The Momentum Game

In the music business, people always talk about momentum. Executives push to strike while the proverbial iron of a genre is hot. Bands want to follow up a blockbuster debut with an equally impressive sophomore effort. When recording an album, a songwriter and producer will try to maintain a level of energy as the record progresses for a listener. And nowhere is maintaining velocity more important than in the day-to-day work of the musicians themselves. Writing, gigs, traveling, more writing, recording, performing, even more writing: it’s the snowball that has to keep rolling, despite what you or anyone else thinks about it’s chances. William Clark Green got a good jump in the game and he’s working tirelessly to keep things moving right along – even if he did do this interview while trolling around a golf course...

Born and raised in Flint, Green’s love for music was evident from an early age – though he didn’t get into performing until the ripe old age of 13. “I’d grown up in Flint, then moved to College Station around seventh grade,” Green said. “And the music didn’t hit me until seventh grade ... I had free church lessons on Church Street in College Station and started writing immediately. Throughout middle school and high school I was writing songs. They weren’t any good, but I always had a passion for doing it. Then when I got to college it kind of just came to a weekly bar gig and so on so on.” That’s a pretty quick summation of momentum; maybe we can slow it down a bit.

Most of us have picked up a guitar at some point – and almost as many of us put it down not long after. Not so for Green, who stayed motivated even at such a young age, which is amazing enough to be a story in itself. That’s not to say he didn’t have his doubts, though.

“There was a time, I think it was freshman year in college,” Green remembered, “where [music] was never anything serious, and I never thought I was getting anywhere, none of my friends even knew I played or wrote or anything like that. It was kind of something I did for myself.” Fortunately for music fans across the state, the tide was turned for Green. Like so many almost-decisions, things were swayed by … his mother. “There was a point when I was sitting down with my mom, and I told her I was going to quit playing, for no reason really ... We had a conversation and of course she was supportive in that ‘whatever you want to do’ kind of way. But the next day I was back to writing again. That day is definitely locked into my mind – because there was no point in quitting, even though at that time, the day before I was thinking, ‘why am I doing this?’ and ‘It will never be a career’ and ‘what a waste of time, so what’s the point.’ Thank God I didn’t!”

The list of almost-quits is a pretty long one, no doubt. Thankfully, Green’s name is nowhere near it. Despite questioning what he was doing – and forgetting the words to all his songs onstage at his first ever performance – Green is still going strong.

“I was just thinking ‘why,’” he remembered. “I wasn’t playing. I wasn’t taking it seriously or anything like that, but once I started playing guitar, I was writing. I think that’s what really captured me. It wasn’t being a better guitar player – it was always the thought process of writing a song or maybe just getting your emotions out at some point ... I think the writing and guitar were my kind of therapy on anything I kind of bundled up. It was my expression.”

It’s that avenue of expression that keeps Green hooked. For many, playing guitar is a healthy pursuit in itself. For those who do end up writing music and songs, it’s not as common for the that creative expression to be as much a part as simply playing. However for Green, the two coincided instantly.

“For me it was immediate,” Green said, clearly. “That was the strange thing is – and that’s probably why I’m still not great at guitar – I never really cared to do more than write. It always was an emotional thing for me, which is strange and bizarre, but once I learned my first chord progression, I was writing a song. And like I said, they weren’t good songs, I had some pretty bad ones,” Green laughed. “And I still write bad ones to this day, but that’s just part of it. That’s what makes you better. For people who are writing right now, they ask for my advice on how to write a good song, and I say it takes years of listening to your old songs and realizing, ‘wow that was not a good choice of a word’ or ‘that was childish.’ It takes maturity and looking back at your immature songs to develop growth; and again that’s just my opinion. It’s a very interesting concept on everything … and songwriting is a weird deal.”

Wise words from one so young. Green is, after all just cracking his mid-20s. He started writing in seventh grade, and had just turned 22 when he started his first record. “We just finished our second record,” said Green. “I turned 25 in May – so we started early, which is kind of a bad thing and a good thing. The good thing is that you learn your lessons early at an early age. You learn what to do on the road and how to act in front of the big guys and how to keep yourself together in situations in which you’re being looked at very critically. The bad thing about it is that it seems like, because we started so young, it took a longer time to get to the point we are now. There is a respect of age in this industry. Guys may be 26, 27 years old and then have toured for six months and get looked at (by record companies, etc.). Then here we are, at 23, having been touring for a year-and-a-half.” Green is quick to point out, however, that through their hard work, they’ve been able to break through into the club. “We’ve been very accepted into the scene, and there are some guys who have bent over backwards for us. It’s been a really cool experience … I started a long time ago, and I never thought that it was possible. It was something so out of reach that I never even thought it could happen. I never even dreamt it. It’s not like its a glorious life – I’m on tour half the time. And sure, it’s work, but we’re having a blast!”

Odd as it may be to hear someone discussing their elders as 27-year-olds, in fact, the “old man” of the band is just 26. But they’ve got as much experience performing, writing and recording under their belts as those much older. They have a few albums in the can already, after recording the first album in what Green calls “a leap of faith, to be honest with you.” Having his mother co-sign on a loan for studio time while still enrolled at Texas Tech in Lubbock, Green got the idea when he took a songwriting class (“I needed the A,” Green said).
“I was 21, and my parents had moved back home to Flint, so I was home for Christmas break. I seriously talked to my mom (and talked with myself) about [music as a] career move. I was still in school at the time but I decided to start touring, come hell or high water.”

Green worked diligently to graduate while writing and touring throughout the last 18 months of his college career. “It was a pain in the [backside], to be honest with you, but it was a decision that I had made and took very seriously. It was something that I was going to give a hundred percent for a long time if I wanted to see where it went … or I was going to make the decision right then and there to just end it and not even try. It was a very, very big decision. Of course mom wanted me to finish school but I knew I had to make the decision right then and there, because with a new record out or you have to get started on your career. You can’t wait for years and try to jump back into it. You can see guys who lose momentum and just fall off the map. Momentum is so, so crucial … and I didn’t want to lose a step. If I started this, I didn’t want to have to backtrack anymore than I already had. The first record was the decision maker. It gave me the confidence to pursue a career in music. I wouldn’t call it much of a career yet,” Green said with temperance. “But we’re touring with major acts. There’s guys that I’ve had the pleasure of meeting and it’s really a dream come true. And I got to play for Robert Earl Keen this weekend. I mean, come on, that’s ... huge! So, it’s a dream come true, and there’s not much money in it right now, but I couldn’t care less. It’s so much fun … and the parents are coming around too.”

Though his age isn’t advanced, Green and his band have still gone through the trials and tribulations most bands have faced – and evolved. From recording the first two records – the second with his band, as opposed to studio musicians (which Green said is, “not an imitation of anything … a real record, with emotion all over it”).

“When we first started touring,” recalled Green, “I was definitely in a songwriter’s mentality. I stood there in front of the crowd, played, expressed feeling in everything and in every word. Now, I’m totally enjoying the performing side of putting on a show.” Touring and seeing newly christened peers like Roger Creager and Jack Ingram was eye-opening to the band. “These guys are great, respected songwriters for me. And, they put on this incredible show for people to see. That’s what you’ve got to give people: the bang for their buck. Whether they know your music or not, you still have to put on a show. That’s just part of the business and that part is fun. You have fun when you look like you’re having fun on the stage. It’s always fun playing in front of people but when you’re being elaborate it makes it so much more fun. That’s something we just started learning this year. 2011 is a big stage presence year for us. That’s helped us grow in what we’re doing and trying to be the best as we possibly can.”

Improving the live show is always a goal for musicians, regardless of age or experience. The Rolling Stones have been touring for 50 years and still seek out ways to make seeing them live something fans will never forget. William Clark Green doesn’t have the 75-foot video screens yet, but that’s not the goal at the moment. For now, the guys are seeking something more valuable than onstage technology – the respect of their peers.

“That’s what keeps us going,” Green said, sounding focused,“When the bigger guys compliment us. The fan base right now is definitely small. When you’re working on your second record with very little-to-no radio play, the fan base is small. What keeps us going is the bigger guys, who we open for, started coming out early and watching our show and encouraging us. The support from guys like Wade Bowen and Josh Abbott has been absolutely, hands-down incredible for us. We just got done with a three-day run with Josh. He helped us out, made sure we were taken care of, introduced us to everybody ... Stuff like that is priceless. That’s the kind of things that people did for him, and he wants to pass it on to someone else. Hopefully we’ll get the opportunity to be where we can do something like that as well. That’s priceless, and we appreciate it tenfold. Without that stuff, this business is just cutthroat.”