THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, June 18, 1995 TAG: 9506150210
SECTION: CAROLINA COAST PAGE: 12 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: John Harper
LENGTH: Medium: 85 lines
THE NO. 1 album in the country is Hootie and The Blowfish's ``Cracked Rear View.''
Just a year ago, the South Carolina band was playing the bar circuit up and down the East Coast. They even played Woody's in Nags Head a couple of times.
Michael Clem, bass guitarist for the band Eddie from Ohio, says his group appreciates the success of Hootie and the Blowfish, which appeared to come out of nowhere.
``It's great to see,'' Clem says. ``It shows there is a viable music scene on the East Coast.''
Hootie and Eddie have traveled similar paths. Both bands played a cicuit that runs from Washington, D.C., to Birmingham, Ala. Also on that circuit was the Dave Matthews Band, whose ``Under the Table and Dreaming'' is also in the Top 10.
And before Hootie hit it big, they released a number of independent records. Eddie from Ohio, still looking for their big break, is on an independent label.
Clem brings his band with the funny name to Kelly's in Nags Head on Wednesday and Thursday.
Eddie from Ohio is very much a part of the burgeoning East Coast music scene. The acoustic quartet from northern Virginia has just released its third album: ``I Rode Fido Home.''
The album, whose title is an anagram of the band's name, features 13 songs celebrating life. Clem and guitarist/singer Robbie Schaefer wrote most of the songs, which feature the ethereal lead voice of Julie Murphy.
Clem, Schaefer and percussionist Eddie Hartness add their voices to the mix, giving the band the best harmony this side of the Mormon Tabernacle Choir.
``I Rode Fido Home'' is the band's first album cut entirely in the studio. And this album, more than the first two, is receiving some radio airplay.
Clem says the band is heard mostly on ``Triple A'' and public radio stations. ``Triple A'' is a relatively new format focusing on music that is not bland enough for most adult contemporary stations and not hard enough for the straight-ahead rock stations.
``I love listening to that kind of radio,'' Clem says. ``It's still commercial, but it gives a lot of bands like us some airplay.''
By the way, the band's name was suggested by one of percussionist Eddie Hartness' girlfriends.
``He's not really from Ohio,'' Clem says. ``That was just the nickname she gave him.''
Check out Eddie from Ohio's new record. This one, like the last one, features what Clem calls ``little stories.'' There are songs about relationships, history and baseball. Murphy's singing is so clear and crisp, it jumps off the CD. The guitars are shimmering and up-front and Hartness adds his trademark precision percussion work.
And don't worry about the band not sounding as good in person as it does on record. Eddie from Ohio sounds better live. The last time I saw them, they did an a capella version of ``Swing Low, Sweet Chariot'' that silenced the packed lounge at Kelly's.
That doesn't happen every night.
MORE ARBITRON RESULTS: Last week we reported radio ratings from listeners in Dare and Currituck counties. Here are some mainland results:
WKJX, Kix 96, is the most listened-to station in Pasquotank County, with a 15.6 share of the 12 and older radio listeners, according to the Arbitron Company's 1995 Radio County Coverage Report.
The field work for the survey was conducted in 1994. Arbitron used 98 diaries to tabulate the results.
Tidewater country station WCMS and Elizabeth City oldies-nostalgia AM station WCNC tied for second place with 12.5 average quarter-hour shares. WAFX, a Norfolk-based '70s oldies station, placed third with a 9.4 share.
Among Perquimans County listeners, the top station was country station WRSF, Dixie 105.7, with a 25.0 share; followed by Kix 96 with a 16.7 share. MEMO: WHAT & WHERE
Who: Eddie from Ohio.
When: 10 p.m. Wednesday and Thursday.
Where: Kelly's, Milepost 10 on U.S. Route 158, Nags Head.
For information: 441-4116. ILLUSTRATION: Photo
Eddie from Ohio, a northern Virginia quartet, has released ``I Rode
Fido Home,'' its third album on an independent label.
by CNB