Lawyer courts music career
Abandons fancy wheels, risks fancier salary to record CD
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By GLENN GRIFFITH
The Saratogian
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business. He returned to the Capital Region and got a double degree from RPI and Albany Law School in 2001.
"I was a commercial litigation attorney in Dallas for 3 1/2 years. Had the 49th floor office, the Volvo, the whole bit."
Miller said there were two defining moments while working in his law office that pushed him to leave it all behind.
Working another Saturday in his office, he looked down on to a music festival blasting away on the streets far below. He put his work aside and went down and joined in the street party.
"I looked back up at my office and at what was going on around me and said, 'I belong down here, not up there,'" he said.
The second defining moment came after returning to his office when he saw the light blinking on his answering machine. Normally, he said, that meant bad news. Phone messages were always bad news. When he took the message
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CLIFTON PARK
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Tim Miller no longer looks like the Dallas lawyer he once was. Though his black hair is still on the short side, he keeps his sideburns long and angular. It's something the officials in his law firm once suggested he eliminate.
With his corporate days behind him, he has the look of what he once was and now wishes to be again, a working musician.
Sitting in the coffee shop at Borders in Clifton Park with sleet pounding down outside, Miller has the calm of a man who finally found his direction in life. Beside him on a table near his paper coffee cup is the last visible vestige of his legal career, a folded pair of black, plastic, half-frame reading glasses. They are perfect for pushing down the nose, to peer over in a court room to silently question someone's integrity with
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a raised eyebrow. "Nope, never got the cowboy hat or the boots," said the tall, affable corporate renegade.
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'I could deal
much easier with
failure than regret.
If I never tried it,
I'd regret it forever.'
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he found it was from his Dallas girlfriend. "She had just listened to an early version of the CD and called to tell me
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Tim Miller
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"At least, not yet."
The 1993 Shenendehowa . graduate hasn't tossed his MBA and legal degree
to the wind, but he has put them aside for now. Miller has decided to follow his true calling — music.
His reasons are simply stated. "I could deal much easier with failure than regret," he said. "If I never tried it, I'd regret it forever."
He reached for the brass ring once, was successful, but found it to be less than fulfilling. Now he'll settle for a plastic guitar pick and a new set of strings.
"I came back to the Northeast rather than stay in Dallas, or move to Austin, or Nashville because it's easier to reach the market for my music here," he said. "There are lots of colleges to play, and I can get to them in a couple of hours of driving. In Texas, there's a lot of space between stops. The college audience is my market."
Miller produced his own CD, "Out of the Box," with a group of Texas musicians. "It's symbolic of me leaving the box, my office in the law firm," he said.
After resigning from his law firm in late September, Miller admits he's still decompressing. "Giving notice was nervous. You always wonder if you're doing the right thing."
After high school Miller went to Ithaca College where he majored in
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how good it was. Here I was in the office, in my suit doing the legal thing, and I
heard this voice saying you need to be doing music. You love it and you're very good. That clinched it for me," he said,
He has put his law career on hold. He intends to maintain his license by taking a few courses, but his focus is now fully on his music.
"I once worked 36 hours straight while with the law firm, went home, slept for six, and was expected back at work," he said. "The law will be around. It's not going anywhere."
He is so eager to "play out," that he returned to Dallas in December and was the entertainment at his former firm's Christmas party.
"Yes, it was a little strange being up on the stage and looking out and knowing all of those people, and their little quirks," he said. "Having been on that side so recently, it was a little weird. But they are all supportive. They know I love it."
Miller said he played guitar a little at parties in high school, then all through Ithaca and around the Capital Region while in law school. His CD has the sound of the early lighter num-bers of Jethro Tull minus the flute. It's upbeat with lyrics that are front and center. The guitar
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Photo courtesy of Tim Miller
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Formerly a successful attorney in Dallas, Tim Miller, above, has left the bar for the stage as he pursues a career in music.
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Seeds of inspiration
Something inspires every musician and composer to sing or to write a song. Personal experiences drive Tim Miller's compositions and lyrics. Miller shares those seeds of inspiration for some of his songs,
- Southbound: I was in New York and she was in New Orleans, "Southbound" is a story about my trips to see her, the courage she gave me, and how she taught me to "do" without hesitation.
- If Only: Inspired by a troubled friend who shut himself off from those he was closest to, this song speaks to my frustration in attempting to get through his web of lies with the hope of communicating with him.
- Spell It Out: There are some relationships that, through time, become painfully one-sided. Becoming totally complacent and a prisoner to habit, you can find yourself compromising who you are and your values Just to keep the relationship together. This song is about realizing you've had enough, breaking the habit and letting go.
- Surround Me: If only for a brief moment in time, you feel totally alive. "Surround Me" tells of a very passionate, short-term relationship. It is a story about an instant connection, tainted by the knowledge that it will soon be over.
- Sane: Second guessing, hardship, complete devotion and that one person who has the ability to pick you up off the ground. "Sane" is a story of best friends who are looking back on a relationship that has stood the test of time.
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is mostly secondary, but the
leads, when they come, are forceful. His voice is similar to lan Anderson's, searching and plaintive. The lyrics embody Miller's soul and his life experiences.
He plans to begin holding auditions for musicians soon, and is looking for band mates that want to create a synergy.
"I want to work with people who love the music," he said.
To reproduce the CD's sound,
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Miller needs a bass player, drummer, cello, and a multi-stringed instrumentalist who can double on guitar, Dobro and mandolin.
When asked about the cello player, Miller is quick to answer. "Oh yeah, gotta have the cello. It won't be on every number, but yeah, need the cello."
For more information, on Tim Miller contact him at tim@timmilleronline.com.
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