CARLTON FLETCHER: Albany music: From ‘Holler Back’ to Dollar’s back

“And after it rains There’s a rainbow, And all of the colors are black. It’s not that the colors aren’t there, It’s just imagination they lack … Back in my little town.”

— Paul Simon

I had an opportunity a few days ago to hear the unveiling of new Albany band This Solid Ground’s upcoming album. The excitement I felt was high school-kid-getting-dressed-for-the-prom giddy.

This Solid Ground (more on them soon) is a collection of some of the most talented musical artists in this region. And what perhaps excited me most about the rockers is that their drummer will be the newly svelte Jeremy Dollar.

Anybody who has followed music in Albany the last few years knows Dollar. He was the drummer for alternative rockers Monroe Brown. And even when that group — tragically for fans — imploded just as it was set to break out in a big way, there was the thought among many that Dollar was too good at what he did musically (play drums, write songs) to give it up. But he did.

Dollar, in fact, started working in the IT industry, and when his desire to give up the nasty and harmful habit of smoking became a motivating factor in his life, he got in on the ground floor of the vaping boom. He created Good Life Vapor and became a vaping guru worldwide for the flavors he created.

Still … there was that music thing.

Dollar looked like a proud parent showing off his newborn at the unveiling party for This Solid Ground’s album. And when the heavy music the band had created roared like the beast it was, a large gathering of head-bobbing music fans knew this was going to be good.

Dollar’s re-emergence with This Solid Ground took me back a bit to a premise I’d explored before over the course of my time at The Albany Herald. Despite complaints that there’s nothing to do here — or maybe, if you think about it a little deeper, because of it — this little corner of the world has been the birthplace of some pretty amazing musicians over the years. From country to rock to pop to hip-hop and, yes, heavy metal (Remember Messendger winning the MTV “Basement Tapes” competition?) — Albany musicians have left a mark.

While thinking about that fact the last few days, I revisited my take on the Top 10 songs by Albany artists. Right now, it is:

1. “Sink Low” — Monroe Brown: This song should have made this band famous. It remains one of my Top 10 all-time favorites.

2. “Georgia on My Mind” — Ray Charles: Umm, this is the state’s official song, so …

3. “Fire on the Pontchartrain” — The Lost Trailers: Another Albany band — whose most effective lineup featured both of Albany’s Nielson brothers, Stokes and Andrew — that deserved to be even bigger than it has become.

4. “So What” — Field Mob (featuring Ciara): Hip-hop innovators who never forgot — or forgot to give credit to — where they came from.

5. “Home” — Phillip Phillips: It was hard to believe the southwest Georgia boy — who still lives here — would ride his singular talent to an “American Idol” victory and top-selling singles and albums, but that’s exactly what the unassuming Phillips did.

6. “Seven Spanish Angels” — Ray Charles (and Willie Nelson): If you haven’t seen the live video for this duet, go to my Facebook page or to YouTube or wherever you watch videos now and check it out. It — and the song — is amazing.

7. “Everything Is Beautiful” — Ray Stevens: One of several chart-topping (and Grammy-winning) songs for Albany’s “other Ray.”

8. “Birmingham” — Evan Barber & the Dead Gamblers: I first heard this song while driving through — you guessed it — Birmingham after a north Alabama visit to my son’s home. I’ve since heard it dozens of times, and it gets better every time.

9. “Averly Jane” — The Lost Trailers: Forget what slick Nashville said, the Trailers were at their rollicking best when Stokes Nielson either sang or shared lead vocals with Ryder Lee.

10. “Strangers” — Messendger: The first band to show the “outside world” that people in southwest Georgia knew how to rock.

There is plenty more great music from Albany artists. (Are there others that you’d add to the list?) And with Dollar back pounding the drums for This Solid Ground, expect even more to come.

Staff Photo