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Wayne Sutton

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by Duncan Burch

Wayne Sutton has made his living as a songwriter and musician since moving to Austin in 1991. He was a founding member of Little Sister, later know as Sister Seven, and his distinctive guitar playing was an integral part of the band's unique sound and a driving force behind the energy of their live shows. He played with the band for over a decade, and in that time they signed with two major record labels and released five albums. They also toured extensively throughout the U.S. and in Europe, sharing the stage with a number of prominent bands such as Blues Traveler, Widespread Panic, and former Credence Clearwater Revival front-man John Fogerty. Eventually, though, Wayne and the other members of Sister Seven decided to disband and pursue new projects. They played their final shows in the spring of 2001, and for the first time in his professional life, Wayne found himself without a band . "It was liberating," he says when asked about the transition, "it gave me a chance to play with a lot of different musicians and to pursue more of what I wanted to do with my own music."

Part of what he wanted for his music was more control in the creative process, so shortly after dissolving their band, Wayne and Sister Seven co-founder Patrice Pike formed their own record label, Zainwayne Records. After working with Patrice on the production of her 2002 release, Fencing Under Fire, and touring to promote the record, Wayne went into the studio to record some of his own songs. The result of this endeavor was last year's Heart of the Donkey, a collection of original songs that revealed him to be as formidable a songwriter as he is a guitar player. Since the release of the record, he has been promoting it by playing at various clubs in Austin and around Texas, sometimes performing solo and sometimes with his band, Wayne's Donkey. He's also been playing around town in what he describes as a "free-form, unrehearsed, jam band" which goes by the name PHSX, or the Phillips, Hale, Sutton Experiment.

In addition to performing and working on songs for his new record, which he expects to put out sometime soon, Wayne is busy raising a family. Along with his wife Lauren, a beautiful former cheerleader who is the inspiration for many of his songs, he has a four year old daughter, Sage, and a one year old son, Elijah. The joys of fatherhood can be demanding, though, and his responsibility to his family has forced Wayne to alter his approach to the music business. Gone are the days when he could just pick up and hit the road for months at a time to promote a record, and these days even scheduling studio time is problematic. "It's made me more careful about which projects I decide to take on," he says of the effects of being responsible to a family, "I can't do as many things as I used to, so of course I have to be more selective."

One project he has undertaken recently is working with the Austin Volunteer Orchestra (AVO), a rotating musical ensemble consisting of some of Austin's finest independent talent. The group, whose projects are designed to benefit the audience and artists that make up the Austin music community and those within the community who are most in need, will debut in Austin this July. Wayne has already taken on much of the responsibility for the musical direction of the show, for which musicians are currently being assembled and will begin rehearsals in April.

"It's a great chance to work with some of my favorite musicians from Austin, and a great chance to dig into the history of Texas music," Wayne says about the AVO project. He explains that he wants to help create a memorable showcase of Texas music with some of the most creative artists in Austin. To accomplish this, he's working with a number of noteworthy local performers, including Carolyn Wonderland and Guy Forsyth, in addition to a wide range of established local talent from a variety of musical genres. "Musical collaboration can present some difficult challenges," he says, referring to the project, "but having that responsibility to something larger than yourself can also bring out the best in everyone." That philosophy is at the heart of AVO.

Of course, in addition to the musical opportunities provided by AVO, Wayne finds interest in the group's community service aspects. Proceeds from the July show and other AVO projects will go to "Instruments for Orphans", a philanthropic initiative to collect new and used musical instruments, place them into children's homes, and send musicians into these homes to teach music to the children. "I think it'll be a good way to get more musicians involved in their community by sending them into places where they don't always have the chance to listen to and learn about music," he said. He will also be working with AVO on an upcoming children's record, the proceeds from which will help fund the project.

"Someone in the audience will get out of a performance what they put into it," Wayne says about the relationship between audience and performer. "If they're willing to listen, then there's always the possibility of a real and meaningful connection with other human beings." These connections between human beings are what the Austin Volunteer Orchestra is all about. AVO is an audience-driven project, designed to provide the discerning audience with a memorable live music experience created and performed by the finest available talent. The idea is to use the communicative power of music to connect people within the community for the benefit of the whole community as well as its individual parts. With the music recording industry still reeling from the rapid spread of home CD burning and Internet 'song swapping', combined with the sluggishness of the overall economy, a lot of musicians and others in the industry are wondering what to do next. Wayne is optimistic about the changes the technology is bringing. "It's making it cheaper to record," he explains, "and that's allowing more independent music to be made. Ultimately, it should lead to more honest expression."

He sees the opportunity to work with AVO as a chance not only to work with other talented musicians but also to promote himself and his own music. AVO was created to facilitate the marketing and distribution of the music of independent artists by capitalizing on the resources already available as well as creating new ones. In addition to his work on the upcoming debut show, he'll travel with AVO to Amsterdam in the fall and play at the WonderJam in Amsterdam, where this year's theme will be the Texas Music Showcase. While there, he will not only participate in AVO's big stage, weekend performance at the festival, but he will also perform in the 'Singer/Songwriter Room' earlier in the week. "Depending on how that goes," he says, referring to the Nov. 9th - 13th festival in Amsterdam, "I might not even come back."

"But don't tell my wife," he adds quickly, looking over his shoulder.

He'll be playing shows here in Austin on April 8th and April 30th at Ruta Maya, and he's booked a show in May at the Nutty Brown Cafe.

For more information on Wayne Sutton and his band, Wayne's Donkey, including tour dates and mechandise, check out his web site.