Coming to you from the studios at the Illinois Rock and Roll Museum on Route 66. It's the Rock and Roll Chicago podcast Hey everybody, it's Ray the roadie and this is Hollywood Mike. Hello Hollywood Mike.

How are you? I'm happy Hollywood. You're happy You have a good weekend. You know, I had a very busy weekend good very tiring weekend Yes, didn't do a lot of sitting down.

I um, you know, I wore my new Apple watch. Oh, that's right I'm on stage with me at tailgaters. Okay, I burned 2,100 calories Wow And I racked up over 8,000 steps to him just playing a gig man.

So Who said that I don't know Okay, I did something this weekend too yeah what you did I took up ventriloquism is that what it is? Yeah Yeah, okay So now you're not talking out of the side of your mouth at least anybody can see you or out of my ass. Yeah Know that voice that you heard everybody Yes Voice that you heard was Patrick Spear off and I remembered I know I remembered his last name because it sounds like Smirnoff. That's right Yeah, that's right chief.

I had a dime for every time that yeah That's a new one for you, huh? Yeah. No, I am. I am happy Hollywood Mike today because I am really excited about the amount of singer-songwriters original artists that we are finding in the area and getting them to come on the podcast and getting the word out and letting everybody Know about it.

It's right Patrick is the second one in in two weeks in two weeks Well, we've got a couple of guys. Come on. You had Aaron Newsom.

Yeah, that's right. That's right I met you and Aaron the same night, right? Cuz I had gone down to a place called the dam in Kankakee just on a whim, right? Oh Do I need to worry about swearing? No, not at all And We were like the only two performers and I went on and played it and then I got off and I Stuck around to hear him play right right and his voice just Killed me. So I just we'd be stuck up a friendship So I started telling about you know, because there's not a lot of playing opportunities, right? So I thought right To introduce them to some places up here.

So yeah. Yeah. Yeah, so Where are you from though? I am currently I live in Frankfort.

Okay. Okay, you're okay. So you're in Frankfort So you're about you're out by him.

So you're not you don't let's be neighbors. Yeah, you don't live down south by Oh, no, not you was having to be out that way and that's how you met him. Yeah, I've been just traveling To the far corners of the southwest suburbs Just to you know, check out the different open mics.

Yeah, I've been doing a lot open mics Justice to try to find good listening rooms, right, right, you know Places where you're not standing in, you know underneath the television. Yeah, and everybody's talking over you and yeah Yeah, I don't because if you go to a bar people are gonna talk of course you can talk that's fine It's when they try to talk over the music that It's a little right, right But you know, but how about that young man Aaron though? I mean, he's I first time I heard him I was so unbelievably impressed and had to have him on the show. Geez.

I mean yeah to be so young He must be an old soul to be into the music that he is in and just just amazing You're this podcast is probably gonna come out what two Episodes after Aaron so that's gonna be kind of a little connection there We come back around over yeah, and we're talking about him as well. He's a real nice kid. Yeah, he is He is so you're out in Frankfort Yes.

Yeah, so you guys are neighbors. Actually, yeah, I've been there since 93. Okay.

All right. So take us on the journey. Tell us all about Who you are and where that where this whole musical journey began for you go back as far as you want to go We got a long time to talk I Didn't start playing here.

I was dating a girl when I was in 10th grade. She had an extra guitar I didn't I don't come from a musical family So I thought oh, I'd like to Learn how to play guitar. So she loaned me her guitar and I I just was self-taught.

Mm-hmm And but I wasn't you know being self-taught I wasn't like good enough and Didn't have a good enough ear where I could like listen to a record go. Oh, they're playing a D chord So I started writing Songs just little songs on my own because that's all I knew how to play and that's just just like Johnny Cash necessity I did that and then that became the whole point to me is like Why do covers, you know, I'm not you know, I think I have a good voice My guitar skills aren't amazing. They're more than adequate but The thing is is I can't compete with something like, you know, there's guys out there that it is just Professional song slingers man, they could just they know a million songs and they can do that thing and that's just not me So I just I focus now just on I only do originals I've only done originals for at least 10 years, but I took some time off in between And that's kind of yeah, that's in a nutshell.

I guess I don't at any point in time. Did you decide? You know, yeah, I'm writing my own music. So nobody's gonna know if I make a mistake or whatever, but just Just for my own benefit, I'm gonna go and take some lessons somewhere maybe sharpen up the guitar skills at all No, no, you just kind of kept it that way and just decided I was that way Yeah, you know, I just keep right and and what do you I got better and I was able to you know My ear got better.

So I was able to you know after Many years I say, okay. He's playing a D chord here and he's doing this little thing there and I you know going and then watching Like I went to a show Saturday and I just spent the whole time You might have had him on the pet podcast Jason Benefield and a field. I don't believe so.

No anyways, but we'll write that name down He's an awesome player and I was just and he was doing a lot of drop D stuff when I don't really do alternate turn Tunings and I was just fascinated one. He's the great songwriter, but it was just I was fascinated I just spent the entire time just like staring at his hand. Okay, what's he doing? What's he doing? That's that's kind of how I was able to Continue to teach myself improve my skills just by watching other people Right, right, you know Talk about a musical trend that kind of came along and stuck around is this drop D tuning? Yeah, I mean, you know like all the modern rock nowadays, especially the the heavier music Everybody's drop, you know doing the drop D tuning it started up I think you know Jimmy Page did a little bit of it, you know in Zeppelin and stuff and there's a couple of other bands that came around and did that but all of a sudden the 90s hit and Everybody loved to just stand up on stage and I think guitar players got their rocks off by doing that I think you know some of those those style of music, you know Do it did it more frequently, right? And I think that's and as the those styles of music have become more broader appeal, right Other musicians see that and they hear it and they go.

Oh, that's uncool. I'll give that a try I mean everybody tried to one-up each other, you know bands came out and everybody's doing drop D Then all of a sudden another band comes out I think it was system of a down and said well, you know We're gonna do drop C sharp Honest to God they did and then some other heavier bands than that came out and said oh, yeah Well, we're gonna do drop C. Mm-hmm. Watch this then we're gonna do drop B and then we're gonna then we're gonna Tune the whole guitar a whole step down and go down to like like I Noticed like like I said some of those song slingers they all Tune their guitar a half a step down just to make it easier to sing all those songs.

That's a that's an old trick Yeah, I know ancient and and even some professional bands, you know, I was I think it was journey I was watching some concert footage journey and I was singing along with the music and I was like, okay I can't sing like Steve Perry or any of the singers that have fronted journey over the years at all My voice just doesn't I don't have that range in my voice, but I'm singing these songs and I realize oh They're like tuned a whole step down. Yeah. Yeah They really were their guitars were just tuned.

I'm watching Neil Sean play right now. That's what he's he's he's fretting a D chord But nope, that certainly doesn't sound like a new chord. You know when picked up the guitar That's a that's an that's an age old all the elderly bands do that.

Yeah Yeah, but even even even brand new bands bands that have a little true time They tune a half step down in concert. It just saves their singers voice Yeah, and then and then the other thing that they'll do is they'll I know one nudge One young man in particular. He does tune his guitar an entire Step down because there's some music that he can't sing on his own is he's got a much deeper voice So then then he just slides that capo everywhere Along the neck of the guitar.

Hey, whatever works Yeah, yeah, it is it is whatever whatever the heck works, you know, it's but you know The whole drop D thing for me became like a crutch because back in the 90s I was in bands where we had to do that and I started realizing that geez I'm forgetting how to play these other chords All you had to do was slap your index finger across all sick You know all six strings and you pretty much were taking care of the court. So, you know, well, there you go That that was that was your first music lesson. There you go It'll be 1295 What was the year that you were talking about the you decided you borrowed the girlfriend's guitar when was that? Oh god, that was back in the 70s.

Okay 70s when I was a kid All right, and what kind of stuff were you listening to back then? I was I've always been a fan of singer-songwriters. Mm-hmm, so probably From what I recall, you know, I was I was a big fan of like James Taylor in that style of songwriting Right, right all the other People of that ilk, okay So you would you say like like I guess folk type kind of music was kind of like your influence or your main influence Yeah, full pop. Okay, you know not the Pete Seeger old folk stuff, but you know, right, right, right And at any point in time, did you hook up with other people and put a band together and play? Oh, I would put here and there I did for my own band Well, let's see you be Six years ago seven years ago, so it was just it was Myself John Weeks on violin Wow, Jim major on Bass and Jeff Rio on drums Jeff Rio.

Yeah, he's a great guy Isn't he like the Jeff real that I know Jeff real I'm certain it is. I absolutely love Jeffrey. Oh, yes His brother Mark.

Oh, yeah. Yeah. Yes killer drummers.

So yeah, so And we were just doing like I said all original stuff I'm doing my stuff and but then you know Kobe came on and Obviously that dried everything up and Not gonna get into it on a podcast, but I just stopped playing for like about four years sure Okay, and literally just did not I rarely I wasn't leaving the house a lot. Okay, put it that way right and um You know Tom Maslow ski, right I do yeah, right. Yeah, right so I'd ran into him in in a parking lot last summer and Even all because I was I was pretty you know, I was hanging with all the people in that Chicago Street pub Circuit right right for the folks at home.

I'm using air He's imitating a little bunny Which is right around the corner by the way, yeah So yes, you know, I'd Had built up a real nice friend group, right? No, I was part of that whole scene and Then I just literally just dropped off the face of the earth. Okay people, you know, some people thought I was dead This was during Cove it Right, but as people start coming back out You know like late 21 or mid 21. I didn't I just stayed home I was just happy in my gilded little cage.

Just just content I'm just content and but then I just started to Well, I started missing performing because that's like I was telling Ray prior to the this podcast that what I truly enjoy is Is performing live that that's to me the best right Followed up by actually writing the song the feeling you get when you have a new song is just the best drug best so I I Wasn't I didn't win it about a year where I didn't even take my guitar out of the case. Well, I mean it was And I just thought oh, yeah, and I ran into a couple people And just said yeah, I'm not gonna do it anymore, you know, and I ran into Tom and Tom said man Where have you been? I missed you and it was like, oh Yeah, I miss these people I miss these, you know, cuz we'd be informed a pretty decent friendship with a bunch of those people and I'm going oh, man. I need to go back out and so I was kind of starting to get up start to Play and my retina became detached and that set me back about a month and a half Wow, and um Literally for four years to the day.

I played a you know, John Condren. Yep. Okay Yeah, so he you know, I used to do is his hot seat Okay, I did it at tribes in Mokina.

I think was where okay, right, right I had a gig there on December 8th in 2019. Okay, right and that was the last time I performed so on December 7th 2023 I came back out and did the open mic at the studio. Okay.

Yeah, right and it went well and I've just been Going all over and I just just So appreciative of all the people I've met. Oh, I mean, there's so much talent out there I mean just some really really excellent songwriters and Nine, you know, well almost Everyone is just super nice and they're very friendly at least the ones that I've been approaching and speaking with you just you know Really nice and willing to help of all, you know, if you need any advice, you know, and so it then I'm really pleased with the new people that I've met right and I Just enjoy performing. I mean that's To me, that's the best you play a song you shut down the room meaning nobody's Talking right or very quietly That's just the best feeling in the world You have that is the power of your song can do that then you just kind of go.

Okay, you know that there There's a certain energy in that That you don't get playing in your bedroom or your living room or whatever You can you can have a new song and you can just love what you just did, right? But until you actually see the expression that it forms on somebody's face and the energy that you see You know radiate from someone else who hears it for the first time it's an element that's missing right it really is Oh, yeah, and the thing is is you can play us at least me. I can play a song perfectly right standing in my sunroom But it's not the same as when you're playing out live and it doesn't even matter if there's two people out there in the crowd Right, you know at an open mic. It doesn't matter.

It's still different Yeah, and you know, but fortunately I'm going out a lot and a lot so I've gotten more comfortable now. I'm just really, you know It's gonna sink it in and feeling very comfortable behind the mic and good. Yeah right there.

Yeah, so during your yourself imposed Exile. Mm-hmm. You didn't play at all.

You just left the guitar in the case. You didn't write anything. You didn't do anything.

I Wrote I've in 22 I Picked up an idea. I had a germ of an idea in 2019 and in 2022 I Created the full song you did. So yeah a little bit of time passed there.

Yeah Yeah Any pent-up energy like when you when you actually started to go out and performing into the songs just start Coming one after another like you were like you were catching up for the last time The amount that I go out and play is it seems like I'm trying to catch up for last time No, I wouldn't say that what I've been doing is Because I have a chunk of like 44 songs sure that I've written through the years that I think are good You know that I'm proud of and lightly will play for anybody But I've just kind of I'm not doing band stuff anymore, right? So that cuts that cuts out. There's no instrumentals and stuff I play anymore. I cut all that out.

I just what I'm trying to do is just I Want the focus to be on the melody and the lyric. Mm-hmm. Not my guitar work, right? Just it's adequate, but um, I want the song to be the primary thing right and so I'm not I don't want to do a band anymore.

I just want to get up there by myself so all I have to worry about is I'm gonna show up on time and you know, I don't I can rehearse as much or as little as I choose and So kind of just being a troubadour because some of my Okay, I'm a huge fan of Jason Isabel. I'm familiar with him. I'm sure for sure.

So He played I had a chance to see him play in some northern suburb and like a Converted theater and he just did it as a solo acoustic And it was the best thing I'd ever Mm-hmm in my life just the best and I've seen him multiple times. I've seen him with you know, the 400 unit I've seen you know, I actually went down to the Ryman and saw him play. Oh nice, which I thought was kind of cool Right, right.

Um, oh for sure But that is a that is a fantastic place to see a solo performer Yeah, and you walk you when you walk. Well, you didn't do a solo at the Ryman. Oh, yeah Oh, yeah.

Yeah. I mean you just walk through that door and you just like feel the ghosts of everybody. That's all I know I know I know he wouldn't know because he's never been to Nashville.

No, I will be soon Yeah, but so you had you said there was 44 good songs that you like to do right I mean, how many lousy ones are there? Now that's a good question keep tracking them I just have a list of the 44 songs that I do pretty much in this. Oh, that's kind of gets me back. So What I'm done.

There's some songs that I just don't think are gonna translate. Well, they were right They were meant to be bad songs. Yeah, right and Plus I decided not to play with the pick anymore.

I'm just gonna use my fingers. All right. Yeah.

Yeah, you know And Just kind of quietly Accompany my vocal And see and so I've taken some of the older songs and I'm just kind of reworked them up when I've edited the hell out of them And then I've reworked some lyrics that just it didn't flow as smoothly as I would Liked but at the time I was just that's good enough right now. I'm like being more conscientious about I wanted to you know, right Have a nice pleasant flow and be understandable, right? So how many songs total do you think you've written? probably about 90 So about half of them you're still playing. Yeah.

Well, I'm you know, cuz I you know, like I said when I'm 10th grade I started writing songs and I had you know a whole repertoire Many years ago that I don't even remember. I know I've written these songs, but I couldn't play him It's you held a gun to my head. I remember people liked them could be written down somewhere, but you forgot about him Oh, yeah, that's the way it goes.

Yeah. Yeah, and well, you know what? I think it's time for I think it's time I think I'm on I think it's time for us to take a break and let you folks listen to a couple words from some Friends of ours and some other podcasts. All righty.

Let them introduce themselves while Patrick gets all set up. It sounds good We'll be right back. All righty You're listening to the rock and roll Chicago podcast.

Hi, I'm Rick Anthony I'd like to thank my radio brothers Ray the roadie and Hollywood Mike for allowing me to tell you about my podcast The someone you should know podcast we spotlight musicians authors and interesting people and we like to say we're making a difference one artist at a time The podcast is heard twice a week on Mondays and Thursdays and you could check it out on your favorite streaming platforms and on the web At someone you should know podcast.com. That's the someone you should know podcast with me Rick Anthony making a difference one artist at a time I'm Christy from crime cave podcast I've had a huge interest in true crime since my days of watching marathons of snapped back in the mid 90s I needed an outlet to talk about the cases that have haunted me for a very long time With each episode under 20 minutes. I shine a light on some of the most bizarre cases in the last 50 years Join me in the crime cave So Thank you again for having me here and giving me this opportunity I'm going this first song. I'm gonna play for you is Kind of emblematic of what I'm trying to do this time out and it you know it goes with the being in the troubadour just kind of a Simple songwriter And I like I should say I'd like to Tell stories like a lot of my songs are story songs and they're not stories about myself There I've written some of those too.

I do write those but mostly it's just like abstract ideas or people That aren't necessarily for real but like just they'll have shades of a real person. It's like characters yes, exactly and and then I try to tell the story that Will hopefully get people elicit some sort of emotion All right. Go ahead.

Take it away. Oh The name of the song is called blood and sweat. There we go Please don't leave Mama's last words to me So, yes Being all I can be The folks back home say the problem mean well, I I Don't get the point anymore I watched my brother Home again Nothing feels the same empty things from the They don't know All the things I said and did in that for the war there I live No thing makes much sense Anymore I watched my bro Die I Don't want to live anymore.

I watched my Sweat See, all right. Well, I feel like I need to take a deep breath after that So tell us about that song tell us the story of that one, okay, well Yeah for all those music fans out there you think if you pay attention the whole song is one chord It's just yet one chord and I've woken up from playing a gig and I was kind of hungover No hungover after a gig Who would have thunk it yeah, so I just picked up my guitar and I just started doing it and I heard the melody right, and it was like I Came up with the melody for the lyric and the melody for the course Just doing that man, but I typically when I write a song I come up with the music and melody and Then I work on the lyric right and there when I think and I think there's the lyric I was singing at the time was like autumn leaves, but Obviously, that's not the one and then but I'm trying so I kind of sit with it for a while I'll play it back and forth to myself a few times and I wait for the song to kind of like tell me What it wants to be about when I came up with the lyric Please don't leave Please don't leave Boom it was there. It was just literally it was then it was just matter of writing it down It just came that easily once I had that opening line and I realized what I wanted to do with it Right and I should mention it's important to mention I've never been in the service They would have never wanted me anyway, so and also I got a funny blood disease, but that's besides the point But a lot of people that I've played that song for think that I've actually that I'm a vet and You know, I don't want to steal that valor.

I'm not a vet. I've never gone through those hardships I'm just a storyteller and I'm just telling that the story of Because I've met vets and I've you know, my struggles they've gone through I mean that one part of the inspiration of that story was I'd I dropped my car off at a dealership They picked me up from the train When I was coming back from my commute and the guy was telling me the story of his friend, right? Who was going through the struggles, you know of again coming home and just you know just being you know, just Probably serious PST sure. Sure.

Yes TD. Sorry, right No, you know, you don't you don't have to actually have experienced something yourself in order to understand or have empathy You know, right, right. I've never birthed a child, but I know what it's like to be a parent.

Yeah You know, I passed a kidney stone. Well, that's That's worse than giving child. Yeah, I've heard you know what you know what I noticed about that song.

Hmm It would be great on the glockenspiel Could be He's on a forever quest to find a band that comes in that has a glockenspiel player, that's right Yeah, featuring featuring it prominently featuring a prominent glockenspiel I mean, but that but the way you were playing that and picking up E minor played with on the 12th fret harmonics. It's all it was that's all it is, but it's been Don't that's the song like if there's any song I'm gonna Perform that will shut down a room. That's that's the one that's the one I like a sheet music for that just a minor played a bunch of times So if you would actually be that would actually be a really easy song to do in an open jam with a band Used to do it that song with my band, okay, but it wasn't as powerful sure just yeah, because everything else going on you know in this Riding on the cymbals and it sounded great, but I'm more of the pinning out.

I'm Totally in the less is more camp right right that it doesn't need all the faint like I don't I'm not really looking to collaborate with anybody else right now. I just wanted to do my thing play my songs, right? and I think I can do them well enough where I can Elicit an emotion in the listener, and that's all I'm attempting to do and That I've had success with that song yeah, no that I mean that nothing should be changed on that song I don't really get it one chord You've got like you said you've got the kind of like that that that downbeat I guess if we can call it that that one note that gets played yeah It kind of reminds me of like being on a spinning wheel that doesn't stop you think you're moving forward But really you're standing in the same spot You know that's kind of what I got out of the whole thing. I totally understand it So have you recorded any of your music? I have I do have record stuff out there There's I have so I I mentioned John Condon earlier.

I he produced an album for me back in 2015 Oh, wow, okay, and we did that not that song, but But I did record it that just that Section and but it wasn't like finished and now I'm going in to finish it because what I want to do is because I think The song has legs so If I can get an arresting video to it right mm-hmm just some found footage to cook To basically visually say what I'm trying to say in the song I Don't think it could have legs. I don't know yeah And But okay, so I have stuff on band camp I have a good EP that was like all live in the studio first one is and You know Jack Swain is he's a tele player in like I sure heard the name before yeah He's a really great player, so he he was playing in a band with me for for a while So we did a live in studio everybody was set up and we just boom and I was in a different I was like in the a recording booth with headphones and the mic and The guitar and the rest of the band was out in in the big room right and we just one take boom boom boom No, no stuff. No overdubs boom and Then John was this was a totally different process where? He said well if you want me to produce this You know there's not two masters either.

I'm gonna do it, or I'm not gonna do it right But we're not gonna both do it, and I said okay. I'm fine. I'll give myself up to the thing and Some of the songs I liked some of the songs What I found difficult he he didn't He liked to do one take stuff too, and I'm now more of a believer in use the studio as an instrument and Don't just rely on one vocal take because you you could do multiple takes and just take the best right why not do that you Have the ability it's easy as hell right just do that and but he was like a kind of old-school No, no those all gotta be one take yeah, and the same with guitars like yeah If you flub it then we just start at the beginning and do it again do it again you know and which creates great discipline, but You know when you're playing a song you're like three quarters through and you go, okay I don't mess this up.

I don't But anyways though those are in band camp they're available, but what I really If you go on SoundCloud and type in my name Patrick Spirov, I have a five song EP With the members well not Jeff because I used Apple their fake drummer But Jim and John Weeks, and they're fake drummer. I like that Because I recorded it in my room in my house and Then I just took my laptop over to John's You know plugged him in had him do violin parts took it over to Jim and plugged in he did the bass parts And then I took the Dave Francis. Yeah, right He he mixed it and he is like okay.

I always want to work with this guy because he just he totally captured you know he Manipulated my voice in such a way that it sounded good to me. Yeah, you know like okay. Yeah, that's what he's good at doing that He is talented at doing that he's actually He's actually done sound for my band on several occasions when our regular guy can't can't make it He's usually our first call if he's available Yeah, so so he he did that and then now I'm gonna go back in and clean up Blood and sweat which was the name of that song right and then I have this girl who I've seen some of her video work mm-hmm, and I thought it was spectacular and The price is right meaning.

She's willing to do it on spec right and So that's that's what I'm doing Oh, but anyways look so there's a five song EP out there that you can find on SoundCloud, okay? Alright, just by typing in my name, and I'm really proud of that. I think those songs still still hold water right What's your um? What's your go-to? I don't know if your go-to song would also be considered your favorite song But you walk through the door and you're going to an open mic for the very first time and someone says well If you want to play you got to do it now. Here's a guitar.

Go. What's the song? Will it be that or then another song? I'd love to play for you called this. I think most people's it's the favorite song of I've gotten a lot of positive feedback on it because it's more up-tempo and It's called the night Iraq.

I think that's the time to do it. I think that's the one to do all righty We'll be right back. Let's do it You're listening to the rock and roll Chicago podcast Hey everybody, it's Ray the roadie, and this is Hollywood Mike of the rock and roll Chicago podcast If you've been joining our weekly program we have great news for you Just tune in to road to rock radio on Mondays at 7 p.m. Central time and you can hear a rebroadcast of one of our past episodes then again on Thursdays at 7 p.m You can hear our most current episode brought to you by the Illinois rock and roll museum on Route 66 So go to road to rock org scroll down and click on radio station That'll bring you to the road to rock radio a station committed entirely to the great music from, Illinois From Chicago blues born on Maxwell Street to today's rock and roll and everything in between 24-7 all music with its roots in, Illinois And once again, we've got Patrick Spiroff here playing us a tune in the studio he's waving everybody And and like we discussed this is the song I saw you perform this one live the night that we met yeah Yeah, tell everybody about it.

Okay. Well, this is a song based It's a story song Which are my favorite songs the ones I've written it's called shy rack I had read a story in the newspaper about a 17 year old girl that had been basically shot on the street and around like noon on a weekday and then they told the story of her in In the article and she was the assassin for a gang called flyboys on the south side of Chicago She was apparently very good at it and the police say they they suspect 22 23 Other gang members that she had assassinated and the rumor was that he's Yeah in a very short period of time Wow, and the rumor was that The flyboy gang itself started becoming afraid of her right and that they were the ones that knocked her off not not enough not a rival Gang Wow. Yeah, so that's not only a song.

That's a movie. I Know Well, it comprises the center of the lyric That that was the inspiration for me to write this song when I heard that story I go and I just kind of was just like any guitar player I just kind of picked up the guitar and I just started goofing around And then it just Right, then I just heard it, you know, I'm kind of I Go with that kind of instinct when I'm writing a song Go with what I'm hearing in my head, right? Don't try to if I try to force it It's never it doesn't ever feel good. It makes you move.

Yeah, you're probably doing something, right? Exactly. Yeah So, uh, it's the song is called chiraq. You know, uh, it's an old song.

It's an older song Written before Spike Lee came out with the movie. Okay. Yeah I would love love that this song.

I don't know you'd have well anyways, um, so it's called chiraq My lights a candle To pray to won't die in the story of Another way on the south side of Chicago The new tomorrow The south side of Chicago on the streets that cause shy red Gangbang when she was 13 Headed to flyboard family Stacking stories get a revenge No jet could stop her spree No thought she would hit her Carry a body and a skull Even flyboards start to feel the weight Being vicious On the south side of Chicago The new tomorrow The south side of Chicago On the streets that cause shy red She know about the streetlights Just a baby and Some shooters missing fury No B-Day too, cause now she's dead So on and on, same old story over and over again Another wasted life One more pointless death on the south side of Chicago The new tomorrow's out of town The south side of Chicago On the streets they call Chi-Ray The south side of Chicago The new tomorrow's out of town The south side of Chicago On the streets they call Chi-Ray And I was listening to it constantly Well you just grabbed the attention of a handful of people that go to the studio There's a group of people that every time the Mavericks come into town they go and see the Mavericks Oh yeah So they listen to this podcast, they're gonna be like, oh yeah, absolutely Yeah, so that's where I kinda got the musical idea Yeah But then I, but I'd read that news story so I So it's not about Hispanic games, it's about blacking, blacking gangs in the south side But I didn't see why not merge the whole concept Yeah, it works, yeah Yeah, people seem to like that one I mean a lot of people, that's the song Funny story, so I hadn't played in four years I go walking into a place called Hickory Creek Brewery in New Lenox Right, yeah And Beth's behind the bar there Hadn't seen her in a long time Didn't even remember that her name was Beth, that's how long it is And I walked through the door and she goes, hey Patrick, you gonna play Chirac? And it was like, I hadn't gone and played anywhere, I hadn't done anything And it was like, whoa Yeah, right Like I didn't think people would still remember anything that I did Or even know who I was Isn't that a great feeling? It was kinda cool I'm not gonna lie, it did, it was kinda, oh wow And if there's any microbreweries out there that are listening And are looking for some sponsorship opportunities We have them here at the Rock & Roll Chicago Podcast Well there's no lack of microbreweries these days, right? No, there definitely isn't That's the thing I've noticed in my absence Like all these places have popped up Everybody's a microbrewery nowadays, everything's a microbrewery There's actually a system that I've been exposed to Where a company comes in and gives you all of the equipment and everything And they tell you all the ingredients that you need And it's a computer that they put on the wall And you just type in, okay I'm gonna make an imperial stout today And it tells you what needs to be added And you go dumping in the thing And you hit enter on the computer and it does it for you So every place has their own beer now Which is just amazing that people do that It literally just happened to me a few weeks ago I was at a Hobby Lobby And I come out of the Hobby Lobby And somebody goes driving by and they've got their windows open And it was a few weeks ago and it was kind of warm out, right? Right, right, we had that nice stretch And I hear one of my songs Nice That I wrote like 15 years ago Is coming out of a car from someplace I didn't find the car, I just know that it passed me It could have been one of about 12 that went past I don't know which one it was But it was a song that I wrote like 15 years ago When I was with a band called Forget Hannah And it was an original song And I thought maybe it was playing on the radio Because there was some time when one of our songs Did get played on the radio But I was like nope, I heard a specific thing That said that's not the radio edit That somebody has a copy of my CD And they're playing it right now 15 years later I gotta tell you, that is really amazing Not that you heard the song, but that you were at Hobby Lobby At Hobby Lobby What crafts were you buying? I was actually buying like a clear lacquer Okay Just like a clear lacquer to refinish a guitar I thought maybe you were making wreaths or something No, that's my wife's job My wife is wreath maker, I am wood refinisher Okay And I found that the stuff that you get at Hobby Lobby Is better than the stuff that they sell at Home Depot Really? Very nice Yeah, so I was at Hobby Lobby doing that kind of thing So any plans to go beyond the open mic night? Do you have your own shows that you're looking to book? Okay, so I had previously mentioned Aaron The two shows that I booked And I booked them at Hickory Creek Was to, I'm going to call it Setting Sun and Rising Star Okay And I want to do the Nashville songwriter Where they trade songs off Sure Back and forth Right Because I'd seen Well, it was Kelsey Montanez and Jason Benefield At Black Dog Vinyl I don't know if you remember that I know exactly where that place is, yep Okay, so I went to see them Saturday And they did that and it was so effective Oh yeah And they're both just awesome artists And super nice people Yep Because I think for me to like play Like two hours of my own stuff I could do it Sure I have over two hours worth of music But, you know, I think it wears thin after a while I think the just jumping back and forth I found it super It just held my attention the entire time Because, you know Oh, you listen to a couple songs by Kelsey And then Jason would play a couple songs And then it was just So it was like back and forth And it just kept everything fresh Like it didn't go stale Right And so I'm going to do that with Aaron Because our styles could not be more Diametrically different Right, right, right Other than I think we're both good songwriters And nice people He's more of a rock and roller, rockabilly You're more singer-songwriter Yeah You know, folking the whole bit I think you're going to compliment each other I agree Yeah So I'm planning on Trying to book some of those shows And I'm also just trying to get on to Songwriter showcases Right Right, that's a perfect thing Give me my 35, 40 minutes I can hold everybody that long easy And They do one at the Black Dog Vinyl Cafe I don't know if you've Oh, I know I'm doing it on April 4th Oh But that's way before this podcast comes out Just assume that I've already done it He can let our secret out That's right Yeah I've already done it And I was marvelous Yeah, that's right Brought the house down But, you know, like I know that the studio has one I'm trying to get on that one Knock on wood Laura said she Yeah Would do it And There's a couple other places that have one Plus, I should mention Because we're right up the street here I'm hosting A open mic At Chicago Street Pub Because they hadn't Somewhere in that four-year time frame They stopped doing open mics Alex was doing it I think on Monday And Nobody was doing open mics At there And I'm going Come on, this is Chicago Street Pub This is You know When I left the scene This was like The center of, you know Original music In the Joliet area Right And it's Obviously things have Greatly changed in my four years But So I wanted to You know So I called Triz And I Actually, I emailed him But Proposing I said, you know I'll do Let me host the open mic You know, I'll do it I'll do it for nothing I don't care I just want to do it It's got to be here You know Just give me a dinner Right And a bunch of non-alcoholic Guinnesses And I'm good to go So So we've had two Next one's tomorrow night And But it's Odd Tuesday Podcast It's Every Odd Tuesday of the month Not the date The first, third, or fifth Tuesday of the month And At Chicago Street Pub At Chicago Street Pub And I've been So by going out to all the different open mics I'm seeing people that I really, really like And I think are really talented And I'm going, hey You know, I'm hosting an open mic Yeah You know Would you consider coming out and playing? You know So I'm trying to assemble I'm trying to create You know Because It's a bar So it's never going to be quite as cozy As like the studio Because that's got, you know Right Really awesome ambience But It can be in that vein Especially if we can get, you know And then I'm going to try to put together My own kind of showcases there Yeah I think Triz will go for it As long as, you know He doesn't lose money on the deal Yeah Yeah, absolutely That's the beauty about Triz If he breaks even He's good You know He just doesn't want to lose money Which I totally get So guys So Go check out Patrick At the At the Chicago Street Pub Yeah And if you're a songwriter out there Please Please Yeah Please Introduce yourself to me And I would love to have you participate In this Songwriter vibe That I'm trying to create there Yeah And And if you are a singer-songwriter Contact this podcast We'd love to have you on the show That's right Yeah Well I'll point some of the people I know In your direction Yeah So where can people find you, Patrick? I'm just You know Facebook, Instagram Okay No website or anything No Okay I'm the worst Promoter in the world Okay You don't You don't I'm not I'm not good at self-promoting Because I I feel Self-conscious when I do that So I just kind of Facebook Facebook works Everybody does Everybody uses Facebook Yeah Facebook is still the best Social media site for Well, it's good Because it's For music It's a safe communication Yep Way And you can Somebody will become your Facebook friends That wouldn't give you Their telephone number Right You know But they'll I'll be Oh yeah, I'll be And then you can Message them That's very helpful That's right That's right Well, hey Thanks for coming in tonight Yeah, thanks a lot My pleasure This was awesome Again, thank you for the opportunity, gentlemen I truly do appreciate it I'm glad we were able to get you in here For sure Oh, I'm super glad you asked me And we'll We'll see you around You might You might even catch me At Chicago Street Every once in a while That would be awesome Feel free to come in And play an open mic Yeah, I'd love to A couple songs, you know Yeah I can do that I've been known to do that Every once in a while There you go All right, thanks a lot, Patrick Okay, thank you We'll catch you later Bye-bye Well, yeah Brought a good one in there Patrick Smirnoff Spiroff Spiroff, yeah Smirnoff the vodka Patrick Spiroff Yeah Yeah, no, I met him at the studio And like I said I'm just excited about getting Local singer-songwriters In the studio And talking to them About what they do And, you know Kind of bringing in The artistry of songwriting Yeah, it's kind of refreshing Yeah Yeah Something new, you know Everybody's got their own ideas Yeah, we're not listening To a Foo Fighters cover Over an old... Right, right I like that Not that we don't Just like the Foo Fighters Oh, no, no By all means But like that first song he did I mean, he had a little story Like that That little drone note Yeah He said, that's a bell If you listen to it It's a bell It's a bell Yeah, and it was one chord Right, right It was like for whom Yeah, he was saying It's like for whom the bell tolls Is where he described it When we were Right Right You know, getting set up And everything And it was perfect It went perfect For what he was doing So, yeah It was very cool I really liked that Enjoyed that So, good find Yeah, good find Thank you You get a biscuit Just a biscuit That's it Alrighty So, alrighty Well, as always Thanks for listening To the Rock & Roll Chicago Podcast And tune in every Tuesday For another exciting episode See you next week Bye The Rock & Roll Chicago Podcast Is edited by Paul Martin Theme song Courtesy of MNR Rush The Rock & Roll Chicago Podcast Does not own the rights To any of the music Heard on the show The music is used To promote the guests That are featured Rock & roll Chicago Rock & roll Chicago