Ralph Wall was born March 29, 1955 on a Florida Air Force base. Soon after, his father was out of the service and returned the family to their native Nebraska, settling in Holdrege.
Ralph's mother occasionally honked on the saxophone while his maternal grandmother plinked piano at Christmas gatherings. The family record album collection wouldn't have filled a peach crate. So Ralph primarily credits the radio, the British rock invasion of the 1960's, for his initial musical inspiration. Ralph recalls, "Mostly, I just recognized that music was born in me and it was up to me to hone the talent. At a young age, I used to sit on the stairway of our unfinished basement and sing like a tail-swung cat. I'm sure it was terrible, but I enjoyed the natural echo. I was already dreaming up little tunes, though I don't remember them today".
A rebellious child, Ralph took early piano and guitar lessons, but walked away from the discipline of each. Chorus participation in school and church was disdained. "I hated singing that music with a bunch of other kids. I felt like just another mooing cow in the corral, uh, chorale". Ralph's independent streak extended to his musical development. By age 9, he was writing new, goofy sets of lyrics to the hit songs of the day. Eventually, he composed his first original tune and words. "I wrote a silly little number called 'Captain Rabbit' and I still remember it. I also remember not to play it for anybody". In his early teens, he decided to write more serious, original music and took up the guitar again. "For a long time, I never owned anything but a simple acoustic guitar. That limited and defined the style of music I wrote and played for years. On the other hand, this lead me to improvise with my strumming style. I tried to include syncopation, some of the beat and other elements of a song's accents into my playing style. I'm sure my lack of formal musical training has been a negative in some ways, but I also feel I'm more open and creative by not knowing theory and rules. I cannot read music. To me, sheet music looks like a white wall with black paint thrown at it". Ralph learned chords from a chord chart book. His writing slowly developed beyond 3 chord songs as new chords were mastered.
Ralph never felt an inclination to be in a band, though he did do a few duo performances with another local singer-songwriter. The engagements involved the usual practice of covering popular songs of the day. It was a short lived act. "I never cared for playing music I didn't write. I didn't want to be compared to the original record nor did I believe I could perform it as well. It felt like more of an accomplishment and just made more sense to me to spend my time trying to improve my own ability at writing."
In junior high, Ralph befriended local disc jockeys at KUVR in Holdrege. "I would watch them work, help pull the play list off the shelves, just absorb that intriguing world of broadcasting and music". In time, Wall secured part time work in the station and went on to work radio in 5 Nebraska communities. Those years (1970-1980) further exposed his ears to a wide range of musical genres and styles. "I loved slipping into the production studios to preview dozens of 45's. Tons of records that never charted, but it was great to hear the A and B sides of records most of the world would never know. And I did get inspiration from some of that material". Ralph periodically performed as a solo act in small concert venues or at other community events. Public performances largely ended when he started a TV career as a weatherman and human interest reporter in Kearney, Nebraska from 1980-1996. The behind-the-scenes songwriting never stopped. "In 1984, another Kearney musician and I recorded an album called 'Apparitions'. Today I like to joke that I wish it were a ghostly figment of my imagination. It is already a ghastly reality (laughter). Since then, I've actually rewritten the words and restructured the tunes to some of that project's songs. It was recorded on a 4 track reel to reel tape unit. It wasn't a very polished effort on my part, but it was a good learning experience." Ralph made casual efforts at marketing his songs to the industry. One work, "The Will Of The Wind" won an honorable mention placing in a national songwriting contest. Ralph notes, "That validated the self confidence I had with some of my writing. It would be gratifying to enjoy success on a larger scale but I am also content to record and market the material myself. I'm not so affected that I think the whole world should love it. If there are only 100 people into my material, I'll be elated. Although, 1,000,000 fans would be nice too!"
Since 1996, Ralph's broadcast related work has been with the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission, producing that agency's hunting, fishing and parks radio-TV product. The passion for songwriting remains and the catalog keeps growing. "I'm probably up to or over 300 songs. If songwriting had been my main career, I'd surely be double that number. I'd like to believe I have a few good ones in that bunch. In 2004, I bought some very basic digital recording gear. I couldn't afford professional studio rates, so decided to go with an inexpensive home studio and do the best I could". Ralph sought musicians interested in working with original material and Lincoln recording engineer Brett Holihan suggested Greg Mertz. Ralph recalls, "Greg came over to my place one winter night. We cracked some beers and I played him some very simple home demo tapes. Greg has a very heavy rock background, so when he expressed his genuine desire to work with my less amplified tunes, I was afraid I gave him too many brews! Fortunately, Greg shares my appreciation for a lot of musical styles. I like diverse writing, so it isn't uncommon for me to kick out a song that has nothing to do with love lost or love everlasting. Doesn't that get a little old sometimes? Our 'Marker 1' CD includes a varied mix of material from my teen years to present day." Ralph says folks can expect more scrambled themes of music. "Before I take the 'ol dirt nap in Skeleton Park, I hope to put out several more CD's". Recording of a 2nd CD project is underway.