Owner
SugarHill Studios
Houston is a port city that is almost 50 miles inland from the coast—a city of contradictions that consistently proves the impossible to be possible. Our strong economy grew from the primordial soup of oil money and has evolved into a diverse family tree whose fruits include world class medical services, technology research and stunning performing and visual arts.
It used to be that out-of-towners wanted to see 1) NASA and 2) Gilley's (the nightclub featured in the movie Urban Cowboy). While NASA still holds a strong appeal, contemporary visitors should 1) order the chilaquiles at Rico's Triangle Cafe on Main Street near I-45 north, 2) drive the streets/canyons of the medical center, 3) make a long stop at the Art Car Museum (with the refurbished Beer Can House, or Orange Show as a side line attraction), and 4) attend a baseball game at Minute Maid Park. Optional trips would include a tour of the Esperson Building, and a run on the track at Rice University.
People are most likely to find me either at home with my wife, Christi, and daughter, Joe Ann, in the Woodland Heights, or in Studio A at SugarHill Recording Studios producing a CD for a Texas singer songwriter. A quick eye will catch fleeting glances of me riding my 1977 BMW R60/7 motorcycle.
I tell friends that the living [in Houston] is easy—all of the hustle, bustle and sophistication that you would expect in the nation's fourth largest city combined with an incredibly low cost of living. I let them know that the opportunity for success is unparalleled: we are a city that is just reaching maturity in regards our identity and place in the world. As a closer, I tell them about Houston's 'innocent sophistication' that beats the socks off of playing the 'no eye contact' game in NYC, (all over a plate of chilaquiles at Rico's Triangle Cafe).
My perfect day in Houston would be spent depositing the check from another hit record in the morning, right when the bank opens up for the day. Then I would take Christi for breakfast at The Daily Grind on Washington Avenue. Next I would ride my ancient motorcycle down to the museum district and piddle around Hermann Park. Finally, I would make the 45 minute trip to ride the Montgomery Trace in Montgomery, Texas, through Huntsville State Park.
My favorite place to shop is the new Target at Taylor and I-10. Seriously. My favorite place to eat at the moment is The Daily Grind on Washington Avenue.
Houston's best kept secret is my business, SugarHill Recording Studios. SugarHill is one of the oldest, continuously operating recording studios in the world (68 years) and has hosted more stars than a Houston night sky. We have a book about the studio's influence in the music business coming out in '09 through the University of Texas Press. A feature film documentary is also in the works.
I love living here, and have never regretted not being somewhere else!
