Roadtrip hobby evolves into eagerly awaited CD
By Zachary Dzurick
Sports
PublishedAug. 17, 2005

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Ben Broussard has had a pretty remarkable year. Earlier this summer, he became a father for the first time. His team is in the midst of heated playoff chase and now has his own debut CD coming out.

The House of Blues will host a CD release party on August 19 after the Cleveland Indians' game against Baltimore.

The Tribe first baseman said his head is completely in the playoff run. He recorded the CD with Lazy Bones Recordings producer Scott Schorr way back in February. Schorr has been hard at work finishing the CD while Broussard's focus is on winning ballgames.

"I'm excited it is coming out but we have a big two months ahead of us and I am thinking about the season," Broussard said. "It is one of those things where you know it takes a long time to complete."

The CD of original songs were all written by Broussard while on road trips with the team.

"I would be driving on the bus or sitting on the plane and get a melody," Broussard said. "I would sit in my hotel room and throw lyrics together. I would write everything down and then try to pick out the good stuff. You want there to be a meaning behind each song. I hope it is something people will like. It is not too soft or too hard but popular type music. I hope people like it and get a kick out of it."

Tribe firstbaseman Ben Broussard's focus remains to get the Indians into the playoffs, but his brand new CD will be released on Aug. 19. (CD art courtesy of Lazy Bones Recording

Schorr is convinced that people will love it.

"When you hear it you will freak out," Schorr said. "People have been blown away by Ben's talent when they hear him sing there is no more cynicism. I compare Ben to Jack Johnson meets the Counting Crows."

The two met while recording songs for "Oh Say Can You Sing," a compilation CD of major league baseball players. While recording a cover song, Broussard mentioned he was a songwriter himself.

"When we were working on his U2 song for "Oh Say Can You Sing," we started to talk and he said, 'I'm a songwriter.' I rolled my eyes," Schorr admitted. "He sent me a demo tape and my biggest worry was how to say he sucked. But I was blown away by the demo."

Schorr asked Broussard if he was interested in recording the songs. Broussard said he was and the two worked hard to finish the recordings before spring training started.

"It was all recorded in one week in February," Schorr said. "It was hardcore. We did 12 songs in seven days down in Kentucky. We are very proud of the record."

Schorr said this is not a marketing ploy and that Broussard is the real deal.

"It doesn't matter one bit that he is a baseball player," Schorr said. "If he had sent me the demo and I didn't know who he was I would have pursued him. This how I make my living producing Indy artists. He is a singer/songwriter. He understands the concept of songwriting and he has zero fear. It is ridiculous. People are cynical and don't want to think their favorite ball players are talented outside of the diamond."

Broussard enjoyed working with Schorr as well.

"It was great working with Scott," Broussard said. "I don't have a lot of experience with recording and producing. I knew what I wanted it to sound like. He would throw ideas back at me and then make it happen. He is a really positive person and great to work with."

Broussard didn't mind the long hours in February but it was important that the music work for him be finished for the season to start.

"It was tough recording because I did not have a lot of time with the start of the season coming up," Broussard said. "So I worked 12-14 hours a day. I threw all the creativity I had into it."

He loves writing songs and even playing live but Broussard assures the fans, he knows what is most important.

"Baseball is my passion," Broussard said. "It is what I plan on doing for a long time. But this is a great opportunity."

His teammates are supportive. Many of them attended a post game concert after a game earlier this season.

"Most of the guys really support me," Broussard said. "They know I bring my guitar on every road trip and that I enjoy writing songs as a hobby. But they also know that I am serious about baseball first."

Broussard isn't nervous about the music and he feels no pressure about the CD release party.

"I am pretty comfortable playing live," he said. "I just play my own stuff. I used to know a lot of cover songs but now I am focusing on my own original stuff. There was no pressure with the CD because if people like it great but if not that's OK."

He is glad that the CD is coming out now.

"It is coming out at the right time," Broussard said. "We are playing well as a team. I am excited that we are right in the mix."

The CD will be available Friday at Borders, Amazon and at Lazybones.com and BenBroussard.com.