Here I Am

                                                                    “Rodney Vincent is a friend of mine and a very talented one at that ! 

I am proud of the songs we have written together . Give a listen to his new CD which I think is exellent”. My favourite track is  “Here I Am”   Gene Pitney                     

      “HERE I AM “ IS RODNEY VINCENT’S 14^TH ALBUM AND FEATURE’S 10 GREAT SONGS, 8  ORIGINALS, 7 OF WHICH WERE  EITHER WRITTEN BY RODNEY OR CO WRITTEN WITH ONE OF AUSTRALIA’S MOST PROLIFIC AND TALENTED PERFORMER  SONG WRITERS , ALLAN CASWELL , ALONG WITH RECORD PRODUCER AL CRAIG , THERE ARE  ALSO  COVER VERSIONS OF TWO VERY POPULAR SONGS , “ONE DAY AT A TIME” AND “GRANDPA’S PIANO”. 

              AS AN ADDED BONUS THE CD ALSO FEATURES THE SONG “YOU DON’T STOP LAUGHING , ALSO WRITTEN BY RODNEY,  “ WITH A “LIVE”  COMEDY SPOT OF 25 MINUTES WHICH IS FULL OF STORIES AND JOKES , THAT IS SURE TO PUT A SMILE ON YOUR FACE . IT SEEMS FUNNY TO SAY “LIVE “ COMEDY,  BUT TO GET THE  FEEL AND  VIBE OF A PERFORMANCE IT HAS GOT TO BE DONE IN FRONT OF A LIVE  AUDIENCE , AND AS RODNEY KNOWS , ON  SOME NIGHTS YOU  CAN CAPTURE A LITTLE BIT OF MAGIC WHICH THERE HAVE BEEN , OFF THE CUFF,  OR AD LIBS , BUT THEN AGAIN THERE HAVE BEEN SOME NIGHTS WHEN THINGS WERE NOT QUITE RIGHT .   

             THIS ALBUM HAS BEEN ONE OF THE MOST SATISFYING FOR RODNEY IN THAT OF HIS IMPUT INTO THE ORIGINAL SONGS . ONE OF THE HIGHLIGHTS ON THE ALBUM IS THE SONG THAT RODNEY WROTE AND RECORDED WITH ROCK’N’ROLL HIT MAKER AND HALL OF FAME LEGEND GENE PITNEY , LETS NOT MAKE “THE SAME MISTAKE AGAIN” . IT WAS WRITTEN ON THE LAST TOUR OF OZ IN 2001 , OF WHICH RODNEY HAS DONE THE LAST 3 TOURS AS GENE’S SPECIAL GUEST . RODNEY RECORDED ALL HIS PARTS IN AUSTRALIA AND THEN SENT IT TO GENE WHERE TOGETHER WITH HIS RECORD PRODUCING SON TODD , PUT THE HARMONIES , FINISHING TOUCHES AND THEN THE FINAL MIX , RESULT A VERY STONG SONG , SURE TO HAVE PLENTY OF AIRPLAY AROUND AUSTRALIA AND THE WORLD .  WRITING A SONG WITH GENE FOR RODNEY WAS GREAT LEARNING EXPERIENCE  IN ITSELF , AS GENE WOULD REALLY MAKE HIM GO BEYOND THE BOUNDRIES OF HIS THINKING TO FIND THE RIGHT WORDS AND MELODY LINE , NOT TO SETTLE FOR A “WELL IT RYTHMS , LINE”. 

               OVER THE YEARS RODNEY ALSO HAD A LOT OF UNFINISHED SONGS SITTING THERE IN THE BACK OF THE BOOK , GETTING DUSTY , SO WITH THE HELP OF ALLAN CASWELL AND AL CRAIG  , TOGETHER , THEY TOKE THOSE BITS AND PIECES AND MADE THEM INTO GREAT SONGS .   ONE SONG THAT REALLY HIT A CHORD WITH THEM ALL WAS “GRANDMA’S HOUSE” , THE BASIC IDEA BEING WRITTEN BY RODNEY ABOUT HIS GRANDMA’S HOUSE AT WANGARATTA , WHERE HE GREW UP , AND THEN THE BOTH ALLAN’S ADDED THEIR MEMORIES TOO , AND THERE IT WAS , A SONG THAT WILL TUG AT THE HEART TRINGS OF US ALL WHEN WE THINK ABOUT OUR OWN GRANDMA’S HOUSE .               

               A TRADEGY IN THE MAIN STREET OF RODNEY’S HOMETOWN OF ALBURY –WODONGA INSPIRED THE SONG , ITS DIFFERENT “SINCE THE CITY CAME TO TOWN” . READING THE FRONT PAGE NEWS RODNEY REALIZED HIS SO CALLED LITTLE COUNTRY TOWN WAS NOT ANY MORE , AND THAT OTHER INFLUENCES WERE STARTING TO TAKE OVER  OTHER LITTLE COUNTRY TOWNS ALL OVER AUSTRALIA . ALLAN CASWELL LOVED THE IDEA AND THREE HEADS BEING BETTER THAN ONE , A GREAT THOUGHT PROVOKING COUNTRY SONG WAS BORN .    

          “HERE I AM” IS A SONG THAT RODNEY WROTE TO OPEN HIS SHOW WITH ,  WHEN THINKING ABOUT HOW HE WOULD LIKE TO INTRODUCE HIMSELF TO AN  AUDIENCE ,  AND BEING AROUND A “YEAR OR THREE” AS RODNEY WOULD PUT IT  , HE FELT THAT HE WANTED JUST TO SAY “ HERE I AM , THIS IS ME , WHAT YOU  GET , IS WHAT YOU SEE , NOTHING MORE , NOTHING LESS , GOTTA GIVE YOU MY VERY BEST , HERE I AM”  WHICH THE CHOROUS OF THE SONG .    RODNEY REALISES THAT WE ALL HAVE A USE BY DATE ,  TO PUT IT BLUNTLY , SO YOU MAKE EVERY POST A WINNER AND ENJOY EVERY PERFORMANCE WHICH HE DOES , BECAUSE AS HE SAYS “ IF I’M HAVING FUN , PEOPLE WILL COME ALONG FOR THE RIDE AND ENJOY THEMSELVES AS WELL” . LAUGHTER IS A VERY IMPORTANT PART OF RODNEY’S MAKE UP , HENCE THE SAYING AND THEN A SONG (TRACK 11)  “YOU DON’T STOP LAUGHING” COS YOU GROW OLD ,…… YOU GROW OLD BECAUSE YOU STOP LAUGHING  , LOOKING AT THE FUNNY SIDE OF GETTING OLD , (IF THERE IS ONE) FOLLLOWED BY SOME VERY FUNNY STORIES AND JOKES THAT LEAVE YOU WITH A SMILE  , AND ROUND OF A VERY ENTERTAINING ALBUM .   

           TWO PEOPLE THAT HAVE PLAYED A VERY BIG PART IN TAKING RODNEY’S RECORDING CAREER TO A HIGHER LEVEL ARE THE VERY TALENTED  DONNA FISK AND MICHEAL CRISTIAN. NOT ONLY ARE THEY PERSONNAL AND TREASURED FRIENDS OF RODNEY , BUT THEY ARE GREAT PERFORMERS IN THEIR OWN RIGHT ,  AND  KNOW JUST HOW TO PRODUCE AND GET THE MOST OUT OF A COUNRTY SONG . DONNA AND 

MICHEAL HAVE PRODUCED 5 TRACKS ON “HERE I AM” , WITH MICHEAL DOING ALL THE INSTRUMENTS ( A VERY TALENTED MAN) ON ALL THE TRACKS  AND THEN MASTERING THE FINAL MIX . DONNA AND MICHEAL ALSO PRODUCED TRACKS ON RODNEY’S PREVIOUS BEST SELLING ALBUM “RODNEY VINCENT ENTERTAINS”, A MIXTURE IF SONGS AND COMEDY .

              THIS NEW CD IS FULL OF VARIETY ENTERTAINMENT OF WHICH I GUESS IS RODNEY’S FORTE , FROM THE BIGGEST CONCERT HALLS  IN AUSTRALIA TO THE LITTLE COMMUNITY HALL IN A TOWN SOMEWHERE NEAR YOU, RODNEY  HAS DONE IS APPRENTICESHIP TO BECOME , TO TERM A PHRASE, A VERY VERSITILE PERFORMER IN HIS OWN RIGHT . TOGETHER WITH ALL THE OTHER TRACKS,  THE FOOT TAPPING

“I’M SO GLAD I FELL IN LOVE WITH YOU” TO THE FEEL GOOD SONG AND DANCE TUNE  “SIMPLE SONG” ,   “HERE I AM” IS SET TO BECOME  ONE OF RODNEY’S MOST SUCESSFUL  ALBUMS , ALTHOUGH ALL OF HIS ALBUMS HAVE BEEN WINNERS IN THAT THEY HAVE PAID FOR THEM SELVES AND CONTINUED TO BE POPULAR SELLERS AT HIS SHOWS , WHICH FOR AN INDEPENDENT ARTIST IS VERY IMPORTANT.      

           “WHAT YOU SEE IS WHAT YOU GET” IS WHAT RODNEY VINCENT IS ALL ABOUT THESE DAYS , AN HONESTY OF WHO HE IS AND WHERE HE IS GOING , “YOUR ONLY AS GOOD AS YOUR LAST PERFORMANCE” AND THIS CD IS RODNEY VINCENT DOING WHAT HE LOVES BEST , ENTERTAINING .