Meet Hal ODell

Today we’d like to introduce you to Hal ODell.

Hi Hal, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstories with our readers?
My life has always been filled with music.

Neil Young has been there from the beginning. Then people like Jackson Browne, Townes Van Zandt, Steve Earle, and Patty Griffin, right up through Jason Isbell, Tyler Childers, and John Moreland. And a lot of others.

That love for music had to live on the fringes for a season, as I spent 20 years practicing medicine (Diagnostic Radiologist), being married to a wonderful woman, Carol, and raising a house full of boys. But the music always pulled at me.

So I gave up my medical practice, and we moved to Park City, Utah, to chase music (and also mountains and snow).

I was fortunate enough to end up as frontman and guitarist for Snyderville Electric Band. We released one album, Kings Of Hard Weather. I wrote the bulk of the lyrics and helped compose and arrange the songs. And fell in love with songwriting.

After several short trips to get a feel for the world of songwriting, Carol and I made our next big move, here to Nashville. We have lived here since 2018.

I have now been a full-time musician and songwriter for 8 years. I co-write almost exclusively, 5-10 writes a week. I also play several writer rounds a month, and the occasional solo show or house concert.

I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle-free, but so far would you say the journey has been a fairly smooth road?
Starting a new career in music at 51 has taken a ton of work, and commitment.

I went from being a doctor, and the president of a large group of physicians, to the very beginning as a performing musician, then as a newbie songwriter here in Nashville. I think I have been able to draw on the long road I had to travel to become a doctor, in order to be able to be patient, and stay committed to the process of becoming better at the craft of songwriting.

It has also been hard for Carol and me to leave a wonderful home and community in the mountains of Utah, starting over again here in Nashville. And COVID didn’t help… But I have found a wonderful community of songwriters- they have become some of my closest friends.

Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I mostly write what would be called Roots, Traditional, and Red Dirt Country. So pretty old-school country vibe, heavy on the storytelling element, realism, and emotion.

I have become part of a circle of writers with a reputation for helping artists unleash the kind of songs they are after. I’ve had many songs released independently by artists with whom I wrote the songs, and am starting to have success getting outside cuts with artists.

I guess I’m proudest to have developed a reputation among my peers as a strong writer, one who is committed to the craft, responsible, and easy to work with.

Let’s talk about our city – what do you love? What do you not love?
I love the sheer amount of musical talent here, in every facet of the business. As a country writer, there is nowhere else to find so many writers, and kindred spirits, in one place.

Hate the traffic, which is way out of proportion to the size of the city. And coming from a place (the mountains of northern Utah) with no humidity and 300 days of sunshine a year, I don’t love the rain or the hot sticky summer weather.

Contact Info:

• Email: [email protected]
• Website: halinthemountains.com
• Instagram: www.instagram.com/halinthemountains
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/halinthemountains
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCa3SShn2cNVjgLKQ0gwOo3g
• SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/user-566355121