By Jeb
Wright
A successful businessman raises his family in the great
Northeast. He has a good life…a great life. He is the
embodiment of the American Dream. He works hard. He lives a
good life. Yet, something is missing. Something is gnawing at
him; something that has been there for years. He has to do
something. He must do something. He has toyed with the idea
for years, even got serious about it from time-to-time only to
see it fizzle back underneath the surface when life got too
busy. This happens again and again. Finally, one day, he
decides that he will no longer ignore that voice in the back of
his head. He will go to the beat of a different drummer,
literally.
The man I describe in the previous paragraph is named Lenny
Bosh. His dream has become a reality. He has self-released his
first CD, Thoughts That I Collected. He has no record
label and no real plan of how to distribute the thing. He hires
a world famous guy to mix his music and signs on with a top
notch publicity firm and throws caution to the wind. Like most
things Lenny does, he did this big. The result is a fantastic
collection of emotional and thought provoking songs. While
acoustic based, don’t be fooled; Lenny is a rocker at heart. We
will hear more music from him. The first one came from the
heart. The next one may just come from the groin.
Read on and discover a true diamond in the rough. Let me
introduce to you, the one and only, Lenny Bosh.
Jeb: I see where you had the American Dream of taking over your
father's company. Before we get into the music on your CD, tell
me what you do.
Lenny: I
own and run a small manufacturing company. We manufacture
products for the Navy and commercial nuclear markets mostly.
It’s really specialized valves made of exotic metals for high
end applications.
Jeb: You also are not a guy who has played guitar since he was a
little kid. How, when and why did you pick up the guitar?
Lenny: I
got a notion to play when I was 15. I just said to myself, “I
really want to learn how to play guitar.” Probably because I
was listening to early 80’s metal shredders and wanted to
emulate them and be a cooler dude at school. When I started
playing – the guitar was a no name, brutal to play – I realized
it was a source for me to get out what I had stuck inside me,
being a teenager. I suppose it’s that teenage emotion and
angst. I realized I picked things up quickly, had my own style
and could keep up with most of my friends. From there, it
became an obsession. I took six months of lessons and it didn’t
get me what I wanted, which was a better ability to be more
creative. I felt confided by learning others music.
Jeb: Was
acoustic always the way you expressed yourself? Do you convey
your visions better this way then on electric guitar?
Lenny: I
hated the acoustic guitar growing up. I had one and NEVER
played it; it sat there collecting dust. If it was not capable
of having distortion I thought it was so not cool. I was a
metal head from the 80’s – even ballads bothered me. Now, fast
forward 20 years later, and there is nothing I love more than a
nice acoustic guitar. Now, Hall and Oates is cool to me. I
love Duran Duran and their guitar player, Andy Taylor.
What I
didn’t expect is that my roots in music came, not from my 1980’s
influences, but from my parents and my early pre-picking up the
guitar days. Buddy Holly, Elvis, Willie Nelson, Kris
Kristofferson and Hank Williams Sr. are guys I just love even
more now that I am older and wiser.
That said,
I have some hard, rhythmic metal I would love to put out. I am
so confined for time it’s difficult because the music is more
progressive and complex than the acoustic material. Also,
singing heavy metal is another art form that I just don’t have
in me. Some days I just crank up the amps and chug, chug away.
That’s probably an angry side coming out.
Jeb: Did
you always have the need to make this album? Was it gnawing at
you even when you were doing other things with your life?
Lenny: I
always wanted my music to sound good enough to share with
people. To have what is in my head, on a CD so people could
listen to it, is the dream. When I gave the CD to people who
knew me, they thought I just played guitar on the record and
very few realized it was me singing. Since I was 18 and started
writing my own songs, I really wanted my music out there. It
was a long road but I appreciate the CD so much more now. It
means more to me than a lot of things that have crossed my path
in life. I would forget about my dream of making a record when
things got busy but quickly remind myself again of my hopes when
I wrote a new song. It was always there like a shadow – but you
don’t see your shadow all the time.
Jeb: Your lyrics seem to be very important to you. Do you
craft the music first or the words?
Lenny: I
usually start with some chord progressions or something I wrote
on the guitar. Then I might hum a melody or even make one lyric
line and base things around that. I keep lyric ideas in a file
and go to that to work out the song. It’s probably a forty-page
file. A lot of times it’s crafting from different ideas – maybe
the verses have one focus and the chorus another. I don’t do
any story telling lyrics probably because I am not skilled
enough. I prefer to leave things open for people to connect to
a subject matter in their own way. I have more lyrics than I
have music though at this point. So somewhere all those
thoughts will come out.
Lyrics are
very important to me. I feel so naked with those words out
there for the world to see and hear. It gives me a sigh of
relief when someone comes up and says, “That song reminds me of
myself when I blank”. That blank is different than what
I was I experiencing but it really allows me to get deeper into
the human psyche analyzing why a line of a song can have so many
meanings.
Jeb: Tell
me about "Take These Dreams."
Lenny:
That was my first complete song that I thought was good enough
to record. I wrote it when I was 18 about myself from a quasi
third person view. When I had kids, I realized I could have
written it for them. It was complete when we started. Mike made
a chord change in the chorus and really synced the song up.
I am tired
of a society where kids think they can’t be anything they want.
There is a whole new trend in twisting standard personality
evaluations where people view individuals as having talent, so,
in turn, they have an excuse to not even try. For example,
there is no point in playing golf since you can’t be as good as
Tiger Woods, so why try. Talent is our justification for not
trying to be great. Anyone can do ANYTHING they want – they
just have to put the time and hard work in. This has been shown
by a recent influx of studies on the subject. So instead of
teaching people they can’t do certain things, why can’t we teach
them how to work hard at something and they can be awesome?
Societal norms can be a real bitch. Okay off the soapbox…
Jeb: Talk about Forever and a Day."
Lenny: I
am infatuated with dying. I know it’s creepy, but I am scared to
death of dying and have not dealt with that inevitability yet.
I wanted a song to tell my children how much I love them, how
they are seen by me, and how there is more to life than a
beating heart. Making everything relative to the earth or
universe coincides with another interest of mine - the vastness
of the universe. The way that life seems like organized chaos
and we humans think we impact things a billion light years
away. Our lives are short, especially compared to the universe,
so I want them to know that everyday they are on my mind.
There is a
line in there that every parent I would think feels like. We
all want our kids to be better than us. Kinder, smarter,
healthier, you name it. I hope my kids can right everything
that’s wrong with me and, in a larger sense, that generations
can right what we are doing wrong.
Jeb: How about "What If."
Lenny: And
a continuation to the previous answer… I wondered what would
happen if I died before my children grew older. What would they
do? It’s that age-old question: What If? So I started writing
down ‘what if’ questions. I really want them to look back at
this CD, these songs, and these thoughts, and go, “I see a
different man than I knew as a child.”
That said, the chorus revolves around forgiveness. A recent
family event has caused most I know to feel things are right
from their view, and that includes myself. But as I matured
through the situation, I realized that we all make mistakes, the
bigger man forgives in the face of a spiteful man. The bigger
man does the harder thing. The bigger man forgives instead of
judges. We are in a judgmental society. It’s easy and makes us
feel better about ourselves.
Jeb: Here
is a hard one... often times singer/songwriters need angst,
struggling and pain to get to that point where they can craft a
meaningful song. Your dad owned a factory, you took it over,
you built a new house in the woods of Connecticut and when you
had time and money you made your own album. It does not sound
like you paid dues, so to speak. How do you see yourself
compared to those tortured artists I am talking about?
Lenny: My
time and success didn’t fall out of a tree. I definitely paid
my dues there. I just didn’t pay my dues playing in clubs and
standing on street corners and sending out a 1000 CDs a week. I
paid my dues working harder than anyone, working more hours and
being more dedicated than the next guy. So in theory, it’s the
same principle just a different craft – one was business and one
was music. The good news is the principles hold true in both of
them. The emotions are the same and the success feels the
same. I am not a tortured artist, which I think brings a new
perspective. I still have a torn soul, but the music was beaten
out of me. The love of music is not tainted. So the beauty
still exists.
Jeb: When did you finally say, "I have these songs, and damn it,
I am going to record a CD if it kills me."
Lenny:
After I had the band Damone here at my studio I realized, “Why
can’t I do this to my music?” Mike Woods, their songwriter, was
looking for some producing work to start a new career. I said,
“How about you do my music?” If not for Mike this CD would
never have come to fruition. It was a lot of work for
twenty-three minutes of music. Five months of six-hour days. It
was hard work and very rewarding.
Jeb: What was the process like, recording and performing your
own music?
Lenny: It
was all a new experience. I did some recording here but nothing
of mine. I wasn’t in a producer’s chair and had someone to sort
of tell me what should happen, when and how. I told Mike he had
the pleasure of being one of the only people to kick me in the
butt and get paid to do it. All I had to do was wake him up in
the morning. We recorded all during the day and at night he
used to do “comps” and get all the takes from that day organized
for the next day. Through this process I also gained a few new
good friends. We can all use more of those.
At first it
was hard, I was not used to playing 4-6 hours a day or singing
for more than an hour. So I had lots of sore fingers.
Fortunately for me Mike preferred my voice after it was singing
for a while because it gets pretty scratchy kind of like Rod
Stewart. I like to learn things and can be a quick study so
that aspect of recording intrigued and enthused me. Let’s face
it a bad day in the studio recording music is better than a good
at work.
Jeb: You are kinda like the Christopher Cross of the New
Millennium -- with a bigger voice!
Lenny:
Being compared to any professional in music is a big
compliment. Some say I remind them of Meat Loaf or a variety of
other artists– no matter who it is – I take it as a big
compliment. So thank you!
Jeb:
Why do it yourself? Why not shop labels?
Lenny:
Whew…in a nutshell – I don’t need label money behind me. I am
not a starving musician but a relatively successful
businessman. Honestly, it is difficult for me to get out there
and play for 20 people for a year, and then 200 the next year.
I just won’t yield what I can at my normal job. I think of my
kid’s future and realize this works for all of us now and down
the road. If a label came to me, believed in me and would back
me appropriately, I would take that in heartbeat. But I don’t
want to be a “maybe” and in today’s day and age, I can
understand record companies not spending boat loads of money on
unknown talent. So if the CD does well – I am sure someone will
listen!
Jeb: Do you think this music has a valid audience in 2009? Are
you shooting for the over 35 year olds, and if so, what is the
plan to get the music to them?
Lenny: I
wasn’t aiming for anyone in any group or demographic. I think I
hit home with woman over 30 for the most part. Probably because
of the subject matter and tone of the CD. But lots of guys like
it too. I don’t see teenagers putting it on their iPods and
ripping through it like the All American Rejects! I just want
people to listen to the music – preferably more than once. If
they buy it and love it, what else can I ask for?
I am
working with a PR guy who has been in the business a long time.
Chipster Entertainment knows what they are doing. But more
importantly, he is an honest and upfront guy with good
character. It’s not some machine to take money but someone who
believes in the project. When I asked him to get involved he
got some CDs, listened to it, himself, handed it around to
people he trusts and see if it is worth his time. Thankfully he
got all good responses back and took me on.
Jeb: Are
you willing to tour? Play nasty bars? Fight for success in the
biz? Or are you satisfied to do it on a smaller level?
Lenny:
It’s really a monetary decision at this point. I am a busy guy
with the few companies I do have and they pay the bills pretty
well for me. They are going to provide my family with a future;
so nasty bars are not in my future. Success in the biz would be
nice but I won’t sacrifice what I have built thus far. I don’t
need to sell a million records to feel good about my music. I
feel so awesome when someone emails me or just tells me “I love
your music and here is why” it means someone took time out of
their important lives and spent some time with my music. That
feeling can never get old. If it does – then put me away
somewhere!
Jeb: You speak of dreams. What are your dreams, concerning
music? If you could have three wishes...
Lenny: I
would measure my music success as more and more people listening
to my music and wanting to have more. That would be the
ultimate goal. I want to continue to hone my craft. I don’t
ever want to forget the simple things that make me happy and not
appreciate what I have been blessed with thus far in life.
Jeb: Were you tempted to throw a few remakes on there to show
your influences? If so, what are your top three remakes you
would consider?
Lenny: Not
that all of your questions were great thus far but this one
really shows you know your stuff. Without a doubt there were a
few songs I wanted to throw in there and based on time,
discussions with Mike Woods on the first CD and a few other
things we decided against cover tunes. I wanted to do an
acoustic version of “Come Sail Away” by Styx. I love that
song. I love the irony and the story. I also wanted to do an
old Kiss song, which is one of my favorite bands. I would do
something like “Hard Luck Woman” or something along those
lines. I thought about doing a few Kristofferson songs, not the
common “Me and Bobby Mcgee” but something off his really
politically motivated stuff like “Eagle or Bear” or one of my
favorite songs “Johnny Lobo.” The chorus in “I Miss You” is my
attempt to homage to that song, harmony wise.
Jeb:
Now that this one is in the bag... When will the next CD come
out?
Lenny: I
had hoped this year. But here we are towards the end of 2009
and that won’t happen. I have spent a lot of effort trying to
push the first CD while I work on songs for the next one. I
have about five songs done but would want to do more than 23
minutes for the next outing. So if we are lucky – next year
sometime.
Jeb: You have done things kind of backwards in starting your
musical career. Doing it your way has to have made for some
funny stories. Care to share one?
Lenny:
Well I hear all the time “You’re putting into this what a record
label would put into this” as far as support funding is
concerned. Okay, that’s not a funny story, but to me it is.
When I do things, I do things right and to the max all the
time. There is no point in doing things half speed. Mike Woods
teased me crazy because I had those cheap hand held plastic
pencil sharpeners in the studio. To him, that was funny and not
like me. I should have a fancy powered pencil sharpener.
One of the
funniest stories I have probably comes when we were mastering
the CD. I used Ted Jensen at Sterling Sound. Now Ted’s first
big success was the Eagles Hotel California and his
latest big CD was Metallica’s Death Magnetic; he’s the
real deal. But since he works for a living, he was cool with
taking me on if I could afford the tab. I made an appointment
and had to deal with his assistant for everything. I decided
that myself, the mixing engineering, and my friend, Greg
Dicrosta, and Mike Woods would to to New York City for a few
days for an all expense paid fun trip and mastering session.
Sterling Sound is in a great area, where Ted’s office overlooks
New Jersey. The studios are stellar in every way. In his
waiting room is the Eagles Hotel California plaque with
something like 13 gold CDs representing a million each in
sales. We were so out of place. I dress down all the time for
pure comfort and had some sort of camouflage on, I am sure.
Mike Woods was in a phase where he wore this black winter hat
that made him look just like he was a homeless guy who rolled
out of a shelter. Greg Dicrosta looked like a sound engineer
student. I mean we were a ragtag looking bunch; just crazy
looking.
We went
into Ted’s studio and he barely says a word to us. He puts my
first song on his gazillion dollar speaker system and it sounded
amazing. He paused the track about 30 seconds in and turned his
chair around and said “I gotta be honest, when I saw you guys in
the waiting room I was a little scared at what the day would
bring, but this stuff sounds really good!” Instantly, we all
lit up and as it turned out, he was from the same town in
Connecticut as my engineer and started off on trumpet too, same
as Greg. So we all got along great. It feels good to have a
guy of that caliber be happy with the songs and sounds he was
hearing. In hindsight, we probably should have looked more
professional but it’s a better story this way.
Jeb:
Last one: The album is called Thoughts I Collected.
Explain the title, and what new thoughts have come along since
the album was finished?
Lenny: The
project was originally called Familia. It was about
family and I had this whole idea of having songs about different
members and going haywire on this concept. I slowed it down and
really wanted to bookmark my life up to that point. I wanted
something I could hand my children and, as they get older, they
can pull it out and go, “This is where our dad was at this point
in his life.”
Everything
on the CD means something. Every line, breath and note means
SOMETHING to me. I thought it went with that Americana vibe
at the same time. Of course, I took that line from the song
“Waiting to be Free” and it made sense to me. Last song, one of
the lines, summing up the 23 minutes!
I have new
thoughts. I wish the world were getting better but it’s getting
harder for me to stay positive when it seems greed, misuse of
information, corruption and using people is becoming an
acceptable norm. Life in the States is so fast and so much a
drive thru mentality, we miss all the beauty. We need to slow
down, shoot from the heart, and get back to the wholesome things
we used to have in our culture.
Listen to Lenny's Music by Clicking Here
