POWERGRAMS

37 PROFILE Family Tradition REED RECORDS, SINGS IN BAND IN SPARE TIME by Carla Davis For J. Patrick Reed, the grass has always been "bluer" when he's picking and singing onstage. But after years of performing before an audience, he feels it's time to carry his music to the next level. Reed's most recent foray into the world of recording was last October when he released, "I'll Carry On," a single he wrote about the feelings he has experienced while raising his 2-year- old son, Harp. Although he is primarily a bluegrass performer, Reed reached deep into his soul to write this alternative folk song. "It's my favorite song and the closest to my heart and, in my opinion, it's the closest I've ever come to writing a really good song," said Reed, real estate specialist, Land Acquisition, Corporate Headquarters. "It's about raising a kid, being married and living life, and the joy and angst that comes along with it. It's about sitting up at night worrying about what tomorrow will bring and getting through all the things that weigh your mind down." The single is almost all Reed. Along with writing the lyrics and music, Reed laid down the tracks, allowing him to sing, while playing the guitar, bass and drums. Working in the studio was not new to Reed. In 2016, he debuted on the recording scene with the EP "About Time." "The reason I chose that title was twofold," said Reed, who wrote all six songs. "When my wife, Katie, and I found out we were having our first child, I felt it was about time to pursue a life goal, which was to produce and put out to the masses my own creation. Secondly, I funded the EP out of my own pocket. That meant getting as many people as possible into the studio at once so we could record the album in the shortest amount of time possible to cut costs." The plan worked. Reed and the other musicians made the EP in about four hours. Reed sings lead on three of the tracks – one of which he wrote for Katie when he proposed to her. The couple met in spring 2006 while gutting houses in New Orleans damaged by Hurricane Katrina and returned a year later to the same spot where he proposed by singing the song to her. The EP features Reed playing guitar and banjo on three instrumental tracks. "One of the instrumentals was inspired by my grandfather. I Reed has played in the Goat Hill String Band for 10 years. Photo courtesy RJackson Media

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