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GARY ALLEN'S SONIC BIDS
SPOTLIGHT ARTISTS 2007-2008
Band Of The Month & Song Of The Month
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By Gary Allen
Ten finalists battled for the international title of "Guitar Hero" at Guitar Player’s Guitar Hero 2007 competition Friday,
October 12 at the Great American Music Hall in San Francisco.  In the end, they chose Ladd Smith from Nashville,
Tennessee, as the champion, Les Robot from Edmonton, Alberta, as first runner-up and Danny B. Harvey from
Canyon County, CA, as second runner-up.
"What a celebration of white-hot, burning guitar!" said Guitar Player Editor in Chief Michael Molenda. "All ten
contestants were simply awesome -- on fire, in fact — and the crowd was devouring every run, riff, and lick. It was
great to see such enthusiasm over transcendent guitar playing, as you certainly don’t hear these styles very much on
radio or television these days."
This has been the most incredible thrill for me," said Smith, who was born in Stillwater, Oklahoma, raised in a guitar
shop in Hendersonville Tennessee, and as a teen was often found backstage at the Grand Ole Opry and hanging
around Nashville studios. "It was such an honor to even be chosen to be a part of the event, and I was just so happy
to be there. I had absolutely no expectations to win—especially after hearing the contestants rehearse at soundcheck,
and I’m still recovering from the shock. To be able to go into a primarily rock-dominated event representing Nashville
country music—and to demonstrate the complexity and intelligence of what the genre can be—is what I’m most proud
of. I’m just so thankful." Nicolette Fontaine, Ladd's publicist, had this to say; "We are so excited right now, this is a
huge thing for us! I want to stress that while Ladd is a world class musician he has an instantly recognizable voice and
is a prolific & timeless songwr iter. He just received an honorable mention in the John Lennon International
Songwriting Competition with his song 'Beautiful Thing'. Ladd's a true triple-threat on par with a young Brad Paisley or
Keith Urban and is our choice for Band of the Month at Tennessee Concerts. Congratulations! More Sonic Bids pages
MARCH 2008
"War Song, Steven P. Richards (myspace.com/stevenprichards)--A North Carolina Gulf War vet's protest against the
continued waste of lives—not just American lives—rings out with the spirit and some of the sound of late '60s rock
(think "Sky Pilot" without the histrionics). Richards considers this a demo but it's one of the most effective pieces of
music about the current conflict we've heard."
Born in the hill country of south Texas, Steven P. Richards began writing songs when he was 15 years old. It wasn't
until he was 38, however, that he put his legal career on hold and began converting his work tapes into professional
demos. Steven's songwriting spans many genres, from rock to country to pop and everywhere in between. As a non-
performing songwriter, Steven has received awards in various national and international songwriting competitions, as
well as winning a semi-finalist position in the Dallas Songwriters Association annual song contest. "This is War," his
pro-soldier/anti-war anthem, has been played on Sirius Radio, in addition to being listed on Neil Young's website,
Living With War Today. As an army veteran (of the Panamanian Invasion and Desert Storm), Steven understands the
tremendous hardships our soldiers, and their families, face on a daily basis, both in Iraq and at home. "Ultimately,"
Steven explains, "I would love it if this song could, if even slightly, help speed the process of getting them safely home
for good." . Steven is the new Tennessee Concerts Song of The Month winner. He also has invited Gary Allen and
Charlie Daniels down  for a NC style fishing trip. He also invited Flounder from Animal House, no wait, he said flounder
is biting. :-) Congratulations!
LADD SMITH
From Nashville Tennessee

LINKS:

http://www.laddsmith.com    

http://www.sonicbids.com/LaddSmith

TennesseeConcerts Band Of The Month page
www.tennesseeconcerts.com/
sonicbidsbandofthemonth
STEVEN RICHARDS
From Wilmington North Carolina
March 2008 Song Of The Month
How Do I Get You To Yes

LINKS:
http://www.myspace.com/stevenprichards    

http://www.sonicbids.com/StevenPRichards

TennesseeConcerts Song Of The Month page
www.tennesseeconcerts.com/
soncibidssongofthemonth
Gary Allen's Sonic Bids Winners

MARCH 2008 WINNERS

Band Of The Month  www.tennesseeconcerts.com/sonicbidsbandofthemonth
Ladd Smith from Nashville Tennessee

Song Of The Month  www.tennesseeconcerts.com/soncibidssongofthemonth
How Do I Get You To Yes by Steven Richards from Wilmington North Carolina

PAST WINNERS

December 2007
Band: Olga Wilhelmine from New Orleans Louisiana
Song: Something Upstairs by Stuart Rosh & The Geniuses from San Fransisco CA

January 2008
Band: Further Down from Jonesboro Arkansas         
Song: Sweet Reality by Lemmings from New York, NY

February 2008
Band: 2 Story Double Wide from Delray Beach Florida
Song: Bad Case Of The Blues by One Mans Trash from Phoenix Arizona

Gary Allen's Sonic Bids pages

Song Of The Month Contest Page http://www.sonicbids.com/garyallensongevaluation

Band Of The Month Contest Page http://www.sonicbids.com/tenneseeconcerts

Gary Allen Artist Sonic Bids Page www.sonicbids.com/garyallendrummer

Submissions for Gary Allen's Sonic Bids winners are made through his Sonic Bids pages.
The winners are also picked by Gary on his Sonic Bids pages (listed above).
TennesseeConcerts does not participate in the submissions or winners of this contest,
TennesseeConcerts will feature the monthly contest winners for one month.
Winners will also be posted on other TennesseeConcerts pages, for up to one year.