For Colorado’s Chuck Pyle, the life of an independent artist isn’t what it used to be.
At 61, Pyle has been singing for his supper a long, long time. Long enough to have garnered privileges like playing a private party at Bill Gates’ home – which he is not allowed to talk about – and being asked to write the theme song for the public-TV series “Spirit of Colorado,” which he discusses proudly.
He also has been at it long enough to have weathered the shifting sands of life as an independent artist, changes that have left fewer opportunities to peddle songs to the ears in Nashville, but more for selling to the public.
Pyle performs tonight in Fort Collins at Avogadro’s Number and Saturday at Swallow Hill in Denver, unveiling a new CD, “True Unity,” on his own Zen Cowboy Records, a reference to the nickname he has earned for marrying Southwestern-tinged folk music to self-help philosophies. Pyle will be accompanied by his longtime violin player, Gordon Burt, whose style ranges from a gypsy sound to an Old West campfire.
Pyle’s music career solidified in the mid-1970s when his song “Jaded Lover” was recorded by Jerry Jeff Walker. Throughout the ’80s and ’90s, Pyle’s tunes were frequently recorded by other artists, including John Denver and the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band. Suzy Bogguss’ rendition of “Other Side of the Hill” won Pyle a gold record, as did the late Chris LeDoux’s 1998 hit with the same song under a different title, “Cadillac Cowboy.”
“But I haven’t had a major cut in a while,” Pyle said recently. Tighter relationships between record companies and music publishers with staff writers have shut doors that were once open to the independent songwriter, he said. “Now a record company that’s starting up a major artist for mainstream radio doesn’t want to go outside its team.”
Meanwhile, other trends have aided the plight of indies. The first was CD technology allowing anyone to make a high-quality recording at a reasonable cost. The second has been the Internet.
“These days when people hear an independent artist’s name, they can find your website and download your songs,” Pyle said. “With the Web, we’re not dependent on distributors to get our music into record stores. Downloading is a definite advantage” and a new source of income, he said.
His new album could boost the numbers. “True Unity” features guest performances by an impressive roster of prominent locals and more keyboards than any previous Pyle CD. John Magnie of the subdudes lends gospel-church organ and New Orleans-jazz piano to the bluesy “Last Suit of Clothes,” while the keyboards of Taylor Mesple (ex-Wind Machine) rock “The Power of One.” Another highlight is the soft-rock album opener, “A Mystery to Me,” which offers a gentle Tex-Mex beat, flamenco guitar and mesmerizing textures.
How far ahead does the trail stretch for Pyle? He still keeps a grueling tour schedule.
“It is harder as you get older, but to me performing is a way to stay vital,” he said. “So I see myself going out with my performing boots on.”
Looking back over the decades, Pyle can point to one artistic move that has served him particularly well: the decision to work humor into his act.
“In the early ’90s I was still nervous about performing,” Pyle said. “Then one night I made an audience laugh. It relaxed me so much – and it seemed to relax the crowd – that I wanted to do more. I started practicing one-liners, and I made the introductions to my songs funnier. People were interested to know the stories behind the songs, but they wanted to get a chuckle of it too.”
Today, funny banter and goofy novelty songs are key ingredients in Pyle’s acoustic-oriented concerts (and are faithfully captured on the live CD he issued last summer, “Romancing the Moment”). He credits the showmanship as having opened the private-party circuit to him, among other things.
“At some point back there,” he said, “I became more of an entertainer.”
Chuck Pyle
Pyle will be playing two shows along the Front Range this weekend: FORT COLLINS|Avogadro’s Number, 605 S. Mason St.; 8 tonight|$12-14|970-493-5555 or avogadros.com
DENVER|Swallow Hill Music Association, 71 E. Yale Ave., 8 p.m. Saturday|$15-$21| 303-777-1003 or swallowhill.com
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