Scott Roberts, ESS*
Unplugged and Unnecessary
by Rose Petralia
Scott Roberts has been making music for thirty years. We know, because Scott Sugiuchi saw a December 1994 solo Scott Roberts (7,000 Gifts, GrandDad, Repo Ranch) show at Yab Yum in Orlando, Florida, and wrote about it for the February 1995 issue of Ink 19.
Roberts’ latest record, Unplugged and Unnecessary, released “on the palindromic date of 5/2/25,” reprises two songs each from Goin’ to Town (1988), Holy Crow! (1989), and Boxer (1992), albums recorded with best friend Mike Joswick as GrandDad in the years leading up to that 1994 show. According to Roberts, the new LP is “a pleasant souvenir of an all-too-brief moment for me and a couple dozen friends in Orlando, Florida.”
“December’s Yab Yum performance includes, among others, help from bassist Jim Leatherman (Giant Man/Braille Closet), drummer Ken Chiodini (The Hatebombs) (who harmonizes beautifully on ‘When the Sun Went Down,’ an old 7,000 Gifts song, and the Byrds’ ‘Here Without You’) as well as Mike Flanagan (Little Bill) doing Granddad’s soaring ‘Angel of Mercy.’” (Scott Sugiuchi, Ink 19, 1995)
The new album is “live and unplugged,” recorded on Roberts’ iPhone over a ten-year period. It stands alone, a collection of good songs artfully performed. Go back and listen to those three GrandDad albums, though, bright and beautiful, then take another spin through the songs on Unplugged and Unnecessary, solo now, softened, and they become a time capsule, a wistful tribute to both the ’90s and a friendship, a pleasant souvenir, of course.
About Scott Sugiuchi’s 30-year-old show feature? “That 1995 issue actually had a real article about me (not just a review!) which was a really rare thing for me.”
Thirty years in now, Roberts has an impressive nine albums and twelve years of cover songs under his belt, testament to a lifelong passion for music and probably mostly the connections that come with it. “It’s difficult sometimes to just send stuff out into the void, not know if it’s actually reaching anyone. I just want people to know I’m still releasing music.”
“As morning slowly closes in on the coffee house, Roberts concludes his show and packs up his guitars. For more than a half an hour he is greeted and congratulated by several people, many of whom are friends. Roberts takes time to thank each of them as if he’s at a 10-year family reunion. Perhaps Roberts kind of believes this. Perhaps in taking time to craft his hooky melodies and lyrical invention he has also taken time to include a piece of his friends and his genuine, honest appreciation for them in his songs. In this way, he has truly perfected his craft and it shows as he smiles warmly at them — and they all smile back.” (Scott Sugiuchi, Ink 19, 1995)
*Elderly Singer Songwriter
Featured photo is courtesy of Scott Roberts.
