Michael Trotter of The War and Treaty always gets excited when he talks about Michigan, even though he and his wife, Tanya, moved from Albion to Nashville a few years ago to continue their rise as award-winning Americana sweethearts.
“I’m Michigan through and through,” he crowed in a recent interview.
Trotter also gets excited when he talks about his recent on-stage mishap during a performance at the historic Ryman Auditorium in Nashville.
After fracturing his leg in the middle of a performance, he knocked himself out when he fell — a nightmarish scenario that left bystanders alarmed and emergency personnel scrambling.
But to hear it from the acclaimed singer, songwriter and pianist, it was a proud milestone that should go down in the illustrious history of modern live music.
“I must say that was the most rock ’n’ roll moment of all time,” Trotter said with a giant grin, conceding he was fortunate the break wasn’t severe, won’t require surgery and won’t alter the band’s upcoming tour.
The on-stage incident came just days before The War and Treaty released its first major label album via Universal Music Group Nashville, a collection produced by the Grammy Award-winning Dave Cobb — someone the Michigan-bred band has long wanted to enlist for a recording project.
Officially released last week, “Lover’s Game” represents The War and Treaty’s signature sound and greatest strength thanks to Cobb, who rightly emphasized the duo’s “true vocal power.”
“It’s love, it’s rock ’n’ roll, it’s blues, it’s country. It’s everything we love,” Trotter insisted. “We’re super-excited. We’re so honored and excited for people to hear it.”
As for the Ryman accident, it took place while The War and Treaty paid tribute to Ray Charles and Joan Jett during the inaugural Rock and Roll Hall of Fame’s “Rock the Ryman” event.
Trotter said he took a step back during the rousing finish to “I Hate Myself for Loving You” and thought he had suffered a shin splint.
“Little did I know, it wasn’t a shin splint — I was breaking my fibula. I was falling and I smacked my head on the piano and it knocked me out,” he said. “I was out for about 40 seconds. It’s gotta be one of the most rock ’n’ roll stories … this year.”
His wife and singing partner, Tanya, conceded she thought he was pulling one of his frequent pranks, until she realized he really had been knocked unconscious.
A doctor who was in the audience jumped onto the stage to help and staff from Ryman immediately tended to the fallen musician, who was transported to a Nashville hospital. Trotter thanked all of them, describing them as “stellar, stellar human beings.”
Although it’s slowed him down — with The War and Treaty spending time in New York last week to promote the new album and do media interviews — the bone break wasn’t serious and won’t alter the band’s performances.
The band — which won honors as duo/group of the year from the Americana Music Association last September — will crisscross the United States on tour behind the new album, returning to their home state of Michigan next month when they’ll play The Intersection in Grand Rapids on April 20.
The Trotters also received some uplifting news last week: The War and Treaty has been nominated for group/duo video of the year for “That’s How Love Is Made” at the upcoming CMT Music Awards.
All of it has added up to an action-packed year of highlights for the band, starting with their signing last May to UMG Nashville, a label with a roster that includes superstars Carrie Underwood, Dierks Bentley, Luke Bryan, Darius Rucker, Keith Urban and many more.
“That was the beginning of this new start,” Tanya Trotter said.
Added Michael: “It feels so darned good. The label has taken great care of us.”
It also gave them the opportunity to get into the studio with Cobb, who Michael described as “special. You’re working with the best. He found our true vocal power. It’s all about the vocals with this record.”
Indeed, with traces of Ray Charles, gospel and other influences, tracks on “Lover’s Game” resonate with Tanya and Michael’s rich, powerful and soulful singing.
Another diehard Michigander, multi-instrumentalist Max Brown, continues to serve as The War and Treaty’s music director.
“I just don’t know how it would feel without a Max Brown,” Michael said of the guitarist and bassist who has roots in Ann Arbor and Kalamazoo. “Aside from him just being a great musician, I don’t think people understand that he is the greatest guy I’ve ever met in my life.”
That Michigan love is sure to bubble over during the band’s April tour stop in Grand Rapids, Michael added.
“Honesty, high-energy, some very intimate moments,” he said of what fans can expect that night. “But I think people will just expect to feel proud, the people who have journeyed with us. That’s something we look forward to the most.”