Gary Earl has dozens of Film, TV and Recording credits: writing, producing, & playing. Gary has songs in over 20 films, as well as HBO, Disney, reality and television talk shows. Gary has cuts in pop, country, hip-hop, rock, alt., scores, world, runway, dance, remixing. Currently, Gary provides teaching & consulting for clients which include Grammy, Oscar, Emmy, & Tony award winners. Gary is a voting member of the Producers & Engineers Wing of NARAS (National Academy Recording Arts & Sciences - the Grammy Awards).
Kelly Dunn: So you live in Nashville?
Gary Earl : It's been 11 or 12 years now.
Kelly Dunn: What brought you to Nashville?
Gary Earl : I have an aunt and uncle in Reno, Nevada and I lived there for a long time. Then my girlfriend and I lived in L.A. and Las Vegas. Then I moved to Nashville. (Gary begins coughing a little)
Kelly Dunn: Allergies?
Gary Earl : It might be! I know when I lived out West I didn't have this. But when I got here it was amazing how much pollen was in the air. It'll be alright (Laughs)
Kelly Dunn: So you wrote for people out there in LA?
Gary Earl : I wrote for Roger Corman, King of the B Movies. 15, 20 years ago really got started with him, Jack Nicholson, James Cameron and so on. I wrote songs for him, here's a funny story: They were in this contract, and I scored this movie that was a take off of The Road Warrior, but this was with David Carridine. When the movie came out their was a huge skull on the poster so that created some problems. I scored the soundtracks and the sounds. We've been in over 20 television and movies in the past few years.
Kelly Dunn: I really like the sound you have...
Gary Earl : I wound up doing a song on a four-track. Over the years I have learned how to create a big sound with very little. Over the last few years I have been mixing and mastering songs for groups and artists. I'm not talking about running through a rack or an analyzer but stuff I've learned since college. I listen to all kinds of music.
Kelly Dunn: How did you get your first Nashville cut?
Gary Earl : (Laughter) This a great story! My wife and I had given our tape to everyone in Nashville. Finally, we met a company intern at a party. He told us he need a song desperately by Monday. The way he described the song, it was kind of like a Prince type song. I wrote the song in the next hour and I got my wife up in 3 in the morning to sing it, next, I drove down to Santa Monica. I taped the song to the screen door of Paul DeFranco (1) (2). He looked like Marlon Brando. So this guy calls me and tells me to never to come to place again without an invitation. But he says that he says that he loved the song. He told me to come in and sign a contract! He knew I could write fast so he asked me if I could do some more work, it was a lot of work, but I was up to the challenge. Actually, Paul referred my a lot of future work. This guy calls me and asked me if I had some Big Band music. I told him yes but I had never written that kind of music! So I went to the library and learned how to write like this. Year's later, here's the funny part; one day a guy from Disney comes up to me and said he liked my Big Band Music. It's the same songwriter that I learned how to write Big Band Music!
Kelly Dunn: That's fantastic! Tell me another story...
Gary Earl : I have a gold record story. The guy that wrote, "In The Year 2525" , Rick Evans (1) (2) . We were drinking one night and we were looking at his gold record on the wall. The subject came up and we wondered if that was really his record underneath the gold plating. So we put the record on the turntable and it was an Aretha Franklin album! Rick was really pissed off but was really funny, well, funny now (Laughter). Rick retired on that one song. Later on Rick went on the road as part of an acoustic duo. So they went to a party one night and there were bowls full of cocaine. Rick was not happy. He didn't like drugs. Well, the next day they went to RCA and they got out of their contract. Did I tell you I worked with Chevy Chase too?
Kelly Dunn: Chevy Chase?(1) We watch that movie every year, "Christmas Vacation"...
Gary Earl : You know what? Chevy Chase is like that in real life!
Kelly Dunn: Really?
Gary Earl : We'd go out to eat and people thought he was acting but that was really him! (Laughter) He had an amazing card file! One day Chevy was out of the office and so we went through it. I saw Paul McCartney's number and so we dialed the phone number and Paul answered!
Kelly Dunn: Wow. So what happened?.
Gary Earl : Paul said, "Hello Love!" I told him that I dialed the wrong number and I quickly hung up the phone! We realized then that we shouldn't be doing this. And I didn't do it again!
Kelly Dunn: So you were behind the scenes of all of these movies and shows?
Gary Earl : Oh yeah. I was there for a lot of it, Pam Dawber, Cheers...
Kelly Dunn: That's one of my favorite shows...
Gary Earl : I got to meet Cliff. He was a great guy. He got my mom into the studio. He actually got her into the side door. Once day Cliff called me and told me to get to the studio and he was waiting there by the door when I we got there! How amazing is that! He's just the kind of guy that you'd want to be a neighbor. I have a Diane Warren story: It's amazing. She told her dad that she wanted to be a songwriter. Her dad said he wanted her to become a lawyer. She made her dad an offer; that he give her office space for one year. If in that time she doesn't can't support herself through songwriting then she'd go to law school. Well, the rest as they say is history!
I have a new new line of program "Lunch with Clint Eastwood" but I'll tell you more about that later.
Kelly Dunn: So you worked with Clint Eastwood?(1) (2)
Gary Earl : I was on the movie set for three days of "Honky Tonk Man". I was one of the musicians on the set. And actually Clint Eastwood, Ray Price, Merril Travis, Johnny Gimble, Tommy Aosteff. was playing in the band. I did something nice for Merril. Most days we spent just jamming. Merril started singing, "I my chicken fried… I stopped him." I told him that I remembered that song when I was a kid. I told him that I listened to him on my parents '78 records. He was really happy to hear someone mention those old days. Did you know Clint Eastwood started out as a Jazz musician. He thought his career was going to be in music. Funny how things turn out in life.
Kelly Dunn: What’s going on in the near future?
Gary Earl : I have a new artist I am working with, Jacquline. She is coming in soon. and she looks like Shania Twain and we're going to shop her songs around.
Kelly Dunn: What about your studio?
Gary Earl : We do over-dubs, mixing, mastering. If we need to do an entire band we go to a commercial studio. Rodney "Hot Rod Parker", is like Dire Straights. I've been working with him recently.
Kelly Dunn: Again, your sound is awesome...
Gary Earl : Over the years I became a minimalist. Everything is scaled down. I have a Mac with a few accessories.
Kelly Dunn: Anyone can buy the equipment, but you are an artist...
Gary Earl : I got a lot of that from Rodger Corman. Many writers have such a rock background and they aren't aware of other genere's. Look, it's like Sting. Sting can sell Sting. For other artists it's not going to sell. Like George Straight...When I do evaluations it amazes me. For instance, this one girl wrote a great alternative-rock genre but wasn’t a "Nashville" song.
Kelly Dunn: So, how to you go about doing song evaluations...
Gary Earl : Song U! (1) I know the people that started Song U. He was teaching computer courses at a local college. He and his wife got the idea that there was this huge need for songwriters.
Kelly Dunn: If a songwriter/producer want to get in contact with you where should they go...
Gary Earl : Please have them vist www.GaryEarl.com!
Kelly Dunn: Gary, you are wealth of information! I hope we can explore more in the future in another article...
Gary Earl: Kelly, this has been an honor speaking with you today. This was a lot of fun. Let's get together soon!
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