Jim Golen interview music feature

Ep 68 Jim Golen Jim Golen is one of those DIY all around musicians who is a living upright manifestation of music and artistic energy. Known for his one-man-band and extemporaneous performance style, he had made a name for himself playing in the NE Ohio and Western PA as both a solo artist and playing with several bands such as Sojourn and Mellowcrash. You won’t meet too many guys like Jim who have such a specific perspective and the ability to express that vision in conversation and in song. To see him perform is to see a man possessed by rhythm and melody. Many performers work their whole lives to be that uninhibited and dance with their guitar on stage like he does. During his interview he talks about his new album “Ventings and Virtues” and his writing process. We listen to a few of our favorites tracks including “My Cartoon” which is dense in it’s mood and self reflection. It’s great that musicians are able to use songs to occasionally take inventory of their journey in this world while expressing how they see themselves. Stick around to the end of the episode to hear that entire track and take note of it’s outro. This is where Jim’s craft shines and is highlighted by his ability to compose. “Meander” is another beautiful gem that I truly enjoyed. It was nice to listen to the podcast with my good friend, Jimmy Golen. Without doubt, Jim is one of the most accomplished and empathic musicians I’ve ever had the pleasure to work with. We first met in a basement project (which never got out of the basement) called, Pilot, in 1986. Right away, Jim and I seemed to connect on some psychic level of communication in our playing. Working with him in Sideshow and with his own band, Mellowcrash, I really grew as a musician. Jim’s percussive style of strumming made it so easy to support his groove. Jim is a drummer inside. His rhythmic approach shows his inner spirit and uncanny sense of time. His mastery of so many instruments gives him an overall perspective of how the different components of a musical production can come together. His solo act is mind boggling. Besides his proficiency on the guitar (his main tool) Jim is also an amazing bassist, keyboardist, singer, songwriter, producer, arranger, and sound engineer. Additionally, he can bang a drum better than most guitarists. Being the multi-instrumentalist that he is, Jim makes it easy for fellow musicians to connect with his style of playing. For me personally, our level of interaction was always nearly telepathic. We are true musical brothers in arms. Besides his musical talents, on a personal level, Jim is just a great all-around guy. Mostly laid-back and easy-going, Jimmy makes you feel like an old friend the first time you meet him. I certainly miss making sounds with him and cherish the memories we’ve made together through the years. I wish him success in all of his endeavors and truly hope that we can play together again some time before we’re out of time. Never give up and take it to the next level! Jimmy Taylor Jim Golen – Bio Born in 1960, Jim grew up in Warren, Ohio, and was playing guitar and piano by ear before age 10. As a freshman in high school, he was asked to be the guitarist for KSU Trumbull Theatre’s production of Godspell, playing alongside Mom’s Apple Pie bassist Greg Yochman. While at JFK in Warren, he formed his first band, Tower, with fellow classmate Chook Alberini on drums. Performing lots of 70’s hard rock, the band mostly played after-football dances, but also got to open for Michael Stanley at the school in ‘78, garnishing complimentary feedback from the headliner afterwards. Jim always emphasized guitar as his primary instrument, but his keyboard skills would also play a significant role throughout his career. Between’79 and ’83, Jim played with a variety of local bands including Sideshow, Sojourn (of New Castle, PA) and most notably his favorite band project to date, Triad. This trio also featured Steve Koleszar on drums and vocals, and old schoolmate Carl Infante on bass. Koleszar’s vocal quality and range allowed the band to perform much of the high-pitched-vocal power rock of the day including Journey, Boston, Rush, Pat Benitar, etc. The band also made an impression on audiences by injecting a mix of off-the-beaten-path progressive music such as ELP and Kansas, which featured Jim on Hammond organ and Moog synth. In the fall of ’81, Triad gained the attention of Energy Talent/Solar Management in Cleveland, and for a period became a steady opening act for the agency’s premiere act, Love Affair. Triad found themselves playing many high-profile clubs in Cleveland, Akron, and Columbus in front of very large audiences, and were being enthusiastically received. Jim was becoming well known as a dynamic and visually entertaining guitarist, and he relished playing the music he loved on stages that seemed to be getting bigger every outing. That relatively brief period of time remains to be Jim’s most cherished experience of all time as a musician and performer. Ironically, only months later, the agency that created this opportunity eventually took it away as they convinced Koleszar to front another one of their bands. Maybe even more ironic, Jim was asked to join the band Love Affair in January of ’83. While he replaced one of the two original guitarists, it was emphasized that he was primarily recruited to fulfill a more keyboard-oriented role. Some of the real positives during this time for Jim were the experience of a professional recording studio with producer Jason Mraz (Styx), a very capable and dedicated road crew of all-around good guys, and a generous dose of touring through Canada. Unfortunately, the group failed to land a record deal with its most recent recordings and continued to lose the interest of its founding members, and in the spring of ’85 Love Affair disbanded. Jim briefly played with another Cleveland act called The British Invasion and simultaneously worked at a nightclub on morning clean-up to financially get ahead, but the pace backfired as he fell ill, basically from exhaustion. Jim returned to Warren in June of ’85 and spent the summer in recovery. Taking on a new direction in the fall of ‘85, Jim enrolled at KSU Trumbull in the computer science program, which would prove to be a positive move in many ways. Also taking on a new direction musically, he teamed up with an old acquaintance, Tad Morrison, and started playing acoustic coffee house style gigs, and began doing more lead vocals. Jim would meet his future wife, Lynn, around this same time as well. Jim took on another diverse musical opportunity in the summer of ’86 when old band mates Bill Scudier and Sideshow were in need of a bass player. Jim not only took on the bass guitar role, but also brought in his keyboard rig and applied left handed keyboard bass over right handed traditional keys. This brought a fuller sound to the otherwise basic three-piece format, and the experimental idea turned into a steady gig for the next several years. Here Jim first met drummer Jimmy Taylor, finding him to be the most talented and amicable cohort he could have wished for to develop as part of a rhythm section. In May of ’88, Jim earned his Associate Degree from KSU and took a summer intern programmer position with General Electric Plastics in Massachusetts. Returning to Warren in the fall, he worked at Cortland Banks. He was still playing off-and-on with Sideshow, had also struck out on his own with the acoustic act, and first started experimenting with backing tracks around this time. A year later, Jim would connect with TF Industries, a company doing contract services for Packard Electric. They needed a videographer; and although he’d never held a video camera before, Jim was enthused about the opportunity and jumped in with a “learn by doing” attitude. This turned into what he refers to as “the most lucrative real job I ever had”. For the next 10 years, Jim would work long, steady hours making instructional and informational presentations on video and other media for various engineering departments at Packard. During that 90’s period, Jim continued to play a light schedule with his solo act and also continued to develop the one-man-band concept. Using Cakewalk DAW software, he became proficient at generating his backing tracks via midi and began recording multitrack audio works. Jim’s musical tastes had also expanded over time to include an eclectic mixture of styles including blues, acoustic folk rock, and classic pop from the 50’s 60’s. As the year 2000 was approaching, much of what was now Delphi Packard Electric began to move south to Mexico, and the media work that was once plentiful began to dry up. Jim started giving more attention to his solo act and also approached some local musician friends about putting a band together. The result was Mellocrash, which was a trio for most of its existence, doing SRV, ZZ Top, and other classic and current rock. Jim’s long time friend Dave Augustine was the bassist and only other member in all incarnations of the band. Drummers who passed through the ranks included Scott Verner, Nick Koleszar (Steve Koleszar’s younger brother), and Jimmy Taylor. For a brief time the band was a quartet with guitarist/singer Neil Hogue, and Chook Alberini also appeared several times as the band’s guest fourth member. As often happens, everyone’s personal life eventually steered into different directions, and Mellocrash last played together in 2004. During that time, Jim continued to add music to his solo repertoire and the act was becoming more polished and diverse. Showcasing both acoustic and electric guitars (including a “headless” Steinberger style axe), Jim developed a collection of music that was eclectic, yet very accessible and appealing to a wide range of audiences. A typical set might include James Taylor, Nat King Cole, Eric Clapton, the Eagles, Johnny Cash, Neil Diamond, Dire Straits, Elvis, and Stevie Ray Vaughan. While univers

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