"No period after E or the show is cancelled!" barks Kitsalano, Lyle E Style’s manager since the early 90s and then slams down the phone. He shoves an aged, half-smoked, unlit Cohiba cigar back in his mouth and mumbles "The kid’s gonna be big! Not huge, but big."  

I left Kitsalano’s office to meet with the relatively unknown singer, songwriter, author and actor to ask him how it all started. "I took music lessons since I was a kid but never played for anyone until 1986 when my parents sent me to a minor seminary. To raise money for the school, we did concerts across North America. I played guitar and loved playing to a live audience so I decided to pursue a career in the entertainment industry instead of the priesthood."  

The reality of making a successful career doing what he loved came from a chance encounter in Branson, Missouri with legendary songwriter Bill Dees (Oh, Pretty Woman, It’s Over) which led to a writing partnership and ongoing friendship. Dees comments, "Lyle is the first artist that I have written with since Roy Orbison. His determination, respect of his predecessors and attention to detail express what is needed to succeed as a singer/songwriter."  

Style demonstrates that respect to his predecessors in the book he wrote, Ain’t Got No Cigarettes: Memories of Music Legend Roger Miller. Style’s book, the first one ever written on "The King of the Road" has been receiving impressive reviews and attention worldwide.  The New York Times noted the dual nature of Style's literary contribution: On the surface, it's a book about Roger Miller, "but through a quirk of deliberate or accidental genius, what Style has actually assembled is a living document of country music in its hootin', hollerin' outlaw heyday…"  

The book is a collection of absorbing stories from Roger’s close friends and peers including Merle Haggard, Willie Nelson, Bobby Bare, Kris Kristofferson, Dwight Yoakam and over ninety more. Also included are some of the last interviews ever given by artists like Buck Owens, Mickey Newbury and Waylon Jennings. Style even managed to get country superstar Toby Keith to write the foreword. When asked, "Why Roger Miller?" Style responded, "Roger Miller is one of the most talented and intriguing people in the history of entertainment. After becoming a huge fan of his, I wanted to know more about the man behind the music. Unfortunately, no book had ever been written about him, so I decided to write one myself." Undoubtedly, this Canadian has captured and preserved an important piece of Americana history.  

Style is currently promoting the release of his new CD, Cutting Room Floor, an innovative project where he has chosen to pay tribute to some of the artists who have inspired him to contribute to the music industry. Style explains, "I always wondered if any of my late heroes had any cool songs that weren’t recorded because of their untimely passing or because the songs were too outlaw or dark. As fate would have it, they did. For the new CD, I recorded my versions of unreleased songs written by Waylon Jennings, Buddy Holly, Roy Orbison and Roger Miller, along with nine originals and a cover of the track that arguably started the outlaw movement, ‘Put Another Log On The Fire’. After a lot of research, I found quite a few unreleased songs by these legends. These tracks are the one’s that really hit me as a fan. I’m really proud and blessed to be the first to release these gems."

The CD is a co-production release with Electric Recordings and Absurd Machine Records. Style explains, "I was looking for the right label to do this project with for some time now. A while back, I was working on a film at a new production studio called Absurd Machine Studios. It turns out it was located in the exact building my Dad worked at some forty years ago where he met my Mom. I wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for that building (and a faulty prophylactic). I told that story to the owner of the studio and convinced him that this was a sign and it was, the CD turned out exactly as I had envisioned."

Mr. E Style is making his mark in the industry by showcasing what Nashville record producer Larry Butler explains as "an original sound that exhibits his own way of presenting stories through his songs. He is a true crooner and stylist." With influences ranging from Andy Kaufman to Johnny Cash to Alice Cooper, it’s no wonder that the end result is quite different from the mainstream. Lyle’s unique style is what makes him a distinct alternative country music artist.  

When asked about his headstrong manager, with a somber look in his eyes he said, "Kitsalano has caused me more problems in my career than anyone I’ve ever met in my life. Due to his Colonel Parker style demands, I’ve lost two major record label deals, countless acting parts including being left on the cutting room floor for my portrayal of ‘Larry’ on NBC’s Three’s Company movie of the week. Who in their right mind would demand my name being the first to appear on the opening credits? I was a supporting character! Between you and me, I’m looking for a new manager."

  ~ Johnny Marsala

STYLE QUOTES
Quotes may be reprinted without permission however must be credited to Lyle E Style and notice sent to mrestyle@shaw.ca

If I would have started working six months earlier in life, I wouldn't be in debt.
- Lyle E Style © Electric Recordings

May you live long enough to watch me grow old.
- Lyle E Style © Electric Recordings

I'm a household name in Canada. Problem is, it's only in my household.
- Lyle E Style © Electric Recordings

I've spent the better part of my life coming to terms with the fact that even my best isn't that great.
- Lyle E Style © Electric Recordings

My father said he can't figure me out. I can't figure myself out either. I guess I take after him.
- Lyle E Style © Electric Recordings

Every flaw I find in my wife makes me feel more worthy of being her husband.
- Lyle E Style © Electric Recordings

It may not be in my lifetime but someday I'll be in style.
- Lyle E Style © Electric Recordings

If I only had one day left to live, I'd sleep in.
- Lyle E Style © Electric Recordings

Without her I'm nothing… like I used to be.
- Lyle E Style © Electric Recordings

I am totally against premarital sex… unless it's with me.
- Lyle E Style © Electric Recordings

Never read a magazine in a doctor's office or breathe in an elevator in a hospital. You're really taking a chance with your health if you do.
- Lyle E Style © Electric Recordings

I have a way of making a happy song sound sad.
- Lyle E Style © Electric Recordings

There are too many good songs in this world to waste your time listening to one you don't like.
- Lyle E Style © Electric Recordings

My Grandmother always waits until after my birthday to send me a card, this way she can buy it for half price.
- Lyle E Style © Electric Recordings

A person doesn't have to punch themselves in the face to teach themselves a lesson that they should never punch themselves in the face.
- Lyle E Style © Electric Recordings

All this living is getting pricey.
- Lyle E Style © Electric Recordings

People driving bicycles on the snowy winter streets should be eligible for handicapped parking.
- Lyle E Style © Electric Recordings

I don't want kids, I'm thinking of getting a circumcision.
- Lyle E Style © Electric Recordings

If I ever have a kid I'd want it to be an outdoor kid. My Grandparents had an outdoor dog on the farm and I admired that, it never made a mess in the house. - Lyle E Style © Electric Recordings

I know how to disappoint nearly everybody… all I’ve got to do is be myself.
- Lyle E Style © Electric Recordings

Time is a gift to give and a gift to sell.
- Lyle E Style © Electric Recordings

Our baby was blessed with his mother’s good looks, the placenta was a splitting image of me.
- Lyle E Style © Electric Recordings

May you always enjoy whatever it is you do.
- Lyle E Style © Electric Recordings

Sad, Strange & Short True Stories by Mr. E Style

I moved to Vancouver to be an actor, singer and songwriter. I ended up being a waiter." "I was given a shift at a posh restaurant in Vancouver with the promise of being hired if I did a good job. At the end of the shift the owner told me he wasn't going to hire me. He then told me ‘don't get me wrong, you're better than nothing'". 

I got a job at Canadian Airlines in Vancouver. I had to leave a shift twenty minutes early one day for an audition for the last season of "X-Files".  I was still on probation so they fired me and I didn't get the part either. Thank God for credit cards.

I love Branson, Missouri but it didn't love me. Someone told me that my problem was that I was a wannabe in a has-been town. I auditioned to be in one of the local shows, after I sang an original song called "It's Not Me, It's You" the owner told me "Branson ain't a Playboy kind of town, we don't do what you do here." After that I was billed as "The Marilyn Manson of Branson", shortly after, I went back to Canada. 

Quotes on Style

"Lyle is a very charming fellow. Anyone who can talk his way onto Willie Nelson's bus has to be."
- Gregg Shilliday, Publisher, Great Plains Publications

"When you've got a name like Lyle E Style, your only career options are playing point guard for the Kentucky Colonels circa 1973 or chronicling country music, and readers should be grateful that Style has chosen the latter path..."
- The New York Times

"Singer/Songwriter Lyle E Style has put together just the right type of book to celebrate and remember Roger Miller. Rather than churn out the standard biography, Style's work lets the people who really knew, admired and loved him, tell their stories. The result is a book that's sometimes hilarious, sometimes troubling and sometimes poignant, one that gives readers far more detail and insight into the Miller personality than any academic chronicle. …As distinctive as he was versatile and unusual, Roger Miller's charm and skill is wonderfully outlined in this valuable account."
- American Songwriter Magazine

"Lyle is the first artist that I have written with since Roy Orbison's last album. His determination, respect of his predecessors and his attention to detail express what is needed to succeed as a singer/songwriter."
- Bill Dees

"Lyle has an original sound and look that exhibits his own way of presenting stories through his songs. He is a true crooner and stylist."
- Nashville record producer Larry Butler

Bill Dees, whose songwriting credits include Roy Orbison's hit "Oh, Pretty Woman" was speaking at a songwriter's convention in Branson, Missouri, which Style stumbled upon while traveling back from Nashville. The two hit it off immediately and have since collaborated on a number of songs which Style is eager to record. "It's just amazing", says Lyle, of their partnership..."He's the first person I've co-written with and he's a legend! It's a little bit intimidating. You're looking up at a wall and there's all these gold albums and it's like...Wow, how did I get here again?"
- Chuck Mogate - Uptown Magazine