As I write this, I am about five miles from the ocean. There is a bit of peaceful tranquility that one feels when they are close to such a powerful vessel of water. Anyone who can look at such a picturesque view and not feel the presence of a higher power, well, I think they miss the point. There's a sense of everything being ok. Too bad the Atlantic isn't in Hickman County!
I'm writing this while I am covering the Carolina Country Music Festival in Myrtle Beach, SC. For four days, some of the biggest stars in the format - Kenny Chesney, Darius Rucker, Jason Aldean included are playing in front of 30-40,000 Country fans within rock throwing area of the ocean. It's been really interesting to see the reaction to the various performers this year.
Maybe, being outside of Nashville for an event of this magnitude is a little bit of an experience upon itself. I've traveled for Country Music shows and interviews before, but being in Nashville kind of makes you immune to just how cool it is that music has such an impact on the world we live in. In Nashville, it's an automatic part of the culture. Heck, growing up and watching Channel 2 as a kid, the newsman's name was.....George Jones. So, you kind of get used to your surroundings.
And, as a longtime fan of the format, I will be the first to say that I get a little jaded at the changing sound. For better or worse, I am a traditionalist. (With a love of all kinds of music, however, as anyone who knows me can attest, Kenny Rogers is my favorite - and he was never honky-tonk). I still hold out hope that the next big thing will be someone who makes traditional Country bad-ass - kind of like Ricky Skaggs did in the 80s. But, times have changed. I still hope that artist is out there, but you can't begrudge anyone for having success these days. And, it's interesting to see so many styles of song coming into the format nowadays. My generation - the middle agers (Did I really just write that?) - was probably the last that were probably exposed to just one kind of music growing up. At least that how it was for me. Sure, I loved Janet Jackson, Richard Marx, and Billy Joel as much as anyone - the night before my high school graduation, I was at Starwood (again, dating myself) watching Paula Abdul and Color Me Badd. But, it was 90 percent Country, and ten percent everything else for me. It's almost impossible to be that single-minded musically, now. Chances are, one's music collection includes as much Drake and Katy Perry as it does mainstream Country. That's not a complaint, just an observation. It's going to remain that way. I have to admit that seeing the reaction to some of the newer acts like a Brett Young has been very interesting and entertaining to watch. I think we've got some pretty good acts out there right now that are making a name for themselves. I hope it continues for everyone, though if a Kentucky Wildcat like Skaggs comes along, I would be game!
That leads me to something that happened today that I have to share with you. I went on the bus to interview Granger Smith at CCMF today. He and his crew graciously invited me to hang and watch the show from the stage. I enjoyed the moment thoroughly. I wrote my first piece on Granger in the summer of 2011 - a few months before I started working for Billboard. So, to see him go from being primarily a Texas act that might play for 300 or so a night back in those days to an artist who was playing for at least 30,000 this afternoon was an incredible feeling. He has worked for it, as has his whole team. And, trust me, Granger Smith would have signed with Wheelhouse and topped the chart with "Backroad Song" without Chuck Dauphin's words. I know that. But, it feels good to have been a part of a sliver of the story.
There are times that this business can break your heart, or piss you off. I alternate between the two more often than not. With over 2,500 stories written in the past decade, you would think I would be a little more secure than I am. I'm still waiting to feel comfortable. When I don't get invited to participate in an album launch, the competitor in me gets upset. I think there are two writers in Nashville who are better than everyone else, and the rest of us have our good days, but I would put my work up against anybody else. I feel I'm writing as good as I ever have, so I guess I'll keep at it. There's been more good days than the other as of late. I know I am rambling a bit, but after twenty-six years of talking or writing about music, I'm just glad to be in the game.....and glad when success happens to good people, like it has my good friend, Granger Smith. And, with that, I will close and say 'Yee Yee.'
Saturday, June 10, 2017
Tuesday, June 6, 2017
Every Small Town Has One
I was talking to someone the other day who asked how long I had been "in the business." I won't say just how young the person was.....but needless to say, I realized that when I played "Bop" by Dan Seals for the first time in April 1991, this person wasn't alive. Now, there are two ways of looking at that distinction. One - for better or worse, I am a survivor. Or two, I'm not as young as the seventeen-year old who went on the air that spring. (I choose the first.....it sounds better!)
That being said, every town has a radio personality that it identifies with. In Dickson, for example, though I was there for eighteen years, the voice of Warren Medley defined WDKN for almost six decades. In 1957, there was a little kid named Stevie Turner who started singing on WHLP in Centerville. Chances are, if you tune into WNKX on Saturday mornings, you will hear that same person.....only now he's the owner. Each town has a voice, a personality that defines it.
With that said, let me tell you about a good friend of mine named Jerry Wilson. Midway through my career at WDKN, I started to try to spread my wings somewhat. I began to write a weekly music column, and even tried record promotion for a time. While I enjoy meeting radio programmers and travelling, I will say that I don't think anyone is going to give me a Gold record for my promotion skills. Too much like sales. During my time promoting records, I met Jerry. He was the Music Director at the radio station in Brownsville. More importantly, he became a friend. I would call into his show weekly and talk about the news from Nashville, and we got to be buddies. I would occasionally drive to Brownsville and take him to lunch. I remember eating on the square there at a restaurant that had SWEET Tea, (Trust me, even sweeter than a Papa Kayjoe's quart straight from Oma's kitchen!)
He invited me to speak to a class he taught at Haywood County High School, which I did a few times. I appreciate him thinking that I had something to say. But, more importantly, Jerry believed in me. He was one of the first cheerleaders that I had in the business outside of Dickson. For his belief, I will always be grateful. Over the past few months, I have returned to radio, and though it's a different dynamic than the old days, I love it. There's something about a connection you make with your listeners that make you become their friends. Whether that comes from behind a mic in the studio - or in a small town on a Friday night inside the press box , there's an adrenaline flow that is unlike anything I've done. I'm not saying I'm even that good at it, but I will tell you that i try to apply little bits of announcers that had an influence on me. Sometimes, that influence is all they can give. Radio, more often than not, is not something that you're going to make a lot of money at. In a lot of ways, it's like journalism....the perks are unbelievable, but you're constantly chasing your backside in a circle......but you do it because you love it.
That's true for people who inspired me - your Keith Bilbrey's of the world, that's also true of the passionate people who work and program small-town radio stations....names like Ken Loggains (Batesville, AR), Ed Carter (Pulaski, TN), Lee Richey (New York), Mike Thomas (Warrenton, MO), Steve Ferguson and Jim Quinton (Georgia). That was also true of Jerry Wilson. The man was passionate about music, radio, and Haywood County - its' people and its' traditions. That's a passion that you can't fake. It's either there or it isn't. About the only thing he cared about more was his Lord and his family. Jerry passed away just a few days ago at the age of 75. I regret that I won't be able to attend the service, but I can only imagine how packed that church is going to be. He had an impact on so many lives through his work, and he will be missed by a lot of folks, me included!
That being said, every town has a radio personality that it identifies with. In Dickson, for example, though I was there for eighteen years, the voice of Warren Medley defined WDKN for almost six decades. In 1957, there was a little kid named Stevie Turner who started singing on WHLP in Centerville. Chances are, if you tune into WNKX on Saturday mornings, you will hear that same person.....only now he's the owner. Each town has a voice, a personality that defines it.
With that said, let me tell you about a good friend of mine named Jerry Wilson. Midway through my career at WDKN, I started to try to spread my wings somewhat. I began to write a weekly music column, and even tried record promotion for a time. While I enjoy meeting radio programmers and travelling, I will say that I don't think anyone is going to give me a Gold record for my promotion skills. Too much like sales. During my time promoting records, I met Jerry. He was the Music Director at the radio station in Brownsville. More importantly, he became a friend. I would call into his show weekly and talk about the news from Nashville, and we got to be buddies. I would occasionally drive to Brownsville and take him to lunch. I remember eating on the square there at a restaurant that had SWEET Tea, (Trust me, even sweeter than a Papa Kayjoe's quart straight from Oma's kitchen!)
He invited me to speak to a class he taught at Haywood County High School, which I did a few times. I appreciate him thinking that I had something to say. But, more importantly, Jerry believed in me. He was one of the first cheerleaders that I had in the business outside of Dickson. For his belief, I will always be grateful. Over the past few months, I have returned to radio, and though it's a different dynamic than the old days, I love it. There's something about a connection you make with your listeners that make you become their friends. Whether that comes from behind a mic in the studio - or in a small town on a Friday night inside the press box , there's an adrenaline flow that is unlike anything I've done. I'm not saying I'm even that good at it, but I will tell you that i try to apply little bits of announcers that had an influence on me. Sometimes, that influence is all they can give. Radio, more often than not, is not something that you're going to make a lot of money at. In a lot of ways, it's like journalism....the perks are unbelievable, but you're constantly chasing your backside in a circle......but you do it because you love it.
That's true for people who inspired me - your Keith Bilbrey's of the world, that's also true of the passionate people who work and program small-town radio stations....names like Ken Loggains (Batesville, AR), Ed Carter (Pulaski, TN), Lee Richey (New York), Mike Thomas (Warrenton, MO), Steve Ferguson and Jim Quinton (Georgia). That was also true of Jerry Wilson. The man was passionate about music, radio, and Haywood County - its' people and its' traditions. That's a passion that you can't fake. It's either there or it isn't. About the only thing he cared about more was his Lord and his family. Jerry passed away just a few days ago at the age of 75. I regret that I won't be able to attend the service, but I can only imagine how packed that church is going to be. He had an impact on so many lives through his work, and he will be missed by a lot of folks, me included!
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