MAKING TOOLS FOR THE STREET TEAM...

Let’s say—because it actually might happen—I get asked to do an out-of-town concert, for pay, with another musician. Other musician isn’t well-known in the area where we’re going (and I’m not known at all), but the people putting on the concert (who don’t know me, but do know the other musician) constitute a decent “street team” that can theoretically do promotional legwork.

I’m told I’m being invited because (1) I’m a better guitarist (at least I’m not afraid of jumping in and playing lead when needed), and (2) I am not afraid of performing before large groups of people. Basically, I act like I know what I’m doing--though (1) is kind of a surprise, and makes me want to go practice the guitar more.

So what do we do to maximize this opportunity? I have suggested we record a couple of things—things we might do in the show—and get those into the hands of the “street team” and sent to anybody the “street team” tells us to. One of those recordings ought to include video—simple stuff of us performing, to give the potential viewers a “this is what it’s like” idea. The rest—one or two, I’d think—can be just audio; they’d go to radio stations, be played on Websites, for friends, &c.—whatever the “street teamers” want to do. It’s their market, after all. We would just be supplying tools for them to work the market with.

Do I have the wherewithal to do this? Perhaps. The little 4-channel Tascam is capable, on occasion, of putting out “radio-ready” product; it would have to in this case. (And I would have to re-record and re-record until we had “radio-ready” product.) Video I know I could do on the Webcam of one of the Arts Center’s computers, but it’d be nice to use my camera instead, because my “system” is portable. I just haven’t done it with either of my cameras yet.

To complete the package, we take a couple of professional-looking promotional photos (my little digital camera will do that), and write up a press release suitable for local media (I can do that). “Street team” gets all this in electronic form, plus a pile of pre-assembled envelopes with (1) CD of the songs we recorded, (2) DVD of the one-song live performance, and (3) press release and photos (also on CD, just in case).

And posters (well, flyers—I can’t print anything bigger’n 8x11 unless I pay for it). Yes, I can do an eye-catching concert flyer (one of my specialties, after all), and send the “street team” some copies, and a CD from which they can print more. If they want to have it blown up to double or poster size, they can. Flyer should probably go in those envelopes, too.

A couple of prerequisites: I have got to get the new DVD-rewritable drive I put in “Alice” to work right (it plays, but I haven’t been able to record DVDs or CDs yet); I assume that’s a driver problem, but don’t know. I’d hate to have to invest in a new unit. I will need to invest in those little mixers I’ve talked about—one for instruments, one for headphones—I haven’t found them used anywhere. And of course, a laptop (loaded with the drivers and software to “read” the Tascam) would be ideal—but that’s simply not in the cards. I will have to make do with “StuartLittle” instead—a little kludgier than a laptop, but “fits in two Rubbermaid storage containers” is about as portable as I can afford right now.

Music Saturday at the Library, and Thursday and Sunday nights with “the impromptus” (last person I saw call us that capitalized it—I wonder if that means the name is catching on?). And still a lot of other things to do.

Joe