Terry Sutton is the type of person you just can’t help but hate. No one person should be able to take exquisitely beautiful photographs, write fascinating articles, play a multitude of instruments and write political protest lyrics. Terry is the screen name here at the Yahoo Contributor Network, and as soon as you read some articles and look at some pictures, I advise you to pick up the album “Cynical and Bitter in the U.S. of A.” Passionate stuff about things that matter. If you are tired of listening to overhyped rock stars who can’t get by without resorting to Auto-Tune, then it’s time to track down Terry Sutton.
Q: Why spoken voice? You’ve got a music mixed with a speaking voice that isn’t rap. The result is refreshingly different from anything heard on the radio…ever. Since not having a good singing voice is hardly a handicap in the pop world…why spoken voice?
Terry: There aren’t many spoken word artists out there that do their material in format of songs. I have a good speaking voice which is better than my singing. You have to be different if you want people to listen to your music from the millions of aspiring artists out there. There’s enough garbage out there that sounds the same. My music and material may not be for everyone, but everyone that has listened to it agrees that it is different.
Q: Your article “Now That the Album has Been Released” is a rather pointed and livid indictment against relying on friends and family to buy self-produced entertainment material. I share your pain. My own mother hasn’t read either of my novels and I’m not sure she’s ever read anything I have published here. On the other hand, at my 20th high school reunion, I signed about 20 copies of my novel. What advice would you give those who want to self-publish in terms of keeping friendships and family relationships healthy when aren’t supportive.
Terry: I’m not sure if I have any advice except that you need to get a variety of opinions and learn how to accept rejection. Many people either don’t have the time or the interest to view or listen to your work. What really frustrates me is when people tell you they will buy your music when you don’t even solicit them to do so. Most of them never did buy it. Either they forgot or gave lip service to make an impression. As far as my family goes, they were lukewarm about my music and sometimes very critical. Despite a few arguments, my parents were still supportive. When it comes to opinions that really matter, professionals in the field whether it’s music or writing are the most important opinions. Unless your friends or family are in those fields, than their opinions are really important.
Q: MSG is widely believed to cause neurological problems in the body according to the lyrics in your song “What Did I Just Eat?” Let’s face it: this song is not about a topic likely to ever receive any airplay. Your songs are all heartfelt and meaningful and seem to be stimulated by a certain degree of outrage. Could you ever write a love ballad?
Terry: It’s too bad, because people need to know about the things we are eating. The song is meant to make people pause and ponder the chemicals we put in our bodies. Many of which we just ignore on the ingredients label. “What Did I Just Eat” is different from the rest of the tracks on the album because it has a slight techno/dance feel with a jazzy chorus and a scratch bridge. As far as love ballads go, they are tough to compose. I’m not a person that likes to show affection in public, and what better way show your affection in public than to write a song about a woman you love. “She’s My Girl” is the only love ballad on the album and it wasn’t too hard to write because I haven’t met her yet.
Q: I’m going to toss a few names at you and I want to see if any of them stick as far as influences. If so, tell us how…if not tell us who has influenced you. Phil Ochs, Gang of Four, the Mekons, Jello Biafra, Gil Scott-Heron.
Terry: Phil Ochs is a legend whose music helped define an anti-war generation. Gil Scott Heron is rightfully referred to as the Godfather of rap. Mekons never got the notoriety that they should have but are still making music. Jello Biafra has been doing his thing as a political activist for decades. They’ve all helped pave the way for this generation of protest music which is pretty weak right now. But as far as Heron and Ochs go, they let Crack and alcohol respectively destroy their careers and lives. Both were brilliant minds yet their own worst enemies when it came to addiction.
Q: “Nation Under MeDiCaTiOn” is particularly meaningful to me. I don’t know if it is based on reality or if you really have dealt with depression. America may be overmedicated…almost certainly…but will you agree that medication is necessary and helpful for a significant number of people. Or, do you think the whole thing is a big scam perpetrated by the pharmaceutical industry?
Terry: Everyone in life has been in a dark place at one time or another. Some have it worse than others. However, in most cases we are being sold a “so called magic pill” that is supposed to make everything go away. Guess what, it doesn’t. Values don’t change from a pill. Coping mechanisms don’t change from a pill. Bad nutrition and physical illness will not be cured by Paxil or Prozac. I know that in some cases, it works for people because some people have chemical imbalances. But even some of them are caused by other drugs or physical illness such as Thyroid gland issues and even bad lifestyle habits. I don’t want to sound like a Scientologist but therapies such as Cognitive and hypnotherapy have helped many people. Many of these psychiatric drugs have side effects and in some case have caused users to commit suicide. Del Shannon, was on Prozac for two weeks before he shot himself to death. His widow believed the drug worsened his depression. Doctors and Psychiatrists need to weigh the consequences of their patients wellbeing and not thinking about making themselves and pharmaceuticals richer.
Q: Is “Fallujah” based on a real story? Your real story? An acquaintance? I think it’s a positively brilliant song that belongs in the next movie made about Iraq. I also think Dick Cheney, Ronald Dumbsfeld and Dumbya himself should be made to listen to it every single day. If it’s not based on an actual story, can you tell us how the song did come into existence?
Terry: Fallujah is my favorite track on the album because it is from the heart. It is not based on my life but from stories and experience from veterans of several wars, namely Iraq and Vietnam. There were several stories that soldiers related to me and the actions described in the song are some that these soldiers have experienced or done. Some of them shot people. Some of them medically treated soldiers that suffered horrible injuries. Others saw human carnage that they still think about everyday. The treatment that these soldiers received from the government concerning various mental and physical issues that they have had to deal with is pathetic. The Government and the military has ignored them. Essentially, Bush, Cheney and Rumsfeld paid lip service to the Iraq and Afghanistan War veterans and didn’t give a damn what happened to our soldiers.
Q: “Cynical and Bitter in the USA” opens with a horn blaring out the final notes to our national anthem in what can only be termed a cynical bray. The song takes issue with Democrats, Republicans, liberals and conservatives and comes to the conclusion that things just aren’t likely to get better. Couple of questions here: Did you ever have any hope that things would get better under Obama and how quickly were your hopes crushed forever? Do you think this country would be in much better shape if we outlawed all political parties and Congress was run strictly by seniority? What are your thoughts about the disconnect between the conservative ideological foundation that taxes are too high in America at the same time that every single city, county, and state, as well as every federal government program with the exception of Defense are having to cut services due to lack of revenue.
Terry: I do agree with some of the conservative ideological foundation. Our spending on defense is way too much. We also spend too much on pensions on a state and national level. WE have a judicial system that is bogged down with stupid lawsuits, hence the song I wrote for the album with the same title. We have a nation of people from rich to poor that live off entitlements that take advantage of the American tax payers. Why should wealthy corporations get outrageous tax breaks? Wall Street get bailouts? Why should people get welfare for having additional children when they can’t financially take care of one or even two? We need personal responsibility and we need our government to balance it’s books and quit the outrageous spending.
Q: One of the things I love most about your album is the versatility of your musical compositions. What instruments do you play? What are your musical influences rather than your lyrical influences?
Terry: I tried to make the tracks not all sound the same which is hard when you’re doing spoken word. As far as instruments, I play the guitar, synthesizers, Bass guitar, background percussion, recorder, trumpet and harmonica on this album. Vic Steffens from Horizon Music Group play drums and keyboards on a few tracks and Jaxsn plays the bass on some songs as well a keyboard solo in the song, “Gossip Columnist”. I was also fortunate to have guitarist Chris Bickley play guitar on “The Earth Bleeds” and a blazing, hot solo on “Cynical and Bitter in the U.S. of A.” As far as musical influences go, the Beatles were the biggest ones for me. Hence all the backmasking in my songs. I’ve been a fan of classic rock icons such as Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd, and Jimi Hendrix. Hip hop groups such as Run DMC and LL Cool J were influences as well. There’s so much good music out there but the last two decades it’s been dying from all the sampled beats, auto-tuning and just meaningless lyrics.
Q: In addition to your talents in the realm of music, you are also an accomplished photographer. In fact, you have a very engaging photography collections on Yahoo! Contributor Network. I’m especially fond of your image of “Presidential Range” (which I think would make a terrific cover album for an album of religious music by the way). There doesn’t seem to be any overt political message to your photography (although we both know that everything has a political subtext to it) so I was wondering if photography is your escape from social consciousness.
Terry: Thank you for the compliment about the pictures, if you do start your own cult or religion, you are welcome to use those pictures. That picture you talk about what was on a very clear day. Those mountains in New Hampshire are very beautiful but in bad weather can be very treacherous. I do enjoy taking pictures but they are secondary to the activities I do, whether it is hiking, going for a walk, a boat ride or a concert. Sometimes you see something and you just want to share it with others. There’s a lot of beauty in this world that most people don’t have the opportunity to see.
Q: Hey, guess what, Terry Sutton can write, too! You know, you really should limit yourself: your making the rest of us look like slackers. Which came first, prose or lyrics? Does one stimulate the other?
Terry: The lyrics came way before I wrote anything for a newspaper or anything else. They just came easier than any term paper or essay that I had to write. It wasn’t until Writing Class senior year in high school where we actually used word processors that I got something better than a “C” in a subject that actually mattered. While in college I wrote for my University Newspaper and I developed a journalism career which pays better than my music career so far. I do plan on going back to the studio to do a song specifically tailored to play on my website about cold cases (www.ctcoldcases.com) in New England. I am excited to put the tracks down on this song and I look forward to really sitting down and crafting some lyrics.
Q: Your top ten list of performances in a movie by athletes is curiously absent one figure considering your obvious interest in professional wrestling. Where is the man who came to chew bubblegum and kick ass only to find out he’s all out of bubblegum? Surely, you are familiar with the greatest sci-fi flick of all time, “They Live”? Where’s Rowdy Roddy?
Terry: I loved “Rowdy” Roddy Piper as a wrestler, not as a movie actor. I still watch clips of Piper’s Pit on youtube with his various victims, I mean guests. If I would have chosen any wrestler for that list, it would have been Hulk Hogan for his role as Thunderlips in Rocky 3. I did see “They Live” two decades ago and I must say that not only did Roddy Piper’s character run out of bubblegum in the movie, he ran out of good dialogue too.
Q: One last question: you have been sentenced for your crime of recognizing the ugly reality beneath the shiny veneer of modern civilization. That sentence requires you to live in isolation on an island in the Pacific. You get to take a record player and a complete box set of solo music by either John Lennon or Paul McCartney. Which one of these ex-Beatles will provide you with the soundtrack to your life of exile?
Terry: “Starting Over”, “Mind Games” and “Woman” by John Lennon are amazing songs. Yet I like, “Uncle Albert/Admiral Halsey”, “No More Lonely Nights” and “Band on the Run” by Paul McCartney are great tunes. I guess I would have to go with Paul simply because he has thirty years of more material and composed several orchestral music symphonies. But then again, are we sure Paul is really still alive or have I been listening to too many records by the Beatles backwards?