Colonel Cobalt & Cobalt Minor

No one's really sure where Colonel Cobalt was born or what year. Abandoned as an infant, Appalachian lore says he was raised by coyotes and that his mother was a blacksmith, and his father was a piano tuner, accordion repairman and a "penny anti" outlaw. No one knows how he got his name or why he calls himself a Colonel. He was denied military service as he was deemed mentally unfit.

The most persistent rumor is he likes the 11 herbs and spices of another famous Colonel's chicken but most suspect he called himself that because Colonel Tom Parker allegedly tossed a bottle beer cap into his guitar case when he was 8 years old busking on a street corner in Memphis.

As a child he was in and out of foster homes and spent two years in a detention center in Texas as a teen. Interviews with the foster parents have revealed that they all thought he was dangerous and extremely odd. He would spend hours alone in his room, listening to vinyl rock and roll and country 45s on a Sears, Roebuck, and Company portable phonograph that had the name Becky Flanders written inside the lid in black crayon. He grew his trademark beard when he was eleven years old, oddly enough, it was white even though the Colonel, as a child, had dark hair. He roamed the country in his twenties busking on street corners with a guitar he made from a wooden apricot crate and barbed wire. He occasionally would land a gig in a beer joint or a child's birthday party. He was usually asked to leave after the first two songs, however.

Then, he just disappeared. There were rampant rumors of Colonel Cobalt sightings all over the world. Blurry photos from Cairo, Spain, Mississippi, New Zealand and local stories from hundreds of other locations seemed to be authentic, but one thing was certain, he was elusive and always moving. No one knew where he got the money to maintain his lifestyle. One day he would be in a Ritz Carlton penthouse, the next, sleeping under newspapers on a park bench. Johnny Cash and Burl Ives would get postcards from the Colonel and the postmarks backed up the sighting rumors.

The postcards always had the same message, "Quit stealing my material! Best, CC"

Then, in the late nineties, he showed up in Nashville, the place where he said he would never set foot again, even to take a leak. He released three albums with his band Cobalt Minor (CM) that went nowhere. The music is available on iTunes. He told a waitress at Pancake Pantry iTunes had finally paid him and he was celebrating by blowing it all on a short stack. He was busking again but always seemed to have a lot of money. Word was he was being supported by wealthy widows and divorcees, but he denies this saying he didn't need anybody's help or sass.

The Colonel never took music lessons and taught himself the only five chord formations he knows, yet he can't tell you what chords they are and will physically fight you if you ask him what key the song is in. The only cover song he ever learned was "Stepping Stone" because he thought he could sing it harder than Micky Dolenz of The Monkees.

Asked how the band got its name, the Colonel said the Chapel at the detention home where he was sentenced had a stained glass window made of Cobalt Blue glass and he thought it was nice to look at. He says the best songs are written in minor keys, hence, Cobalt Minor. Deep blue for the blue souls.

The Colonel writes, arranges and records all his music in his clandestine personal studio located on Amelia Island, Florida. His songs range from hillbilly tinged rock to music that can't and maybe shouldn't, be categorized. Most songs lean into a 70's era vibe.

CM is made up of The Colonel, who composes the songs and sings lead vocals and his bought off friends from Nashville, Tennessee who can actually tell you what key the song is in. Most songs lean towards the darker side of politics and relationships gone south. Asked why he doesn't write happy songs, he says you can always tell if an artist is honest. He says he won't write a lie.

Colonel Cobalt was always asked why he didn't turn professional or try to get a major label record deal. He always said he "Weren't gonna have some SOB A&R pansy telling him to change this or that."

Remarkably, Colonel Cobalt and his band, CM have released a vinyl album of peculiar, and not particularly memorable songs, titled "Sharks Teeth". A video of a live performance in a well known Nashville dive was recently posted to YouTube and other media sites titled Cobalt Minor - ATJ "The Movie". The video is for the song "According To Jesus" which is a protest song against prosperity preachers. The Colonel says ". . . a preacher ought not drive a Ferrari if he gets little old ladies to pay for it by telling them they can live their best life." The critics have not been kind but the Colonel said "Those who can't do, critique.".

He was recently overheard in a Nashville West side laundromat saying he had a whole 'nother album ready to release but he wasn't going to until "Sharks Teeth" had sold tens of dozens. Someone said his entire fan club rented a 15 passenger van when they heard he was playing Bonnaroo, only to be crest fallen after finding out he was just a parking attendant for the festival. They had already cancelled the van since only three people committed to going.

Well, the Colonel sold (gave away) tens of dozens of the vinyl record so CM has been working on finishing up the next album release titled "Out Of The Blue". The Colonel says it's the best mess he's ever made.