Tom Brislin

Greetings from the road! My first solo tour is almost complete, and I don’t want it to end!  The final concert on this leg will take place on July 15 at the Hotel Preston in Nashville, Tennessee (DETAILS), after which I’ll be putting the songwriting/recording/producing hats back on and diving back into recording my album.  I see that as much as I’d like to keep them separate, the two worlds of recording and touring tend to collide. I don’t mind, really.

The venues I’ve played on this tour have been outstanding.  At the very first concert, I was practically spoiled by the amazing piano at Steamers in Fullerton, CA (and for the synth geeks, check out the photo below of Brain Salad’s amazing Moog Modular synth I got to play that night).  I’ve been performing several house concerts on this tour, and I absolutely love playing in this setting.

Would you like to host a Tom Brislin house concert? I’m offering a deluxe house concert package as part of my Kickstarter campaign.  To raise the funds necessary to produce my first solo album, I’m offering many exclusive rewards packages, including autographed CDs, bonus exclusive downloads, and more.

For example:  The house concert package includes:

• A concert in your home,
• A 1-hour music lesson (via Video chat or in-person if possible).  This can be a piano, vocal, songwriting, theory, audio engineering, production, music technology lesson, or interview,
• A recording of my own version of any song ever written by anyone in the history of the universe (provided I can obtain the original source),
• 2 guest list tickets to any one future concert that I am performing (solo or with ???),
• Limited edition autographed poster,
• Your name in the album credits,
• Limited edition T-Shirt,
• Entire Spiraling CD catalog (4 CDs),
• Autographed Hurry Up and Smell The Roses CD (my first solo album), plus download album in format of your choice
• A bonus digital album of piano instrumentals available only through Kickstarter,
• Access to an exclusive interactive web concert,
• The “Steppin’ Out” MP3 and video download.

Pretty cool, right?  You can see the full list of rewards and a video introduction here.

I really should have an infomercial with the Sham-wow/Slap Chop guy promoting this.

More news to come!

I'm on piano for this tour, but I couldn't resist the mighty old Moog.

After many years of touring and recording with different artists, I’ve been writing and recording my very first solo album. The album, due to be released in Fall 2011, is called Hurry Up and Smell The Roses and will feature 11 original tracks.

My aim is to create the best work I can make, and I’m doing so without a record label. I’ve partnered with Kickstarter to raise the funds necessary to do it properly. Your pledge dollars go directly to the creation, manufacturing, and release of this album.

This is an “All or Nothing” funding site, which means that I must reach my target goal, or all pledges are cancelled and this project will not be funded at all. So, I’ve created lots of rewards that allow you to get the music first, plus unique experiences and exclusives for backers only. Plus, every pledge gives you access to project updates so you can join me on this adventure.

If you haven’t already done so, be sure to grab your free download of “When You Told Me Not To Go” on my music page, and I hope to see you on my summer tour.  Thanks again!

This summer marks my first real solo tour. First up is a West Coast swing beginning at Steamers in Fullerton, California on June 16. What’s special about this show? First off, I’ll be playing on their sweet grand piano (the real thing, what a concept!), and also on the bill will be an ELP tribute band, so it’ll be keyboard heaven for sure.  After a couple of house concerts, I’ll fly back to Nashville, load up the ol’ CR-V, and head up to Virginia for a concert at ArtSpace Herndon on June 25 and a house concert on June 26. I will then march, on foot, with a keyboard strapped to my back (not really), to New York City for my first ever concert at Rockwood Music Hall (Stage 1) on July 1 (that part is true). I’m very excited that I’m on the bill in NYC with the fantastic singer-songwriter Jann Klose.  He’ll also be on the bill with me the very next night at the Record Collector in Bordentown, New Jersey (July 2).  Then it’s back to Nashville for my first solo appearance in town, July 15 at the Hotel Preston.  Also appearing will be Kurt Michaels, and this show just happens to be the night before Yes plays Nashville.  So, if you happen to like that sort of thing, come on out for a Nashville weekend.

More shows are being added, so please visit the shows page for all details and sign up for my email list too.  See you this summer…
Upcoming Shows:

During my recent trip to New Jersey, I was interviewed by John Anealio for The Functional Nerds Podcast. As you may know, the nerds got their revenge in the ’80s. And now, the time that used to be spent on vengeance can now be put to other things, like podcasts. Listen here: http://bit.ly/gIiRcp .

UPDATE: My final Ustream live webcast in April will be this Friday, April 29, at 8pm Eastern. I’m considering keeping it a weekly thing into May, but I haven’t decided what night it will be. COMMENTERS: Should I keep it on Fridays? What about Sunday Sounds? Monday Music? Tuesday Tunes? (etc).

You. You got what I need.