Starting a Band as a 60-Something

In an age where music production has become more accessible than ever, two longtime friends have seized the opportunity to fulfill their musical aspirations and are starting a band. Henry Hutton and Tony Sharpe formed You Me & Kyle, a duo born from decades of collaboration and a shared passion for rock music. Despite facing skepticism due to their age, these 60-something rockers are leveraging modern technology and their lifelong experience to create and produce their own albums. Their debut album, They Promised Us There Would Be Flying Cars, showcases not only their musical talents but also their adaptability in embracing new recording techniques and even AI-generated artwork. This interview delves into their journey, creative process, and the wisdom they’ve gained as mature artists in a youth-dominated industry.

When did you start your band, You Me & Kyle?
Henry Hutton and I started You Me & Kyle in September of 2023. I do most of the singing and guitars. Henry Hutton does all the bass and background vocals. 

Why now?
Because we can afford to. In the ’80s with our band, The Executives, we played to packed houses all over central North Carolina, but we never had enough money for studio time. In the ’90s, we bought gear to do it ourselves, but the recording equipment we could afford wouldn’t give us the sound we needed. We’ve written over 80 songs but never recorded an album because the process was just too costly.

Today, that’s all changed. The software needed to record at a professional level is affordable and easier to use. We could not have done this even in 2015. We’re also a lot better-off financially in our 60s than we were in our 20s. So now is the time to do it and do it right.

What is your creative process?
When Henry gets a bit of song in his brain, he usually hums into the Notes app on his phone. My ideas go into an actual notebook. Then Henry records a demo of a portion of the song in his studio, usually a verse and chorus with drums, guitar, bass, and then he hums or sings a melody. He packages those files up and sends the project to the cloud. I build out the rest of the track, write lyrics, add vocals and more guitars where needed. 

My process is a little different. I usually create a complete song without bass or backing vocals which Henry adds later. Henry always instinctively knows what the bass part should be and what harmonies to sing to my vocals. It’s what happens when you’ve played music together for as long as we have.

Where’d that name come from?
We created all the songs on our album They Promised Us There Would Be Flying Cars on Apple computers using Apple’s Logic Pro X recording software. Logic’s drummer tool allows you to choose a drum style by selecting a drummer’s name. Max is punk rock, Jesse is funk rock, and Kyle is the pop rock drummer. Henry uses Kyle on most of his demos. I lean more on Max.

At the time, we were working with some talented musicians who, for various reasons, left the project. When the last musician left, Henry turned to me and said, “Well, I guess it’s just you, me, and Kyle now.” That just kinda stuck.

Did you receive any pushback from people in the industry or people in your community about starting a band at 60?
In 2023, I had a meeting with a former A&R guy from a major record label who had worked with big names from the past like Steve Miller Band, Bob Seger, and Duran Duran. The meeting didn’t last very long. He said I was too old, that bands that make it start when they are young and build a following that keeps growing and going to shows and buying albums. He’s not wrong. But I walked out of his office determined to prove he was wrong about me.

Was there a learning curve with new recording technology and building a home studio?
Henry was the first to have a recording studio. Since I live in Columbus, OH, and Henry is in Raleigh, NC, it was just too much for me to travel there every time we had a new song to record. After I put in my own studio, it took me over a year to get competent on the software and recording techniques to be able to produce a track. I had to call Henry nearly every time I sat down to record and ask him what settings I needed for my vocals or how to adjust the timing for the drum tracks.

Do you have a day job? 
Henry is a business strategy consultant in the IT field, and I am an advertising creative director. Writing, producing, and sometimes even directing commercials and videos keeps me current on new technology. You can learn a lot about production on set or in an edit suite by watching the pros do it.

What advice would you give to someone 50+ who wants to follow a creative passion? 
Somewhere during the recording phase of production on our album They Promised Us There Would Be Flying Cars, I questioned what I was doing. Did it make sense at my age to think I could be a rock star? That’s when my 10-year-old son asked, “Papa, who are the oldest bands still playing?”

“I don’t know,” I said. “The Rolling Stones are still playing and have some new music out. I think they’re all in their eighties. Paul McCartney is still touring. He’s in his eighties.”

Without another thought, my son said, “So, you have 20 more years.” 

So, my advice to the 50+ crowd is to think like a 10-year-old. It’s not the 50 years behind you, it’s the 20 or 30 years ahead of you. That’s a lot of time to rock and roll, and starting a band has been super fun.

Are you using AI in this endeavor? 
We used Midjourney—a generative AI-powered tool that creates images from text prompts—to create all our album art and our first music video. There are lots of robots and some flying cars. Then there are the AI tools on the social media platforms we use to market our music to the audience most likely to like what we’re playing. But the music, the lyrics, the performance is all human. Except for Kyle, of course. 

Are you performing? 
Since there are only the two of us, Henry and I can’t take this show on tour just yet. And playing along with pre-recorded tracks isn’t what we call a “live” performance. No, that’s called karaoke. We don’t have enough songs for a full set, so we’re working on that second album. So, we’re looking for musicians to put a band together (if you know anyone). Humans only. Sorry, Kyle.