________
9.27.08
MARCUS EATON TRIO - EAGLE, ID
Eagle Knoll Winery
More info: www.thewineryateagleknoll.com
_____________________________