Scott Baker & The Universal Expressions can be contacted at: Website: www.scottbakermusic.com
Myspace: www.myspace.com/scottbakeracoustic
Email: scott@scottbakermusic.com
ABOUT THE BAND
Band name: Scott Baker & The Universal Expressions
Date formed: March 2006
Scott Baker: vocals, guitars, sax, mandolin, lap steel Timmy Scott: drums John Grundner: keyboards, guitars, vocals Pete Socha: bass, backing vocals Hailing from Mid-Michigan, musician Scott Baker takes from life's experiences and evolves them into his own individual rooted soundscape. Solo acoustic or electric with band, there is no end to his musical script. Equal parts of both roots rock music from the '60s and '70s rubbed together with shimmering bits of electric blues and improv jazz. Writing originals from a largely folk-singer/songwriter background, performed live with a '80s & '90s underground feel, there are no boundaries. Guitarist, vocalist, saxophonist, songwriter, he also is a member of the Mid-Michigan Songwriters Guild.
Scott Baker & The Universal Expressions features drummer Timmy Scott, bassist/backing vocalist Pete Socha, and guitarist/keyboardist/vocalist John Grundner (ex-Beertones). The band splits half their evening with original music and the other half covers, featuring tunes by the likes of The Band, John Hiatt, Tom Petty, The Allman Brothers, Peter Green, Crosby-Stills-Nash, Neil Young, Norah Jones, Van Morrison, CCR, etc. Scott also plays solo acoustic shows on a regular basis.
For six years (1999-2005) & helping lead the way for a new style of original music in the Tri-cities area, venues bent the rules, allowing more room for originality with his group Muddy Gumbo. The band broke through the flood gates with like-minded jam/groove based groups in the area helping capture the spirit of fans with new styles and ways of expressing the homegrown musical sound. The band released Continuous Rotation in Dec. 2001 and “Capture The Moment” (EP) in the Fall 2003. Scott & Earl 'The Squirrel' (percussionist) released the Muddy Gumbo Duo EP 'Swampuccino' in fall 2004 as a limited live release of the two-piece acoustic setting.
Baker has been the recipient of a handful of Review Awards since 2002, including 2005's Blues Artist Deserving Wider Recognition. He was nominated again for Blues Songwriter of The Year for the 2006 Review Awards. Along with the Universal Expressions, the group was nominated for 11 awards in 2007. The Universal Expressions won Band of the Year and Band Deserving Wider Recognition in the blues rock category in 2007. Both John Grundner and Timmy Scott are former Review Award winners, outside of the Universal Expressions as well.
Baker originally went solo with The S.N.A.P. Revue (Savvy Northern Acoustic Players), highlighting original music from six local artists in 2003. He also worked with S.N.A.P. cohort Jeff Yantz in The One Trick Ponies, yielding the CD Landmark (Bull Frog Records, '03). Baker played mandolin on the track “Dreamer 29”. A demo of the song “Northern Space” was included on Suite 19, by the Mid-Michigan Songwriters Guild, adding another feather to Baker’s cap in 2003. More recently he was added as guitarist/vocalist backing national folk artist Jen Cass for a show in spring 2006. Baker also recorded a track for Cary Ewing’s recent CD release.
With Gumbo coming to a halt in Feb. of 2005, Baker played solo acoustic shows over a year each week in Bay City, MI, from Feb. 2005, until May 2006. He continues to move forward with his music with a new solo album due Oct. of 2007, titled Between Seasons.
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| 11 Questions Q: Describe your style of music, who do you sound like?
We run the gamut between classic rock and modern jam bands, meeting singer-songwriter ideals. We can run an Allman Brothers number, into the Black Crowes and come out with some Tom Petty and Ryan Adams in the end. We play a ton of our original material live. We could fit with Wilco, Ben Harper, Gov’t Mule, etc. in the modern realm of it all.
Q: What are your main musical influences?
Read our influences & sounds like on Myspace…too long to write!
Q: What/Who have been your biggest influences in life and on your lyrics?
For me (Scott) it would have to be the player/writers like Warren Haynes, Larry McCray, Dick Wagner, Trey Anastasio, Adam Levy, and Jose Neto and writers like Bob Dylan, Ryan Adams, Van Morrison, Steve Winwood, Elvis Costello and bands like Phish, Yes, Supertramp, Allman Brothers, Weather Report, etc. Then you got to throw in arrangers and masterminds like Miles Davis, Frank Zappa, John Coltrane, Wayne Shorter…the list is endless. There are locals and currents that influence me as well.
Q: What's in your CD player? Supertramp--Classics
Q: What other local band would you pay to see play? Why? Sprout, Maybe August, Born & The Northwood Improvisers. For my money, they have a direction, original sensibilities, and drive. I think they know how to be real, without cluttering up the ‘cover band’ scene around here (while playing enough to keep them out).
Q: What Non-local band would you pay to see play? Why? Loads of brilliant ‘70s artists usually and blues/jazz cats.
Q: How did you meet? Timmy and I were in Muddy Gumbo from 1999-2005 (Timmy in 2002). John and I were old friends from the Mid-Michigan Songwriters Guild and music buddies. Pete came on a tip from John that he was looking for a gig. As a unit we’ve been together over a year now.
Q: Is there an interesting story behind the name of your band? Who came up with the name? The Universal Expressions part just came to me…something that tied together all these styles and individuality.
Q. Tell us about your first show together. It was at Bemo’s I think—packed, groovy, listening and learning and pouring it out!
Q. What have been the high and low points of the band so far? Low points have been gigs where they fall between holidays and the crowds don’t make it out. High points have been the recording of the new album and packed shows like at Bemo’s and Rubbles in Mt. Pleasant. We hang together pretty well and get along.
Q: You are the first band to play a song on another planet for aliens that have never heard our music, you can play any song ever written, what would you play? Why? This Time of Year—my own original song. Because it has all the movements and elements in the music that bring you up and put you back down…you can feel it.
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