Chi McClean

Well, after spending a lazy morning down in Laguna Beach, CA after my gig last night just up the coast in Long Beach (thanks, CR!), I met up with writer Warren Sellers in Irvine over lunch to talk music, review some song ideas, and more. It was good to catch up with Warren (we met out in Colorado at the Durango Songwriters Expo back in early October) and hear what’s been happening. Man, that guy has more irons in the fire than anyone I’ve ever met. Good on ya, Warren! Looking forward to doing some more writing with him once I wrap up these shows along the coast.

Heading towards Bellflower, CA for the show.

Right now, I’m sitting in Starbucks on Main Street just paces from the famed Huntington Beach Pier where, every summer, a massive surf contest descends upon the town in generally blown out wind chop and turns the immediate area into a circus. This particular street is packed with action sports retailers from A-Z. You gotta wonder what these guys reel in during a busy day in tourist season, never mind a day during the contest.

So, tonight, I’m headed up to Bellflower, CA to play at this new spot, Casa de Luna Coffee House. A friend that I met several months ago at a show up in LA, then Long Beach, lives in the area and suggested that I check it out. Seems like a cool spot and I’m excited to play for a few hours. If you’re in town, swing on by for some food and drink and say hello! I’ll be performing from 8pm until about 10pm tonight and will be covering tracks from my first record “Something Out There” as well as several new tunes that I’m excited to share with the Bellflower’ites. Should be a pleasant evening of tunes up there… For more info, click on over to the venue’s website here and meet me there!

So pscyhed to be back in San Diego, CA at Lestat’s. This place has THE best sound around and is just so comfortable. I go on at 8:00pm and will be sharing the night with Laura Warshauer. There’s plenty of parking, the show is all ages, and it’s just $8.00 at the door. What more could ya want to kick off the month of December? So, come on down, say hey, and let’s rock! Oh, and DON’T forget the bacon-wrapped hot dogs down the street afterwards! Mm…

And the sticker is still standing in the green room at Lestat's.

Oh, and did I mention that I visited the Taylor Guitars factory today? Yep… and ya know what I played? The new GS Mini. So friggin’ cool… I’ve never ever played a bigger sounding travel guitar. I need one of those puppies! Check it out and I bet ya you’ll pick one up.

Well, as Thanksgiving approaches, many folks are getting ready for the big day at the super markets. Me? I’m planning out my route down the coast as I’ll be kicking off a short stint of eleven performances from San Francisco down to San Diego and back this Friday, November 26th. Along the way, I’ll be playing shows in San Luis Obispo (11/26), Ventura (11/27), Santa Barbara (11/28), Los Angeles (11/29), Laguna Beach (11/30), San Diego (12/1), Long Beach (12/2), Bellflower (12/3), San Francisco (12/4), a later show in Walnut Creek (12/4), and closing up with a radio interview and performance in San Francisco (12/5).

You might ask why I chose the day after Turkey Day to hit the road… well, it turns out that I was selected as a finalist in the Zoey’s Café “Ones to Watch” songwriter competition finals on Saturday, November 27th down in Ventura, CA. I figured that it was a hefty drive to make for one night, so why not build some additional shows around the contest? Fortunately, my network of venues and friends were able to help me put together some dates to make the drive a little more interesting than a one and done.

So, while this Thanksgiving won’t be spent with my family (for the first time ever!), I will be celebrating in my own way en route to my first gig in San Luis Obispo with a turkey sandwich and a slice of pumpkin pie from the deli counter somewhere, some music, and (hopefully) some world class waves along the California coast. If you’re around and looking for something to do, just take a look at my performance calendar on my “Shows” page here or click on over to my MySpace page to see where I’ll be and come on down to say “hey”. I’ll have my boards with  me if ya want to grab a few waves, I’m always down for a cup of tea somewhere and, of course, it would be great to see you at one of my performances. Until then, thanks for listening (and reading!) and have a safe and very happy Thanksgiving holiday!

Now, if we could only get that extra "c" in my last name in there...

So, it’s official… images, texts, e-mails, phone calls and high fives are pouring in from around the country as friends, family and fans are finding my first album “Something Out There” on the seat back entertainment system on their Virgin America flights. Pretty cool! Can’t wait to get the next record up there after the release in early 2011. What a neat feeling…

The next time you fly, fly Virgin America and let’s pass the time together. Safe travels this holiday season, and happy listening!

Not bad company... not bad company at all!

The Hotel Utah Saloon... a San Francisco institution.

Getting pretty excited to play some new stuff at The Hotel Utah Saloon in San Francisco, CA this evening with two really talented acts: Toby Lightman and Liz Pappademas. The show kicks off at 8:00pm with me and my good friend and bassist D-Lucca on upright. We had a great mini rehearsal the other day to run over some changes and things were sounding goooood. After our set ends (probably around 9:00′ish), Los Angeles, CA local Liz Pappademas takes the stage followed by New Yorker, Toby Lightman. I really dig both of these ladies’ voices and songs and I think the crowd is going to get a kick out of ‘em, too.

A few tickets are still available right now at TicketWeb.com for just $12.00, so if you’re hankering for something fun to do tonight, park your rear at the bar at The Hotel Utah Saloon over at 500 Fourth Street @ Bryant in San Francisco, CA, grab yourself a drink of whatever suits you, order up some hearty food (I like the shepherd’s pie the best), and get ready for some great acoustic music to sooth your soul.

For additional details and directions, click on over to The Hotel Utah Saloon or call ‘em directly at (415) 546-6300. See ya guys real soon!

So, I woke up to a beautiful morning yesterday where I’m currently crashing in Mill Valley, CA. The pouring rain finally stopped, the sun was shining, the birds were chirping, and the weather was cool and crisp: a perfect fall morning! I gathered my trail running gear and drove a few minutes up the road to Tennessee Valley for a 9 mile trail run during which I encountered countless hawks, cotton tails, deer, myriad tracks, and even two very healthy looking coyotes (I kept my distance from those boys after they leapt across the trail in front of me).

On the way back to my crash pad, I stopped by a local coffee shop to check in online, respond to some e-mails, etc. and then got dragged into a yoga session with my host, JW. I was a little hesitant at first since my last yoga experience was quite painful, but I gave in and went over to Red Dragon Yoga in downtown Mill Valley, CA. They had this deal that, for just $10.00, gave me 10 yoga classes. It was an offer I couldn’t refuse… In any case, we did bikram yoga that morning and within minutes, I was crying for mommy. I think I lost like 20 lbs. of water weight and nearly passed out from the heat and the ridiculous poses. Whoever said yoga was for wussies obviously hadn’t tried it: it’s hard! After an hour, the class ended and I collapsed into a useless heap of sweat and broken muscles. On the way out, I got to talking with the staff and somehow got to chatting about music, etc. One thing lead to another and, before I knew it, they had a copy of my album “Something Out There” in their stereo and were playing it at their studio. Pretty cool community out here in Mill Valley! Anyway, I had a great time over there and they were super supportive of me and my music (oh, AND my total and utter inexperience with yoga poses), so I’ve gotta give ‘em some props. Dare I head back today for round two?? Only time will tell… my muscles say “no”, but my mind says “yes”.

Later on in the day, while I was still recovering, I managed to get a fair bit done on the music front. I picked up a few other gigs, set up some meetings with a few musicians re: some upcoming projects, and even got a chance to head down to OTR Studios in Belmont, CA to pick up the latest rough mix of my second recording project to date from engineer/producer Cookie Marenco. While I definitely need to re-track some of the acoustic guitar and vocals from the live sessions with Brain (drums), Jon Evans (bass) and Rob Ickes (dobro), I’m really excited about where things are headed. It’s starting to sound like an album, alright! From here, it seems as though I need to practice, practice, practice some of my guitar and vocal parts that were less than stellar during the last session and then come back fresh to the studio and crush it. Period. Once that’s done, we’ll move on to adding some additional stuff (keys, possibly some fiddle, some background vocals, and a few other notable guest performers). So far, it’s been pretty wild to record with Brain (credits include drums/percussion with Guns N’Roses, Primus, and Tom Waits), Jon Evans (plays bass with Tori Amos), and Rob Ickes (9-time “best bluegrass musician/dobro player” by the IBMA). Cookie has really pulled together a killer team for this project and I’m getting excited to see who we can wrangle in next (and what my budget will allow!).

Since I was in the south bay for the check-in with the gang at OTR Studios, I gave a ring to my buddy Jon who somehow convinced me to pay a visit to the local climbing gym in Belmont, CA with him later that night. I happened to have my gear with me, so I allowed a suspicious “why not” and prepared for the worst after a hard trail run and bikram yoga earlier in the day. The session at the gym didn’t disappoint as I pretty much wore myself out after about 6 completed climbs (and many more failed attempts to reach the top of a route). With my arms shaking and about to fall off, we got something to eat, hung out for a bit, then I headed back to Mill Valley, CA weary and broken from a solid day out.

Today, it’s back to checking out a few apartments (I have one great option that I’m considering now), plugging away on the music, and possibly heading to some (gulp) yoga later in the day. My body still feels broken, but a little exercise definitely does the mind and the body good when there’s a lot going on. Come find me at Red Dragon later today!

Well, I’m chilling out at one of my favorite spots in San Francisco to get some work done out of the house: The Bazaar Café. I’ve played here a few times and am looking forward to participating in Bazaarstock III later this year on December 4th (it’s a cool event that KC Turner is putting on – definitely check it out).

I’ve already downed a Chai (my favorite coffeehouse drink since I am not of the coffee drinking kind and, heh… it also is sort of my name… sort of) and then this slice of pumpkin pie started calling my name… I asked for a little whipped cream on there and BAM!!! A little slice of heaven as I toil away on the apartment hunting grind while tackling some additional bookings for early December.

I’ve been looking for a new place to call home all over San Francisco, down as far south as Montara, and as far north as Mill Valley, but I’m not really finding anything just right. I need a quiet, clean spot with some good light, plenty of clean air, and enough room for all of my gear (PA system, guitars, amps, pedals, surfboards, skis, bikes and, oh yeah, a few clothes). Plus, since I’m toying with the idea of hitting the road and trying out a stint in Nashville, TN for a little while at some point, a short term or month to month lease is starting to look pretty darn appealing… the problem is that not too many of those are around these days. Hmmph… In any case, all is well as the pumpkin pie is doing what it’s supposed to (make my belly full and happy) and it feels like I’m making some progress on some additional shows in the mean time.

Some of you who follow my blog regularly may be wondering, “Where are all those weird photos he usually posts? The burritos? The greasy breakfasts? The surf scenes?” and I have to admit, I have plenty of ‘em, but I’ve hit a roadblock with WordPress and I can’t seem to figure out why I can’t upload anything at the moment. You can be sure, as soon as I figure out what’s happening, I’ll be retro-uploading (is that a word?) all of the photo-less blog posts so you can relive all of the glorious moments in living color. Until then, stay tuned and let me know if you need a room mate!

Lots of rain down here in (normally sunny and warm) Capitola, CA. Seems as though a little storm front has reared it’s ugly head for the day. No worries, though… we need the rain and I’ll be inside doing what I love to do most: playing some guitar and singing for good folks at a cool place – Cava Wine Bar.

If you’re in town, swing on by from 1:00pm until 3:00pm. I’ll be performing a solo acoustic set of my original tunes, as well as a few choice covers. It’s dry, warm, there’s wine a plenty, and there’s a killer gourmet pizza place right next door that actually serves inside Cava Wine Bar, so come on down for the afternoon and let’s toast to sunnier days! Check out the location details to the right or on my “Shows” page. See ya soon!

Man, I just got word that I’ll be performing a solo acoustic set at the San Francisco Ski & Snowboard Festival this Saturday, November 6th (that’s tomorrow!) from 1:00pm until 3:00pm. Every year, Snowbomb.com puts on this great event that features wine and beer tasting, great food, good entertainment, massive ski and snowboard deals from local retailers, all sorts of exhibits, and even three free lift tickets to Lake Tahoe, CA area resorts for just a $20.00 admission ticket. This year, that ticket price will include a performance from yours truly, too. Bam! So, get your tickets now at www.sfskifest.com and meet me there for THE kick-off to the ski and snowboard 2010-2011 season. It’s gonna rule…

So, in the midst of looking for a new place to call home, I’ve been doing some co-writing with SoCal songwriter Warren Sellers. I met Warren at the Durango Songwriters Expo this October out in Broomfield, CO after a listening session workshop and we got to talking about music, writing, etc. and decided we’d give a co-write try. At Warren’s suggestion, we got all high-tech and did a virtual co-write via Skype. I wasn’t too sold on the idea of using Skype, to be honest, but as soon as we dialed it in, got the real-time video feature going and turned up the mics, it worked as smooth as silken tofu.

Warren really seemed to enjoy my song “Hole In My Heart” back at the conference, but I ended up bringing a few more pop-friendly pieces to the co-write and we ended up working on an idea that I had put together earlier in the month. I started it off with a pretty cool guitar lick/line, a melody, and a story line, and Warren proceeded to tear it up, rearrange, and massage the base idea into something pretty special. Now, I haven’t done a lot of co-writing to date, so it was a sort of brand new experience to open myself (and my material) to something like this. I have to say, I was pleasantly surprised at how much fun it was, how much I learned, and how interesting it was to see where everything started and ended up. Warren has an amazing knack for shaping a story into compelling lyrics.

At the end of two sessions on Skype, we finished what we’re calling “Coming For You” which is an up-tempo acoustic tune that is a combo of what we’re calling “California Country”, some pop elements, and some down-home acoustic grooves. We’re both pretty excited about the finished product and I, for one, am definitely looking forward to getting back on Skype again to do some additional co-writing with Warren.

Stay tuned for a performance near you to hear the new tune. In the mean time, keep listening and have a great week!