Those with Sexton tickets are lucky ones
Martin Sexton is coming to perform at the Paradise Theatre in Paonia for the first time in his career this Friday night. It has been sold out for some time, and his legion of fans include those in the North Fork Valley.
"I've heard a bit about the room, and I'm really looking forward to playing such an intimate venue. It's going to be a lot of fun for me," Sexton said. And it promises to be a great time for his audience as well. Paonia was a convenient and wanted stop between the southwest and Boulder as Sexton is touring his way across the country.
One of Sexton's latest recordings is his cover version of the Buffalo Springfield classic, "For What It's Worth." It resonates with his views about the times we are experiencing now.
"I believe we are in the new '60s. It's time for us to pull out those old songs and write new songs about what we are seeing and hearing, smelling and tasting. It's time to start talking and relating to one another about how we perceive the world is going. It just seems to be so much going on in our world that good, hardworking people are getting their heads out of the sand and opening their eyes and not being silent about what they are seeing," Sexton says.
"In that era it was Vietnam. Now it's any of a number of wars going on. Just like Vietnam was to stop the spreading of communism, now the wars are about stopping terrorism. Terrorism is the new communism. It has nothing to do with resources and oil and military bases...That's what we're supposed to believe. Meanwhile we're dying, handing over our rights. We're being treated like prisoners anytime we go into an airport. And, this is what I say, 'No' to. I believe in America and the American dream. I believe in the America that doesn't torture. That doesn't assassinate. That doesn't violate its citizens' rights."
"Fall Like Rain," the title cut on his new EP, is an introspective song about unplugging from the world, Sexton says. "Whether it's the world of technology, the world of high fashion, the world of television or main stream media. It's about feeling with my own sense of touch and seeing with my own eyes."
His lyrics say, "I want to feel. I want to fall like rain and lose the shelter so I can see which way the wind is blowing today."
He continued, "I want to be out there and subject to the elements. I don't want to be too sheltered with drugs and alcohol or TV, money and material wealth. That's what that tune is all about."
Sexton purposefully released his first EP this time around rather than a full album. "For a variety of reasons it seemed like good timing. I had these songs in the can, and it would have taken me a better part of a year to make a full-length album. At the time, the Occupy Movement was happening. Libya was happening. All these things were happening, so I should get this music out now," Sexton says. "A lot of people are unemployed, and it's a five dollar bill."
Sexton has always wanted to maintain creative control of his music. He recorded his first music on eight-track and sold 20,000 cassette copies out of his guitar case. "That's a pure example of music meets commerce," he shared. "That translated into me being on a major label, and then that translated into me being independent again and really flourishing as an artist."
He added, "I love being independent because I'm not pressured in any way. I'm not beholden to anyone. The beautiful thing is I sell more music and more tickets and get more song placement in television and film than I ever did on a major label."
Sexton often gives back through his performances or recordings to help victims of natural disasters. He recorded "Working Class Hero" for the John Lennon Tribute album to help victims of the Japan earthquake and tsunami. "Music is a workhorse, not just for entertainment," Sexton says. "It's a useful force. It can be used for anything, for good or for bad."
About the audience experience this Friday, Sexton says, "If you are at my show in that beautiful theater, you'll see people from various walks of life . . . And I'll be singing in three-part harmony." No doubt with his fans.
Listen and read more at martinsexton.com.
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