A L L M Y B E S T by C H R I S T O P H E R K A Y
June 2024
When did I realize I had a powerful voice that deserved to be heard ? It was way back in
1969 at Fantasy Records on 855 Treat in San Francisco I was singing into the same Altec Lansing
microphone that Johnny Mathis and John Fogerty had sung into. The song “COLORADO SUN”
written by Tim Gorelangton for my band The Manzanita Jungle, brought out the best in me so I
nailed it on the first take. Then Producer Max Weiss and Manager Mike Marvin asked me to do
something, vocally, that I’d never done before. Over-dub my voice again right over my initial take
so they could take both for a stereo mix; one left and one right. O.K. fine and once again I nailed
it on the first take! I didn’t find out till later that, usually, it takes several tries for everything to
sync up properly. When I was freed to go to the control room, I got to hear the stereo mix. It was
then I realized that WOW I am blessed with an amazing talent; a voice that deserved to be heard!
An epiphany at age nineteen that showed me what I wanted to do with my life! I wanted to be a
singer / songwriter !
After this amazing recording session, when we returned to Reno on a Sunday in August of
1969, I can remember watching 60 Minutes coverage of WOODSTOCK. That is why the music
video for this song “COLORADO SUN” is being released now on the 55th anniversary of
WOODSTOCK in August of 2024! This song was pressed on September 15th 1969 and became a
regional hit reaching the Top 10 on KCBN AM radio in Reno! Way ahead of it’s time, this piece
is considered one of the first Americana songs ever released and set the style for all the other
songs I would release in my recording career that has continued to this day; culminating in ALL
MY BEST.
So I knew I was a singer but I was a novice as a songwriter. Fast forward 10 years to
1979 and my first major T.V. appearance on PM MAGAZINE RENO. It was my song “MY
HOME TOWN “ that got me here and my reputation as a performer that convinced Producer
Keith Hirschland to feature me and the songs I had written for Reno. 1979 also marked a triumph
in my personal life when my son Brian Christopher John Kay was born! ALL MY BEST also
features 2 songs from this era. “BLUE-EYED BABIES” which is being released for Mother’s
Day 2024 and “YOU’RE ONE WEEK OLD TODAY” is highlighted for Fathers Day 2024!
TO BE CONTINUED
30 сен 2024
