Album Notes

Singer/songwriters are everywhere these days, but how many of them have competed nationally at Meat Judging and Evaluation? Though one may be tempted to guess none of them, Jason Harwell would be quick to correct you. He says, "I had reached the peak of my athletic abilities - sitting the bench and chasing foul balls in the parking lot - and thought that maybe it was time to seek greener pastures, so to speak." Growing up on a cattle farm in rural Georgia, he need look no further than his local Future Farmers of America. Soon after, Jason found himself in a giant meat locker in Kansas City placing carcasses in order from best to worst. "It was a wonderful experience. Meat judging isn't something you letter in, I suppose, but I got to wear a hard hat and miss a week of school. It's not what most people do in high school, but it seemed to fit me," Jason says.
Doing things differently has been a hallmark of Jason's life. Now 25, Jason has long since given up the glitz and glamour of meat judging for a career in music, and he continues to take the road less traveled. "I had always dreamed of making music full-time," he says, "but it was a dream that I didn't expect to happen." Instead, Jason imagined his future as an art teacher, and if not for fate, Jason would probably be fingerpainting with elementary school students rather than touring the country. A chance encounter at a summer camp where he worked led to Jason's first national tour. "We had these guys at our camp who traveled all over the country as speakers; they heard me play, and, nine months later, they asked me to tour with them. It was certainly divine intervention." Jason borrowed a digital recorder from a friend of a friend and recorded his first EP, Photo Album, in two days at a cabin in the woods. "That whole experience is a blur in my mind. I barely knew how to turn the machine on, much less record and mix anything, so I read the manual and hoped for the best." Jason called a manufacturer's number he found on a website, pressed up 1,000 copies of the EP, and hit the road with these guys he hardly knew. After one week, it was clear that Jason was on to something. "The CDs weren't ready for the first two dates on tour, but I presold 60 copies with just my guitar and my voice." By the end of the summer, Jason had sold 2500 copies of the EP and had reordered twice. Today, Jason simultaneously smiles and winces at the thought of his first EP, "I listen to it now and hear my inexperience. But three and half years later I still receive emails from people who still listen to it, which is very encouraging. Touring with speakers is probably not the norm for musicians, but it put me in front of people, and that's the most important thing."
Over the last few years, being in front of people is something that Jason has become used to. Jason recorded his first full-length album, Building a Better Me, in the fall after his first national tour and in the summer of 2002, Jason once again took the road less traveled for an acoustic-based songwriter: he joined a tour with three hard rock bands on Pillar's Fireproof Tour. "The first few dates of that tour were something to see - you had all these hard rockers and me. It was awesome watching the crowd's reaction when I would come on after a band - the look of confusion and disbelief." Jason somehow found a niche between the Marshalls and Mesas and, according to Steve Nance, owner of Integrity Light and Sound, Jason's presence "took the tour to the next level." Jason became a tour favorite and, to date, has sold nearly 5000 copies of Photo Album and Building a Better Me combined, based solely on live performances and word-of-mouth.
Fresh out of graduate school, Jason has finally succumbed to his passion to make music full-time with the release of his new album, Alive in the Fall, and his new label, Rebuilt Records. The album, which runs stylistically from Americana/folk to Cake-flavored college rock, is a portrait of young man's journey to discover the truth about his faith, his life, and himself. As the twelves songs will attest, Jason has continued to take the road less traveled - speaking with honesty and vulnerability that is out of step with today's image-driven music business. "Over these last few years, I've met wonderful people from all walks of life, and we all want the same thing - the truth. Sometimes it's hard to tell what's real and what came out of a computer. As a songwriter, I feel it's my duty to present these songs just as they are in hope that anyone who listens can relate to."
Jason's time on the road also afforded him the opportunity to see "behind the curtain" of the music industry. "I'm by no means an expert, but it's no secret that the music business is an image-based industry. There are artists out there making incredible music - music that could impact the world, but odds are most of us will never get the chance to hear it. That's what Rebuilt Records is for." Taking the road less traveled yet again, Jason founded Rebuilt Records - a nonprofit, donor-supported music label. "At Rebuilt, we're working to create a new working model for how music is produced and released, as well as how a label, its artists, and consumers can interact. We believe we can form a symbiotic relationship with those making music and exist to assist artists in reaching their goals." Will it work? Only time will tell.
May 4, 2004 marks the official release of Alive in the Fall. From Jason's special "Flavor of the Week" section on www.jasonharwell.com - where Jason posts a hilarious new mp3 each week - to his nonprofit record label, you can catch Jason Harwell somewhere near you - somewhere on the road less traveled.