ROTHBURY — Rothbury resident Walter Blamer has been writing songs since he was 10 years old - hundreds of them, in fact, many of which sit in a filing cabinet at his home, as yet unheard. But over the last few years, his songwriting has found a new outlet, as he's teamed with Canadian musician Christian Bouillon to release dozens of songs, available to listen to on SoundCloud on a page titled Chris and Walter Music.
Bouillon is an alternative artist, but Blamer also has a professional partnership with another musician named Peter Levy, an Australian who releases songs Blamer co-wrote that are more of a blues/gospel style. (Blamer has not met either in person, but hopes to someday.)
Blamer also occasionally performs himself at locations in Rothbury and Pentwater, where he was a cook at the Village Cafe before retiring some years ago due to health problems.
Most of Blamer's songs are based on experiences in his life, and he also explores themes of spirituality and global instability in his work.
The uptick in Blamer's output started a few years ago. As a way to connect with other songwriters, Blamer joined a Facebook group of them who share their music with each other. At some point, Bouillon and Blamer got in touch, and Blamer sent him a song titled Souls in Between. Within two weeks, Blamer said, Bouillon was in touch with him about producing the song, and before long, he'd turned Blamer's lyrics not just into a fully produced song, but also a music video - several of them are now available on YouTube on the Chris and Walter account.
Blamer has been a lyrical soul his whole life. Attending Montague schools, Blamer was bullied due to a lazy eye he had at the time. Lacking in positive social relationships, he found friends in the great musicians of his childhood.
"My friends were the Beatles, the Rolling Stones, Bob Dylan, all the greats," Blamer said. "Jim Croce. James Taylor. I started writing songs as soon as I could write."
Blamer began writing himself - first poems (he's had poems published in compilations), then songs. The family didn't have much money, so Blamer, seeking inspiration, would occasionally swipe music magazines from a magazine rack in Montague and study the lyrics of songs. That eventually turned into him responding to a call in one magazine - "songs and poems wanted." However, upon receiving interest in one of his compositions, his parents balked at signing over permission to use his songs, especially when part of the deal included the Blamers paying money to do it, which his father saw as a rip-off.
As a young adult, Blamer had his heart broken by a girlfriend at age 19. Lost and depressed, he began hitchhiking around the country in 1976 - he says now that he was likely going through a manic depressive episode, but such mental health observations were less common at the time.
After two years of traveling, Blamer happened upon a fellow hitchhiker near the Cascade Mountains whom he believed was his inspiration to return home to West Michigan. The encounter was brief, as the other young man left only a couple days later; however, it inspired Blamer to write a novel, Hitchhiking with an Angel, which he released in 2004. He later self-published a second edition of the novel to improve its readability; both are available on Amazon. He said he's got another book inspired by that time mostly completed but doesn't have anyone to edit or help release it yet.
Upon returning home, Blamer still struggled. While laid up with a broken foot - the result, he said, of falling off a roof while playing Frisbee with friends - he could do nothing but think, and that led to a decision to get his life together. He resumed writing songs and attended school to become a chef, working on Mackinac Island for a time and later moving on to Pentwater.
While in Mackinac, Blamer, who said he plays pretty much any kind of percussion instrument, started a band with two colleagues. He began playing the harmonica because that was the best available way to contribute to the band, and it stuck. He still plays locally today, as something of a one-man act.
Blamer said he wants to get the word out about his music, which is mostly a labor of love due to the lack of income artists get from their songs being on streaming services. Despite his age, he continues to write songs.
"I'm going to be 70 years old, and most people at my age have given up on all this," Blamer said. "I'm going strong."
