Aaron McLain
Guitarist, Vocalist, Songwriter, Producer
Touring & Performing
Marc Anthony US & South American Tour 2005
Aaron McLain Project Black And Blue Ball - MD Association,
Gig-Hollywood, Hard Rock Live,
Bitter End(NY) Lizard Lounge(NY)2004-5
Marc Anthony Promo Tour 2004
Marc Anthony U.S. Tour 2002
Marc Anthony Promo Tour 2001
Marc Anthony World Tour 2000
Aaron McLain Project Me’shell Ndege’Ocello-Santa Barbara 2002
Aaron McLain Project European Promo Tour 1999-2000
Aaron McLain Project Hard Rock, Los Angeles 2002
Rebbie Jackson South American Tour 1995
Oleta Adams & Luther Vandross U.S. & European Tour 1994
Oleta Adams & Michael Bolton U.S. Tour 1992
Ronnie Laws U.S. Tour 1992-94
Musician for Television Programs
Marc Anthony: Latin Billboard Awards 2005, Today Show 4x, Victoria Secret Fashion Awards 2003, Winter Olympics 2002, CBS Special 2002, Grammy Awards 2002,
Miss Universe 2002, Billboard Awards 2002, Blockbuster Awards 2000, HBO Special, Tonight Show 5x, Gloria Estefan Special, Mad TV, Rosie O’Donell, Saturday Night Live, The View, Craig Kilborn
Oleta Adams: Oprah Winfrey, Soul Train, Lou Rawls Parade of Stars, Good Day L.A., Tonight Show, Various European TV Shows.
Jaguar Wright: Soul Train, Craig Killborn
Donnell Jones: Soul Train
Stephen Simmons: Soul Train, BET Live
Monica: Teen Choice Awards
Recordings/Production
Aaron McLain Soul Unique Records
Juaquin Producer:“Rollin” Modev Records
Rahsaan Patterson UMG Records
Marc Anthony HBO Live DVD/Sony Records
Patti LaBelle MCA Records
Dr. Dre Aftermath Records
The Pharcyde Capitol Records
Terence Trent D’Arby Columbia Records
Jermaine Stewart Virgin Records
Beat Goes Bang Restless Records
Tisha Cambell Capitol Records
Television/Videos/Commercials-SAG/AFTRA
Colgate - Commercial National Spot/ 1999 (Principal)
Budweiser - Commercial Marc Anthony Performance 2003 (Principal)
Marc Anthony - Video “Valio La Pena” (Principal)
Marc Anthony - Video “ I Got You” (Principal)
Juaquin - Video “Rollin” (Principal)
Oleta Adams - Video “Circle Of One” (Principal)
Gladys Knight -Video “Lovin’ On Next To Nothing” (Principal)
Endorsements
Godin Guitars EMG Pickups
Farnell Guitars VHT Amplification
Mackie
IK Multimedia
AARON MCLAIN
“What I really want to know/Are you with me/All the way?” “All the Way”
He’s humble, self-effacing and soft-spoken. But once L.A. native Aaron McLain straps on his electric guitar and takes the stage, suddenly he’s a god, a true rock & roll hero, channeling some of his favorite influences—Hendrix, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Eddie Van Halen—singing soulfully like John Mayer, David Bowie or Seal.
It’s an amazing transformation for someone who has traveled the world playing guitar for the likes of Marc Anthony—his current gig—as well as Tears for Fears singer Oleta Adams, Patti LaBelle and Ronnie Laws, among others.
“Music is a way of expressing my deepest self,” says McLain, who started playing guitar when he was eight. “I feel I can let people see who I really am more through a song. Especially when I’m performing it. That’s like the inner core coming out. And if I don’t let it all out, it’s not real. That requires me to be vulnerable.”
In songs like the yearning “All the Way,” the urgent “Pictures,” the Bowie-like “It’s Not Your Fault,” or the anguished “Wish,” Aaron’s a heightened romantic who lets his guitar do the talking, carving out a sacred space where he bypasses the brain to touch the heart.
“Playing guitar and making music is when I’m most comfortable,” he says. “I try to paint a perfect picture, an idealized situation.”
McLain has been working to create that sacred space since he was a youngster being raised by his mom, and grandparents in the desert of L.A.’s Antelope Valley, hearing the strains of K.C. & the Sunshine Band and Sly & the Family Stone coming out of his grandmother’s backyard radio.
“I remember my cousin had this old Fender guitar with maybe one string on it,” he reminisces. “I got some wire from the garage and made it into a makeshift strap. Everytime I saw a guitar, I would gravitate toward it.”
His father, living in Arizona at the time, gave his brother an acoustic guitar and Aaron a camera. “My brother was so cool,” laughs Aaron. “He told dad that I always wanted to play guitar and gave me his.”
McLain proceeded to teach himself how to play, using a Mel Bay instructional booklet before taking lessons. When he was 12, he played his first gig at a Boy Scouts ceremony with his brother on bass, covering a couple of Van Halen tunes. He’s already shows his allegiance to his favorite music by dressing up one Halloween as Kiss’ Ace Frehley.
“I was just drawn to rock, because of the guitar,” he explains. “I was into Zeppelin, Bowie, Queen, AC/DC, things like that. Of course, being an African-American, it was a little strange. But I stuck to my guns. I was into skateboarding, boogie-boarding and rock & roll and I wasn’t turning back, no matter what anyone said.”
After graduating high school, Aaron enrolled in the famed Dick Grove School of Music, where he got a quick education into what it took to make a living as a musician.
“I quickly realized I was in over my head, but I wanted to get as much knowledge as I could,” he says. “I met some really cool cats who helped me out quite a bit.”
He immediately became a sought-after session guitarist playing with much more experienced colleagues, which put even more pressure on him.
Realizing early on, if he wanted to make it on his own, he’d need his own home studio, he gradually built up his recording facilities until he now has a 32-channel digital board, several PCs, a number of keyboards and 25 guitars.
“When I do other people’s gigs, I feel a little torn,” Aaron admits. “I try to do my job well, but knowing I have so much more to offer, that I have these songs, gives me this drive to make this happen for my own sanity, happiness and sense of fulfillment.”
Aaron’s music is about that place where he has complete creative freedom. In “It’s Not Your Fault,” he calls out, “As I reach my hand out/Can you please understand me?,” a sentiment that could be directed at a lover… or his audience. In the acoustic intro to “Wish,” he calls out, “Wish I could be like you/Wish I could say I don’t care/But you’ve got the advantage on me/Because you know I do.” That emotion emerges in a wrenching, climactic guitar solo that reflects Aaron’s own sense of heightened passion.
“I write from my own experience, and hope people can relate to where I’m coming from,” he says. “The solos aren’t just running off a bunch of notes. They’re just as important as the words, and always tied in to the melody. And live, I like to take it to another level, burn it up.”
As unassuming as he is away from the spotlight, when Aaron McLain hits the stage, his music slams you like a punch to the solar plexis. “I believe my music is universal, and my goal right now is to get out there and play in front of as many people as will have me. I’m looking for the place where I can put my two feet on the ground and say, ‘I like it here!’”
And if the idea of an African-American musician playing full-throttle rock with a dash of soul is disconcerting, think of Aaron McLain as the latest in a long line that includes Chuck Berry, Muddy Waters, Bo Diddley, B. B. King and even Robert Johnson.
“Music is completely color-blind for me,” he says. “When you close your eyes, you can’t see who’s playing. When you hear my songs, you can’t tell if I’m black or white. It doesn’t matter, it shouldn’t matter and it never should have mattered.”
Although he has played for 20,000 in Madison Square Garden with Marc Anthony, Aaron McLain is every bit as intense in front of a crowd of 100 at one of his local club gigs. “He lets me do my own thing and not many people would,” says Aaron of the Latin star. “He can bring tears to your eyes when he’s doing salsa. I’ve been blessed to play with some people with real talent, who don’t hide behind any gimmicks.”
As he sings, with a Prince-like falsetto and a churning guitar in “Passing By”: “I’m just passing by/To see if I could get close to you.”
Get next to Aaron McLain now. It’s going to get pretty crowded around him soon.
Written by Roy Trakin
“Hits Magazine”
en español
Él es humilde, modesto y de voz suave. Pero una vez que LA nativos Aarón McLain correas con su guitarra eléctrica y sube al escenario, de repente es un dios, una verdadera roca y héroe roll, la canalización de algunas de sus influencias favorito Hendrix, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Eddie Van Halen-cantando fervorosamente como, David Bowie o sello.
Es una transformación asombrosa para alguien que ha viajado por el mundo tocando la guitarra para los gustos de Marc Anthony, Beto Cuevas, así como Tears for Fears cantante de Oleta Adams, Patti LaBelle, Trent Darby Terrance y Sheryl Crow, entre otros.
"La música es una manera de expresar mi más profundo ser," dice McLain, quien comenzó a tocar la guitarra cuando tenía ocho años. "Yo siento que puedo dejar que la gente vea lo que realmente soy más a través de una canción. Sobre todo cuando estoy realizando. Eso es como el núcleo interno que sale. Y si no dejo que todo hacia fuera, que no es real. Eso me obliga a ser vulnerable. "
Aaron es un romántico mayor que deja que su guitarra hable por ti, tallando un espacio sagrado en el que no pasa por el cerebro para tocar el corazón.
"Tocar la guitarra y hacer música es cuando estoy más cómodo", dice. "Trato de pintar un cuadro perfecto, una situación ideal."
McLain ha estado trabajando para crear ese espacio sagrado desde que era un joven que se crió con su madre y abuelos en el desierto de Los Angeles Valle del Antílope, oyendo los acordes de KC & The Sunshine Band y Sly & the Family Stone que sale de la radio patio trasero de su abuela.
"Recuerdo que mi primo había esta vieja guitarra Fender con tal vez una cadena en él", recuerda. "Tengo un poco de alambre desde el garaje y la convirtió en una correa improvisada. Cada vez que veía una guitarra, yo gravitan hacia ella. "
Su padre, que viven en Arizona en ese momento, dio a su hermano una guitarra acústica y una cámara de Aaron. "Mi hermano estaba tan fresco", se ríe Aaron. "Le dijo a papá que siempre quise tocar la guitarra y me dio la suya."
McLain procedió a enseñarle a jugar, con un folleto de instrucción Mel Bay antes de tomar lecciones. Cuando tenía 12 años, jugó su primer concierto en una ceremonia de los Boy Scouts con su hermano en el bajo, que cubre un par de canciones Van Halen. Él ya muestra su lealtad a su música favorita al vestir un Halloween como Kiss Ace Frehley.
"Me sentí atraído sólo a la roca, a causa de la guitarra", explica. "Yo estaba en Zeppelin, Bowie, Queen, AC / DC, cosas así. Por supuesto, siendo un afroamericano, fue un poco extraño. Pero me mantuve en mis trece. Yo estaba en el skateboarding, el boogie-embarque y el rock & roll y yo no estaba vuelta atrás, no importa lo que dijo. "
Después de graduarse de escuela secundaria, Aaron inscritos en la famosa Escuela de Dick Grove de la Música, donde obtuvo una educación rápida en lo que se tardó en ganarse la vida como músico.
"Rápidamente me di cuenta que estaba en mi cabeza, pero yo quería tanto conocimiento como pude", dice. "Me reuní con algunos gatos muy cool que me ayudaron bastante."
De inmediato se convirtió en un codiciado guitarrista de sesión de juego con mucho colegas más experimentados, lo que puso aún más presión sobre él.
Al darse cuenta de pronto, si quería hacerlo por su cuenta, que necesitaría su propio home studio, poco a poco construyó su servicios de grabación, hasta que ahora cuenta con un consejo de 32 canales digitales, varios ordenadores, una serie de teclados y 40 guitarras.
"Cuando hago conciertos de otras personas, me siento un poco roto," Aaron admite. "Trato de hacer mi trabajo bien, pero sabiendo que tienen mucho más que ofrecer, que tienen estas canciones, me da esta unidad para que esto suceda por mi propia cordura, la felicidad y el sentido de cumplimiento."
la música de Aaron es en ese lugar donde tiene libertad creativa total. En "It's Not Your Fault", le dice en voz alta: "Como llego a mi mano / ¿Puedes por favor me entiende?", Un sentimiento que podría ser dirigido contra un amante ... o su audiencia. "Escribo desde mi propia experiencia, y la gente puede relacionarse con la esperanza donde estoy viniendo," él dice. "Los solos no son sólo corriendo un montón de notas. Son tan importantes como las palabras, y siempre ligada a la melodía. Y vivir, me gusta llevarlo a otro nivel, Burn It Up ".
Como modesto como es lejos de la atención, cuando Aarón McLain golpea el escenario, su música que golpea como un puñetazo al plexo solar. "Creo que mi música es universal, y mi derecho objetivo ahora es salir y jugar delante de tanta gente como me va a tener. Estoy buscando el lugar donde puedo poner mis dos pies en el suelo y decir: "Me gusta aquí! '"
"La música es totalmente ciego al color para mí", dice. "Cuando cierras los ojos, usted no puede ver quién está jugando. Cuando escuche mis canciones, no se puede saber si soy blanco o negro. No importa, no debe importar y jamás debería haber importado ".
A pesar de que ha jugado a 20.000 en el Madison Square Garden con Marc Anthony, Aarón McLain es tan intensa frente a una multitud de 100 a uno de sus conciertos club local.
Mientras canta, con un falsete Príncipe-como agitación y una guitarra en "pasa": "Estoy pasando por / Para ver si podía acercarme a ti."
Obtener junto a Aarón McLain ahora. Va a ser bastante lleno de gente alrededor de él pronto.
Escrito por Roy Trakin
"Hits Magazine"
