From July 8, 2006 Destin Log
By Keri Holt

Growing up in Greenwood, Miss., Hal Aiken always dreamed of being a charter boat captain. He also loved the guitar, which he started playing when he was about 4. He was kicked out of guitar lessons in high school when he slipped backstage at one of his recitals and started teaching the other young performers how to play The Beatles. It angered the music teacher, who had brought her pupils there to play “Camptown Races” and the like.

Today, living in Destin, Aiken has managed to make both of his childhood passions a way of life. After moving to the area in 1987, he and his wife, June Aiken, ran their own charter boat, The Desperado, for nine years. Today, they own Aiken Yacht Services.

“We were fulfilling a dream of ours by moving here because we loved the water and fishing,” June Aiken said.

To express his love of the town he now calls home, Aiken has used his love of guitar and his experience in the music industry and written a song in tribute. “Down in Destin” is his labor of love, he said. It’s a song Aiken wrote in about 30 minutes just before Hurricane Ivan struck in 2004.

“I picked up the guitar, and it just hit me,” he said. “Your best work is spontaneous. It comes out of nowhere. You just grab a pen and some paper and start writing.”

Yet, the more Aiken worked on the song and played it, he concluded it would make an excellent music video, he said. So, that’s exactly what he did. He hired Shannon Wallace Productions Inc. in Santa Rosa Beach and Joshua Smith Productions in Navarre, and the music video was completed in March.
“It started as a song and grew into a video featuring many sights familiar to anyone who’s ever visited our sleepy little fishing village,” Aiken says on his Web site, www.downindestin.com, which is devoted to the video.

Wearing a tropical shirt and sunglasses, Aiken is featured in the video singing and playing his guitar on the beach with a sunset in the background. As a love song, the video follows a young couple as they explore Destin and all it offers, including scenes of the charter boats, Hog’s Breath, Dewey Destin Seafood, AJ’s, Harbor Docks and The Boathouse.

“We decided this would be a great souvenir for people to take home,” June said. “You would want to take this back with you and show your friends where you’ve been.”

To make the video and CD available for tourists, Aiken has the “Down in Destin” package available for sale at several area hotspots, including Destin History and Fishing Museum, Elmo’s Bar and Grill, Central Square Records, Music 4 Less, Mindy Lou II, Cara Roy Galleries, AJ’s, Dewey Destin Seafood, Harbor Docks and The Boathouse.

“We are trying to reach the tourists,” Aiken said. “This is way better than a Tshirt. It’s timeless.”

Several area musicians are featured in the song, including Paul Andre on drums, Kim Brown on backup vocals, Justin Lewis Price-Rees on violin and Don Sundal on keyboard.

“Down in Destin” is Aiken’s first single, and he’s hoping it will be a stepping stone for releasing other albums.

“He’s written the songs. We just need to get them out there,” his wife said. “He’s got enough to fill up three or four CDs.”

Aiken has an extensive career in the music industry. He’s worked in Memphis at several recording industries, including Stax, Ardent and TMI. He has played guitar for numerous bands. While working with a five-piece band, Candy Shoe String, in Greenwood and working part-time at a music store, Aiken, along with the store owner Harrison Holmes, developed a guitar amplifier product line. He later worked for 10 years in Meridian, Miss., for Hartley Peavey, owner of PEAVEY Electronics Corp., where he spent the last few years in artist relations.