About Me
"Heaven forefend me from the most of the average run of male humans who are not good fellows - the ones cold of heart and cold of head who don't smoke, drink, nor swear, nor do much of anything else that is brave, and resentful, and stinging, because in their feeble fibers there has never been the stir and prod of life to well over its boundaries and be devilish and daring. One doesn't meet these in saloons, nor rallying to lost causes, nor flaming on the adventure-paths, nor loving as God's own mad lovers. They are too busy keeping their feet dry, conserving their heart-beats, and making unlovely life-successes of their spirit-mediocrity." - Jack London
My name is Michael Fitzgerald. But you can call me Fitz.
Am I a big name musician? No I am not. Have I been published? Umm, nope. Have I recorded songs? Yes, four albums worth to be exact, two of which you will probably never hear if you were never at one of my shows or one of my close friends in Springfield, Missouri in the last four years. But, don't worry. You can still catch the last record if you're lucky, available through the CDbaby link on this page.
In the August of 2007, I moved back to St. Louis, Missouri, Gateway to the west and all that. I was jobless, with no prospects, living in my parents' house in the same room I grew up in. It is a funny thing to be staring at the same walls you've looked at your whole life, and realize you've somehow reverted back to being a person you thought you left behind five years before.
As I stared at my bedroom walls and tried to find a job to support myself, I read a book. Then I wrote some songs. The book in question was John Barleycorn, by Jack London. It is a memoir of London's experiences with alcohol, and is as inspiring as it is dark and depressing. It's about the glory of the drink, of the bar, of adventure, as well as the stagnant effect the pursuit of such glories can have on a life. And reading this book, I realized it was about me. It was about who I had become after spending countless hours pursuing such glories for the last five years of my life. The record that came out of reading London's book is appropriately titled "The Adventures of John Barleycorn."
"The Adventures of John Barleycorn" is an album full of stories. Stories with characters searching for love, faith, death, hope, and a reason to live in the face of what their lives have become. They're songs about liars, cheaters, lovers, drinkers (a lot of them), Gods, drugs, suicide, death, freedom, sacrifice, and, well, life. It's not all smiles and happy, poppy sounds, but its still not without its moments of genuine love and bittersweet memories. For anyone who knows me or knows my music from the past, it is a very different record with a sound that I feel is finally my own after searching for so long throughout every song and inspiration that came to me. Every song on this record is one I want to play every night, and so far the responses to them live have been very good. While I'm at it, THANK YOU again to those of you that make it out to the small collection of shows I play and those that lend their ears every night I'm out there.
You can call the style of these songs folk, alt-country, blues, rock, pop, blah, blah, blah...whatever you want really. I don't care what they sound like in the vein of some genre. I just care if you enjoy them, if you get something out of them. Because that's really what music is all about, isn't it?
So now I'm living in my own place, working days in St. Louis, and playing shows at night when I can. When you see me, say hello if you feel so inclined. My name is Mike, but you can call me Fitz. I write music. I hope my record "The Adventures of John Barleycorn," lands in your hands at some point and I hope you like it. Till then, let the Adventure begin.
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