The Verve Pipe returns to Bay City

BAY CITY (WJRT) -- "I played the Bay City State Theatre last year as a solo act and had a great night," said Verve Pipe lead singer and songwriter Brian Vander Ark in a recent telephone interview.

"Although that night was the only night in my career that I actually lost my voice halfway through. But those fans were very forgiving and it was an incredible experience."

So much so that Vander Ark decided to book the venue again this year, but also bring a few old friends along.

"It was supposed to be a solo show again this year, but we have this new album out and I wanted to share the experience we had with the band, so we're bringing the band this time," he said.

The new album Vander Ark was referring to is "A Family Album," and it is just that. It's loaded with songs aimed at a much younger audience than the band is used to.

The concept came about after the band was asked to submit a song for a compilation children's CD. The four of them got together and came up with several ideas and decided to expand on it.

"It was more lighthearted and there were no expectations. We could write and sing the lyrics we wanted and we could do musical things that we couldn't do on a normal record," Vander Ark explained. "This was a lot of fun, and I can't think of a time when it was fun to be in the Verve Pipe in the studio."

And Vander Ark says these new songs will make appearances in the band's upcoming shows.

"We'll always play three or four songs off the family record, 'cause we like them to be all-ages shows," he said. "But the majority of the show is the Verve Pipe albums, and will be peppered with the hit songs that we've done over the years."

This five-show tour -- which follows a five-concert solo run by Vander Ark -- is mainly staying in Michigan. The singer says the band -- which sold more than 70,000 independent records in its early years -- feels like it owes Michigan for most of its success.

"Without that support we never would have been able to do it. The fact that we had so many hometown fans was what turned the labels on in the first place," Vander Ark said. "I don't even think it was the music. It was the fact that we had so many followers and they knew something was going on."

And after 17 years together, Vander Ark is excited to hit the road with the Verve Pipe to rekindle that old magic.

"We always felt like we were at our best on the road and the live shows was our strong point," he said. "And hopefully this will be another example of that."

The ABC12 Listening Room staff: James Chesna, editor-in-chief; Josh Daunt, managing editor, photographer; Beth McEnroe, staff writer, photographer; Gwen Mikolajczak, staff writer; Eric Fletcher, chief photographer; Randy Cox, photographer; Chris Carr, photographer; Jessica Reid, contributing photographer; LeeAlan Weddel, contributing editor, writer; Shawn Light, contributing writer; Robin Chan, contributing writer.

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