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Current news is now at Nolen's Blog.
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1. Carissa Amberly, winner of the Texas Country Music Hall of Fame Talent Contest 2006 has recorded three of Nolen's songs: 1. SOME HEROES DON'T COME BACK, 2. WHO'LL CARRY ME and 3. LOVE GETS IN THE WAY on her new CD, "Letters." Go to CarissaAmberly.com to read the latest about this dynamic and talented artist and find the information to order her CD.
2. Troy Cook, Nashville, Tn. has recorded, THE FARMER'S PRAYER on the Stardust label. Troy's websites are TroyCookJr.com and he also has a MySpace.com page.
3. Nolen is a long-time member of NSAI (Nashville Songwriter's Assoc., International, Nashville, Tn. and member of the newly formed NSAI Ark-La-Tex Songwriters chapter that meets in Marshall, Texas on the 2nd Tuesday of the month. Go to their web site for the exciting things that are scheduled there.
4. A Tony Douglas recording of one of Nolen's songs has been made into a video. The song is "Did I Say Something Wrong."
5. Dale Kawashima, Songwriter Universe, Los Angeles, reports that Nolen's song, "It All Hit Home Today" was named one of the Top Five Songs in their April, 2004 song contest. (Article / Listen)
Back Of The Moon Music and Nolen Brown, songwriter, are both located in Minden, Louisiana. Nolen has written hundreds of songs in his career. He was a staff writer for Acuff-Rose Publishing, Nashville, Tennessee for several years and is now an independent songwriter.
The following is an excerpt from a submission to "Chicken Soup for the Music Lover's Soul" (yet to be published) by Johnny Wessler.
...
This is the story of a friend of mine. A man I'm proud to call a friend. His name is Nolen Brown.
Nolen is a modern day philosopher. The oldest son of a Southern Sharecropper, he has worked hard to enjoy a comfortable retirement for him and his wife, Omega. My friend Nolen is a songwriter, a great songwriter.
I met Nolen a few years after the loss of his son. Although his son had passed away, you can tell that he is never more than a thought away from Nolen's heart. Although Nolen isn't wealthy, you could call him rich. He is well loved and has many friends. He has a gift that he shares with anyone who will listen. His gift is his song.
Nolen has the ability to write lyrics that can touch your soul. He can write lyrics and create melodies that can make you laugh out loud or make tears flow like rain. He has spent many years capturing his life's experiences, putting them to paper and sharing them where they touch everyone around him in a positive way. He has hundreds of songs, and from where I sit, most could be hits if the right person were to hear them.
Nolen sings of life and generally writes in the first person. His phrasing is unique, every word necessary and never too many words. He has written songs about love, loss and loss of love. He writes songs that make you sit back and realize things don't necessarily need to be the way they are, perhaps they could be better. I call these songs revolutionary songs. He calls them protest songs, probably because he wrote some of them during the 60's when he was first honing his story telling skills as a Contract Writer for Acuff-Rose Pub. (now Sony/MTV Music) in Nashville, Tennessee. Those were times of great change and his songs capture that social consciousness.
Some of his songs can move you to inspiration and wonder, amazed at the experiences that make up our lives and connects each and every one of us. I wish everyone could hear Nolen's songs. The world would be a better place.
Nolen is a very humble man. He doesn't search out the spotlight, but is always accommodating to play one of his songs that will endear him to you. The first time I ever heard Nolen sing was about two years ago and he immediately made me sit up and pay attention. I remember it vividly. Like a boy's infatuation, you can close your eyes and the moment is etched upon your soul and time is captured for eternity. The song he sang that night was, "Lord, Help Me Make It", which was a Top Ten Finalist-Gospel Category in the USA Songwriting Contest 2001 with over 30,000 entries.
He told the small audience there that night that it took three years for him to write the song, because it was inspired by the loss of his only son, Jeff. I sat there in silence thinking of my two children and how precious they are to me. I don't live in fear of losing them, but that night, and that song, touched me so deeply that I said a silent prayer thanking God for the blessings I have."
Nolen's comment: Johnny is my #1 fan and supporter. He also said, "I am confident that if you put Nolen's songs in the right hands, the sky's the limit. If it was up to me, I'd make Nolen the singer too. He presents his songs very well, I think. They are filled with so much emotion and that is the element that will appeal to the people who matter". Of course, I am having a hard time living up to Johnny's expectations.
Following are KIND WORDS from friends and fellow songwriters I have met while attending Nashville Workshops and NSAI Song Camps over the past few years:
"Thank you for the kind words of inspiration. I think YOU were an inspiration to us all with all your experience and your wonderful songs." Linda
"I had a great time spending the weekend with you, Nolen. I love the simplicity and emotional power of your music. Your performance at the Broken Spoke was a true classic. You had the crowd's attention the whole time." Scott
"Your song is a classic that will always be a treasure for someone to display. The right person for it will come along." Kenneth
"Nolen is such a delight." Barbara
"It was such a joy to meet you! I am so blessed that I was fortunate enough to be in this group of outstanding songwriters! I'm in awe of your talent, Nolen, and I think you might have a shot at that Record Deal! (Heck you sing and play better than some of today's stars! Plus, if you dye your hair bright red! Hey, Pat Boone did it!)” Jim
My daughter, Schelley, has just written an article about me and she said, "My daddy was the Pied-Piper of Claiborne Ave... All the kids would follow him and ask him to sing and play his guitar for them." Another thing she mentioned in her article was about a time when several car loads of family went to Nashville. Everyone but my brother-in-law and I were taking a tour of Music Row and other Nashville sights. At the time, I was a Contract writer for Acuff-Rose Pub. Just as that tour bus was passing Acuff-Rose, the guide was saying, "Over here to your left is Acuff-Rose Pub. And if you look you may see some famous stars." About that time my brother-in-law and I stepped out the door of Acuff-Rose Pub. I'm sure; the other tourist thought we were some of those STARS because my family started yelling at us. That is one of many funny episodes that I have had during my songwriting days. After all, life experiences are what make GREAT SONGS!
I have had over thirty recorded songs over the years by such stars as Roy Orbison, Joe Stampley, Roy Acuff, Jr., Mark Denning, Tony Douglas and others. In 1999, I retired from Duke Energy and am devoting more time writing and getting songs out to the industry. I have been going to Nashville on a regular basis demoing songs and attending workshops, etc. Several song pluggers are pitching my songs in Nashville now and there is always hope that the right person will hear one and want to record it.
To hear Nolen perform two of his songs, go to The Bluebird Cafe and click on "Live Shows on the Internet" and then "Archived Show for Aug. 4, 2003." He is #6 on the show, about 54 minutes into it if you don't want to see entire show. Also, a second performance was on March 29th, 2004, #6 on the show again.
Nolen was a finalist in the Nashville Songsearch contest from a broad field of thousands of songs entered from all 50 states, Canada, Australia, Sweden, Belgium, England, Ireland, Scotland, and Germany for his song, "I Need A Mr. Right Right Now."