Some of you may know, you who know me, that I've been in the music business for something like 45 years. I've been to Nashville 5, 6, times or so. I've seen what goes on behind the scenes, I've seen documentaries, I've seen articles. Here is the beginning of my thoughts:
One of the things I've learned by having made it to this late age is, there is so much corruption in the world. There are people who don't think like decent human beings, they feel the need to control the world, intentionally hurt people, even murder people. So, let's huddle around the music business, being that that's where I've been all these decades.
From the early 80s on back, it was difficult to break into what was known as the "Big Time", in other words to get signed by a major Country record label. The first thing to keep in mind is, record executives, "Talent Scouts", today known as "A & R" people have a very bad track record when it comes to signing talent. They'll all tell you that "Most of the artists and bands we sign never even recoup the promotional costs". It doesn't seem that difficult to me, to recognize real talent, but for some reason, the people in positions of power - even back then, had a very hard time finding the cream of the crop. They got lucky with some - Hank Williams, Merle Haggard, Johnny Cash, George Jones, Loretta Lynn, Tammy Wynette, and a few others. But when you think about how many thousands of artists and bands they signed, that never went anywhere, the percentage of talent that was successful was minute. Well, sometime during the 80s, right around the time that the Urban Cowboy movie came out, things took a turn for the worse. The record people moved in the direction of Pop music, taking away the true Country roots and traditions. They signed some of the most horrible acts, and the ones who started out Country, they changed them - turned them towards Pop, which destroyed the careers of many true Country artists, musicians, and bands. By the early 90s, there were very few true Country artists being signed by the major Country record labels. By the mid 90s, pretty much all the Country dance halls were gone. We can thank the record labels, Mainstream Radio, and the Line Dancers for that. I'll get into all of these in more detail in my future posts. Record labels started right about that time, to sign some of the most horrid acts, while intentionally locking out true talent - and that system continues to this day - and, they get much better at it with each day that goes by. Mainstream Radio, of course, being part and parcel to the corruption, would only play what came from the major record labels. A side: My dad was a radio disc jockey during the 50s and 60s, he informed me that the front desk of all radio stations were instructed to toss any and all "Unsolicited Music" straight into the trash. Also by the mid 90s, all the good studio musicians that had been in Nashville were tossed out, having been replaced by cheap imitations. Ray Flacke was one of the greatest Country guitar players in the history of Country Music, the guy could not get hired for the life of him. And his story is no isolated case.
The 2000s arrive and now the studios are starting to use electronic devices on the recordings. Drum machines, MIDI, sampling, Pitch Correcting Software (not to be confused with "Autotune", which is an effect, not any kind of thing that would correct pitch), electronic harmonizers, and soon after - Computer Generated "Content". Take a quick fast forward to 2025, and the majority of the music you hear coming out of Nashville is mostly computer generated - no real musicians, no real instruments. The ones doing the singing today, none are actual artists, they are actors, they have been taught how to put on fake southern accents - most of them grossly overdone. Most of then don't even know how to actually sing. And the songs - some written by "Staff Writers", who get paid slightly more than minimum wage, to write songs that fit inside the horrible box that Nashville has been creating for decades. Many of the other songs are written by computers. This is why the lyrics are mindless and wandering - pandering to the teenage groups who are easily fooled by the billion dollar a year hype that Nashville puts out. "He's the real deal", the guy they refer to with that one is anything but real. The back stories are all concocted by the publicist departments - same - guys who sit around all day making up total and complete lies that make these "Stars" sound like something. I happened to know a guy who worked for a major Country act that has now been around for more than 20 years. I asked him early on, "What's it like working for ___?". His answer: "He's a hell of a nice guy, but it would be great if he could hit a note once in a while".
Before I sign off for tonight, my one last thought, nobody can tell me there isn't real talent out here, it's just that Nashville will not let it be heard.
So, I guess I'll stop here for now. There is so much more, which I'll get into in my future posts. So please check back.
The video is me, playing all the instruments, singing all the parts, and doing all the production. The song is one of my originals, lamenting to my favorite Country singer, Merle Haggard, asking what the hell happened to our music.
Till next time.
No comments:
Post a Comment