One Shoe
On the Highway: a mystery for the modern age, indeed. But the new album
by Steve McClain is no mystery. “one shoe on the highway” is a
collection of personal and melodic acoustic rock songs composed within
the span of year that are both upbeat and edgy and quiet and
contemplative.
Influenced greatly by
Lennon/McCartney, Croce, Simon, Mellencamp and Taylor, Steve’s music
has been compared to modern singer/songwriters such as David Gray, Five
For Fighting and Grant-Lee Phillips.
Originally from Kent, Ohio,
Steve relocated to Nashville, Tennessee, and released the
much-anticipated CD, “one shoe on the highway” in early 2005.
Produced and engineered by Robert Felmly, Jr. of SC Records, the album
is 12 tracks of original music featuring long time partner Matt Schildt
on viola, violin and piano. “I think that since these songs were
all written during a relatively short amount of time, it lends a
certain continuity to the whole record,” McClain says. With
introspective lyrics and modern singer/songwriter instrumentation, the
album is a mix of sparsely orchestrated neo-folk tunes and radio
friendly acoustic rock songs. “one shoe on the highway” also
features the first collaborations of McClain and Schildt on the
intimate guitar/vocal/piano track “Around” and the instrumental
“Prelude to Ubiquity.” Akron radio 91.3 The Summit began spinning
the single “Passing Trains” in December 2004. Steve’s music is also
heard on the specialty shows Just Plain Folk and Anything Goes, which
in the past have featured such artists as Janis Ian, Fairport
Convention and the English folk/rock group Equation. Also in
2005, the track “Without You” was featured on Lightning 100 Nashville’s
Progressive radio; voted the number one radio station in Nashville
eleven
years in a row.
Music from McClain’s current
and previous albums (Born In Captivity: 2001 and lemonadestand: 2002)
has been heard on WAPS in Akron, WKSR in Kent, WRLT in Nashville,
internationally in
Belgium, Germany and Taiwan in addition to being spotlighted on a
compilation CD showcasing the best of Akron/Cleveland artists, entitled
Bandwidth 2.0, sponsored by 91.3 The Summit in Akron in 2001.
In 2006, Steve was featured on
the Northeast Ohio independent music program, Random Acts of Music on
Time-Warner cable. Additional appearances followed, including a
music video for the new song “Disappear In Nashville” produced by Henry
J Productions in cooperation with Summit Broadcast.
Archives of the show can be seen on channel 1111 on Time Warner
cable/Ohio On Demand and www.randomactsofmusic.tv.
“Born In Captivity”, “lemonadestand”, and “one shoe on the highway” are
available online at CDBaby.com, Apple iTunes, Sony Connect, MusicMatch,
Rhapsody, select Borders Books and Music stores and Time Traveler music
in northeast Ohio and at all shows.