Producer of Muncy area TV show wins award
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Singer, gardener, not (yet) a candlestick-maker, Jeff Pittinger recently added another feat to his laundry list of accomplishments: owner of an award-winning TV show.
Nestled in the hills outside Muncy, "Pennsylvania Pipeline Music-TV" is based out of Pittinger's converted garage. "Pennsylvania Pipeline" is currently on its sixth season and won the Central Pennsylvania Music Hall of Fame's Award for Best Music TV in 2020.
He found out about winning the award in early June. His pride in himself and his crew is evident when he talks about the experience.
He calls 2020 "the year that never happened."
"Last year... when everything shut down, we kept putting out episodes," he said.
He asked "what are the odds" of getting an award from a garage in the middle of nowhere.
Pittinger said he has had "just about everyone" on the show.
"If they're good, we've had 'em here," Pittinger said.
A smattering of Pittinger's favorite acts from the show include Jacob Puliti, Small Town Titans, Jackknife Stiletto, Bret Alexander, Nate Myers and the Aces, Laura Cheadle, Brandi LM, Leo & KG with Family Tradition, Stephanie & the Wild Hearts and Williamsport's own Mallory Scoppa.
Pittinger, who turns 60 on July 23, is the lead singer -- "the straw that stirs the drink," as he put it -- of three different bands: Monster Track Supergroup, Betty Ford All Stars and White Witch, the last of which released an album in 2020 and signed with Heaven and Hell Records.
"One day, I woke up in the middle of the night, and something told me to start a TV show," Pittinger said.
The land surrounding Pittinger's studio has been in his family for years. They even owned a TV tower that is still standing today. Pittinger recalled having to trudge through deep snow to fix the cables in his childhood.
The studio itself is up a steep gravel driveway and a set of wooden stairs.
"Granted, it's not a fancy place in town, but it's an experience," Pittinger said.
Humans aren't the only creatures that seem to enjoy the "experience": Pittinger's homestead plays host to colorful birds, curious black bears and even six-foot-long black snakes.
"You can't buy that," he said.
Pittinger said that the bands that play on his show prefer the great outdoors to the city.
"Stress is horrible on musicians," he said.
Noise, lack of space and other irritants that come with city living can do a lot of harm to anybody in the creative field, Pittinger said.
Though, living in the boonies does have a few drawbacks.
The only internet Pittinger can access is DSL that runs at "camel caravan speed." He would have to walk between his house and the studio in the middle of the night with freezing temperatures to upload a single song.
Now, he mails SD cards with preliminary cuts of "Pennsylvania Pipeline" to an editor in the eastern part of the state.
"If that's not old-school, I don't know what is," Pittinger said.
As for Pittinger's love of music?
"I was born with it."
He cited Alice Cooper's "School's Out" and "Billion Dollar Babies" as major inspirations. The latter is his favorite album, and its opener, "Hello Hooray," is his favorite song.
"I realized what my path was gonna be between '72 and '73," he said.
Pittinger first sang in front of a crowd at age 15.
"It felt great," he said.
Some of Pittinger's biggest inspirations are Ozzy Osbourne and Alice Cooper. He also admires Tom Brady for his feats of athleticism in his older age. The Beatles' Ringo Starr is another favorite.
Pittinger offered some advice to anyone intent on making it in the creative field:
"It ain't made to be easy."
Pittinger has "experienced the best and the worst" of life, he said, and values those experiences more than anything.
"I got a heart full of memories... no amount of money can buy," he said.
He had another nugget of wisdom for the youngins.
"Not everyone is going to like you in life," Pittinger said. "Haters are great motivators."
Pittinger pays little attention to his detractors or competitors.
"Jeff is not in competition with anyone except himself," he said. "And that's a good place to be."
That's not to say that Pittinger has not hit his share of rough patches.
He has been sober since Oct. 5, 2005, an accomplishment he is very proud of. He even has a mantra about his life.
"All the powers of good and evil have conspired to put me here at this exact time."
That quote means so much to him that he included it in one of his albums.
"I don't know about anyone else's life, but that's mine," Pittinger said.
Along with his vast experience in the music business - 39 years, to be exact - Pittinger also enjoys gardening. His large plot of land allows him to grow lots of vegetables, including tomatoes, which he uses to make salsa.
Last year, he set up a produce stand "not out of necessity, but out of abundance" and made around $1,000.
Whether it's hosting bands, playing for a crowd himself or getting his hands dirty with snakes and veggies, Pittinger has done and will continue to do it all.
"We're gonna keep taping bands, and I'm gonna keep putting out albums," he said.
Episodes of "Pennsylvania Pipeline" can be found on most social media platforms, and when there are enough episodes in a seaon, Pittinger sends them to air on local TV stations.
Pittinger said he would like to thank his team for making "Pennsylvania Pipeline" possible: Shellie Mingle, Dasie Lee and Heath and Alissa Reese.