Chad Long Music

Chad’s philosophy of music“I believe that music is a double-sided mirror placed between the listener and the artist. This mirror reveals how the music affects us individually. It reflects how music breathes us, writes us, reads us, dances us, rhymes us, and—most importantly—reforms us. You never listen to the same song twice, just as I never sing the same song twice. I desire to use my music as a catalyst for this reformation through every lyric, melody, beat, and rhythm that I create. I challenge you to listen with an curious mind and connect with me. We'll both walk away new people.”Inspiration—Chad’s version…and the truthFrom the beginning of time, women have been the inspiration of much of the best that men have to offer. Chad Long is no different. To hear him tell it, his passion for music was sparked in 5th grade by a cute, pre-teen muse in Ventura, California. Sounds nice. But truth be told, he couldn’t help but notice another boy’s luck at impressing the girls with his piano skills during lunch recess. Granted, it’s not as noble a story of inspiration, but suddenly Chad wanted to play more than air guitar.Shedding hours (that’s musician for “training”)Conveniently leaving out the “I want to impress the chicks” part, Chad asked his dad to teach him to play the piano. He learned quickly by ear and soon was taking more advanced lessons, having surpassed his father’s abilities. What began merely as a means to get the girls had soon become its own joy.Puppy love and broken hearts But don’t kid yourself, the girls were still important. Especially Rue. Chad was smitten. She swooned to Moonlight Sonata. He baited her by claiming he knew it by heart and would serenade her the next week. She bit. Of course, he’d lied (you could see that one coming). At the next lesson, his teacher told him he was crazy. But Chad’s extreme motivation paid off, and he made good on his promise to Rue. He wowed her. She cried. Chad melted and waited for the payoff. But instead of a peck on the cheek, Rue dropped the thanks-for-the-song-but-I-already-have-a-boyfriend bomb. Bummer, dude. Didn’t see that one coming.As you can imagine, the harsh rejection turned Chad into a crazed, bitter, drooling woman-hater. Well, not really, but it did hurt for a while. Fortunately by then, music had become Chad’s true passion and comfort.School dazeChad attended a middle school in Ventura with an exceptional music program. He chose the alto saxophone (“cuz the girls dig it”—notice the trend?) and excelled in the Wind Orchestra and Jazz Band. He especially liked the Jazz Band, which gave him the opportunity to wear shades and look cool. Because that’s what middle school is all about.In high school, Chad continued playing alto sax in the orchestra but switched to tenor for jazz. Flute and bass guitar were his next conquests. At times he took three lessons a week for various instruments, concentrating on sight-reading and improvisation. And with all this, you’d think he wouldn’t have time for anything else. You’d be wrong. As we all do, he made time for what was most important to him—music, skateboarding, and surfing—by unselfishly sacrificing what was least important, like homework.But somehow, Chad made it through and graduated. To his parents’ surprise and great relief. And after a grueling jazz audition, Chad followed his dream to the University of North Texas to study tenor sax under some of the premier jazz teachers and world-renown guest artists.U-turnA year and a half later, though, Chad unexpectedly found himself facing burnout and questioning his chosen direction. He put down his sax, turned away from the piano, and returned home to pursue other long-dormant interests at three different colleges.But he couldn’t leave music far behind. To take the edge off of homework pressures (yes, after facing academic probation, he discovered he couldn’t let it slide in college), Chad picked up a guitar, again getting early guidance from his father, but largely teaching himself to play and sing by listening to artists he respected. True to form, he was soon writing his own songs and performing for friends and anyone who would stop and listen. And to his encouragement, they all stopped to listen.A kid on the roadThroughout middle and high school, Chad collected individual and group awards in many classical and jazz competitions, including hoity-toity, invitation-only affairs in places like New York, Tennessee, and Georgia.He also kept active outside of school playing sax in bands like 19th Hole, a ripping ska band that earned great respect for their musicianship and songwriting. BTW, Chad has one rare copy left of their demo CD, which he has generously offered to anyone who would cover his rent for the next year ;)At the same time, Chad was asked to sit in with a rockabilly band called Ruby Joe, playing in many venues including colleges and a large festival.Wide and varied influencesChad’s music is hard to categorize, because you can hear subtle inspiration from across the music spectrum. Beyond his father’s early influence and encouragement, Chad gives credit to many artists, including Brett Dennen, Colbie Caillat, Coldplay, Corinne Bailey Rae, Damien Rice, Dave Barnes, David Ryan Harris, Donavon Frankenreiter, Eric Benet, Gavin DeGraw, India.Arie, James Morrison, Jared Lee, Jack Johnson, Jamie Cullum, Jason Mraz, Jason Reeves, Javier, John Legend, John Mayer, Jonny Lang, Lupe Fiasco, Maroon 5, Moi, Raul Midon, Robin Thicke, Sara Bareilles, and Sufjan Stevens.Out of these, Chad is especially grateful to Moises “Moi” Navorro, his mentor and role model. Moi’s life is a testimony of hard work, moral courage, and family priorities. He came alongside Chad and generously offered the benefits of his dedication to excellence in singing and songwriting. “I don’t think I could have come this far without him,” Chad willingly admits.Debut CDAfter Moi encouraged Chad to look beyond keeping his music mostly to himself, he connected Chad with Jeff McCullough at Tree Hill Media for a 2-week recording session. With sought-after musicians like Gooch on drums, Matt Quillen on bass, background vocalists Carolina Gonzalez, Mandy Ross and Noel Miller, and Jeff filling the gaps ..boards and random instruments, Chad’s music transformed before his eyes. He had heard it all in his head but couldn’t share its full potential until then.The result is an 11-track CD, each song pulling from and mixing a singular blend of musical styles. And Chad’s lyrics, borne on his free-styling melodies, dare and encourage us to become improved versions of ourselves and leave the world better than we found it. As he says, “I challenge you to listen with an curious mind and connect with me. We'll both walk away new people.” Take the dare. You won’t regret it.
About Youth For Orphans (YFO)Ask yourself this: Could the youth of America fundamentally change the lives of a forgotten generation of kids? YFO exists to provide an opportunity to answer the call to visit orphans around the world and to train a generation to live a radically undefiled, transformed life. With YFO, you can help encourage both the orphans and their caregivers at orphanages and institutions around the world.Changing LivesChad immediately fell in love with the kids on his first visit to Orphanage Emmanuel in Honduras. He's not sure who's benefited most, him or the orphans he loved on. During his eight visits, he's been able to help teach English and various life skills, cook for and feed the 350 orphans, prepare staff-appreciation dinners, and, most importantly, be the example for those who can't care for themselves. The kids looked forward to all of Chad's concerts and were so excited when he recorded fourteen of them singing the chorus of "Deliver", one of the songs he wrote for his new CD. Listen for them at the end of the song.Contact YFO: www.youthfororphans.org
Recording Orphans at Orphanage Emmanuel
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