A new indie release by CJ Land, I Need Some Time
By Alan Shipston for Country Music News International Magazine
The first single from his album, Storm Chaser, CJ Land releases a melancholy ballad, introspective and sorrowful. I Need Some Time is a visit to the lonely side of town where the singer contemplates returning to a love that requires explanation, “There’s things I’ve done, I can’t confess.” With swirling steel guitar played by Steve Hinson lamenting its way through the verses, CJ has a convincing voice as he reasons with himself over self-imposed doubt and the realization that only time can heal past indiscretions. The first verse is a strong, yet sparse musical exploration into seclusion as Land sings,
I know ya need me baby, more than anybody else
I’ve been spending time away, lord knows I’m a mess
Been hanging out with all the wrong people
In places I don’t see myself
I’m trying to hide all this pain, until I come back to you again
“This is the first song I wrote when arriving in Nashville,” offered Land. Recorded in 2025, he has a full roster of players on hand for the sessions that would make up Storm Chaser. CJ on vocals, guitars and hand percussion is joined by Jeff Williams on drums, bass and guitars, Jeff Armstrong plays keyboards while Bobby Hamrick sang back ground vocals. I Need Some Time was produced by Jeff Williams and mixed by Rob Lane with mastering done at Mayfield Mastering in Nashville.
As a child his mother began giving him vocal lessons, primarily in traditional country music. As a teenager they moved to Templeton, California living in a small trailer down by the railroad tracks. With the Salinas River just a short walk away, this would become his backyard for many years where he began writing songs on an old hand-me-down acoustic guitar she had given him.
CJ Land would later become a heavy metal guitarist and vocalist in his younger years for California based bands, notably, The Axia and 00-Metro along with co-founding The Rain For Rent Project. From 2015 on CJ would embark on a solo career playing everything from small intimate venues to large scale events such as concerts in the park, festivals, corporate events and wineries, as well as intimate shows at bars, clubs and private parties. In 2020 he moved from the Central Coast of California to Amarillo, Texas. While there, he watched stories and old reruns on TV of the Grand Ole Opry show. After much thought and realizing where so many of the songwriters he admired had traveled to in order to become discovered, he packed up and headed to Nashville, Tennessee. After performing at local writer rounds and connecting with a former Johnny Cash guitar player, they cut the album, Storm Chaser, at his new home studio.
Some of his singer songwriter influences come from such artists as Marty Robbins, Townes Van Zandt, Jerry Reed, Ryan Bingham and Tom Petty to name a few. Throwing in some of his musical influences from old rock n roll and outlaw country crossed with his original singer songwriter style, CJ Land has caught the eye of many promoters with his unique style and signature sound allowing him the opportunity to be an opening act for such names as Ted Nugent, Billy Idol, Devon Allman, Geoff Tate, Filter and many more major touring acts.