Cletis Carr - vocals, 6 & 12 string acoustic and electric guitars, mandolin, dobro, lap steel, bass guitar, hammond organ, piano.
Plus a host of extremely talented musicians whom were bribed by the promise of money, fame, free drinks and pizza.
Kevin Bennett (The Flood) / Guitars, Bvox.
Michael Vidale (Jimmy & the Boys, the Whitlams) / Bass Guitar
Doug Bligh (The Flood) / Drums
Peter Wells (Rose Tattoo) / Slide Guitar
Garrett Costigan (Paul Kelly, Tex Don & Charlie) / Pedal Steel
Paul Norton / Guitar
Chris Stockley (Dingoes) / Guitar
Mick Cocks (Rose Tattoo) / Guitar
Nicole Brophy (Dirty Lucy) / Bvox
Andrew Sefton (Big Whiskey, Slow Club) / Bvox
Paul Keane (The Giants, Big Whiskey) / Drums n' things
Roy Zedras (Big Whiskey) / bass
Alex Black / Violin
Influences
John Lennon, Gram Parsons, Tom Petty, Chuck Berry, Steven Stills, Lou Reed, Joni Mitchell, Townes Van Zandt, Neil Young, Paul Kelly, Guy Clark, Roger McGuinn, Bob Dylan, Alex Chilton, Hank Williams, Keith Richards, Mark Knopfler, Kate Bush, Muddy Waters, Bruce Springsteen, JJ Cale, Tim Finn, Neil Finn, Eric Clapton, John Fogerty, Bonnie Raitt, Nick Lowe, Lowell George, Pete Townshend, Willis Alan Ramsey, Ledbelly, Richard Clapton, Jerry Garcia, Robert Johnson.
Sounds Like
(been told these:) Peter Case, Steve Earle, Robert Earl Keen, Chris Whitley, Kevin Welch, Ryan Adams, John Gorka, Greg Brown, Chris Smither.
Singer-songwriter Cletis Carr has one mantra: Play the song, rather than just the instrument. The American born roots rocker has been a careful student of the human condition and has developed a keen eye for a good story.
The success of his 70’s band Sneakers gave him the experience and confidence to launch a solo career that’s taken him all over the planet and has seen the release of five solo albums and numerous band projects.
Over the years, he’s toured and shared stages with the likes of Tom Petty, John Mellencamp, Chuck Berry, Elvis Costello, Joan Jett, Nick Lowe and Huey Lewis.
An intended brief vacation in Australia has now lasted over two decades as Carr found himself touring with members of AC/DC, Rose Tattoo, the Easybeats and the Saints, including a stint with perennial blues faves the Bondi Cigars. His bands Big Whiskey and Hillbilly Moon (with Paul Norton and the late Rose Tattoo legend, Peter Wells) were critical and (nearly) commercial successes worldwide.
In the mid-90’s he started working behind the scenes first with an independent label, as a staff writer for Warner/Chappell, then as a producer of new artists for ABC/EMI. He moved to Nashville in the late 90’s and worked with Virgin and Capitol Records on various marketing campaigns as well as playing the usual songwriter haunts. He returned to Sydney and finished 2001 with a stint at Liberation Records.
Now returning to writing, recording and performing, Carr will release "Footsteps", a compilation of his previous Australian recordings ahead of a new album. It will be his first in a decade, and he hopes to be performing in the UK, Europe and North America to support it.
Cletis Carr lives in the historic Blue Mountains just west of Sydney Australia. He was a contributing writer to the great, late Rockrgrl Magazine, is an obsessive foodie, and knows some great jokes. He can occasionally be found at the Gladesville Guitar Factory, pontificating endlessly about resonator guitars. He tries to collect Australian wines, but they never seem to stay in the rack very long.
Discography:year/artist/title/label:
1977 / Shaniko / Soiled Angels (single) / Chrome
1979 / Sneakers / Ear Cartoons / City Lights
1981 / Sneakers / Music From The Sole / unreleased
1984 / Cletis Carr / That Kind Of A Girl (single) / Random
1985 / Cletis Carr / Visible Tracks / Random
1988 / Cletis Carr / Colourblind / Chase-Sony
1991 / Cletis Carr / Tales Of Ordinary Madness / Pelican
1992 / Cletis Carr / Wooden Nails / Pelican
1994 / Big Whiskey / The Distance / Pelican
1994 / Hillbilly Moon / Volume One / Pelican
1996 / Hillbilly Moon / Volume Two / Pelican
1998 / Hillbilly Moon / I Won't Come This Way Again (single) / ABC-EMI
1999 / Cletis Carr / The ABC Sessions / ABC
2007 / Various Artists / Bakers Dozen / Big Rock
2009 / Blues Pirates / Blues Pirates / Big Rock
Performing "Please Don't Lose Me" in Sydney, March 2008
Hiya, thanks for being a friend - I enjoyed visiting YourSpace :-) Keep it up May your life be full of love, light and fun... hugs SOREN - Beats for change - NYERTUN
Hey man! You live in Sydney yea? Just wanted to let you kno about our gig coming up on This Sunday. It’s at the Factory Theatre in Sydney on Victoria Road, We go on stage @ 8pm and we’re sharing the stage with a massive band called Enspier! Tickets are $18 thru us and $22 on the door. If we play well enough we get put on the list to go play festivals in Germany and its totally dependant on crowd voting. So please come down and help us show the world our music!! Thanks so much for your support thus far mate! Nath [Pure Heir]
Hey, just sayin hey, and by the way, thanks for takin the time to become a Pure Heir friend. You're officially mad haha! What you been up to anyway? Nath [Pure Heir]
Please help in my grass roots campaign to get EMM Radio, the internet's HOTTEST new home for ALL country music, nominated in this year's New Music Weekly's Music Awards! Everyone can vote in any catagory! Please consider voting for EMM Radio - Internet Radio Station of the Year! http://www.newmusicweekly.com/nmwawards.php?d=y - Thank you! - listen in at www.emmradio.com! It's A Country Thang!"
Hi! Thank you so much for adding me to myspace. It’s really nice to know people are enjoying my music! How did you hear about me? If you want to join my mailing list, msg me back with your email/where you are from and I can keep you updated on everything that I’m doing in your area or online. Thanks again and talk soon! Xo Lynzie
Sorry I missed you at the Unity Hall the other night! I got there later than I had hoped. Hope it went well. I enjoyed the acts I did manage to see. Cheers, Linda.
Hi Cletis, stoked to see we are now My Space friends - just had to drop in and say hi, so umm hi. Had another listen through your songs - like your sound. Well sure hope you'll drop by mine and drop a line sometime, much love :)
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