He was also the lead singer for the power pop group The Semantics and was the guitarist for Amy Grant's band from 1994 to 2010.
It seems like such a phony platitude that doing things the hard way is the most rewarding. Of course, anyone with a shred of sense, or anyone who has done something the hard way can tell you that the spoils are greater, and so is the sense of accomplishment. But it’d be nice if things came more easily.
For singer-songwriter-rocker Owsley, it’s been a pretty easy ride. Music came to him naturally through a richly musical family. Now that’s typical for most talented folks—that the music comes easy—the hard part is getting folks to listen. That’s what he’s talking about on his new album, The Hard Way, even though the Anniston, Alabama native will tell you, “It’s about a lot of things.”
So is Owsley. As a youngster, he played guitar along to the radio bands like Wings, KISS, and The Cars, matching licks with his older brother, Bud. This morphed into writing songs of his own, 4-track bedroom recording sessions (his penchant for multi-tracking vocals explains the plethora of big choruses on The Hard Way), underage bar gigs with cover bands—he’d do anything to scratch the musical itch.
Eventually he made the pros: his guitar prowess landed him a gig with funk-pop pioneer Judson Spence with whom Owsley played around the world and appeared on MTV in Spence's videos. Subsequently, a pre-fame Ben Folds introduced him to Millard Powers, and the two would form the legendary power-pop trio The Semantics with Zak Starkey (their lone album, Powerbill, released only in Japan, is now hot property). This led to Owsley joining Amy Grant’s touring band in 1994, a gig he holds today. Playing with Grant enabled Owsley to create a musical playground/home studio, not to mention spend time off writing and recording his own music. In 1999, he released Owsley on Giant Records, garnering raves for the anthemic power-pop songs (“I’m Alright” was a minor hit) and a Grammy™ nomination for his engineering efforts.
Owsley next crossed paths with his musical hero, legendary producer Mutt Lange. Lange, equally enamored with Owsley, hired him to play guitar and sing the duet, “No One Needs to Know” with Lange’s wife, Shania Twain live on “The Tonight Show with Jay Leno”, “Late Night with Conan O’Brien,” “The Today Show,” “Regis & Kathy Lee” and “The American Country Music Awards.”
Then came the hard part: Giant fell victim to corporate mergers and boarded up the windows within a year of Owsley hitting shelves. Rather than be swept up in the swirling flush, Owsley began writing and recording another album, The Hard Way.
Again produced and performed almost entirely by Owsley in his home studio, The Hard Way continues Owsley’s fascination with perfect pop tunes—big choruses and big words set to lush, exhilarating arrangements. “I’m a sucker for an anthem,” says Owsley, explaining how the lead track “Be With You” is a love song to “God and woman, not just to woman,” and an expression of a yearning to for spiritual, interpersonal and terrestrial connections. You can’t help but ache with him when he sings:
“I wanna know how it feels to believe in something/ride on the heels of a good thing comin’/run to the one thing I know is something true…/I wanna live my life like I know the meaning/deep inside my soul I hear the music screamin’/eyes wide open so I’m awake and dreaming, too.”
“Undone” and “She’s The One” are likewise transcendent, explosive examples of songs you sing in the car or the shower, but also out loud at inopportune times because you just can’t help it. But Owsley is also a first-rate balladeer, able to convey as much sorrow in a sad song as he does joy in a fist-pumping anthem. “Matriarch,” written for Owsley’s departed grandmother, is a piano ballad in the great AM-radio style of Carole King and Gerry Goffin, with nods to Todd Rundgren and Jeff Lynne on the FM side. And like those songwriters, you feel every word and every note in your blood.
He’s also a startling analyst, able to extract the most significance from his surroundings and his and others’ situations, and pair it with vivid detail. For instance, the folksy title track, where he draws parallels between a gambling addict and his life in music.
“I hate casinos,” Owsley opines. “They’re gross, to me. You know, no clocks, drinks for free, pumpin' in oxygen through the air vents, no windows, call girls, smell of cigarettes.” Like the losers at the tables, Owsley is begging for a lesson—“Let me learn the hard way.” He explains, “I guess the message is I’ll never learn. I keep getting hit in the face, and keep getting back up to get it again.”
But that’s not necessarily a bad thing. In making The Hard Way, Owsley has experienced a lesson he skipped by performing side and session gigs and writing in the wings. He’s learned that he must be a master of the results. “I guess,” he says, “in a world of pretenders, I’m a contender. Sorry if that sounds egotistical; I still have so much to learn, but most of the people on the radio today probably started playing guitar last week. And I’ve been doing this and preparing for today since birth—no kidding. It’s all I ever wanted, to be a legitimate player, writer, producer, and performer.”
All this… on his terms. He says, “it feels good to make music again, and for the right reasons. I’m optimistic about the future but most importantly want to be loyal to the fans that have stuck by me through thick and thin. This record is really for them.”
Not that he’s opposed to doing it again, or consigned to indie life. He’s learned some lessons, but he’d still take another shot at the spoils. “The final chapter has not been written. Who knows what will happen? Right now, all that matters is we’re taking control and doing it our way. The Hard Way.”
Sadly, Will Owsley died on April 30, 2010 at the age of 44 of what the Tennessean reported to be "an apparent suicide". He is survived by 2 sons, his ex-wife and his wonderful music.
Zavelow House
Owsley Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
That we always used to talk about
Never had the guts to go inside
Not even on a dare
Boarded up and creepy
Scary eyes looked out upon a sleepy town
Fascination kept us guessin'
We always knew just what would hit the fan
If we got an up-close look at the boogieman
Shadows on the wall
Voices in the hall
There's more than just a mouse
In the Zavelow house
I could look inside the window
If I jumped upon my trampoline
Coulda sworn I saw Hannibal Lechter
With a hatchet and a head
Not the kind of place
You'd see in Better Homes and Gardens magazine
Unless they did an expose
On the night of the living dead
But with a pretty girl to hold my hand
Coulda got an up-close look at the boogieman.
The song "Zavelow House" by Owsley is about a mysterious and creepy abandoned house that sits on the corner of a street that the singer and his friends used to talk about but never had the courage to enter. The house is boarded up with scary eyes staring out upon a sleepy town. The sign on the house read "Beware", which made the children curious as to why they were being warned to stay away from it. The singer's fascination with the house was so strong that he could see shadows on the wall and hear voices in the hall – leading him to believe that there was more than just a mouse in the Zavelow house.
Even though the singer was scared to go inside the house, he could have looked inside the window if he had jumped on his trampoline. But the thought of what he might see, such as Hannibal Lechter with a hatchet and a head, made him hesitant. The Zavelow house was not the kind of place you'd see in Better Homes and Gardens magazine unless they did an expose on the night of the living dead. However, if he had a pretty girl to hold his hand, he might have been able to get an up-close look at the boogieman.
The song tells a story of childhood curiosity and fear of the unknown. It portrays the feeling of wanting to explore something that is forbidden, yet being too scared to take the leap. It also highlights the power of imagination and how it can create images of scary things that may not actually exist.
Line by Line Meaning
There's a house down on the corner
There is a specific house located at the corner of a street
That we always used to talk about
This particular house was often discussed or mentioned in conversation
Never had the guts to go inside
No one ever had the bravery to venture into the interior of the house
Not even on a dare
Even if challenged, no one was willing to enter the house
Boarded up and creepy
The windows and doors of the house were barricaded and eerie in appearance
Scary eyes looked out upon a sleepy town
Frightening and alarming glimpses were observed from within the house onto the peaceful community
Fascination kept us guessin'
Curiosity and intrigue led to speculation regarding the events that might have occurred inside the house
Why the sign read to Beware
This line is ambiguous, but it could suggest there was a sign near the house warning people to stay away
We always knew just what would hit the fan
It was clear that a situation could become chaotic or disastrous if someone became directly involved with the contents of the house
If we got an up-close look at the boogieman
If they had come into contact with the source of their fears inside the house
Shadows on the wall
Dark and obscure outlines were visible on the walls of the house
Voices in the hall
Auditory hallucinations were heard in the hallway, perhaps unsettling ones
There's more than just a mouse
There were things inside the house far more disturbing than a rodent
In the Zavelow house
These events and incidents were occurring within the specific house described in the beginning
I could look inside the window
One could view the interior of the house through the windows
If I jumped upon my trampoline
An action that would enable them to view inside the house via the windows would be jumping on a trampoline
Coulda sworn I saw Hannibal Lechter
There seemed to be a vivid and haunting sighting of the fictional character Hannibal Lecter, possibly wielding a weapon
With a hatchet and a head
Lecter was seen possibly holding a hatchet, alongside a severed head
Not the kind of place
This specific structure was not a typical or common type of residence
You'd see in Better Homes and Gardens magazine
It did not have the aesthetic or design features that a publication about stylish homes and architecture typically showcases
Unless they did an expose
Unless, however, the publication featured a profile or special report about this specific and unusual house
On the night of the living dead
Perhaps, the house was a setting for a nocturnal horror film or series featuring the undead
But with a pretty girl to hold my hand
With someone to comfort and protect them, a person might dare to become closer to the boogieman
Coulda got an up-close look at the boogieman
By taking the opportunity to explore the house in more depth, one would come into contact with the object of their fear
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: MORGAN, OWSLEY III
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind