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2009-11-07

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Lifestyles

Wednesday, February 25, 2009 11:36 AM

Courtesy photo

Thomas “Tiger” Marion, lead singer of the Shiny Lapel Trio, will play three shows March 3-7 for the troops stationed at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. Marion, who graduated from Ottawa High School in 1985, said the band plans to have its third CD released this summer. For more information about the band, go to www.shinylapeltrio.com.

Former Ottawan headed to Gitmo — as a performer for U.S. troops

By BRIAN WILLIAMS, Herald Staff Writer

A former Ottawa resident will be entertaining the troops next week.

Thomas “Tiger” Marion and his band, the Shiny Lapel Trio, will play three shows March 3-7 for the troops stationed at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

Marion’s brother is stationed at Guantanamo Bay, known as “Gitmo” for short, and he sent the group’s Web site information to the military officials charged with entertaining the troops, Marion said in an e-mail.

“We’re really excited about playing for the troops. It’s a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity as far as we’re concerned,” he said. “And the timing is great with Obama’s announcement to close the base.”

Timing has been one thing working for the Shiny Lapel Trio recently. Since the band’s song, “Sway,” was featured on a nationwide Kohl’s comercial in the fall of 2007, the group had another song, “Beautiful Things,” as the Kohl’s 2008 Christmas holiday commercial.

“Beautiful Things” had more than 12,000 downloads on YouTube in an eight-week span, Marion, who graduated from Ottawa High School in 1985, said.

The band recently recorded a commercial for Bertolli pasta that will be released in Europe.

“It was funny because they asked me to sing like Elvis, and I had to sing the whole commercial in Italian. The recording session took twice as long as it should have, because we kept having to stop because we were laughing so hard,” he said.

“I remember thinking how funny it was that a kid from tiny, little Ottawa, Kan., was in a studio singing like Elvis in Italian… It was just too funny and a bit surreal at the same time.”

Commercials haven’t been the only thing on the band’s plate. The first CD has sold out, the second is about to sell out and the band, whose style some have termed “swing-a-billy,” plans to have its third CD out this summer.

The band has been a regular in New York City, and even brought three buses of fans along the first time it played the “Big Apple.”

“When I first had the idea of booking buses to haul fans to the shows, I knew it had the potential to be a real success or an extremely expensive loss, but sometimes luck is with you and a hunch can actually pay off,” he said.

“It has really worked out well. We don’t take buses everywhere we go, but people are always asking us to do so.”

Life has been busy for the Shiny Lapel Trio. In 2008 they played 107 shows, while still keeping their day jobs.

“I think the band has grown a lot. We play a lot and when you play a lot it forces you to either get really tight as a band, or completely fall apart. Fortunately for us, I think we’ve grown really tight as a band,” Marion said.

“We work really hard to keep the music fresh and interesting, and I think that’s a big part of the momentum that we’re currently experiencing.”

Marion attributes the Connecticut-based band’s current success to hours of playing. For anyone interested in becoming a musician, he believes there’s no substitute for playing.

“Pick up a guitar, learn some chords, and most of all get out there and play. The most valuable lessons I ever learned as a musician didn’t come from sitting in a music store taking lessons; they came from getting out and playing live,” he said.

“I mean practicing and learning your instrument is essential to being a musician, but I think you’ve got to get out and play. You’ve got to start a band, play gigs, sound horrible and make mistakes and eventually good things will start to happen.”

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Former Ottawan headed to Gitmo — as a performer for U.S. troops

By BRIAN WILLIAMS, Herald Staff Writer

E-mail this story to a friend | Print this article | Enjoy the convenience of home delivery of The Ottawa Herald.

E-mail this story to a friend | Print this article |
Enjoy the convenience of home delivery of The Ottawa Herald.