12.20.18

PW OPINION PW NEWS PW LIFE PW ARTS
Mick Mcmains
MUSIC MAN
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 19
“Then I started another band called The Cocktails and we put a record out and became
the house band at the Troubadour for a while,” McMains continues. “KROQ was playing
our record, we were looking pretty good. But the more I got into it, the weirder Hollywood
got to me. I didn’t enjoy the process of getting the record deal and playing the clubs. It’s
probably more wholesome now than it was in the ’70s.”
Mick McMains moved to Pasadena and later Eagle Rock, working as a guitarist for
numerous live acts and recordings in addition to teaming with longtime Altadena-based
songwriter Joey Alkes to record a unique CD as a musical collective called DJ Monkey.
“That was a lot of fun, because we got my kids and his kids together and read poetry
on top of all types of music,” says McMains. “My son played guitar, plus he had a buddy
who had a record-scratching device, and we had a sax player. It was sort of avant-garde
jazz-pop, but it was a lot of fun.
“I used to play the Ice House a lot when they had musicians, and I opened for Billy
Crystal once, who was so funny and nice,” he continues. “We played the Golden Bear in
Huntington Beach, opening for bigger bands like The Knack and Average White Band. I
also played the Whisky once, and have played hundreds of weddings and nightclubs, so
it’s been a lot of fun.”
McMains’ current sound in his musical trio is lushly produced roots-rock, with crisply
sung harmonies influenced by his lifelong love of the 1940s vocal group the Mills Brothers
as well as the country vocal ensemble Sons of the Pioneers. Their debut CD “Guitar Love”
was released in 2010, while the follow-up, “American Soul,” came out last summer.
The group farmed out the post-production work on their CDs to two local producers,
Jim Scott at Magic Mountain and Dave Mouser at Mouse House. McMains believe the new
album differs from their debut release because of the fact it prominently features guest
steel-guitar wizard Charlie Peterson, lending the album “a little more back porch sound.”
“I used to be very lazy with my lyric writing and was more interested in the music, but
then I became an adult in the past couple years,” jokes the 61-year-old McMains. “Now I
feel like everything — every note and word — is crucial. I’ll have a lyrical idea I think is
interesting, but it’s all going to be about what’s going on in my life because I’m not qualified
to write about anything else.
“Sometimes it comes out poetic, sometimes straightforward, it all depends,” he adds.
“I worked a lot longer on my tunes than I did in my 20s and 30s and I’m more pleased with
the results. My songs are love songs, and I like pretty music, I’ll admit.” ■
Mick McMains opens for Eileen Carey and The Motels starting at 7 p.m. Saturday at the Rose, 245 E. Green St.,
Pasadena. Tickets are $24 to $48. Call (888) 645-5006 or visit wheremusicmeetsthesoul.com.
20 PASADENA WEEKLY | 12.20.18