Nelly Wilson - Fly on the Wall [CD]

Alt-country, rock and roll, bluesy Americana. These descriptions all apply to the band Nelly Wilson and the original music they play. The Nashville-based band got started because of the songs. In the process of performing at writers' nights, parties, around campfires, in the studio doing demo work-- the songs and the players caught on. Fans started asking to buy a CD and where they could catch a concert. Fans loved the music as much as the musicians who were helping to record it. The music flourished and seemed to fuel itself, pushing the band to perform. Like the recordings, the live performances got better and better. NW musicians include songwriter and lead vocalist Dale Arwood and her husband Delbert, who plays a mean 12-string acoustic guitar. The couple co-write, produce and perform their music together. Delbert has worked behind the scenes in this industry for years but savors all his time on stage making music with friends. Drummer Travis Gearheart is at home in this business, being raised on the road and in studios with his musical family. He's just as comfortable working as a studio engineer or mixing live sound, as he is playing the drums. Slide player "Wheaty" Wiedemeier hails from Iowa and holds down the fort for lead guitar. But why hold it down when you can go ahead and nail it firmly to the wall? Wheaty's awesome and he adds a cool harmony vocal as well. The multi-talented Scott Carter plays bass and adds backing vocals. He plays many instruments and is an audio/video engineer but enjoys supplying the bottom line here. For this project, he also steps out with lead guitar on 'Front and Center.' Ryan Murphy plays some soaring leads on this CD. He's featured on 'No Time,' 'On Your way,' and 'Good / Bad Thing.' Paul Spradlin throws down on the title track 'Fly on the Wall,' and Kevin Arrowsmith adds fiddle and mandolin for two tracks. Charlie Gearheart lends acoustic guitar on the driving 'No Time.' NW's Fly on the Wall CD, although first released in 2003, remains a fan favorite.