This was a nice article on the front page of the December 14, 2007 Park Cities News newspaper.
Musical Family Influence... by Stephanie Riddle
Bob Guittard, a 29-year-old singer/songwriter and Park Cities native, will perform with his band, "Flat People", at the Granada Theater on Dec. 20 to promote and celebrate the release of his newly recorded cd...:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" />
The album, produced by Salim Nourallah, is honest and edgy and a true reflection of the influence musicians have had on Guittard over the years.
Guittard made the decision to team up with Nourallah based on his extensive experience and award-winning reputation including the Dallas Observer's award for "Best Producer" in the Best of Dallas 2006 Music Awards, among many others.
"I liked his music a lot and knew he'd be perfect for the sound I was looking for, and I could tell we thought the same way about instrumentation, song structure, and emotionality in lyrics, so I emailed him one day to say I wanted to meet to consider making an album," Guittard said.
And when asked about the process of actually working with Nourallah he said "It was really a great, fluid, and openly creative process. It was a windstorm of creative vibes. His musical recommendations were right on the money, and he made the whole experience fun. His passion for what he did really came through. I'd work with him again in a heartbeat."
Guittard said he chose the name of the band, "Flat People", for many reasons.
"I liked it a lot because it is sort of a commentary on certain types of people," Guittard said. "What I like most about it is that you can derive about half a dozen or so meanings behind it, which are all together the collective reason for why I like it so much."
Members of the band include Bob Guittard, lead vocals, songwriter and guitar; Warren Barry III, keys and backing vocals and lead creative collaborator; Graham Cathey, drums; and Rich Williams, bass guitar. Other featured musicians for live performances include Ward Williams, pedal steel guitar; and Zech Lumpkin, guitar.
As a child, Bob was surrounded by music and has carried it with him throughout his life. His grandmother, Lyda Lynn Marchman, and mother, Lynn Bussey, played the violin and piano, while his grandfather, Judge Clarence Guittard, and father, Charles Guittard, were brass instrumentalists. His brother, Jim Guittard, gave him his first guitar, sparking his interest outside the realm of the orchestra.
"I basically stopped practicing the violin altogether in eigth grade in pursuit of becoming Jimi Hendrix," Guittard said.
When asked what first drew him to music as a child, he said there were several contributing factors.
"I remember buying, Michael Jackson's Thriller album back in '82," Guittard said. "Another would be all my brother's Beatles tapes. He had all of them and I would borrow them one by one and listen to every song about a thousand times from fourth grade forward.
"I think the fact that I grew up on Beatles music, and not whatever was popular at that time, helped open up my mind creatively and just sparked my musical imagination in a major way," Guittard said.
In 2000, while in college at the ..:namespace prefix = st1 ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" />University of Texas at Austin, Guittard recorded a full-length album called "Spoon Sessions" with his band, Timado. This album was produced by Chet Himes, who had previously been nominated for a couple of Grammys and Academy Awards for Best Producer & Best Album.
Guittard said he was unbelievably excited while recording his first album.
"It was just the process of being in the studio that was so incredible," Guittard said. "As 19 and 20-year-olds, we all had stars in our eyes and thought this album was going to catapult us to greatness."
After college, Guittard found his way to L.A. with the hopes of exploring his college degree in radio, tv and film, but never let go of his passion for music.
"[I played with] a guy named Andy McCutcheon primarily, and a Norwegian dude named Hogen," Guittard said. "I played bass guitar and sang backup in these bands.
I also played with my brother Jim out there quite a bit. He'd moved out there a couple years earlier to pursue music."
In late May 2002, he returned to Dallas to explore the growing music scene and marry his would-be wife, Candace Slaton.
He said he met Slaton during his first week of college in a mutual friend's dorm room and was instantly attracted.
"We were best friends for a year before she finally broke down and succumbed to my romantic powers," Guittard joked. "The rest is history."
The pair are expecting their first child, a boy named Miles, in mid-February.
During the day, Guittard works as an account director for a non-profit organization that helps charities with fundraising, general organization infrastructure and major donor development. He says it is a small company and very fulfilling.
In the end, however, it is music that has shaped his life.
"Music has helped heal hurts, from loves, to the death of friends and family. Playing music live is one of the best, most transcendental experiences I know of, being able to go to a completely different place.[Music] helped me find my wife, it became a major bond between my brother and I, and I know my soon-to-be son, Miles, will be shaped by music as well," Guittard said. "I don't think he'll be able to help it."