(Chad Hollister) When you hear the word "chad" in American politics, you think of the scandalous, electoral brouhaha involving tiny rectangles punched out from voter data cards. When you hear about CHAD in American music, you can bet it's about the charismatic, singer-songwriter frontman Chad Hollister, on his way to musical fame as a master of the lyric and groove.
Bursting onto the music scene out of his native Vermont, Chad Hollister cut his musical teeth gigging with Burlington's own jam band Phish. Chad has opened for rock masters Tom Petty and Bob Dylan on Levi's SFX concert tour; and he's jammed with modern pop greats like The Violent Femmes, The Spin Doctors, Jonathan Mover (Joe Satriani/Aretha Franklin), Trey Anastasio and Blues Traveler.
Starting out as a percussionist, Chad was musically inspired by Santana, Bob Marley, The Police and James Brown. Chad's rhythmic guitar playing demonstrates the influence of those pop icons in his seamless weaving of acoustic rock, reggae-funk and melodic-groove.
Chad's infectious vocals are passionate and compelling. His percussive, acoustic-rock style demands the audience to get up and move. His songs are clever, infusing humor, love and life into the message. When Chad plays live, it is musical alchemy imbuing spontaneous combustion and eclectic energy into the crowd. The music reminds fans of the songs they love to sing, by artists like Sister Hazel, Train, Counting Crows, Hootie and the Blowfish and Matchbox 20; yet, at the same time, Chad's music is unique, distinctly impressing his passion and love for his art, and the life which inspires it.
Fresh off the road from a national 2001 tour, Chad hit the studio with producer John Alagia (Dave Matthews Band, Vertical Horizon, Ben Folds Five, John Mayer...) and together they created Chad's new album Life. This is the fourth album under Chad's belt and contains some of his most moving work yet.
The album's collaborators include producer Alagia, who contributes keyboards, mandolin, and guitar on a variety of tracks; master percussionist Giovanni Hidalgo, who has toured with Santana, Tito Puente, Dizzy Gillespie, Paul Simon and Mickey Hart, to name a few; on guitar, Bob Coons of Jerry Garcia Band fame; and Jack O'Neill of Jackopierce lending vocals on "Dream Until You Fade."
The album's title track takes you on a journey of the simple pleasures of life and of every day reality. It echoes the age-old Zen message of living fully--"Treat the world the way you want to be treated, seize the day like you are needed. Walk through the grass just after it's been cut..."--and crescendos in a powerful chorus. "Vineyard" tells a beautiful story, in its acoustic simplicity, about a vacation romance --rendered with a strong hook -- sure to catch the heart of any and all who have fallen in love during a summer at the shore. "Laugh" is a pure and infectious tune, illustrating Chad's positive outlook and easy-going nature, that impels the listener, when life throw's you curves, to just "laugh about it..." " Jesus, Bon Jovi and Tarzan" is a clever twist and turn of lyric about love, and the bridge will definitely capture you. "Dream Until You Fade" is a sublimely ironic melody, filled with hypnotic harmonizing, lush guitar, and, after sampling its lullaby, you too can fade until you dream. "Keep On, Keeping On" is funky and self-expressive, spiced with trombone and bongos, and sings aloud about just what this artist plans to do!
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