Bob Crain Origins

Bob was born and raised in California, the birthplace of the Hippie Movement, in the “high times” of the Sixties. He moved to Hawaii as a young adult, where he formed views and took up the lessons of life, molded by the people, times, events, waves and winds of the Pacific Ocean. Bob moved to Australia over 20 years ago with his wife, and together they have raised two daughters in the Bayside suburbs of Melbourne. Recently leaving the big city rat race in Melbourne relocating to Coffs Harbour New South Wales where the climate is more like his beloved Hawaii, the community is smaller, the water is warmer and everything is lush green.

Influenced by artists such as Neil Young, Jackson Browne, Bob Dylan, Randy Newman, Fred Eaglesmith, Jefferson Airplane, The Eagles and so many more, Bob’s original songs are born in the coffee shops of the 60’s, raised on Rock ‘n’ Roll, and tempered by a lifetime in the Pacific. Bob’s lyrics breathe and articulate a perspective on life, history, attitudes, society, consciousness and fun. The lyrics are fused with his folk-based music, tinged with a unique blend of rock, soul, country and the blues … it is Folk-Rock.

Bob has been musically inclined all his life, in recent years he has been performing in the original music venues all around Melbourne and in the US both solo and with his band of fellow folk rockers FOLK IN THE ROAD. His first CD, The Hippies Were Right released in 2010 has been described as “different from anything being written today, a refreshing view in today’s it’s all about me world”. The Hippies Were Right was recorded live in raw acoustic form with only Bob’s guitar and vocals, initially as a demo. Since then he has released Humanology 101, different in that studio musicians, additional vocalists and band members added their different capabilities and skills along with Bob to provide a bit more color to the songs. Now in 2018 Bob Crain LIVE has been released, a solo set recorded live in the US.

 

Where am I going?

What am I doing now and where am I heading musically well… there are so many roads to be run down and plenty to be done.

Music has changed so much in my life so many more outlets and options but one thing still holds true… in Rock’n’Roll the roads don’t have DEAD END signs you just gotta run down the road and see what you find.

There are some battles to fight with the “Bloodsuckers” and the “Powers That Be” in the Music World if we don’t want to see the Live Music Scene and Folk Rock music completely disappear.

Above all there is Family no matter where they may be my lovely wife, my two beautiful daughters, soon to be son-in-law, my colourful twin sisters and the four legged member Blue pictured along with his grandmother Maggie and his mother Rodeo Rose  both of whom have departed for K9 Heaven (and I miss them both). There is of course more spread around the world too numerous to mention but all cherished.

The songwriting continues of course, each song is a bit like a new child, from the embryonic idea that comes in to my head, through a lyric writing stage then putting the lyrics to music and finally working it in to a performance piece.

I have a full batch of new songs besides the ones included in Bob Crain LIVE you will have to come along to one of my solo gigs to hear some new music, along with some old favorites. I always have several more on the drawing board in one state of incomplete or another and I never know when the next one is coming.

The songwriting is the key to everything! Here’s a little piece from my EPK which puts my music in to some context…My Music

Performances

I have worked hard on my solo performance skills and increasing the “color pallet” and improving on the guitar … it’s a process. Playing and singing with passion is one of the keys people feel that, playing original music makes that easier as you are singing from your own head and heart.

FOLK IN THE ROAD

My last band in Melbourne a really great bunch Erik, Lou (short for Louise), Simon and myself. We played some great gigs to big crowds and wrote and arranged songs together but alas all good things must come to and end.

I am looking forward to continuing on with my life and seeing the world at work around me and receiving the songs, wherever they come from, getting them transcribed and then out to where they can be listened to.

Recordings

The Bob Crain LIVE digital download and my CD’s are solely available to be purchased from this site in the Shop

There are some free downloads and streaming of selected material here

The most important and exciting event of the year in my music “career” was the opportunity to play some gigs on the West Coast of the US in Oct. 2017 – and the most exciting and opportune outcome of that (besides meeting some great people, making plenty of new fans and selling lots of CDs) was that one of the gigs was recorded with pro gear (not a iPad or mobile phone). The recording is of a set I played at K & Ks Folk Barn … and yes it is a converted barn.

Great set up, great crowd under the radar venue for people who are really in to folk and folk rock. The raw recording was tidied up, mixed and mastered in Melbourne at Incubator Studios and will be released digitally in April 2018, exclusively available from the Shop.

Very exciting as it is a real rare opportunity to get a live gig professionally recorded … at this career level anyway.

Guitars

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Martin D-28

I plan to keep playing my ’73 Martin D-28, which is 50 years old this year and just starting to be broken in as wood instruments go.

Guild Starfire

And my beautiful vintage Guild Starfire because I can still only play one at a time and I would rather have too many songs than too many guitars…but there is a possibility that I will be adding one more to the collection…stay tuned.