The Party Ants are: singer/songwriter/guitarist- Eric Beattie, guitarist- Bill Coates, bass player- Marty Cohen, drummer- Seth Porter.
They all have day jobs, but Bill, Seth, and Marty are all such outstanding musicians with such impressive musical CV's that as the saying goes... "they could pay the rent with their ROCK!". This CD is the result of several enjoyable sessions with them and recording engineers Roger Choplin and Mike Gold of Whiskey Hill Studios in Redwood City CA, in 2006. They were fortunate to have several talented vocalists and musicians join in for selected tracks on this CD (Sean McAllister, Jamie Fox, and Ashante Perkins- backing vocals; Steve Leonoudakis- harmonica; Terry Earlywine- organ). Vince Hudson performed the mastering. "Lonesome" was co-written by Eric Beattie and Birmingham Alabama's own award-winning singer/songwriter/multi-instrumentalist- Sam Pointer. Original CD package art is featured on the front and back covers and inside the 12-page info/lyric booklet by San Francisco illustrator Michelle White.
Eric Beattie has been writing and performing original music since the early 1980's. The focus has always been on creating new music with friends in the folk-rock-blues tradition that conveys with soul and humor the ups and downs we all encounter in life. Acoustic guitar, electric guitar, and vocals are his main media and he has performed numerous gigs in venues throughout northern California. A portion of the proceeds from the sale of this CD will be donated to these non-profit organizations: The Forbes Norris Center for ALS Research and The California Pacific Medical Center Research Institute (CPMCRI). If you wish to learn more about or contribute specifically to The Forbes Norris Center please see this link... http://www.cpmc.org/services/als/
Eric has volunteered his time to teach and perform at all of his daughter’s schools and has volunteered several years in a row for the statewide foundation of Art In Action, providing new songs for their art education lessons benefiting K-12 students. For this service to the schools of Millbrae, CA he was awarded special recognition from the Art In Action Foundation of California and was featured in their 2007 film “Imagination Moves The Mind”.
Musical inspiration for Eric has come from many sources including...Jerry Garcia and The Grateful Dead, Neil Young, Leo Kottke, Warren Zevon, Pete Townsend and the Who, REM, Van Morrison, The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, Jorma Kaukonnen, James Taylor, Peter Green, Eric Clapton, Lindsey Buckingham, Norman Blake, David Grissman, Pete Fountain, Tom Petty, Linda Rondstadt, The Eagles, Emmylou Harris, Doc Watson, Lyle Lovett, and others.
Some important early musical influences include Eric’s brother- Michael Beattie, trumpet teacher- Jules Eichorn (friend and moutaineer colleage of John Muir), guitar teacher- Rich Healy, early music friends including- Andy Lev and Chris Johnk, original and current members of The Gel Band (Seth Porter, Ivan Lieberburg, John Kollins, Russell Rydell, Kevin Tomaselli) , Sam Pointer, Clay Bridges, Jackie Schwenker, Johnson Boothby, Mark Thomas, and the members of the Blues Disaster.
We invite you to listen and enjoy the realization that through the good, the bad, the happy and sad, a “glass-half-full” optimism can only improve your life. So,“if your down and feeling blue, paint yourself into a better mood!”
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