From the barn to the studio

LOS ANGELES — His family’s Kenosha County dairy farm taught Chris Vos abundant lessons that have guided him as he built a recording career in the music industry.

“It was a great way to grow up and train for what I do now,” Vos said. “There are lots of similarities between growing up on the farm and being in a band. Farm families work and live alongside each other; it’s the same in the band. You get along because you have to; we’re doing the same job, with the same goal.”

Vos is part of the band The Record Company, based in Los Angeles. The group received a Grammy nomination for Best Contemporary Blues Album in 2017 for their debut album, “Give It Back to You.” Released in 2016, the album featured the song “Off the Ground,” which reached No. 1 on the U.S. Billboard Adult Alternative Songs chart.

Although he now lives a recording artist’s life, Vos’ roots are planted on his family’s southeast Wisconsin farm. Vos’ great-great-great-grandfather, German immigrant Nicholas Vos, homesteaded a farm in 1847 near Burlington. That original farm is just up the road from where the main dairy stands today, home to around 180 cows.

The farm is operated by the fifth and sixth generations of the Vos family — Vos’ father, Ron, uncle, Raymond, and brothers Mark and Brian.

“It’s a true family operation; I go back and help on the farm whenever I can,” Vos said. “My grandpa, Don, farmed until he was in his 90s and they told him he couldn’t milk cows anymore. He passed away two weeks later. That tells you exactly who he was.”

Although the farm has changed since his childhood, the principles his family adheres to remain the same, Vos said.

“When I left, they were milking in a stanchion barn,” Vos said. “Now they have a freestall barn and milk in a parlor. My dad, my uncles, my grandpa — they’re good farmers. They have always cared about how animals are treated, the quality of feed.”

Vos grew up in a family that appreciated music.

“My mom and dad both love music,” Vos said. “I remember riding with my dad in the 5088 International with the radio going. I’d watch that big tire turn and listen to that music.”

Vos discovered his talent with the guitar as a teenager.

“My parents helped me get a guitar for my eighth-grade graduation,” Vos said. “My mom said the moment I grabbed it, everything changed. I remember holding it, thinking this is what I was going to do.”

As he learned to play, Vos started writing songs.

“My dad would sit at the top of the stairs after we’d get in from milking at nights and listen to me play,” Vos said. “I told him then that when I played Farm Aid someday, I was going to dedicate it to him, and I did.”

Vos’ entrance into the Los Angeles music scene happened by chance.

“My wife was offered a job at the Los Angeles Times and she said she wanted to take it,” Vos said. “So we moved out there. I was 31 and kind of past the point where you’re supposed to try to make it in the music industry. I’d never thought that would happen in my life.”

Vos took advantage of the move and set his sights on seeing where his music might take him. He met the musicians who would become his band — Alex Stiff and Marc Cazorla — and they began playing together.

“We got signed when I was in my late 30s,” Vos said. “Then we got our Grammy nomination and had No. 1 songs, and all when I was almost 40 years old. I earned it the hard way.”

The group pulled from many influences.

“When I say we played rock and roll, I mean rock and roll, with the roll underlined,” Vos said. “I grew up listening to everything from John Fogerty to Johnny Cash to the Stones. I love country, rock and roll, Motown and old R&B. I like something with a good beat that puts a smile on your face.”

In the long run, the maturity he had acquired before trying his hand in LA was a benefit.

“Our songwriting was sharper than it typically is when you’re younger,” Vos said. “We put out a good thing that caught on. We’ve played Madison Square Garden, Red Rocks, Farm Aid and toured with Bob Seger and John Mayer. We’ve played in Australia; this has taken me everywhere. But I love when I’m back in the Midwest, in the summer. I walk out and smell the air, and it’s like I’m home.”

One of his most meaningful shows took place earlier this year, when Vos and his bandmates played at Pabst Theater in Milwaukee.

“It was a homecoming show,” Vos said. “Friends and family from back home rented a bus to come to the show. It meant so much to me.”

Making the transition to big city life was not as hard as Vos had first imagined.

“When I got out to LA, I kind of stuck out like a sore thumb, a little bit,” Vos said. “When people learned I was from a farm, they didn’t really believe me. I’d tell them they were looking at the embodiment of the stereotypical Wisconsin dairy farmer. I heard all the cheese, milk and cow jokes.”

The city has its appeal, but Vos said his heart remains on the farm.

“I love Los Angeles, I love the farm,” Vos said. “I’ve seen all 50 states, but my family’s farm is still my favorite place on earth.”

Sharing his successes with family is special for Vos.

“The last conversation I had with my grandpa, I was calling him from the Ryman (Auditorium) to tell him about our first No. 1 song,” Vos said. “He passed away a couple days later. Calling him was a proud moment, and calling home to tell my family about the Grammy nomination. I wear an International Harvester hat on stage, to keep my grandpa with me.”

Vos credits the men he observed growing up for teaching him to persevere and to be accountable for his own actions.

“I watched my father, grandfather and uncles,” Vos said. “Those things came with me into the music business. You’re running an independent thing, but you’ve got people you’re working with. You listen to them, but you have to use your instincts. They taught me you don’t look at your field from the road; you go out there in the middle and see what’s going on.”

That philosophy has translated to his music career.

“That’s how I feel about curating an audience,” Vos said. “These are good people; it’s a busy world out there. Money spends hard these days. If someone puts a couple dollars in your pocket, you owe them a kind word, a handshake, a hug if you can. I try to let each person in the audience know they’re important to me.”