New life in Kentucky, new woman Olivia Henken, new EP, ‘Good Times,’ available April 3.
MANCHESTER, NH – It’s Tuesday at the Wild Rover and the band is back together – Josh Logan, Paul Costley and Nate Comp, who are a majority of the Josh Logan Band, whenever they have the chance to regroup.
These days, that means whenever Logan makes his way back to Manchester from Kentucky, his new home away from home.
After years of playing the local music scene, and a brush with fame on reality TV’s “Rock Star Supernova,” things truly changed following Logan’s appearance in 2013 on season 5 of “The Voice.”
Although he wasn’t the last man standing, he had a good run on “Team Christina,” got some national exposure, and made a love connection with fellow contestant Olivia Henken, which has changed his life, and his trajectory.
On April 3 Logan officially releases his new EP, “Good Times,” with a launch party at Hooley House in Boston, followed by a few more local gigs, including Saturday night April 4 at Fody’s Tavern, Railroad Square, in Nashua.
A local release party is set for April 7 at the Wild Rover, during open mic night.
All the details are posted on Logan’s website, JoshLogan.net, including some music samples and a Google calendar of bookings, through the end of the year.
The rest of the story is told in the ease with which Logan interacts with his fan base – which has grown beyond his local following – thanks to his television exposure, and of course, his music. He takes times between sets to make the rounds at the Rover, fielding compliments along with requests.
This is what his life has been about, the lasting musical connections that feed the soul and keep the musical inspirations coming.
After some 20 years of making music, Logan says he’s too far gone to stop chasing the dream of hitting it “big” with a commercial success. He hopes the work he’s done on the new release, with producer Anthony Resta, will get him closer to that dream – Resta has worked with Elton John, Duran Duran and Collective Soul.
Logan says he is excited about the “new direction” his music is taking, including a few tunes he co-wrote with Resta.
“It’s the kind of music I feel like I should be playing, but I don’t write like that myself,” says Logan.
“I really love Stevie Wonder, so I just get wrapped up in the moment of writing things that sound cool to me. This whole process has been about what the listener is going to experience, so they can grasp onto the hooks and the chords,” Logan says. “I want it to be something marketable, something people are going to dig, and I think I finally found a happy medium with Anthony Resta.”
Between his old life in Manchester and his new life in Kentucky, Logan spent about six months in Nashville.
“I always thought Nashville was this magical place – there are so many amazing songwriters out there. If you go to write songs, Nashville is a great place to be; if you go there to play in bars, there are so many great singers out there who do what you do, it’s hard,” Logan says.
So he and Henken moved back to her home turf, Louisville, Kentucky, where they have been performing together.
Coming back to Manchester knowing that Open Mic Night at the Wild Rover is still going strong feels good – it’s a local music showcase he helped launch years ago, and which continues to draw local singers and songwriters for their “three song” moment in the spotlight.
“We started this whole open mic jam on Tuesday nights … and it’s thrived and survived over the years,” Logan says. “It’s cool to come back in, you can see everybody, and play for them. You’re never too big to do that, and if you are, it speaks about your character.”
He says making music has always been his dream, and he “gave it hell” along the way. Yes, a big pile of money always helps propel the dream in this business, he says, but Logan isn’t complaining.
His dreams are still coming true, every day that he can make music.
“I’ve had a great go so far, and done things some people will never get to do, just because of music. I’ve been to islands and strange countries and met very interesting people, I was on two TV shows, which is also huge – it really just comes down to luck, 90 percent talent and 10 percent luck, or let me reverse that – 90 percent luck and 10 percent talent,” Logan says, with a laugh.
The new release is available anywhere Logan is playing, for now – he’s pushing the hard copies of the CD, which features cover art created by his graphic designing sister, Tiffany Corder. After that, the new music will be available through his website, on CD Baby and anywhere else digital music is sold, Logan says.
“I don’t know, I’m just going to keep going at it, and hopefully this EP will get some attention and people will like some of the tunes. That’s all you can do, keep writing good songs and maybe one of those songs that you write, people will really relate to and want to download a million times,” he says.
“And if this doesn’t work, we’re just going to give up on music and cook burgers, and give up on life in general…,” Logan says, flashing a smile that betrays his relentless musical spirit. “… just kidding.”
Click here for an extended 10-minute interview with Josh Logan, between sets at the Wild Rover, and some jam sessions below.
Follow Josh Logan on Facebook and @Josh_Logan on Twitter.
April 3, 2015: EP Release party at Hooley House, 25 Union St., Boston, will feature special live performances from Erika Van Pelt (American Idol) and Mia Boostrom (Americas Got Talent). Tickets are $15 and include copy of the EP, “Good Times.”
Jam session: Raw video from Wild Rover March 31, 2015
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