Matt Bradshaw
Story 2
Dr. Carlson
October 5, 2008
Story 2
Dr. Carlson
October 5, 2008
A Profile of Conrad Abbott
Every week you can find him somewhere, whether it be working out new licks at some downtown Atlanta jazz club or performing at the local pub with his band Electric Duane; most nights of the week you can find Conrad Abbott and his guitar on a stage. When he’s not on a stage you may find him locked away in the Kennesaw State music building playing Beethoven on the piano, or laying down guitar tracks for the drum and bass group Smooth Illusion in Woodstock. Or maybe you’ll find him in Athens playing with folk singer Louis Pelot of Leaving Countries, live on the local radio station syndicated throughout the hills of north Georgia. Abbott lives and breathes music of every make and model. That much is apparent in his virtuosic style of guitar play and his many tones he tweaks and tinkers with endlessly, always searching for a new sound.
Abbott was off to a late start in the music world, not fully realizing his ambitions until his junior year at John McEachern high school. His state wrestling champ brother Raleigh Abbott remembers those years well. “It was out of left field for sure, one day Conrad had this cheap little guitar, then another, then another, then a bass, then a banjo. Anything with strings on it, he wanted to get one and learn how to play it,” said Raleigh. In those years Conrad spent most of his time practicing alone in his room or listening to new music which he could never get enough of. “He would always be in his room playing guitar or keyboard, listening to all kinds of music. He’d show me some CD every day, some of the stuff he was listening to was pretty weird, I’m not going to lie,” Raleigh said of his older brother as he laughed. Raleigh continued, “When he wasn’t at home I know he spent most of his time at Swayze’s checking out what all the local bands were doing.” As high school graduation approached Conrad was starting to develop his guitar skills and decided that he wanted to take his playing to a new level. That was when he decided to forego his plan of university studies and enroll at the Atlanta Institute of Music.
At the start of 2006 Conrad was attending classes at the Atlanta Institute of Music. He quickly made himself known at the school as he often showed up before and left after the rest of his classmates. Chris Fragale, the institute’s placement director since 2003, became aware of Conrad rather quickly. “[He was] always jumping up on stage, never shy to get up and play, always around, always practicing, perfect attendance,” Chris remembered, “He’s always on time, you know that’s 70% of the problem with musicians. Conrad certainly has the chops and abilities to play with the best, but his work ethic is what has really helped him out.” Fragale has quite a background in music with a bachelors of science in recording industry management from Middle Tennessee State and work experience at places like Columbia Records in Nashville doing radio promotion, Compass Records, and Metro Talent Group as a contract administrator. He knows what it takes to make it in the music industry and said of Conrad’s play, “He’s a very versatile player; it’s a combination of his being so versatile and his work ethic that sets him apart from other guitar players.” Conrad spent two years at AIM studying jazz, classical guitar (which he had a notably strong proficiency in), music theory, rock performance, and several other essential parts of the guitarist’s tool kit. After graduating AIM Conrad went on to study at Kennesaw State University as a jazz guitar major. “I had a job lined up for him as a teacher,” Fragale said, “but he went straight from here to college.”
Conrad arrived at KSU eager to commit himself to studying music as he had done before at AIM. He fit right in with the music majors and played in several ensembles, jamming alongside players of just about every kind of instrument one could imagine. He befriended many musicians as he devoted himself to his studies but shortly after his first year he developed tendinitis in his playing arm. Doctors recommended that he cut back severely on his practice time. The news was devastating for Conrad. “It was really tough for him,” said Raleigh Abbott, “you could imagine how upset he was, over not being able to practice; it got him thinking you know?” After a few months his arm began to heal but his mind was made up that he would take a break from studying and not risk further injury from such intensive practice. “He pretty much just said, it’s time for me to play MY music,” said Raleigh as he raised his eyebrows, “if I’m going to blow my arm out, then I want to do it on stage, playing what I like to play.”
With time on his hands, a luxury he hadn’t been able to afford in recent years, Conrad set out to form a band. He jammed around constantly in search of a group of cats that could handle his style and a singer who could be a companion to his guitar. In a few months time Conrad had his band, Electric Duane; a name that pays homage to the late Duane Allman, who had once signed his name Electric Duane when checking girls out from their Macon dorm for a party. The Duane (as their fans call them) started playing in the summer of 2009, playing anywhere and everywhere they could get in. It wasn’t long before they were noticed by local booking agent Laura Young. “I first saw Conrad play with Electric Duane at an open mic(sic) night we did at the Cave nightclub,” said Laura, “We were all blown away, the staff, Conrad’s riffs were incredible, his sonic control astounding, people were captivated like they couldn’t understand how he was making those sounds with his guitar,” she continued after a puff of her menthol cigarette,"I try to book Conrad's band as much as possible now, it's only a matter of time before they're a household name."
