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The Mellow D's

 
The Mellow D's

Members of America's Old-Time Country Music Hall of Fame; Nebraska Country Music Foundation awards; 2005 - 2nd Place Gospel Duet & Top Country Duet; 2004 -

1 top 50
6 songs
1.7K plays
1
Picture for song 'I Wish George Jones Would Listen to My Songs.mp3' by artist 'The Mellow D's'

I Wish George Jones Would Listen to My Songs.mp3

3
Picture for song 'Buy Now, Pay Later' by artist 'The Mellow D's'

Buy Now, Pay Later

Buy Now, Pay Later by The Mellow D's
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Picture for song 'Child of the Lamb' by artist 'The Mellow D's'

Child of the Lamb

Chile of the Lamb by The Mellow D's
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Picture for song 'I Don't Always' by artist 'The Mellow D's'

I Don't Always

I Don't Always by Larry Doran
We are Larry & Karen Doran, The Mellow D's. Check out our home page at www.themellowds.com for the latest news, schedules, and contact info for bookings. We've been having a ball traveling from Kansas to Texas and Florida, and of course to Iowa, Missouri, and South Dakota. And oh, yes, we perform in Nebraska too! We harmonize to Classic Country Blues and Ballads, Traditional Country, BlueGrass, Classic Rock, R&B and Gospel music for live audiences. Karen is sometimes successful reining in my twisted sense of humor, but not always. In 2004, we won the Nebraska Country Music Foundation's award as Country Music Duet of the Year, and I won Songwriter of the Year honors. In 2003, I won Male Vocalist of the Year in my category, and won second place Songwriter. In 2006, We've begun hosting concerts for other entertainers we've met during our travels. We felt they needed to be heard, and we know lots of country music fans who love that good old country music. We hosted a series of concerts recently with Terry Smith, from Nashville, Tennessee. He is a skilled performer, guitar and vocals, but his most famous talent is his songwriting, with cuts by the Statler Brothers, Chris LeDoux, Johnny Cash, The Oak Ridge Boys, and many more. What a thrill to share a stage with the likes of Terry! Joining Terry was his friend, Charlie Groth from Florida, Elaine Peacock from South Dakota, The Kenaston Family from Nebraska, and The Mellow D's (that's us). It was a terrific concert, our performers just outdid themselves and we all had a foot-stompin' hand-clappin' good time! Our next concert featured international entertainers Tex & Mary Schutz. They operate a studio out of Streetman, Texas, and are in great demand as performers and recording artists. They also host an annual festival in Hastings, Nebraska called Miles of Memories, which takes place the second weekend in September. In July, Bob & Shiela Everhart were our featured artists. They are founders of the National Traditional Country Music Association and Hall of Fame, the Oak Tree Opry in Anita, Iowa, and the world-famous annual week-long NCTMA festival in Missouri Valley, Iowa the first week of September. Also international performers and recording artists, they have been instrumental in the preservation and promotion of traditional American country music. Big News!! In August, we were inducted into the American Old-Time Country Music Hall of Fame during the National Traditional CMA awards! We are just plain excited about the doors that have opened for us and the opportunities presented to us, to let us continue doing what we love to do, playing and singing country music!
Band/artist history
I was born and raised in Wichita, Kansas, and grew up listening to country music on my parents’ console radio. Very few families owned a television set back then. A “night out” for my folks consisted of going to grandfather’s house Saturday night to play cards, while we all listened to WSM’s Grand Ol’ Opry from Nashville. A friend gave me my first guitar, and over the years I've managed to develop an unusual and interesting style that attracts the attention of even the most experienced guitar players. In the ‘50’s, my teenage interests were naturally drawn toward Rock & Roll and my musical experience and tastes were molded to reflect that influence. I've performed as emcee, lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist in such bands as “The Casuals” in Texas and “The Rock Rollers” in Kansas. In Illinois, my former lead guitarist and I re-created “The Casuals”, then “The Sound Mind” and finally “The Joe Rogers All-American Rock ‘n Roll Red White & Rhythm and Blues Band” (Whew!) Just try to fit THAT on a poster! That experience provided me with a rainbow blend of musical preferences that included Classic Country, 50’s and 60’s Rock ‘n Roll, Gospel, and Rhythm & Blues, with Traditional and Bluegrass flavors. I'm told I have a natural, but offbeat sense of humor which can still make Karen laugh out loud after all these years! I believe music and humor are precious gifts to be shared with others and enjoyed to the fullest. Karen grew up listening to & singing country and Gospel music. She and her brothers and sisters sang around the piano as her mother played. Only recently did I discover Karen’s hidden talents as a harmony singer, and drug her kicking and screaming on stage to perform. :) Since then, Karen has worked hard to develop her craft, and has become a fine singer and seasoned entertainer, performing alongside me to make me sound acceptable. In 2003, The Nebraska Country Music Foundation selected me as the Semi-Pro Male Vocalist of the Year, and runner-up Songwriter of the Year. In 2004, The Mellow D’s were honored as Nebraska’s Country Music Duet of the Year, as I won top honors as Songwriter of the Year. We are working hard to complete more albums on CD & cassette tape, and we continually strive to expand our repertoire. As The Mellow D’s, we face an exciting new year, and are looking forward to refining our shows to provide even more of the good-time, down-home clean family entertainment for which we're becoming known. We now have four albums available; "Buy Now, Pay Later", "I Don't Always", "Satan Doesn't Have a Prayer", and "For God, Country, Family", our most recent Inspirational/Patriotic release. Each album contains at least one original song that I've written.
Have you performed in front of an audience?
Entertaining a live audience is a real high for us. When an appreciative audience applauds and laughs (in the right places!) what a wonderful compliment it is! In 2005, I got to perform with Jerry Havemann, my former lead guitar player from the Texas '60's, at the Ainsworth, Nebraska Country Music event. Without his knowledge, I included him in our entry for group competition, and we made it to the semi-finals! He really got excited, like a little boy with a new toy. It was the first time we had performed together on stage in over 45 years! What a blast! At our most recent Terry Smith concert, Karen and I performed the song, "God Bless America Again" as Conway and Loretta did it. The audience rose to their feet and stood for the entire second half of the song! It almost choked us up, but we made it. The thunderous applause at the end was a moment we'll always remember. That level of appreciation from a live audience is so gratifying!
Your musical influences
I wish I could say I sound like Jim Reeves, but that's wishful thinking for a lot of guys. Karen says I don't sound like anyone but me, and I guess that's a good thing. I don't really want to be a copy, I'd rather be me. We do enjoy performing songs by Gene Watson, Merle Haggard, Vince Gill, The Everly Brothers, Hank Williams Sr., Lefty Frizzell, Vern Gosden, Buck Owens, Conway Twitty, Jim Reeves... and of course, my all-time favorite, ME!
What equipment do you use?
Techno? Electronica? Metallica? Heck, I got as far as "Acid Rock", and reverted. I was standing in front of my old Gibson Falcon amp (you know, with the tubes and spring reverb?) making my 1959 Gibson ES225T feedback on purpose to get the sustained distortion I was after, and suddenly thought "What the heck am I doing? I am not enjoying this, it's NOISE!" So I went back to playing old country ballads and blues, soft and sweet, and found out it's really where my heart is musically. Of course, every now and then I'll take a break at the house and rip off a little Steppenwolf or Neil Diamond just to make sure I still can. We're using a Bose Personal Amplification system and absolutely love it! A buddy got me a deal on a 12-channel mixer which expands its capability, and I like it better every time I use it. It's getting rave revues from our audiences. I can fill the venue with sound without blasting anyone! I'd have to call it perfect for our needs. I've also got a Roland VS-2480 studio and CD-burner. It does a fine job, but it's still a bit smarter than I am. Boys and their toys, I guess, but it allows me to do what I love, and do it my way.
Anything else?
If you're looking for good, clean family-style live entertainment, we can certainly provide it. And our CD's are not over-produced. We perform on our CD's the same way we perform in public, just us and the guitar. Heck, isn't that the same way Lefty and Hank used to do it? You'll hear songs you loved, songs that take you back to your youth and songs you've not heard in years. You'll hear songs you've forgotten and original songs you've never heard before. You'll hear songs most folks just don't try. How many times have you heard a live group perform the Everly Brother's "Ebony Eyes". It takes guts to even attempt that one. Of course, it can never be done as well as the original, but we do get lots of requests for it. That is definitely a compliment. With a collection of over 1300 song titles to choose from, we're sure to have a mix that can please everyone. Unless of course you actually LIKE being blown out of their chair by excess volume, and you enjoy being yelled at by the singers!
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