Re: [Harp-L] Hippest Musician's Towns

["ChipComcast" <jandkday@xxxxxxxxxxx>]

Steve,
 Here is more Doom & Gloom that my bandmates and I jaw over:

1) The aging boomer crowds want to stay home more.
2) The smoking vs Non-smoking battle
3) DJ can play anything from Sintara to Electric slide
4) Karoke (Evreyone's a star...and why not?)
5) Starting a band at 10pm is madness. 3 people in the club at 2am.
6) No promotion..they want the artist to do it.
7) 20 somethings want 20 something music.
8) Tough DUI laws scare even me into 1 beer minimum..(NOT!)
9) Nesting...
10) VCR's,PC's DVD's ,Cable (weren't  around in the 70's)
11) Cyclic nature of music trends.
12) Sun & Mon is NFL night, tell the band to turn off!
13) Band is to loud for people to talk.
14) Swing fad died inthe mid 90's..took a lot of blues with it.

 It's mostly PTer's in 4-5 pieces. All the really good harp guys
& such are in duos anymore.

But I am gonna keep doing it, so F**K 'em.


----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Steve Merola" <srmerola@xxxxxxxxx>
To: <harp-l@xxxxxxxxxx>
Sent: Wednesday, December 14, 2005 10:42 AM
Subject: Re: [Harp-L] Hippest Musician's Towns


> Hello Harp-l
> Aside from brief stints living in LA and Burlington VT, I've been a life
> long resident of NYC and over the last 35 years I've experienced the
> live music scene go from a waterfall to a trickle. In the 70s there was
> work in clubs throughout the tri-state area for equitable pay. No day
> jobs were necessary until disco. During the Giuliani administration,
> policemen would sit and wait outside clubs with a volume meter and once
> the meter went above a certain setting, would write a $1200 ticket for
> the club. This was a one man vendetta against live music in my town. I
> was a personal witness to this farce. The cops weren't happy with the
> assignment. Manny's Car Wash, and Tramps, two of the best clubs in
> Manhattan, among many many others were closed during this and the
> current administration. Why pay a band $600 when all you'll get is a
> $1200 ticket? Giuliani's desire to make NYC "like any other city in
> America" destroyed a cultural asset. The current administration also
> buys into this and now you can't even dance to the jukebox in a bar.
> Power, control, and the real estate market all have an amazing effect on
> working musicians and their audience. A good example is this: Former
> Johnny Winter sideman, Jon Paris, plays B.B. Kings (one of the only
> "blues" clubs left)....but in "Lucille's Lounge", while the Ozzie
> tribute band plays the main room......Ozzie in a blues club? Sorry B.B.,
> but BB Kings is not a blues club. The culture police did their job and
> the audience is missing out even if they don't yet know it. There are
> many factors involved in making and breaking up a music scene.
> If you really want to get scared, go to a wedding and watch two guys
> with a PA system pick up $3500. Giuliani will be dancing. In the
> meantime I'm looking into the San Francisco/Sacramento area.
> Peace
> Steve Merola
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