Tom Petty, Elliot Smith, The Replacements, Pete Yorn, Ryan Adams, Nick Lowe, George Harrison, Roy Orbison, Dave Edmunds, The Rolling Stones, The Black Crowes, Dinasour Jr., Rod Stwart & The Faces, Lisa Loeb, Lucinda Williams, Neil Young, Buddy Holly, R.E.M., Bob Seger, The Velvet Underground, Nick Cave, Elvis Costello, Neko Case, Joe Cocker, The Wallflowers, Gram Parsons, Chris Isaak, Josh Rouse, The Band, Bruce Springsteen, Joseph Arthur, Sheryl Crow, Fleetwood Mac, Aimee Mann, Tracy Chapman, Wilco,
Best Songwriter With heart-on-his-sleeve, real-world honesty, a slightly gritty baritone and the ability to paint believable portraits of love gone wrong, Caleb Travers' brand of twang-tinged Americana calls to mind Beck's breakup masterpiece Sea Change — but with a fervor and style all his own. Travers' songs tell stories of everyday life in a way that seems romantic but not over-idealized or -dramatized. The rootsy laments on Caleb Travers & Big City Lights' 2007 debut Blue Weathered Dreams are fueled by staggering acoustic strums and solitary harmonica, but Travers' vivid storytelling style and eminently relatable subject matter are what make these songs hit home hard.
Best Country Band (Alternative) "His Ryan Adams jones shows, but so do his good nature, ambition and talent. Travers is pushing all of 25 and his band, including veteran pedal-steel whiz Scott Swartz of the Linemen, is pushing this son of south city toward more than just Telecaster strumming and dirt-road divining. His band can play it Stonesy, Byrdsy and Whiskeytowny without ever sounding dated or in denial over how much room they have for growth. Travers sings with wiry strength, with an inviting slur and unfaked Midwestern drawl, and his songs get their hooks in, indirectly echoing pure country-rock, whether from the Eagles or Buffalo Springfield. Travers and band are currently finishing up their first EP. It promises to be the twang fix a flagging alt-country scene needs."
"...straight-shooting, tear-stained rock & roll [that] rests on the lachrymose depths of Travers' flickering tenor voice."
-Christian Schaeffer; River Front Times
Praise for Blue Weathered Dreams -
"With a slow, lonesome strum and slight baritone rasp reminiscent of Beck’s work on the breakup masterpiece Sea Change, Caleb Travers brings perspective to heartbreak and paints spot-on images of a relationship’s forlorn demise. But the stories told on 2007’s Blue Weathered Dreams aren’t the foggy, beer-soaked laments of an idealized, wayward wanderer. Instead Travers’ songs capture the emotion of everyday life without melodrama or pretense -- whether it be through vivid descriptions of family dealings, romantic entanglements or personal struggles."
–Shae Moseley; River Front Times
"These songs ache with the seriousness of a singer who sees darkness on every horizon, from the unbreakable bonds of family to the search for redemption... they are worth a listen if only to hear Travers beautiful tenor voice; it's a standout among local singers in any genre."
-Christian Schaeffer; River Front Times
"...a well-produced, genuine alt-country effort that evokes rural travels, family hardships and perseverance."
-Matt Fernandes; Rock Candy
"The music Caleb makes is richly woven and carefully considered—timeless, really... At first listen, you're likely to stop whatever it is that you're doing and listen—you know, really listen. This is a guy who's got something to say; Caleb & Co. are well worth your four or seven or 52 minutes. But be warned: Once you've given your time, you'll want to give it again, and again."
-Laura Hamlet; STL Sound
Bio -
The leaky windows and age-old power lines of Travers’ South St. Louis apartment had failed inevitably. An ice-storm had brought the whole city to a grinding halt. But It wasn’t the storm, or the week-long power-outage that was on Travers’ mind. All he could think about was getting that sound, that really timeless sound that he kept hearing out of his head and into live shows.
It was cold, but the fire had been smoldering since summer of 2005, when a friend took him to Memphis to see a band he’d had never heard of before. Like most visitors to Memphis, they went to Sun Studios before the show. He didn’t know what it was, but there was something altogether alluring about the “historic” rock ‘n roll he heard about on the Sun Studio tour. Later that night, as Nels Cline, Pat Sansone, and the rest of Wilco delivered a blitzkrieg of noise behind the beautiful melody of Via Chicago, he was changed. But this was the dead of winter, nearly a year-and-a-half later and Travers had no discernible course of action to live out what he so clearly wanted to do. He did have songs, though. And so, like the ice-storm that beset his city, he would have to wait it out.
Spring of 2007 would reveal the fruits of Travers’ labor. With a 5-piece band in place including veteran pedal-steel player, Scott Swartz, Caleb Travers and Big City Lights had been rehearsing steadily and were making plans for a demo EP. The band’s first gig was accidentally secured when he evoked an encore at a popular open mic. After he stepped off stage, Travers was offered an opening spot for Austin-based indie-pop quartet What Made Milwaukee Famous. Big City Lights continued to gain momentum opening for Alt. Country heavy, Bobby Bare Jr. and by the end of 2007 they would be named Best Alt. Country band by the River Front Times.
One year after it all started, Caleb Travers and Big City Lights are coming back to Off Broadway, back to the heart ‘n’ soul of St. Louis’ songwriter community, to celebrate their debut self-release, Blue Weathered Dreams.
Blue Weathered Dreams brings Travers full circle, with songs that go back to the singer’s origins. The tune “Annie”, which grounds the album, is based on his parents’ travels across the Southwest & Midwest as Pentacostal musicians. By the time he was born, however, his mother & father were becoming disillusioned with ministry life and ultimately settled down. Irked by the contradictions of his religious upbringing and the incompletion of his parents' uncharted travels, the album explores the meaning of Travers’ own restlessness and the ties to the story that shaped his own.
Sonically, the album walks a tight-rope between pristine, layered guitar work, genteel steel guitar played by Scott Swartz, Travers’ rising and falling vocal theatrics and pure rock 'n' roll revelry. With imaginative song-craft, Travers writes himself into the prayers, stories and dying wishes of lovers, killers and strangers, sometimes as a walk-on cameo or a sympathetic observer, and other times as the protagonist, singing with a grave and penitent delivery.
Blue Weathered Dreams will be released on February 9, 2008, at Off Broadway in St. Louis, and available for download at online stores.
Caleb Travers & Big City Lights's Friend Space (Top 11)
Great set last night man...you'll have to throw Sunday Morning into the rotation sometime (just for me). Good luck with the record as well. Keep me updated, and if you ever need some amateur keys or musician-grade bullshit, I'm always more than happy to offer a helping hand.
Good show tonight Caleb. Its always nice to get out of St. Charles and into the city whenever possible. Next time i'll have to coordinate a paddle boat mosh pit for ya.
Hey Caleb! Missed you guys at Oyster Bar last weekend. =( I think Im gonna try to make it to the show at Union Station if I dont get caught up at work. Do you happen to know what time you'll play till?
If not then, maybe ill see ya around the loop for the RFT showcase. Ill be hanging out there all day.
By the way I stumbled on some crazy old interview with you on a podcast that featured one of our songs from October I think. It was old news bears, but I ended up listening, thinking, "Hey, I know this guy! Kind of." Anyway, it was really good stuff.
I hope you dig the record I gave you. It better have been worth the m-f'ing $10 you didn't spend on it. (I'm just kidding, I know you'll let us ride the waves of your future success...)
Anyway, cheers dude. I hope you're getting lots of love out there in the cruel business of rock and roll music--or in your case, honky tonk acoustic music (You know I am your biggest and most sober fan.)
Check out my debut album "Blueprint of Soul" which is now available! It is the funk! You can check it out and also pick it up at: www.teddypresberg.com
Also, please sign-up to my email list... You can do so at my website or just send me your email address.
We would definately appreciate it(we appreciate any help we can get), thanks so much for the kind words. Maybe we could also try and do a few acoustic shows together sometime soon as well. Keep up the great music.
Indeed! Do it. We might have lost a guy tonight. It got ugly. Haha. I talked to Jessie too, I realized who you were talking about. Diggin' the record... Cheers!
Indeed! Do it. We might have lost a guy tonight. It got ugly. Haha. I talked to Jessie too, I realized who you were talking about. Diggin' the record... Cheers!
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