There’s a perception in some places, in Nashville especially, that songwriters and publishers are becoming overly aggressive in their song-pitching strategies. I have to respectfully disagree with this viewpoint, and below I will submit my argument that, in fact, people aren’t
Last week I urged you to celebrate Musical Illiteracy Month. My hope is that by now, you’ve hidden and found your musical illiteracy eggs, and placed tablature under the children’s pillows to be replaced by monetary gifts in the middle
You may not be aware of this, and your calendar may not show it, but in addition to this April of 2014 boasting Easter, Passover, and the U.S. and Canadian tax deadlines, April is also Musical Illiteracy Month. If you’re like
For the male road musician, the highway men’s room is a sad fact of life. Last week I promised (or threatened) to begin publishing road bathroom reviews in this space, and if I fail to deliver on that, I’ll be
At one point several years ago, my bandmate Ned Luberecki and I were going to start writing road restaurant reviews. It was never going to include any upscale places, because that would have required actually eating in an upscale restaurant.
The plan for this week was to provide some tax advice for working (or occasionally working) bluegrass musicians. As I mentioned last week, I’m not qualified in any way to dispense this kind of information, but since this has never
It has been my contention for a long time that a great number of bluegrass music fans have no idea how little money the average bluegrass picker lives on. That’s generally how the average bluegrass picker would like it to be,
We’ve heard it countless times: “The show must go on.” But is that just a cliché that’s virtually meaningless in practice, like “don’t take any wooden nickels,” “a stitch in time saves nine,” or “must take delivery from dealer stock”?
Last week, I introduced the radical idea that the road life may not be the idyllic lifestyle it’s imagined to be. This week I’m ready to come right out and declare that it’s also downright unhealthy. In a recent survey of
“The life I love is making music with my friends And I can’t wait to get on the road again” - Willie Nelson For many bluegrass musicians, the road can be a disappointing and wearing experience, and it often leads to early
