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Peach Jam Podcast: Lloyd Buchanan
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Most Sunday mornings you'll find Lloyd Buchanan playing the organ at Revelation Missionary Baptist Church in Columbus, GA. And during the week, you will find Lloyd working with some of the biggest names in the music business. He is the in-demand rock and roll organist. Lloyd Buchanan's music is Blues, Gospel/Devotional/Spiritual, Jazz, Pop, R&B/Soul, Rock...he can do it all.
Peach Jam Podcast features stories and songs recorded live in our GPB studios from a variety of incredibly talented and diverse bands and artists who call the Peach State home.
Jeremy Powell: Take me back to the beginning when you started, because I'm imagining young little Lloyd in church at four years old, singing in the pulpit. Am I correct?
Lloyd Buchanan: You are correct. I started singing very young. My mother was an amazing singer, and so I had the privilege of singing with my mother. I used to sing the song called When You See Me Coming. I got Jesus on my mind, but I couldn't pronounce the words, you know? So it's it When you thee me coming, it is all crazy. But singing for me really extends back to childhood. And also around 11, I started having this opportunity to play and play piano. Our church was getting rid of an old acoustic piano they had in the church and was seeking for someone to get it. And my dad and mom volunteered our home and it sat in our home for a moment. But I took interest to it and my mom would walk around the house, you know, just singing. I will get to the piano and try to find and pick out and play by ear. So it was good. So that's my childhood, man, just growing up playing. And the other thing is I grew up right down the street from these amazing musicians that have gone on to win Grammys and everything. And we would go out in the back yard and take keyboards cause our parents got tired of us with all the noise in the house. We would take these instruments out on the porch and we would have to take turns as to whose porch we could be on. But we would go out on the porch and play church and just have these singing songs opportunities with our neighbors and just have fun. So my upbringing was all about music from my church, my family, and my aunts and uncles to even the kids that I grew up around.
Jeremy Powell: And let's talk about the music scene in Columbus. You said it off air. You know, it's a town that's trying.
Lloyd Buchanan: Yeah.
Jeremy Powell: And and it's you know, it doesn't get a ton of people there.
Lloyd Buchanan: No.
Jeremy Powell: It doesn't get a ton of shows. But the people who are there, it seems active. So say it for the people who have never been even to that part of the state. What's the music scene like?
Lloyd Buchanan: The music scene is....the best way for me to express it is if you've heard music from Muscle Shoals and it's something about the river, there's something about water being right there on the Chattahoochee. It is soulful. It is. It is churchy. There are people that came out of Columbus that most people would never think came out of Columbus. People like the R&B artist like Joe for that whole region, really. There's a there's a soulfulness, there's a there's an expressiveness. Church is a big thing in Columbus. Most of the musicians are part of some church network, whether it be larger caucasian churches or large black churches, or even some of the the storefront. There are some singers in Columbus that you have never heard that will completely sing your face off, but they're just hidden gems. And honestly, for us, it kind of feels like that Columbus really is that hidden gem. You got the 75 corridor that takes you through Macon. Takes you through Valdosta. You have the 85 corridor that takes you through LaGrange, all through Auburn, and all the way through toward, you know, Montgomery. So those feel like they're on the path. Columbus You have to get off the interstate and they made an interstate. They come to Columbus just you know for the sake of called 185. Bro... if you turn on 185 in the middle of the night bro, turn your lights on bright because it's dark coming to us. But when you arrive it is this hidden gem that is right on the river.
Jeremy Powell: When you talked about the band from England, that's a band called The Heavy and you've played with them. And then you mentioned Alabama Shakes. You played on the Grammy stage.
Lloyd Buchanan: Yeah.
Jeremy Powell: You've composed music that's been used on on national campaigns.
Lloyd Buchanan: Yeah.
Jeremy Powell: And you're doing all this as an ambassador for Columbus, Georgia.
Lloyd Buchanan: Yeah. Yeah.
Jeremy Powell: I love that.
Lloyd Buchanan: I love it, too, man, is one of the things I even shared it with some of the younger musicians a lot of times is, is this idea. If I go to the next place, that's my break and not always. Sometimes being here and completely showing the world that I'm a complete bad joker man. I'm right here. You know what I mean? I don't have to run from Columbus to show the world. I can do it from here. And I wake up every day with that in mind. Let's do it. Let's write, let's compose, let's arrange, let's connect. We're still here. And so, yeah, that's my that's, that's how I feel about it.
The Peach Jam podcast from GPB features songs and stories from a variety of the incredibly talented and diverse bands and artists who call the Peach State home.
Recorded live in our GPB studios, you get a front row seat for the intimate musical performances and free-flowing conversation from a truly eclectic variety of Georgia musicians. You can find more at GPB.org/PeachJamPodcast — please download and subscribe on your favorite podcast platform as well.
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