Coda Cannon

Song of the Broken Heart

NEO-CLASSICAL SOUL

Coda Cannon’s love of music was clearly apparent to his parents at the earliest of ages. When he was only a couple of days old Coda’s mother realized that the only way she could get her restless infant to sleep was to have the “Nutcracker” playing in his bedroom. Coda didn’t speak his first words until the age of three. To the astonishment of his parents, his first words came out in the form of a sentence. His first song followed shortly thereafter. “Ring That Doorbell”, “I Ate a Lady”, and “Superman, I Need Your Help”, were among the first of his original compositions. On his fifth Christmas, Coda’s grandmother bought him a guitar and a mini-drum set. With the help of his little sister and his friend and neighbor Michael, Coda began putting his little songs to music. “Back then music was just one of the many games we played”, recounts Coda. “’Do you want to play music or Transformers?’ It was like that. Our instruments were just toys. I don’t think anybody thought that one day we’d be making music for the masses. In fact Michael and I wanted to be world famous astronauts.” Michael would later go on to become multi-Grammy award winning R&B superstar D’Angelo.
At the age of seven, Coda’s mom enrolled him in piano lessons. He wasn’t a standout student. He spent more time writing his own songs and learning the theme music of his favorite wrestlers than he did learning his sheet music. He did however learn the fundamentals of music, which would become invaluable to his musical development in later years.
In his junior year in high school Coda decided that he wanted to learn guitar. His grandmother bought him an acoustic guitar and he began teaching himself chords and Nirvana songs. After graduating from high school Coda decided to attend James Madison University. However, his admission to JMU was granted only after successful completion of a multi-cultural summer transition program for students who tested high but whose grades may not have reflected their potential. That summer, with a lot of free time on their hands, Coda and his roommate decided to form a band. They decided that writing their own songs would be easier than learning other artist’s material. By the start of the fall semester they had compiled a full set of original material. After the band’s first show Coda knew that music was going to be his thing. During their winter break the aspiring musicians decided to take a trip to New York City to visit Coda’s old friend D’Angelo. He was there recording his sophomore album Voodoo at Electric Lady Studios. Being in the studio only whetted Coda's appetite all the more for music and upon his return to school Coda was more sure than ever that music was his calling.
After school Coda decided to strike out on his own. He packed up everything he owned and made the move to Los Angeles. There he was discovered by pop producer Gianpierro Scuderi. Scuderi liked what he heard and signed Coda to his production company. Shortly thereafter the two began work on Coda's debut album. Unfortunately it became quickly evident to the both of them that Coda and Scuderi had two different visions for his music. After many months of work and little to show for it, the pair decided to part ways. "It was the case of having too many cooks in the kitchen"; Coda says with a chuckle. "We both had good chops and great ears for pop music. We just were trying to go in totally different directions." Their biggest blow-out came during the pre-production of Coda’s song On the Line. The song is in the time signature of 3/4, which is a little unique for a "pop" song. “And since On the Line was going to be my first single, J.P. Scuderi was adamant that the song be in 4/4, the “standard” time signature for pop music. He challenged me to name one radio hit that wasn't in 4/4. It took me a while but I found one. Mazzy Star’s Fade Into You is in 3/4', but J.P. was unmoved". The producer informed Coda that according to their contract he was also the executive producer and the executive producer has the final say in all creative differences. “I finally relented and we recorded the song in 4/4, and I hated it. To me it sounded like a cheesy Backstreet Boys song.”
After parting ways with Scuderi, Coda decided to come back to Virginia to regroup. After being home a couple of weeks his beloved Grandmother died. "I was completely devastated! Grandma was my rock. She was my biggest fan and closest friend. After she passed I went into a deep depression." After the funeral Coda decided against returning to L.A. Instead he moved to Fredericksburg, Va. where he got a job waiting tables at a little mom and pop Italian restaurant. Eventually he saved up enough money to purchase his own recording equipment. Learning everything he could about the recording process, he began work on the album he previously started two years before in Los Angeles.
Writing and producing every song; playing and recording every instrument, "Neo-Classical Soul" is the album Coda always wanted to make. "I'm very proud of this album, not just because it's a great album but because it is truly a labor of love. I've never worked so hard on anything in my life. It's my baby and I hope everybody likes it."
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