Singer/songwriter has "Truth or Consequences" on his mind

HOUSTON, Oct. 8, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Fans of 'old-soul Texas Troubadour' are always intrigued by what music emerges from deep in the heart of singer/songwriter Chuck Leah.

"Music isn't about perfection," he adds, "it's about connection."

Leah is currently under consideration by The Recording Academy for a Grammy® Award nomination in the "Best Americana Performance" category for his latest single, "Truth or Consequences."

"What drives me is the freedom of expression," says Leah. "That's all I've ever needed, just the ability to say what I feel," he added.

Perhaps the most valuable weapon of this guitar-playing singer/songwriter is the voice inside his head, which always seems to focus on perspectives that are most often overlooked.

"I've always been inspired by the idea of wide-open spaces, not just physically, but in the mind, too," he said.

For instance, crisscrossing the American desert, Leah wrote "I Lost Her in Tucson," while wandering through the French Quarter he wrote "Eugenie," a tale of longing prompted by the street imagery of New Orleans.

In Eugenie, Leah sings, "I lit my Camel in the rain, and it hit my body like sugar cane." 

His two-decade discography and seven studio albums now read like tall tales of Americana, including "Lolo," a city in Montana, "Band of Ghosts," and "High Stakes," among others.

With a voice "like a distant stare," Leah says his music attracts listeners searching for a fresh approach to life or anything that rings true.   

"My voice is broken, it's not a pretty voice," says Leah. "There's a lot of 'pretty' out there," says Leah, "but my music offers listeners something different, something true."

Over the years, he has attracted a legion of fans, both from touring the Southwest and from his unique music. Leah has also gained a reputation as a producer, becoming a studio wizard when he's not recording himself.

 "I think every song is like a painting; I want people to see the brushstrokes,' the innovative singer/songwriter said. "You can't corral a wandering soul, and I don't plan on staying in one genre for long."

His latest single "Truth or Consequences" deals with a world grappling with artificial intelligence and other technologies that make it easier to mask the truth and make personal responsibility harder to find.  

 "We should all accept responsibility for what we do," he said. 

He said this tale was inspired by a couple he witnessed arguing outside a Dairy Queen drive-in somewhere in the southwest.

"Watching them argue made me realize for every decision we make, there are, or should be consequences," said Leah, who said he pulled over immediately to jot notes that later became the song.

Leah said the idea stayed in his head until he got home and grabbing his guitar, he wrote "Truth or Consequences."  The song will ultimately become part of his upcoming album, "Truth or Consequences and Other Tall Tales," due out in 2025.

The song was named "Truth or Consequences" in honor of a small New Mexico town close to the Mexican border. "Every time I drive through there, I always thought I wanted to write a song about it," he said. "This was my chance."

"Every town has its ghosts, and I guess I'm just chasing mine."

Once in the studio, "I realized the song needed a female perspective," said Leah, who invited his good friend Becca Byram to join him in what is now a duet. "Becca is incredibly talented."

Grammy® Award-winning recording engineer Gerard Joost did most of the recording at Studio Hill, in Austin, said Leah. Many of his studio team is back for this song, including Aaron Sterling, one of the industry's most talented session drummers.

Leah, who is also an award-winning producer, brought in a star-studded lineup of session musicians, including a 30-piece orchestra and a Mexican trumpet solo to pay tribute to the town's proximity to Mexico. 

"The way we make records is very pure, a very old way," said Leah. "We don't rely so much on all the new technology."

Leah is a celebrated road warrior, not only for his music but for his role at a major Houston institution where is passionate about paleontology. After all, digging for dinosaur bones is how he discovered Lolo, Montana.

He discovered music many years ago, watching late-night TV in his hometown of Weslaco, Texas, Leah said he was drawn to music after being fascinated by Bob Dylan and wowed by The Band, which remains his favorite group.

Leah's mom eventually got him a guitar. At 17, he took a trip to New York City without telling a soul he was going.

"That childhood curiosity still drives me to explore our world and write songs," said Leah. 

"I think music can help people understand what they're feeling," says Leah. "Many people may not understand what they're feeling, but maybe a song could explain all of that," he adds.

 "My music," he said, "is always from the heart."

"I never know where a song will take me, but it's always a journey worth taking."

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