Backstage with Bo Bice: SHOW OF SUPPORT
By Tamar Fleishman
Spring 2009
Husky-voiced Harold Elwin "Bo" Bice, Jr. was managing a guitar shop and working the nightclub circuit when he auditioned for American Idol in 2005 on a lark. He wowed the audiences with his rock 'n' roll grit, finishing second to Carrie Underwood, and has been playing his unique fusion of Southern rock, soul and gospel ever since.
Perhaps Bo's success shouldn't have been such a surprise. He claims that he has been singing since he could talk. He plays a number of musical instruments including guitar, bass guitar, piano and saxophone. He does his own recording at home in his own studio. Music, he says, was "what I knew I was going to do from the day I was born. My mom and I used to sit around and sing. She was in a gospel choir."
Since his national debut, Bo has enjoyed recording success and has been involved in all sorts of interesting projects, including a special tour called "It Was 40 Years Ago Today" which paid tribute to the Beatles' ground-breaking album, Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (originally released in 1967).
Bo Bice believes in "giving back." He frequently plays for children's charities, and he even opened his home in Helena, Ala., to a family displaced by Hurricane Katrina.
Bo comes from a military family and has been consistently strong in his support for the troops. He regularly tours to war zones, most recently performing in Iraq as part of the USO's "Rock 'n Comedy Tour." In 2008, he also hosted the fifth annual Armed Forces Poker Run, benefitting the Readiness and Family Support Organization, an Alabama group that sends care packages to deployed military personnel.
While he won't say when his next military show is scheduled, it's a good bet that he will be playing soon.
Bo, what are your latest projects?
Bice: I released See the Light last October [2007], and I've been on the road for most of 2008 to support that. It's available at www.bobice.com and www.walmart.com. I was on the road all summer; I started out in Afghanistan and Kuwait in support of the troops. I was also playing with Brothers of the Southland, along with Jimmy Hall, Dan Toler and Gritz [Steve] Grisham. I also have a new album, a collection of live performances, called I Love the Road that's available at www.bobice.com. I'm comfortable with the new technology; the music industry is changing, and I'm doing podcasts, ringtones, everything.
How did you get involved with the "40 Years Ago Today" tour?
Bice: They reached out to me � it was an education, out of my normal comfort zone. I am so grateful for these opportunities that came out of American Idol. I won't run from Idol or talk bad about it. What you saw on Idol was the real me � I wasn't out to win it or be the most popular.
You and your wife, Caroline, just had a child, Caleb, and there's been talk that you aren't touring or that you're slowing down. Is that true?
Bice: That's a total fabrication. The only time I'll stop touring is in a pine box around the United States on my farewell tour! I love what I do! I would like to have Caleb and Aidan [born in 2005] join me on tours during summers when they're older. Especially in the times we live in now... the years between eight and 14 are so important. I would like to be able to do some producing that would keep me home � I have a recording studio in my house.
How did you get involved in performing for the troops?
Bice: I come from a military family. My dad was a Marine, my little brother is a Marine, and my grandfathers were in the Army and the Air Force. I grew up overseas for five-and-a-half years and went to London Central High School [a Department of Defense school]. I have military friends, too. I was asked by Stars for Stripes to perform. And
of course, I just wanted to play for the kids over there.
Are there special logistics when you play for the troops?
Bice: I've played everywhere from the big bases to the FOBs � Forward Operating Bases. I did an acoustic show last time. It's the opposite of what I do every day; I'm not exactly in a million-dollar tour bus when I'm there. I only bring what we're allowed to carry. It differs for each show, and I can only talk about certain things.
When I was in Afghanistan, it was 13 below, and I slept in my duck hunting clothes. We ate every meal with the troops, and you really get to know people then. You go over there to gain an understanding.
What does it mean to you to perform for the troops?
Bice: I've been to Iraq, Afghanistan and Kuwait, so I know first-hand how much it means to them when someone takes the time to come visit, send letters and e-mails and show support. They pay for our freedom every day.
I've been to Walter Reed, and their spirits are so high � people 19, 20, 21 years old, who've lost limbs and taken shrapnel. Whenever I think I'm having a bad day, I remember them.
I'm [also] a racecar driver, and when I went with a NASCAR event to Walter Reed, one boy had lost both of his limbs. We had seen new technology with artificial limbs and talked to him about it. But he said that he had lost his legs too far up. There was nothing we could say. But he said, "It's OK, don't be sad for me. I'm still alive!" To see that kind of courage, to fight and have no shred of animosity... he had just wanted legs to be able go back over there!
I will go back every single time I'm asked, until all our men and women can come
back home.
Do you manage your own money?
Bice: I do to an extent. My wife does a lot of the day-to-day bills. I also have a great business manager.
Do you have investments?
Bice: I have three houses. We sold the house in Helena and moved up to Nashville.
What did you do with your first
big paycheck?
Bice: I got a 1975 Fender Stratocaster, which was one month older than me!
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Tamar Alexia Fleishman is an attorney and writer in Baltimore. She served in the U.S. Air Force, her father served in the Indiana National Guard and her grandfather was a highly decorated Army surgeon who served as family physician to Gen. Douglas MacArthur. She may be reached at tfleishman@toad.net.