Face To Face With Taylor Hicks
by: Allison Grooms
July 8, 2009
In the three years since Taylor Hicks has won our nation’s largest singing competition, a lot of water has passed under his bridge, including the establishment of his own record label and the launch of a CD that boasts the contributions of well-respected musical luminaries. While all of this terrific water was passing beneath Taylor’s bridge, I myself was passing over bridges, clouds, and highways into many previously unexplored cities across the country. However, my destination was always the same: a Taylor Hicks concert and/or appearance in the national tour of Grease, in which he stars as Teen Angel. The best of his live musical performances, in my opinion, was his recent acoustic concert in a great Detroit club called The Magic Bag.
This most excellent gig was capped off by the M&G (Meet and Greet) that I was about to have with Taylor. In my travels, I have met Taylor before, but never after an actual concert. I was very excited about this meeting, as were the other seven people also lucky enough to have M&G’s at the Magic Bag. The security people at the club were, at first, confused as to what to do with eight bursting-at-the-seams happy Taylor Hicks fans. After checking our names against a list for verification, we were told to stand next to a railing and wait. We were then directed to line up behind a group of people who were getting CD’s signed by the headliner. We had just lined up when a man came by and wrapped wristbands around our arms, thus proclaiming us as the Chosen Few.
As we were waiting to meet Taylor, my friend John Kulinich, who had played guitar for Taylor that night, came by to say “hi.” John has his own Southern rock/country band, called Rollin’ in the Hay, for which he plays a mean (translation: great) guitar. I had first made John’s acquaintance a few months earlier, at a Rollin’ in the Hay concert where we struck up a friendship. While Taylor finished signing the CD’s, John and I chatted a bit. Finally, the security force was ready to start the M&G’s!
Since some people were still milling about the club’s lobby, security led us down toward the stage. There were a few people in line ahead of me, including a teenaged boy who asked to photograph Taylor holding up a sign for the boy’s school. The lady in front of me had a nice conversation with Taylor and finally, it was my turn! Surprisingly I was calm (I’m always afraid he’ll hear my knees knocking, but my kneecaps behaved nicely this time around).
Taylor greeted me with a smile and I told him that, of all the shows I’d seen him do, this was my favorite. I told him that I loved his acoustic material and he graciously said that he appreciated it and hoped that he could do more acoustic concerts! Then I presented him with a printout of a drawing that a friend of mine, who lives in Finland, had sketched of him. After that, I asked him to sign a photo that I had taken at the Grease show in New York City last summer, where the blockbuster musical had kicked off. Just as Taylor got done signing this for me, his friend Clay Connor came walking past us and spied the photo. He commented on how good it was and I told Clay and Taylor that I’d snapped the shot before the camera cops caught me! They both laughed at that. Naturally, I wanted a picture with Taylor, so I handed my camera to the security guy to do the honors, and he took a great picture! Since there were other people in line behind me, I told Taylor I’d see him in Canada for another appearance, and made my way back through the crowd. It was an M&G I will never forget. Taylor couldn’t have been any nicer. By the time I had emerged into the night air, my knees and other body parts had regained their memories: I was literally shaking!
I love Taylor Hicks’ music. I love the sound and honesty of it; I love the emotion he is unafraid to convey. Beyond the music, this quiet, humble celebrity has become my hero. Now, that may sound corny to some people, but it happens to be the truth. I have seen this fine singer-songwriter-musician many times both on and off the stage, and he is extremely appreciative of his fans. He is the nicest man you could ever want to meet. If he sees a disabled person in the crowd, he goes out of his way to make that person feel extra-special. I have seen him do this a number of times when there were no bright lights, cameras, or media people around; unlike too many people in the public eye, he is genuine. With Taylor Hicks, you get what you see. As for me, I hope to see and hear him perform his great music for a very long time to come.
http://www.writeonnewjersey.com/2009/07/fa...h-taylor-hicks/
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