NECKTIE SECOND 01 - My Debut Turns 30

Plus, "Straylin Street (Live at VCA)"!

On this day in 1994, my debut album, Necktie Second, was released on American Recordings. That’s thirty years ago! You do the math! To mark the occasion, I’m sharing this live rendition of “Straylin Street” from my recent show at Vashon Center for the Arts. It was the final song of the encore.

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“Straylin Street” is the oldest song on Necktie Second. I wrote it when I was 19. It’s also the song that helped to secure my deal with American Recordings. The seeds of my deal were planted when Mike McCready passed the demo he paid for and played on along to Pearl Jam’s producer Brendan O’Brien. Hear a song from that demo and read the story of how it came to be in this post from March 8, 2023.

Brendan had recently acquired signing power at American. After flying to Portland to meet me, he flew me down to Los Angeles. On that trip, he set me up with a cassette recorder in a room at The Sunset Marquee Hotel in Hollywood and asked me to play every song I had. He then played that version of “Straylin Street” for his boss, Rick Rubin. Apparently, Rick liked what he heard enough to give Brendan the green light to sign me.

And sign me, he did.

I spent the better part of 1993 writing and developing material. Much of the writing took place in Elaine Summers’ tiny apartment. She had a cassette four-track machine tucked away in a cozy little closet. Even though I basically lived with Elaine, I kept a room in a house in Southeast Portland. My bedroom was on the top floor. I had a man cave in the basement and a rehearsal space in a standalone garage. It was there that Elaine, Gregg Williams (drums) and Robert Cooper (bass) worked up my new songs.

We were blessed to land some fantastic opening slots in 1993 as we prepared to make the record. This post from June 7, 2023, tells the story of opening for Neil Young. I remember playing “If You Don’t Love Me,” at a show opening for BB King. It felt like a hit. We played with an unknown band at the time called The Wallflowers. I even got to share the bill and meet my new label mate, Johnny Cash. As I shook his hand, he said, “Hello, I’m Johnny Cash.” What an honor that was!

Eventually, thanks to my major label record deal advance, Elaine and I moved into a house near Reed College. We threw a lot of wild parties. We turned the basement into a rehearsal room. We continued to work on material with the band and hone our chops. And I continued to write. I set up a little demo studio in the living room with an ADAT and Mackie console that Brendan set me up with.

Later that year, we made our way to Atlanta to cut the record. We set up shop at an amazing studio called Southern Tracks Recording. For a studio tour, check out this post from March 1, 2023.

There is so much I could say about the album's recording, but I’ll save that for another post.

As I mentioned in this post from January 26, 2023, “Straylin Street” was the first single to be released from Necktie Second. I remember the first time I heard it played on the radio. While partying in a suite at Seattle’s Camlin Hotel, listening to the late great AAA station The Mountain, the opening count and acoustic guitar riff of “Straylin Street” wafted from the clock radio on the nightstand. What a thrill!

Another memory from the Camlin just popped into my head. The Camlin had a great bar on its top floor. The Cloud Room was classic, complete with a lounge singer at a piano. On the night of my record release party, which took place at a bar called The Weathered Wall, a few friends and I gathered in the Cloud Room for some pre-party drinks. Among those joining me was the aforementioned Mike McCready. Flush with his ample Pearl Jam earnings Mike sprung for a costly round of Macallan 25. That’s 25-year-old scotch. At the time it sold for $25 a shot.

I was super nervous about being the guest of honor at my own record release party. So, to acquire some liquid courage, I downed the pricey shot. Between the liquor and the nerves, it did not want to stay down. I immediately ran to the restroom and threw up all twenty-five dollars worth. Eventually, I relaxed and enjoyed the festivities.

I’ll have more to say about Necktie Second in upcoming posts. Until then, here is a video still of me at the great Music Millennium record store in Portland, Oregon on the day the record was released.

Visiting Music Millennium on May 24, 1994.

Peace & Love Songs,

Pete