Jay Gillotti profile picture

Jay Gillotti

About Me

I’m a songwriter who has been writing and recording original music for over 25 years. At an early age I loved listening to my parents’ records (Beach Boys, Four Seasons, Beatles, Rolling Stones, Arlo Guthrie, movie music, sound effects, etc.). In Jr. high school, I became a huge Beatles fan and came of age at the height of the album-rock era. I had written poetry from a fairly young age and this naturally evolved into song lyric writing. Around the age of 15, I got serious about playing the guitar and also started toying with the piano. The poetry, guitar playing and a healthy dose of normal teen angst started me on the path of writing songs and I’m still at it. After college, two of my dear friends from high school started recording with me on 4-track cassette (technology that made decent quality, homemade recordings feasible). We released 3 “friends and family” cassette albums in the late ‘80s and had a great time writing and recording the songs. Working on 4-track (as the Beatles had) was great training. In the ‘90s, marriage, houses and the corporate world took precedence over recording but after moving to Seattle in the late ‘90s, I found myself writing songs at the same pace I had in college. In 2000, I started working with a vocal coach, the superb Emily McIntosh, and started spending more hours recording. In 2002, when my old Fostex 4-track machine finally stopped working, I switched to digital hard disk recording with a Korg D-12. These events lead to my first “Friends & Family” solo album in 2003. I have released 6 other CDs since then (including a re-master of recordings from the ‘80s) and my first for-sale record, “Cohesive” was released in the summer of 2007. My first instrumental CD, "Shards Of Light" is being released in the Spring of 2008.Other interests include sports of all kinds, sports car racing and Formula One, vintage cars, automotive and music history, playing softball and fitness, gardening, real estate, architecture, spirituality.

My Interests

Music:

Member Since: 24/06/2007
Band Website: www.cdbaby.com/cd/jaygillotti
Band Members: Just me - Currently, I play or program all the instruments on my records. On some records I sing with my vocal coach, the superbly talented Emily McIntosh.
Influences: The Beatles, Bob Dylan, Abba, Tangerine Dream, U2, Jimmy Buffett, Joan Armatrading, REM, Collective Soul, Pearl Jam, Bruce Springsteen, Moody Blues, Heart, Fleetwood Mac, The Who, The Band, Beach Boys, Great Big Sea, Carbon Leaf, Goo Goo Dolls, Yes, Genesis, ELO, Tom Petty, Simon & Garfunkel, Oasis, Rolling Stones, Matthew Sweet, John Denver, The Monkees, Maynard Ferguson, John Coltrane, BB King, John Lee Hooker, Johnny Cash, Del McCoury, Steve Seskin (this list is not complete but representative of my favorites)
Sounds Like: Hard to classify - my records sound at times like many of the groups and artists who have influenced me. On my for-sale record, "Cohesive", influences include The Jayhawks, Paul McCartney, Pearl Jam, REM, Simon & Garfunkel, Drive By Truckers, Bob Dylan, The Who, (you get the idea). I like the eclectic approach first modeled to me on The Beatles’ ’White" album.
Record Label: Unsigned

My Blog

Music News 24

*New(er) stuff  In this section, we discuss some of the more recent music I have heard and give you my recommendation (or not). Remember, if you can only buy one new CD recommended below  my pick is...
Posted by on Sat, 25 Jul 2009 08:33:00 GMT

Music News 23

Welcome Friends, We may be experiencing an economic recession, but in the pop music world we are receiving new music from many of the giants (Springsteen, McCartney, U2, Chris Isaak and soon, Bob Dyla...
Posted by on Sun, 19 Apr 2009 09:45:00 GMT

Music News 22

Welcome Friends,  This is the Holiday gift-giving edition of the music news.  Some suggestions for those music lovers who might be on your Christmas list.   *New(er) stuff  In this sec...
Posted by on Thu, 11 Dec 2008 05:25:00 GMT

Music News 21

Welcome Friends, This is the "blog" format for my music reviews.  Still trying to get you the information on good records to check out.  *New(er) stuff  In this section, we discuss some of ...
Posted by on Thu, 14 Aug 2008 07:33:00 GMT

Broken Wrist

Hello all - Just thought I would let you all know that I broke my right wrist on April 27th (playing softball).  Although I fractured the dreaded Scaphoid bone (a slow healer), surgery was not re...
Posted by on Sat, 21 Jun 2008 14:35:00 GMT

Jays Music News 20

Welcome Friends,  This is the new "blog" format for my music reviews.  Trying to be a bit more concise but still get you the information on good records to check out. *New(er) stuff  In th...
Posted by on Fri, 18 Apr 2008 20:22:00 GMT

"Shards Of Light"

"Shards of Light" is my new, all-instrumental album and I have been working on recording these pieces for over 4 years.  The music on this record dates as far back as high school and covers diffe...
Posted by on Fri, 14 Mar 2008 20:18:00 GMT

Amethyst

You will see a link to Amethyst in my friends section.  Amethyst is the group that I was in during the period of 1986 through 1989 with my dear friends Mike and Michele.  We are officially t...
Posted by on Thu, 13 Mar 2008 20:31:00 GMT

Americana

"Americana" is not the easiest sub-genre of pop music to define, but January is a great month to delve into some great records that fit my definition.  For me, this is music that is directly...
Posted by on Tue, 29 Jan 2008 21:47:00 GMT

Severely Under-Rated Albums

Here is my list for last-minute Christmas shoppers (or general music-lovers) of 10 severely under-rated, unknown albums that should be in every pop/rock record collection:     ...
Posted by on Fri, 14 Dec 2007 19:38:00 GMT