But first of all another question came into my mind. I was curious about their former producer/manager Sam Taylor. Taylor produced the first two albums of Galactic Cowboys, but he also had King's X and Atomic Opera under his wing. Some strange rumours were going on about the role of this man and the influence he had on the scene back then.
Who was Sam Taylor and how did he get involved with Galactic Cowboys?
I met Sam Taylor around 1988 when he had just started managing King's X. I was friends with those guys and Sam had helped to get them signed. I had heard he had worked for ZZ Top before that, but that's about all I knew. When I joined the Awful Truth, Sam started working with us too and produced our demos. After I decided to leave the Awful Truth, Sam told me if I got a new band together to give him a call and he'd consider managing. A couple months later, I had Galactic Cowboys up and running and he loved what we were doing. He ended up not only managing us, but producing our first 2 CD's, put us on the road with King's X and helped get us a huge contract with Geffen Records. At first things were great. Sam had some excellent ideas about song arrangement and studio production. But as time went on I felt more and more controlled and intimidated by him and things just got really uncomfortable. Everything stopped being fun. I can't begin to go into everything, but our relationship with Sam ended rather badly. He went on to produce some other bands, and we got new management and made 4 more cd's. In my opinion, Sam was a very talented man who helped us a lot. I will always be thankful to him for that. All that said, I also have a lot of regrets.
How did these reunion shows go, there were four I believe?
The reunion shows went pretty well. I had a lot of fun playing with those guys again. We did 3 shows. Dallas, Austin and Houston, Texas.
How was it to play together again with your old bandmates?
It was great. We hadn't played together in 10 years, but things came together pretty quickly. We practiced for 3 days before the first gig. I honestly had totally forgotten how to play some of those songs, but it all went well by the time we got in front of people. I wish we could have had more time to get ready, but it was a fun time on stage.
What were your feelings/emotions after those shows were over?
Well, my feeling was that it was just a great experience. I think it healed a couple wounds for me. It was a chance to do it all again without any pressure, and to just enjoy it. I feel like I've changed a lot as a person since 1990, and it was good to just relax and enjoy playing.
How did you guys part ways this time?
At first it was good. I talked to a couple of the guys about doing more shows. But since then there has been no talk. From what I hear, Ben took the GC website down and no one has contacted me about doing anything else.
What is the current status of Galactic Cowboys? Any plans?
I'd have to say GC is pretty much dead at this point. There are no plans to do anything. I'd still be open to doing something again with those guys, but I'm not expecting it to happen. I gave that band all I had for 10 years. I have many regrets about it, but I've moved on. I've got good memories and some bad. But we got to do some cool things....made some good music...and I'm glad I got to do it. It's a shame that we couldn't just make another CD someday, but there's probably just too many personal issues preventing it.
How's it going with your band Crunchy?
I'm hoping to start recording some new songs at some point. I've been busy with other things the past year. I do a podcast that is on my website and I've been having fun TALKING about music. However, I do have some new guys who play live shows with me and I'm excited to play more Crunchy shows. The vocals are killer, and they bring a whole new excitement to the stage.
What are you listening to these days?
My favorite album of 2011 was by Times Of Grace. I'm a huge Killswitch Engage fan, and it was right up my alley. I also like Of Mice And Men. Their cd, The Flood was amazing. I thought the new Megadeth cd was really good. Black Country Communion put out a great album, and Glenn Hughes sings like a freaking GOD on it.
How's your art career going?
It's been alright. I sell paintings off my website. I do commissions once in awhile. People will want me to paint their kids portraits. And I'm doing a book cover for someone at the moment. I've also done some mural things the past few months, like painting logos on people's walls. I enjoy that kind of stuff. If anyone is interested, drop me an email.
Anything you like to add?
Be sure and check out my podcast. It's very entertaining, if I say so myself. I enjoy turning people on to new music, and possibly giving them a good laugh in the process. Feel free to email me and ask questions, give me your comments, or whatever. I'm a pretty nice, down-to-earth guy for the most part.
Website: http://www.montycolvin.net/
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