ELKMONT'S MUSIC CONNECTION

Decatur Daily has an article with an Elkmont connection.  Paul Compton, son of Gary Compton, is mentioned.  If you would like to read the full article, pick up a hard copy today. 

Highlights:
Jimmy Cantrell can’t help but brag a bit. In his 45 years of teaching at Calhoun Community College, many of his students achieved national success in the music industry.

There is Paul Compton, who signed country music superstar Luke Bryan to his first Nashville contract.

With 25 years in the music industry, Compton, president and founder of the songwriter and artist management company Music Highway and the booking company The Songwriter Agency, brings his knowledge to the classroom. Every Tuesday, Compton travels from Nashville to downtown Decatur to teach the publishing and practicum courses. Compton, who served on the music department’s advisory committee, spoke yearly to the fine arts students and helped  Jimmy Cantrell develop the curriculum, but never intended to teach.

“Jimmy deserves all the credit,” Compton said. “Last year, I contacted Jimmy and threw out the idea that I could sit in on one of his classes and work with the students. Of course, he took it one step further, which Jimmy often does, and said, ‘Hey, what if you come down here and teach?’ He’s already hit me up to teach three more classes next semester. Of course, I said yes.”

Compton takes his role seriously. He knows the impact one teacher can have. For Compton, a self-described jock, that teacher was Cantrell. After graduating from Elkmont High School, where he played football, basketball and baseball, Compton attended Calhoun and switched majors from engineering to business before finally landing classes in the fine arts department.

The son of Gary Compton, who owns Elkmont’s The Red Caboose, which hosts singer-songwriter nights, and Linda Compton, who played the piano in church, Compton never considered music as a career.  At Calhoun, Compton played in the jazz band and sang with the Calhoun Connection.  

“Jimmy was a big influence. He was probably the first person outside of my family that came up beside me, put his arm around me and said, ‘You can do this if you really want it. You’ve got what it takes.’ Hearing that from someone outside of my family gave me a little extra push,” Compton said.

Compton, who worked for Murrah Music for 17 years and left in 2008 to start Music Highway when a large corporation bought the independent company, hopes to expose the students at Calhoun to that business. Students in Compton’s practicum course will travel to Nashville to sit in on recording sessions.

“I come from Nashville to Decatur to bring 25 years of experience in the music business as a professional and executive to the students. I want them to understand what the real world is and give them a window into the music industry,” Compton said.

Article Link: Keyed In