Serving up another edition of LETTERS FROM THE ROAD, our guest post series where we invite musicians we are utterly nuts about to take over and write whatever they like. 2 rules: it has to be in the form of a letter, it has to have something to do with music. This week’s LETTERS FROM THE ROAD guest author is a friend and brilliant singer-songwriter who we adore, Jim Boggia:
Dear Taylor Swift,
We need to talk.
I want you to know up front that I really tried to find someone else to write to – someone else who could ease my pain, someone else who might not make me feel so bitter. But I am bitter, Taylor – bitter about things you’re probably too young to understand and that you probably, to be fair, are not so much responsible for as you are representative of.
You know where this is going. Yes, it’s the Grammy thing. That performance. You can’t sing. You took home four Grammys . . . . and you can’t sing. There’s a moment in the first chorus of ‘Rhiannon’ where you can see Stevie Nicks is visibly cringing at how flat you are singing. Let me make sure you understand this, because you’re young and this might be lost on you. This is not Stevie WONDER we’re talking about cringing at your performance, but Stevie NICKS, a woman who owes her career to sleeping with a genius guitar freak/audio architect. Because you see, that’s how it was done in the old days and we didn’t necessarily approve of it, but it got us laid, so ok – let the girl who likes to pretend she’s a witch sing a couple of songs. But even she still had to hit the notes.
How can I make you understand?
A long time ago, we had a group called the Beatles. You might have heard of them as they are now a video game. Anyway, we loved them so much that we even liked to hear their drummer, Ringo, sing one song an album, even though he couldn’t really quite hit the notes. But, the thing is Taylor, he was the DRUMMER. And we really loved the Beatles. And everything else they did was so groundbreakingly amazing. And it was only one song an album.
When you don’t hit the notes it’s different, and not in a good way. I know, I know, on your records, it sounds like you CAN hit the notes. But see, we’re sophisticated now and we know it’s auto-tune and that’s not your fault either but I still have to tell you that it’s no fun living in a world where it’s easier to make someone who looks like you do sound good than it is to make someone who sings like I do look good.
Which brings up another point. You know that song of yours? The one where she’s the cheerleader and you’re the unpopular outsider? Well, I’m having a hard time buying into that because – not to dwell on this but, um . . . . LOOK AT YOU. You can feel free to read this next sentence in the voice of Grandpa Simpson, but: In my day, girls who looked liked you WERE the cheerleaders and then, as now, girls who looked like you wound up getting the guy you talk about in that song. And music . . . Music . . . MUSIC . . . well, that was OUR territory – the folks who really were unpopular. You should check out a tune called ‘At Seventeen’ by Janis Ian. Then you should check out Janis Ian. I mean do a Google Images search. See? SHE was in the bleachers wearing a t-shirt, Taylor, not you. Can’t you just be happy being the cheerleader? Do the popular kids have to take over music, too?
But why am I blaming you? The popular kids took over our game a while ago. There was a bit of a back and forth tussle for a while, but there was a moment – it might have been when Kurt put the bullet through his head – that it was over, the cool kids won and popular music (not POP music, but music which is massively popular) became about being popular and not about making music. And it’s not just you – those guys in Franz Ferdinand can’t sing, either. And on and on. And on and on.
So, no – you are not to blame for this world that you find yourself in – a world that has been this way pretty much since you were born. But you were just given four Grammys. There was a time when you kinda had to be able to bring it, really have your craft down and then, if you caught a break or two, maybe you’d win a Grammy. The process is reversed now. You’ve been awarded your Grammys already. I hope you step up, work hard to really become a musician (and, most specifically, a singer – please learn how to sing) and earn them somehow retroactively.
To end on a positive note – I’m not going to tell you that Beyonce made one of the greatest videos of all time.
Musically Yours,
Jim
Tags: Beyoncé, Jim Boggia, LETTERS FROM THE ROAD, Stevie Nicks, Taylor Swift, the beatles —
Serving up another edition of LETTERS FROM THE ROAD, our guest post series where we invite musicians we are utterly nuts about to take over and write whatever they like. 2 rules: it has to be in the form of a letter, it has to have something to do with music. This week’s LETTERS FROM THE ROAD guest author is one of our favorite singer songwriters, Tim Easton:
Dear Young Songwriter Who Wrote Me on MySpace or Facebook and asked for advice:
I have so much to tell you but I should probably distill it down to the basics. This is what I would tell any young artist or student who stands in front of me wondering what to do in this massive and confusing world of art and commerce.
Basically, I can explain it in three chunks:
1. Read and listen to everything that came before now. Films too.
2. Leave home. Travel.
3. Bring something new to the tradition of your craft.
I would have to advise you to read and listen to anything you can get your hands and ears on.
Poetry: you should read it every day. Short stories, novels, all the classics. Get to it.
With music, you are going to have to step out of your comfort zone and visit the sounds and songs of those that came before the songwriters you are listening to now. Go back to the beginnings of your favorite genre. All of the greats studied the greats before them. If you are an American musician, you are doing yourself a dishonor by not listening to and studying the first American musicians who gave us jazz and the blues and the folk music that teaches you the chords and stories you need to know. There is a foundation there that is absolutely necessary if you wish you be a part of the constantly evolving family of musicians and artists, rather than the disposable, flavor of the month variety.
In North America, our “classical” music is jazz. Through serious suffering and eventual liberation came the blues. Finally, we were very fortunate to be the birthplace of rock and roll (disco, hip hop, etc.) and although we’ve had to have its message of ass shaking freedom re-explained to us time and time again by different generations from both sides of the pond, you won’t find any of the long term successful people in these musical genres that didn’t go back and study the greats that came before them.
You want to learn to write good songs? Then learn how to play the great songs of history. You like The Beatles? Learn Motown, Buddy Holly, and Cole Porter. Learn McCartney’s bass lines. You like M. Ward? Go listen to Roy Orbison or Louis Armstrong, Hoagy Carmichael, or Elmore James.
If you listened to every Kinks album and then every Sonic Youth album in a row you will have accomplished a few days of well spent research.
Woody Guthrie, Mississippi John Hurt, Robert Johnson, Doc Watson, Blind Willie McTell…they all have stories to tell, more down and dirty than any Stones tune. Learning songs by them will enable you to tell your own stories.
Go to the library and get all this education for free. You can sign up for a card and cruise your library’s collection on your computer, ordering books, films, and CDs to be picked up at your local branch. World music, classical music, avant-garde or modern sonic explorations, Mongolian throat singing: it’s all there waiting for you. While you are at it learn the names of some constellations, trees, and plants.
To me, it’s painfully obvious when a band or writer hasn’t bothered to listen to any albums that came before, say, Nirvana. Rock and roll and popular music/culture in general is more or less a young man/woman’s game-as far as music business goes-but as a lifestyle it can be permanent if you wish. Great art, or the individual expression of those trailblazers that came before can truly charge your creative batteries and help you grow as a person to embrace doing things just a little different from the status quo. You can find temporary happiness with what is current or you can go back in time and stand on the shoulders of the giants of storytelling, and therefore continue on in the tradition of learning and then creating something new out of your own experiences.
This leads me to my second point which is that you simply have to hit the road. I don’t care if you live in NYC or Nashville or LA (which is where you will most likely end up if you actually want to do something about a “career” in entertainment), if you are a young man/woman then you need to see another world besides the one you are accustomed to. Sitting around a coffee shop and talking about all the different things you want to do isn’t going to accomplish anything. If all North Americans could visit other nations, then we would have a more enriched culture and a better understanding of the world, and therefore be an even better country ourselves.
Go to Europe. Take your guitar. Hitch hike. Play on the streets. Meet some other travelers. Share a bottle of wine beside a famous river. Get laid. Fall in love. Get your heart broken. You don’t have to live life the way you have been taught you should, unless you would like to end up working in a cubicle.
Returning to your home town art scene isn’t a crime either. Enliven or participate in your community’s art and music scene by providing couches for those traveling musicians and artists who are on their way through. Throw house concerts. Form a musicians co-op and record company for you and your friend’s bands. Start a ‘zine, or participate in one that is already on the move.
Lastly, and this will most likely happen through experience, but you must bring something new to your craft. If it is songwriting, then add your own life experience to it. Whatever made you the unique individual you are today, put it inside your art.
There are some things I would like to point out that might assist you in achieving some of these goals, and though I didn’t say it before, you should indeed make some goals, and wake up every day and do something towards achieving them. Think it, believe it, do it.
— Tim
P.S. Did I mention that you should practice your instrument every day? Or write in your journal…or write down some of your dreams…or carry a pen and small pad with you at all times? I guess that is just too obvious.
P.S.S.How much time every day do you think Connor Oberst or Jack White or Jeff Tweedy or Chan Marshall or any songwriter/musician/artist you admire spends fucking around on MySpace or Facebook?
Exactly. Now start making plans to hit the road.
2/1/10 | Comments (5)Tags: CUT THROUGH THE NOISE, KATE BRADLEY, LETTERS FROM THE ROAD, OUTLANDOS MUSIC, Tim Easton —
Pete Droge
This week, LETTERS FROM THE ROAD features the legendary Pete Droge (OMG!)… we are MASSIVE fans here at Outlandos. Hopefully you will be, too.
Incidentally, for a refresher, LETTERS FROM THE ROAD is our guest post series where we invite musicians we are utterly nuts about to take over and write whatever they like. Three rules: it has to be in the form of a letter, it has to have something to do with music, and the weirder the better. Fun stuff!
What I love about this post from Pete (and I hope I don’t embarrass him too much) is that number one, he was a tad skittish, as a lot of folks are about publishing a blog, if blogging isn’t your usual thing, perfectly human reaction (and its nice to know our idols are human). It’s great though is that none of it has to be perfect, it just has to be genuine for me — and for you — to dig it. And Pete’s got genuine in spades, as you can read below. But what’s more is, this idea of his is quite smart… if you’re going to dive into an iconic catalog, chronologically doesn’t always make sense. This would make a good book actually, a guide to the best order in which to sift through iconic catalogs. You up for that Pete?
Thanks for letting me twist your arm to do this one!
Dear Music Fan Who Is Not up to Speed on JJ Cale, Leonard Cohen or Gram Parsons,
I find that where you enter an artist’s catalog can make a huge difference on how they connect with you. Case in point, my friend who thought, “I really should check out this Bob Dylan cat that so many hipsters are into… hmm where to begin? How about his first album?” Seeing as Bob is so adored for his writing and his first record consists of mostly covers this is probably not the best place to enter his body of work (If you have not heard his version of Man of Constant Sorrow go get it right now… George Clooney, eat your heart out). I digress. I have many times served as mid wife in the birthing of a newborn Dylan fan. I am always shocked, outraged and ultimately jealous of anyone who is naive to all things Bob. Generally speaking, with Bob, I would point the newbie towards Bringing It All Back Home. Side One is Bob 101. Opens with Subterranean Homesick Blues, need I say more? Side Two, Bob 201. Opens with Mr. Tambourine Man and closes with It’s All over Now, Baby Blue, and in between those two, Gates of Eden and It’s Alright Ma, (I’m Only Bleeding). After that, I would point them to more records from the 60s like Highway 61, Times They Are a Changin’, and Blonde on Blonde before sending them out to other eras (Oh Mercy, Time Out Of Mind, Infidel, Planet Waves, Blood on the Tracks, Basement Tapes and so on).
Enough on Bob. I’m sure you are all up to speed already. Let’s get to some folks that some of you may not be into.
JJ Cale. I remember the first time I heard JJ Cale… or John as his friends call him… yes, that’s right, the name John Cale was taken (ok musical hipsters, John Cale was a member of what seminal ban? Anyone… anyone? Yes, THE seminal band of all seminal bands, the Velvet Underground. Very good). I digress. Where was I? Oh yes, the first time I heard JJ Cale. In my Datsun 210, on the once great rock station KISW (Seattle’s Best Rock). I know this song, but holy shit — this is way swampier than Clapton’s version, I thought. It was of course the original version of Cocaine that Eric had the big hit with. This track stopped me in my tracks. So, I would recommend to anyone who wants to look into JJ Cale start with the album it comes from, Troubadour. It was his fourth record. Next stop… go back in time to his first record Naturally (which opens with another song Clapton had a hit with, After Midnight)… then jump ahead to Okie, then back to his second record, Really, then his fifth, Five. By this time, if you are not a total fan who is ready to devour every note he has ever laid down, then I would suspect that you are a cold blooded reptile from another planet. You will never get it and I am sorry for you (that sounds a tad harsh… sorry). Moving on.
Leonard Cohen. Again, I was in transit when Leonard Cohen’s music really got to me. We were on a cross-Canadian tour, early winter 1996, supporting Neil Young. Something about curling up in my bunk with Leonard’s voice on the headphones soothed my paranoia about the bus careening off the road (I was also reading Kafka on that tour and suffering from codeine-induced stomach aches. Good times, indeed. And my fans wonder why I don’t tour anymore). I digress. With Leonard, I would make a case for taking things chronologically. By the time he made his first record in 1967, he was already a successful poet, so he had the word thing together (listen to me — “he had the word thing together” — now I am beginning to feel very self-conscious about my writing here… don’t give in… push on… it’s only a blog after all… it is supposed to read like a first draft). Songs of Leonard Cohen, Side One, song one: Suzanne. Great place to start. But wait, some of the songs on this album, though incredible, might not quite their hooks into the uninitiated. Bearing this in mind, I started to compile a list of cuts you could grab on iTunes… I got to his second record and realized almost all of my picks are on a compilation album The Essential Leonard Cohen. Now let me be clear, I do not condone you buying this collection and calling it good. But, it’s a good place to start. Props to Leanne Ungar & Bruce Dickinson for putting together a great intro to LC. (Bruce Dickinson was the lead singer of what heavy metal band? Anyone… anyone? Yes, that’s right… Iron Maiden. Something tells me it’s a different guy, what do you think?) I digress. This is a good place to start. The one spot I think they miss is an album produced by Phil Spector called Death of a Ladies Man. It does stand out within LC’s catalog as a bit of an odd bird. And I would say it’s a record you should buy — if for no other reason than because you can brag about owning it at dinner parties. Try it and watch your hipness quotient go thru the roof (you could also collect some stories about Phil actually brandishing a pistol during the sessions and this will surely impress your dinner guests). I digress. Leonard’s work is always so thorough and complete, I can’t imagine not owning all of the records. If there are songs that don’t get you right away, keep listening. And really go to the words. Be with the words. Lyrics don’t get better.
Gram Parsons. With Gram, I would take the opposite approach as we did with LC. Start at the end and work your way back. He was interested in what he called “cosmic American music.” Others would later make it sound way less interesting and call it country-rock. And many would give the late great Gram credit for inventing it (as much as I love Gram and his legacy I always felt like this was not very accurate. To me, that is like saying someone invented soup. Maybe Monsanto will genetically modify country-rock and claim a patent for it. If you don’t get this joke, rent Food Inc.) I digress. Gram did have a vision though. Sadly, his career was cut short by a heroin OD in 1973. I would start with both of his solo records at once. GP and Grevious Angel. At first, if you are having trouble with the frailty of his vocals and you are thinking, “it sounds like he just smoked a huge doobie,” keep in mind, he probably did. Many of you will recognize the voice of a young Emmy Lou Harris singing harmony. Next step is to move back in time to the group he formed with Chris Hillman, The Flying Burrito Brothers. 1969’s Gilded Palace of Sin. Then check out the record he made when he was a member of the Byrds, Sweetheart of the Rodeo (This is a total classic record that makes lots of all time best album lists). From this classic, we are entering into terrain more suited to the already established super fan, so if by this point, you feel you qualify, get Burrito Deluxe, the International Submarine Band’s Safe at Home (his first official record). And then you can start digging into the live stuff (he had an amazing road band and some of the live stuff is among my all time favorite live recordings).
I will sleep like a baby tonight, knowing that in my small way I may have helped you to find your way into a wealth of music that these three artists have given us.
Happy listening,
Pete Droge
1/5/10 | Comments (2)Tags: CUT THROUGH THE NOISE, Jeremy Messersmith, KATE BRADLEY, LETTERS FROM THE ROAD, OUTLANDOS MUSIC, Pete Droge —
Guest post this week from Michael “Mick” Flores of my new fave band, Gidgets Ga Ga, self-described as a “Midwestern powerpop trio with grit, wit, spirit and musicality. Imagine The Replacements getting jumped by The Beatles and The Monkees then molested by The Who & Nirvana.” I couldn’t have said it better. Take it away Mick…
Dear 7-year-old Me,
I’m writing this letter to you because you are 7 years old and you don’t know what life has in store for you. So I am going to fill you in on some things.
I’m still knocked out by the musical tsunami I heard in the basement. You know exactly what I am talking about. When you heard that song for the first time. It still happens to you when you hear it.
Music was and still is the answer. Music is your call. You will never have a doubt that music is calling your name. You were scratching before it was cool and an art form. (Note to self: scratching a record with a needle makes it skip!)
Remember when Mom gave you your first guitar? It was really a gift to Mom from Dad for Valentine’s Day. Mom wanted to learn how to play but it was too hard on her fingers so she did what any good mom would do. She gave it to you. Remember her handing it over and looking you in the eye when you told her you wanted to be a musician? And her words of wisdom as she handed it to you were: “That’s great son, just remember musicians suffer and a musician’s life is a hard life. Great musicians have to suffer and you have to suffer to make great music. You my son, have not suffered enough.” So you said what any smart-ass kid would say and told her, “Let the suffering begin!” Needless to say, that guitar wasn’t any kinder to you than it was to Mom. It was a lot harder on your fingers as they blistered, peeled and bled out.
I still admire the fact that Mom has a deep understanding of the heart and soul of artists and musicians. Although she was not a musician herself, she sure knew how to enlighten you as an aspiring one. She still does to this day. She taught you how to hear the tinge of sadness in the happy music you listen to, never letting you forget how that emotional duality is what makes a great song great. The lyrics, the melody, and the music working in unison to create songs that live on forever. Out of all the advice she has given, this was the most useful and absolutely true.
So, dearest 7-year-old Me, you’ve learned and continue to learn so much. But the below list might make your musical journey easier, so refer to it. The order of the list is unimportant as each item is of equal importance. Print this list. You will need to, Grasshopper, if you want to walk the toilet paper.
- Never give up.
- Balance is essential. Be the moderation man. Too much is never enough and not enough is sad.
- Never give up.
- Wear clean underwear just in case you’re in an accident.
- Wash, rinse, repeat!
- Never give up.
- Please and thank you never go out of style. Be grateful.
- Never give up.
- Spinal Tap is required movie viewing for all musicians.
- Remember Stompy Joe!
- Never give up.
- Never use a house vocal mic. It’s like using someone else’s hanky. Live healthy!
- Never give up.
- Choose your bandmates wisely. Seriously — this is way important.
- Never give up.
- Beware of hired guns and those who carry them.
- Never give up.
- Patience; great things happen in their own time. Remember the harder you push, the more you may elude the very things you seek.
- Never give up.
- We are nothing without love. Money can’t buy you love (except in Vegas and it’s a wee bit expensive). You will never have to pay for it.
- Never give up.
- Happiness is our own creation and we choose to create it.
- Never give up.
- Make peace, get a piece.
- Never give up.
- Great songs are the ones you want to finish. Always serve the song.
- Never give up.
- Have as much fun as you can and get caught having it.
- Never give up.
Sincerely Yours in Rock & Roll,
— Me (that means you!)
12/7/09 | Comments (1)Tags: CUT THROUGH THE NOISE, Gidgets Ga Ga, KATE BRADLEY, LETTERS FROM THE ROAD, OUTLANDOS MUSIC —
Not so much a letter this go-round but… a guest appearance via e-mail interview this week from acclaimed author and entertainment attorney Donald Passman (REM, Janet Jackson, Tina Turner, etc.). Holy beans, even we can still hardly believe it.
Don’s latest version of All You Need to Know About the Music Business: Seventh Edition
Take it away Don….
OUTLANDOS MUSIC: Radiohead, Trent Reznor, Jill Sobule… with historically built-in fan bases, these artists make giving music away for free, DIY fundraising packages and social media marketing look easy. But what if you’re a complete unknown? Where do you start?
DONALD PASSMAN: MANY ARTISTS ARE NOW STARTING WITH A VERY GRASS ROOTS LEVEL. THEY BUILD A FANBASE BY GIVING AWAY THINGS (PINS, STICKERS, ETC.) AT THEIR SHOWS IN EXCHANGE FOR AN EMAIL ADDRESS, THEN THEY STAY IN TOUCH WITH THEIR FANS ON A REGULAR BASIS, BUILDING A FOLLOWING UNTIL IT REACHES CRITICAL MASS.
OM: Because so many artists have been quick to attempt the above model, “free” may, in fact, be dead. Now that we expect it; where’s the value in that? Which then begs the question, what’s the new “free?”
DP: THE KEY TO SUCCESS IS BREAKING THROUGH THE NOISE. THERE ARE OVER SEVEN MILLION BANDS ON MYSPACE. OTHER THAN A FLUKE DISCOVERY THAT CATCHES ON VIRALLY, IT’S BASED ON HARD WORK AND BUILDING A FOLLOWING, AS NOTED ABOVE. ALSO, THE RECORD COMPANIES PUT MONEY AND EXPERTISE INTO MARKETING. TO DATE, NO ONE HAS BROKEN THROUGH ON A TRULY MAJOR LEVEL WITHOUT A COMPANY BEHIND THEM. THAT MAY CHANGE IN THE FUTURE, BUT FOR NOW, THAT’S THE CASE.
OM: Honing one’s craft versus social media efforts: if you had to assign percentages between only these two things, denoting over all time spent, what would they be and why?
DP: THE COMMON DENOMINATOR TO ALL SUCCESSFUL PEOPLE IS A BLEND OF TALENT AND DRIVE, WITH (FRANKLY) DRIVE HAVING THE EDGE. THERE ARE MODERATELY TALENTED PEOPLE WITH MAJOR CAREERS WHO ARE VERY GOOD AT MARKETING THEMSELVES, JUST AS THERE ARE MAJOR TALENTS WHO HAVE NEVER BEEN SUCCESSFUL. IT TAKES BOTH. YOU NEED THE GOODS, BUT PEOPLE HAVE TO KNOW ABOUT THEM.
OM: Be honest. If a fledgling artist (whose music you loved) came to you and asked your advice, if they should quit their day job and try to make it, so to speak, in this day and age, where fledgling artists are a dime a dozen and for the most part labels no longer nurture careers, would you say “go for it” or “don’t quit your day job?”
DP: I WOULDN’T GIVE UP THE DAY GIG UNTIL I HAD A PRETTY GOOD SENSE THAT THERE WAS A “THERE THERE.” IF THERE’S MOMENTUM, SOME MONEY COMING IN, THEN IT’S TIME TO GO FOR IT. THERE’S NO MAGIC FORMULA; EVERYONE HAS TO MAKE THAT DECISION ON THEIR OWN.
THANKS SO MUCH FOR THE INTERVIEW!
DON
11/2/09 | Comments (3)Tags: Bob Lefsetz, CUT THROUGH THE NOISE, Donald Passman, KATE BRADLEY, LETTERS FROM THE ROAD, OUTLANDOS MUSIC, THE iNSIDERS NETWORK —
