Bay City Arts Center’s auction/dinner is over. 61 people for the dinner—biggest crowd ever, I understand—and 80 came for the documentary movie (ditto). A number of people who came said they did so because of my front-page article in the paper (nice to know the paper did that). I spent most of my time designing the graphics for everything, and fighting with the printer. (I finally figured out the problem wasn’t the printer: it was because my Sotheby’s-style auction brochure was so huge—the Arts Center’s 1999-vintage PC did not have enough RAM to handle it. I think I can get the extra RAM locally.)
And for me? One of my apparent fans got the Deathgrass CD for $5.00 and another one won the Joe Concert for $25.00. Both were happy. (I told them they should be. They got a real good deal.)
I decided I might as well immortalize this Christmas’ search for a dreidel (the Jewish Hanukkah top) in song. The search was unsuccessful—and long—but I did get to go some different places and meet different people in the process. Ultimately I was told by a Presumably Knowledgeable Person that there appeared to be a Dreidel Shortage and I should dust off my woodworking skills and make my own, because that was the only way I was going to get one. (They are pretty simple to make, though I haven’t tried it. At this point, I have a whole ‘nother year before I may need one again.)
Yes, there is probably a song in it (one without any dead things, even). It already has a chorus, thanks to Wednesday night’s long and harrowing trip back from Portland. I had wanted to write a Jewish folk tune, anyway, because it is fascinating music—happy dance music in a minor key?—and the unsuccessful search for a dreidel by a Gentile boy is probably an appropriate subject for a Jewish folk song. At this point, though, my chorus is traditional bluegrass music (I haven’t steeped myself enough yet in the folk melodies), and in fact the melody my chorus has is one I’ve already used in another song. That will have to change. Every song must be different.
I suppose that’s a niche market—but I’m not after a market in this instance so much as I’m trying an experiment. When I wrote “Last Song of the Highwayman” last year, I was deliberately trying to master the medieval ballad. I’m after a similar result in this case. I want to master the Jewish folk song. In one take, of course.
And for next Christmas… I learned this year (in the course of collecting Christmas trivia for the Netarts show) that the 19th-century Christmas carol “Silent Night” was originally written as a JIG. That’s pretty fast-moving music, there—that song would rock. Reportedly when it was first played in public, the younger church-goers really liked it, and the old folks hated it, and this may have been why. These days, of course, it’s done as a very slow waltz—no doubt to pacify those old folks, who are the majority of church-goers.
Envision a music video, with “Silent Night” played the way it’s supposed to be played. We’d set it in one of those Live Nativity Scenes, with the Happy Couple, the Famous Baby, some animals (we will need sheep), and a couple of shepherds. The shepherds pull out instruments—a banjo and trumpet—and another hauls in a standup bass, and they play one verse of “Silent Night” the slow, waltzy way. And then the bass player launches into the jig. First lead by the trumpet (I do know a trumpet player). The Wise Man drift in with electric instruments (guitar, fiddle and keyboard) and a drum set appears (hey, it’s Christmas—magical things happen); second lead is by the keyboard player, or maybe the fiddle, or both. By the end, we’ve got Mary and Joseph dancing a jig with each other and with shepherds and angels, the sheep doing backup vocals (sheep baa in A, I found), and Baby Jesus’ halo flashing in time to the music. It’d be tons of fun to do.
Joe
Friday, December 30, 2011
Thursday, December 29, 2011
TONIC LOUNGE POST-MORTEM (&C.)...
Tonic Lounge show was really good. The place was packed (not because of me, but it’s nice to play to a packed house) and the audience was very appreciative. The other comics were good, too—a couple of them really good. I got paid, and sold a CD—neither of which I expected. For once, one of my gig trips to Portland actually paid for itself (or would have if I hadn’t had to drive 50 miles and 1-1/2 hours out of my way because the highway home was closed b an accident). Got to throw my “Another Thong from Joe” thongs out to the audience, too—yes, I’m a thong-writer—and found they didn’t throw very far (next time I’ll put little weights in them).
The audience appeared to like “The Abomination Two-Step” best, followed by “Dead Things in the Shower.” But really, all the songs were good.
I tried to listen to the winning songs in the contests I entered in 2011 (one should know what other people think is good), but most of those aren’t available yet (and when they are, one will probably have to pay to listen to them). The exception was the one that won the Angler’s Mail contest in England, “We’re Going Fishing.” Yes, it’s a happy, upbeat song—quite listenable, in fact—and the sentiments are nicely positive, unlike “Dead Fishes,” the one I’d sent them. Mine was upbeat, all right, but hardly happy.
Two points that hit home—one important, the other less so. “We’re Going Fishing” had a video. No, Angler’s Mail hadn’t asked for a video, but they got one from these folks, and that video went right to YouTube. Of course YouTube is free but it’s additional great exposure for both the song and the magazine. I can see why Angler’s Mail would pick a song that had a video over one that didn’t. (The video is quite well done, too: a nice, seamless mix of still shots, video, and computer-generated graphics. I want to try some of those tricks myself.) DJ Len Amsterdam’s mantra, again: “Video is the new audio.”
The other thing the writers did that I’m sure gave them a leg up is they mentioned Angler’s Mail in the song. (The video showed the Angler’s Mail logo a few times, too.) If I were the folks at Angler’s Mail picking the winning song, that sure would have got my attention. I couldn’t be that blatant myself, but there is an important lesson there: know your market. The people who wrote “We’re Going Fishing” definitely did.
Would this affect what I write? I don’t think so. I’m not exactly pandering to a commercial market; I’m simply expressing ideas, and hoping they’re understood and appreciated. Yes, I’d like the commercial market to appreciate them, too. The latter consideration might affect what I submit to contests in the future, though. I will do a better job of knowing my market—and if I don’t think I can supply what it wants, I won’t waste my time. The former consideration just reinforces my desire to get everything on video.
“Base” tracks are recorded for “Spend the End of the World with Me” (and the song is only a little over three minutes even with a lead break—this is definitely a shortie). “Lazarus” the laptop got Audacity in the process (along with the occasionally hard to find *.mp3 converter) because the Tascam still has Volume Issues. Next: Jane’s fiddle lead—I’m not sure the song is going to need anything else—and then the video.
Joe
The audience appeared to like “The Abomination Two-Step” best, followed by “Dead Things in the Shower.” But really, all the songs were good.
I tried to listen to the winning songs in the contests I entered in 2011 (one should know what other people think is good), but most of those aren’t available yet (and when they are, one will probably have to pay to listen to them). The exception was the one that won the Angler’s Mail contest in England, “We’re Going Fishing.” Yes, it’s a happy, upbeat song—quite listenable, in fact—and the sentiments are nicely positive, unlike “Dead Fishes,” the one I’d sent them. Mine was upbeat, all right, but hardly happy.
Two points that hit home—one important, the other less so. “We’re Going Fishing” had a video. No, Angler’s Mail hadn’t asked for a video, but they got one from these folks, and that video went right to YouTube. Of course YouTube is free but it’s additional great exposure for both the song and the magazine. I can see why Angler’s Mail would pick a song that had a video over one that didn’t. (The video is quite well done, too: a nice, seamless mix of still shots, video, and computer-generated graphics. I want to try some of those tricks myself.) DJ Len Amsterdam’s mantra, again: “Video is the new audio.”
The other thing the writers did that I’m sure gave them a leg up is they mentioned Angler’s Mail in the song. (The video showed the Angler’s Mail logo a few times, too.) If I were the folks at Angler’s Mail picking the winning song, that sure would have got my attention. I couldn’t be that blatant myself, but there is an important lesson there: know your market. The people who wrote “We’re Going Fishing” definitely did.
Would this affect what I write? I don’t think so. I’m not exactly pandering to a commercial market; I’m simply expressing ideas, and hoping they’re understood and appreciated. Yes, I’d like the commercial market to appreciate them, too. The latter consideration might affect what I submit to contests in the future, though. I will do a better job of knowing my market—and if I don’t think I can supply what it wants, I won’t waste my time. The former consideration just reinforces my desire to get everything on video.
“Base” tracks are recorded for “Spend the End of the World with Me” (and the song is only a little over three minutes even with a lead break—this is definitely a shortie). “Lazarus” the laptop got Audacity in the process (along with the occasionally hard to find *.mp3 converter) because the Tascam still has Volume Issues. Next: Jane’s fiddle lead—I’m not sure the song is going to need anything else—and then the video.
Joe
Monday, December 26, 2011
CHRISTMAS LAST?
On Christmas Day, one should talk about Christmas, right? Nah. Everybody else is doing that. Here are some random music-related thoughts instead.
It was exciting to have “Spend the End of the World with Me” written in just a couple of days—made me feel I hadn’t lost my touch. It’s been performed, too, before a live audience, and they liked it. I’m accordingly hot to get it recorded and videoed, so I’ll feel comfortable about going on to something else.
Recording will be done on the Tascam; I can’t afford to professionally record everything, especially the stuff I’m pretty sure isn’t going anywhere. The “base” tracks I’ll do as usual, with me playing rhythm and a simple lead, and singing, then mixing that down and re-posting it as two tracks on the Tascam—leaving me two tracks for recording the other people (if they’re willing) doing the fancy stuff. I believe I have the ability now to record two instruments simultaneously, using the mixer for the inputs (I have a splitter I can use to rig up two sets of headphones); that’d be fun to try.
I could record the video for the song all in one location, I think, if I could get all the props together. I had assembled a list of desired props to hunt for—and then realized I either have or can find substitutes for all of them. I don’t even have to do “location” shooting of the band: I can use still shots of them, too. It would be nice to have somebody else to run the camera, though, for some of the shots—like the one where I toss a thrift-store globe through a basketball hoop and let it smash on the ground. (Still do need the thrift-store globe, and to borrow the use of someone’s basketball hoop for the occasion—but I have a work-around for that, too, if it doesn’t happen.)
Two more performances coming up. Wednesday, Dec. 28, I’ll be part of Whitney Streed’s “Weekly Recurring Humor Night” at the Tonic Lounge in Portland, and Saturday, Jan. 21, the Hoffman Center in Manzanita is having another talent show. Jane and I will do “The Abomination Two-Step” at the Hoffman, I think—some folks have actually requested it. Whitney’s people in Portland will get “Can I Have Your Car When the Rapture Comes?” plus “Dead Things in the Shower,” “The Abomination Two-Step,” and “Pole Dancing for Jesus.” Having “Dead Things” on the list will allow me to promote the Deathgrass album.
Spent Christmas Eve doing an application for a city-manager job I’m sure I’m not going to get. I got fed up enough with the headhunting outfit recruiting for the job to use my cover letter as an opportunity to lecture them, and the city that hired them, about what they’re doing. It’s too bad there are two days before I can put the stuff in the mail, because I keep having second thoughts about it. Am I burning bridges if I do this? Then again, the city in question has made it clear they don’t want to hire me anyway, and the headhunter outfit hasn’t called me for an interview in 18 years—ever, in fact. I’m not sure any bridges exist, even if I did want to burn them.
It would be fun to put together an album of end-of-the-world songs; I’d be real curious what other writer’s “take” is on Armageddon. (We’d need to have it out to market early, just in case.) The End of Everything has been predicted before—a lot, in fact—and it hasn’t happened yet, and it might not happen this December 21, either. But one of these times, the predictors are going to be right. Given those circumstances, what kind of advice would writers be giving people? What kind of advice should we give?
Joe
It was exciting to have “Spend the End of the World with Me” written in just a couple of days—made me feel I hadn’t lost my touch. It’s been performed, too, before a live audience, and they liked it. I’m accordingly hot to get it recorded and videoed, so I’ll feel comfortable about going on to something else.
Recording will be done on the Tascam; I can’t afford to professionally record everything, especially the stuff I’m pretty sure isn’t going anywhere. The “base” tracks I’ll do as usual, with me playing rhythm and a simple lead, and singing, then mixing that down and re-posting it as two tracks on the Tascam—leaving me two tracks for recording the other people (if they’re willing) doing the fancy stuff. I believe I have the ability now to record two instruments simultaneously, using the mixer for the inputs (I have a splitter I can use to rig up two sets of headphones); that’d be fun to try.
I could record the video for the song all in one location, I think, if I could get all the props together. I had assembled a list of desired props to hunt for—and then realized I either have or can find substitutes for all of them. I don’t even have to do “location” shooting of the band: I can use still shots of them, too. It would be nice to have somebody else to run the camera, though, for some of the shots—like the one where I toss a thrift-store globe through a basketball hoop and let it smash on the ground. (Still do need the thrift-store globe, and to borrow the use of someone’s basketball hoop for the occasion—but I have a work-around for that, too, if it doesn’t happen.)
Two more performances coming up. Wednesday, Dec. 28, I’ll be part of Whitney Streed’s “Weekly Recurring Humor Night” at the Tonic Lounge in Portland, and Saturday, Jan. 21, the Hoffman Center in Manzanita is having another talent show. Jane and I will do “The Abomination Two-Step” at the Hoffman, I think—some folks have actually requested it. Whitney’s people in Portland will get “Can I Have Your Car When the Rapture Comes?” plus “Dead Things in the Shower,” “The Abomination Two-Step,” and “Pole Dancing for Jesus.” Having “Dead Things” on the list will allow me to promote the Deathgrass album.
Spent Christmas Eve doing an application for a city-manager job I’m sure I’m not going to get. I got fed up enough with the headhunting outfit recruiting for the job to use my cover letter as an opportunity to lecture them, and the city that hired them, about what they’re doing. It’s too bad there are two days before I can put the stuff in the mail, because I keep having second thoughts about it. Am I burning bridges if I do this? Then again, the city in question has made it clear they don’t want to hire me anyway, and the headhunter outfit hasn’t called me for an interview in 18 years—ever, in fact. I’m not sure any bridges exist, even if I did want to burn them.
It would be fun to put together an album of end-of-the-world songs; I’d be real curious what other writer’s “take” is on Armageddon. (We’d need to have it out to market early, just in case.) The End of Everything has been predicted before—a lot, in fact—and it hasn’t happened yet, and it might not happen this December 21, either. But one of these times, the predictors are going to be right. Given those circumstances, what kind of advice would writers be giving people? What kind of advice should we give?
Joe
Friday, December 23, 2011
"SPEND THE END OF THE WORLD WITH ME"...
Christmas shopping done, I think—and the “Spend the End of the World with Me” song is done, too. It’s undergoing peer review, and then I’ll essay recording it. Played it at Garibaldi City Hall, and the audience did like it so I guess it’s a “keeper.” Ragtime, definitely; I couldn’t make it come out jazz with me playing guitar but ragtime is kinda close.
It’s only got one verse and a chorus; it’d be nice to have more, but those two things really do sum it up, and saying anything else would be superfluous. And I refuse to be superfluous. Wrabek’s Rule One is make it a complete thought—someone should be able to say, “Well, I guess that’s all that needs to be said about that.” And I think I have a complete thought here, even though it’s simple and primal (of the “Hey, the world’s ending, honey—let’s go to bed” variety).
What do I think makes people like it? (I rarely ask directly.) I think because it’s a happy, bouncy song about a dark and serious issue—the world ending next December. Not that it’s happy about that happening per se but that it finds an aspect of it to be light-hearted about. I do enjoy playing against type.
I need to ask—I think I’ll ask it of all songs from now on—“How would I turn this into video?” I want apocalyptic imagery, I think—but I don’t have the technology or the money to create it on my own. I can think of two possible ways to go. I could do still shots of end-of-the-world paintings by Brueghel (et al.) mixed with news articles announcing the Dec. 21 apocalypse, and maybe live footage of me and other musicians playing; that’d be easiest. Alternatively, I could mimic what Bob Dylan did in his early video of “Subterranean Homesick Blues” (and two British guys did in “I Saw It in the Daily Mail”), and film me (or someone) displaying, and then tossing away, those images while the soundtrack plays. That’d take help—but I’m supposed to be asking for help.
For the soundtrack, I would ideally want a manic fiddle for the “whiny” lead and a honky-tonk piano for the “non-whiny” lead. I do know people who can do those. I’ll record a “base” track first so I can shop it around. (And of course, it may not turn out that way. Like Mick Jagger said, “You can’t always get what you want…”)
I have results from all three of the concerts I entered in 2011. Only the Songwriters Association of Washington sent me an e-mail telling me judging was over, and I wasn’t the one who won—I had to go to the other outfits’ Websites to find the results. No, I didn’t win any of the contests. Goodnight Kiss Music said “No Good Songs About the War” was “close” to being in the Top Ten, which is nice (however, the Top Three are the ones who get the good stuff), and Angler’s Mail magazine over in England said they hadn’t picked their #2 and #3 songs yet, just the #1 (which wasn’t me). I guess that means “Dead Fishes” is still in the running, but I won’t hold my breath.
Played Electric Banjo at the Tsunami; hadn’t intended to play it as much as I did, but there were way too many guitarists there, and all of them better’n me. I did have to amplify the thing in order to be heard at all. Got to experiment with some of the effects on the little guitar amp, too. Since the banjo as a species does not have a lot of sustain, I have to play it faster, so I’m fitting more notes into the dead spaces; I do more hammering-on and pulling-off as well (lazy way to get more extra notes). And what I do on the banjo is transferable to the guitar, and vice versa.
With the Christmas holiday upon us, the next time I actually get to play music is The Gig, next Wednesday at the Tonic Lounge in Portland. Lots to do before then.
Joe
It’s only got one verse and a chorus; it’d be nice to have more, but those two things really do sum it up, and saying anything else would be superfluous. And I refuse to be superfluous. Wrabek’s Rule One is make it a complete thought—someone should be able to say, “Well, I guess that’s all that needs to be said about that.” And I think I have a complete thought here, even though it’s simple and primal (of the “Hey, the world’s ending, honey—let’s go to bed” variety).
What do I think makes people like it? (I rarely ask directly.) I think because it’s a happy, bouncy song about a dark and serious issue—the world ending next December. Not that it’s happy about that happening per se but that it finds an aspect of it to be light-hearted about. I do enjoy playing against type.
I need to ask—I think I’ll ask it of all songs from now on—“How would I turn this into video?” I want apocalyptic imagery, I think—but I don’t have the technology or the money to create it on my own. I can think of two possible ways to go. I could do still shots of end-of-the-world paintings by Brueghel (et al.) mixed with news articles announcing the Dec. 21 apocalypse, and maybe live footage of me and other musicians playing; that’d be easiest. Alternatively, I could mimic what Bob Dylan did in his early video of “Subterranean Homesick Blues” (and two British guys did in “I Saw It in the Daily Mail”), and film me (or someone) displaying, and then tossing away, those images while the soundtrack plays. That’d take help—but I’m supposed to be asking for help.
For the soundtrack, I would ideally want a manic fiddle for the “whiny” lead and a honky-tonk piano for the “non-whiny” lead. I do know people who can do those. I’ll record a “base” track first so I can shop it around. (And of course, it may not turn out that way. Like Mick Jagger said, “You can’t always get what you want…”)
I have results from all three of the concerts I entered in 2011. Only the Songwriters Association of Washington sent me an e-mail telling me judging was over, and I wasn’t the one who won—I had to go to the other outfits’ Websites to find the results. No, I didn’t win any of the contests. Goodnight Kiss Music said “No Good Songs About the War” was “close” to being in the Top Ten, which is nice (however, the Top Three are the ones who get the good stuff), and Angler’s Mail magazine over in England said they hadn’t picked their #2 and #3 songs yet, just the #1 (which wasn’t me). I guess that means “Dead Fishes” is still in the running, but I won’t hold my breath.
Played Electric Banjo at the Tsunami; hadn’t intended to play it as much as I did, but there were way too many guitarists there, and all of them better’n me. I did have to amplify the thing in order to be heard at all. Got to experiment with some of the effects on the little guitar amp, too. Since the banjo as a species does not have a lot of sustain, I have to play it faster, so I’m fitting more notes into the dead spaces; I do more hammering-on and pulling-off as well (lazy way to get more extra notes). And what I do on the banjo is transferable to the guitar, and vice versa.
With the Christmas holiday upon us, the next time I actually get to play music is The Gig, next Wednesday at the Tonic Lounge in Portland. Lots to do before then.
Joe
Thursday, December 22, 2011
RECORDING/VIDEOINGT "QUOTH, THE PARROT"...
2012 is an election year. A big one. We’ll either re-elect or depose a President, and if the latter, replace him with someone who may or may not be crazy. We’ll be deciding whether to re-elect or depose most of Congress, too. And state legislatures. And city councils all over the country. And people aren’t all that happy with the government they’ve been getting. Might be an opportunity to get attention for a political song.
Specifically, “The Strange Saga of Quoth, the Parrot.” Written just a couple of days before the November 2008 election, it never had the chance to get any attention. But there’s plenty of time for that now. And all of the problems that existed then are still around, and the parrot’s “screw them all” message perhaps even more relevant than it was four years ago.
The rendition I’ve got was done on the Tascam, with me playing all parts, and is far from perfect. (Link is http://www.soundclick.com/share?songid=7021485.) It’s cute (I’ve shared it repeatedly on Facebook), but is far from “radio-ready.” If I wanted to explore the song’s commercial potential, I’d want to re-record it commercially with a real band. I’ve noted previously this would be an easy song to convert to video.
I’ve got other songs, too, particularly with an economic cast. After two years of doing Failed Economy Shows, Deathgrass has quite a repertoire. We could easily do an entire album of Failed Economy songs.
But “Quoth” is the really political one. It’d be nice to have that one out on the market, being played by radio stations and going viral on YouTube, before too many primaries take place.
How to do that? Well, I have a few options for the recording. Mike Simpson’s Calden West Studios, if he’s got his stuff set up in his new space; the home studio Sara and Wayne (Ocean Bottom Blues Band) have been building; Sedona and Michael’s setup in the Rapture Room (though I want to hear their CD first); or we could set things up at the Bay City Arts Center (where they’ve got a 15-channel mixing board) and I could try to do it there, with help from some people who “have ears.” Nice thing about Mike’s is he’s a known quantity, and very, very good. Nice thing about the Arts Center is we could easily video the song being played at the same time we were recording. I do want to do video.
And the video? I scripted that out a while ago. We start on the beach, probably at Rockaway (where we’re likely to find a pile of driftwood); some beach footage of me, lip-synching, and some footage just of the beach, without me. The lead break—after the second verse—is where we do the credits, and where I’ll want closeups of the band members as well as footage of the band as a whole, playing. Verse three, where me and the parrot go bar-hopping, can be shot entirely in front of the Ghost Hole tavern in Garibaldi. It’d be fun to get some inside footage too, but not essential. (Many things are not essential, just fun.) In the fourth and final verse we’re back to the beach—with maybe some footage in a cemetery, too (I’d scout the cemeteries in Tillamook, Hebo and Bayside Gardens for a “scenic” location). Yes, I’d want assistance with all this. And one of the 2012 Worklist items is to involve other people as much as possible.
A parrot? I’d love to feature a parrot in the video. “The Strange Saga of Quoth, the Parrot” is about a parrot, after all. (Having a parrot in the film is not essential, however—but it’d be a lot of fun.) Since baby sister moved out of Beaverton, some years back, I haven’t known anyone with a parrot that flies around the house, perching randomly on things and people. I’d like to meet one (and film one). If anyone within earshot (or eyeshot) has one or knows one, let me know. I could make the bird a star of the 2012 election…
Joe
Specifically, “The Strange Saga of Quoth, the Parrot.” Written just a couple of days before the November 2008 election, it never had the chance to get any attention. But there’s plenty of time for that now. And all of the problems that existed then are still around, and the parrot’s “screw them all” message perhaps even more relevant than it was four years ago.
The rendition I’ve got was done on the Tascam, with me playing all parts, and is far from perfect. (Link is http://www.soundclick.com/share?songid=7021485.) It’s cute (I’ve shared it repeatedly on Facebook), but is far from “radio-ready.” If I wanted to explore the song’s commercial potential, I’d want to re-record it commercially with a real band. I’ve noted previously this would be an easy song to convert to video.
I’ve got other songs, too, particularly with an economic cast. After two years of doing Failed Economy Shows, Deathgrass has quite a repertoire. We could easily do an entire album of Failed Economy songs.
But “Quoth” is the really political one. It’d be nice to have that one out on the market, being played by radio stations and going viral on YouTube, before too many primaries take place.
How to do that? Well, I have a few options for the recording. Mike Simpson’s Calden West Studios, if he’s got his stuff set up in his new space; the home studio Sara and Wayne (Ocean Bottom Blues Band) have been building; Sedona and Michael’s setup in the Rapture Room (though I want to hear their CD first); or we could set things up at the Bay City Arts Center (where they’ve got a 15-channel mixing board) and I could try to do it there, with help from some people who “have ears.” Nice thing about Mike’s is he’s a known quantity, and very, very good. Nice thing about the Arts Center is we could easily video the song being played at the same time we were recording. I do want to do video.
And the video? I scripted that out a while ago. We start on the beach, probably at Rockaway (where we’re likely to find a pile of driftwood); some beach footage of me, lip-synching, and some footage just of the beach, without me. The lead break—after the second verse—is where we do the credits, and where I’ll want closeups of the band members as well as footage of the band as a whole, playing. Verse three, where me and the parrot go bar-hopping, can be shot entirely in front of the Ghost Hole tavern in Garibaldi. It’d be fun to get some inside footage too, but not essential. (Many things are not essential, just fun.) In the fourth and final verse we’re back to the beach—with maybe some footage in a cemetery, too (I’d scout the cemeteries in Tillamook, Hebo and Bayside Gardens for a “scenic” location). Yes, I’d want assistance with all this. And one of the 2012 Worklist items is to involve other people as much as possible.
A parrot? I’d love to feature a parrot in the video. “The Strange Saga of Quoth, the Parrot” is about a parrot, after all. (Having a parrot in the film is not essential, however—but it’d be a lot of fun.) Since baby sister moved out of Beaverton, some years back, I haven’t known anyone with a parrot that flies around the house, perching randomly on things and people. I’d like to meet one (and film one). If anyone within earshot (or eyeshot) has one or knows one, let me know. I could make the bird a star of the 2012 election…
Joe
Wednesday, December 21, 2011
THE 2012 WORKLIST...
I think it’s time to try a different tack with this Music Biz thing. 2011 was supposed to be the Year of Promotion, and looking back, I don’t see a lot of progress as a result. Continuing to do the Same Old Thing while expecting different results is the classic definition of insanity; I would rather do something different and hope (more sanely) for different results.
Some advice I gave Michael and Sedona when they were doing the first Sedona Fire album (just released, by the way, and I want a copy—it’ll be the first new record I’ve bought since 2008) was do short runs. Sell what you’ve got, and then do another record. If you’re dealing with a small fan base, supply it, and supply it frequently. I believe I will take my own advice.
So how does that affect the 2012 Worklist?
ALBUM, first. It means I put out another album in 2012. I have a big backlog of material; I have come out with an album’s worth of album-able stuff nearly every year since 2006. While the shortage of money is definitely an issue, I do have production costs down to a minimum level. It won’t cost that much. And I can ask the Fan Base which songs I should put on the album. Yes, I’ll keep working on the all-videos Southern Pigfish album, too. It’s got a ways to go.
GIGS. About half with the band, half solo, just as in 2011. The “closer in” focus doesn’t change what I do, here; it does get me playing out more. Every place I’ve played I should play again, and I will add as many new venues as I have old ones. What doors can people in the Fan Base get me in?
VIDEO. I learned a lot in 2011; in 2012, I can apply what I know and learn more. Every song I have should be turned into music video, and every video should be different. Do videos of some co-writes, too. Again, enlist people—as actors, as filmers, and as musicians. A live concert video of some of the performances at the 2012 Relay for Life, too.
PRODUCE SOMEBODY ELSE. That’s a new one. I know how to do it, and I can do a lot of the pieces myself and where I can’t, I know where to get them done at minimal cost. I’ve done it for myself; the next step is to do it for somebody (or somebodies) else. Who? Somebody who has a following and wants a bigger one, I think—and I do know a few of those; since I don’t have the marketing connections (yet), I have to consider any CD I produce primarily useful for promotional purposes—their promotional purposes, in this case.
INFRASTRUCTURE. I’m getting there—I might have a little PA system now, and I’ve got a computer that can burn DVDs and a good video camera. In 2012, I’ll do the Website (finally), get Skype on the home computer, learn how to do podcasts and streaming video.
THE WORLD TOUR. Still a ways away, but I’ll keep working on it. If I had the money—which I don’t, right now—I’d be on the horn (whatever form “the horn” takes) to the people I know in England, Sweden, et al., saying, “I’m coming—what can we set up?” I want to perform in Mongolia because no one I know has ever done so, and I’d like to meet those 61-plus people in Latvia who are reading the blog.
What’s left from 2011? Marketing? Household word? Staying in touch? Let’s put all that together and call it LINKS. All the people I know, and all the things I do and can do, are connected (and connectable) and can feed off each other. Couple that with the BIG FISH, SMALL POND mantra. Supply the Fan Base, rather than trying to expand it. Let it grow on its own.
And WRITING, of course. The previous standards still apply: I want on average one good song a month, and one good co-write a month; I’ll keep trying new genres (I need to try jazz this year), and expand the writing itself into other forms. What can I do besides plays? Is it time for that country-music opera?
Happy upcoming 2012, everybody. It’s supposed to be a short year, with the world scheduled to end on December 21. I’m sure there’s a song in it…
Joe
Some advice I gave Michael and Sedona when they were doing the first Sedona Fire album (just released, by the way, and I want a copy—it’ll be the first new record I’ve bought since 2008) was do short runs. Sell what you’ve got, and then do another record. If you’re dealing with a small fan base, supply it, and supply it frequently. I believe I will take my own advice.
So how does that affect the 2012 Worklist?
ALBUM, first. It means I put out another album in 2012. I have a big backlog of material; I have come out with an album’s worth of album-able stuff nearly every year since 2006. While the shortage of money is definitely an issue, I do have production costs down to a minimum level. It won’t cost that much. And I can ask the Fan Base which songs I should put on the album. Yes, I’ll keep working on the all-videos Southern Pigfish album, too. It’s got a ways to go.
GIGS. About half with the band, half solo, just as in 2011. The “closer in” focus doesn’t change what I do, here; it does get me playing out more. Every place I’ve played I should play again, and I will add as many new venues as I have old ones. What doors can people in the Fan Base get me in?
VIDEO. I learned a lot in 2011; in 2012, I can apply what I know and learn more. Every song I have should be turned into music video, and every video should be different. Do videos of some co-writes, too. Again, enlist people—as actors, as filmers, and as musicians. A live concert video of some of the performances at the 2012 Relay for Life, too.
PRODUCE SOMEBODY ELSE. That’s a new one. I know how to do it, and I can do a lot of the pieces myself and where I can’t, I know where to get them done at minimal cost. I’ve done it for myself; the next step is to do it for somebody (or somebodies) else. Who? Somebody who has a following and wants a bigger one, I think—and I do know a few of those; since I don’t have the marketing connections (yet), I have to consider any CD I produce primarily useful for promotional purposes—their promotional purposes, in this case.
INFRASTRUCTURE. I’m getting there—I might have a little PA system now, and I’ve got a computer that can burn DVDs and a good video camera. In 2012, I’ll do the Website (finally), get Skype on the home computer, learn how to do podcasts and streaming video.
THE WORLD TOUR. Still a ways away, but I’ll keep working on it. If I had the money—which I don’t, right now—I’d be on the horn (whatever form “the horn” takes) to the people I know in England, Sweden, et al., saying, “I’m coming—what can we set up?” I want to perform in Mongolia because no one I know has ever done so, and I’d like to meet those 61-plus people in Latvia who are reading the blog.
What’s left from 2011? Marketing? Household word? Staying in touch? Let’s put all that together and call it LINKS. All the people I know, and all the things I do and can do, are connected (and connectable) and can feed off each other. Couple that with the BIG FISH, SMALL POND mantra. Supply the Fan Base, rather than trying to expand it. Let it grow on its own.
And WRITING, of course. The previous standards still apply: I want on average one good song a month, and one good co-write a month; I’ll keep trying new genres (I need to try jazz this year), and expand the writing itself into other forms. What can I do besides plays? Is it time for that country-music opera?
Happy upcoming 2012, everybody. It’s supposed to be a short year, with the world scheduled to end on December 21. I’m sure there’s a song in it…
Joe
Tuesday, December 20, 2011
NETARTS POST-MORTEM...
Netarts Christmas show was good. Audience appeared to enjoy the stuff; there were a few people there who knew me, and a couple who’d heard me play before, but most of the crowd were new. The Netarts Community Club is a small place but it was full. And I got paid! I hadn’t expected that. Tips, too. It was actually the best-paid gig I’ve had this year (which isn’t saying much for this year, I know).
No CD sales from the Netarts show, and no new names for the “joelist”—but there were the tips. Got fed a nice dinner, too. I did encourage the Community Club folks to have me back; whether they do so will indicate whether they really liked the show, or whether they were just being polite. I told them what they were going to get wasn’t exactly normal, and it wasn’t.
The songs that went over best were “Santa’s Fallen and He Can’t Get Up” and the “Welcome to Hebo Waltz.” I think they appreciated “Santa, Baby” less than most of the audiences I’ve played it for—and conversely, they liked “Even Roadkill Gets the Blues” more than most of the audiences I’ve played it for. (I don’t think they knew exactly how to take “Roadkill”—and I’m no help: I don’t know exactly how to take it either.) They sang along with “White Christmas” (of course) and “Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer” (surprise).
Thursday at the Tsunami in Wheeler and Friday at Garibaldi City Hall will be the last performances of the Christmas songs for another year. I am about ready to do other things. Next Wednesday’s appearance at the Tonic Lounge in Portland, as part of Whitney Streed’s Weekly Recurring Humor Night, will be all non-Christmas songs. ‘Tis the Season Season will be over.
Elsewhere… Got wind of a fellow city manager’s resignation and immediately contacted his mayor about an interim job; I don’t know if I’ll get it, but it was nice to be able to be timely. Two (of four) articles for the paper and my column done timely too. The documentary is done, I understand; I still haven’t seen it but was told instructor Wil Duncan did the soundtrack, and I’m sure it’s good. I’m relieved, on the one hand, that I don’t have to rush composition of a soundtrack just days before the World Premiere of the documentary; on the other, I’m hot to start what they’re calling “Part Two,” because I do want to do a soundtrack and have some ideas for it (and also have some footage that didn’t make it into Part One).
Got given a set of rubber ducks to practice my square dance calls with, and I have a square’s worth (eight) of real dancers willing to let me practice on them, too. Found some “loudspeaker” speakers at a thrift store; they’re small (though maybe that doesn’t matter so much these days), but they will match up to the Radio Shack PA, unlike the ones I’d borrowed. I haven’t tested them yet. If they work I have my PA system, for a total cost of less than $50. I like that. Of course some of the components are more than 50 years old—but so am I.
Joe
No CD sales from the Netarts show, and no new names for the “joelist”—but there were the tips. Got fed a nice dinner, too. I did encourage the Community Club folks to have me back; whether they do so will indicate whether they really liked the show, or whether they were just being polite. I told them what they were going to get wasn’t exactly normal, and it wasn’t.
The songs that went over best were “Santa’s Fallen and He Can’t Get Up” and the “Welcome to Hebo Waltz.” I think they appreciated “Santa, Baby” less than most of the audiences I’ve played it for—and conversely, they liked “Even Roadkill Gets the Blues” more than most of the audiences I’ve played it for. (I don’t think they knew exactly how to take “Roadkill”—and I’m no help: I don’t know exactly how to take it either.) They sang along with “White Christmas” (of course) and “Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer” (surprise).
Thursday at the Tsunami in Wheeler and Friday at Garibaldi City Hall will be the last performances of the Christmas songs for another year. I am about ready to do other things. Next Wednesday’s appearance at the Tonic Lounge in Portland, as part of Whitney Streed’s Weekly Recurring Humor Night, will be all non-Christmas songs. ‘Tis the Season Season will be over.
Elsewhere… Got wind of a fellow city manager’s resignation and immediately contacted his mayor about an interim job; I don’t know if I’ll get it, but it was nice to be able to be timely. Two (of four) articles for the paper and my column done timely too. The documentary is done, I understand; I still haven’t seen it but was told instructor Wil Duncan did the soundtrack, and I’m sure it’s good. I’m relieved, on the one hand, that I don’t have to rush composition of a soundtrack just days before the World Premiere of the documentary; on the other, I’m hot to start what they’re calling “Part Two,” because I do want to do a soundtrack and have some ideas for it (and also have some footage that didn’t make it into Part One).
Got given a set of rubber ducks to practice my square dance calls with, and I have a square’s worth (eight) of real dancers willing to let me practice on them, too. Found some “loudspeaker” speakers at a thrift store; they’re small (though maybe that doesn’t matter so much these days), but they will match up to the Radio Shack PA, unlike the ones I’d borrowed. I haven’t tested them yet. If they work I have my PA system, for a total cost of less than $50. I like that. Of course some of the components are more than 50 years old—but so am I.
Joe
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