 Jack Ingram writes and records music that talks about real life and offers moments of insight, comfort and fun outside of everyday existence. His provocative, but truthfully universal, songs are evidence of a deep respect for country music. "(Country music) talks about things that make you think," says Jack. "That's what it's about when I'm listening to music. I write songs to figure out why I feel the way that I do, and why things are going the way they are." Then, with his rock and roll style delivery, Jack performs these songs - both in the studio and on the stage - to their truest, fullest, and most raucous. Ingram is more than capable as an observer of human emotions. While college at Southern Methodist University, Jack taught himself guitar, produced two self-released albums, single-handedly created his career, and earned a degree in psychology. Within the songs he writes as well as those he covers, one discovers Jackıs quest to understand the complex nature of human behavior. "On this new album I really focused on what the bulk of my songs are about, which to me is the human condition," he points out. "This record is about figuring out the complexities of our emotions and why we act the way we do. Those thoughts preceded the psychology degree. The reason that I studied psychology is that I am interested in it - in people and what motivates us all and in what makes us tick. That's why I started writing songs." While in college at SMU, he picked up the guitar and started teaching himself the songs he loved by heroes like Nelson as well as writing songs of his own. He soon landed a weekly gig at Adair's, a local honky-tonk, where he developed his first Beat Up Ford Band and built an avid following. His growing local popularity became a burgeoning phenomenon as his three self-released albums began selling thousands of copies in the Dallas area and then throughout Texas, eventually racking up sales of about 50,000 CDs on his own label. As an artist, Ingram ultimately prefers to look to the future rather than rest on the laurels of his numerous accomplishments, and Electric is the album where Ingram's artistic vision truly comes into its own. "To me, making a record and writing songs is all about what's next, figuring out what's going to be even better than what I've done before," he explains. "Watch where I'm going. That's what's important," he insists. Because with every record Ingram makes, he strives to outdo what he's done before and continue to fine-tune the sound thatıs all his own. "I look at it as that whole thing about being afraid to not make the grade. That's part of being a genuine artist." Or in other words, "Reach for the stars and you land on the roof. Reach for the roof and you're still on the sidewalk." And with Electric, Jack Ingram makes music that lights the sky.
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