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llhi tov--*M? A.*8**HOWARD NEAL S Alton recording studio echoes these days to the sound of music. At top, center, Neal works at thecontrols of his recording console. The James Family -- a St. Louis group — was one of Neal s first clients and brothers and sisters Eddie, Sandy, Nancy and Michael James (left to right, above) have become close friends; at top,left Nanr v belts nut n snnn Altnninn Frlmnnrt ’Potiis' HanHarcnn I._____, iL.______kAt the bottom of a narrow steep flight ol stairs is a heavily padded door leading into an equally heavily padded roomIs this some sort of bizarre confinementcell?As eyes become adjusted to the subdued light in the room, a spinet piano becomes obvious along one wall and a set of t rap drums emerges from behind a sort of cagelike affair in a comer.It’s becoming clear the padded room has something to do with music and the padding is soundproofing material.Probably a father’s sane solution to a boisterous family of fledgling musicians Head sets hung carefully along the walls are the first clue there is more to this room than meets the eye. Further inspection reveals another basement room containing all the electronic gear of a basic, fully equipped eight-track recording studioIT IS THE studioof the appropriately labeled Shoestring Recording Company owned by Howard Neal — a studio built by Neal in the basement of his Central Avenue home in Alton.It’s the fulfillment of a lifelong dream for Neal, who has been building the studio in his spare time since 1978. He also has a full timejob as a shift worker at Marathon Pipe Line“I call my company Shoestring Records because I’ve been doing it on a shoestring budget,” said Neal.He said he has invested about $15,000 in electronic equipment, using extra money from the family budget and borrowing someNeal picked up experience in recording asa music major at Tennessee A I University in Nashville.Some of the recording studios down there would use music majors to help recordat the Shell Oil Refinery, so recording sessions must be scheduled when both have time av ailable There’s also the problem of keeping the rest of the family quiet. That job falls to Lavern Neal, Howard’s wife.The Neal’s have three children - Darin, an Alton H igh student and drummer with the Marching 100; Kelton, a student at East M iddle School who plays trumpet; and 3-year-old Olivia Nicole Nikki who might be a singer like her grandmother, Mabel MeeksNeal said he comes from a long family t radition of music, but his wife is not a musician.She enjoys music and likes to listen, but she doesn’t piay an instrument,” said Neal.A wife being married to a musician must be very understanding and she’s all of that.“Had it not been for my wife being as receptive and being behind me, I probably would never have stuck with music so long She is very patient and has told me to just keep trying She’s a motivatorAnd I wanted to do it in Alton because this is where it all started.”• tNEAL’S MUSICAL interests, which beganas a sax player and then a drum mer with local bands, haveevolved into composing, arranging and recording. Because he works shift work, it is no longer feasible for him toperform with bands.in addition to Shoestring. I have my own publishing company — Nikeda PublishingCo The name is a combination of the first tw o letters of my children's names, said Neal That w as my wife’s idea.”Neal said he decided to build the studio when he saw there was a need in the area.A lot of people are looking for a good quality studio, if only for a demo tape or a business looking for someone to do acommercial jingle,” he said.And there was also another reason. 1WHEN LONNELL HUDSON, a St Louis entertainment consultant, was looking for a small company to record one of his groups. The James Family of St Louis, he contacted Neal.I wanted a small recording company for their first record, where they would have more freedom. said HudsonThe James Family, comprised of lead singer Nancy, her sister, Sandy, and two brothers, Eddie and Michael, are predominantly a soul group But gospel, jazz, rock, blues and country western are allincorporated into their actSince Neal was looking for a group to perform one of his compositions, H e Ve Got It Made — written with Ann Grover of St Louis — a cooperative venture seemed possible.Another musician. Edmond Petie’' Henderson of Alton, benefited from the business venture and the growing friendship between the James Family and Howard Neal Henderson was a guitarist looking for a job, and the James Family needed a lead guitarist for their band.During Henderson’s early years as a music student, Neal was his musical mentor The two have since become good friends.My role with Petie w as: I taught him basically how to play a variety of styles of music —not just one style,’’Neal said. That was my involvement in his musical career»•f ho vmtrto mw’inln in th**PAmmnntfv toHENDERSON JOINED the James Family and was along when they left on their first European tour over the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays.Hudson said he had been I ry ing to make arrangements for the family to go on the tour and was having difficulty confirming thehookine with the U S. armed forcesreviews for their opening act performances w ith RawlsWhile on tour, the group performed at military bases in Iceland. Italy. Germany and Portugal They averaged about 10 shows a w eek• It was the highlight of our career to this point, said Eddie James. We really like thlt; atmosphere of a big concert appearance We love the audience participation, and hav ing them join in with us really made us feel good They really appreciated us on the tour Before Thanksgiving, when the group lei I the states, a recording session was held in lh« Neal basement. A tape was produced and sent to a plant to have a master disc cutAS THE JAMES’ relaxed recent Iv in t he Neal living room, they listened to their recorded sound for the first time Theywagreed they sounded pretty good ”We’ve got it made. BabyWe Ve got a love that's really realWe've got it madeNo one can change the way I feelThe recording will be used to get something of the James Family before the public,” said Hudson It’s just a feeler tosec the audience reaction.”Promotional announcements for the record, to be released in mid February. havebeen airing on WZEN radio.Neal has another goal for use of the recording — to gain the attention of a major production company.I think with the James Family, the company will be a force in the music industry,” said Neal. I think we'll be good for each other.They are a dedicated group of people and it takes all that to be successful We reallydistribution This has been a problem for me — 1 can produce a product but marketing it is another matter.”His first recordings. Disco Fever w ith local rhythm and blues singer Rill Becoat, and INeedY’ou and Dance with Jimmy G reen of Brooklyn, 111., enjoyed a short period of air time on local stations, accordingto Neal.It’sa very competitive business It shard to get the air play you need to sell your records.”As the friendship between the Neal and the James families developed, they discovered they shared more than musical ideas They shared similar ideas of family closeness ‘‘ I think that was one of the things that pulied us together.” said Neal The family upbringing is very similar in hot h ourfamilies.”• IFREDDIE LEE JAMES, fat her of t he James group, like Lavern Neal, is not a musician In the early days when t here was never enough money for costumes, music, travel and all the other needs of a road group he provided the fundsHe made good money as a carpenter said Willie Mae James, mother of the group I spent his money as I needed it and he sort of stayed in the backgroundHe never squaw ked He just went along with it Now’the children foot theirownbills He is the backbone of us all — we're all dependent on Mr. James.” she said of herhusband.The James Family performed once, several years ago. as the opening act foranother former local singer. Luther Ingram Mrs. James couldn't remember the date, but the concert was at Hatheway HallWe will eventually try to bring the James Family to Alton to do a show again, so Alton
Newspaper Details
Alton Telegraph
Alton, Illinois, US
Sat, Feb 05, 1983
Page 120
Full Page
Clipped by
Hayner P.
IL, USA 19 Jul 2022
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