Michael Cody at Butchertown

By Karen Le Van

The Saturday Scene magazine said to be sure to check out Michael Cody at Butchertown Pub on Tuesday, May 15.

Cody, a singer-songwriter from North Carolina, with a penchant for minor-chord hooks that tug at the heart, sounded like my kind of singer-songwriter. My first thought was, "Hey, maybe he'll be another David Wilcox-style writer," so I was set to hear nice lilting love ballads. Wrong.

Cody, the band, was setting up when I arrived. The group consisted of three electric guitars, one bass and drums. No, it definitely was not going to be a David Wilcox night.

What I heard instead was a driving beat and several good up-tempo songs of love. "Dizzy From the Distance," "Rain On the River," and "Angeline" all had the sparse but enthusiastic audience moving to the beat. Michael Cody, lead singer, is from Skyland, North Carolina, outside of Asheville, and sounded like a cross between Van Morrison and Dan Fogelberg. I wish the sound had been better so that I could have understood more of the lyrics. The vocals were somewhat muffled and the bass vibrated the room at times. Of the lyrics that I could understand, the hooks came through loud and clear.

In the song "Thunder and Lightning," about a stormy relationship, Cody sang, "Like thunder and lightning we belong together, nothing in this world can keep us apart, I know we can travel through stormy weather, cause we're like thunder and lightning and nothing can keep us apart."

Other good songs were "Counting the Days," "A Long Way From Here to Where You're Going," "There Was Always A Train Going Somewhere In the Night" and "Heard It On the Radio." One of Cody's songs, "The Jaws Of Modern Romance," was a big hit for Gary Morris. It was on his Stones album.

Cody consists of Danny O'Lannerghty on bass, Gene Ford and Mark Chisshir on lead guitar, and Steve Grossman on drums.

Lead guitarist Ford really cooked on "You're Still the Best I've Ever Seen" and "Heard It On the Radio."

Michael Cody commutes from North Carolina but the other band members live in Nashville.

Things are getting close on a record deal so it may not be too long before we'll be hearing Cody on the radio. From the response of the audience, I think we can look forward to hearing Cody in Louisville again soon.

They are a very entertaining band, and all seem to be nice. They were extremely helpful to this struggling songwriter about to try to make her mark in Nashville. Michael Cody was gracious enough to send me a list of people in the entertainment business to help me get started, along with many encouraging words.

The next time the tip sheet says not to miss them, don't!