Mike Thomas from “Copper Road”
1. Hello Mike and welcome to Kick Acts. Tell us a little about yourself.We are a group of guys from all over Western Kentucky. When the band 69 South broke up 3 of us got together and put Copper Road together. Our goal was to be the best we could be and as professional as we could. We don’t “expect” to get famous and all that, but we do remain hopeful, and if we don’t “make it”, we want it to be so it isn’t our fault! We are putting the final touches on a new CD that we recorded last month, waiting for the final mix and mastering, it should be ready for release within the next month. (we hope!) We did release 100 copies of a pre-release which sold out almost immediately. We have had a lot of encouraging feedback and we’re very excited about the whole project.
2. You’re currently in a band called “Copper Road”. Tell us who’s in the band, how you got the name “Copper Road” and how we can find you online and any shows that we can catch you at.
We were trying to figure out a name for the band, and in this day of the internet, finding an original name is a VERY difficult thing to do! My criteria were that I didn’t care what the name of the band was as long as nobody else was using it. Somebody, I think Dave, came up with Copper Road and it met the criteria. As for the band members, John Thompson – singer/acoustic guitar, Jeff Jones – singer acoustic guitar, Mike Thomas – electric/lead guitars, Samuel Humphrey – keyboards, David Bowles -bass, and Cody Kirby – drums. You can find us at www.myspace.com/copperroadband.
We were trying to figure out a name for the band, and in this day of the internet, finding an original name is a VERY difficult thing to do! My criteria were that I didn’t care what the name of the band was as long as nobody else was using it. Somebody, I think Dave, came up with Copper Road and it met the criteria. As for the band members, John Thompson – singer/acoustic guitar, Jeff Jones – singer acoustic guitar, Mike Thomas – electric/lead guitars, Samuel Humphrey – keyboards, David Bowles -bass, and Cody Kirby – drums. You can find us at www.myspace.com/copperroadband.
3. You guys have some unique players in the band. Some with families with back grounds at the Grand ole Opry and praise and worship music. Tell us about that.
Our drummer Cody Kirby is the son of Malcom Kirby. Malcom is a top notch steel guitarist who enjoyed moderate success playing with Johnny Russell where they had multiple appearances on The Grand Ole Opry. Samuel Humphrey has been playing keyboards for over 30 years. Samuel’s background is in gospel and praise and worship music. Although he was not a band member, he played and traveled with The Happy Goodman Family off and on for several years. He played and traveled with the WWJD Praise & Worship Team and has played for various churches over the years. It wasn’t until a few years ago when Samuel joined 69 South that he started playing secular music, as he calls it.
Our drummer Cody Kirby is the son of Malcom Kirby. Malcom is a top notch steel guitarist who enjoyed moderate success playing with Johnny Russell where they had multiple appearances on The Grand Ole Opry. Samuel Humphrey has been playing keyboards for over 30 years. Samuel’s background is in gospel and praise and worship music. Although he was not a band member, he played and traveled with The Happy Goodman Family off and on for several years. He played and traveled with the WWJD Praise & Worship Team and has played for various churches over the years. It wasn’t until a few years ago when Samuel joined 69 South that he started playing secular music, as he calls it.
4. You guys put on a great show and just don’t stand there and stare at your feet when you are performing. You give it all every night. Does it ever get hard to do after four or five sets?
It can get grueling. I have seen Cody’s hands completely covered in blisters and John has gotten into it so much that he sliced his hand on his guitar strings slinging blood all over the place. The thing is though, we love what we do! We are very aware of what we must look like on stage as well. We want to be a band that WE would enjoy watching, so yeah, we interact and move as much as we can. Sometimes it’s hard to come up with stuff to talk to the crowd about, I mean, there’s only so many times you can say, “How y’all doing! Everybody having a good time! Somebody scream!”
It can get grueling. I have seen Cody’s hands completely covered in blisters and John has gotten into it so much that he sliced his hand on his guitar strings slinging blood all over the place. The thing is though, we love what we do! We are very aware of what we must look like on stage as well. We want to be a band that WE would enjoy watching, so yeah, we interact and move as much as we can. Sometimes it’s hard to come up with stuff to talk to the crowd about, I mean, there’s only so many times you can say, “How y’all doing! Everybody having a good time! Somebody scream!”
5. Do you have a greatest gig story you’d like to share?
We opened for The Kentucky Headhunters last month at Little River Days in Hopkinsville KY and that was a lot of fun. It was kind of cool when Richard Young asked us “How come y’all aren’t signed?” HOOK A BROTHER UP! LOL!
We opened for The Kentucky Headhunters last month at Little River Days in Hopkinsville KY and that was a lot of fun. It was kind of cool when Richard Young asked us “How come y’all aren’t signed?” HOOK A BROTHER UP! LOL!
6. How about the worst gig?
I’m not sure about any “worst gig” moments with this particular band, but obviously some gigs are better than others. Having a provided crappy sound man can really affect things in a negative way. The audience doesn’t know it’s not us causing things to sound so bad! Low crowd attendance can affect our morale as well, but we try not to let that show. There was this one time a band member had surgery a few
days before a show and was on loratabs. He thought he would be okay having a couple shots of whiskey…that did not work well for him. lol!
I’m not sure about any “worst gig” moments with this particular band, but obviously some gigs are better than others. Having a provided crappy sound man can really affect things in a negative way. The audience doesn’t know it’s not us causing things to sound so bad! Low crowd attendance can affect our morale as well, but we try not to let that show. There was this one time a band member had surgery a few
days before a show and was on loratabs. He thought he would be okay having a couple shots of whiskey…that did not work well for him. lol!
7. Do you have any other hobbies other than playing guitar in the band?
Some people play golf, go boating, and play softball and various other things for their weekend hobbies. Me? I simply love playing music, so I get the same rush being on stage that a golfer gets when it’s a beautiful day on a nice course.
Some people play golf, go boating, and play softball and various other things for their weekend hobbies. Me? I simply love playing music, so I get the same rush being on stage that a golfer gets when it’s a beautiful day on a nice course.
8. Who are your musical heroes, and influences & why?
I think it was 1972 or 1973, I had already been learning the guitar from my dad for three years prior and the song Smoke On The Water by Deep Purple hit the airwaves. I was totally blown away by that famous intro and knew right then and there what kind of music I was going to play. Although I am not a huge Richie Blackmore fan, he is directly responsible for guiding my playing in the direction it has taken. As a young teenage player I was deeply influenced by Ted Nugent, Gary Ritchrath of REO Speedwagon, Joe Perry of Aerosmith, Alex Lifeson of Rush, and Judas Priest. I sometimes play bits and pieces of Gary’s Guitar Solo whenever I do a solo, a tribute of sorts. Ironically, I now play in a country fried band! lol! If you listen to our music, you WILL hear those influences, country or not!
9. Do you have any advice for someone just getting started in playing? Any pitfalls they should avoid?
Play as often as you can with as many people you can. Do NOT get big headed! Playing is like fighting, no matter how big and bad you are, SOMEBODY out there can whip your ass! When starting a band, make sure the other members are guys or gals you like hanging out with regardless of their talent and abilities. You can learn from anybody. I’ve been playing for nearly 40 years and I can learn stuff from beginners.
Maybe I’ve been playing a song wrong for years but somebody taught them the right way. Music is NOT a competition! Be civil and respectful of other bands and musicians. Music is a fluid environment, so yeah, you might be in a kick ass band NOW…but things change. If you are an asshole to other musician, nobody will want to take you on when the time comes. If your cool with other bands they can also help
you get gigs and help you out in a pinch.
Play as often as you can with as many people you can. Do NOT get big headed! Playing is like fighting, no matter how big and bad you are, SOMEBODY out there can whip your ass! When starting a band, make sure the other members are guys or gals you like hanging out with regardless of their talent and abilities. You can learn from anybody. I’ve been playing for nearly 40 years and I can learn stuff from beginners.
Maybe I’ve been playing a song wrong for years but somebody taught them the right way. Music is NOT a competition! Be civil and respectful of other bands and musicians. Music is a fluid environment, so yeah, you might be in a kick ass band NOW…but things change. If you are an asshole to other musician, nobody will want to take you on when the time comes. If your cool with other bands they can also help
you get gigs and help you out in a pinch.
10. # 10 is called “Shout it Loud”. It’s were you get to talk about whatever you want to talk about. So go ahead Mike, and “SHOUT IT OUT
LOUD”!
LOUD”!
I just want to thank everyone past and present who have supported Copper Road and helped make us the band we are. Without friends and fans we might as well just be a garage band. Check our music out at www.myspace.com/copperroadband. Thanks Chuck for the opportunity to contribute to your magazine!
Categories: Ten Questions Tags:
Life – Philosophy 101
A professor stood before his Philosophy 101 class and had some items in front of him. When the class began, wordlessly he picked up a very large and empty mayonnaise jar and proceeded to fill it with golf balls. He then asked the students if the jar was full.
They agreed that it was.
The professor then picked up a jar of pebbles and poured them into the jar. He shook the jar lightly. The pebbles, of course, rolled into the open spaces between the golf balls. He then asked the students again if the jar was full.
They agreed it was.
The professor picked up a box of sand and poured it into the jar and of course the sand filled up everything else. He asked once more if the jar was full.
The students responded with a unanimous yes.
The professor then produced two cans of beer from under the table and proceeded to pour the entire contents into the jar, effectively filling the empty space between the grains of sand.
The students laughed.
“Now,” said the professor, as the laughter subsided, “I want you to recognize that this jar represents your life. The golf balls are the important things — your family, your partner, your health, your children, your friends, your favorite passions – things that if everything else was lost and only they remained, your life would still be full.”
“The pebbles are the other things that matter, like your job, your house, your car. The sand is everything else — the small stuff.
If you put the sand into the jar first,” he continued, “there is no room for the pebbles or the golf balls. The same goes for your life. If you spend all your time and energy on the small stuff, you will never have room for the things that are important to you. Pay attention to the things that are critical to your happiness. Play with your children. Take time to get medical checkups. Take your partner out dancing. Play another 18.
There will always be time to go to work, clean the house, give a dinner party and fix the disposal. Take care of the golf balls first – the things that really matter. Set your priorities. The rest is just sand.”
One of the students raised her hand and inquired what the beer represented.
The professor smiled. “I’m glad you asked. It just goes to show you that no matter how full your life may seem, there’s always room for a couple of beers.”
Categories: Humor Tags:
Star Pupil
This band is Star Pupil, They’re going to be at Bullock’s this Saturday at 10:30pm. Come see them, you will like them.
Categories: General Tags:
Categories: General Tags:
Monster load to slow traffic Wednesday morning
By: Yahoo.com
Movement of a 500,000-pound, oversize load from a factory at Mount Vernon in Posey County to Edwardsport in Knox County is expected to slow traffic on some area roadways Wednesday. Indiana State Police are waring of possible traffic backups and delays.
Officers will escort the load, which will be traveling at between 10 and 12 miles per hour, from Mount Vernon starting at 7:30 a.m.
The load will be moved over the following roads: Old Hwy 69 in Mt. Vernon to SR 69N, SR 62E (Main St.) north to Industrial North to SR 69N/SR 66E/SR 165N to Church St. East on SR 168 to US 41N to Elkhorn Rdoad east to SR 44N/US 41 to Hart St., then east on Bierhaus Rd. to SR 61 to SR 241N to US 50/150 west to Robinson Road North to Evans Rd north, to SR 550 to SR 67 north.
State Police recommend motorists to use alternate routes to avoid any delays.
Categories: General Tags:
