Taking a musical leap of faith
DELMAR – Warren Sieme came out of his music shell during his mid-fifties when he retired from working full-time for a private ophthalmology practice in Troy while raising a family with his wife in Delmar. For his whole life, the then Cooperstown native spent time writing songs and played his guitar for only close friends.
As a young child, Sieme wanted to become a musician as a result of watching “The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet” on his old black and white television and waited for Ricky Nelson to sing “Travelin’ Man” or “Wake Up Little Susie” to adoring fans. At the time, Sieme acquired a Mattel ‘strum along’ guitar and he encouraged his mother to put masking tape on the frets to spell out Ricky on it.
When he was 12-years-old, he acquired a guitar and learned to play songs from The Beatles, Bob Dylan, and Donovan. In the seventies, he was influenced by the singer/songwriter movement performers James Taylor, Tom Rush, Mississippi John Hurt, and Bahamian folk singer Joseph Spence.
However, due to stage fright, Sieme never performed until he faced the music and played in front of a live audience for the first time. He realized that performing in public was welcoming and comfortable, and knew it was time to perform his original songs.
Sieme finds inspiration for his songs in the places and experiences that have been the background of his life: his wife and grandchildren, he said. He claims his wife is the inspiration for his love songs, while his sad songs are rooted in past girlfriends that brought him heartache.
For the past ten years, he performed at the Albany Veterans Hospital and monthly luncheons put on by the Sons of the Legion of Delmar’s Blanchard-Curry Post. Sieme also performed as part of the Canajoharie Music on Main Street Summer Concert Series, “Howlin’ At The Moon” concert series at Mabee Farms, and is a regular performer at the Cooperstown Artisan Festival every Labor Day.
In 2020, the artist said he had the honor of performing in a capstone ceremony for the graduating class at the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, Dutchess County.
Sieme also puts on house concerts where he performs at a private residence to play for a small, intimate gathering. He finds the house concerts to be “super relaxed and casual, great fun.”
His debut album, “The Beginning of Now” (on iTunes, Apple Music, and other streaming services) is a ten-song album recorded in Delmar at Blue Sky Records and at Overit Studios in Albany.
He also launched several videos of his original songs filmed by Saugerties resident and musician, Ian Flanigan, who was a finalist on Blake Shelton’s team on The Voice.
He is currently working on his sophomore album with his friend and musician, Randall Mauger, and plans to release the album in late fall. Sieme said that he finds the sophomore album to be “pretty neat”.
To learn more about the music and the man, go to warrensieme.com.
