Music Alumnus Makes Mark in Country Music Scene
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As a boy in Millinocket, Scotty Huff '91 couldn't remember when music wasn't in his life. The son of two musicians and teachers (one of them a music teacher!), he grew up with a piano in the house, surrounded by music, and was naturally drawn to it.
Years later, at age 36, music is still at the center of his life. But that life is lived in Nashville and on the road as Scotty tours with big names like Natalie Cole, The Mavericks, and since 2001, with Capital Nashville recording artist Keith Urban.
Scotty has appeared with bands on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, and on The Late Show with Dave Letterman. Last year with Keith Urban he opened for Kenny Chesney on tour, one of the biggest names in country music! And he has appeared on four music videos and on three different CD recordings.
And it all started with an interest in drums in the first grade, trumpet in the fourth grade, and guitar in the sixth grade. Scotty first came to USM as a high school summer camper where he worked with John Schnell and Peter Martin. He also attended the Maine Jazz Camp in Augusta.
Although he received a scholarship to attend Berklee in Boston, Scotty chose to attend USM. He earned an education degree in 1991 but soon realized that he didn't want to be a teacher; he wanted to practice and play, not do lesson plans. But, because he didn't feel prepared to begin a performing career, he went back to school to get a computer technology degree from Southern Maine Community College. That skill paid the bills as he performed locally and continued composing songs.
He moved to Nashville in January of 1997 to focus on his musical career. His big break came when a sax player, Jeff Coffin, whom he met at the Maine Jazz Camp and who is now with Bella Fleck and the Flecktones, contacted him about putting together a horn section for an upcoming tour of The Mavericks' album, Trampoline. Scotty toured with them throughout Europe, Japan, Canada, and the United States.
As a by-product of his Mavericks days, Scotty and bass player Robert Reynolds became partners scoring music for children's animated short films. “We've completed over 10 films now for Scholastic,” he says. “It's a great little sideline and it's fun.”
When he's home between tours of the six-member Keith Urban band, Scotty spends time with his wife and young son and works on his house. He continues to write songs and recently released his self-produced album, Assorted. Listen to Assorted at www.scottyhuff.com, or pick up copies of The Mavericks' Super Colossal Smash Hits of the 90's; K.T. Oslin's Live Close By; and Keith Urban's Golden Road.
—Mary Snell
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