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And from the recent past - here are but a few
of the excellent contributions from
James Dean Fisher!

AMERICA IS STARVING FOR THE MUSIC

Music........ America and the whole world is starving for this music! When we mentioned the word "music" many things come to mine, such as happiness, beauty, good times, pain and loneliness as well as love, people we love, our pets and on and on. Music brings forth emotions good, bad, sad , and I could go on with many more descriptions and thoughts pertaining to music. People of all races, creeds, associate music with memories and emotions that has occurred in their lives. Even animals react to the sounds of music. Some dog owners proclaim their dogs can actually sing. I would say from my perspective, it all depends the listener. Certain kinds of birds can speak and sing short phrases.

Mankind has been singing as for back as history has been written. Sure..... but the music has changed, the lyrical structure and instrumentation has been developed into the finest state of the art. Over the last 30 to 35 years, music and the recording industry has made leaps and bounds in the advancement of recorded music. First there was a recorder that recorded on steel wire with the sounds being transmitted on to a vinyl disc called a record. From that platform, the 78 record was brought about. This was followed up by a smaller record, usually containing only one song on each side , whereas the 78 record was known as an album. The album, usually contained several songs on each side. The 45 record, usually had one song on each side call the "A " and the" B" side. This was followed by the well-known format called the" 33 1/3" album containing 10 to 12 recorded songs. This format remained for many years and is still in production today. Some artists prefer the vinyl records over the CD format that is the standard in today's music world.

Soon this format became obsolete and the eight track tapes came along, of which very soon became outdated and the new format called the cassette became the standard. The cassette stayed on the market for several years. Then came the new format called the CD. The CD is now the most popular format for recorded music throughout the world. With that being said, there have been variations of the CD but the CD is still the standard format for recorded music today.

Music listeners and America, as well as most civilized countries throughout the world possess and own music that was recorded, and all formats, even the old 78. There are many genres of music and many kinds of music played and listened to throughout the music loving public. Here in America we have several genres, rock-n-roll, country, gospel, jazz, metal, alternative, folk and bluegrass. Throughout history, and since the recording industry started producing recorded music for the public's listening pleasure, there have been many, many changes in the process of recording as well as the definition related to certain genres of music.

As the music and the music industry has progressed, it has become a multi-billion dollar industry. The major artist, that is, the artist that has reached the pinnacle of success have many, many hit records and many of those hit records becoming #1" Hits." Hit records are records that has sold in the millions and are designated as " Gold" and" Platinum" records. These songs usually go on to be referred to as "Standards" and these songs continue to be played and performed throughout the entertainment industry, radio, television and the movie industry. These songs just seemed to never get old because they are constantly in demand by the listening public, the music buying public, as well as radio, television and the movie industry. These songs, the" Great hits" are loved and enjoyed by millions of music lovers throughout the world.

Where is this music? Where and why is this music, these great hits, not being played on the radio stations in the United States? In a survey done by this writer in the Nashville, Tennessee Metropolitan area, I found more people telling me they would like the radio stations here in Nashville and the surrounding areas, as well as other areas throughout the U.S. to play the great songs that has been monster hits in the United States as well as other countries around the world. The fact is....... the music listening public is being starved by the broadcast companies. The music that is played on the radio stations is the music that the buying public buys for their listening pleasure. If the radio stations do not and will not play the great hits songs that has made the broadcast industry, television and movie industries , the pivotal outlets for music of all genres, then........ not only does the great hits stop selling, the music buying public, as well as the music listening public is disenfranchised and deprived of the songs and music they love. The merchants, the businesses that sold all this great music can no longer secure the product! Sales and revenues are lost as well is jobs in the sales and marketing industry. This, my friends, is not only a disservice to the public, it hurts the economy!

The question has been asked by many in the music listening world as well is by artists, and entertainers that work in the entertainment business; who calls the shots on what songs are played on the radio on a daily basis? I have heard some say the radio broadcast programmers tell the record companies what kind of songs they want and that they will play, while on the other hand, I have heard that the record heads and P. R. People tell the radio stations what music they want played!

Is this true, will the truth ever be brought out? I doubt it very seriously, simply because as a former D. J., both parties are guilty to a great extent. The record executives naturally want their records by their artist played, and they want them played as often as they possibly can. On the other side of that tarnished coin, the broadcast industry wants to play the music by the latest artists in order to keep their ratings up, as well as the revenues coming in and from their sponsors. Most sponsors could care less what kind of music is played as long as the listening audience is getting their message and the buying customers are coming through the doors.

It is very sad, that the music listening world, the people are begging for the great hits songs and the great music that has been written and recorded in the music industry throughout the world, and mainly here in the United States, millions of listeners are being deprived of this great music! The recording artist/writer as well as the writers, and artists are basically put out of business because the broadcast industry, radio and television won't what will sale to the younger crowd. The middle-aged and older music listeners/buyers are disenfranchised and arbitrarily cut out, not ask about what they want to hear on the radio stations. In today's radio programming the middle-aged and elderly are not measuring factors but they should be involved in what the radio stations play. Ha ha, guess who has the money? Certainly not in 18 of 20 year old wet behind the ear, young person just getting started in life and with the new job. Middle-aged and older music listeners are not only dedicated, they have been buying music from many, many years. The reason this part of society has slowed down and not buying as many records/CDs as they once did is simply because the great" Hits" are not played on the radio any longer. It is a proven fact in broadcast and many of the older and retired program directors/music directors will tell you, unequivocally, the listening public will certainly buy what is being played on their radio stations! In certain genres of music, it is a known fact that children and the younger listening audience, 13 to 25 buys the most played music. But, including all genres of music, the music lover, that has bought records and CDs all through the years, will continue to buy music they love. As long as it is played on the radio and is made available by the music/record sales businesses, the" Great Hits" has always and will continue to sale.

This is 2012 and one would think that with all the freedoms we the people of this great country, the United States of America enjoy, we should be able to listen to all the great music that has been written and recorded by all the great artist including the older artist the artist that are no longer here on this Earth, as well as the new artist. Change is the one thing that is constant, and change we will all witness whether it be the music, the weather, the environment or just people in general, change is eminent.

It is incumbent upon the broadcast industry, radio, television and it is imperative that the program directors, music directors and programmers schedule music, the great hits for airplay! Time has proven that a great hit, a great piece of music, whether it was written by Beethoven, Kristofferson, Stevie Wonder or Robert Johnson or Paul McCartney, it was, it is, and will always be, a great piece of music, hence playing this great music on a regular basis is not only essential, it is a part of what makes this great country great and it is a part of our history and heritage!

SHOULD THE NIGHT CLUBS BE IN BED WITH THE BANDS OR THE BANDS BE IN BED WITH THE CLUB VENUES?

One of the venues that is seriously overlooked in the Music City area is the Wilson County Fair. The Wilson County Fair takes place in the city of Lebanon, Tennessee, each August , the fair comes to Lebanon, Tennessee, and along with the fair there are many, many musical acts and artist scheduled to perform. This year, August 2011 the Wilson County Fair featured the great John Anderson. Anderson is one of the Premier country artist with many, many hit records to his credit. The 2011 fair presented over a dozen recording artist that included country, country rock, gospel and bluegrass. The Wilson County Fair has become the largest fair in the state of Tennessee, as well as the fourth largest fair in the country. Artist that are looking for venues to play or if you are looking for a fun venue, with live entertainment, the county and state fairs are always venues that you would like and the music is usually great. County and state fairs always present a large variety of music as well is talent shows for the inspired hopefuls with aspirations of becoming an entertainer.

The type of music people search for varies , an evening of entertainment and music much preferred by most would-be music performed by a live band. I think most would agree that live music, good food, good drinks, as well as good service at reasonable prices is one of the foremost thoughts in one's head when searching for an entertainment venue. Club owners/managers usually look for the bands that play the kind of music, his are her customers prefer. The club owner, the waitress, bartender, usually know by listening to the music that is played on the jukebox, what kind of music is generally preferred by the regular customers. With this knowledge, and their customers in mind, the club owner/manager will seek bands that can and will perform the type of music his customers wants to hear. Please the customer, and the old saying," The customer is always right," is one of the first rules in marketing a business or product.

 As a former owner of four major sized nightclubs that served food, mixed drinks, had dancing to live bands, I have seen new nightclubs/entertainment venues open up and do little or no marketing or advertising and the club owner-manager wonders why he has no crowd. I have seen the owners hire bands to play music that the owner/manager personally prefers, NOT what the paying customers that patronize his business would prefer. I have seen personally, many of these businesses fold in less than six months from the time they opened. Then.... The inexperienced club owner is angry and sometimes broke because the capital he invested into the business is gone and his business has failed. Now he is wondering where he went wrong, what mistakes did he make. The main and foremost thing a businessman must keep in mind is pleasing the paying customer. If a businessman goes out of his way to please his customers, keep them happy and treat them in a manner in which he himself would appreciate, his new business will flourish. Therefore, he and his business will be a great success. 

The entertainment is one of the most important parts of what makes up a great nightclub or dinner club. Most large clubs and venues that have live entertainment will want people in the general area to know that the club has live entertainment, as well as the genre of music that will be performed at the club. In most area, nightclubs serve high-volume alcohol(mixed drinks). Food is a requirement and a percentage of the gross sales must be made up from food sales. The volume and the variety of foods available in a nightclub will vary and is usually acceptable to satisfy the local authorities. The bands that have played these venues are usually some of the well known and better bands in the area. The club owners usually seek out bands and the entertainment that he plans to have in his club by listening to bands in the area, as well as bands that are referred by other club owners. The club owner in general wants the very best band and the very best music his finances will allow. Hence, good bands providing great entertainment will bring paying customers. A happy customer will spread the word and the word will get around very quickly that this such and such club has a great band and great food, and is a great place to go to hang out and party!

How many bands are in the local area? Depending upon the size of the city, there will be numerous bands and entertainers looking for a great place to work and perform their craft. Club owners with good business experience will readily acknowledge the importance of having a great band and great entertainment in his venue. Marketing the club as an entertainment business is one of the first rules for owning and operating a successful entertainment venue. The club owner that makes the mistake of asking the band or requiring/demanding the band and entertainers to bring a number of people to the club in order for the band to perform in the club will cost the club owner many times over. THE DUTIES OFF THE BAND/ENTERTAINERS IS TO ENTERTAIN AND KEEP THE CUSTOMERS IN THE CLUB AND KEEP THEM HAPPY! If the band/entertainers do their jobs the customers will be happy and they will come back for more! IF THE CLUB OWNER-manager do their marketing and advertising great entertainment and good food at reasonable prices, this venue will be a success!

IT IS THE RESPONSIBILITY OF THE OWNER/OPERATOR OF THE NIGHTCLUB VENUE TO ADVERTISE AND MARKET HIS BUSINESS! A club owner that depends up on the band to bring out the number of people necessary to maintain and pay the bills and operate a business is only fooling himself. A course in marketing and sales along with business management should be in order. Many times it is well known to experienced club owners and managers that the person booking the band will tell him they can bring 25, 50,etc. and etc. , when in fact a couple of the band members wives and or husbands usually will be all that will show........, but the band got the gig! That, my friend is all the bandleader booking the band cares about.

As a recording artist and entertainer, as well as a bandleader, I have had the experience and the duty to book my band, as well as some other bands, it is a job and a business and even though its entertainment and you are playing music, one must maintain a business attitude. I have seen bands get booked into clubs and paying venues that were nowhere near as good as my band or some of the other bands that I, as an entertainer, am associated with, yet they get booked into the club. It seems to matter not whether this band can actually play the gig and truly entertain the customer. One might ask, is the club owners/manager in bed with the band? Or is the band in bed with the club manager/owner? Getting to know the band and its management can tell another band or musician, many things. On the other hand, getting to know the club owner-manager will accomplish the same feat. The club owner, usually will hire a band based on their reputation and the genre of music which they play. The band usually looks for venues that cater to the type and genre of music the band performs.  

 If the band is in bed with the club owners that band will usually get the gigs in that club, and the club owners that are in bed with the bands is going to hire the bands that he personally likes. The club owner sometimes may not like a band, but if the band performs and takes care of his people and his customers the smart club owner will hire this band. These kinds of owners and managers are usually the ones that enjoy the success of owning and operating a successful entertainment venue BUT THE BAND MUST DO their due diligence, THEY MUST BE GREAT ENTERTAINERS AND BE A GREAT BAND!!

The formulas and the philosophy brought forth in this article have kept my band and several other good bands working on a regular basis. By applying the business formula mentioned above, we work over 120 days a year. With a good business philosophy and a good work ethic, as well as a great band playing a wide variety of music, your band can work and continue to work the same venues, week after week after week. A great band with great entertainers will DRAW a good crowd of paying customers 

An experienced club owner-manager WILL understand marketing his club-restaurant as a product, by that I mean advertising his business and building up his clientèle. Bringing in a great band as entertainment will enhance the business and the customer base. With great entertainment to accompany a great business and entertainment venue, the business as well as the customer base will grow! Great entertainment by great live bands will keep the customers coming back for more!

SAD, SAD, NEWS..... DAVID" Honey boy" EDWARDS, the last of the great MISSISSIPPI DELTA BLUES guitarist/artist has passed away." Honey boy" as he was so well known as, passed away at his home in Chicago, Illinois on August 29, 2011." Honey boy" was born in SHAW Mississippi in the year of 1915. By the time David was six or seven years old he was learning to play his father's eight dollar guitar, and by the time." Honey boy" was 17, he was playing professionally. David" Honey boy" Edwards played from town to town making whatever money the people that gathered around to hear him play and sing donated. If the playing paid good money "Honey boy" stayed around and played, but when the playing did not make money" Honey boy" moved on. Eventually," Honey boy" made the move to the city of Chicago, where blues artists such as HOWLING Wolf, Charlie Parker Johnny Shine along with Little Walter already had successful recording careers. With" HoneyBoys" experience as a blues guitarist, soon artist such as Muddy Waters, Charlie Patton and Little Walter were seeking." Honey boys" services. Known as DAVID" Honey boy" EDWARDS," Honey boy" went on to have a successful recording career, writing, and recording such blues songs as" Tall Woman Blues," " Myrtle Mae,"" How long ,"" Gamblin’ Man," as well as many other songs as a blues artist.

Thank you MR. BLUESMAN, DAVID " Honey boy" EDWARDS for bringing the world some of the great blues music the GREAT MISSISSIPPI DE LTA is so well known for!

R. I. P. . The on off a kind........... DAVID" Honey boy" EDWARDS,..... The Bluesman

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ARE YOU READY FOR NASHVILLE?

I think we all have heard the old adage," Time passes in a hurry when you are having fun!" 2011 is passing at record speeds it seems. This year alone we have seen the Nashville Songwriters Festival, the CMA awards. The huge R.O.P.E. concert and the one and only Brittney Spears came to town. Brittney put on a huge show to a huge crowd, in the Bridgestone Center. This year, the Nashville and middle Tennessee area has seen and enjoyed the"Uncle Dave Macon Days" Festival as well as the great guitar show and now the" NAM" show is in town. Most, if not all musicians in the middle Tennessee area will visit the"NAM" show and will enjoy seeing all the new instruments, amplifiers, and all the other high tech toys and gadgets that is new on the market for the enterprising musician. Music city has a goal for having a major entertainment event, at least one time or more each month of the year. We pride ourselves as Nashvillians on making Nashville, Music City the most fun and entertaining city in the world. So when you want to visit a city that has the greatest entertainment on earth, some of the friendliest people on the planet, we welcome you here to Nashville, Music city, Tennessee.

Here in Music City, Tennessee, we are enjoying an exceptional hot summer. The temperature in the Nashville, Tennessee area during the summer months is usually in the upper 80s to lower 90s and from the middle 60s to the lower seventies at night. With the summer months upon us, Music City has so much to offer. Not only is Music City, Tennessee, a Mecca for world-famous entertainment, it is also a place where the locals, as well as visitors that come from all over the world, to enjoy probably the widest variety of music to be found in any city in the entire world. We, as Tennesseans probably take this offering for granted. Due to the fact there are so many, many great musicians and entertainers found in Music City, Tennessee. Most of the great country music stars live here in Nashville.

I have lived and performed in this  mecca which people refer to as Music City, USA for over 40 years. I am a published writer, a recording artist, as well as a journalist/reporter and business owner. With that in mind, I come in contact with many people that come to Music City expecting to get into the music business. Hundreds of people, musicians, writers, people that proclaim to be professional entertainers, and performers in their local hometown area , come here daily. Many of these people are the best of the best entertainers locally in the area from which they moved. They play the clubs, the bars, the parties, as well as most venues that is available for entertainers there. These entertainers, artists, musicians usually make decent money in their local area. The locals enjoy the music they play and enjoy their performances usually and it is commonly known that an entertainer cannot please everyone, so they hope to please the majority of the people that come to see them perform and if they please enough people and they have a large following, they think it's time to move on up the ladder for the success of which they have worked long and hard to accomplish. Instead of staying in the local area building a huge following, writing, and recording albums, selling their albums and their music and performing further, building their career as a musician and entertainer, they think it is time to move to Nashville, Tennessee.

I surf CraigsList on a regular basis, usually looking for musicians, as well as venues that are looking to book entertainment. I see the postings from musicians in cities all over the United States asking questions about how to get into the record business/music business in Nashville. I see the question about every time I get on CraigsList, " How do I make it in Nashville and how much work is there?" The answer to those questions can be summed up quite simply. A musician/artist, writer, entertainer should approach this business as one would approach any other kind of business. To become a successful musician/artist/entertainer, the approach is no different than the way one would approach a company searching for accountants, computer operators, electronic engineers or any other occupational career field. The musician, writer, artist, entertainer must prepare himself and in doing so he must learn his instrument, learn to write and he must have the experience to deliver a sellable product. The product of which, in this case, would be delivering the performance of his music, his song material and most of all, delivering a performance that the buying public will pay to see.

With over 40 years in the music business and as an entertainer/writer and guitarist, as well as a business owner, I have worked with other people, other companies and I have hired and fired my share of people. It is never a pleasant occurrence, but sometimes it is quite necessary to let someone go. There are usually many reasons why an employer or an entertainer, as for that matter, would let a musician or employee go. Most times when an employee, a musician or an employee at a factory has to be fired or dismissed, usually the reason is that musician or employee is unable to fulfill his duties. The lack of experience and preparedness comes into play, and as an entertainer/employer, it is imperative that each musician or employee be able to fulfill the duties he was hired to perform. The bottom line comes down to this; get the experience and learn the business and be able to perform with the professionalism that comes from years of honing your craft, whether it is playing a music instrument, singing, writing, or any other craft of which you want to make a successful career of. When this criteria has been met and you as an entertainer, become the whole sellable product, then and only then are you ready for a shot at the" Big time!" When and only when you are able to perform, and deliver a great show, the time for you has arrived.

Record labels are looking for the best of the best, the artist that can write his own material and perform that material in a live show and pull off a professional performance on the "Big stages.". A great performance by a great artist that the buying public will pay good money to come see. With this information in mind, and the guidelines that are set forth to become a professional entertainer/recording artist, the ball is in your court and the goal is achievable. With a good business plan and good management, a career in the music business as an entertainer/recording artist can be achieved.

As a business owner, writer, recording artist, journalist and an entertainer, I firmly believe one can do anything he chooses to do with the right education and preparedness. The human mind is the most advanced, as well as unexplored object known to mankind. With only 20 to 30%of brain capacity, the human mind can do things millions of the finest high-tech computers would be a dismal failure at accomplishment. That being said, I myself, being living proof that one can accomplish whatever you set your mind to do. The ability and the willingness to put forth the effort and the diligence that is necessary to learn, educate and secure experience to start and build a career is a feat and a major accomplishment in one's life.

TheDGT.com family, the magazine, from the editor in chief, right down to the writers, reporters and contributing journalist associated with this great Internet magazine, we, the journalistic family of writers/musicians have built this magazine to where it is today. Damngoodtunes.com is all about the MUSIC! The artists and the song, the performance, all genres is what DGT.COM is all about.

James Dean Fisher

 Contact James Dean Fisher:

damngoodtunesNVE@aol.com 

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