He was a hero to our heroes. By time we came along, he was already a preacher.
Yes, our heroes were born during the war. Roger Waters has made a whole career writing about it, and he broke after the Beatles and the Stones.
You see while we in America were riding the zeitgeist, we were ignoring the heroes of our past, mostly our blues heroes, but they were soaking them up in England, and we ended up with not only John Mayall, but Eric Clapton, Mick Taylor, Peter Green...the list goes on and on.
But on this side of the pond, English blues-rock came after the British Invasion.
Now some boomers were conscious at the end of doo-wop. Some even experienced Fabian and Bobby Rydell. But the Beatles came along and wiped away all that had come before, except for the Four Seasons and the Beach Boys, and suddenly music was the focus of attention for boomers across the land, the world, it was kinda like the tech frenzy of the first decade of this century (and the last half of the one before!), music was everything, you had to know about the new thing, hell, Michael Lewis even wrote a book entitled THE NEW NEW THING!
But then it died.
We can debate all day long what the first rock and roll record was. Most insiders agree it was "Rocket 88," the press often says it was "Rock Around the Clock," but one thing is for sure, what was happening in the fifties was different from what had happened in the forties. It was a new sound. With Little Richard, Jerry Lee Lewis, Carl Perkins and Fats Domino too, but baby boomers really only knew Elvis, who'd sold out and gone Hollywood, the Beatles of his day, the difference being, and it was a big one, he did not write his own songs. Then again, the Beatles didn't always either, they covered Little Richard.
So by time most boomers reached consciousness, they thought Fats Domino was dead, the fact that he could be living in plain sight in New Orleans was unfathomable. We all knew "Blue Suede Shoes," but few of us could tell you it was recorded by Carl Perkins. As for Jerry Lee Lewis and his cousin Myra? That eluded us completely, until Lewis tried to make a comeback, when "Rolling Stone" made everybody aware of rock and roll news, and sometimes history.
So, there'd been a rock explosion, that had mostly expired. Kinda like the hip-hop explosion of the eighties and early nineties, just when you thought it was over, it fired-up with a vengeance, to the point it rules today. Pop, mostly meaningless, was dominating the airwaves, but then the Little Richard and early rock-influenced Beatles broke out, and through the door came a whole slew of acts brought up on the same influences. These were war babies, who'd grown up with hardship, they lived for the music in a way no one is focused today, with so many options for diversion.
We didn't learn of Little Richard and the Beatles' infatuation with him from "Meet the Beatles," but on "The Beatles' Second Album," which was really the third, VeeJay's "Introducing" came before, the opening cut on the second side was...
"Long Tall Sally."
"I'm gonna tell Aunt Mary, 'bout Uncle John"
Paul McCartney emoted with exuberance. Even beyond that which was exhibited on the hits, like "I Want to Hold Your Hand" and "She Loves You." It was like he was plugged into a socket and had been shocked. Now they call him "Sir Paul," but he used to be a scruffy kid from Liverpool, who played the catalog of the original rock and roll of the fifties in multiple sets a night in Hamburg. There's not a boomer alive who is unaware of this version of Little Richard's hit, no one today is as big as the Beatles were, forget the charts and statistics, these albums were oftentimes all people had, and they played them until they turned gray, and then bought the CDs and watched the documentary and...
So now, there's a rock press. Rock info is readily available. And all these English rockers can't stop testifying about Little Richard. They rarely talked Elvis, they'd mention Jerry Lee, even Ike Turner, but through their lens it appeared that Little Richard was their Beatles, that he meant everything to them.
So we started being exposed to these tracks. Most specifically, "Tutti Frutti." Huh?
"Whop bop b-luma b-lop bam bom"
Who knew what the song was about. And this was in the era of one speaker radios and record players, misinterpretation was rampant, and everybody was convinced that there was something dirty in the song, not that they could agree on it.
And then came the covers. Like Mitch Ryder's "Good Golly Miss Molly."
Not that the average person knew it was a Little Richard hit, to most people, Little Richard was just a name. But we knew his real name was Richard Penniman, and what he was selling was energy, with no limits, the power of a sound that not only enticed teens, but drew them to gigs where they got caught up in the energy.
By the late sixties, the turn of the decade, covers became more rampant, and they weren't always hits. "You're My Girl" (a retitling of "I Don't Want to Discuss It"), was the second best song on the Rhinoceros album, and the best was the legendary "Apricot Brandy." And for those of us who got the memo on Rod Stewart, there was an absolutely killer version of the same song, now titled "You're My Girl (I Don't Want to Discuss It," closing "Gasoline Alley."
But still, Little Richard was not a household name, he was nowhere to be seen. He was an oldie, maybe dead himself.
I met him in this era. With his producer Bumps Blackwell. And the funny thing about Little Richard...
Well, there were two funny things.
1. He was not little.
2. He was always on.
Now if you've met many celebrities, you know that oftentimes the character on stage is not the one you get in real life, especially if their rep is built on energy. But it was like Little Richard was plugged into that socket 24/7, who even knew how he slept. He'd fawn over himself, crack jokes and take mock offense at the tiniest of slights. It was weird, because he was an icon and he wouldn't brush you off but he was always in character, meeting him was an indelible experience.
And then he made his comeback.
It was "Down and Out in Beverly Hills." Back when Disney was the business story of Hollywood and flicks were all not high concept blockbusters. You went to the theater on a regular basis, and seemingly everyone saw this pic.
And put a face to the name of Little Richard. And was exposed to his magnetism.
And then suddenly he was everywhere. Even more than Orson Welles. Welles might have made the best movie of all time, but Richard was one of the progenitors of rock, with multiple hits, who could still perform on the same level whenever called upon. His contemporaries acted like old men, Little Richard seemed ageless.
And he became part of the firmament. Someone you always expected to be there. A god from another era here to walk the earth now.
But today he passed.
The news mentioned his son. Which was another point of mystery. Richard was seen as gay, back when "homosexual" was a bad word. I mean who really was this guy, he was a walking enigma!
And yes, he had a thousand watt personality.
But really, it comes down to those records.
Today a track is a means to an end. You build your brand and leverage it. But back in the original days of rock and roll, you didn't even get rich on your hits. There were no royalties. You made what you got playing live. And if you were African-American, there were places you couldn't play, and oftentimes white, Top Forty radio, wouldn't play your songs at all, and if they did, they were covered by some white guy, like Pat Boone.
So, it was about the music.
And the drinking, the drugging and the sex.
This is what a musician used to be. Not someone computer-savvy posting to social media, but someone whose life mostly took place in the shadows. These were people who didn't fit into regular society, or who didn't want to fit in, who saw music as their way out.
And they created their own rules. They were renegades, they were outlaws.
And that was the appeal of their music. It was not dumbed-down, there was nothing cut off the edges for consumption, it was all raw humanity, in a way most people couldn't even express, but resonated with when they heard it.
Now the weird thing is rock history is passing in front of our very eyes.
Sure, there's the 27 club.
But in the last decade we've lost people we shouldn't have, like David Bowie and Glenn Frey. And before that the inexplicable death of John Lennon.
But now it seems to be a regular feature in the news, celebrities tweet their condolences and everybody moves on. And we no longer live in a rock culture, and a lot of the work of those who've passed is not regularly played or remembered.
But Little Richard is different. This is the beginning. This was the moon shot. The fact that this guy was still walking the planet was utterly astounding. And if you missed him... You might have seen the Stones, but without Little Richard, would there be any Stones? Beatles too?
Somehow Richard was not a curio, his hits were stuck in the past, but his performances and his identity were not. Maybe because Richard was singular, anything but me-too. When they created him they truly broke the mold, hell, Richard broke it being birthed. He took on all comers. He could play in any arena. Michael Jackson might have called himself the King of Pop, but Little Richard was the King of Rock & Roll long before, and despite some detours, Richard continued to reign.
The king is dead.
Long live the king.
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Saturday, 9 May 2020
Friday, 8 May 2020
Mailbag-Brian Howe & More
Re: Brian Howe
Nice piece on a rally good front man. The early Bad Company renascence days were difficult. At one point they came to me at a rehearsal and told me Brian did not want to sing any of the prior Bad Company songs as their focus had to be on the new album. I told them it was daft, but all four of them had that mindset. I picked up a phone and in front of them made a "pretend" phone call to Barbara Skydel and cancelled the planned US first tour. That got their attention, and I got their grudging agreement to do three original BC songs. In spite of low traction on the first album, we got away with it and were able to move on to Terry Thomas and some great co-writes with Brian.
Terry was 100% Bud Prager's idea.
Best,
Phil Carson
_________________________________________
Re: Brian Howe
1983: Producer Ashley Howe, Richard Steinberg and I accidentally "discovered" Brian Howe....while we were sitting in Richard's office at Atlantic Records sorting through a hundred "song" demos looking for a few new outside songs for the upcoming Ted Nugent LP.....Penetrator. Richard popped in probably song #87.....and 20 seconds later he was about to hit eject when the vocal came in. The song was immediately forgettable.......but the voice woke us all up an we all looked at each with the same question....WHO was the singer?. We got the songwriter on the phone in the UK and he told us the singer was just a football mate of his in Portsmouth and they had recorded the song in a DJ booth at the local radio station. We got Brian on the phone, and we offered to fly him over to try out laying down some vocals for Ted's new album. We had Ted working in a rehearsal room in NYC at the time with the Billy Squire band as back up.
Brian landed at the airport.....we had a car meet him to bring him straight to rehearsals, and when he got in the car, he made the driver take him straight to Bud Prager's office instead because what he really wanted to do was join Foreigner replacing Lou Gramm! That meeting with Bud did not go well. Brian ended up joining us and laid down great vocals for us, so much so we ended up taking him on tour with us as well that next summer.
Then when Bud and Phil needed a new vocalist for Bad Co......Brian, in the right place at the right time, fit the bill. He was as opinionated as he was talented and vice versa. But as you said...he COULD SING.
RIP Brian
_________________________________________
From: BILLY CHAPIN
Subject: Re: Brian Howe
Stan Lynch and I had the pleasure of writing with Brian. He was a rough, witty, opinionated Brit and a big presence. when ever you get a couple of old rockers in a room, it's always a funfest. I remember when he started singing, Stan and I were looking at each other going holy shit. What a voice. RIP.
B Chapin
_________________________________________
From: Dennis Pelowski
Subject: Re: Mailbag
"From: Richard Griffiths
Subject: Re: Happy Song Playlist
I worked with Ozzy as his publisher for years and then when I went to run Epic I had him as a recording artist. I had just hired Michael Goldstone as head of ANR and he was the one who made the No More Tears album. Brilliant. Sharon is probably the best manager ever!"
That would actually be close to true; REM was well off with Bertis and when you add it up, REM owns all their rights, quit while way ahead, made ZERO bad deals in their career, and kept everything up and up for everyone including the office hands (ask Jefferson Holt if it paid to try any shit against any one on team REM), plus they were truly built from scratch with Bertis brought on early); Sharon did akszing work but fact is, Ozzy was a superstar in need of a career rehab and the timing was perfect for that; Landau has a claim, for it was his work that unwound Bruce's mess with Appel.
Peter Grant set the bar but his lack of couth and his drug addiction cost Zeppelin millions in the long run - he lacked vision when it mattered a lot on publishing.
Sharon? She was bright, charismatic, extremejy perceptive, and ubiquitous- I was a 17 year old journalist who came from a town of 40,000. In April 1981, Sharon got ahold of me, through Randy Levy of Shon Productions, and treated me like I was a top editor at Rolling Stone. On Memorial Day, '81, as Crazy Train was starting to get traction, she invited me to breakfast and the interview was hers, not mine. She grilled me about the radio stations i listened to, the stores I cared for, the merch I saw people buying, and so on and so forth. She was a data machine - never pausing long between questions, all pointing to where she could make a difference in the Minnesota marketplace and how good was the regional Epuc office and were they doing their job. Later that day, Ozzy played around 330 p and in front of .38 Special. Sharon gave me two passes and I spent the afternoon hanging with Randy Rhodes and Tommy Aldridge, and it is still the most memorable time I have ever had at a gig.
So yeah, Sharon rules. Or did. When it most mattered
_________________________________________
Subject: Re: Mailbag
I work for a loudspeaker manufacturer and my entire team and I got sick at NAMM. For most of us, we were sick for about 3 weeks, starting with a fever, cough and we all felt like crap for the duration. It also came in two waves — you felt better after a week and then had a relapse. Two of my colleagues just had antibody tests and one of them came back as positive. My guess is the other one experienced a false negative.
I know of at least 6 other people who got as sick as we did as the show. I'm waiting for a reliable test to become available so I can be tested.
Lee Stein
_________________________________________
Subject: Re: Music Industry Snapshot
Hey Bob,
How about concert (and live event in general) technical production? Our part of the business cannot afford to be forgotten – please!
My company, TMB, provides specialized products and services to the rental companies – sound, lighting, video, rigging, staging, etc. – that provide the equipment and personnel to the tours and festivals (or we did, until recently). We've been doing this for almost 40 years and, while only a small part of the live event pie, even we now have over 100 folks on furlough around the world, with our revenues running around 5% of plan.
The pie we're part of – companies and personnel (roadies, techs, programmers, designers, manufacturers, etc.) – may itself not be that large ($5 – 10 billions?) but we are an integral part of the business and it concerns me we didn't get a mention.. We know this part of the economy will be amongst the last to recover, it will help if our position is recognized..
Thanks for listening.
Colin Waters
_________________________________________
From: Jon Tiven
Dear Bob,
OK, here goes, I have tested positive for COVID.
A week and a half ago my next door neighbor mentioned that they were offering free COVID testing to Musicians here in Nashville, and I figured better to know. I have been in deep quarantine since Mar 5, only going out to walk my dog (often) and shop for groceries (once a week, with mask and gloves). I have been the most adamant social distancer on my walks, and the only person I've been in close contact with is my wife. I wash my hands every time I go out, come in, or pretty much every time I pass a sink. And I am 100% unsymptomatic, feeling not only fine but above par. They were doing not only the nose swab (for current infection) but blood as well (for antibodies), and I opted for both.
So I figured unlikely to test positive, but if I did, at least I'd know and would be able to take further precautions to not infect my neighbors (I now wear a mask and bandana on my dog walks). Last Tuesday they called me to know that I was positive for the swab and negative for antibodies, which means that it was a fresh infection. And my wife, who has been in quarantine with me, negative for both.
I am not looking for well-wishes or sympathy, I'm fine, but I would like to offer the following:
1) Anyone can have this, whether they are symptomatic or not. So if you think you're safe hanging with your neighbor who doesn't sneeze or cough, think again. All the precautions in the world may not fully protect you, but I'm sure it helps plenty.
2) As far as my Asymptomatic Status, I have a healthy immune system I'm sure. I do 40 minutes on the recumbent bike every morning and take a whole lot of vitamins including Calcium Magnesium Zinc. Is this helpful? Donno, but I'm sure it doesn't hurt.
3) Since I started quarantine, I've been gargling with ST37 several times daily. It is an antiseptic mouthwash that I've put my trust in for years and it has rewarded me with no colds. When I feel the slightest twinge in the throat, a few swishes and it's off to the races. Tastes like ass, but it's worth it.
So that's what I have to offer. If this helps anybody, great. And if you can get tested, do it.
_________________________________________
From: Andrew Hurwitz
Subject: Love from Philly --- a good story for you bob.
Bob -
Feel good story from Philly. I think you'll find it interesting.
I'm the director of 30amp Circuit, a non-profit created specifically to promote health and wellness for musicians and those that work for them. We did not invent this model. The road to helping artists was well paved by the likes of our heroes from The New Orleans Musicians Clinic, The Health Alliance for Austin Musicians, SMASH Seattle, Sweet Relief, MusicCares and many more.
In fact, there's an organization of these wonderful non-profits called The Music Health Alliance and we had just me in DC this March when the Corona first hit. We all knew that this storm was going to devastate our community of musicains so we began working on a "plan B" - just in case things got "Katrina Bad" these folks like to say.
Sure enough, it's now Katrina worse on every possible level and I'm sure you've heard of the many great things all of these organizations have been doing locally and nationally in the name of helping our musicians and artists. Here at 30Amp our lifeblood is the summer touring season where we bring our Backstage Clinic program (https://30amp.org/backstage-clinic) to festivals near and far. We all saw the fall of SXSW as the canary in the coal mine and when festivals began to drop one by one thereafter we began to focus our attention and funding on the local music community in our home town of Philadelphia.
We started giving out "Micro-Grants" to musicians in need. The grants are approved through a very simple and instant process that allows us to give out quick zaps of money, cost-of-living grants, through PayPal without much red tape. But as soon as we dipped or toes in the water we realized how deep it really is. The need is vast and endless.
In an effort to raise more money and awareness we put tougher last weekends' Love From Philly virtual music festival a live 3-day event which included an eclectic mix of over 100 musicians plus appearances by local politicians, philly-famous celebrities, and hosted by our local news fox and nbc news anchors broadcasting live from their homes. It was all free, it was all on youtube and it was all broadcast in real time. There was a big tip jar for contributions.
We gave each artist a 15 minute slot which they were free to curate any way they wanted - some went with one song (John Oates' tearjerking cover of the Sounds of Philadelphia) some used the full set (Low Cut Connie stripping down to his underwear and going over his 15 minute allotment) some artists went absolutely live (Schooly D and DJ Cash Money destroying it in their basement) and some went with pre-recorded clips (see Bahamadia in her closet). Some artists went super low-fi (Kurt Vile live from his basement) and some went super high tech (War on Drugs' mesmerizing performance that somehow had all members synched in from their homes).
No matter how you cut it the results were fascinating but i'll cite my top 3 for the sake of brevity:
(1). There was no involvement at all from Live Nation, AEG or any other promoters, talent buyers, or agents. There was no advertising and as all artists donated their tie, no fees. It was created and executed basically through GoogleHangouts and directed by a team of young people from their bedrooms. It's not that we didn't want help from the big dogs — here in Philly we all stick together. Geoff Gordon from Live Nation was our first call to get involved and he was so completely supportive, it's just that most business owners big and small spent the last month cleaning up this mess and still trying to find their footing in this wacky new world.
(2) The event raised close to $100,000 of pure profit and brought people together in the most unique ways. Some of the best parts about festivals - sharing new music, meeting new friends, discovering new bands, etc. took place in the most profound ways even though…it was virtual. We had 500K impressions from 50+ countries and the chat-rooms were blowing up all day. In the end we will give away 300 micro-grants, 300 zaps to 300 people that need it bad. Not enough to change their lives, but enough to buy some food and pay some bills.
(3) Most important was the true joy it brought to our music community. I don't think anyone realized how badly they needed it, how badly they all needed to come together - as virtual as it is. The musicians big and small were there in the chat-rooms "hooting and hollering" for each other - connecting in a way that artists and musicians need. It was a real hang! And people connected and re-connected in a profound way. We all missed eachother so much. Funny how the hang is as vital as the music somehow when it comes to the artists. And you know what? In paying these grants and dealing with these artists you realize that they are all just appreciative that people care. The money is almost secondary, just to know that they have value, and purpose, still, is a super big win.
So if you get a chance - check out some of the fest - some of it got shut down by Youtube and we're getting it back up - lessons learned when broadcasting live. Watch how these musicians are presenting their art in the most intimate raw and beautiful ways from their homes, from their previously off-limits to the public spaces, and how they are stripped down to their core which leaves their performances all together unique, pure and beautiful.
Even our sponsor AAA (based in the suburb of Philly called Delaware) was amazing - the Vice President spoke from his driveway next to his beat up old VW van that he shared used to go to many festivals back in the day, name dropping his favorite bands, and coming across as so genuine and real. (They kicked in 20K by the way).
Anyway — the virtual festival. i belive there is potential. It as the most fun I've had all pandemic. And the future of music just might be the same as the past — local by nature.
Love from Philly where we take care of our own.
Andy
https://lovefromphilly.live
https://30amp.org
Nice piece on a rally good front man. The early Bad Company renascence days were difficult. At one point they came to me at a rehearsal and told me Brian did not want to sing any of the prior Bad Company songs as their focus had to be on the new album. I told them it was daft, but all four of them had that mindset. I picked up a phone and in front of them made a "pretend" phone call to Barbara Skydel and cancelled the planned US first tour. That got their attention, and I got their grudging agreement to do three original BC songs. In spite of low traction on the first album, we got away with it and were able to move on to Terry Thomas and some great co-writes with Brian.
Terry was 100% Bud Prager's idea.
Best,
Phil Carson
_________________________________________
Re: Brian Howe
1983: Producer Ashley Howe, Richard Steinberg and I accidentally "discovered" Brian Howe....while we were sitting in Richard's office at Atlantic Records sorting through a hundred "song" demos looking for a few new outside songs for the upcoming Ted Nugent LP.....Penetrator. Richard popped in probably song #87.....and 20 seconds later he was about to hit eject when the vocal came in. The song was immediately forgettable.......but the voice woke us all up an we all looked at each with the same question....WHO was the singer?. We got the songwriter on the phone in the UK and he told us the singer was just a football mate of his in Portsmouth and they had recorded the song in a DJ booth at the local radio station. We got Brian on the phone, and we offered to fly him over to try out laying down some vocals for Ted's new album. We had Ted working in a rehearsal room in NYC at the time with the Billy Squire band as back up.
Brian landed at the airport.....we had a car meet him to bring him straight to rehearsals, and when he got in the car, he made the driver take him straight to Bud Prager's office instead because what he really wanted to do was join Foreigner replacing Lou Gramm! That meeting with Bud did not go well. Brian ended up joining us and laid down great vocals for us, so much so we ended up taking him on tour with us as well that next summer.
Then when Bud and Phil needed a new vocalist for Bad Co......Brian, in the right place at the right time, fit the bill. He was as opinionated as he was talented and vice versa. But as you said...he COULD SING.
RIP Brian
_________________________________________
From: BILLY CHAPIN
Subject: Re: Brian Howe
Stan Lynch and I had the pleasure of writing with Brian. He was a rough, witty, opinionated Brit and a big presence. when ever you get a couple of old rockers in a room, it's always a funfest. I remember when he started singing, Stan and I were looking at each other going holy shit. What a voice. RIP.
B Chapin
_________________________________________
From: Dennis Pelowski
Subject: Re: Mailbag
"From: Richard Griffiths
Subject: Re: Happy Song Playlist
I worked with Ozzy as his publisher for years and then when I went to run Epic I had him as a recording artist. I had just hired Michael Goldstone as head of ANR and he was the one who made the No More Tears album. Brilliant. Sharon is probably the best manager ever!"
That would actually be close to true; REM was well off with Bertis and when you add it up, REM owns all their rights, quit while way ahead, made ZERO bad deals in their career, and kept everything up and up for everyone including the office hands (ask Jefferson Holt if it paid to try any shit against any one on team REM), plus they were truly built from scratch with Bertis brought on early); Sharon did akszing work but fact is, Ozzy was a superstar in need of a career rehab and the timing was perfect for that; Landau has a claim, for it was his work that unwound Bruce's mess with Appel.
Peter Grant set the bar but his lack of couth and his drug addiction cost Zeppelin millions in the long run - he lacked vision when it mattered a lot on publishing.
Sharon? She was bright, charismatic, extremejy perceptive, and ubiquitous- I was a 17 year old journalist who came from a town of 40,000. In April 1981, Sharon got ahold of me, through Randy Levy of Shon Productions, and treated me like I was a top editor at Rolling Stone. On Memorial Day, '81, as Crazy Train was starting to get traction, she invited me to breakfast and the interview was hers, not mine. She grilled me about the radio stations i listened to, the stores I cared for, the merch I saw people buying, and so on and so forth. She was a data machine - never pausing long between questions, all pointing to where she could make a difference in the Minnesota marketplace and how good was the regional Epuc office and were they doing their job. Later that day, Ozzy played around 330 p and in front of .38 Special. Sharon gave me two passes and I spent the afternoon hanging with Randy Rhodes and Tommy Aldridge, and it is still the most memorable time I have ever had at a gig.
So yeah, Sharon rules. Or did. When it most mattered
_________________________________________
Subject: Re: Mailbag
I work for a loudspeaker manufacturer and my entire team and I got sick at NAMM. For most of us, we were sick for about 3 weeks, starting with a fever, cough and we all felt like crap for the duration. It also came in two waves — you felt better after a week and then had a relapse. Two of my colleagues just had antibody tests and one of them came back as positive. My guess is the other one experienced a false negative.
I know of at least 6 other people who got as sick as we did as the show. I'm waiting for a reliable test to become available so I can be tested.
Lee Stein
_________________________________________
Subject: Re: Music Industry Snapshot
Hey Bob,
How about concert (and live event in general) technical production? Our part of the business cannot afford to be forgotten – please!
My company, TMB, provides specialized products and services to the rental companies – sound, lighting, video, rigging, staging, etc. – that provide the equipment and personnel to the tours and festivals (or we did, until recently). We've been doing this for almost 40 years and, while only a small part of the live event pie, even we now have over 100 folks on furlough around the world, with our revenues running around 5% of plan.
The pie we're part of – companies and personnel (roadies, techs, programmers, designers, manufacturers, etc.) – may itself not be that large ($5 – 10 billions?) but we are an integral part of the business and it concerns me we didn't get a mention.. We know this part of the economy will be amongst the last to recover, it will help if our position is recognized..
Thanks for listening.
Colin Waters
_________________________________________
From: Jon Tiven
Dear Bob,
OK, here goes, I have tested positive for COVID.
A week and a half ago my next door neighbor mentioned that they were offering free COVID testing to Musicians here in Nashville, and I figured better to know. I have been in deep quarantine since Mar 5, only going out to walk my dog (often) and shop for groceries (once a week, with mask and gloves). I have been the most adamant social distancer on my walks, and the only person I've been in close contact with is my wife. I wash my hands every time I go out, come in, or pretty much every time I pass a sink. And I am 100% unsymptomatic, feeling not only fine but above par. They were doing not only the nose swab (for current infection) but blood as well (for antibodies), and I opted for both.
So I figured unlikely to test positive, but if I did, at least I'd know and would be able to take further precautions to not infect my neighbors (I now wear a mask and bandana on my dog walks). Last Tuesday they called me to know that I was positive for the swab and negative for antibodies, which means that it was a fresh infection. And my wife, who has been in quarantine with me, negative for both.
I am not looking for well-wishes or sympathy, I'm fine, but I would like to offer the following:
1) Anyone can have this, whether they are symptomatic or not. So if you think you're safe hanging with your neighbor who doesn't sneeze or cough, think again. All the precautions in the world may not fully protect you, but I'm sure it helps plenty.
2) As far as my Asymptomatic Status, I have a healthy immune system I'm sure. I do 40 minutes on the recumbent bike every morning and take a whole lot of vitamins including Calcium Magnesium Zinc. Is this helpful? Donno, but I'm sure it doesn't hurt.
3) Since I started quarantine, I've been gargling with ST37 several times daily. It is an antiseptic mouthwash that I've put my trust in for years and it has rewarded me with no colds. When I feel the slightest twinge in the throat, a few swishes and it's off to the races. Tastes like ass, but it's worth it.
So that's what I have to offer. If this helps anybody, great. And if you can get tested, do it.
_________________________________________
From: Andrew Hurwitz
Subject: Love from Philly --- a good story for you bob.
Bob -
Feel good story from Philly. I think you'll find it interesting.
I'm the director of 30amp Circuit, a non-profit created specifically to promote health and wellness for musicians and those that work for them. We did not invent this model. The road to helping artists was well paved by the likes of our heroes from The New Orleans Musicians Clinic, The Health Alliance for Austin Musicians, SMASH Seattle, Sweet Relief, MusicCares and many more.
In fact, there's an organization of these wonderful non-profits called The Music Health Alliance and we had just me in DC this March when the Corona first hit. We all knew that this storm was going to devastate our community of musicains so we began working on a "plan B" - just in case things got "Katrina Bad" these folks like to say.
Sure enough, it's now Katrina worse on every possible level and I'm sure you've heard of the many great things all of these organizations have been doing locally and nationally in the name of helping our musicians and artists. Here at 30Amp our lifeblood is the summer touring season where we bring our Backstage Clinic program (https://30amp.org/backstage-clinic) to festivals near and far. We all saw the fall of SXSW as the canary in the coal mine and when festivals began to drop one by one thereafter we began to focus our attention and funding on the local music community in our home town of Philadelphia.
We started giving out "Micro-Grants" to musicians in need. The grants are approved through a very simple and instant process that allows us to give out quick zaps of money, cost-of-living grants, through PayPal without much red tape. But as soon as we dipped or toes in the water we realized how deep it really is. The need is vast and endless.
In an effort to raise more money and awareness we put tougher last weekends' Love From Philly virtual music festival a live 3-day event which included an eclectic mix of over 100 musicians plus appearances by local politicians, philly-famous celebrities, and hosted by our local news fox and nbc news anchors broadcasting live from their homes. It was all free, it was all on youtube and it was all broadcast in real time. There was a big tip jar for contributions.
We gave each artist a 15 minute slot which they were free to curate any way they wanted - some went with one song (John Oates' tearjerking cover of the Sounds of Philadelphia) some used the full set (Low Cut Connie stripping down to his underwear and going over his 15 minute allotment) some artists went absolutely live (Schooly D and DJ Cash Money destroying it in their basement) and some went with pre-recorded clips (see Bahamadia in her closet). Some artists went super low-fi (Kurt Vile live from his basement) and some went super high tech (War on Drugs' mesmerizing performance that somehow had all members synched in from their homes).
No matter how you cut it the results were fascinating but i'll cite my top 3 for the sake of brevity:
(1). There was no involvement at all from Live Nation, AEG or any other promoters, talent buyers, or agents. There was no advertising and as all artists donated their tie, no fees. It was created and executed basically through GoogleHangouts and directed by a team of young people from their bedrooms. It's not that we didn't want help from the big dogs — here in Philly we all stick together. Geoff Gordon from Live Nation was our first call to get involved and he was so completely supportive, it's just that most business owners big and small spent the last month cleaning up this mess and still trying to find their footing in this wacky new world.
(2) The event raised close to $100,000 of pure profit and brought people together in the most unique ways. Some of the best parts about festivals - sharing new music, meeting new friends, discovering new bands, etc. took place in the most profound ways even though…it was virtual. We had 500K impressions from 50+ countries and the chat-rooms were blowing up all day. In the end we will give away 300 micro-grants, 300 zaps to 300 people that need it bad. Not enough to change their lives, but enough to buy some food and pay some bills.
(3) Most important was the true joy it brought to our music community. I don't think anyone realized how badly they needed it, how badly they all needed to come together - as virtual as it is. The musicians big and small were there in the chat-rooms "hooting and hollering" for each other - connecting in a way that artists and musicians need. It was a real hang! And people connected and re-connected in a profound way. We all missed eachother so much. Funny how the hang is as vital as the music somehow when it comes to the artists. And you know what? In paying these grants and dealing with these artists you realize that they are all just appreciative that people care. The money is almost secondary, just to know that they have value, and purpose, still, is a super big win.
So if you get a chance - check out some of the fest - some of it got shut down by Youtube and we're getting it back up - lessons learned when broadcasting live. Watch how these musicians are presenting their art in the most intimate raw and beautiful ways from their homes, from their previously off-limits to the public spaces, and how they are stripped down to their core which leaves their performances all together unique, pure and beautiful.
Even our sponsor AAA (based in the suburb of Philly called Delaware) was amazing - the Vice President spoke from his driveway next to his beat up old VW van that he shared used to go to many festivals back in the day, name dropping his favorite bands, and coming across as so genuine and real. (They kicked in 20K by the way).
Anyway — the virtual festival. i belive there is potential. It as the most fun I've had all pandemic. And the future of music just might be the same as the past — local by nature.
Love from Philly where we take care of our own.
Andy
https://lovefromphilly.live
https://30amp.org
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Thursday, 7 May 2020
Brian Howe
https://spoti.fi/2SO2BiV
"And every time I see your face
It lightens up the whole damn place"
"How About That"
We won't be seeing Brian Howe's face anymore.
Calling it Bad Company was sacrilegious. But what are you gonna do when your iconic lead singer moves on and your label won't sign you unless you use the old moniker?
By time the second edition of Bad Company gained notoriety, this sound was on its deathbed. The hair bands had overloaded the public with attention-seeking ballads and grunge was just around the corner, straight ahead rock was fading, as was AOR...at this point if you didn't cross over to pop, you were left behind. Many thought Bryan Adams's "(Everything I Do) I Do It for You" was a sappy sell-out, but Adams was smart, he got out before the whole thing collapsed, he survived.
If you want to understand the second coming of Bad Company you have to look back to Bud Prager (and Phil Carson!) Prager was an attorney who started in the performing rights area but quickly segued into management. He'd tell you his best friend was Felix Pappalardi, how he got him the gig producing Cream. Prager would speak of Felix's demise as if it were yesterday. But that was Bud, he was dramatic. He was an orator. He was not street, he was dignified.
Not that he could not go gutter.
At this point, Bud is most famous for being the manager of Foreigner. Bud believed, he stuck by Mick Jones when his CV didn't appeal to labels, he cut the Scotti Brothers in for a point forever to ensure the success of the band. And it broke instantly, and sustained.
This was Bud's sound. It's not quite corporate rock, it's not that calculated, this is what Bud knew and he continued to mine this sound until his passing. Hell, he worked with Giant back at the turn of the decade from the eighties to the nineties, and the band turned out a couple of great, radio-friendly tunes, but AOR was dying and the band didn't have a brand name and Dann Huff went back to the studio, ultimately becoming a go-to country music producer.
So, the legend of most bands is they started in the garage, maybe they grew up together, maybe they found each other through an ad, but then they bonded as blood brothers and it was them against the world.
This was not the second iteration of Bad Company. This was a band that was put together on paper. It was not sheer luck, it was sheer effort. Brian Howe had had a turn with Ted Nugent, but nobody can stick for long with the Motor City Madman, he's the star and you'd best never forget it. And Mick Ralphs was an underrated guitarist in Mott the Hoople who finally got his due in the original Bad Company, and he brought "Ready for Love," but despite his licks, he was not a songwriter from scratch, not somebody who could fill up a whole album all by himself. Brian Howe could write too, that made a good fit.
But it didn't work. Keith Olsen produced the initial comeback LP, and it made no splash. That's another person who died, who did not get the obits he deserved. I'm not sure who he pissed off, he was always cool to me, but I only knew him in e-mail, this was the guy who melded Buckingham and Nicks into the Fleetwood Mac we know, as well as much more.
But then the managers executed a master stroke. I'm sure if Bud were still here today he'd take credit. Phil still is here today, he'll probably take credit, and since he's English it makes sense but...
Someone had the bright idea of bringing in Terry Thomas.
Yes, the man behind, the man who essentially was Charlie. With great albums with great pop sensibilities on Janus that most people were unaware of.
And the first Terry Thomas produced Bad Company album, "Dangerous Age," did not break through.
But the managers stuck with the band. Bud was loyal. Phil too. And what do they say, the third time's the charm?
It started with "Holy Water," the eponymous opener of the LP. "Holy Water" was heavy, in a way what came before was not. The guitar crunched. And Brian Howe emoted. It had that special sauce, the je ne sais quoi, you know, the sound that penetrates your gut and hooks you, that you want to turn up as you bounce around the house with that guitar shaking the walls, this is the power of rock and roll.
The rock and roll that those in control of the media despise, the same media that despised Led Zeppelin, even though Page's outfit was on a whole 'nother level. You see, to resonate with the critics, you had to be punk, you had to strip it down, you had to be out of the mainstream, if anything the mainstream had to come to you, if you were playing in the mainstream lane to begin with you were denigrated, written off, kicked to the curb by the tastemakers, but...the heartland loved you!
So this is when MTV is making the transition from rock to rap. With a ton of overproduced pop, both on wax and on film, in-between. But somehow, "Holy Water" got some traction, you heard it on the dying AOR, it had presence. And then...
"Should have told you by now
But I can't find the words"
Most people making this music can't find the words, either in song or in regular life, they speak through their instrument, but the girls are drawn to them nevertheless.
"If you needed somebody
Like the way that I need you
If you wanted somebody
Ah, the way that I want you"
Yes, "If You Needed Somebody" was a ballad. But it rocked harder than Extreme's "More Than Words," sure, it was soft, but then it built, it was tough, it had balls, and a bridge. The bridge is the secret to the Beatles' success, and even though it's been hiding in plain sight, it seems that today's songwriters can't find it.
So, MTV picked up on "If You Needed Somebody" and it was gigantic. Sure, the name was Bad Company, but it was clear the frontman, Brian Howe, was the star. He and Terry Thomas wrote both of these hits. And if you bought the album it was eminently playable. "Boys Cry Tough," "Stranger, Stranger" and "Walk Through Fire" all had major impact at rock radio (appealing only to those listening, which was a declining number), and the latter even made it all the way up to #28 on the pop chart.
So, this second edition of the band had built itself into a business, it had momentum, this is what you were fighting for back in the day. You released albums, hoped for radio/video exposure, toured incessantly, waiting for it all to catch fire, so you could sell arenas. No one played an arena on their first time out. Flash in the pan was looked down upon, you had to pay your dues, you had to have a catalogue.
So, the new Bad Company is ready to capitalize on "Holy Water"'s success. But in the interim, in the fifteen months between "Holy Water" and its follow-up, "Here Comes Trouble," grunge arrived, Nirvana and Pearl Jam, no one wanted the sound Bad Company was making, it was seen as passe. And not being hip to begin with, the band had no hit and broke up.
But there was a hit on rock radio. Which was not playing grunge. Which meant less every day, to the point where today it's a niche, albeit a harder rocking niche.
And that hit is quoted at the top of this screed.
It's "How About That."
"Last night when the moon was new
I couldn't sleep, I was thinking of you
And how much I need you
How 'bout that?"
"How About That" is the apotheosis of the second coming of Bad Company. It's got an inviting guitar intro, the kind of sound you used to live for, that you used to fantasize to.
And one thing about Brian Howe...HE COULD SING!
A lot of lead singers, even famous ones, cannot. But they were there in the beginning, in the garage, it's too late to kick them out now. But when you're building a band, or filling a hole, pipes are a requirement. Howe could hit the high notes, he could emote, he could sell it. He was a totally different animal from Paul Rodgers, really not even in his league, but when it came to what was coming across the airwaves Brian Howe was a solid B, and live this meant everything, you couldn't fake it on stage, this was before all of the fancy sound-processing equipment of today.
So this was back in the era when being on the company mailing list was everything. That built the rock critic business, the free records. You wanted 'em, and those you didn't want you sold so you could stay alive. And if you were a fan of a band, you always spun the new record. And this was in the era of CDs, the transition from vinyl and cassettes was complete, and this meant you could dial up the track you wanted to hear and...PLAY IT OVER AND OVER AND OVER AGAIN!
That's what I love to do most, find a track I love and burn it into the ground. Usually the magic works for a day or two, sometimes a week. Doesn't have to be loud, just has to have some magic. And "How About That" had some.
Now I don't even remember playing the rest of "Here Comes Trouble." Earlier, when the stream segued into the second cut, "Stranger Than Fiction," I was stunned how good it actually sounded. But despite everybody crowing about the album, it started to die with the CD, albums were one long sonic sludge, there was no second side, you focused on the single. People still focus on the single.
The hoi polloi never understand why a band breaks up. You've got a good thing, keep at it, make that money. But that only happens late in the band's career, when the members make up and go on the oldies circuit, usually because they need the cash.
So the band imploded. Brian Howe probably thought he was the band anyway, along with Terry Thomas, they were writing the songs, Thomas sculpted the sound but...
Crickets.
Howe was just the singer. Bad Company was the brand. And without the brand, he was an unwanted character. It's not like rock was dominating the airwaves.
And it became an issue whether Howe could employ the name Bad Company to sell his shows. And when the dust settled, he could not sell his appearances as the band, and he played to ever smaller audiences and became a faded rock star.
Prior to the internet you wouldn't even be able to look them up. They faded away, and they did not radiate.
And yesterday Brian Howe died. It's everywhere. Google news coughs up 148,000 results.
But tomorrow it will be nowhere.
That's how it is. You die, and life goes on. In the internet era the news is spread far and wide, but there's new news the next day, if not that afternoon. And if you're lucky, people will remember you died at all. Especially if you were not a superstar.
Brian Howe came from England. He was a rock and roll lifer. It was different over there, here you could always fall back on your middle class lifestyle, the one you grew up with, but that's not the way most of the rockers grew up over there.
So, you have success and it's hard to give up. For everybody. You were somebody, to some people you're still somebody, you're gonna switch to being a nobody? I don't think so.
So, you sell your soul to rock and roll.
Howe died of cardiac arrest. He'd had a heart attack previously. Was it genetics? Did he not take care of himself?
He knew it was over. He was speaking, then he passed. What flashed before his eyes when the curtain fell?
I'm sure his family.
I'm sure his desire to live.
But mostly his success, he'd made it, he'd thrilled thousands, he'd played in the bigs and...
Some people will never forget him.
--
Visit the archive: http://lefsetz.com/wordpress/
--
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-iHeart: https://ihr.fm/2Gi5PFj
-Apple: https://apple.co/2ndmpvp
--
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--
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"And every time I see your face
It lightens up the whole damn place"
"How About That"
We won't be seeing Brian Howe's face anymore.
Calling it Bad Company was sacrilegious. But what are you gonna do when your iconic lead singer moves on and your label won't sign you unless you use the old moniker?
By time the second edition of Bad Company gained notoriety, this sound was on its deathbed. The hair bands had overloaded the public with attention-seeking ballads and grunge was just around the corner, straight ahead rock was fading, as was AOR...at this point if you didn't cross over to pop, you were left behind. Many thought Bryan Adams's "(Everything I Do) I Do It for You" was a sappy sell-out, but Adams was smart, he got out before the whole thing collapsed, he survived.
If you want to understand the second coming of Bad Company you have to look back to Bud Prager (and Phil Carson!) Prager was an attorney who started in the performing rights area but quickly segued into management. He'd tell you his best friend was Felix Pappalardi, how he got him the gig producing Cream. Prager would speak of Felix's demise as if it were yesterday. But that was Bud, he was dramatic. He was an orator. He was not street, he was dignified.
Not that he could not go gutter.
At this point, Bud is most famous for being the manager of Foreigner. Bud believed, he stuck by Mick Jones when his CV didn't appeal to labels, he cut the Scotti Brothers in for a point forever to ensure the success of the band. And it broke instantly, and sustained.
This was Bud's sound. It's not quite corporate rock, it's not that calculated, this is what Bud knew and he continued to mine this sound until his passing. Hell, he worked with Giant back at the turn of the decade from the eighties to the nineties, and the band turned out a couple of great, radio-friendly tunes, but AOR was dying and the band didn't have a brand name and Dann Huff went back to the studio, ultimately becoming a go-to country music producer.
So, the legend of most bands is they started in the garage, maybe they grew up together, maybe they found each other through an ad, but then they bonded as blood brothers and it was them against the world.
This was not the second iteration of Bad Company. This was a band that was put together on paper. It was not sheer luck, it was sheer effort. Brian Howe had had a turn with Ted Nugent, but nobody can stick for long with the Motor City Madman, he's the star and you'd best never forget it. And Mick Ralphs was an underrated guitarist in Mott the Hoople who finally got his due in the original Bad Company, and he brought "Ready for Love," but despite his licks, he was not a songwriter from scratch, not somebody who could fill up a whole album all by himself. Brian Howe could write too, that made a good fit.
But it didn't work. Keith Olsen produced the initial comeback LP, and it made no splash. That's another person who died, who did not get the obits he deserved. I'm not sure who he pissed off, he was always cool to me, but I only knew him in e-mail, this was the guy who melded Buckingham and Nicks into the Fleetwood Mac we know, as well as much more.
But then the managers executed a master stroke. I'm sure if Bud were still here today he'd take credit. Phil still is here today, he'll probably take credit, and since he's English it makes sense but...
Someone had the bright idea of bringing in Terry Thomas.
Yes, the man behind, the man who essentially was Charlie. With great albums with great pop sensibilities on Janus that most people were unaware of.
And the first Terry Thomas produced Bad Company album, "Dangerous Age," did not break through.
But the managers stuck with the band. Bud was loyal. Phil too. And what do they say, the third time's the charm?
It started with "Holy Water," the eponymous opener of the LP. "Holy Water" was heavy, in a way what came before was not. The guitar crunched. And Brian Howe emoted. It had that special sauce, the je ne sais quoi, you know, the sound that penetrates your gut and hooks you, that you want to turn up as you bounce around the house with that guitar shaking the walls, this is the power of rock and roll.
The rock and roll that those in control of the media despise, the same media that despised Led Zeppelin, even though Page's outfit was on a whole 'nother level. You see, to resonate with the critics, you had to be punk, you had to strip it down, you had to be out of the mainstream, if anything the mainstream had to come to you, if you were playing in the mainstream lane to begin with you were denigrated, written off, kicked to the curb by the tastemakers, but...the heartland loved you!
So this is when MTV is making the transition from rock to rap. With a ton of overproduced pop, both on wax and on film, in-between. But somehow, "Holy Water" got some traction, you heard it on the dying AOR, it had presence. And then...
"Should have told you by now
But I can't find the words"
Most people making this music can't find the words, either in song or in regular life, they speak through their instrument, but the girls are drawn to them nevertheless.
"If you needed somebody
Like the way that I need you
If you wanted somebody
Ah, the way that I want you"
Yes, "If You Needed Somebody" was a ballad. But it rocked harder than Extreme's "More Than Words," sure, it was soft, but then it built, it was tough, it had balls, and a bridge. The bridge is the secret to the Beatles' success, and even though it's been hiding in plain sight, it seems that today's songwriters can't find it.
So, MTV picked up on "If You Needed Somebody" and it was gigantic. Sure, the name was Bad Company, but it was clear the frontman, Brian Howe, was the star. He and Terry Thomas wrote both of these hits. And if you bought the album it was eminently playable. "Boys Cry Tough," "Stranger, Stranger" and "Walk Through Fire" all had major impact at rock radio (appealing only to those listening, which was a declining number), and the latter even made it all the way up to #28 on the pop chart.
So, this second edition of the band had built itself into a business, it had momentum, this is what you were fighting for back in the day. You released albums, hoped for radio/video exposure, toured incessantly, waiting for it all to catch fire, so you could sell arenas. No one played an arena on their first time out. Flash in the pan was looked down upon, you had to pay your dues, you had to have a catalogue.
So, the new Bad Company is ready to capitalize on "Holy Water"'s success. But in the interim, in the fifteen months between "Holy Water" and its follow-up, "Here Comes Trouble," grunge arrived, Nirvana and Pearl Jam, no one wanted the sound Bad Company was making, it was seen as passe. And not being hip to begin with, the band had no hit and broke up.
But there was a hit on rock radio. Which was not playing grunge. Which meant less every day, to the point where today it's a niche, albeit a harder rocking niche.
And that hit is quoted at the top of this screed.
It's "How About That."
"Last night when the moon was new
I couldn't sleep, I was thinking of you
And how much I need you
How 'bout that?"
"How About That" is the apotheosis of the second coming of Bad Company. It's got an inviting guitar intro, the kind of sound you used to live for, that you used to fantasize to.
And one thing about Brian Howe...HE COULD SING!
A lot of lead singers, even famous ones, cannot. But they were there in the beginning, in the garage, it's too late to kick them out now. But when you're building a band, or filling a hole, pipes are a requirement. Howe could hit the high notes, he could emote, he could sell it. He was a totally different animal from Paul Rodgers, really not even in his league, but when it came to what was coming across the airwaves Brian Howe was a solid B, and live this meant everything, you couldn't fake it on stage, this was before all of the fancy sound-processing equipment of today.
So this was back in the era when being on the company mailing list was everything. That built the rock critic business, the free records. You wanted 'em, and those you didn't want you sold so you could stay alive. And if you were a fan of a band, you always spun the new record. And this was in the era of CDs, the transition from vinyl and cassettes was complete, and this meant you could dial up the track you wanted to hear and...PLAY IT OVER AND OVER AND OVER AGAIN!
That's what I love to do most, find a track I love and burn it into the ground. Usually the magic works for a day or two, sometimes a week. Doesn't have to be loud, just has to have some magic. And "How About That" had some.
Now I don't even remember playing the rest of "Here Comes Trouble." Earlier, when the stream segued into the second cut, "Stranger Than Fiction," I was stunned how good it actually sounded. But despite everybody crowing about the album, it started to die with the CD, albums were one long sonic sludge, there was no second side, you focused on the single. People still focus on the single.
The hoi polloi never understand why a band breaks up. You've got a good thing, keep at it, make that money. But that only happens late in the band's career, when the members make up and go on the oldies circuit, usually because they need the cash.
So the band imploded. Brian Howe probably thought he was the band anyway, along with Terry Thomas, they were writing the songs, Thomas sculpted the sound but...
Crickets.
Howe was just the singer. Bad Company was the brand. And without the brand, he was an unwanted character. It's not like rock was dominating the airwaves.
And it became an issue whether Howe could employ the name Bad Company to sell his shows. And when the dust settled, he could not sell his appearances as the band, and he played to ever smaller audiences and became a faded rock star.
Prior to the internet you wouldn't even be able to look them up. They faded away, and they did not radiate.
And yesterday Brian Howe died. It's everywhere. Google news coughs up 148,000 results.
But tomorrow it will be nowhere.
That's how it is. You die, and life goes on. In the internet era the news is spread far and wide, but there's new news the next day, if not that afternoon. And if you're lucky, people will remember you died at all. Especially if you were not a superstar.
Brian Howe came from England. He was a rock and roll lifer. It was different over there, here you could always fall back on your middle class lifestyle, the one you grew up with, but that's not the way most of the rockers grew up over there.
So, you have success and it's hard to give up. For everybody. You were somebody, to some people you're still somebody, you're gonna switch to being a nobody? I don't think so.
So, you sell your soul to rock and roll.
Howe died of cardiac arrest. He'd had a heart attack previously. Was it genetics? Did he not take care of himself?
He knew it was over. He was speaking, then he passed. What flashed before his eyes when the curtain fell?
I'm sure his family.
I'm sure his desire to live.
But mostly his success, he'd made it, he'd thrilled thousands, he'd played in the bigs and...
Some people will never forget him.
--
Visit the archive: http://lefsetz.com/wordpress/
--
Listen to the podcast:
-iHeart: https://ihr.fm/2Gi5PFj
-Apple: https://apple.co/2ndmpvp
--
http://www.twitter.com/lefsetz
--
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Titus Welliver-This Week's Podcast
That's right, Bosch! But you also know Titus from "Deadwood," "Lost," "NYPD Blue" and so many other TV shows and films. Welliver is educated and articulate, a trained actor, he takes his craft seriously. Listen to hear his story, which has enough twists and turns to be a movie itself! Furthermore, you'll get so much insight into being an artist. I truly connected with Titus!
https://www.iheart.com/podcast/1119-the-bob-lefsetz-podcast-30806836/episode/titus-welliver-62193259/?cmp=web_share
https://open.spotify.com/episode/4uPcjW01JntSq0KPFtcj96
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/titus-welliver/id1316200737?i=1000473863775
https://www.stitcher.com/s?eid=69435864
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Wednesday, 6 May 2020
Mailbag
Re: Music Industry Snapshot
As FYi – I never took the Saudi money – they bought stock on open market –LN did not receive any investment. Whoever they bought the shares from got the money..
I have never met them, I read about their stock purchase same time everyone else did when they field with SEC.
I have no control who buys or sells my stock
Michael Rapino
_______________________________________
From: Peter Asher
Subject: RE: Live Pittsburgh 1976
Dear Bob,
Thanks for remembering it all so well. I too have very fond backstage and soundboard memories of the shows you describe - especially the Universal Amphitheater when David & Graham sang so beautifully on Mexico - and on Lighthouse as well as I recall. And I remember standing in the wings and talking Carly through her brutal stage fright as "Mockingbird" was approaching. The Pittsburgh show was at the Syria Mosque and was another very good one. I think it was recorded for a radio show or something - it was never officially intended to be an album at the time and I am not sure who released it or how! Maybe some deal was made much more recently - the band was brilliant, James was in top form and it was indeed a terrific show.
Incidentally (and forgive me if I sound ever so slightly defensive!) "jettisoned" might be slightly too strong a word ("James had jettisoned Peter Asher"). I remained James's manager throughout that whole period (and beyond) and was wholly supportive of his desire to try other producers - and I particularly love the two albums he did with Russ and Lenny whom I admire so much. James and I got back together again in the studio when I subsequently produced JT which became his most successful album since Sweet Baby James and Mud Slide Slim. So perhaps not exactly "thrown overboard".
Peter
_______________________________________
From: Jason Flom
Subject: Re: Charlie Puth On Jersey 4 Jersey
Bob,
A Newark story:
It was a snowy winter day in late 1987 when a songwriter named Jack Ponti called me and said, "Hey Flom, you need to go to a club called Studio One in New Jersey tonight to see a new band called Skid Row." Well, back then I would have gone to see just about anyone, anywhere + I had heard that this Ponti guy was a demi-legend in the Jersey music scene so I rented a car and drove through what had now become a full on blizzard to get to the show. The neighborhood it was in was dicey to say the least (there had been a murder on the sidewalk outside the club the night before) but what I witnessed inside that night became the stuff of legend and began a magical journey. It was only the second show they had ever done with Sebastian Bach as their lead singer but they were locked in a hard rock groove as they blazed through "Youth Gone Wild", "18 and Life" and "I Remember You" among others and right then and there it became my mission to sign them to Atlantic and the rest as they, is history.
Oh and btw, when I got back to my car in the parking lot I discovered that someone had smashed in the driver's side window. I'll never forget driving back to NYC sitting on shards of broken glass with the wind howling and fresh Jersey snow smacking me on the left side of my face.
Ponti was right on the money (as usual) and we've been friends ever since!
_______________________________________
From: Richard Griffiths
Subject: Re: Happy Song Playlist
Have you listened to McCarneys last album Egypt Station? It's brilliant. I went to see him play end of 2018. He was on stage for nearly three hours! Incredible.
I worked with Ozzy as his publisher for years and then when I went to run Epic I had him as a recording artist. I had just hired Michael Goldstone as head of ANR and he was the one who made the No More Tears album. Brilliant. Sharon is probably the best manager ever!
It's funny you mention the "W" bands.
When I worked at Virgin in London I once went to see Adam and the Ants play. After they had had their initial success they were on the way out. Or so I thought! I didn't like the show but the packed room went crazy. Still I figured I knew best.WRONG! They were the biggest band in the country within two years!
But I learned a lesson!
Couple years later I'm running Virgin Music in LA. My right hand man Kaz and I went to see Warrant at the Country Club in the Valley . Place was packed and going crazy for them. We didn't like them BUT we had learned our lesson and signed them. Several million albums later.......
Then this guy Kip Winger came to see us. They had just signed to Atlantic. Again we weren't sure about the music but what got us was Kips ambition and work ethic so we took a bet on Winger. Several million albums later.........
The lesson that time was that talent is important but work ethic and ambition are what gets you to the top.
I've worked with some incredibly talented artists who just didn't want to put the work in and others who may not have been the greatest talent, but we're prepared to do whatever necessary to succeed.
_______________________________________
From: Kaleb Nation
Subject: Re: Charlie Puth On Jersey 4 Jersey
Love your blog — I've been reading it for years. I think it's hilarious and awesome that Charlie Puth is a megastar now. Ten years ago, he was a YouTube musician paying bills by selling custom theme songs, so I bought one for $100. Nowadays that'd easily cost 100x more, so I still tell friends the story of the GREAT deal I got on a platinum-selling, Grammy-nominated singer. It's another reason to support up-and-coming artists: you never know where they'll be a few years later!
I'm a producer now but I started as a YouTuber in the old days. You can hear Charlie Puth sing my name at 0:40 in this video: https://youtu.be/xKxYp6AW37A?t=41
(Please disregard my 2010 baby face.)
Kaleb Nation
_______________________________________
Subject: Re: The Beastie Boys Movie
The idea that Paul's Boutique was a total commercial flop is simply not true. Of course, it didn't do what "Ill" did and didn't have an anthemic single like "Fight"; but by the time I left Capitol in Sept., it was close to 800,000 units. Plus the critical acclaim it received (Hilburn's "The Sgt. Pepper of rap") cannot be ignored. There was total support in the A & R dept. for signing them (if not in the company at large) and Eazy E, who used to hang out at Capitol at the time, told me they were the real deal. What really decided it for me was meeting them. They were just too smart to fuck this up.
David Berman
_______________________________________
Subject: Re: The Beastie Boys Movie
So Rick Rubin and I went to one of those hotels on Sunset. Rick and the Beastie Boys had gotten into a legal tiff, were estranged and weren't working together. We went up to someone's room, which was occupied by Chuck D, Hank Shocklee, Matt Dike and a few other people. They had a pre-release copy of Paul's Boutique, which they played for Rick. I was, like, whatever—it was a bit outside my lane and I didn't come to appreciate it until later. As it ended, Rick looked up and said, "This is the greatest album ever made. It's hip-hop's Sgt. Pepper." DJ RR saluted his old mates and we left.
Peter Paterno, Esq.
_______________________________________
Subject: Re: The Beastie Boys Movie
Wow Bob you nailed it! You wrote " So, these kids are unsupervised, skipping school, having fun." I went to high school with Adam and we did just that. I remember he skipped class to get our copies of The Dead Kernnedys album "Fresh Fruit..." album signed at Bleecker Bobs. Good times!
Stay healthy!
Best,
Graham Hatch
_______________________________________
Subject: Re: Stuck In The Middle With You
Great record. For any of the tech type readers, I engineered Rafael doing his sax thing a couple of years later on another record. He explained they got the Baker Street solo sound by opening the lid of a piano in the studio, placing heavy 2" tape boxes on the sustain pedal and blending the sound of all those strings vibrating sympathetically with each note he played.
Those were the days when engineers actually got off their chairs and experimented!
Walt Aldridge
_______________________________________
From: Steve Traxler
Subject: Re: Stuck In The Middle With You
Sure you saw this video, a great riff from Michael Madsen on what's happening now with everyone being stuck, gotta love his (and families) sense of humor!
https://deadline.com/2020/04/reservoir-dogs-michael-madsen-quentin-tarantino-home-video-1202918123/amp/
_______________________________________
From: Bob Merlis
Subject: Stuck In The Middle
Surprised that no mention was made of the similarity between Steelers Wheel's "Stuck In The Middle" and Sheryl Crow's "All I Wanna Do." As far as I can tell, that quirky guitar figure never existed before SITM and then 21 years later there it was on "All I Wanna Do."
It was instantly recognizable the first time I heard her record and, just like the lyric, "I'm not the only one" to have discerned. this.
_______________________________________
From: Andy Cormack
Subject: Touring Crews
Hey Bob,
Thanks for your emails, they are truly a welcome respite. I am a true fan of yours.
I am also a touring crew member for a major Country artist (Eric Church) and he has kept almost the entire crew on payroll. He is honestly one of the greatest artists out. He is also one of the single best people in the world, and a terrific boss.
I am however, a bit scared of the future of touring crews. I don't think that it's sustainable for him to continue with a monthly payroll over 100k and that's what I worry about. What will all of us do? I know this is not a new question but I am really trying to figure out what the next move is. If shows don't return until 2021 then so many people in my hometown of Nashville will be destroyed and I just can't bear the thought.
I think that you're right in thinking nothing will be dramatically changed after this recedes. I think the move towards virtual is obvious in a time of quarantine but people crave human connection and to think they will replace it is just not feasible. I just needed to write this down to someone that understands. Thanks for being there for us Bob.
_______________________________________
From: Doyle Davis
Subject: Re: Opening America
Yet another "vinyl is irrelevant" comment. I get your point but the culture surrounding record stores remains robust and it's valuable to local music scenes. Jason Isbell made his new record available a week early, but only if you order from an indie record store, and he sold out the entire indie exclusive vinyl and the standard black vinyl in 2 days. the entire vinyl pressing. the amount pressed was based on the previous record and calculated to meet demand through all sales channels so with all the indie record stores closed, Jason sold more records than he ever has, exclusively through the indies, and undershot demand. I sold 500 records in the first hour from my indie shop alone. Maybe this isn't your kind of story but it's a story.
You've become one of my favorite sources of news and insight in the COVID era. Thanks for that.
_______________________________________
From: EveAnna Manley
Subject: Re: Testing
I've enlisted in an army of volunteers for www.masksfordocs.com
I learned about them through my bros in the Pasadena Motorcycle Club. We would get called up to pick up and deliver medical supplies around Los Angeles. Getting PPE to the clinics and docs who need them.
Yesterday I made a delivery run and picked up some headbands that a kid was printing on his 3D printer at home. Justin Levy is 16 years old and making 20 headbands per day! Yeah! There's your dream individual right there!
He inspired me to find out more about what is actually happening on the ground, or in all these homes in suburbia Los Angeles and how I could help more in the effort. I have a factory of assembly workers out in Chino, most of whom are assembling audio electronics at home. And I have some workers who can't work from home and are furloughed as we can't have them work at the factory either. So tomorrow we're going to pick up several thousand plastic sheets that need six holes punched in them to mount onto the 3D printed headbands and I'm going to get my team of hole punchers on it!
If you want something done, ask a busy person!
Nothing brings my anxiety down faster than figuring out something to do to benefit another human.
So when I get these damn trolls "from the other side" arguing with me and defending the appalling disaster in the White House, I just stop and ask them, "What are YOU doing to HELP people? What are YOU doing to keep people safe?"
We are going to get through this, together. But we all need to help.
Cheers, EveAnna Manley, President
Manley Laboratories, Inc.
_______________________________________
From: George Kahn
Subject: LA TIMES: Autopsy results point to earlier spread
I have two friends that went to the NAMM show in Jan 16-19.
Both came down with flu-like symptoms shortly thereafter.
One was sick for about 6 weeks with a nagging cough - no fever but tired and was very sick, never went to a doctor.
She just paid to be tested for COVID-19, and the tests show that she had it and now has immunity to the coronavirus.
How many other people who went to NAMM caught "a cold" there? Just wondering...
_______________________________________
Subject: Georgia and social distancing
Many believe Gov. Kemp in Georgia was responding to Trump's encouragements in authorizing employees to return to work at various businesses in Georgia this weekend. There was more to it. Look closely at which businesses: massage therapy studios, hair salons, tatoo studios, bowling alleys, movie theaters, fitness centers and restaurants. Obviously it flies in the face of social distancing ( can you go a little deeper on my back massage please but stay 6 feet away ?? Oh and let's put on communal bowling shoes ). He has his eyes on the unemployment fund, which is being drained quickly. Income taxes cannot be raised above 6 % in Georgia without a constitutional amendment and Kemp is not going to champion a tax increase to his base God knows. The fund will not be supplemented by taxes. So why not throw poor whites, blacks, Hispanics and Asians back into the work force to risk their health and lives? It immediately reduces the unemployment burden which no doubt is really irritating Kemp. And if a significant percentage of these workers die? No harm - they are not Kemp supoorters.
It is the kind of souless and craven policy we have come to expect from Gov. Kemp.
Russell Carter
Atlanta
_______________________________________
From: Millennia Gmail
Subject: Re: Testing
There is a joke circulating in Germany:
"What borders on stupidity?"
"Mexico and Canada!"
Sent from my Commodore 64
http://www.mickdallavee.com
_______________________________________
From: JOHN F NIXON
Bob...thank you very much for your tremendous letter. I enjoy reading everything you write. And perhaps the greatest of all the bits of knowledge I've gleaned from you is that you have made me aware of Pommery Meaux Mustard. I had never heard of it before but decided to give it a try based on your description. It is fantastic! Certainly in the 'OMG' category within the world of condiments. It will from this time forward occupy a space in my kitchen. I submit to you a heap big thank you for the introduction!
As FYi – I never took the Saudi money – they bought stock on open market –LN did not receive any investment. Whoever they bought the shares from got the money..
I have never met them, I read about their stock purchase same time everyone else did when they field with SEC.
I have no control who buys or sells my stock
Michael Rapino
_______________________________________
From: Peter Asher
Subject: RE: Live Pittsburgh 1976
Dear Bob,
Thanks for remembering it all so well. I too have very fond backstage and soundboard memories of the shows you describe - especially the Universal Amphitheater when David & Graham sang so beautifully on Mexico - and on Lighthouse as well as I recall. And I remember standing in the wings and talking Carly through her brutal stage fright as "Mockingbird" was approaching. The Pittsburgh show was at the Syria Mosque and was another very good one. I think it was recorded for a radio show or something - it was never officially intended to be an album at the time and I am not sure who released it or how! Maybe some deal was made much more recently - the band was brilliant, James was in top form and it was indeed a terrific show.
Incidentally (and forgive me if I sound ever so slightly defensive!) "jettisoned" might be slightly too strong a word ("James had jettisoned Peter Asher"). I remained James's manager throughout that whole period (and beyond) and was wholly supportive of his desire to try other producers - and I particularly love the two albums he did with Russ and Lenny whom I admire so much. James and I got back together again in the studio when I subsequently produced JT which became his most successful album since Sweet Baby James and Mud Slide Slim. So perhaps not exactly "thrown overboard".
Peter
_______________________________________
From: Jason Flom
Subject: Re: Charlie Puth On Jersey 4 Jersey
Bob,
A Newark story:
It was a snowy winter day in late 1987 when a songwriter named Jack Ponti called me and said, "Hey Flom, you need to go to a club called Studio One in New Jersey tonight to see a new band called Skid Row." Well, back then I would have gone to see just about anyone, anywhere + I had heard that this Ponti guy was a demi-legend in the Jersey music scene so I rented a car and drove through what had now become a full on blizzard to get to the show. The neighborhood it was in was dicey to say the least (there had been a murder on the sidewalk outside the club the night before) but what I witnessed inside that night became the stuff of legend and began a magical journey. It was only the second show they had ever done with Sebastian Bach as their lead singer but they were locked in a hard rock groove as they blazed through "Youth Gone Wild", "18 and Life" and "I Remember You" among others and right then and there it became my mission to sign them to Atlantic and the rest as they, is history.
Oh and btw, when I got back to my car in the parking lot I discovered that someone had smashed in the driver's side window. I'll never forget driving back to NYC sitting on shards of broken glass with the wind howling and fresh Jersey snow smacking me on the left side of my face.
Ponti was right on the money (as usual) and we've been friends ever since!
_______________________________________
From: Richard Griffiths
Subject: Re: Happy Song Playlist
Have you listened to McCarneys last album Egypt Station? It's brilliant. I went to see him play end of 2018. He was on stage for nearly three hours! Incredible.
I worked with Ozzy as his publisher for years and then when I went to run Epic I had him as a recording artist. I had just hired Michael Goldstone as head of ANR and he was the one who made the No More Tears album. Brilliant. Sharon is probably the best manager ever!
It's funny you mention the "W" bands.
When I worked at Virgin in London I once went to see Adam and the Ants play. After they had had their initial success they were on the way out. Or so I thought! I didn't like the show but the packed room went crazy. Still I figured I knew best.WRONG! They were the biggest band in the country within two years!
But I learned a lesson!
Couple years later I'm running Virgin Music in LA. My right hand man Kaz and I went to see Warrant at the Country Club in the Valley . Place was packed and going crazy for them. We didn't like them BUT we had learned our lesson and signed them. Several million albums later.......
Then this guy Kip Winger came to see us. They had just signed to Atlantic. Again we weren't sure about the music but what got us was Kips ambition and work ethic so we took a bet on Winger. Several million albums later.........
The lesson that time was that talent is important but work ethic and ambition are what gets you to the top.
I've worked with some incredibly talented artists who just didn't want to put the work in and others who may not have been the greatest talent, but we're prepared to do whatever necessary to succeed.
_______________________________________
From: Kaleb Nation
Subject: Re: Charlie Puth On Jersey 4 Jersey
Love your blog — I've been reading it for years. I think it's hilarious and awesome that Charlie Puth is a megastar now. Ten years ago, he was a YouTube musician paying bills by selling custom theme songs, so I bought one for $100. Nowadays that'd easily cost 100x more, so I still tell friends the story of the GREAT deal I got on a platinum-selling, Grammy-nominated singer. It's another reason to support up-and-coming artists: you never know where they'll be a few years later!
I'm a producer now but I started as a YouTuber in the old days. You can hear Charlie Puth sing my name at 0:40 in this video: https://youtu.be/xKxYp6AW37A?t=41
(Please disregard my 2010 baby face.)
Kaleb Nation
_______________________________________
Subject: Re: The Beastie Boys Movie
The idea that Paul's Boutique was a total commercial flop is simply not true. Of course, it didn't do what "Ill" did and didn't have an anthemic single like "Fight"; but by the time I left Capitol in Sept., it was close to 800,000 units. Plus the critical acclaim it received (Hilburn's "The Sgt. Pepper of rap") cannot be ignored. There was total support in the A & R dept. for signing them (if not in the company at large) and Eazy E, who used to hang out at Capitol at the time, told me they were the real deal. What really decided it for me was meeting them. They were just too smart to fuck this up.
David Berman
_______________________________________
Subject: Re: The Beastie Boys Movie
So Rick Rubin and I went to one of those hotels on Sunset. Rick and the Beastie Boys had gotten into a legal tiff, were estranged and weren't working together. We went up to someone's room, which was occupied by Chuck D, Hank Shocklee, Matt Dike and a few other people. They had a pre-release copy of Paul's Boutique, which they played for Rick. I was, like, whatever—it was a bit outside my lane and I didn't come to appreciate it until later. As it ended, Rick looked up and said, "This is the greatest album ever made. It's hip-hop's Sgt. Pepper." DJ RR saluted his old mates and we left.
Peter Paterno, Esq.
_______________________________________
Subject: Re: The Beastie Boys Movie
Wow Bob you nailed it! You wrote " So, these kids are unsupervised, skipping school, having fun." I went to high school with Adam and we did just that. I remember he skipped class to get our copies of The Dead Kernnedys album "Fresh Fruit..." album signed at Bleecker Bobs. Good times!
Stay healthy!
Best,
Graham Hatch
_______________________________________
Subject: Re: Stuck In The Middle With You
Great record. For any of the tech type readers, I engineered Rafael doing his sax thing a couple of years later on another record. He explained they got the Baker Street solo sound by opening the lid of a piano in the studio, placing heavy 2" tape boxes on the sustain pedal and blending the sound of all those strings vibrating sympathetically with each note he played.
Those were the days when engineers actually got off their chairs and experimented!
Walt Aldridge
_______________________________________
From: Steve Traxler
Subject: Re: Stuck In The Middle With You
Sure you saw this video, a great riff from Michael Madsen on what's happening now with everyone being stuck, gotta love his (and families) sense of humor!
https://deadline.com/2020/04/reservoir-dogs-michael-madsen-quentin-tarantino-home-video-1202918123/amp/
_______________________________________
From: Bob Merlis
Subject: Stuck In The Middle
Surprised that no mention was made of the similarity between Steelers Wheel's "Stuck In The Middle" and Sheryl Crow's "All I Wanna Do." As far as I can tell, that quirky guitar figure never existed before SITM and then 21 years later there it was on "All I Wanna Do."
It was instantly recognizable the first time I heard her record and, just like the lyric, "I'm not the only one" to have discerned. this.
_______________________________________
From: Andy Cormack
Subject: Touring Crews
Hey Bob,
Thanks for your emails, they are truly a welcome respite. I am a true fan of yours.
I am also a touring crew member for a major Country artist (Eric Church) and he has kept almost the entire crew on payroll. He is honestly one of the greatest artists out. He is also one of the single best people in the world, and a terrific boss.
I am however, a bit scared of the future of touring crews. I don't think that it's sustainable for him to continue with a monthly payroll over 100k and that's what I worry about. What will all of us do? I know this is not a new question but I am really trying to figure out what the next move is. If shows don't return until 2021 then so many people in my hometown of Nashville will be destroyed and I just can't bear the thought.
I think that you're right in thinking nothing will be dramatically changed after this recedes. I think the move towards virtual is obvious in a time of quarantine but people crave human connection and to think they will replace it is just not feasible. I just needed to write this down to someone that understands. Thanks for being there for us Bob.
_______________________________________
From: Doyle Davis
Subject: Re: Opening America
Yet another "vinyl is irrelevant" comment. I get your point but the culture surrounding record stores remains robust and it's valuable to local music scenes. Jason Isbell made his new record available a week early, but only if you order from an indie record store, and he sold out the entire indie exclusive vinyl and the standard black vinyl in 2 days. the entire vinyl pressing. the amount pressed was based on the previous record and calculated to meet demand through all sales channels so with all the indie record stores closed, Jason sold more records than he ever has, exclusively through the indies, and undershot demand. I sold 500 records in the first hour from my indie shop alone. Maybe this isn't your kind of story but it's a story.
You've become one of my favorite sources of news and insight in the COVID era. Thanks for that.
_______________________________________
From: EveAnna Manley
Subject: Re: Testing
I've enlisted in an army of volunteers for www.masksfordocs.com
I learned about them through my bros in the Pasadena Motorcycle Club. We would get called up to pick up and deliver medical supplies around Los Angeles. Getting PPE to the clinics and docs who need them.
Yesterday I made a delivery run and picked up some headbands that a kid was printing on his 3D printer at home. Justin Levy is 16 years old and making 20 headbands per day! Yeah! There's your dream individual right there!
He inspired me to find out more about what is actually happening on the ground, or in all these homes in suburbia Los Angeles and how I could help more in the effort. I have a factory of assembly workers out in Chino, most of whom are assembling audio electronics at home. And I have some workers who can't work from home and are furloughed as we can't have them work at the factory either. So tomorrow we're going to pick up several thousand plastic sheets that need six holes punched in them to mount onto the 3D printed headbands and I'm going to get my team of hole punchers on it!
If you want something done, ask a busy person!
Nothing brings my anxiety down faster than figuring out something to do to benefit another human.
So when I get these damn trolls "from the other side" arguing with me and defending the appalling disaster in the White House, I just stop and ask them, "What are YOU doing to HELP people? What are YOU doing to keep people safe?"
We are going to get through this, together. But we all need to help.
Cheers, EveAnna Manley, President
Manley Laboratories, Inc.
_______________________________________
From: George Kahn
Subject: LA TIMES: Autopsy results point to earlier spread
I have two friends that went to the NAMM show in Jan 16-19.
Both came down with flu-like symptoms shortly thereafter.
One was sick for about 6 weeks with a nagging cough - no fever but tired and was very sick, never went to a doctor.
She just paid to be tested for COVID-19, and the tests show that she had it and now has immunity to the coronavirus.
How many other people who went to NAMM caught "a cold" there? Just wondering...
_______________________________________
Subject: Georgia and social distancing
Many believe Gov. Kemp in Georgia was responding to Trump's encouragements in authorizing employees to return to work at various businesses in Georgia this weekend. There was more to it. Look closely at which businesses: massage therapy studios, hair salons, tatoo studios, bowling alleys, movie theaters, fitness centers and restaurants. Obviously it flies in the face of social distancing ( can you go a little deeper on my back massage please but stay 6 feet away ?? Oh and let's put on communal bowling shoes ). He has his eyes on the unemployment fund, which is being drained quickly. Income taxes cannot be raised above 6 % in Georgia without a constitutional amendment and Kemp is not going to champion a tax increase to his base God knows. The fund will not be supplemented by taxes. So why not throw poor whites, blacks, Hispanics and Asians back into the work force to risk their health and lives? It immediately reduces the unemployment burden which no doubt is really irritating Kemp. And if a significant percentage of these workers die? No harm - they are not Kemp supoorters.
It is the kind of souless and craven policy we have come to expect from Gov. Kemp.
Russell Carter
Atlanta
_______________________________________
From: Millennia Gmail
Subject: Re: Testing
There is a joke circulating in Germany:
"What borders on stupidity?"
"Mexico and Canada!"
Sent from my Commodore 64
http://www.mickdallavee.com
_______________________________________
From: JOHN F NIXON
Bob...thank you very much for your tremendous letter. I enjoy reading everything you write. And perhaps the greatest of all the bits of knowledge I've gleaned from you is that you have made me aware of Pommery Meaux Mustard. I had never heard of it before but decided to give it a try based on your description. It is fantastic! Certainly in the 'OMG' category within the world of condiments. It will from this time forward occupy a space in my kitchen. I submit to you a heap big thank you for the introduction!
--
Visit the archive: http://lefsetz.com/wordpress/
--
Listen to the podcast:
-iHeart: https://ihr.fm/2Gi5PFj
-Apple: https://apple.co/2ndmpvp
--
http://www.twitter.com/lefsetz
--
If you would like to subscribe to the LefsetzLetter,
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Music Industry Snapshot
LABELS
Are doing quite well. The majority of their income comes from subscription services, and subscriptions keep going up. Sure, there has been some churn as a result of Covid-19 financial issues, but it is relatively small. So, if you're being paid by the streaming service, expect this to maintain.
As for the distribution of monies...
Deezer plans to split subscription income based on what the subscriber listens to. I am sure if this raises the income for less popular artists it will become de rigueur in the industry. However, a few years back economist Will Page ran the numbers and said it would make no difference. So, it hangs in the balance, we will find out. However, if you are less popular on streaming services, do not expect a huge bump in royalties employing the Deezer method. You don't have as many fans as you think you do, streaming only your music to boot.
ARTISTS
Recordings are not the main driver of your income unless you are a superstar. If you're Drake, or the Weeknd, you're making tons of dough. If you're not, forget about it.
As for the stories of tiny streaming payments... These have died down, but they are riddled with inaccuracies.
One, was it streaming radio or on demand? Streaming radio pays less. And to complicate things even further, Spotify has a streaming radio service.
Second, how much of the song does the complainer own? Do they own a concomitant percentage of the publishing? And what period does the statement cover, does it represent the peak of the song's use?
Sure, there is stuff that falls through the cracks. Sure, there are occasional mistakes. But that is not the dominant reality. The dominant reality is if you record a hit, there's tons of money generated. If you own the track, you're doing exceptionally well. You're going to receive in the neighborhood of 60-70% of income. If you've got a deal with a label...is it 50/50 or points or... The label is a business, it has to get paid, it recoups costs, don't complain about a bad deal with a label, you made it. If you're a streaming star, you can beat up the label, get a big advance, a huge percentage and maybe own your work to boot, at least after a period of time. If you don't... It's a game of leverage, and leverage is based on income/streams.
Labels want a percentage of touring. If you're only touring, if your records make almost nothing, don't make a deal where you're sacrificing a percentage of your touring money with the hope/belief the label will make you a star. Unless you're a hip-hop or pop act, the label cannot make you a star, and the hip-hop/pop acts don't start on the road. If you're a road act you're in a different business, the long term fan business, hook the fan and then milk them for all they've got...and they'll be glad to give it to you! Meet and greets, front row seats, merch, vinyl, they'll buy it all. But don't complain when your audience doesn't grow. If it doesn't, you're probably not that good or your time has passed. Acts tend to be hot for a relatively brief period of time. Sure, there are exceptions, but there are exceptions to ALL rules.
PROMOTION
Nothing generates revenue like radio airplay. But radio airplay comes after streaming airplay. You've got to prove it's a hit before radio will play it. So, if you're banking on radio airplay and you don't record a hit, good luck.
Yes, there are genres like Adult Alternative and Alternative that have charts, that can gain you some notice, but don't expect to cross over to the big time, you're fighting it out in the trenches. Do the Tiny Desk Concert, try, but don't expect big rewards.
Don't expect big rewards from any of the old school publicity methods. Late night TV appearances are almost meaningless, unless it's SNL. Print? The only people who read it are old, so if you're appealing to them...
It's about social media.
And being able to reach your audience.
You want their e-mail addresses. I know, I know, that's old school. Even better is their phone number, especially in an era where people no longer change them. You might change your physical address, but not your phone number! You want to be able to reach your fans, directly, to cut through the clutter and get right to them. You cannot do this without the foregoing information. This is what you want. It's positively grass roots unless you're the biggest of superstars, and those usually fade at some point too. You're building your army and you want to know who the soldiers are. Your army will conquer landscape, will generate new fans better than anything.
PLAYLISTS
Overrated.
Most people listening to playlists are doing so passively. But if someone does save a track, if the streaming service does see a spike, they'll graduate you, to more playlists. However, if you don't, you'll get dropped. Choose your opportunities, if you say everything is good when it is not, you'll lose credibility.
The labels own the playlists. As in they have the relationships to work them. If the track doesn't get a response, it will get dropped, but the label can get you on the playlist to begin with. But, the labels are only interested in what streams prodigiously, i.e. hip-hop and pop. So, if you don't make this...
SOCIAL MEDIA
Choose your platform, be active. Right now it's Instagram. It won't always be Instagram, because social media platforms are fads. Kinda like TikTok. Never forget, TikTok is about the audience, not the musician. If TikTok embraces your track, great! But the paradigm is so burned, only the superstars like Drake can push a track down TikTok's throat. The music business is always looking for the easy way, and then it burns it out.
As for other platforms...
Snapchat is for young.
Facebook is for old.
Twitter is for thinkers.
But most important is your content. It's gotta be generated by you. It's got to be personal and informative. Hype is ignored. And never forget, it's hard to get someone to look, but it's even harder to get them to come back after they've signed off.
TRUE ARTISTS
Pay attention to none of the above, they do what they want, they fly on inspiration. But there are very few of them around anymore. That innovation is in TV at best. Where Netflix gives you the money and stays out of the way, throws it up against the wall and sees if it sticks.
If you are a true artist, DO NOT COMPLAIN YOU'RE DOING POORLY ECONOMICALLY. If you want to do well economically, reach down deep and create excellence, maybe you'll be recognized, but maybe not. But pure artists generate believers, i.e. a team that helps them. For every mercenary in the business there's always someone motivated primarily by the music, they'll work for free because they believe. Actually, the mercenaries far outnumber the believers, they do call it the music BUSINESS, but there are believers out there.
CONCERT PROMOTION
Everybody but Live Nation and AEG will go bankrupt.
Of course that's an overstatement. But not by much. We live in a country where no one is saving for a rainy day, everyone is taking money out of the operation, and in live music the margins are thin anyway.
As for Live Nation...the investment by the Saudis has a bad look, but stunningly there hasn't been a big backlash. Rapino is employing the BeeGees paradigm, he's stayin' alive. He's walking a tightrope, but if anybody survives he and Live Nation will.
As for AEG, it's a private company. Phil Anschutz has the money to survive, so the company will, it's just that simple.
As for reopening...it's all about LIABILITY!
Yup, attendees can say whatever they want, they can go to the show willy-nilly, but if they get sick there, god forbid they die, even if they get sick somewhere else and blame it on the concert promotion company...there's gonna be a lawsuit and potentially a big payout. And there will be no affordable insurance for this, and it will get trumpeted in the press and will hurt the industry at large.
As for social distancing, the economics don't work. You can't go on the road selling one sixth of the tickets, not even one half! Just like on the internet, you can find acts to play, they just won't draw any fans.
As for testing...
The dirty little secret is there is no definitive testing today, not testing you can trust over the long haul. The attendee might have been tested and cleared two weeks ago, but what happened since? As for temperature checks...you can be a carrier and be asymptomatic.
I doubt concerts will start up and people will get sick and some will die and the business will continue to ramp up. Actually, we're getting a dry run in the public at large, with states opening up for business with an expectation of the doubling of deaths by June 1st, never mind the now stronger version of the virus and the fall flu season. We'll have to figure out how to balance life and death in the public at large. But good luck suing the government if it opens the state for business too early, but you'll have a lot of luck suing the concert promoter. As for long disclaimers agreed to by ticket buyers, saying they can't sue, those are never a hundred percent effective. They have these in skiing, but skiers still sue. However, ski resorts are the beneficiaries of state legislation limiting their liability, but I would not expect concert promoters to get this, at least not in the near term, when they need it. Ski areas only got it after years of lawsuits, after staggering increases in insurance rates, after tons of lobbying.
TALENT AGENCIES
They stopped being in the business of representing talent. As soon as CAA took corporate money, it changed the business model. The talent agencies are trying to become the new movie studios, but even bigger. They're focusing on being buyers, owning and staging events. The ten percent gotten from representing talent is de minimis, and it does not scale, at best you can get a bigger payday for the act, but then the act wants a lower commission. And if you're making an overall deal with the concert promoter, do you really need the agent? This is the time for a new talent agency. Just like CAA started years ago. Renegades focusing just on representing talent, acts will flock to them. But, so many agents are staying with the big outfits for the fat salary and the payout. But most of them are older and the business is ultimately run by the younger. So now, agents are getting laid off and fired. But talent will work again. Who will represent musicians?
DATA
This is the new music business. You get it from streaming services like Spotify and elsewhere. It can be very helpful. If you're not deep in the data, using it and understanding it, you'd better have someone on your team who does, or get out of the way, you're history.
THE YOUNGER GENERATION
Doesn't remember Napster. Did not grow up in an era of credibility. Did not discover acts solely by radio. Is familiar with the digital tools and has the time and the desire to utilize them.
And is willing to post the music for free, they're not burdened by legacy perspectives.
Are interested in building multifaceted brands. Some just want to sell out to the highest bidder, some want to utilize their fame to build an empire of assets, digital and physical, they want to change the world.
Speaking of which, the young are focused on the climate crisis and giving back, at least the audience. You must have a charity component to your work, but don't make it a percentage of proceeds, no one believes that anymore. You've got to ask for donations, better yet, donate your own money. Superior to all is to dedicate your TIME! That's the most valuable commodity. If fans see you getting your hands dirty, they'll be drawn to you.
And take a stand. The more edges you've got, the more people you'll snag. Bland works for a while, but then it fades. The legends all have edges.
GOING FORWARD
It's about the music. Now is the time to make and release it. Now it's about recordings. Sure, do the livestream thingy, maybe even charge for shows, I think that's a good idea, play every night from home and charge through the roof for a few people. It's not the same, but it's something.
Yes, live business is impacted by Covid-19, probably more than any other business in America. But never forget, the live business was burgeoning before the virus and will burgeon after it, because you can't get that hit anywhere else, the music is the special sauce that creates joy and brings people together. We're at peak festival, actually on the downward slope, but festivals are here to stay. As for virtual concerts... Travis Scott on Fortnite is about Travis Scott, not Fortnite, he just went where the audience is. The audience is in all kinds of new places, and yes, many of them are virtual. And sure, we'll have virtual acts, but humanity drives the music business. All that hogwash about machines creating the music...there'll be some of that, but a machine can't sit on stage playing an acoustic song, and machines can only create based on what you give them. Music built its rep on pushing the envelope. The business still is, but not the music. Pushing the envelope is hard. The road less taken always is. But that's where the rewards are. For both the act and the audience.
Are doing quite well. The majority of their income comes from subscription services, and subscriptions keep going up. Sure, there has been some churn as a result of Covid-19 financial issues, but it is relatively small. So, if you're being paid by the streaming service, expect this to maintain.
As for the distribution of monies...
Deezer plans to split subscription income based on what the subscriber listens to. I am sure if this raises the income for less popular artists it will become de rigueur in the industry. However, a few years back economist Will Page ran the numbers and said it would make no difference. So, it hangs in the balance, we will find out. However, if you are less popular on streaming services, do not expect a huge bump in royalties employing the Deezer method. You don't have as many fans as you think you do, streaming only your music to boot.
ARTISTS
Recordings are not the main driver of your income unless you are a superstar. If you're Drake, or the Weeknd, you're making tons of dough. If you're not, forget about it.
As for the stories of tiny streaming payments... These have died down, but they are riddled with inaccuracies.
One, was it streaming radio or on demand? Streaming radio pays less. And to complicate things even further, Spotify has a streaming radio service.
Second, how much of the song does the complainer own? Do they own a concomitant percentage of the publishing? And what period does the statement cover, does it represent the peak of the song's use?
Sure, there is stuff that falls through the cracks. Sure, there are occasional mistakes. But that is not the dominant reality. The dominant reality is if you record a hit, there's tons of money generated. If you own the track, you're doing exceptionally well. You're going to receive in the neighborhood of 60-70% of income. If you've got a deal with a label...is it 50/50 or points or... The label is a business, it has to get paid, it recoups costs, don't complain about a bad deal with a label, you made it. If you're a streaming star, you can beat up the label, get a big advance, a huge percentage and maybe own your work to boot, at least after a period of time. If you don't... It's a game of leverage, and leverage is based on income/streams.
Labels want a percentage of touring. If you're only touring, if your records make almost nothing, don't make a deal where you're sacrificing a percentage of your touring money with the hope/belief the label will make you a star. Unless you're a hip-hop or pop act, the label cannot make you a star, and the hip-hop/pop acts don't start on the road. If you're a road act you're in a different business, the long term fan business, hook the fan and then milk them for all they've got...and they'll be glad to give it to you! Meet and greets, front row seats, merch, vinyl, they'll buy it all. But don't complain when your audience doesn't grow. If it doesn't, you're probably not that good or your time has passed. Acts tend to be hot for a relatively brief period of time. Sure, there are exceptions, but there are exceptions to ALL rules.
PROMOTION
Nothing generates revenue like radio airplay. But radio airplay comes after streaming airplay. You've got to prove it's a hit before radio will play it. So, if you're banking on radio airplay and you don't record a hit, good luck.
Yes, there are genres like Adult Alternative and Alternative that have charts, that can gain you some notice, but don't expect to cross over to the big time, you're fighting it out in the trenches. Do the Tiny Desk Concert, try, but don't expect big rewards.
Don't expect big rewards from any of the old school publicity methods. Late night TV appearances are almost meaningless, unless it's SNL. Print? The only people who read it are old, so if you're appealing to them...
It's about social media.
And being able to reach your audience.
You want their e-mail addresses. I know, I know, that's old school. Even better is their phone number, especially in an era where people no longer change them. You might change your physical address, but not your phone number! You want to be able to reach your fans, directly, to cut through the clutter and get right to them. You cannot do this without the foregoing information. This is what you want. It's positively grass roots unless you're the biggest of superstars, and those usually fade at some point too. You're building your army and you want to know who the soldiers are. Your army will conquer landscape, will generate new fans better than anything.
PLAYLISTS
Overrated.
Most people listening to playlists are doing so passively. But if someone does save a track, if the streaming service does see a spike, they'll graduate you, to more playlists. However, if you don't, you'll get dropped. Choose your opportunities, if you say everything is good when it is not, you'll lose credibility.
The labels own the playlists. As in they have the relationships to work them. If the track doesn't get a response, it will get dropped, but the label can get you on the playlist to begin with. But, the labels are only interested in what streams prodigiously, i.e. hip-hop and pop. So, if you don't make this...
SOCIAL MEDIA
Choose your platform, be active. Right now it's Instagram. It won't always be Instagram, because social media platforms are fads. Kinda like TikTok. Never forget, TikTok is about the audience, not the musician. If TikTok embraces your track, great! But the paradigm is so burned, only the superstars like Drake can push a track down TikTok's throat. The music business is always looking for the easy way, and then it burns it out.
As for other platforms...
Snapchat is for young.
Facebook is for old.
Twitter is for thinkers.
But most important is your content. It's gotta be generated by you. It's got to be personal and informative. Hype is ignored. And never forget, it's hard to get someone to look, but it's even harder to get them to come back after they've signed off.
TRUE ARTISTS
Pay attention to none of the above, they do what they want, they fly on inspiration. But there are very few of them around anymore. That innovation is in TV at best. Where Netflix gives you the money and stays out of the way, throws it up against the wall and sees if it sticks.
If you are a true artist, DO NOT COMPLAIN YOU'RE DOING POORLY ECONOMICALLY. If you want to do well economically, reach down deep and create excellence, maybe you'll be recognized, but maybe not. But pure artists generate believers, i.e. a team that helps them. For every mercenary in the business there's always someone motivated primarily by the music, they'll work for free because they believe. Actually, the mercenaries far outnumber the believers, they do call it the music BUSINESS, but there are believers out there.
CONCERT PROMOTION
Everybody but Live Nation and AEG will go bankrupt.
Of course that's an overstatement. But not by much. We live in a country where no one is saving for a rainy day, everyone is taking money out of the operation, and in live music the margins are thin anyway.
As for Live Nation...the investment by the Saudis has a bad look, but stunningly there hasn't been a big backlash. Rapino is employing the BeeGees paradigm, he's stayin' alive. He's walking a tightrope, but if anybody survives he and Live Nation will.
As for AEG, it's a private company. Phil Anschutz has the money to survive, so the company will, it's just that simple.
As for reopening...it's all about LIABILITY!
Yup, attendees can say whatever they want, they can go to the show willy-nilly, but if they get sick there, god forbid they die, even if they get sick somewhere else and blame it on the concert promotion company...there's gonna be a lawsuit and potentially a big payout. And there will be no affordable insurance for this, and it will get trumpeted in the press and will hurt the industry at large.
As for social distancing, the economics don't work. You can't go on the road selling one sixth of the tickets, not even one half! Just like on the internet, you can find acts to play, they just won't draw any fans.
As for testing...
The dirty little secret is there is no definitive testing today, not testing you can trust over the long haul. The attendee might have been tested and cleared two weeks ago, but what happened since? As for temperature checks...you can be a carrier and be asymptomatic.
I doubt concerts will start up and people will get sick and some will die and the business will continue to ramp up. Actually, we're getting a dry run in the public at large, with states opening up for business with an expectation of the doubling of deaths by June 1st, never mind the now stronger version of the virus and the fall flu season. We'll have to figure out how to balance life and death in the public at large. But good luck suing the government if it opens the state for business too early, but you'll have a lot of luck suing the concert promoter. As for long disclaimers agreed to by ticket buyers, saying they can't sue, those are never a hundred percent effective. They have these in skiing, but skiers still sue. However, ski resorts are the beneficiaries of state legislation limiting their liability, but I would not expect concert promoters to get this, at least not in the near term, when they need it. Ski areas only got it after years of lawsuits, after staggering increases in insurance rates, after tons of lobbying.
TALENT AGENCIES
They stopped being in the business of representing talent. As soon as CAA took corporate money, it changed the business model. The talent agencies are trying to become the new movie studios, but even bigger. They're focusing on being buyers, owning and staging events. The ten percent gotten from representing talent is de minimis, and it does not scale, at best you can get a bigger payday for the act, but then the act wants a lower commission. And if you're making an overall deal with the concert promoter, do you really need the agent? This is the time for a new talent agency. Just like CAA started years ago. Renegades focusing just on representing talent, acts will flock to them. But, so many agents are staying with the big outfits for the fat salary and the payout. But most of them are older and the business is ultimately run by the younger. So now, agents are getting laid off and fired. But talent will work again. Who will represent musicians?
DATA
This is the new music business. You get it from streaming services like Spotify and elsewhere. It can be very helpful. If you're not deep in the data, using it and understanding it, you'd better have someone on your team who does, or get out of the way, you're history.
THE YOUNGER GENERATION
Doesn't remember Napster. Did not grow up in an era of credibility. Did not discover acts solely by radio. Is familiar with the digital tools and has the time and the desire to utilize them.
And is willing to post the music for free, they're not burdened by legacy perspectives.
Are interested in building multifaceted brands. Some just want to sell out to the highest bidder, some want to utilize their fame to build an empire of assets, digital and physical, they want to change the world.
Speaking of which, the young are focused on the climate crisis and giving back, at least the audience. You must have a charity component to your work, but don't make it a percentage of proceeds, no one believes that anymore. You've got to ask for donations, better yet, donate your own money. Superior to all is to dedicate your TIME! That's the most valuable commodity. If fans see you getting your hands dirty, they'll be drawn to you.
And take a stand. The more edges you've got, the more people you'll snag. Bland works for a while, but then it fades. The legends all have edges.
GOING FORWARD
It's about the music. Now is the time to make and release it. Now it's about recordings. Sure, do the livestream thingy, maybe even charge for shows, I think that's a good idea, play every night from home and charge through the roof for a few people. It's not the same, but it's something.
Yes, live business is impacted by Covid-19, probably more than any other business in America. But never forget, the live business was burgeoning before the virus and will burgeon after it, because you can't get that hit anywhere else, the music is the special sauce that creates joy and brings people together. We're at peak festival, actually on the downward slope, but festivals are here to stay. As for virtual concerts... Travis Scott on Fortnite is about Travis Scott, not Fortnite, he just went where the audience is. The audience is in all kinds of new places, and yes, many of them are virtual. And sure, we'll have virtual acts, but humanity drives the music business. All that hogwash about machines creating the music...there'll be some of that, but a machine can't sit on stage playing an acoustic song, and machines can only create based on what you give them. Music built its rep on pushing the envelope. The business still is, but not the music. Pushing the envelope is hard. The road less taken always is. But that's where the rewards are. For both the act and the audience.
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Tuesday, 5 May 2020
The New Jerry Seinfeld Special On Netflix
It's astounding. Truly.
It reminds me of seeing "Hamilton," before the hype, during previews, just before opening night. I'm sitting there thinking...can this sustain, can this really be this good throughout?
YES!
But there's a difference, "Hamilton" is warm, Seinfeld is cool.
As in you'd like to hang with Seinfeld to experience his brain, but you don't think you could be friends. As much as he reveals his truth, he's still surrounded by a force field that you won't be able to penetrate.
So it's about the jokes. The marvel of this special is there's not one extra word, no wasted time. Normally you go see a comedian and there's a long setup. There are asides, not elements of the jokes, connecting the comedian with the audience outside the programming. But there's none of that here. Jerry comes out to a fanfare and then he hits them over the fence again and again and again.
This is not the pre-"Seinfeld" Jerry.
You used to see him on Carson, other places on television. He was never calm and quiet, but he only exhorted for emphasis. Here he's playing to the very last row, on the verge of shouting. But that's what makes the difference between a live show and one concocted in the studio. If you were there, you would have gotten it.
That's the initial routine, about being there, organizing the trip, the tickets.
Jerry is the antidote to Covid-19. We're taking everything so seriously, it's life and death, you versus me, it's a battle with everything on the line. But instead of focusing big, Seinfeld focuses small. As he always has. On the little things in life. And it's definitely about life. The absurdities of it. You'll watch and marvel, because you will have experienced what he's talking about again and again and again.
This is not Chris Rock, smiling, laughing at his own jokes. Chris is leading up to the big punchline, you're with him all the way, on the ride, he's your bud. But Seinfeld starts at the same line but is always ahead of you, you don't relax, sink into your chair, at best you're holding on, as he takes you through a wild tour of New York City as well as your domicile.
Yes, Seinfeld is the Carlin of our day.
But with shorter jokes and many more punchlines. And, once again, without the same warmth.
Jerry got beaten up for saying he was on the spectrum. You can never get it right in today's world, you're always offending someone. What they want you to do is shut up, so they and their perspective can triumph. Then again, without you violating their rules they've got little to live for.
Now it's been well-documented that Seinfeld did a long run at the Beacon. The pitch was the theatre was just down the street from his home, he could go to it like a job.
And that's very different from going on the road. It's more akin to Broadway. But in this case, it's only Jerry. I wonder how long it takes him to come down after the show.
He doesn't need to hang around, talk with the promoter, take pictures with insiders. It's the same venue every night, he could literally walk right off the stage into a cab, or maybe an Uber...Jerry nails that too, tying it in with the iPhone.
It's masterful, how Jerry analyzes each and every element of our humdrum lives. He even nails the husband/wife situation, hearkening back to Alan King and the comedians of yore.
You see Jerry is singular. This is what he does. And no one does it anywhere near as well as he does. If you want it, he's got it.
This is from the era where it was about unique identity, before the millennial generation dictated that you had to saw off your rough edges and fit in. Jerry's a boomer through and through, he wants to shine, he wants the accolades.
Watching this you can see the difference between Jerry and Larry David. Yes, Larry constructed the byzantine plot lines of the TV show, but Larry could never do what Jerry does in standup. Hell, Larry's too lazy!
You've got to have the drive, and the talent.
I knew this special was launching today. But I only watched it this afternoon because of the interview in today's "Times": https://nyti.ms/2WoJFbe
It reminds me of the one Jerry did with Howard Stern, one of the best ever on the program. Because Jerry was honest and he truly didn't care what anybody thought about his viewpoint. This is so rare. This is part of why Jerry believes he's on the spectrum. And if you know people on the spectrum, they find it hard to make friends. They're loyal to the ones they've got, but making new ones...the problem is they say the wrong thing, they don't know how to navigate personal interactions, when to stay silent, when to lie.
Jerry is learning this in his marriage, he tells us all about this, switching from singledom to a couple. But there's a good reason for him to hang in there with his wife, because he wants the eggs the relationship delivers, as well as the children. You know Jerry wouldn't take this from just anybody.
So this explains the coolness I referenced above. You can marvel, but you just can't penetrate.
So in the "Times" article, Jerry says he doesn't have OCD, he just loves routine. He can't be what you label him as. Once again, those on the spectrum love routine, it keeps them centered. But my point is Jerry is not confessing to flaws, that's part of his identity, that's part of what keeps him separate.
He talks about needing his kids to explain new online fads like TikTok to him, but once he's got it, he never returns. That's how I feel! I want to know about it, but I don't want to waste time on it.
Everybody's trying to gain attention online during the stay at home pandemic era, Jerry says no, he thrives on the live vibe.
But what really struck me is Jerry said:
"I'm really just into the pure art of it now. Just the bit, the audience and the moment. I'm more interested in that than ever, and I'm less interested in everything else."
After all, he's 65. That's a point he makes in the special. He's been there, done that, he's got no need to see or experience it again.
And sure, Jerry's got all the money, as David Letterman would say. But the truth is many 65 year old have enough to live comfortably (this is where the politically correct police crack down on me, just like they do on Jerry re autism...of course there are poor people, can we even talk about the upper middle class or is that a completely taboo subject?) But they're in their sunset years. They paid their dues, they just want to relax. But Jerry is still in search of the zeitgeist. He's more focused than ever. And watching this special you can see that.
And you should watch this special. I don't know how many jokes will become part of the vernacular, that you'll quote to your buddies, but I will say you'll see yourself more in Jerry's comedy special than you will in any one I've seen in decades. He's you. You can afford the ticket. You've lived long enough to contemplate how you want to spend your time. But you feel so alone.
Watch Jerry Seinfeld and you won't be.
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It reminds me of seeing "Hamilton," before the hype, during previews, just before opening night. I'm sitting there thinking...can this sustain, can this really be this good throughout?
YES!
But there's a difference, "Hamilton" is warm, Seinfeld is cool.
As in you'd like to hang with Seinfeld to experience his brain, but you don't think you could be friends. As much as he reveals his truth, he's still surrounded by a force field that you won't be able to penetrate.
So it's about the jokes. The marvel of this special is there's not one extra word, no wasted time. Normally you go see a comedian and there's a long setup. There are asides, not elements of the jokes, connecting the comedian with the audience outside the programming. But there's none of that here. Jerry comes out to a fanfare and then he hits them over the fence again and again and again.
This is not the pre-"Seinfeld" Jerry.
You used to see him on Carson, other places on television. He was never calm and quiet, but he only exhorted for emphasis. Here he's playing to the very last row, on the verge of shouting. But that's what makes the difference between a live show and one concocted in the studio. If you were there, you would have gotten it.
That's the initial routine, about being there, organizing the trip, the tickets.
Jerry is the antidote to Covid-19. We're taking everything so seriously, it's life and death, you versus me, it's a battle with everything on the line. But instead of focusing big, Seinfeld focuses small. As he always has. On the little things in life. And it's definitely about life. The absurdities of it. You'll watch and marvel, because you will have experienced what he's talking about again and again and again.
This is not Chris Rock, smiling, laughing at his own jokes. Chris is leading up to the big punchline, you're with him all the way, on the ride, he's your bud. But Seinfeld starts at the same line but is always ahead of you, you don't relax, sink into your chair, at best you're holding on, as he takes you through a wild tour of New York City as well as your domicile.
Yes, Seinfeld is the Carlin of our day.
But with shorter jokes and many more punchlines. And, once again, without the same warmth.
Jerry got beaten up for saying he was on the spectrum. You can never get it right in today's world, you're always offending someone. What they want you to do is shut up, so they and their perspective can triumph. Then again, without you violating their rules they've got little to live for.
Now it's been well-documented that Seinfeld did a long run at the Beacon. The pitch was the theatre was just down the street from his home, he could go to it like a job.
And that's very different from going on the road. It's more akin to Broadway. But in this case, it's only Jerry. I wonder how long it takes him to come down after the show.
He doesn't need to hang around, talk with the promoter, take pictures with insiders. It's the same venue every night, he could literally walk right off the stage into a cab, or maybe an Uber...Jerry nails that too, tying it in with the iPhone.
It's masterful, how Jerry analyzes each and every element of our humdrum lives. He even nails the husband/wife situation, hearkening back to Alan King and the comedians of yore.
You see Jerry is singular. This is what he does. And no one does it anywhere near as well as he does. If you want it, he's got it.
This is from the era where it was about unique identity, before the millennial generation dictated that you had to saw off your rough edges and fit in. Jerry's a boomer through and through, he wants to shine, he wants the accolades.
Watching this you can see the difference between Jerry and Larry David. Yes, Larry constructed the byzantine plot lines of the TV show, but Larry could never do what Jerry does in standup. Hell, Larry's too lazy!
You've got to have the drive, and the talent.
I knew this special was launching today. But I only watched it this afternoon because of the interview in today's "Times": https://nyti.ms/2WoJFbe
It reminds me of the one Jerry did with Howard Stern, one of the best ever on the program. Because Jerry was honest and he truly didn't care what anybody thought about his viewpoint. This is so rare. This is part of why Jerry believes he's on the spectrum. And if you know people on the spectrum, they find it hard to make friends. They're loyal to the ones they've got, but making new ones...the problem is they say the wrong thing, they don't know how to navigate personal interactions, when to stay silent, when to lie.
Jerry is learning this in his marriage, he tells us all about this, switching from singledom to a couple. But there's a good reason for him to hang in there with his wife, because he wants the eggs the relationship delivers, as well as the children. You know Jerry wouldn't take this from just anybody.
So this explains the coolness I referenced above. You can marvel, but you just can't penetrate.
So in the "Times" article, Jerry says he doesn't have OCD, he just loves routine. He can't be what you label him as. Once again, those on the spectrum love routine, it keeps them centered. But my point is Jerry is not confessing to flaws, that's part of his identity, that's part of what keeps him separate.
He talks about needing his kids to explain new online fads like TikTok to him, but once he's got it, he never returns. That's how I feel! I want to know about it, but I don't want to waste time on it.
Everybody's trying to gain attention online during the stay at home pandemic era, Jerry says no, he thrives on the live vibe.
But what really struck me is Jerry said:
"I'm really just into the pure art of it now. Just the bit, the audience and the moment. I'm more interested in that than ever, and I'm less interested in everything else."
After all, he's 65. That's a point he makes in the special. He's been there, done that, he's got no need to see or experience it again.
And sure, Jerry's got all the money, as David Letterman would say. But the truth is many 65 year old have enough to live comfortably (this is where the politically correct police crack down on me, just like they do on Jerry re autism...of course there are poor people, can we even talk about the upper middle class or is that a completely taboo subject?) But they're in their sunset years. They paid their dues, they just want to relax. But Jerry is still in search of the zeitgeist. He's more focused than ever. And watching this special you can see that.
And you should watch this special. I don't know how many jokes will become part of the vernacular, that you'll quote to your buddies, but I will say you'll see yourself more in Jerry's comedy special than you will in any one I've seen in decades. He's you. You can afford the ticket. You've lived long enough to contemplate how you want to spend your time. But you feel so alone.
Watch Jerry Seinfeld and you won't be.
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Live Lounge Allstars-Times Like These
https://bit.ly/2SI9v9o
Why does a charity single have to be a dirge?
I saw Rapino's tweet about this yesterday. And Michael rarely does tweet, so I paid attention, but when I saw it concerned the Foo Fighters I tuned out. In the early seventies, the Foo Fighters would have been seen as being on the same level as Grand Funk Railroad...overhyped, serviceable band embraced by the heartland but despised on the coasts ultimately releases a couple of good tracks and then disappears. Yes, I'll admit to liking "I'm Your Captain (Closer to Home)" and of course Grand Funk truly achieved greatness with the Todd Rundgren-produced "We're an American Band," but Little Eva did the definitive version of "Loco-motion" and the rest was dreck, their double live LP was one of the worst ever, if you saw it in someone's collection, you judged them negatively.
Same deal with the Foos. "Learning to Fly" was excellent, both the song and the video. But I stopped paying attention long ago.
All to the point that I did not know that "Times Like These" was a Foo Fighters song! But after listening to the charity single I went on Spotify and found out it had 86 million listens, which puts it at #10 in Foo plays on the service. No wonder I don't know it.
So I played the original. It was fast! That kinda shocked me. I figured it too was a dirge, but NO! And the groove and the changes were there, but the Live Lounge Allstars version is so much better.
WHO?
Les Garland e-mailed me about the video. And I trust Les, anything he recommends I'm gonna check out, so I watched it and...
Found it a slow dirge, like I said above. But as it was playing in the background, as I'd already formulated an opinion on it, that it was lame drivel, IT GOT GOOD!
Once again, it's the changes that got me. And they were good, so that's why I looked up who wrote them and was stunned to find out it was a cover of the Foos tune.
But it gets even worse... WHO ARE THESE PEOPLE?
Thank god, I scrolled down and the first comment was by one David Little. I'll reproduce it here:
Hailee Steinfeld – 0:02
Dua Lipa – 0:21
Anne-Marie – 0:37
Ellie Goulding, Taylor Hawkins (Foo Fighters) – 0:43
Simon Neil (Biffy Clyro) – 0:50
Ellie Goulding – 0:53
Biff Clyro – 0:54
Jess Glynne – 0:57
Sam Fender, James Johnston (Biffy Clyro) – 1:02
Simon Neil – 1:07
Mabel – 1:09
Dan Smith (Bastille) – 1:14
YUNGBLUD, Dan Smith, Luke Hemmings (5 Seconds of Summer) – 1:19 Simon Neil – 1:25
James Johnston – 1:29
Ben Thatcher (Royal Blood) – 1:32
Rita Ora – 1:34
Mike Kerr (Royal Blood) – 1:44
Simon Neil – 1:49
Dermot Kennedy – 1:50
Taylor Hawkins, Ellie Goulding, James Johnston – 1:56
Sigrid – 1:58
Ellie Goulding – 2:02
Sigrid, Rag'n'Bone Man, Grace Carter, Dan Smith, Ellie Goulding, Woody (Chris Wood, Bastille) – 2:03
Ellie Goulding, Dave Grohl (Foo Fighters) – 2:09
Dua Lipa, Dave Grohl, Grace Carter, Ben Johnston (Biffy Clyro) –
2:14 Rag'n'Bone Man – 2:21
Zara Larsson, YUNGBLUD – 2:26
AJ Tracey – 2:29
Sean Paul – 2:45 Celeste – 3:01
Paloma Faith – 3:07
Dan Smith, Luke Hemmings – 3:17
YUNGBLUD – 3:23
Rita Ora – 3:30
Paloma Faith – 3:32
Everyone – 3:33
Chris Martin (Coldplay) – 4:02
To tell you the truth, I knew the majority of the names, but I couldn't pick most of these people out of a lineup. And I felt so old and out of it until...I realized this is now the human condition, we're all out of it, and if these performers were as famous as the media and their handlers think they are there'd be no need for this listing, never mind the 272 replies thanking David Little for delineating the performances.
So, the song does start like an irrelevant dirge, but then it gets hypnotic, you want to hear it again, and when was the last time you wanted to hear a charity single more than once, if even that much?
Now I recognized Dua Lipa. Quite possibly the hottest woman on the charts today. You get her, and everybody else falls in line, she deserves to be the first singer, and she nails it.
But I had no idea who the follow-up was, Anne-Marie, who had a rich powerful voice that reached me.
And Ellie Goulding, I recognized her, she was more than serviceable.
But who was this red-haired nymph Jess Glynne with the color in her voice? Actually, she's never had a hit in the U.S., so I'm not gonna feel bad about being clueless.
I've been e-mailed multiple times about Sam Fender, good to see him sing, he's got pipes.
But who was this woman Mabel? I hated that she appeared with her dog, that's such standard-issue celebrity behavior, but she too could sing. Should I have known her? In the U.S. last year her album went all the way up to #198! She had a single that went to #66!! Whoo-ee!
Now to tell you the truth, most of the performances were interesting, but singling out a few more that truly struck me, besides Anne-Marie and Jess Glynne...
James Johnston was the rock singer Dave Grohl wished he could be.
And Mike Thatcher of Royal Blood represented the rockers well.
And I always love seeing Rag'n'Bone Man, who added bottom with his rich voice.
The rap break was superfluous, but Sean Paul totally delivered!
And Celeste was really good, but Paloma Faith killed it. She's got those deep pipes of women who front rock bands who steal boys' hearts.
And when everybody threw in... It was not bogus like "We are the World," but rich and satisfying.
Forget the obligatory Chris Martin ending. He's the bridge between old and new, along with the Foos, but they were included because it was their song.
Now it comes down to songs, and this is one that's almost twenty years old. Without songs, it doesn't matter how much vocal talent you have.
But watching the performances in this video you get excited, it's the younger generation's time, and these performers have talent. Some have had great songs, others are still waiting for them.
So I'm stunned that the YouTube video only has 5+ million views, especially since it's been out since April 23rd. That's how slow things move today, you make a charity record that includes the singing of the hottest stars of today and still...nearly crickets.
One thing about Bob Geldof, he was a great promoter. Today, if you do it, they may not come. You need people to know about it and to be incentivized.
After watching this video I'm incentivized to check out further music of those who impressed me in it.
It'd be interesting to see what response a hip-hop charity video in the U.S. would have.
Then again, in the U.K. a broader swath of musical genres is exposed.
If you're a rocker, if you like songs that touch you and set your mind free, if you're wowed by talent, you'll be surprised this reaches you.
Or maybe you're one of those people still living in the last century, believing that you know all and your tired tiny genre is the only one that deserves attention and you have to denigrate everything else, but the joke is on you, because if this video hasn't spread, what are the odds your music will, NIL!
And music is best when it's universal. When it reaches a large audience. I don't mean dumbed-down for everybody, but special enough that it will rise above and will generate a mass following, a group of people who believe they're part of a club, who feel united in their faith in the music and those who perform it.
That's what unites us. The music.
But when you shoot low, when you hype that which has no substance, you're evidence of internet culture.
And when you get stuck in your tribe, you're evidence of political culture.
But when you nod your head and smile, feel that there's hope for you and the world, that's MUSIC!
--
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Why does a charity single have to be a dirge?
I saw Rapino's tweet about this yesterday. And Michael rarely does tweet, so I paid attention, but when I saw it concerned the Foo Fighters I tuned out. In the early seventies, the Foo Fighters would have been seen as being on the same level as Grand Funk Railroad...overhyped, serviceable band embraced by the heartland but despised on the coasts ultimately releases a couple of good tracks and then disappears. Yes, I'll admit to liking "I'm Your Captain (Closer to Home)" and of course Grand Funk truly achieved greatness with the Todd Rundgren-produced "We're an American Band," but Little Eva did the definitive version of "Loco-motion" and the rest was dreck, their double live LP was one of the worst ever, if you saw it in someone's collection, you judged them negatively.
Same deal with the Foos. "Learning to Fly" was excellent, both the song and the video. But I stopped paying attention long ago.
All to the point that I did not know that "Times Like These" was a Foo Fighters song! But after listening to the charity single I went on Spotify and found out it had 86 million listens, which puts it at #10 in Foo plays on the service. No wonder I don't know it.
So I played the original. It was fast! That kinda shocked me. I figured it too was a dirge, but NO! And the groove and the changes were there, but the Live Lounge Allstars version is so much better.
WHO?
Les Garland e-mailed me about the video. And I trust Les, anything he recommends I'm gonna check out, so I watched it and...
Found it a slow dirge, like I said above. But as it was playing in the background, as I'd already formulated an opinion on it, that it was lame drivel, IT GOT GOOD!
Once again, it's the changes that got me. And they were good, so that's why I looked up who wrote them and was stunned to find out it was a cover of the Foos tune.
But it gets even worse... WHO ARE THESE PEOPLE?
Thank god, I scrolled down and the first comment was by one David Little. I'll reproduce it here:
Hailee Steinfeld – 0:02
Dua Lipa – 0:21
Anne-Marie – 0:37
Ellie Goulding, Taylor Hawkins (Foo Fighters) – 0:43
Simon Neil (Biffy Clyro) – 0:50
Ellie Goulding – 0:53
Biff Clyro – 0:54
Jess Glynne – 0:57
Sam Fender, James Johnston (Biffy Clyro) – 1:02
Simon Neil – 1:07
Mabel – 1:09
Dan Smith (Bastille) – 1:14
YUNGBLUD, Dan Smith, Luke Hemmings (5 Seconds of Summer) – 1:19 Simon Neil – 1:25
James Johnston – 1:29
Ben Thatcher (Royal Blood) – 1:32
Rita Ora – 1:34
Mike Kerr (Royal Blood) – 1:44
Simon Neil – 1:49
Dermot Kennedy – 1:50
Taylor Hawkins, Ellie Goulding, James Johnston – 1:56
Sigrid – 1:58
Ellie Goulding – 2:02
Sigrid, Rag'n'Bone Man, Grace Carter, Dan Smith, Ellie Goulding, Woody (Chris Wood, Bastille) – 2:03
Ellie Goulding, Dave Grohl (Foo Fighters) – 2:09
Dua Lipa, Dave Grohl, Grace Carter, Ben Johnston (Biffy Clyro) –
2:14 Rag'n'Bone Man – 2:21
Zara Larsson, YUNGBLUD – 2:26
AJ Tracey – 2:29
Sean Paul – 2:45 Celeste – 3:01
Paloma Faith – 3:07
Dan Smith, Luke Hemmings – 3:17
YUNGBLUD – 3:23
Rita Ora – 3:30
Paloma Faith – 3:32
Everyone – 3:33
Chris Martin (Coldplay) – 4:02
To tell you the truth, I knew the majority of the names, but I couldn't pick most of these people out of a lineup. And I felt so old and out of it until...I realized this is now the human condition, we're all out of it, and if these performers were as famous as the media and their handlers think they are there'd be no need for this listing, never mind the 272 replies thanking David Little for delineating the performances.
So, the song does start like an irrelevant dirge, but then it gets hypnotic, you want to hear it again, and when was the last time you wanted to hear a charity single more than once, if even that much?
Now I recognized Dua Lipa. Quite possibly the hottest woman on the charts today. You get her, and everybody else falls in line, she deserves to be the first singer, and she nails it.
But I had no idea who the follow-up was, Anne-Marie, who had a rich powerful voice that reached me.
And Ellie Goulding, I recognized her, she was more than serviceable.
But who was this red-haired nymph Jess Glynne with the color in her voice? Actually, she's never had a hit in the U.S., so I'm not gonna feel bad about being clueless.
I've been e-mailed multiple times about Sam Fender, good to see him sing, he's got pipes.
But who was this woman Mabel? I hated that she appeared with her dog, that's such standard-issue celebrity behavior, but she too could sing. Should I have known her? In the U.S. last year her album went all the way up to #198! She had a single that went to #66!! Whoo-ee!
Now to tell you the truth, most of the performances were interesting, but singling out a few more that truly struck me, besides Anne-Marie and Jess Glynne...
James Johnston was the rock singer Dave Grohl wished he could be.
And Mike Thatcher of Royal Blood represented the rockers well.
And I always love seeing Rag'n'Bone Man, who added bottom with his rich voice.
The rap break was superfluous, but Sean Paul totally delivered!
And Celeste was really good, but Paloma Faith killed it. She's got those deep pipes of women who front rock bands who steal boys' hearts.
And when everybody threw in... It was not bogus like "We are the World," but rich and satisfying.
Forget the obligatory Chris Martin ending. He's the bridge between old and new, along with the Foos, but they were included because it was their song.
Now it comes down to songs, and this is one that's almost twenty years old. Without songs, it doesn't matter how much vocal talent you have.
But watching the performances in this video you get excited, it's the younger generation's time, and these performers have talent. Some have had great songs, others are still waiting for them.
So I'm stunned that the YouTube video only has 5+ million views, especially since it's been out since April 23rd. That's how slow things move today, you make a charity record that includes the singing of the hottest stars of today and still...nearly crickets.
One thing about Bob Geldof, he was a great promoter. Today, if you do it, they may not come. You need people to know about it and to be incentivized.
After watching this video I'm incentivized to check out further music of those who impressed me in it.
It'd be interesting to see what response a hip-hop charity video in the U.S. would have.
Then again, in the U.K. a broader swath of musical genres is exposed.
If you're a rocker, if you like songs that touch you and set your mind free, if you're wowed by talent, you'll be surprised this reaches you.
Or maybe you're one of those people still living in the last century, believing that you know all and your tired tiny genre is the only one that deserves attention and you have to denigrate everything else, but the joke is on you, because if this video hasn't spread, what are the odds your music will, NIL!
And music is best when it's universal. When it reaches a large audience. I don't mean dumbed-down for everybody, but special enough that it will rise above and will generate a mass following, a group of people who believe they're part of a club, who feel united in their faith in the music and those who perform it.
That's what unites us. The music.
But when you shoot low, when you hype that which has no substance, you're evidence of internet culture.
And when you get stuck in your tribe, you're evidence of political culture.
But when you nod your head and smile, feel that there's hope for you and the world, that's MUSIC!
--
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Nicky Hopkins-SiriusXM This Week
Show playlist:
Spotify: https://spoti.fi/2SE6OWe
Pandora: https://pdora.co/2z9DPmi
Now, SiriusXM streaming is FREE through May 31st.
Listen today, 4 PM Pacific, 7 PM East, on Volume 106 at:
siriusxm.us/VOLUMESXM
Listen to previous shows on demand:
https://player.siriusxm.com/query/lefsetz
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Spotify: https://spoti.fi/2SE6OWe
Pandora: https://pdora.co/2z9DPmi
Now, SiriusXM streaming is FREE through May 31st.
Listen today, 4 PM Pacific, 7 PM East, on Volume 106 at:
siriusxm.us/VOLUMESXM
Listen to previous shows on demand:
https://player.siriusxm.com/query/lefsetz
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Monday, 4 May 2020
Reopening
It's very simple, it's all about testing.
You start with the necessary workers, you know, those at the grocery store, the infrastructure that keeps America going. You test them on a regular basis. Then you open the spigot just a bit, and test those at retail and office locations. And you keep testing. And when you find someone who is infected, you isolate them until their infection runs its course.
But we can't do that in America, because it's going to impact our FREEDOM!
Let's start with the tests. We ain't got them. No one has covered this better than John Oliver last night:
https://bit.ly/2xEdo80
We live in an era of disinformation. Trump has employed Putin's playbook. You beat up on the press, you put so many theories out there that the truth is in question. Even if someone in an official capacity is spewing facts, those are questionable too.
But to stay with testing, we haven't got enough. Jared Kushner says we do, Trump says everybody who wants one can get one, but our testing today is unbelievably low and so is our capacity, experts say we need 5-35 million tests a day, at a minimum 500,000, but presently we're testing close to 200,000 people a day.
But, MISSION ACCOMPLISHED! Isn't that what Bush 2 said?
It was only the beginning.
And Brownie was doing a HELLUVA JOB saving New Orleans, and the end result was that the Republicans got wiped out in the next election.
But it's even worse now, Trump is getting in a fight with Bush 2! Trump only has loyalists, essentially on the payroll, he's got no allies. And you cannot win a war that way.
But let's get back to freedom why don't we, that's the bedrock of America, as well as the right to carry an assault rifle and have no health insurance. They have an assault rifle massacre in Canada, and Trudeau outlaws the weapon, institutes a buyback program for those in existence, but we can't do that in America, because those who possess them need them to fight America, if the government gets out of control.
Ever hear of a drone? Ever hear of cyberspace?
That's where war is fought today. You might have read the story about ex-Googler Eric Schmidt being the new military expert, telling the generals to get behind machine learning, but these are the same overtrained bozos who believe the war will be fought on the ground.
So, the weather got warm and you want to go to the beach.
SO DO WE!
Do you think anybody wants to stay home? That they don't want to go out and get a burger, watch a movie...
But we get everybody in the country on the same page, staying home, that's quite an accomplishment, but then Trump and the anti-vaxxers start protesting, in small numbers, and it's all over, we've got to open the country whether we're ready or not.
But the big news today is even TRUMP expects Covid-19 deaths to rise prodigiously.
That's right, it's been the headline story all day in the aforementioned lacking credibility "failing" "New York Times":
"Coronavirus Live Updates: As States Move to Reopen, 2 Projections Show Deaths Rising": https://nyti.ms/2L0y1hz
To 3,000 a day by June 1 from 1,750 today. Infections are going to go to 200,000 a day from 25,000 now.
THIS IS TRUMP'S ADMINISTRATION SAYING THIS!
It's the headline in the "New York Times," it's finally made it to the "Washington Post," but it's not near the top at the "Wall Street Journal," as for Fox News...the headline is all about Michael Flynn, isn't this the equivalent of Hillary's e-mails, but in reverse?
But the problem is all China's. Trump wants China to pay for our losses.
Yeah, like that's ever gonna happen.
But even worse, this is like looking for the person who set the fire while it still rages. PUT OUT THE FIRE FIRST!
So what we are looking for is leadership, someone to tell us what to do.
What the past six weeks have proven is we WILL do what someone tells us to do, the government leaders do have power.
But Trump kept saying it was the states' obligation, and then occasionally took power from them. This is like the NFL letting every team set its own rules, and then Roger Goodell coming along every once in a while to change them.
So, people sit at home and run by their feelings, as if their feelings are worth anything.
Hmm... I can't see the cliff, there is a warning sign but the drop is not visible, so I'm gonna keep going at top speed.
Meanwhile, all we keep hearing about is SWEDEN!
Well, it turns out it isn't working in Sweden. Suddenly, deaths have skyrocketed! I could provide the link, I could provide links for all of this, but you're not gonna believe them, so why bother.
And now we've got the insane Tara Reade story.
Only the Democrats can shoot themselves in the foot.
You don't take the bait. You get out ahead of the story.
So, at first the left wing press buried the story and Biden stayed silent. And then the right harped on it so much that Biden had to respond. And he denied it. And that's usually enough in today's world, that kills a story in today's fast-moving news cycle. But Biden waited too long, you jump on the accusation immediately. As for the press, it can see the truth in the right wing position, and now is self-flagellating, can you say JUDITH MILLER!
Yes, the "Times" printed an editorial over the weekend calling for a further investigation.
Today there's an opinion piece in the Gray Lady saying Biden has to go.
So, once again the right defines the debate and laughs as the left trips over its sneakers.
It's very simple lefties... JUST MOVE ON! And if questioned, say for the good of the country they're not going to attack Biden.
Of course, the press and the DNC anointed the lame Biden and now they're paying the price, proving once again that the handlers and the prognosticators are clueless. They're so busy saving their status that they hurt the country.
So no wonder you feel alone, no wonder you feel stuck in the middle with me.
Facts have become irrelevant.
The economy is being trashed and those damn lefties made us shut down the country, so we'll show them, WE'LL REOPEN IT!
And like those coronavirus deniers we read about in the past six weeks, new ones will die. It's kinda like Lee Atwater, the dirty trickster working for Reagan and Bush, on his premature deathbed he recanted, tried to take it all back. That's what happens when you die, you've got remorse.
But people die all day long, so what's the difference now?
Well, the deaths far outpace those for the flu, but people still don't believe it.
Bill Gates is knowledgeable on pandemics and has a profile, but the truth is he started the whole thing for personal gain. Yup, that's what the anti-vaxxers and right wing believe. Gates is gonna ride in on a white horse with a vaccine, so why should he be believed?
As for Trump... He feels like there will be a vaccine by the end of the year. Just like he felt Covid-19 was an irrelevant issue in America.
And speaking of America, the supposed greatest country in the world, it turns out South Korea had a better plan. It's kinda like 9/11, who could foresee terrorists flying into skyscrapers? OUR OWN DAMN GOVERNMENT! But you can't listen to experts on the payroll, because they're part of the deep state that is ruining this great country of ours, rogue entities that are now allowing Trump to rule as he sees fit!
Back to Tara Reade... The DNC didn't foresee this? If Trump and his cronies were gonna employ a quid pro quo, dollars for dirt, with Ukraine for Biden info, and then Trump skates on impeachment, do you really think the Donald and the RNC are gonna be afraid and stop going on the attack?
So, you've got to go to the beach. You can't get sick in the sunshine, it inoculates you!
But the data has come out saying exactly the opposite!
But data is manipulated, don't believe it.
You've got the right to go to the office and go shopping. After all, you know plenty of people who go to the grocery store who are fine.
Meanwhile, they're now wearing masks when Pence does not. And his reasoning? HE'S TESTED ALL THE TIME!
The goal is to limit the number of infected and isolate them, so fewer people can be infected by them, so infections die in the general population, but now the government itself is saying we're going in the opposite direction by opening up the country, that deaths will double!
And it's not even six degrees of separation. You or someone you know will die. You think you're immune, but you're not. And when it's you...haven't we learned that in today's America no one can suffer, no one can take one for the team? Oh, people say this, but when it's them, they want someone to pay, it's unjust and unfair!
And who the hell is gonna go for a test if you've got to pay for it. Even if it's free, many people don't believe this, after getting ER and other medical bills. As for the illegals doing a lot of the grunt work, they're never gonna be tested, they'd rather risk dying than being kicked back to Central America where they truly will die.
We've been skating for decades, saying the worst can never happen, that there will never be a rainy day. And it's at all levels. People have no savings and corporations don't either, if they've got any cash they kick it back to their stockholders, as for the government...it's inefficient so it must be starved!
Not that anything I write here will change your mind. Because if you don't agree, you've probably been subjected to DECADES of disinformation, you'd have to rewrite your entire history, better to go down with the ship.
As for the ship...
The Navy says Crozier can come back, but the secretary appointed by Trump is so afraid of angering the Donald that he's kicked it back for another review. And when institutions fail, you're screwed. This was a rubber stamp situation. But what we've got here is the lifetime employees saying get over it, it's fine, Crozier should go back to being the captain, but the temporary employee with less experience says no. So, do you want to subject yourself to the system? OF COURSE NOT! You're either muzzled or fired, you've got to take the company line or you're history! So, it all comes down to keeping your job, is that what work should be about? Is truth irrelevant?
I always laughed when George Carlin said voting was irrelevant.
Oh, I know, I know, better Biden than Trump. There is a difference, but it's gonna benefit the big people more than the little.
As for Biden...
Covid-19 is de rigueur, it's part of the fabric, it's the daily condition, if people are no longer scared of the virus today what are the odds they'll remember in November?
All the statistics said Biden should emerge victorious, but now the right is ramping up, attacking Biden 24/7, who is so lame he can't even FIGHT BACK! It'd be like someone dropping a nuclear bomb on your house and you waiting weeks to retaliate. It shows weakness, and aren't we looking for strength in a leader? That's one place Trump has got Biden beat.
And there will be debates, because Trump will cream Biden, that's a given.
And what will the issues be?
THE PENUMBRA!
We've seen this movie over and over again. The Democrats nominate a reasonable person with experience and they lose over trivial matters that have nothing to do with governing. How about Kerry? He famously got Swiftboated. He went to fight and Bush 2 did not, but somehow it's Kerry's fault?
So, the Democrats could stop nominating the safe candidate, who always loses, and throw a longer ball. Someone who fights back, someone who sets the agenda.
But they're scared of this. Trump breaks the paradigm and the DNC wants to re-establish it. What next, typewriters?
As for the Postal Service...
Of course it should be propped up. And it would be fine if the Republicans didn't insist that pensions be paid way in advance. But Trump keeps saying the problem is Jeff Bezos, when in truth Amazon does not get favorable rates, and no one is explaining to the hoi polloi how the Postal Service benefits them. People believe they live in a purely digital world, so screw the mail carriers. They're all on the dole anyway.
Meanwhile, everybody with a dime gets more. Your CEO is paid millions? Well, you need government assistance, the individual has no relationship with their bank, the business of America is business, and since we've stripped down the IRS and the overseers, you're never gonna get caught anyway. Do you really think the Lakers would be taking this money if they were afraid of getting caught? Of course not, but today no one gets caught, except for the little person.
But the IRS is bad, as are the taxes it collects.
But it's your taxes that pay the CDC, and you keep saying you want to be safe...
I give up. I'm just one voice in a million. I'm not convincing anybody to change their opinion. As for the bloviators on the flat screen and in opinion pages... That's their business, they paid their dues, they aren't letting in those who did not. It'd be like walking out of law school and demanding to be made partner at the law firm, doesn't happen.
So, should you stay home, wear a mask and observe social distancing when everybody else is not?
Already people are standing closer, the data tells us this, the cellphone data. And you can just look at the pictures.
And I was just at a gas station, for every person with a mask and rubber gloves, there's another in flip-flops living free and easy, and isn't it funny that the richer people are, the more they believe they're immune. And, in fact they are. They've don't go to the grocery store and they certainly don't have to work there. And if they think they're infected, they're connected and get a test instantly. And then our leader says this is the way life is in these United States.
It most certainly is.
But it shouldn't be.
--
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--
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You start with the necessary workers, you know, those at the grocery store, the infrastructure that keeps America going. You test them on a regular basis. Then you open the spigot just a bit, and test those at retail and office locations. And you keep testing. And when you find someone who is infected, you isolate them until their infection runs its course.
But we can't do that in America, because it's going to impact our FREEDOM!
Let's start with the tests. We ain't got them. No one has covered this better than John Oliver last night:
https://bit.ly/2xEdo80
We live in an era of disinformation. Trump has employed Putin's playbook. You beat up on the press, you put so many theories out there that the truth is in question. Even if someone in an official capacity is spewing facts, those are questionable too.
But to stay with testing, we haven't got enough. Jared Kushner says we do, Trump says everybody who wants one can get one, but our testing today is unbelievably low and so is our capacity, experts say we need 5-35 million tests a day, at a minimum 500,000, but presently we're testing close to 200,000 people a day.
But, MISSION ACCOMPLISHED! Isn't that what Bush 2 said?
It was only the beginning.
And Brownie was doing a HELLUVA JOB saving New Orleans, and the end result was that the Republicans got wiped out in the next election.
But it's even worse now, Trump is getting in a fight with Bush 2! Trump only has loyalists, essentially on the payroll, he's got no allies. And you cannot win a war that way.
But let's get back to freedom why don't we, that's the bedrock of America, as well as the right to carry an assault rifle and have no health insurance. They have an assault rifle massacre in Canada, and Trudeau outlaws the weapon, institutes a buyback program for those in existence, but we can't do that in America, because those who possess them need them to fight America, if the government gets out of control.
Ever hear of a drone? Ever hear of cyberspace?
That's where war is fought today. You might have read the story about ex-Googler Eric Schmidt being the new military expert, telling the generals to get behind machine learning, but these are the same overtrained bozos who believe the war will be fought on the ground.
So, the weather got warm and you want to go to the beach.
SO DO WE!
Do you think anybody wants to stay home? That they don't want to go out and get a burger, watch a movie...
But we get everybody in the country on the same page, staying home, that's quite an accomplishment, but then Trump and the anti-vaxxers start protesting, in small numbers, and it's all over, we've got to open the country whether we're ready or not.
But the big news today is even TRUMP expects Covid-19 deaths to rise prodigiously.
That's right, it's been the headline story all day in the aforementioned lacking credibility "failing" "New York Times":
"Coronavirus Live Updates: As States Move to Reopen, 2 Projections Show Deaths Rising": https://nyti.ms/2L0y1hz
To 3,000 a day by June 1 from 1,750 today. Infections are going to go to 200,000 a day from 25,000 now.
THIS IS TRUMP'S ADMINISTRATION SAYING THIS!
It's the headline in the "New York Times," it's finally made it to the "Washington Post," but it's not near the top at the "Wall Street Journal," as for Fox News...the headline is all about Michael Flynn, isn't this the equivalent of Hillary's e-mails, but in reverse?
But the problem is all China's. Trump wants China to pay for our losses.
Yeah, like that's ever gonna happen.
But even worse, this is like looking for the person who set the fire while it still rages. PUT OUT THE FIRE FIRST!
So what we are looking for is leadership, someone to tell us what to do.
What the past six weeks have proven is we WILL do what someone tells us to do, the government leaders do have power.
But Trump kept saying it was the states' obligation, and then occasionally took power from them. This is like the NFL letting every team set its own rules, and then Roger Goodell coming along every once in a while to change them.
So, people sit at home and run by their feelings, as if their feelings are worth anything.
Hmm... I can't see the cliff, there is a warning sign but the drop is not visible, so I'm gonna keep going at top speed.
Meanwhile, all we keep hearing about is SWEDEN!
Well, it turns out it isn't working in Sweden. Suddenly, deaths have skyrocketed! I could provide the link, I could provide links for all of this, but you're not gonna believe them, so why bother.
And now we've got the insane Tara Reade story.
Only the Democrats can shoot themselves in the foot.
You don't take the bait. You get out ahead of the story.
So, at first the left wing press buried the story and Biden stayed silent. And then the right harped on it so much that Biden had to respond. And he denied it. And that's usually enough in today's world, that kills a story in today's fast-moving news cycle. But Biden waited too long, you jump on the accusation immediately. As for the press, it can see the truth in the right wing position, and now is self-flagellating, can you say JUDITH MILLER!
Yes, the "Times" printed an editorial over the weekend calling for a further investigation.
Today there's an opinion piece in the Gray Lady saying Biden has to go.
So, once again the right defines the debate and laughs as the left trips over its sneakers.
It's very simple lefties... JUST MOVE ON! And if questioned, say for the good of the country they're not going to attack Biden.
Of course, the press and the DNC anointed the lame Biden and now they're paying the price, proving once again that the handlers and the prognosticators are clueless. They're so busy saving their status that they hurt the country.
So no wonder you feel alone, no wonder you feel stuck in the middle with me.
Facts have become irrelevant.
The economy is being trashed and those damn lefties made us shut down the country, so we'll show them, WE'LL REOPEN IT!
And like those coronavirus deniers we read about in the past six weeks, new ones will die. It's kinda like Lee Atwater, the dirty trickster working for Reagan and Bush, on his premature deathbed he recanted, tried to take it all back. That's what happens when you die, you've got remorse.
But people die all day long, so what's the difference now?
Well, the deaths far outpace those for the flu, but people still don't believe it.
Bill Gates is knowledgeable on pandemics and has a profile, but the truth is he started the whole thing for personal gain. Yup, that's what the anti-vaxxers and right wing believe. Gates is gonna ride in on a white horse with a vaccine, so why should he be believed?
As for Trump... He feels like there will be a vaccine by the end of the year. Just like he felt Covid-19 was an irrelevant issue in America.
And speaking of America, the supposed greatest country in the world, it turns out South Korea had a better plan. It's kinda like 9/11, who could foresee terrorists flying into skyscrapers? OUR OWN DAMN GOVERNMENT! But you can't listen to experts on the payroll, because they're part of the deep state that is ruining this great country of ours, rogue entities that are now allowing Trump to rule as he sees fit!
Back to Tara Reade... The DNC didn't foresee this? If Trump and his cronies were gonna employ a quid pro quo, dollars for dirt, with Ukraine for Biden info, and then Trump skates on impeachment, do you really think the Donald and the RNC are gonna be afraid and stop going on the attack?
So, you've got to go to the beach. You can't get sick in the sunshine, it inoculates you!
But the data has come out saying exactly the opposite!
But data is manipulated, don't believe it.
You've got the right to go to the office and go shopping. After all, you know plenty of people who go to the grocery store who are fine.
Meanwhile, they're now wearing masks when Pence does not. And his reasoning? HE'S TESTED ALL THE TIME!
The goal is to limit the number of infected and isolate them, so fewer people can be infected by them, so infections die in the general population, but now the government itself is saying we're going in the opposite direction by opening up the country, that deaths will double!
And it's not even six degrees of separation. You or someone you know will die. You think you're immune, but you're not. And when it's you...haven't we learned that in today's America no one can suffer, no one can take one for the team? Oh, people say this, but when it's them, they want someone to pay, it's unjust and unfair!
And who the hell is gonna go for a test if you've got to pay for it. Even if it's free, many people don't believe this, after getting ER and other medical bills. As for the illegals doing a lot of the grunt work, they're never gonna be tested, they'd rather risk dying than being kicked back to Central America where they truly will die.
We've been skating for decades, saying the worst can never happen, that there will never be a rainy day. And it's at all levels. People have no savings and corporations don't either, if they've got any cash they kick it back to their stockholders, as for the government...it's inefficient so it must be starved!
Not that anything I write here will change your mind. Because if you don't agree, you've probably been subjected to DECADES of disinformation, you'd have to rewrite your entire history, better to go down with the ship.
As for the ship...
The Navy says Crozier can come back, but the secretary appointed by Trump is so afraid of angering the Donald that he's kicked it back for another review. And when institutions fail, you're screwed. This was a rubber stamp situation. But what we've got here is the lifetime employees saying get over it, it's fine, Crozier should go back to being the captain, but the temporary employee with less experience says no. So, do you want to subject yourself to the system? OF COURSE NOT! You're either muzzled or fired, you've got to take the company line or you're history! So, it all comes down to keeping your job, is that what work should be about? Is truth irrelevant?
I always laughed when George Carlin said voting was irrelevant.
Oh, I know, I know, better Biden than Trump. There is a difference, but it's gonna benefit the big people more than the little.
As for Biden...
Covid-19 is de rigueur, it's part of the fabric, it's the daily condition, if people are no longer scared of the virus today what are the odds they'll remember in November?
All the statistics said Biden should emerge victorious, but now the right is ramping up, attacking Biden 24/7, who is so lame he can't even FIGHT BACK! It'd be like someone dropping a nuclear bomb on your house and you waiting weeks to retaliate. It shows weakness, and aren't we looking for strength in a leader? That's one place Trump has got Biden beat.
And there will be debates, because Trump will cream Biden, that's a given.
And what will the issues be?
THE PENUMBRA!
We've seen this movie over and over again. The Democrats nominate a reasonable person with experience and they lose over trivial matters that have nothing to do with governing. How about Kerry? He famously got Swiftboated. He went to fight and Bush 2 did not, but somehow it's Kerry's fault?
So, the Democrats could stop nominating the safe candidate, who always loses, and throw a longer ball. Someone who fights back, someone who sets the agenda.
But they're scared of this. Trump breaks the paradigm and the DNC wants to re-establish it. What next, typewriters?
As for the Postal Service...
Of course it should be propped up. And it would be fine if the Republicans didn't insist that pensions be paid way in advance. But Trump keeps saying the problem is Jeff Bezos, when in truth Amazon does not get favorable rates, and no one is explaining to the hoi polloi how the Postal Service benefits them. People believe they live in a purely digital world, so screw the mail carriers. They're all on the dole anyway.
Meanwhile, everybody with a dime gets more. Your CEO is paid millions? Well, you need government assistance, the individual has no relationship with their bank, the business of America is business, and since we've stripped down the IRS and the overseers, you're never gonna get caught anyway. Do you really think the Lakers would be taking this money if they were afraid of getting caught? Of course not, but today no one gets caught, except for the little person.
But the IRS is bad, as are the taxes it collects.
But it's your taxes that pay the CDC, and you keep saying you want to be safe...
I give up. I'm just one voice in a million. I'm not convincing anybody to change their opinion. As for the bloviators on the flat screen and in opinion pages... That's their business, they paid their dues, they aren't letting in those who did not. It'd be like walking out of law school and demanding to be made partner at the law firm, doesn't happen.
So, should you stay home, wear a mask and observe social distancing when everybody else is not?
Already people are standing closer, the data tells us this, the cellphone data. And you can just look at the pictures.
And I was just at a gas station, for every person with a mask and rubber gloves, there's another in flip-flops living free and easy, and isn't it funny that the richer people are, the more they believe they're immune. And, in fact they are. They've don't go to the grocery store and they certainly don't have to work there. And if they think they're infected, they're connected and get a test instantly. And then our leader says this is the way life is in these United States.
It most certainly is.
But it shouldn't be.
--
Visit the archive: http://lefsetz.com/wordpress/
--
Listen to the podcast:
-iHeart: https://ihr.fm/2Gi5PFj
-Apple: https://apple.co/2ndmpvp
--
http://www.twitter.com/lefsetz
--
If you would like to subscribe to the LefsetzLetter,
http://www.lefsetz.com/lists/?p=subscribe&id=1
If you do not want to receive any more LefsetzLetters, http://lefsetz.com/lists/?p=unsubscribe&uid=0eecea7b60b461717065cbde887c8e25
To change your email address http://lefsetz.com/lists/?p=preferences&uid=0eecea7b60b461717065cbde887c8e25
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