Home of Scott Richard Cooley, Michigan songwriter. You have arrived somewhere special. You're in the right place to discover or revisit the songs of Scott Cooley. The unmistakable image, tone, style and attitude are always here, and yet there’s always something new you didn’t notice before.
News Flash!: Scott's highly-anticipated fourth major album of original material has been officially released, so the party can begin. 2008's Drive Time Companion is now avialable. For more information, see the Records page.
Why You’re Here Quick Reference Guide:
Refer to Publishing.
Refer to Publishing.
Refer to Publishing.
Refer to Records.
Refer to Records.
Refer to About Scott.
Refer to Photos.
Refer to Poetry.
What lies at the emotional heart of why you're here is the great feeling you get when you listen to a Scott Cooley song. The catchy hooks in the choruses and melodies, the passionate, intelligent lyrics, the subject matter you can relate to. There is a classic, timeless quality to Scott's songs that makes them appeal to a wide audience. Far from the formulaic pop songs you'd hear on today's top forty radio stations, the songs on a Scott Cooley promotional CD might lead you to compare him with the likes of Neil Young for some songs, Bob Dylan for others, while Jimmy Buffet might also come to mind.
The pages on scottcooley.com provide honest, straightforward information about the songs of Scott Cooley. Humorous hype, fluff, and B.S. can be found here for your entertainment:
Refer to Reviews.
Scott’s songs have a certain je-ne-sais-quoi feel to them:
Scott’s take on common themes of love and nature convey his artsy, poetic side while his rebellious perspective on them shines through to give the listener involuntary urges to move and sing along. Once you’ve enjoyed some Scott Cooley music, you’re left craving more.
An Introduction To Music Appreciation
This site is the primary vehicle for those interested in the music of Scott Cooley. To decide whether you are someone who might appreciate Scott's songs and recordings, read on....
If you’ve ever sat in a living room with an acoustic guitar and strummed a few chords someone taught you and then made up some words to go with the chords and wrote them down on paper, then later recorded your second take to a cassette, rewound it, listened to your creation, and thought the whole process was fun, then you might like Scott’s music.
Scott takes this approach to songwriting a little bit further by recording his third takes into a microphone that is connected to a computer. He then records first (and sometimes second) takes of acoustic bass, drums, lead guitar, harmonica, marimba, percussion, and background vocal tracks individually while listening to the others in headphones. He then uses software to mix them together, put them on compact discs, and make them available for sale.
By today’s standards, this low-tech way of creating music streamlines the song building process from idea, to audio production, on through to the printed CD package, all without any support from the professional recording and music industries.
While the precision and quality are significantly less than what you would find on an album released by a famous artist on a major record label you purchased in a huge corporate record store, if you can get past it, and learn to appreciate this kind of music for what it is – raw, unpolished, organic, fresh, you will appreciate it even more, particularly when you consider the spirit behind it.
Have you ever been to see a rock concert to see a good band and were surprised when their live versions of their songs did not sound like the same songs on their album? Ever liked a professionally-produced rock song and then heard the band doing an unplugged version of it where it almost sounded like they were not as good of a band as you once thought? Ever seen a band doing a stripped-down acoustic rehearsal version of a song you’ve only ever heard as the album version and wondered how they could’ve taken such a mediocre song and made it sound so much better on the album? Ever hear a band live and they play their radio hit quite a bit differently only you like the extended version with instrumental solos added or slightly altered lyrics? Ever hear a cover band in a bar do a rendition of one of your favorite popular songs and think they put an interesting twist on it even though it was far from the original?
-All of these kinds of experiences give you an immediate impression that it is “not what you’re used to”, or that what you’re hearing is “different than what you expected.” You are taken aback, caught off guard, thinking to yourself “whoa, I’m not sure about this”. You might have a tendency to be disappointed, and you might feel cheated or let down.
After that immediate reaction begins to wear off a little, you might continue to listen with more of an open mind. You’re tempted at first to write it off, and not even acknowledge that less than perfect is acceptable, let alone intriguing. You might think to yourself, “although it is different than what I expected, I’m going to give it a chance.” Then you might start to think, “this is different, but that’s okay because this is honest and real.”
Although it’s not perfect, it has a quality about it that I like because it is not pretending to be something it’s not. It’s about the joy of being creative, the joy of being one’s self, the joy of one person’s take on something. You might start realizing that it is very interesting to hear someone’s personal interpretation of a piece of music.
Taking this concept a step further, what if you had the opportunity to hang around your favorite band backstage after a show, or in the recording studio, where they are working on new material. The new ideas they have might not meet your approval in their new state, because they are incomplete, unpolished, raw, and unrehearsed.
Maybe it occurs to you for the first time that all songs must’ve started out this way. You might realize that it is a sort of magic to start with nothing but a small idea, and then with a little action, see it evolve into something more. You gain an appreciation for the creative process and for recording artists in general, as opposed to strictly having a consumer's perspective. With limitations to skills, abilities, knowledge, and talent, not to mention access to resources and free time, you begin to understand how hard work at a creative craft can make up for a lot of natural aptitude, despite taking on such interests as an adult.
The artists whose albums you purchase have had their sound polished by professional engineers with the finest technology and equipment. A raw, minimalist sound is often more pleasing, once you've learned to appreciate it. If you can relate to this little intro, you are likely someone who would enjoy listening to Scott Cooley's songs, particularly in their original demo format as recorded by their writer.
A logical next step for understanding the Scott Cooley sound would be the About Scott or the Gear pages.
Refer to About Scott.
Refer to Gear.
Use the links throughout for a clear path to where you want to be next. Surf on and enjoy the journey through scottcooley.com.
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