My name is Richard Alan Wood and I write California Country songs. When you first hear those words some people might think they don't go together. A lot of folks think that Country means Nashville, Memphis, Dallas, Austin, Baton Rouge or a lot of other places in the South.
It does!
But Country also means places like Bakersfield, Los Angeles, Fresno, Richmond, and even San Francisco because Country is anywhere people feel pain, loss, guilt, happiness, weakness, strength, or love. No matter where we are, Country just expresses itself through music that talks about all those things, and a lot more, in the language of common folks. I was Oklahoma born, but California bred and the songs I write show a little slice of life in California Country. I hope you enjoy them!
see my website at www.rynkevmusic.com.
Latest News
8.31-07
Going to Nashville for a week in late September for an NSAI class, Song Camp 102. Song Camp 101 was a blast and I'm really looking forward to the next session. As a new songwriter, I am amazed at how difficult it is to take an idea and condense it, and put it into words that are marketable. It may look easy, folks, but it's not. NSAI has a terrific staff of highly successful songwriters and they are great with their suggestions on songwriting. See some of you there. Rich Wood
Richard Wood Bio Information
LIKE MOST TEENS OF MY GENERATION I WAS STRONGLY INFLUENCED BY THE BEATLES, ROLLING STONES, AND OTHER ROCK-N-ROLL ACTS OF THE DAY. ALTHOUGH I APPRECIATED THE WORK OF BOB DYLAN, I WASN'T A BIG FAN - I FOUND MANY OF HIS LYRICS IMPENETRABLE - TOO ARTSY FOR ART'S SAKE.
WHEN I WAS IN THE ARMY IN GERMANY I MET A FELLOW SOLDIER WHO WAS A HUGE FAN OF COUNTRY MUSIC AND HE INTRODUCED ME TO THE MUSIC OF HANK WILLIAMS, JOHNNY CASH, MARTY ROBBINS, AND OTHERS. I WAS BLOWN AWAY BY THE HONESTY AND DIRECTNESS OF THE MUSIC. IS THERE ANYONE WHO HAS EVER HEARD JOHNNY CASH SING FOLSOM PRISON BLUES WHO COULDN'T FEEL, JUST FOR A MOMENT, THE PAIN AND LOSS OF A LIFE GONE WRONG WHEN HE "HUNG HIS HEAD AND CRIED"? TO THIS DAY, I STILL CONSIDER FOLSOM PRISON BLUES TO BE ONE OF THE FINEST AMERICAN SONGS -- COUNTRY OR OTHERWISE - EVER WRITTEN.
THE SIGHTS, SOUNDS, AND TRADITIONS OF COUNTRY MUSIC ARE STILL BEING CARRIED ON TODAY. KENNY CHESNEY, HANK, JR., SHANIA TWAIN, GEORGE STRAIT, FAITH HILL, TIM MCGRAW, ALAN JACKSON AND MANY OTHERS ARE REMINDERS THAT THIS KIND OF MUSIC WILL ALWAYS BE THERE FOR PEOPLE WHO WANT THEIR MUSIC TO TELL STORIES THAT ARE DIRECT AND HONEST AND TOUCH PEOPLE'S HEARTS. FOR MY PART, AFTER SPENDING MORE THAN TWENTY YEARS IN THE LEGAL FIELD, THE COUNTRY SONGS THAT I WRITE ARE ALWAYS GOING TO REFLECT THE EXPERIENCES, FEELINGS, AND EMOTIONS OF FOLKS, GOING ABOUT THEIR LIVES, LIVING IN THE GREATEST COUNTRY ON THE FACE OF THE EARTH. THERE'S LOTS OF STORIES YET TO TELL, AND I WANT TO TELL SOME OF THEM THAT HAVE TAKEN PLACE RIGHT HERE IN CALIFORNIA COUNTRY.
see my website at www.rynkevmusic.com