Butch Walker built his reputation with hard-hitting, self-produced rock albums marked by a bright, polished sound. When he set out to make Afraid Of Ghosts, an LP partially inspired by the death of his father, he decided to forget about perfection and aim for a more visceral, acoustic feel. The songs on Afraid Of Ghosts were written over the course of a year, then recorded with Ryan Adams and his band in a four-day burst of creativity. It’s the first time Walker worked with an outside producer. Walker will be guest editing magnetmagazine.com all week. Read our brand new feature on him.
Walker: This took a long time for me to admit, because I spent the last half of my first 18 years of life trying to get the fuck out of there. It was this quiet (boring), religious (also boring), mining town about 40 minutes north of Atlanta. My family moved there when I was about five, and I started grade school there. My dad got transferred for his job with AT&T (then called Southern Bell) to be closer to headquarters and also closer to his aging mother in Rome, Ga. There, I would learn to ride a bike, shoot guns, roller skate, take girls on dates to the roller-skating rink, form my first love for guitar, rock ‘n’ roll, and my first band behind our house in my parents arts-and-crafts store building. I would go to the high school football games with my elementary school buddies. We would eat at the 4 Way Diner or Ross’s Diner (both still there and consistently greasy and good) everyday at lunch time. I would get my very first job, working at the local music store called Strings And Things. I would skip school and drive to Atlanta to make out with my keyboard player in my band (she was three years older than me). And then, I would leave Cartersville. For good. the day after I graduated high school. I went straight to L.A., then moved to ATL for another 16 years. Then back to L.A. Then Nashville. All while going back, periodically for family gatherings and holidays to see the kind folks of my hometown. Days would go on, and my career would shift and change over the years, but it would settle into a pretty nice career as a touring artist and songwriter over the last half of my life. I remember my mom and dad always asking me, “Why won’t you ever play a show here in Cartersville?” I would always say, “Why the hell would I wanna do that? And who would wanna come see it?” Well, as a promise to my late father, I did a show in his honor, this past Thanksgiving. It was at the beautiful old Grand Theatre on the downtown square. I saw my first movies at that theatre when I was a wee lad, and over the years, it got restored to a beautiful playhouse theatre like it was back in the day. The show was special and emotional, and I am so glad that I finally got my head out of my ass and did it. Basically, it was like playing for all of my neighbors I grew up with and reminded me that, especially with the life of my father now taken, that it is precious. Never be too cool for your hometown. Or your parents. Ever. Because you’re not.
Video after the jump.
