By Evan Wechman

New Jersey’s own Bobby Syvarth used to play almost every night at the small but intimate venues in Morristown.  He dreamed of being a worldwide sensation like his idols James Taylor and Paul Simon. He would play all night into the wee hours of the morning, then after a few hours of sleep, drag himself into a full-time office job.  He was in his early 20’s at this time.

Fast forward and Syvarth is now doing things a bit differently, but still contributing greatly to the Morristown music scene. Older and wiser, Syvarth is not trying to be the next James Taylor anymore.  Instead, he works a full-time job as a paralegal in the music and media industry.

The locals will still find him playing events on weekends for causes close to him, but his focus has shifted. “I think as a songwriter putting out original music is one of my unique contributions.  There’s a lot of cover or tribute bands and I play in bars where I do covers too.  But I think my real contribution is original music that people seem to like,” he said.

Syvarth, who has been playing in the area for about two decades, is touring the most popular venues in Morristown and the entire county promoting his new original album, “Silver Lake Boulevard.”

This five-song album was written by Syvarth and combines many elements from his favorite music genres. “I’m coming out of that Grateful Dead, Fish, Dave Mathews, John Mayer kind of sound where you bring a little more jazz influence into the songs as well,” he said.

His tastes are varied and deep. Syvarth loves the acoustic rock sound of Paul Simon but is also extremely fond of jazz musician Bobby McFerrin.  Even though Syvarth jokingly admits people laugh when they learn of his love for McFerrin due to his success of the song “Don’t Worry, Be Happy”, in the 1980’s, he remains firm that he would love to play alongside the jazz great one day.

“He is one of the greatest of all time, so he has been a huge inspiration for me,” Syvarth said.  The local songwriter has even recorded covers of McFerrin’s songs on Spotify and believes jazz musicians are more well versed than musicians from other genres.

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Though the album is released under his own name, Syvarth, a largely self-taught musician, credits many other musicians for his success. After studying jazz at William Paterson University, he was taken under the wing of many professional musicians who gave their time and advice to him freely.

For example, he recently had a release party at Morristown’s The Homestead where he collaborated with many professional musicians who have played on albums of many well-known celebrities.  Syvarth is especially proud of his relationship with Tom Carbone who produced “Silver Lake Boulevard.”

This is because Syvarth began recording this album right before COVID broke out, and even though there was a long period where they couldn’t play due to the lockdown, Carbone never gave up on him.  

According to Syvarth, for himself, Carbone, and every musician who gave a hand to this project, the recording of the album took “a lot of blood, sweat, and tears.”

Syvarth believes in staying loyal to the musicians who have helped him succeed and believes in giving back to the community as well. He has played at fundraisers for the benefit of the environment and has participated in raising funds for breast cancer awareness, most notably at Morristown’s Horseshoe Tavern.

Syvarth, although the songwriter for the album, is fully aware the music he creates is a collaborative effort.  He stated that he is extremely appreciative of the knowledge he has been given by many others. He did want to express how bitter-sweet the production of his work has been.

He had the privilege of playing with Rick Chamberlain, the former principal trombonist for the New York City Ballet, who unfortunately lost his life to cancer a short time ago. “The album was the last thing he recorded and it’s meaningful to me as he was always very generous towards me.  This project was the last time I had a chance to record with him,” he said.

For more information on Syvarth, visit www.bobbytime.com.