Podcasts about musicians union

Rich and Jim dive deep with Nashville drummer, songwriter, and storyteller Vince Santoro. From his early days playing drums in Washington D.C. to becoming a staple in Nashville's music scene, Vince shares his incredible journey through music, including his work with Felix Cavalieri, Rodney Crowell, and his upcoming solo record "Exposed". Timed Highlights: [0:05] - Vince's early musical influences: Beatles, Kinks, Stones, and Hendrix [0:15] - Nashville's evolving music and food scene [0:25] - Vince's journey from D.C. to becoming a Nashville musician [0:35] - His role as Secretary Treasurer of the Nashville Musicians Association [0:45] - Playing with legendary artists like Edgar Winter and Felix Cavalieri [0:55] - Behind-the-scenes of his unique one-man show combining drumming and storytelling [1:05] - Details about his new solo record "Exposed" [1:15] - Discussing songwriting process and musical inspirations   The Rich Redmond Show is about all things music, motivation and success. Candid conversations with musicians, actors, comedians, authors and thought leaders about their lives and the stories that shaped them. Rich Redmond is the longtime drummer with Jason Aldean and many other veteran musicians and artists. Rich is also an actor, speaker, author, producer and educator. Rich has been heard on thousands of songs, over 30 of which have been #1 hits!   Follow Rich:   @richredmond www.richredmond.com   Jim McCarthy is the quintessential Blue Collar Voice Guy. Honing his craft since 1996 with radio stations in Illinois, South Carolina, Connecticut, New York, Las Vegas and Nashville, Jim has voiced well over 10,000 pieces since and garnered an ear for audio production which he now uses for various podcasts, commercials and promos. Jim is also an accomplished video producer, content creator, writer and overall entrepreneur.   Follow Jim:     @jimmccarthy www.jmvos.com   The Rich Redmond Show is produced by It's Your Show dot Co www.itsyourshow.co

This week on “Talk About Las Vegas With Ira,” the spotlight shines on legendary guitarist, arranger, and composer Joe Lano—one of the true masters of the Las Vegas jazz sce-ne. Joe joins Ira ahead of his upcoming performances at the Jazz Society's 50th Anniversary Jazz Celebration (April 26-27 at the Winchester-Dondero Cultural Center) and at Vic's Las Vegas (May 2-3), to share the remarkable story of his life in music. From his early days growing up in Philadelphia—playing guitar in clubs by the age of 12—to the glittering stages of Las Vegas, Joe recounts a career filled with iconic mo-ments. He talks about his move from L.A. to Vegas, joining the elite showroom orches-tras, and playing alongside legends like Frank Sinatra, Lena Horne, and Steve Lawrence & Eydie Gormé. (Fun fact: Lena never sang a song the same way twice—and was a total sci-fi geek.) Joe also shares the behind-the-scenes of Vegas in its golden age: how he landed gigs straight away, the role of the Musicians Union, getting the nod from Sands bandleader Antonio Morelli, and performing with entertainment royalty like Jerry Lewis and Dean Martin. He even dives into the drama that followed when he began working full-time in town. And of course, he opens up about his lifelong love for jazz, his connection to the Las Ve-gas Jazz Society, the ego-fueled world of professional musicians, and what it was like working seven nights a week for two years straight. Don't miss this intimate, insightful, and often hilarious conversation with one of Las Vegas jazz's most respected voices. (Also Watch Full Podcast Video)

In the first of two special episodes with esteemed and newly decorated composers, we sit down with Gavin Bryars, a composer who has led the way in innovation over a long and distinguished career. On Tuesday 12th November he received the Innovation Award in association with the Musicians Union at the Ivors Composers Awards, and we were lucky to get a chance to talk to him about this just a few days before.We discuss his early days of art college, double bass and free jazz, his early iconic pieces The Sinking Of The Titanic and Jesus' Blood Never Failed Me Yet and his creative relationship with Brian Eno. Over his career he has written five operas, twenty ballets and a long list of instrumental, orchestral and vocal works.He has collaborated with many non-classical musicians over the years, including Tom Waits, Father John Misty, Charlie Haden, Bill Frisell, Natalie Merchant, Iarla O'Lionaird, Gavin Friday, Bertrand Belin and Mocke, and with many visual artists such as Bruce McLean, David Ward, Tim Head, James Hugonin, Bill Woodrow, Will Alsop, the Quay brothers, Juan Muñoz and Massimo Bartolini.He divides his time between a Leicestershire village and Vancouver Island, and we discuss his approach to writing in various locations, and in particular the importance of just the right pencil for the job. There really is a lot of time spent talking about this particular pencil.Gavin talks about the formative time he had working as the house bassist as Greasbrough Working Men's Club, performing in the backing band for Bob Monkhouse, Dusty Springfield and many others. The documentary he mentions is available to watch here: MEMORIES OF GREASBROUGH WORKING MEN'S CLUBFor more on Gavin Bryars, visit www.gavinbryars.comFor more on the Ivors Classical Awards 2024 visit https://ivorsacademy.com/awards/the-ivors-classical-awards/Big thanks to Premier for setting up the interview.You can find us on the socials here;Instagram @threeinabarpodTiktok @threeinabarpodThree In A Bar on YoutubeAnything you'd like to share with us? Any guests you'd love to hear or anything you'd like us to do better? Drop us a line at hello@threeinabar.com Click here to join the Members' Club on Patreon! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

On this episode we sit down with two amazing saxophonists, and one amazing couple! We talK about how they met, candy canes, using pedals on sax, Dazzle, their engagement story, the German language, practice vs “natural” talent, hauling gear to shows, the Colorado Musicians Union, and mental health and abuse within the Denver music scene. It's a fantastic and insightful conversation that you won't wanna miss!https://www.facebook.com/coloradomusiciansunion danielsteigleder.de

Laura Donelan began her career in insurance in 1987 and has experience in Personal Lines, Commercial Lines customer service, Wholesale, and Marketing. She joined SterlingRisk's Marketing Dept in 1994 and transferred to the Programs Dept soon after, handling all programs, one being property insurance for members of the Local 802 Musicians Union. In 1999 Sterlingrisk teamed up with ASCAP to form MusicPro Insurance Agency LLC as a joint venture. Laura left in 2002 to be a stay at home mom to twins and returned in 2006 to handle MusicPro exclusively. She currently services over 10,000 clients. www.moneymaestroblog.com/ep-79

The Possibility Club podcast: Practical Bravery - MUSICAL POLITICS!   Can artists change the world? Should they? And should it be through their art, or through their activism?   In this episode we're charting the course of a journeyman whose guitar has graced stages worldwide, and whose convictions have spotlighted the corridors of change.  From the euphoric highs of indie rock stardom with his band Gomez, capturing hearts and the Mercury Prize in 1998, to the critical acclaim and UK Top 40 albums, his artistry has been undeniable. But it's his transition from artist to advocate and activist that makes him stand out.   Elected as the Chair of the Ivors Academy and sitting on the council of the Performing Rights Society, he's not just playing tunes; he's setting the tempo for change. And in 2024 (after we recorded this interview), he's seeking a place in the mother of all parliaments.   Our guest is rockstar, campaigner and - who knows - maybe a future prime minister, Tom Gray. ----------   “I always saw myself as a side man, I was the guy stood next to the guy, I loved writing songs. I never saw myself as being a leader.”   Tom Gray via Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tom_Gray_(activist)   Tom Gray via LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/tom-gray-8a084328/?originalSubdomain=uk   “Actually music wasn't my goal at all, hilariously, music was just my way of slowing down my racing brain.”   "I actually had a choice: do I get on a plane and work for a senator, which is what I wanted to do — I wanted to be a speechwriter — or do I get Madonna's private jet? A ridiculous thing to choose between.”   Gomez the band https://www.gomeztheband.com/   Gomez the band via Wikpedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gomez_(band)   "By the time I was twenty-four or twenty-five I felt like I was on my third thing.”   “I realised there were all kinds of problems facing my friends in music and a lot of the organisations representing them, although heartily trying, weren't necessarily getting there.”   “I had this curious superpower which was that I understood politics, I'd grown up in politics, I knew loads of people in politics. If didn't do something, who was?"   Featured Artists Coalition https://thefac.org/   The Ivors Academy (formerly British Association of Songwriters and Composers) https://ivorsacademy.com/   “I realised they didn't have a policy unit, helped them build a policy unit, helped them develop a public affairs strategy, actually employ people to do policy, which they didn't have. They were kind of shaking their fists in the air but not doing this stuff.”    Musicians Union https://musiciansunion.org.uk/   “So, end of February 2020 I became a one man campaign, called Broken Record. And three months later the MU and Ivors Academy ran my more traditionally designed campaign called Fix Streaming.”   “I was the guerrilla ground offensive, and then the air attack came later.”    Broken Record campaign via Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Broken_Record_campaign   Mixmag article on the Broken Record campaign to fix streaming https://mixmag.net/feature/brokenrecord-music-industry-streaming-labels-artists-exploitation-equitable-renumeration   Tom Gray's evidence via the UK Parliament https://committees.parliament.uk/writtenevidence/10156/pdf/   Twitter/X — @MrTomGray   Instagram — https://instagram.com/automatoms   “There's a series of levers, there's a series of relationships, there's a way to change the world, there's a path and, boringly, that's how you do it."   "We got all major labels agreeing to forgive debt of artists who'd been in debt for more than twenty years, which was huge.”   “We've got an industry-wide transparency agreement that is about to be signed.”   “My entire thing is, hold the industry in a headlock and force them to improve. People will say government process takes you out of that campaigning mode, it takes you out of holding their feet to the fire. That's true but you've also got the institutional grip. They have to keep saying the right things, there's no easy exit for them.”   Labour List — “Meet Labour Brighton Pavilion candidate Tom Gray as Eddie Izzard falls short” https://labourlist.org/2023/12/brighton-pavilion-candidate-tom-gray-labour-eddie-izzard/   “Music isn't the arts, are you mad? It's one of our most basic forms of communication!”   Possibility Club interview with Crystal Asige https://www.alwayspossible.co.uk/podcast-practical-bravery-crystal-asige/   Pete Wishart of Runrig via Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pete_Wishart   "We are one of three music net exporters on the planet. We have this huge benefit of our language and our unbroken history of music learning, conservatories, the Beatles, you wouldn't have the Beatles without the Education Act, that's clear. Public policy changes the world. John Lennon going to art school was a profoundly important thing that needed to happen, in order for the world to experience the Beatles.”   "Resilience is 100% the lesson of being a musician, because it's been pretty hard, the past twenty years, working in that sector. There's always someone who's making a buck out of everybody but for me I think these fights can be won, still. And if that's optimism, that's optimism.” ------   This episode was recorded in September 2023 Interviewer: Richard Freeman for always possible Editor: CJ Thorpe-Tracey for Lo Fi Arts   For more visit www.alwayspossible.co.uk

Links:Jamie KentMile of Music FestivalBAM GroupNew Nashville LivePeople Supporting ArtistsMusicians for a Smoke Free TNKaia Kater - episode 25BJ Barham - episode 7Miss RachelMaine International Film FestivalClick here to watch this conversation on YouTube.Social Media:The Other 22 Hours InstagramThe Other 22 Hours TikTokMichaela Anne InstagramAaron Shafer-Haiss InstagramSend us your feedback!The Other 22 Hours FeedbackAll music written, performed, and produced by Aaron Shafer-Haiss.

Join the Facebook community hereImagine unlocking your true potential as a neurodivergent musician through support, resources, and a deep understanding of your unique strengths and challenges. On this inspiring episode, we chat with John Shortell, Head of Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion at the Musicians Union, who sheds light on the vital importance of not only supporting neurodivergent musicians but also making the music industry more inclusive and accessible for everyone.Together, we discuss our personal journeys of self-acceptance and growth as neurodivergent individuals, touching on the power of the social model of disability thinking and the barriers we face in our daily lives. We also tackle the Musicians Union's ambitious efforts to create a central hub for advice on neurodiversity, providing valuable resources and a safe space for neurodivergent musicians to share their experiences and challenges. As we delve into the complexities of navigating forms and paperwork as a neurodivergent person, we explore innovative approaches like gamification and visual elements to make these processes more engaging and accessible. Don't miss out on this heartfelt and insightful conversation that highlights the power of collective action in making the music industry an inclusive and supportive space for all.Support the showThanks so much for listening. Follow / DM me on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok and YouTube for music and podcast updates. If you want to get in touch with your thoughts, suggestions etc head to jonhartmusic.comI'd love to hear from you and help build this community. If you know other neurodivergent musicians (or musicians who may be curious) please do share around. --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/theneurodivergentmusician/message

Hello and welcome back to another episode of 'Mon the Workers. In this episode we're going to be speaking with trade unionists about getting home safely from work - public transport and why this is a feminist trade union issue. Getting home safely is a major issue, affecting a wide range of workers, particularly in the entertainment industry where shifts often run late into the night. This issue is particularly of concern to women, with a recent Government study showing that nearly 60% of women say they do not feel safe when using public transport and a staggering 8 out of 10 of women reported that they felt unsafe waiting for a bus after dark. With Dr Diljeet Bhachu from the Musicians Union, and Caitlin Lee from Unite the Union. To find out more about the Get Me Home Safely Campaign visit https://www.unitetheunion.org/campaigns/get-me-home-safely-campaign/Hosted by by Karina Liptrot and Rachel Thomson, and edited by Karina Liptrot. To find out more about the STUC, visit our social media channels where our username is @ScottishTUC

Welcome to this special episode of Music Works.  Today we will discuss The Musicians' Census, a joint project by the Musicians' Union and Help Musicians with the aim of painting a comprehensive picture of the music industry as a whole. To discuss the importance of this ambitious project, and how your contribution to the Census can help to better support the wider music community in the future, we will be joined by three special guests: Sarah Woods, Deputy Chief Executive at Help Musicians; John Shortell, Head of Equality, Diversity & Inclusion at the Musicians Union; and Linton Stephens, freelance bassoonist and broadcaster of the BBC Radio 3 programme "Classical Music Fix".  To take part in the census or find out more, visit: https://www.musicianscensus.co.uk/  If you enjoy this conversation, please subscribe, check out our other great episodes, and even better leave us a review. You can also follow us on social media and sign up to our mailing list at www.polyphonyarts.com/mailing-list for updates and news about Music Works and Polyphony Arts.

Have the last few months of financial insecurity made you question if you can keep investing in your music? Many musicians are having to make some tough decisions when it comes to basic living costs, let alone their music careers. But inside this episode, Isobel shares how having the ability to record and produce yourself will not only save you money but can make you money too.No, this isn't some pie in the sky, “Let's make a hit record, baby!” stuff. Making an income from your music isn't always straightforward and there's no sugar coating that. But having basic skills in recording and production is one of the best ways you can keep showing up as an artist, regardless of a global recession. Keep listening to find out how. EPISODE HIGHLIGHTS{0:00} Intro{06:06} What is the financial situation here in the UK right now?{08:59} What are the financial challenges musicians are facing right now?{11:40} How does this affect women specifically?{17:26} How can you recession-proof your music?{23:42} Episode summary{24:34} How can you get financial help if you're struggling right now?{25:52} Next week's teaserRead about the music gender pay gap in Music Business Weekly >>Read about Counting the Music Industry >>Get support from Help Musicians >>Get support from the Musicians Union >> Funding from Arts Council England >>Fund your music through the PRSF >>Fund your music through Help Musicians >>Register for the Home Recording Kickstarter: A LIVE 5 Day Challenge for Women In Music (Jan 27-31) >> https://femalediymusician.com/kickstarter Subscribe to the podcast wherever you're listening and don't miss an episode of Girls Twiddling Knobs ⚡️

One of Turkey's leading pop stars, Gulsen, dubbed the Turkish Madonna, is facing jail as a crackdown on pop music intensifies. The crackdown is seen as an attempt by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erodgan to court his religious base as elections loom amid youth dissatisfaction at economic malaise.    Drawing thousands, Gulsen regularly performs at sell-out concerts. Her music, her outfits, and her support of LGBTQ rights, has seen her widely dubbed the "Turkish Madonna". But Gulsen ended up in court and jail when a video of a private joke denigrating religious schools went public on social media. "Gulsen has become a target for Islamists for a long time not just because of the way she appears in her shows but also for her support for LGBT movements," said sociologist Nazli Okten of Galatasaray University, an expert on popular culture. Gulsen jailed But Gulsen's jailing sparked outrage, with football supporters even singing her songs in support. The US State Department also expressed concern over her detention. Public pressure saw her released, but she still faces prison if convicted of inciting religious hatred. Erdogan addressing his supporters strongly backed Gulsen's prosecution. With elections less than a year away and lagging in the polls, Erodgan is seeking to rally his religious base. Outrage as Turkish courts seek to silence anti-femicide campaigners This summer, Turkish authorities have also banned music festivals across Turkey, hitting the industry hard. "There is big money turning around these festivals, not only for the artists but people working behind the scene," said Ipek Kocyigit, head of Turkey's Musicians Union. "I know there were 20 festivals canceled recently, which is a big number," added Kocyigit. "These 20 festivals were canceled for what? For the ethnic identity or the political view of the artist or for the way of dressing of a female singer." Pop music Pop music festivals often drawing tens of thousands have spread to Turkey's more conservative regions. The result of the success of Erdogan's massive expansion of universities, from 78 to over 200 institutions argues Okten. "The number of universities are going up, the scene in the cities is also changing with not also with the coming of university students," she said.   "Also these university students are changing their lives, because they are independent, they are not living with the family, they are not living in this traditional environment, they have a different kind of liberties. "These gatherings (concerts) become a kind of not just for symbolising a different way of life, but also at the end of these concerts people sometimes there are slogans. There is a tone; there is a sharing of discontent." Tensions rise between Greece and Turkey over island military bases With elections due next year and near hundred percent inflation, young voters who've known only Erdogan as a ruler pose his most significant threat says pollster Can Selcuki, of Istanbul Economics Research. "This young group of people aged between 18 to 30 is growing becoming adults into an age where they are highly indebted, they have very little wealth accumulation, and they are finding it increasingly difficult to look into the future and be hopeful. So they have sort of have this resentment to the current system," Selcuki said. "An overwhelming majority of young people in Turkey prefer a pluralistic democratic system to a strong one-man system," Selcuki added, "The second good piece of news is that over 80% prioritize freedom of expression above all." Gulsen is due in court in October, where she faces up to three years in jail. While such a move is likely to be welcomed by Erdogan's conservative base, it could also risk further alienating an increasingly disaffected youth as elections loom.

How can workers shape the future of work? What role do trade unions play in the 21st century? And why is simply talking usually the answer?   In this week's 5 Big Questions interview we talk to trade unionist, policy expert and employment rights advocate KATE BELL Twitter: @kategobell | @The_TUC Known for: Head of Rights, International, Social & Economics - Trade Union Congress Member - Low Pay Commission Former Policy Advisor, Work & Pensions - The Labour Party Former Director of Policy Advice & Communications - Gingerbread The Big 5 Questions: How do you measure the impact of what you do? How should people/businesses be preparing for the future? How do we build the workforce we need for that future? How do you use creativity to solve problems? How do you collaborate? Key quotes: “Trade Union membership has been growing for the last four years. I think in the pandemic many people have thought, actually I need someone to stick up for me in the workplace, I'm genuinely worried not just about whether I'm being paid fairly but is it actually going to be safe for me to go to my place of work.”    “We are a democratic organisation. One of the reasons I really enjoy working for the trade union movement is you have got that very direct feedback. That's not always comfortable, it can be difficult and people can have very different views. But it's a very good feedback mechanism. It's a real advantage of working in a democratic movement.”   “We've also been calling for better sick pay. Have we got the change we wanted? Absolutely we have not. The government has not budged. The level of sick pay has not gone up beyond the rate of inflation and there's still two million people who are excluded. So when I try to assess: my team have been absolutely amazing in the work they've done. Have we made a difference? No we haven't.”   “We share history and values with the Labour Party but we're not affiliated to anybody.”   “We can shape the future of work.”    “The first thing I would advise any business to do is talk to your workers about the future of work they want. Where they see the possibilities for innovation and what that means for their working lives. There's loads of evidence that talking to your employees not only makes them happier but also makes your business more productive.” Useful links: Kate Bell's page on the TUC website // tuc.org.uk/person/kate-bell Trades Union Congress // https://www.tuc.org.uk/ Francis Fukuyama — ‘The End of History and The Last Man' (Amazon audiobook) // amazon.co.uk/End-History-Last-Man/dp/B07GFMH58F/ref=sr_1_3?keywords=Francis+Fukuyama&qid=1647535174&s=audible&sr=1-3 (The Hive eBook) // www.hive.co.uk/Product/Francis-Fukuyama/The-End-of-History-and-the-Last-Man/11400026 Musicians Union // musiciansunion.org.uk/ BECTU // bectu.org.uk/ Equity (the actors union) // equity.org.uk/ Four Day Week campaign // fourdayweek.co.uk/   This episode was recorded in January 2022 Interviewer: Richard Freeman for always possible Editor: CJ Thorpe-Tracey for Lo Fi Arts

Nobody likes talking about it, Alex and Helen certainly don't like talking about it, but in this episode they get into the uncomfortable topic of money.Money is hard to come by in the arts. From the start of education to attempting to make a stable living, we all know how it feels to worry about paying the next round of exam fees/audition fees/rent(!!!). Alex and Helen discuss how money affects every area of a singer's life and offer a range of ideas on how to create greater financial security in his industry:Ask. If there's a programme you want to take part in, or an audition you want to travel to, contact the organisation and ask if they have any ways of supporting those with less financial means. If you don't ask, you never know what they might be able to do in order to help you.Trusts and Foundations. The United Kingdom is blessed with a wealth of trusts and foundations, many of whose aim are to support those in the arts. To search for ones which might be able to help you there are a number of tools at your disposal:Help Musicians Funding WizardThe Alternative Guide to Postgraduate FundingDirectory of Social Change database - you can make an appointment to search their trust and foundation database in their Highbury offices.The Power of Zoom. Post-pandemic we're seeing many institutions and programmes carry out their first round auditions via Zoom which has the potential to save you numerous accommodation and travel costs. With more auditions happening via Zoom, might that encourage you as an artist to apply for an opportunity that you would never have considered before?Building Relationships. If an application to a scholarship, competition or trust and foundation is successful, build that relationship. Let the board of trustees know how the scholarship/competition/grant has helped you, update them on your progress and, when possible, invite them to a live performance. In building that relationship, this scholarship/competition/trust and foundation can be an immediate go-to should you need financial assistance in the future.The Portfolio Career. Pair the unpredictable nature of the creative career with something a little more stable which you also find fulfilling. Love this idea? Want to know more? Check out our episode on The Portfolio Career!Invoice Hack. We all know the feeling of chasing late invoices. To try and avoid that, make sure to include in your invoice, as stated on the Musicians Union website: ‘Strictly 30 days net. I/we reserve the right to claim statutory interest at 8% above the Bank of England base rate at the date the debt becomes overdue, in accordance with the Late Payment of Commercial Debts (Interest) Act 1998.'Let's talk about it. The more we don't talk about it, the harder it is to support one another and also, the easier it is for artists to be paid poorly.Episode edited and produced by Daisy Grant Productions. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We start Season 5 ( and 2022) in conversation with three ground breaking women from the music industry on why everyone benefits from diversity in leadership: Naomi Pohl, Deputy General Secretary of the Musicians Union, now campaigning to become its first female General Secretary; Olga FitzRoy, Executive Director of the Music Producers Guild and founder of Parental Pay Equality; and Nadia Khan: Founder of Women in CTRL, campaigner for diversity, equity, gender parity and representation. You can find information about Naomi, Olga and Nadia at https://completemusicupdate.com/article/naomi-pohl-to-run-for-general-secretary-of-the-musicians-union/ http://www.olgafitzroy.com/ https://www.womeninctrl.com/ If you enjoy this conversation, please subscribe, check out our other great episodes, and even better leave us a review. You can also follow us on social media and sign up to our mailing list at https://polyphonyarts.com/mailing-list for updates and news about Music Works and Polyphony Arts. Music Works is generously supported by Allianz Musical Insurance, the UK's No. 1 musical instrument insurer.

Episode one hundred and thirty-nine of A History of Rock Music in Five Hundred Songs looks at “Eight Miles High” by the Byrds, and the influence of jazz and Indian music on psychedelic rock. This is a long one... Click the full post to read liner notes, links to more information, and a transcript of the episode. Patreon backers also have a ten-minute bonus episode available, on "Winchester Cathedral" by the New Vaudeville Band. Tilt Araiza has assisted invaluably by doing a first-pass edit, and will hopefully be doing so from now on. Check out Tilt's irregular podcasts at http://www.podnose.com/jaffa-cakes-for-proust and http://sitcomclub.com/ Resources No Mixcloud this time, as there were multiple artists with too many songs. Information on John Coltrane came from Coltrane by Ben Ratliffe, while information on Ravi Shankar came from Indian Sun: The Life and Music of Ravi Shankar by Oliver Craske. For information on the Byrds, I relied mostly on Timeless Flight Revisited by Johnny Rogan, with some information from Chris Hillman's autobiography. This dissertation looks at the influence of Slonimsky on Coltrane. All Coltrane's music is worth getting, but this 5-CD set containing Impressions is the most relevant cheap selection of his material for these purposes. This collection has the Shankar material released in the West up to 1962. And this three-CD set is a reasonable way of getting most of the Byrds' important recordings. Patreon This podcast is brought to you by the generosity of my backers on Patreon. Why not join them? Transcript This episode is the second part of a loose trilogy of episodes set in LA in 1966. We're going to be spending a *lot* of time around LA and Hollywood for the next few months -- seven of the next thirteen episodes are based there, and there'll be more after that. But it's going to take a while to get there. This is going to be an absurdly long episode, because in order to get to LA in 1966 again, we're going to have to start off in the 1940s in New York, and take a brief detour to India. Because in order to explain this: [Excerpt: The Byrds, "Eight Miles High"] We're first going to have to explain this: [Excerpt: John Coltrane, "India (#3)"] Before we begin this, I just want to say something. This episode runs long, and covers a *lot* of musical ground, and as part of that it covers several of the most important musicians of the twentieth century -- but musicians in the fields of jazz, which is a music I know something about, but am not an expert in, and Hindustani classical music, which is very much not even close to my area of expertise. It also contains a chunk of music theory, which again, I know a little about -- but only really enough to know how much I don't know. I am going to try to get the information about these musicians right, but I want to emphasise that at times I will be straying *vastly* out of my lane, in ways that may well seem like they're minimising these musicians. I am trying to give just enough information about them to tell the story, and I would urge anyone who becomes interested in the music I talk about in the early parts of this episode to go out and find more expert sources to fill in the gap. And conversely, if you know more about these musics than I do, please forgive any inaccuracies. I am going to do my best to get all of this right, because accuracy is important, but I suspect that every single sentence in the first hour or so of this episode could be footnoted with something pointing out all the places where what I've said is only somewhat true. Also, I apologise if I mispronounce any names or words in this episode, though I've tried my best to get it right -- I've been unable to find recordings of some words and names being spoken, while with others I've heard multiple versions. To tell today's story, we're going to have to go right back to some things we looked at in the first episode, on "Flying Home". For those of you who don't remember -- which is fair enough, since that episode was more than three years ago -- in that episode we looked at a jazz record by the Benny Goodman Sextet, which was one of the earliest popular recordings to feature electric guitar: [Excerpt: The Benny Goodman Sextet, "Flying Home"] Now, we talked about quite a lot of things in that episode which have played out in later episodes, but one thing we only mentioned in passing, there or later, was a style of music called bebop. We did talk about how Charlie Christian, the guitarist on that record, was one of the innovators of that style, but we didn't really go into what it was properly. Indeed, I deliberately did not mention in that episode something that I was saving until now, because we actually heard *two* hugely influential bebop musicians in that episode,  and I was leaving the other one to talk about here. In that episode we saw how Lionel Hampton, the Benny Goodman band's vibraphone player, went on to form his own band, and how that band became one of the foundational influences for the genres that became known as jump blues and R&B. And we especially noted the saxophone solo on Hampton's remake of "Flying Home", played by Illinois Jacquet: [Excerpt: Lionel Hampton, "Flying Home"] We mentioned in that episode how Illinois Jacquet's saxophone solo there set the template for all tenor sax playing in R&B and rock and roll music for decades to come -- his honking style became quite simply how you play rock and roll or R&B saxophone, and without that solo you don't have any of the records by Fats Domino, Little Richard, the Coasters, or a dozen other acts that we discussed. But what we didn't look at in that episode is that that is a big band record, so of course there is more than just one saxophone player on it. And one of the other saxophone players on that recording is Dexter Gordon, a musician who was originally from LA. Those of you with long memories will remember that back in the first year or so of the podcast we talked a lot about the music programme at Jefferson High School in LA, and about Samuel Browne, the music teacher whose music programme gave the world the Coasters, the Penguins, the Platters, Etta James, Art Farmer, Richard Berry, Big Jay McNeely, Barry White, and more other important musicians than I can possibly name here. Gordon was yet another of Browne's students -- one who Browne regularly gave detention to, just to make him practice his scales. Gordon didn't get much chance to shine in the Lionel Hampton band, because he was only second tenor, with Jacquet taking many of the solos. But he was learning from playing in a band with Jacquet, and while Gordon didn't ever develop a honk like Jacquet's, he did adopt some of Jacquet's full tone in his own sound. There aren't many recordings of Gordon playing solos in his early years, because they coincided with the American Federation of Musicians' recording strike that we talked about in those early episodes, but he did record a few sessions in 1943 for a label small enough not to be covered by the ban, and you can hear something of Jacquet's tone in those recordings, along with the influence of Lester Young, who influenced all tenor sax players at this time: [Excerpt: Nat "King" Cole with Dexter Gordon, "I've Found a New Baby"] The piano player on that session, incidentally, is Nat "King" Cole, when he was still one of the most respected jazz pianists on the scene, before he switched primarily to vocals. And Gordon took this Jacquet-influenced tone, and used it to become the second great saxophone hero of bebop music, after Charlie Parker -- and the first great tenor sax hero of the music. I've mentioned bebop before on several occasions, but never really got into it in detail. It was a style that developed in New York in the mid to late forties, and a lot of the earliest examples of it went unrecorded thanks to that musicians' strike, but the style emphasised small groups improvising together, and expanding their sense of melody and harmony. The music prized virtuosity and musical intelligence over everything else, and was fast and jittery-sounding. The musicians would go on long, extended, improvisations, incorporating ideas both from the blues and from the modern classical music of people like Bartok and Stravinsky, which challenged conventional tonality. In particular, one aspect which became prominent in bebop music was a type of scale known as the bebop scale. In most of the music we've looked at in this podcast to this point, the scales used have been seven-note scales -- do-re-mi-fa-so-la-ti- which make an octave with a second, higher, do tone. So in the scale of C major we have C, D, E, F, G, A, B, and then another C: [demonstrates] Bebop scales, on the other hand, would generally have an extra note in, making an eight-note scale, by adding in what is called a chromatic passing note. For example, a typical bebop C major scale might add in the note G#, so the scale would go C,D,E,F,G,G#, A, B, C: [demonstrates] You'd play this extra note for the most part, when moving between the two notes it's between, so in that scale you'd mostly use it when moving from G to A, or from A to G. Now I'm far from a bebop player, so this won't sound like bebop, but I can demonstrate the kind of thing if I first noodle a little scalar melody in the key of C major: [demonstrates] And then play the same thing, but adding in a G# every time I go between the G and the A in either direction: [demonstrates] That is not bebop music, but I hope you can see what a difference that chromatic passing tone makes to the melody. But again, that's not bebop, because I'm not a bebop player. Dexter Gordon, though, *was* a bebop player. He moved to New York while playing with Louis Armstrong's band, and soon became part of the bebop scene, which at the time centred around Charlie Christian, the trumpet player Dizzy Gillespie, and the alto sax player Charlie Parker, sometimes nicknamed "bird" or "Yardbird", who is often regarded as the greatest of them all. Gillespie, Parker, and Gordon also played in Billy Eckstine's big band, which gave many of the leading bebop musicians the opportunity to play in what was still the most popular idiom at the time -- you can hear Gordon have a saxophone battle with Gene Ammons on "Blowing the Blues Away" in a lineup of the band that also included Art Blakey on drums and Dizzy Gillespie on trumpet: [Excerpt: Billy Eckstine, "Blowing the Blues Away"] But Gordon was soon leading his own small band sessions, and making records for labels like Savoy, on which you can definitely hear the influence of Illinois Jacquet on his tone, even as he's playing music that's more melodically experimental by far than the jump band music of the Hampton band: [Excerpt: Dexter Gordon, "Dexter Digs In"] Basically, in the late 1940s, if you were wanting to play bebop on the saxophone, you had two models to follow -- Charlie Parker, the great alto saxophonist with his angular, atonal, melodic sense and fast, virtuosic, playing, or Dexter Gordon, the tenor saxophonist, whose style had more R&B grease and wit to it, who would quote popular melodies in his own improvisations. And John Coltrane followed both. Coltrane's first instrument was the alto sax, and when he was primarily an alto player he would copy Charlie Parker's style. When he switched to being primarily a tenor player -- though he would always continue playing both instruments, and later in his career would also play soprano sax -- he took up much of Gordon's mellower tone, though he was also influenced by other tenor players, like Lester Young, the great player with Count Basie's band, and Johnny Hodges, who played with Duke Ellington. Now, it is important to note here that John Coltrane is a very, very, big deal. Depending on your opinion of Ornette Coleman's playing, Coltrane is by most accounts either the last or penultimate truly great innovator in jazz saxophone, and arguably the single foremost figure in the music in the last half of the twentieth century. In this podcast I'm only able to tell you enough about him to give you the information you need to understand the material about the Byrds, but were I to do a similar history of jazz in five hundred songs, Coltrane would have a similar position to someone like the Beatles -- he's such a major figure that he is literally venerated as a saint by the African Orthodox Church, and a couple of other Episcopal churches have at least made the case for his sainthood. So anything I say here about him is not even beginning to scratch the surface of his towering importance to jazz music, but it will, I hope, give some idea of his importance to the development of the Byrds -- a group of whom he was almost certainly totally unaware. Coltrane started out playing as a teenager, and his earliest recordings were when he was nineteen and in the armed forces, just after the end of World War II. At that time, he was very much a beginner, although a talented one, and on his early amateur recordings you can hear him trying to imitate Parker without really knowing what it was that Parker was doing that made him so great. But as well as having some natural talent, he had one big attribute that made him stand out -- his utter devotion to his music. He was so uninterested in anything other than mastering his instrument that one day a friend was telling him about a baseball game he'd watched, and all Coltrane could do was ask in confusion "Who's Willie Mays?" Coltrane would regularly practice his saxophone until his reed was red with blood, but he would also study other musicians. And not just in jazz. He knew that Charlie Parker had intensely studied Stravinsky's Firebird Suite, and so Coltrane would study that too: [Excerpt: Stravinsky, "Firebird Suite"] Coltrane joined the band of Eddie "Cleanhead" Vinson, who was one of those figures like Johnny Otis, with whom Vinson would later perform for many years, who straddled the worlds of jazz and R&B. Vinson was a blues shouter in the style of Big Joe Turner, but he was also a bebop sax player, and what he wanted was a tenor sax player who could play tenor the way Charlie Parker played alto, but do it in an R&B setting. Coltrane switched from alto to tenor, and spent a year or so playing with Vinson's band. No recordings exist of Coltrane with Vinson that I'm aware of, but you can get an idea of what he sounded like from his next band. By this point, Dizzy Gillespie had graduated from small bebop groups to leading a big band, and he got Coltrane in as one of his alto players, though Coltrane would often also play tenor with Gillespie, as on this recording from 1951, which has Coltrane on tenor, Gillespie on trumpet, with Kenny Burrell and two of the future Modern Jazz Quartet, Milt Jackson and Percy Heath, showing that the roots of modern jazz were not very far at all from the roots of rock and roll: [Excerpt: Dizzy Gillespie, "We Love to Boogie"] After leaving Gillespie's band, Coltrane played with a lot of important musicians over the next four or five years, like Johnny Hodges, Earl Bostic, and Jimmy Smith, and occasionally sat in with Miles Davis, but at this point he was still not a major musician in the genre. He was a competent, working, sideman, but he was also struggling with alcohol and heroin, and hadn't really found his own voice. But then Miles Davis asked Coltrane to join his band full-time. Coltrane was actually Davis' second choice -- he really wanted Sonny Rollins, who was widely considered the best new tenor player around, but he was eventually persuaded to take Coltrane. During his first period with Davis, Coltrane grew rapidly as a musician, and also played on a *lot* of other people's sessions. In a three year period Coltrane went from Davis to Thelonius Monk's group then back to Davis' group, and also recorded as both a sideman and a band leader on a ton of sessions. You can get a box set of his recordings from May 1956 through December 1958 that comes to nineteen CDs -- and that's not counting the recordings with Miles Davis, which aren't included on that set. Unsurprisingly, just through playing this much, Coltrane had grown enormously as a player, and he was particularly fascinated by harmonics, playing with the notes of a chord, in arpeggios, and pushing music to its harmonic limits, as you can hear in his solo on Davis' "Straight, No Chaser", which pushes the limits of the jazz solo as far as they'd gone to that point: [Excerpt: Miles Davis, "Straight, No Chaser"] But on the same album as that, "Milestones", we also have the first appearance of a new style, modal jazz. Now, to explain this, we have to go back to the scales again. We looked at the normal Western scale, do-re-mi-fa-so-la-ti-do, but you can start a scale on any of those notes, and which note you start on creates what is called a different mode. The modes are given Greek names, and each mode has a different feel to it. If you start on do, we call this the major scale or the Ionian mode. This is the normal scale we heard before -- C,D,E,F,G,A,B,C: [demonstrates] Most music – about seventy percent of the melodies you're likely to have heard, uses that mode. If you start on re, it would go re-mi-fa-so-la-ti-do-re, or D,E,F,G,A,B,C,D, the Dorian mode: [demonstrates] Melodies with this mode tend to have a sort of wistful feel, like "Scarborough Fair": [Excerpt: Simon and Garfunkel, "Scarborough Fair"] or many of George Harrison's songs: [Excerpt: The Beatles, "I Me Mine"] Starting on mi, you have the Phrygian mode, mi-fa-so-la-ti-do-re-mi: [demonstrates] The Phrygian mode is not especially widely used, but does turn up in some popular works like Barber's Adagio for Strings: [Excerpt: Barber, "Adagio for Strings"] Then there's the Lydian mode, fa-so-la-ti-do-re-mi-fa: [demonstrates] This mode isn't used much at all in pop music -- the most prominent example I can think of is "Pretty Ballerina" by the Left Banke: [Excerpt: The Left Banke, "Pretty Ballerina"] Starting on so, we have so-la-ti-do-re-mi-fa-so -- the Mixolydian mode: [demonstrates] That mode has a sort of bluesy or folky tone to it, and you also find it in a lot of traditional tunes, like "She Moves Through the Fair": [Excerpt: Davey Graham, "She Moved Thru' The Bizarre/Blue Raga"] And in things like "Norwegian Wood" by the Beatles: [Excerpt: The Beatles, "Norwegian Wood"] Though that goes into Dorian for the middle section. Starting on la, we have the Aeolian mode, which is also known as the natural minor scale, and is often just talked about as “the minor scale”: [demonstrates] That's obviously used in innumerable songs, for example "Losing My Religion" by REM: [Excerpt: REM, "Losing My Religion"] And finally you have the Locrian mode ti-do-re-mi-fa-so-la-ti: [demonstrates] That basically doesn't get used, unless someone wants to show off that they know the Locrian mode. The only vaguely familiar example I can think of is "Army of Me" by Bjork: [Excerpt: Bjork, "Army of Me"] I hope that brief excursion through the seven most common modes in Western diatonic music gives you some idea of the difference that musical modes can make to a piece. Anyway, as I was saying, on the "Milestones" album, we get some of the first examples of a form that became known as modal jazz. Now, the ideas of modal jazz had been around for a few years at that point -- oddly, it seems to be one of the first types of popular music to have existed in theory before existing in practice. George Russell, an acquaintance of Davis who was a self-taught music theorist, had written a book in 1953 titled The Lydian Chromatic Concept of Tonal Organization. That book argues that rather than looking at the diatonic scale as the basis for music, one should instead look at a chord progression called the circle of fifths. The circle of fifths is exactly what it sounds like -- you change chords to one a fifth away from it, and then do that again and again, either going up, so you'd have chords with the roots C-G-D-A-E-B-F# and so on: [demonstrates] Or, more commonly, going down, though usually when going downwards you tend to cheat a bit and sharpen one of the notes so you can stay in one key, so you'd get chords with roots C-F-B-E-A-D-G, usually the chords C, F, B diminished, Em, Am, Dm, G: [demonstrates] That descending cycle of fifths is used in all sorts of music, everything from "You Never Give Me Your Money" by the Beatles: [Excerpt: The Beatles, "You Never Give Me Your Money"] to "I Will Survive" by Gloria Gaynor: [Excerpt: Gloria Gaynor, "I Will Survive"] But what Russell pointed out is that if you do the upwards cycle of fifths, and you *don't* change any of the notes, the first seven root notes you get are the same seven notes you'd find in the Lydian mode, just reordered -- C-D-E-F#-G-A-B . Russell then argued that much of the way harmony and melody work in jazz could be thought of as people experimenting with the way the Lydian mode works, and the way the cycle of fifths leads you further and further away from the tonal centre. Now, you could probably do an entire podcast series as long as this one on the implications of this, and I am honestly just trying to summarise enough information here that you can get a vague gist, but Russell's book had a profound effect on how jazz musicians started to think about harmony and melody. Instead of improvising around the chord changes to songs, they were now basing improvisations and compositions around modes and the notes in them. Rather than having a lot of chord changes, you might just play a single root note that stays the same throughout, or only changes a couple of times in the whole piece, and just imply changes with the clash between the root note and whatever modal note the solo instrument is playing. The track "Milestones" on the Milestones album shows this kind of thinking in full effect -- the song consists of a section in G Dorian, followed by a section in A Aeolian (or E Phrygian depending on how you look at it). Each section has only one implied chord -- a Gm7 for the G Dorian section, and an Am7(b13) for the A Aeolian section -- over which Davis, Cannonball Adderley on alto sax, and Coltrane on tenor, all solo: [Excerpt: Miles Davis, "Milestones"] (For the pedants among you, that track was originally titled "Miles" on the first pressings of the album, but it was retitled "Milestones" on subsequent pressings). The modal form would be taken even further on Davis' next album to be recorded, Porgy and Bess, which featured much fuller orchestrations and didn't have Coltrane on it. Davis later said that when the arranger Gil Evans wrote the arrangements for that album, he didn't write any chords at all, just a scale, which Davis could improvise around. But it was on the album after that, Kind of Blue, which again featured Coltrane on saxophone, that modal jazz made its big breakthrough to becoming the dominant form of jazz music. As with what Evans had done on Porgy and Bess, Davis gave the other instrumentalists modes to play, rather than a chord sequence to improvise over or a melody line to play with. He explained his thinking behind this in an interview with Nat Hentoff, saying "When you're based on chords, you know at the end of 32 bars that the chords have run out and there's nothing to do but repeat what you've just done—with variations. I think a movement in jazz is beginning away from the conventional string of chords ... there will be fewer chords but infinite possibilities as to what to do with them." This style shows up in "So What", the opening track on the album, which is in some ways a very conventional song structure -- it's a thirty-two bar AABA structure. But instead of a chord sequence, it's based on modes in two keys -- the A section is in D Dorian, while the B section is in E-flat Dorian: [Excerpt: Miles Davis, "So What"] Kind of Blue would become one of the contenders for greatest jazz album of all time, and one of the most influential records ever made in any genre -- and it could be argued that that track we just heard, "So What", inspired a whole other genre we'll be looking at in a future episode -- but Coltrane still felt the need to explore more ideas, and to branch out on his own. In particular, while he was interested in modal music, he was also interested in exploring more kinds of scales than just modes, and to do this he had to, at least for the moment, reintroduce chord changes into what he was doing. He was inspired in particular by reading Nicolas Slonimsky's classic Thesaurus of Scales and Melodic Patterns. Coltrane had recently signed a new contract as a solo artist with Atlantic Records, and recorded what is generally considered his first true masterpiece album as a solo artist, Giant Steps, with several members of the Davis band, just two weeks after recording Kind of Blue. The title track to Giant Steps is the most prominent example of what are known in jazz as the Coltrane changes -- a cycle of thirds, similar to the cycle of fifths we talked about earlier. The track itself seems to have two sources. The first is the bridge of the old standard "Have You Met Miss Jones?", as famously played by Coleman Hawkins: [Excerpt: Coleman Hawkins, "Have You Met Miss Jones?" And the second is an exercise from Slonimsky's book: [Excerpt: Pattern #286 from Thesaurus of Scales and Melodic Patterns] Coltrane combined these ideas to come up with "Giant Steps", which is based entirely around these cycles of thirds, and Slonimsky's example: [Excerpt: John Coltrane, "Giant Steps"] Now, I realise that this is meant to be a history of rock music, not jazz musicology theory time, so I promise you I am just hitting the high points here. And only the points that affect Coltrane's development as far as it influenced the music we're looking at in this episode. And so we're actually going to skip over Coltrane's commercial high-point, My Favourite Things, and most of the rest of his work for Atlantic, even though that music is some of the most important jazz music ever recorded. Instead, I'm going to summarise a whole lot of very important music by simply saying that while Coltrane was very interested in this musical idea of the cycle of thirds, he did not like being tied to precise chord changes, and liked the freedom that modal jazz gave to him. By 1960, when his contract with Atlantic was ending and his contract with Impulse was beginning, and he recorded the two albums Olé and Africa/Brass pretty much back to back, he had hit on a new style with the help of Eric Dolphy, a flute, clarinet, and alto sax player who would become an important figure in Coltrane's life. Dolphy died far too young -- he went into a diabetic coma and doctors assumed that because he was a Black jazz musician he must have overdosed, even though he was actually a teetotal abstainer, so he didn't get the treatment he needed -- but he made such a profound influence on Coltrane's life that Coltrane would carry Dolphy's picture with him after his death. Dolphy was even more of a theorist than Coltrane, and another devotee of Slonimsky's book, and he was someone who had studied a great deal of twentieth-century classical music, particularly people like Bartok, Messiaen, Stravinsky, Charles Ives, and Edgard Varese. Dolphy even performed Varese's piece Density 21.5 in concert, an extremely demanding piece for solo flute. I don't know of a recording of Dolphy performing it, sadly, but this version should give some idea: [Excerpt: Edgard Varese, "Density 21.5"] Encouraged by Dolphy, Coltrane started making music based around no changes at all, with any changes being implied by the melody. The title song of Africa/Brass, "Africa", takes up an entire side of one album, and doesn't have a single actual chord change on it, with Dolphy and pianist McCoy Tyner coming up with a brass-heavy arrangement for Coltrane to improvise over a single chord: [Excerpt: The John Coltrane Quartet: "Africa"] This was a return to the idea of modal jazz, based on scales rather than chord changes, but by implying chord changes, often changes based on thirds, Coltrane was often using different scales than the modes that had been used in modal jazz. And while, as the title suggested, "Africa" was inspired by the music of Africa, the use of a single drone chord underneath solos based on a scale was inspired by the music of another continent altogether. Since at least the mid-1950s, both Coltrane and Dolphy had been interested in Indian music. They appear to have first become interested in a record released by Folkways, Music Of India, Morning And Evening Ragas by Ali Akbar Khan: [Excerpt: Ali Akbar Khan, "Rag Sindhi Bhairavi"] But the musician they ended up being most inspired by was a friend of Khan's, Ravi Shankar, who like Khan had been taught by the great sarod player Alauddin Khan, Ali Akbar Khan's father. The elder Khan, who was generally known as "Baba", meaning "father", was possibly *the* most influential Indian musician of the first half of the twentieth century, and was a big part of the revitalisation of Indian music that went hand in hand with the growth of Indian nationalism. He was an ascetic who lived for music and nothing else, and would write five to ten new compositions every day, telling Shankar "Do one thing well and you can achieve everything. Do everything and you achieve nothing". Alauddin Khan was a very religious Muslim, but one who saw music as the ultimate way to God and could find truths in other faiths. When Shankar first got to know him, they were both touring as musicians in a dance troupe run by Shankar's elder brother, which was promoting Indian arts in the West, and he talked about taking Khan to hear the organ playing at Notre Dame cathedral, and Khan bursting into tears and saying "here is God". Khan was not alone in this view. The classical music of Northern India, the music that Khan played and taught, had been very influenced by Sufism, which was for most of Muslim history the dominant intellectual and theological tradition in Islam. Now, I am going to sum up a thousand years of theology and practice, of a religion I don't belong to, in a couple of sentences here, so just assume that what I'm saying is wrong, and *please* don't take offence if you are Sufi yourself and believe I am misrepresenting you. But my understanding of Sufism is that Sufis are extremely devoted to attaining knowledge and understanding of God, and believe that strict adherence to Muslim law is the best way to attain that knowledge -- that it is the way that God himself has prescribed for humans to know him -- but that such knowledge can be reached by people of other faiths if they approach their own traditions with enough devotion. Sufi ideas infuse much of Northern Indian classical music, and so for example it has been considered acceptable for Muslims to sing Hindu religious music and Hindus to sing songs of praise to Allah. So while Ravi Shankar was Hindu and Alauddin Khan was Muslim, Khan was able to become Shankar's guru in what both men regarded as a religious observance, and even to marry Khan's daughter. Khan was a famously cruel disciplinarian -- once hospitalising a student after hitting him with a tuning hammer -- but he earned the devotion of his students by enforcing the same discipline on himself. He abstained from sex so he could put all his energies into music, and was known to tie his hair to the ceiling while he practiced, so he could not fall asleep no matter how long he kept playing. Both Khan and his son Ali Akhbar Khan played the sarod, while Shankar played the sitar, but they all played the same kind of music, which is based on the concept of the raga. Now, in some ways, a raga can be considered equivalent to a mode in Western music: [Excerpt: Ali Akbar Khan, "Rag Sindhi Bhairavi"] But a raga is not *just* a mode -- it sits somewhere between Western conceptions of a mode and a melody. It has a scale, like a mode, but it can have different scales going up or down, and rules about which notes can be moved to from which other notes. So for example (and using Western tones so as not to confuse things further), a raga might say that it's possible to move up from the note G to D, but not down from D to G. Ragas are essentially a very restrictive set of rules which allow the musician playing them to improvise freely within those rules. In the late 1940s and early 1950s, the violinist Yehudi Mehuin, at the time the most well-known classical musician in the world, had become fascinated by Indian music as part of a wider programme of his to learn more music outside what he regarded as the overly-constricting scope of the Western classical tradition in which he had been trained. He had become a particular fan of Shankar, and had invited him over to the US to perform. Shankar had refused to come at that point, sending his brother-in-law Ali Akbar Khan over, as he was in the middle of a difficult divorce, and that had been when Khan had recorded that album which had fascinated Coltrane and Dolphy. But Shankar soon followed himself, and made his own records: [Excerpt: Ravi Shankar, "Raga Hamsadhwani"] The music that both Khan and Shankar played was a particular style of Hindustani classical music, which has three elements -- there's a melody instrument, in Shankar's case the sitar and in Khan's the sarod, both of them fretted stringed instruments which have additional strings that resonate along with the main melody string, giving their unique sound. These are the most distinctive Indian instruments, but the melody can be played on all sorts of other instruments, whether Indian instruments like the bansuri and shehnai, which are very similar to the flute and oboe respectively, or Western instruments like the violin. Historically, the melody has also often been sung rather than played, but Indian instrumental music has had much more influence on Western popular music than Indian vocal music has, so we're mostly looking at that here. Along with the melody instrument there's a percussion instrument, usually the tabla, which is a pair of hand drums. Rather than keep a steady, simple, beat like the drum kit in rock music, the percussion has its own patterns and cycles, called talas, which like ragas are heavily formalised but leave a great amount of room for improvisation. The percussion and the melody are in a sort of dialogue with each other, and play off each other in a variety of ways. And finally there's the drone instrument, usually a stringed instrument called a tamboura. The drone is what it sounds like -- a single note, sustained and repeated throughout the piece, providing a harmonic grounding for the improvisations of the melody instrument. Sometimes, rather than just a single root note, it will be a root and fifth, providing a single chord to improvise over, but as often it will be just one note. Often that note will be doubled at the octave, so you might have a drone on both low E and high E. The result provides a very strict, precise, formal, structure for an infinitely varied form of expression, and Shankar was a master of it: [Excerpt: Ravi Shankar, "Raga Hamsadhwani"] Dolphy and, especially, Coltrane became fascinated by Indian music, and Coltrane desperately wanted to record with Shankar -- he even later named his son Ravi in honour of the great musician. It wasn't just the music as music, but music as spiritual practice, that Coltrane was engaged with. He was a deeply religious man but one who was open to multiple faith traditions -- he had been brought up as a Methodist, and both his grandfathers were ministers in the African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church, but his first wife, Naima, who inspired his personal favourite of his own compositions, was a Muslim, while his second wife, Swamini Turiyasangitananda (who he married after leaving Naima in 1963 and who continued to perform as Alice Coltrane even after she took that name, and was herself an extraordinarily accomplished jazz musician on both piano and harp), was a Hindu, and both of them profoundly influenced Coltrane's own spirituality. Some have even suggested that Coltrane's fascination with a cycle of thirds came from the idea that the third could represent both the Christian Trinity and the Hindu trimurti -- the three major forms of Brahman in Hinduism, Brahma, Vishnu, and Shiva. So a music which was a religious discipline for more than one religion, and which worked well with the harmonic and melodic ideas that Coltrane had been exploring in jazz and learning about through his studies of modern classical music, was bound to appeal to Coltrane, and he started using the idea of having two basses provide an octave drone similar to that of the tamboura, leading to tracks like "Africa" and "Olé": [Excerpt: John Coltrane, "Olé"] Several sources have stated that that song was an influence on "Light My Fire" by the Doors, and I can sort of see that, though most of the interviews I've seen with Ray Manzarek have him talking about Coltrane's earlier version of "My Favourite Things" as the main influence there. Coltrane finally managed to meet with Shankar in December 1961, and spent a lot of time with him -- the two discussed recording an album together with McCoy Tyner, though nothing came of it. Shankar said of their several meetings that month: "The music was fantastic. I was much impressed, but one thing distressed me. There was turbulence in the music that gave me a negative feeling at times, but I could not quite put my finger on the trouble … Here was a creative person who had become a vegetarian, who was studying yoga, and reading the Bhagavad-Gita, yet in whose music I still heard much turmoil. I could not understand it." Coltrane said in turn "I like Ravi Shankar very much. When I hear his music, I want to copy it – not note for note of course, but in his spirit. What brings me closest to Ravi is the modal aspect of his art. Currently, at the particular stage I find myself in, I seem to be going through a modal phase … There's a lot of modal music that is played every day throughout the world. It is particularly evident in Africa, but if you look at Spain or Scotland, India or China, you'll discover this again in each case … It's this universal aspect of music that interests me and attracts me; that's what I'm aiming for." And the month before Coltrane met Shankar, Coltrane had had a now-legendary residency at the Village Vanguard in New York with his band, including Dolphy, which had resulted not only in the famous Live at the Village Vanguard album, but in two tracks on Coltrane's studio album Impressions. Those shows were among the most controversial in the history of jazz, though the Village Vanguard album is now often included in lists of the most important records in jazz. Downbeat magazine, the leading magazine for jazz fans at the time, described those shows as "musical nonsense" and "a horrifying demonstration of what appears to be a growing anti-jazz trend" -- though by the time Impressions came out in 1963, that opinion had been revised somewhat. Harvey Pekar, the comic writer and jazz critic, also writing in DownBeat, gave Impressions five stars, saying "Not all the music on this album is excellent (which is what a five-star rating signifies,) but some is more than excellent". And while among Coltrane fans the piece from these Village Vanguard shows that is of most interest is the extended blues masterpiece "Chasin' the Trane" which takes up a whole side of the Village Vanguard LP, for our purposes we're most interested in one of the two tracks that was held over for Impressions. This was another of Coltrane's experiments in using the drones he'd found in Indian musical forms, like "Africa" and "Olé". This time it was also inspired by a specific piece of music, though not an instrumental one. Rather it was a vocal performance -- a recording on a Folkways album of Pandita Ramji Shastri Dravida chanting one of the Vedas, the religious texts which are among the oldest texts sacred to any surviving religion: [Excerpt: Pandita Ramji Shastri Dravida, "Vedic Chanting"] Coltrane took that basic melodic idea, and combined it with his own modal approach to jazz, and the inspiration he was taking from Shankar's music, and came up with a piece called "India": [Excerpt: John Coltrane, "India"] Which is where we came in, isn't it? [Excerpt: The Byrds, "Eight Miles High"] So now, finally, we get to the Byrds. Even before "Mr. Tambourine Man" went to number one in the charts, the Byrds were facing problems with their sound being co-opted as the latest hip thing. Their location in LA, at the centre of the entertainment world, was obviously a huge advantage to them in many ways, but it also made them incredibly visible to people who wanted to hop onto a bandwagon. The group built up much of their fanbase playing at Ciro's -- the nightclub on the Sunset Strip that we mentioned in the previous episode which later reopened as It's Boss -- and among those in the crowd were Sonny and Cher. And Sonny brought along his tape recorder. The Byrds' follow-up single to "Mr. Tambourine Man", released while that song was still going up the charts, was another Dylan song, "All I Really Want to Do". But it had to contend with this: [Excerpt: Cher, "All I Really Want to Do"] Cher's single, produced by Sonny, was her first solo single since the duo had become successful, and came out before the Byrds' version, and the Byrds were convinced that elements of the arrangement, especially the guitar part, came from the version they'd been performing live – though of course Sonny was no stranger to jangly guitars himself, having co-written “Needles and Pins”, the song that pretty much invented the jangle. Cher made number fifteen on the charts, while the Byrds only made number forty. Their version did beat Cher's in the UK charts, though. The record company was so worried about the competition that for a while they started promoting the B-side as the A-side. That B-side was an original by Gene Clark, though one that very clearly showed the group's debt to the Searchers: [Excerpt: The Byrds, "I'll Feel a Whole Lot Better"] While it was very obviously derived from the Searchers' version of "Needles and Pins", especially the riff, it was still a very strong, original, piece of work in its own right. It was the song that convinced the group's producer, Terry Melcher, that they were a serious proposition as artists in their own right, rather than just as performers of Dylan's material, and it was also a favourite of the group's co-manager, Jim Dickson, who picked out Clark's use of the word "probably" in the chorus as particularly telling -- the singer thinks he will feel better when the subject of the song is gone, but only probably. He's not certain. "I'll Feel a Whole Lot Better", after being promoted as the A-side for a short time, reached number one hundred and two on the charts, but the label quickly decided to re-flip it and concentrate on promoting the Dylan song as the single. The group themselves weren't too bothered about their thunder having been stolen by Sonny and Cher, but their new publicist was incandescent. Derek Taylor had been a journalist for the Daily Express, which at that time was a respectable enough newspaper (though that is very much no longer the case). He'd become involved in the music industry after writing an early profile on the Beatles, at which point he had been taken on by the Beatles' organisation first to ghostwrite George Harrison's newspaper column and Brian Epstein's autobiography, and then as their full-time publicist and liner-note writer. He'd left the organisation at the end of 1964, and had moved to the US, where he had set up as an independent music publicist, working for the Byrds, the Beach Boys, and various other acts in their overlapping social circles, such as Paul Revere and the Raiders. Taylor was absolutely furious on the group's behalf, saying "I was not only disappointed, I was disgusted. Sonny and Cher went to Ciro's and ripped off the Byrds and, being obsessive, I could not get this out of my mind that Sonny and Cher had done this terrible thing. I didn't know that much about the record business and, in my experience with the Beatles, cover versions didn't make any difference. But by covering the Byrds, it seemed that you could knock them off the perch. And Sonny and Cher, in my opinion, stole that song at Ciro's and interfered with the Byrds' career and very nearly blew them out of the game." But while the single was a comparative flop, the Mr. Tambourine Man album, which came out shortly after, was much more successful. It contained the A and B sides of both the group's first two singles, although a different vocal take of "All I Really Want to Do" was used from the single release, along with two more Dylan covers, and a couple more originals -- five of the twelve songs on the album were original in total, three of them Gene Clark solo compositions and the other two co-written by Clark and Roger McGuinn. To round it out there was a version of the 1939 song "We'll Meet Again", made famous by Vera Lynn, which you may remember us discussing in episode ninety as an example of early synthesiser use, but which had recently become popular in a rerecorded version from the 1950s, thanks to its use at the end of Dr. Strangelove; there was a song written by Jackie DeShannon; and "The Bells of Rhymney", a song in which Pete Seeger set a poem about a mining disaster in Wales to music. So a fairly standard repertoire for early folk-rock, though slightly heavier on Dylan than most. While the group's Hollywood notoriety caused them problems like the Sonny and Cher one, it did also give them advantages. For example, they got to play at the fourth of July party hosted by Jane Fonda, to guests including her father Henry and brother Peter, Louis Jordan, Steve McQueen, Warren Beatty, and Sidney Poitier. Derek Taylor, who was used to the Beatles' formal dress and politeness at important events, imposed on them by Brian Epstein, was shocked when the Byrds turned up informally dressed, and even more shocked when Vito Paulekas and Carl Franzoni showed up. Vito (who was always known by his first name) and Franzoni are both important but marginal figures in the LA scene. Neither were musicians, though Vito did make one record, produced by Kim Fowley: [Excerpt: Vito and the Hands, "Vito and the Hands"] Rather Vito was a sculptor in his fifties, who had become part of the rock and roll scene and had gathered around him a dance troupe consisting largely of much younger women, and also of himself and Franzoni. Their circle, which also included Arthur Lee and Bryan MacLean, who weren't part of their dance troupe but were definitely part of their crowd, will be talked about much more in future episodes, but for now we'll just say that they are often considered proto-hippies, though they would have disputed that characterisation themselves quite vigorously; that they were regular dancers at Ciro's and became regular parts of the act of both the Byrds and the Mothers of Invention; and we'll give this rather explicit description of their performances from Frank Zappa: "The high point of the performance was Carl Franzoni, our 'go-go boy.' He was wearing ballet tights, frugging violently. Carl has testicles which are bigger than a breadbox. Much bigger than a breadbox. The looks on the faces of the Baptist teens experiencing their grandeur is a treasured memory." Paints a vivid picture, doesn't it? So you can possibly imagine why Derek Taylor later said "When Carl Franzoni and Vito came, I got into a terrible panic". But Jim Dickson explained to him that it was Hollywood and people were used to that kind of thing, and even though Taylor described seeing Henry Fonda and his wife pinned against the wall by the writhing Franzoni and the other dancers, apparently everyone had a good time. And then the next month, the group went on their first UK tour. On which nobody had a good time: [Excerpt: The Byrds, "Eight Miles High"] Even before the tour, Derek Taylor had reservations. Obviously the Byrds should tour the UK -- London, in particular, was the centre of the cultural world at that time, and Taylor wanted the group to meet his old friends the Beatles and visit Carnaby Street. But at the same time, there seemed to be something a little... off... about the promoters they were dealing with, Joe Collins, the father of Joan and Jackie Collins, and a man named Mervyn Conn. As Taylor said later "All I did know was that the correspondence from Mervyn Conn didn't assure me. I kept expressing doubts about the contents of the letters. There was something about the grammar. You know, 'I'll give you a deal', and 'We'll get you some good gigs'. The whole thing was very much showbusiness. Almost pantomime showbusiness." But still, it seemed like it was worth making the trip, even when Musicians Union problems nearly derailed the whole thing. We've talked previously about how disagreements between the unions in the US and UK meant that musicians from one country couldn't tour the other for decades, and about how that slightly changed in the late fifties. But the new system required a one-in, one-out system where tours had to be set up as exchanges so nobody was taking anyone's job, and nobody had bothered to find a five-piece group of equivalent popularity to the Byrds to tour America in return. Luckily, the Dave Clark Five stepped into the breach, and were able to do a US tour on short notice, so that problem was solved. And then, as soon as they landed, the group were confronted with a lawsuit. From the Birds: [Excerpt: The Birds, "No Good Without You Baby"] These Birds, spelled with an "i", not a "y", were a Mod group from London, who had started out as the Thunderbirds, but had had to shorten their name when the London R&B singer Chris Farlowe and his band the Thunderbirds had started to have some success. They'd become the Birds, and released a couple of unsuccessful singles, but had slowly built up a reasonable following and had a couple of TV appearances. Then they'd started to receive complaints from their fans that when they went into the record shops to ask for the new record by the Birds, they were being sold some jangly folky stuff about tambourines, rather than Bo Diddley inspired R&B. So the first thing the American Byrds saw in England, after a long and difficult flight which had left them very tired and depressed, especially Gene Clark, who hated flying, was someone suing them for loss of earnings. The lawsuit never progressed any further, and the British group changed their name to Birds Birds, and quickly disappeared from music history -- apart from their guitarist, Ronnie Wood, who we'll be hearing from again. But the experience was not exactly the welcome the group had been hoping for, and is reflected in one of the lines that Gene Clark wrote in the song he later came up with about the trip -- "Nowhere is there love to be found among those afraid of losing their ground". And the rest of the tour was not much of an improvement. Chris Hillman came down with bronchitis on the first night, David Crosby kept turning his amp up too high, resulting in the other members copying him and the sound in the venues they were playing seeming distorted, and most of all they just seemed, to the British crowds, to be unprofessional. British audiences were used to groups running on, seeming excited, talking to the crowd between songs, and generally putting on a show. The Byrds, on the other hand, sauntered on stage, and didn't even look at the audience, much less talk to them. What seemed to the LA audience as studied cool seemed to the UK audience like the group were rude, unprofessional, and big-headed. At one show, towards the end of the set, one girl in the audience cried out "Aren't you even going to say anything?", to which Crosby responded "Goodbye" and the group walked off, without any of them having said another word. When they played the Flamingo Club, the biggest cheer of the night came when their short set ended and the manager said that the club was now going to play records for dancing until the support act, Geno Washington and the Ramjam Band, were ready to do another set. Michael Clarke and Roger McGuinn also came down with bronchitis, the group were miserable and sick, and they were getting absolutely panned in the reviews. The closest thing they got to a positive review was when Paul Jones of Manfred Mann was asked about them, and he praised some of their act -- perceptively pointing to their version of "We'll Meet Again" as being in the Pop Art tradition of recontextualising something familiar so it could be looked at freshly -- but even he ended up also criticising several aspects of the show and ended by saying "I think they're going to be a lot better in the future". And then, just to rub salt in the wound, Sonny and Cher turned up in the UK. The Byrds' version of "All I Really Want to Do" massively outsold theirs in the UK, but their big hit became omnipresent: [Excerpt: Sonny and Cher, "I Got You Babe"] And the press seemed to think that Sonny and Cher, rather than the Byrds, were the true representatives of the American youth culture. The Byrds were already yesterday's news. The tour wasn't all bad -- it did boost sales of the group's records, and they became friendly with the Beatles, Stones, and Donovan. So much so that when later in the month the Beatles returned to the US, the Byrds were invited to join them at a party they were holding in Benedict Canyon, and it was thanks to the Byrds attending that party that two things happened to influence the Beatles' songwriting. The first was that Crosby brought his Hollywood friend Peter Fonda along. Fonda kept insisting on telling people that he knew what it was like to actually be dead, in a misguided attempt to reassure George Harrison, who he wrongly believed was scared of dying, and insisted on showing them his self-inflicted bullet wounds. This did not go down well with John Lennon and George Harrison, both of whom were on acid at the time. As Lennon later said, "We didn't want to hear about that! We were on an acid trip and the sun was shining and the girls were dancing and the whole thing was beautiful and Sixties, and this guy – who I really didn't know; he hadn't made Easy Rider or anything – kept coming over, wearing shades, saying, "I know what it's like to be dead," and we kept leaving him because he was so boring! ... It was scary. You know ... when you're flying high and [whispers] "I know what it's like to be dead, man" Eventually they asked Fonda to get out, and the experience later inspired Lennon to write this: [Excerpt: The Beatles, "She Said, She Said"] Incidentally, like all the Beatles songs of that period, that was adapted for the cartoon TV series based on the group, in this case as a follow-the-bouncing-ball animation. There are few things which sum up the oddness of mid-sixties culture more vividly than the fact that there was a massively popular kids' cartoon with a cheery singalong version of a song about a bad acid trip and knowing what it's like to be dead. But there was another, more positive, influence on the Beatles to come out of them having invited the Byrds to the party. Once Fonda had been kicked out, Crosby and Harrison became chatty, and started talking about the sitar, an instrument that Harrison had recently become interested in. Crosby showed Harrison some ragas on the guitar, and suggested he start listening to Ravi Shankar, who Crosby had recently become a fan of. And we'll be tracking Shankar's influence on Harrison, and through him the Beatles, and through them the whole course of twentieth century culture, in future episodes. Crosby's admiration both of Ravi Shankar and of John Coltrane was soon to show in the Byrds' records, but first they needed a new single. They'd made attempts at a version of "The Times They Are A-Changin'", and had even tried to get both George Harrison and Paul McCartney to add harmonica to that track, but that didn't work out. Then just before the UK tour, Terry Melcher had got Jack Nitzsche to come up with an arrangement of Dylan's "It's All Over Now, Baby Blue": [Excerpt: The Byrds, "It's All Over Now, Baby Blue (version 1)"] Nitzsche's arrangement was designed to sound as much like a Sonny and Cher record as possible, and at first the intention was just to overdub McGuinn's guitar and vocals onto a track by the Wrecking Crew. The group weren't happy at this, and even McGuinn, who was the friendliest of the group with Melcher and who the record was meant to spotlight, disliked it. The eventual track was cut by the group, with Jim Dickson producing, to show they could do a good job of the song by themselves, with the intention that Melcher would then polish it and finish it in the studio, but Melcher dropped the idea of doing the song at all. There was a growing factionalism in the group by this point, with McGuinn and to a lesser extent Michael Clarke being friendly with Melcher. Crosby disliked Melcher and was pushing for Jim Dickson to replace him as producer, largely because he thought that Melcher was vetoing Crosby's songs and giving Gene Clark and Roger McGuinn free run of the songwriting. Dickson on the other hand was friendliest with Crosby, but wasn't much keener on Crosby's songwriting than Melcher was, thinking Gene Clark was the real writing talent in the group. It didn't help that Crosby's songs tended to be things like harmonically complex pieces based on science fiction novels -- Crosby was a big fan of the writer Robert Heinlein, and in particular of the novel Stranger in a Strange Land, and brought in at least two songs inspired by that novel, which were left off albums -- his song "Stranger in a Strange Land" was eventually recorded by the San Francisco group Blackburn & Snow: [Excerpt: Blackburn & Snow, "Stranger in a Strange Land"] Oddly, Jim Dickson objected to what became the Byrds' next single for reasons that come from the same roots as the Heinlein novel. A short while earlier, McGuinn had worked as a guitarist and arranger on an album by the folk singer Judy Collins, and one of the songs she had recorded on that album was a song written by Pete Seeger, setting the first eight verses of chapter three of the Biblical book of Ecclesiastes to music: [Excerpt: Judy Collins, "Turn Turn Turn (To Everything There is a Season"] McGuinn wanted to do an electric version of that song as the Byrds' next single, and Melcher sided with him, but Dickson was against the idea, citing the philosopher Alfred Korzybski, who was a big influence both on the counterculture and on Heinlein. Korzybski, in his book Science and Sanity, argued that many of the problems with the world are caused by the practice in Aristotelean logic of excluding the middle and only talking about things and their opposites, saying that things could be either A or Not-A, which in his view excluded most of actual reality. Dickson's argument was that the lyrics to “Turn! Turn! Turn!” with their inflexible Aristotelianism, were hopelessly outmoded and would make the group a laughing stock among anyone who had paid attention to the intellectual revolutions of the previous few decades. "A time of love, a time of hate"? What about all the times that are neither for loving or hating, and all the emotions that are complex mixtures of love and hate? In his eyes, this was going to make the group look like lightweights. Terry Melcher disagreed, and forced the group through take after take, until they got what became the group's second number one hit: [Excerpt: The Byrds, "Turn! Turn! Turn!"] After the single was released and became a hit, the battle lines in the group hardened. It was McGuinn and Melcher on one side, Crosby and Dickson on the other, with Chris Hillman, Michael Clarke, and Gene Clark more or less neutral in the middle, but tending to side more and more with the two Ms largely because of Crosby's ability to rub everyone up the wrong way. At one point during the sessions for the next album, tempers flared so much that Michael Clarke actually got up, went over to Crosby, and punched Crosby so hard that he fell off his seat. Crosby, being Hollywood to the bone, yelled at Clarke "You'll never work in this town again!", but the others tended to agree that on that occasion Crosby had it coming. Clarke, when asked about it later, said "I slapped him because he was being an asshole. He wasn't productive. It was necessary." Things came to a head in the filming for a video for the next single, Gene Clark's "Set You Free This Time". Michael Clarke was taller than the other Byrds, and to get the shot right, so the angles would line up, he had to stand further from the camera than the rest of them. David Crosby -- the member with most knowledge of the film industry, whose father was an Academy Award-winning cinematographer, so who definitely understood the reasoning for this -- was sulking that once again a Gene Clark song had been chosen for promotion rather than one of his songs, and started manipulating Michael Clarke, telling him that he was being moved backwards because the others were jealous of his good looks, and that he needed to move forward to be with the rest of them. Multiple takes were ruined because Clarke listened to Crosby, and eventually Jim Dickson got furious at Clarke and went over and slapped him on the face. All hell broke loose. Michael Clarke wasn't particularly bothered by being slapped by Dickson, but Crosby took that as an excuse to leave, walking off before the first shot of the day had been completed. Dickson ran after Crosby, who turned round and punched Dickson in the mouth. Dickson grabbed hold of Crosby and held him in a chokehold. Gene Clark came up and pulled Dickson off Crosby, trying to break up the fight, and then Crosby yelled "Yeah, that's right, Gene! Hold him so I can hit him again!" At this point if Clark let Dickson go, Dickson would have attacked Crosby again. If he held Dickson, Crosby would have taken it as an invitation to hit him more. Clark's dilemma was eventually relieved by Barry Feinstein, the cameraman, who came in and broke everything up. It may seem odd that Crosby and Dickson, who were on the same side, were the ones who got into a fight, while Michael Clarke, who had previously hit Crosby, was listening to Crosby over Dickson, but that's indicative of how everyone felt about Crosby. As Dickson later put it, "People have stronger feelings about David Crosby. I love David more than the rest and I hate him more than the rest. I love McGuinn the least, and I hate him the least, because he doesn't give you emotional feedback. You don't get a chance. The hate is in equal proportion to how much you love them." McGuinn was finding all this deeply distressing -- Dickson and Crosby were violent men, and Michael Clarke and Hillman could be provoked to violence, but McGuinn was a pacifist both by conviction and temperament. Everything was conspiring to push the camps further apart. For example, Gene Clark made more money than the rest because of his songwriting royalties, and so got himself a good car. McGuinn had problems with his car, and knowing that the other members were jealous of Clark, Melcher offered to lend McGuinn one of his own Cadillacs, partly in an attempt to be friendly, and partly to make sure the jealousy over Clark's car didn't cause further problems in the group. But, of course, now Gene Clark had a Ferrarri and Roger McGuinn had a Cadillac, where was David Crosby's car? He stormed into Dickson's office and told him that if by the end of the tour the group were going on, Crosby didn't have a Bentley, he was quitting the group. There was only one thing for it. Terry Melcher had to go. The group had recorded their second album, and if they couldn't fix the problems within the band, they would have to deal with the problems from outside. While the group were on tour, Jim Dickson told Melcher they would no longer be working with him as their producer. On the tour bus, the group listened over and over to a tape McGuinn had made of Crosby's favourite music. On one side was a collection of recordings of Ravi Shankar, and on the other was two Coltrane albums -- Africa/Brass and Impressions: [Excerpt: John Coltrane, "India"] The group listened to this, and basically no other music, on the tour, and while they were touring Gene Clark was working on what he hoped would be the group's next single -- an impressionistic song about their trip to the UK, which started "Six miles high and when you touch down, you'll find that it's stranger than known". After he had it half complete, he showed it to Crosby, who helped him out with the lyrics, coming up with lines like "Rain, grey town, known for its sound" to describe London. The song talked about the crowds that followed them, about the music -- namechecking the Small Faces, who at the time had only released two single

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This summer - that would be 2021 - saw a British parliament ran enquiry into the economics of music streaming. It's unlikely you missed the results. For one thing, your favourite musicians were raging. The results were sobering, depressing, terrifying if you're a professional musician, especially now that COVID has decimated the touring industry… and at the time of writing, have seen no legislation with a review to reform. "Same as it ever was..."Tom Gray is a man who wants change. You might know the multi-instrumentalist for his work with Mercury Prize winning, consistently interesting Southport indie rock types Gomez, though Tom has fingers in pies all over the music industry; the Ivors, PRS, the Musicians Union. His campaign for music industry reform, #BrokenRecord, is rapidly gathering support and securing big wins. I thought it was about time to check in with him, and find out where we're at with it all – we being people who love music, who know that without a fair deal for musicians, there will be no music. And, what change Tom would still like to see. Which is a lot. The James McMahon Music Podcast is a Spoook Media production. Spoook is also a record label, a promoter, a shop, a Substack - it's many things. Follow us on Instagram and Twitter. And please do Like, Review and Subscribe - it actually really helps people find our podcasts!

The big 6-0. 60 episodes and counting. To some that probably means very little but I'm pretty proud that I have got here all on my own. This episode is with yet another Uni of Hertfordshire alumni. Graham was part of the group that I was involved with at Uni. We had a wonderful time and have remained firm friends 10+ years on from when we graduated. Graham is now one of the regional Officers (for London) at the Musicians Union. So if you are based around the capital and have an issue and are a member then he will be your go to guy. It was great to talk to him about the amazing work that the MU does, especially during this rather taxing times for musicians. As well as talking to him about his journey to where he is and what got him here. I hope you enjoy it. Musicians Union links https://musiciansunion.org.uk/ https://www.facebook.com/Musicians.Union https://twitter.com/WeAreTheMU https://www.instagram.com/wearethemu/ https://www.youtube.com/user/TheMusiciansUnion Musicians Union on spotify Get in touch with me via: Website - www.dannychampion.co.uk Email - behindthebusinesspod@gmail.com Twitter - https://twitter.com/dannychampion Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/danmchampion/

"We need a better way of living for the music scene."In this episode of MFM Speaks Out, Adam Reifsteck interviews German saxophonist and composer Axel Mueller about his work as a musician and activist which led to co-founding a new union in Germany called Pro Musik that supports freelance musicians. Topics discussed include the challenges gigging musicians face in Germany that has only been exacerbated by the pandemic and the importance of coming together as a community to enact social and political change that uplifts the livelihood of all professional musicians.Saxophonist & multi-instrumentalist Axel Mueller enjoys a varied career as a composer, arranger, and sideman for top artists in Germany. A graduate of Mannheim University of Music, he started the brass band "Blassportgruppe" with 9 other wind colleagues and began touring Europe with the cabaret act "The Les Clöchards". In addition to touring, Axel plays in the horn section of the TV show "Sing mein Song" with the band "Grosch's Eleven," now in its 5th season, with artists such as Xavier Naidoo, Roger Cicero, Sarah Connor, Yvonne Catterfeld and Samy Deluxe & South African Sunset. Together with his brass colleagues Johannes Goltz (trombone) and Christoph Moschberger (trumpet), Axel has led the horn section for renowned artists such as Nena, Wolfgang Niedecken, and Mark Forster, which has resulted in 8 Gold and Platinum releases.Visit Axel Mueller at axelmuellermusic.comVisit Pro Musik at promusikverband.de The following music is featured in this episode:Opening track: "Mudflat Mood" by Axel Mueller featuring Chris Nemet (keyboards) and Hendrik Lensing (drums)Middle track: "Toch Wood” composed and performed by Axel MuellerEnding track: "Mr Rusher” by Axel Mueller featuring Chris Nemet (keyboards) and Hendrik Lensing (drums)

Episode 124 of A History of Rock Music in Five Hundred Songs looks at “People Get Ready", the Impressions, and the early career of Curtis Mayfield.  Click the full post to read liner notes, links to more information, and a transcript of the episode. Patreon backers also have a twenty-minute bonus episode available, on "I'm Henry VIII I Am" by Herman's Hermits. Tilt Araiza has assisted invaluably by doing a first-pass edit, and will hopefully be doing so from now on. Check out Tilt's irregular podcasts at http://www.podnose.com/jaffa-cakes-for-proust and http://sitcomclub.com/ Resources As usual, I've created a Mixcloud playlist, with full versions of all the songs excerpted in this episode. A lot of resources were used for this episode. Sing for Freedom: The Story of the Civil Rights Movement Through Its Songs by Guy and Candie Carawan is a combination oral history of the Civil Rights movement and songbook. Move On Up: Chicago Soul Music and Black Cultural Power by Aaron Cohen is a history of Chicago soul music and the way it intersected with politics. Traveling Soul: The Life of Curtis Mayfield  by Todd Mayfield with Travis Atria is a biography of Mayfield by one of his sons, and rather better than one might expect given that. Higher Ground: Stevie Wonder, Aretha Franklin, Curtis Mayfield, and the Rise and Fall of American Soul by Craig Werner looks at the parallels and divergences in the careers of its three titular soul stars. This compilation has a decent selection of recordings Mayfield wrote and produced for other artists on OKeh in the early sixties. This single-CD set of Jerry Butler recordings contains his Impressions recordings as well as several songs written or co-written by Mayfield. This double-CD of Major Lance's recordings contains all the hits Mayfield wrote for him. And this double-CD collection has all the Impressions' singles from 1961 through 1968. Patreon This podcast is brought to you by the generosity of my backers on Patreon. Why not join them? Transcript A couple of episodes ago we had a look at one of the first classic protest songs of the soul genre. Today we're going to look at how Sam Cooke's baton was passed on to another generation of soul singer/songwriters, and at one of the greatest songwriters of that generation. We're going to look at the early career of Curtis Mayfield, and at "People Get Ready" by the Impressions: [Excerpt: The Impressions, "People Get Ready"] A quick note before I start this one -- there is no way in this episode of avoiding dealing with the fact that the Impressions' first hit with a Curtis Mayfield lead vocal has, in its title, a commonly used word for Romany people beginning with "g" that many of those people regard as a slur -- while others embrace the term for themselves. I've thought long and hard about how to deal with this, and the compromise I've come up with is that I will use excerpts from the song, which will contain that word, but I won't use the word myself. I'm not happy with that compromise, but it's the best I can do. It's unfortunate that that word turns up a *lot* in music in the period I'm covering -- it's basically impossible to avoid. Anyway, on with the show... Curtis Mayfield is one of those musicians who this podcast will almost by definition underserve -- my current plan is to do a second episode on him, but if this was a thousand-song podcast he would have a *lot* more than just two episodes. He was one of the great musical forces of the sixties and seventies, and listeners to the Patreon bonus episodes will already have come across him several times before, as he was one of those musicians who becomes the centre of a whole musical scene, writing and producing for most of the other soul musicians to come out of Chicago in the late fifties and early 1960s. Mayfield grew up in Chicago, in the kind of poverty that is, I hope, unimaginable to most of my listeners. He had to become "the man of the house" from age five, looking after his younger siblings as his mother went out looking for work, as his father abandoned his family, moved away, and changed his name. His mother was on welfare for much of the time, and Mayfield's siblings have talked about how their special Christmas meal often consisted of cornbread and syrup, and they lived off beans, rice, and maybe a scrap of chicken neck every two weeks. They were so hungry so often that they used to make a game of it -- drinking water until they were full, and then making sloshing noises with their bellies, laughing at them making noises other than rumbling. But while his mother was poor, Mayfield saw that there was a way to escape from poverty. Specifically, he saw it in his paternal grandmother, the Reverend A.B. Mayfield, a Spiritualist priest, who was the closest thing to a rich person in his life. For those who don't know what Spiritualism is, it's one of the many new religious movements that sprouted up in the Northeastern US in the mid to late nineteenth centuries, like the Holiness Movement (which became Pentecostalism), the New Thought, Christian Science, Mormonism, and the Jehovah's Witnesses. Spiritualists believe, unlike mainstream Christianity, that it is possible to communicate with the spirits of the dead, and that those spirits can provide information about the afterlife, and about the nature of God and angels. If you've ever seen, either in real life or in a fictional depiction, a medium communicating with spirits through a seance, that's spiritualism. There are numbers of splinter spiritualist movements, and the one Reverend Mayfield, and most Black American Spiritualists at this time, belonged to was one that used a lot of elements of Pentecostalism and couched its teachings in the Bible -- to an outside observer not conversant with the theology, it might seem no different from any other Black church of the period, other than having a woman in charge. But most other churches would not have been funded by their presiding minister's winnings from illegal gambling, as she claimed to have the winning numbers in the local numbers racket come to her in dreams, and won often enough that people believed her. Reverend Mayfield's theology also incorporated elements from the Nation of Islam, which at that time was growing in popularity, and was based in Chicago. Chicago was also the home of gospel music -- it was where Sister Rosetta Tharpe had got her start and where Mahalia Jackson and Thomas Dorsey and the Soul Stirrers were all based -- and so of course Reverend Mayfield's church got its own gospel quartet, the Northern Jubilee Singers. They modelled themselves explicitly on the Soul Stirrers, who at the time were led by Sam Cooke: [Excerpt: The Soul Stirrers, "Jesus Gave Me Water"] Curtis desperately wanted to join the Northern Jubilee Singers, and particularly admired their lead singer, Jerry Butler, as well as being a huge fan of their inspiration Sam Cooke. But he was too young -- he was eight years old, and the group members were twelve and thirteen, an incommensurable gap at that age. So Curtis couldn't join the Jubilee singers, but he kept trying to perform, and not just with gospel -- as well as gospel, Chicago was also the home of electric blues, being where Chess Records was based, and young Curtis Mayfield was surrounded by the music of people like Muddy Waters: [Excerpt: Muddy Waters, "Rollin' and Tumblin'"] And so as well as singing gospel songs, he started singing and playing the blues, inspired by Waters, Little Walter, and other Chess acts. His first instrument was the piano, and young Curtis found that he naturally gravitated to the black keys -- he liked the sound of those best, and didn't really like playing the white keys. I won't get into the music theory too much here, but the black keys on a piano make what is called a pentatonic scale -- a five-note scale that is actually the basis for most folk music forms, whether Celtic folk, Indian traditional music, the blues, bluegrass, Chinese traditional music... pentatonic scales have been independently invented by almost every culture, and you might think of them as the "natural" music, what people default to. The black notes on the piano make that scale in the key of F#: [Excerpt: pentatonic scale in F#] The notes in that are F#, G#, A#, C#, and D#. When young Curtis found a guitar in his grandmother's closet, he didn't like the way it sounded -- if you strum the open strings of a guitar they don't make a chord (well, every combination of notes is a chord, but they don't make one most people think of as pleasant) -- the standard guitar tuning is E, A, D, G, B, E. Little Curtis didn't like this sound, so he retuned the guitar to F#, A#, C#, F#, A#, F# -- notes from the chord of F#, and all of them black keys on the piano. Now, tuning a guitar to open chords is a fairly standard thing to do -- guitarists as varied as Keith Richards, Steve Cropper, and Dolly Parton tune their guitars to open chords -- but doing it to F# is something that pretty much only Mayfield ever did, and it meant his note choices were odd ones. He would later say with pride that he used to love it when other guitarists picked up his guitar, because no matter how good they were they couldn't play on his instrument. He quickly became extremely proficient as a blues guitarist, and his guitar playing soon led the Northern Jubilee Singers to reconsider having him in the band. By the time he was eleven he was a member of the group and travelling with them to gospel conventions all over the US. But he had his fingers in multiple musical pies -- he formed a blues group, who would busk outside the pool-hall where his uncle was playing, and he also formed a doo-wop group, the Alphatones, who became locally popular. Jerry Butler, the Jubilee Singers' lead vocalist, had also joined a doo-wop group -- a group called the Roosters, who had moved up to Chicago from Chattanooga. Butler was convinced that to make the Roosters stand out, they needed a guitarist like Mayfield, but Mayfield at first remained uninterested -- he already had his own group, the Alphatones. Butler suggested that Mayfield should rehearse with both groups, three days a week each, and then stick with the group that was better. Soon Mayfield found himself a full-time member of the Roosters. In 1957, when Curtis was fifteen, the group entered a talent contest at a local school, headlined by the Medallionaires, a locally-popular group who had released a single on Mercury, "Magic Moonlight": [Excerpt: The Medallionaires, "Magic Moonlight"] The Medallionaires' manager, Eddie Thomas, had been around the music industry since he was a child – his stepfather had been the great blues pianist Big Maceo Merriweather, who had made records like "Worried Life Blues": [Excerpt: Big Maceo Merriweather, "Worried Life Blues"] Thomas hadn't had any success in the industry yet, but at this talent contest, the Roosters did a close-harmony version of Sam Cooke's "You Send Me", and Thomas decided that they had potential, especially Mayfield and Butler. He signed them to a management contract, but insisted they changed their name. They cast around for a long time to find something more suitable, and eventually decided on The Impressions, because they'd made such an impression on Thomas. The group were immediately taken by Thomas on a tour of the large indie labels, and at each one they sang a song that members of the group had written, which was inspired by a song called "Open Our Eyes" by the Gospel Clefs: [Excerpt: The Gospel Clefs, "Open Our Eyes"] Herman Lubinsky at Savoy liked the song, and suggested that Jerry speak-sing it, which was a suggestion the group took up, but he passed on them. So did Ralph Bass at King. Mercury Records gave them some session work, but weren't able to sign the group themselves -- the session was with the big band singer Eddie Howard, singing backing vocals on a remake of "My Last Goodbye", a song he'd recorded multiple times before. Unfortunately, I haven't been able to track down a copy of that recording, the Impressions' first, only Howard's other recordings of the song. Eventually, the group got the interest of a tiny label called Bandera, whose owner Vi Muszynski was interested -- but she had to get the approval of Vee-Jay Records, the larger label that distributed Bandera's records. Vee-Jay was a very odd label. It was one of a tiny number of Black-owned record labels in America at the time, and possibly the biggest of them, and it's interesting to compare them to Chess Records, which was based literally across the road. Both put out R&B records, but Chess was white-owned and specialised in hardcore Chicago electric blues -- Muddy Waters, Howlin' Wolf, Little Walter and so on. Vee-Jay, on the other hand, certainly put out its fair share of that kind of music, but they also put out a lot of much smoother doo-wop and early soul, and they would have their biggest hits a few years after this, not with blues artists, but with the Four Seasons, and with their licensing of British records by Frank Ifield and the Beatles. Both Vee-Jay and Chess were aiming at a largely Black market, but Black-owned Vee-Jay was much more comfortable with white pop acts than white-owned Chess. Muszynski set up an audition with Calvin Carter, the head of A&R at Vee-Jay, and selected the material the group were to perform for Carter -- rather corny songs the group were not at all comfortable with. They ran through that repertoire, and Carter said they sounded good but didn't they have any originals? They played a couple of originals, and Carter wasn't interested in those. Then Carter had a thought -- did they have any songs they felt ashamed of playing for him? Something that they didn't normally do? They did -- they played that song that the group had written, the one based on "Open Our Eyes". It was called "For Your Precious Love", and Carter immediately called in another group, the Spaniels, who were favourites of the Impressions and had had hits with records like "Goodnite Sweetheart Goodnite": [Excerpt: The Spaniels, "Goodnite, Sweetheart, Goodnite"] Carter insisted on the Impressions singing their song for the Spaniels, and Butler in particular was very worried -- he assumed that Carter just wanted to take their song and give it to the bigger group. But after they played the song again, the Spaniels all enthused about how great the Impressions were and what a big hit the Impressions were going to have with the song. They realised that Carter just *really liked* them and the song, and wanted to show them off. The group went into the studio, and recorded half a dozen takes of "For Your Precious Love", but none of them came off correctly. Eventually Carter realised what the problem was -- Mayfield wasn't a member of the musicians' union, and so Carter had hired session guitarists, but they couldn't play the song the way Mayfield did. Eventually, Carter got the guitarists to agree to take the money, not play, and not tell the union if he got Mayfield to play on the track instead of them. After that, they got it in two takes: [Excerpt: Jerry Butler and the Impressions, "For Your Precious Love"] When it came out, the record caused a major problem for the group, because they discovered when they saw the label that it wasn't credited to "The Impressions", but to "Jerry Butler and the Impressions". The label had decided that they were going to follow the strategy that had worked for so many acts before -- put out records credited to "Singer and Group", and then if they were successful develop that into two separate acts. To his credit, Butler immediately insisted that the record company get the label reprinted, but Vee-Jay said that wasn't something they could do. It was too late, the record was going out as Jerry Butler and the Impressions and that was an end to it. The group were immediately put on the promotional circuit -- there was a rumour that Roy Hamilton, the star who had had hits with "Unchained Melody" and "Ebb Tide", was going to put out a cover version, as the song was perfectly in his style, and so the group needed to get their version known before he could cut his cover. They travelled to Philadelphia, where they performed for the DJ Georgie Woods. We talked about Woods briefly last episode -- he was the one who would later coin the term "blue-eyed soul" to describe the Righteous Brothers -- and Woods was also the person who let Dick Clark know what the important Black records were, so Clark could feature them on his show. Woods started to promote the record, and suddenly Jerry Butler and the Impressions were huge -- "For Your Precious Love" made number three on the R&B charts and number eleven on the pop charts. Their next session produced another hit, "Come Back My Love", although that only made the R&B top thirty and was nowhere near as big a hit: [Excerpt: Jerry Butler and the Impressions, "Come Back My Love"] That would be the last time the original lineup of the Impressions would record together. Shortly afterwards, before a gig in Texas, Jerry Butler called the President of the record label to sort out a minor financial problem. Once the problem had been sorted out, the president put the phone down, but then one of the other Impressions, Arthur Brooks, asked if he could have a word. Butler explained that the other person had hung up, and Brooks went ballistic, saying that Butler thought he was in charge, and thought that he could do all the talking for the group. Well, if he thought that, he could do all the singing too. Brooks and his brother Richard weren't going on stage. Sam Gooden said he wasn't going on either -- he'd been an original Rooster with the Brooks brothers before Butler had joined the group, and he was siding with them. That left Curtis Mayfield. Mayfield said he was still going on stage, because he wanted to get paid. The group solidarity having crumbled, Gooden changed his mind and said he might as well go on with them, so Butler, Mayfield, and Gooden went on as a trio. Butler noticed that the audience didn't notice a difference -- they literally didn't know the Brooks brothers existed -- and that was the point at which he decided to go solo. The Impressions continued without Butler, with Mayfield, Gooden, and the Brooks brothers recruiting Fred Cash, who had sung with the Roosters when they were still in Tennessee. Mayfield took over the lead vocals and soon started attracting the same resentment that Butler had. Vee-Jay dropped the Impressions, and they started looking round for other labels and working whatever odd jobs they could. Mayfield did get some work from Vee-Jay, though, working as a session player on records by people like Jimmy Reed. There's some question about which sessions Mayfield actually played -- I've seen conflicting information in different sessionographies -- but it's at least possible that Mayfield's playing on Reed's most famous record, "Baby What You Want Me to Do": [Excerpt: Jimmy Reed, "Baby What You Want Me to Do"] And one of Mayfield's friends, a singer called Major Lance, managed to get himself a one-off single deal with Mercury Records after becoming a minor celebrity as a dancer on a TV show. Mayfield wrote that one single, though it wasn't a hit: [Excerpt: Major Lance, "I Got a Girl"] Someone else who wasn't having hits was Jerry Butler. By late 1960 it had been two years since "For Your Precious Love" and Butler hadn't made the Hot One Hundred in that time, though he'd had a few minor R&B hits. He was playing the chitlin' circuit, and in the middle of a tour, his guitarist quit. Butler phoned Mayfield, who had just received a four hundred dollar tax bill he couldn't pay -- a lot of money for an unemployed musician in 1960. Mayfield immediately joined Butler's band to pay off his back taxes, and he also started writing songs with Butler. "He Will Break Your Heart", a collaboration between the two (with Calvin Carter also credited), made the top ten on the pop chart and number one on the R&B chart: [Excerpt: Jerry Butler, "He Will Break Your Heart"] Even more important for Mayfield than writing a top ten hit, though, was his experience playing for Butler at the Harlem Apollo. Not because of the shows themselves, but because playing a residency in New York allowed him to hang out at the Turf, a restaurant near the Brill Building where all the songwriters would hang out. Or, more specifically, where all the *poorer* songwriters would hang out -- the Turf did roast beef sandwiches for fifty cents if you ate standing at the counter rather than seated at a table, and it also had twenty payphones, so all those songwriters who didn't have their own offices would do their business from the phone booths. Mayfield would hang out there to learn the secrets of the business, and that meant he learned the single most important lesson there is -- keep your own publishing. These writers, some of whom had written many hit songs, were living off twenty-five-dollar advances while the publishing companies were making millions. Mayfield also discovered that Sam Cooke, the man he saw as the model for how his career should go, owned his own publishing company. So he did some research, found out that it didn't actually cost anything to start up a publishing company, and started his own, Curtom, named as a portmanteau of his forename and the surname of Eddie Thomas, the Impressions' manager. While the Impressions' career was in the doldrums, Thomas, too, had been working for Butler, as his driver and valet, and he and Mayfield became close, sharing costs and hotel rooms in order to save money. Mayfield not only paid his tax bill, but by cutting costs everywhere he could he saved up a thousand dollars, which he decided to use to record a song he'd written specifically for the Impressions, not for Butler. (This is the song I mentioned at the beginning with the potential slur in the title. If you don't want to hear that, skip forward thirty seconds now): [Excerpt: The Impressions, "Gypsy Woman"] That track got the Impressions signed to ABC/Paramount records, and it made the top twenty on the pop charts and sold half a million copies, thanks once again to promotion from Georgie Woods. But once again, the follow-ups flopped badly, and the Brooks brothers quit the group, because they wanted to be doing harder-edged R&B in the mould of Little Richard, Hank Ballard, and James Brown, not the soft melodic stuff that Mayfield was writing. The Impressions continued as a three-piece group, and Mayfield would later say that this had been the making of them. A three-part harmony group allowed for much more spontaneity and trading of parts, for the singers to move freely between lead and backing vocals and to move into different parts of their ranges, where when they had been a five-piece group everything had been much more rigid, as if a singer moved away from his assigned part, he would find himself clashing with another singer's part. But as the group were not having hits, Mayfield was still looking for other work, and he found it at OKeh Records, which was going through something of a boom in this period thanks to the producer Carl Davis. Davis took Mayfield on as an associate producer and right-hand man,  primarily in order to get him as a guitarist, but Mayfield was also a valuable talent scout, backing vocalist, and especially songwriter. Working with Davis and arranger Johnny Pate, between 1963 and 1965 Mayfield wrote and played on a huge number of R&B hits for OKeh, including "It's All Over" by Walter Jackson: [Excerpt: Walter Jackson, "It's All Over"] "Gonna Be Good Times" for Gene Chandler: [Excerpt: Gene Chandler, "Gonna Be Good Times"] And a whole string of hits for Jerry Butler's brother Billy and his group The Enchanters, starting with "Gotta Get Away": [Excerpt: Billy Butler and the Enchanters, "Gotta Get Away"] But the real commercial success came from Mayfield's old friend Major Lance, who Mayfield got signed to OKeh. Lance had several minor hits written by Mayfield, but his big success came with a song that Mayfield had written for the Impressions, but decided against recording with them, as it was a novelty dance song and he didn't think that they should be doing that kind of material. The Impressions sang backing vocals on Major Lance's "The Monkey Time", written by Mayfield, which became a top ten pop hit: [Excerpt: Major Lance, "The Monkey Time"] Mayfield would write several more hits for Major Lance, including the one that became his biggest hit, "Um Um Um Um Um Um", which went top five pop and made number one on the R&B charts: [Excerpt: Major Lance, "Um Um Um Um Um Um (Curious Mind)"] So Mayfield was making hits for other people at a furious rate, but he was somehow unable to have hits with his own group. He was still pushing the Impressions, but they had to be a weekend commitment -- the group would play gigs all over the country at weekends, but Monday through Friday Mayfield was in the studio cutting hits for other people -- and he was also trying to keep up a relationship not only with his wife and first child, but with the woman who would become his second wife, with whom he was cheating on his first. He was young enough that he could just about keep this up -- he was only twenty at this point, though he was already a veteran of the music industry -- but it did mean that the Impressions were a lower priority than they might have been. At least, they were until, in August 1963, between those two huge Major Lance hits, Curtis Mayfield finally wrote another big hit for the Impressions -- their first in their new three-piece lineup. Everyone could tell "It's All Right" was a hit, and Gene Chandler begged to be allowed to record it, but Mayfield insisted that his new song was for his group: [Excerpt: The Impressions, "It's All Right"] "It's All Right" went to number four on the pop chart, and number one R&B. And this time, the group didn't mess up the follow-up.  Their next two singles, "Talking About My Baby" and "I'm So Proud", both made the pop top twenty, and the Impressions were now stars. Mayfield also took a trip to Jamaica around this time, with Carl Davis, to produce an album of Jamaican artists, titled "The Real Jamaica Ska", featuring acts like Lord Creator and Jimmy Cliff: [Excerpt: Jimmy Cliff, "Ska All Over the World"] But Mayfield was also becoming increasingly politically aware. As the Civil Rights movement in the US was gaining steam, it was also starting to expose broader systemic problems that affected Black people in the North, not just the South. In Chicago, while Black people had been able to vote for decades, and indeed were a substantial political power block, all that this actually meant in practice was that a few powerful self-appointed community leaders had a vested interest in keeping things as they were. Segregation still existed -- in 1963, around the time that "It's All Right" came out, there was a school strike in the city, where nearly a quarter of a million children refused to go to school. Black schools were so overcrowded that it became impossible for children to learn there, but rather than integrate the schools and let Black kids go to the less-crowded white schools, the head of public education in Chicago decided instead to make the children go to school in shifts, so some were going ridiculously early in the morning while others were having to go to school in the evening. And there were more difficult arguments going on around segregation among Black people in Chicago. The issues in the South seemed straightforward in comparison -- no Black person wanted to be lynched or to be denied the right to vote. But in Chicago there was the question of integrating the two musicians' union chapters in the city. Some Black proponents of integration saw merging the two union chapters as a way for Black musicians to get the opportunity to play lucrative sessions for advertising jingles and so on, which only went to white players. But a vocal minority of musicians were convinced that the upshot of integrating the unions would be that Black players would still be denied those jobs, but white players would start getting some of the soul and R&B sessions that only Black players were playing, and thought that the end result would be that white people would gentrify those areas of music and culture where Black people had carved out spaces for themselves, while still denying Black people the opportunity to move into the white spaces. Mayfield was deeply, deeply, invested in the Civil Rights movement, and the wider discourse as more radical voices started to gain strength in the movement. And he was particularly inspired by his hero, Sam Cooke, recording "A Change is Gonna Come".  As the rhetoric of the Civil Rights movement was so deeply rooted in religious language, it was natural that Mayfield would turn to the gospel music he'd grown up on for his own first song about these issues, "Keep on Pushing": [Excerpt: The Impressions, "Keep on Pushing"] That became another huge hit, making the top ten on the pop chart and number one on the R&B chart. It's instructive to look at reactions to the Impressions, and to Mayfield's sweet, melodic, singing. White audiences were often dismissive of the Impressions, believing they were attempting to sell out to white people and were therefore not Black enough -- a typical reaction is that of Arnold Shaw, the white music writer, who in 1970 referred to the Impressions as Oreos -- a derogatory term for people who are "Black on the outside, white inside". Oddly, though, Black audiences seem not to have recognised the expertise of elderly white men on who was Black enough, and despite white critics' protestations continued listening to and buying the Impressions' records, and incorporating Mayfield's songs into their activism. For example, Sing For Freedom, a great oral-history-cum-songbook which collects songs sung by Civil Rights activists, collected contemporaneously by folklorists, has no fewer than four Impressions songs included, in lightly adapted versions, as sung by the Chicago Freedom Movement, the group led by Martin Luther King, Jesse Jackson and others, who campaigned for an end to housing segregation in Chicago. It quotes Jimmy Collier, a Black civil rights activist and folk singer, saying "There's a rock 'n' roll group called the Impressions and we call them ‘movement fellows' and we try to sing a lot of their songs. Songs like ‘Keep On Pushin',' ‘I Been Trying,' ‘I'm So Proud,' ‘It's Gonna Be a Long, Long Winter,' ‘People Get Ready, There's a Train a-Comin',' ‘There's a Meeting Over Yonder' really speak to the situation a lot of us find ourselves in." I mention this discrepancy because this is something that comes up throughout music history -- white people dismissing Black people as not being "Black enough" and trying to appeal to whites, even as Black audiences were embracing those artists in preference to the artists who had white people's seal of approval as being authentically Black. I mention this because I am myself a white man, and it is very important for me to acknowledge that I will make similar errors when talking about Black culture, as I am here. "Keep on Pushing" was the Impressions' first political record, but by no means the most important. In 1965 the Civil Rights movement seemed to be starting to unravel, and there were increasing ruptures between the hardliners who would go on to form what would become the Black Power movement and the more moderate older generation. These ruptures were only exacerbated by the murder of Malcolm X, the most powerful voice on the radical side. Mayfield was depressed by this fragmentation, and wanted to write a song of hope, one that brought everyone together. To see the roots of the song Mayfield came up with we have to go all the way back to episode five, and to "This Train", the old gospel song which Rosetta Tharpe had made famous: [Excerpt: Sister Rosetta Tharpe, "This Train (live)"] The image of the train leading to freedom had always been a powerful one in Black culture, dating back to the Underground Railroad -- the network of people who helped enslaved people flee their abusers and get away to countries where they could be free. It was also a particularly potent image for Black people in the northern cities, many of whom had travelled there by train from the South, or whose parents had. Mayfield took the old song, and built a new song around it. His melody is closer than it might seem to that of "This Train", but has a totally different sound and feeling, one of gentle hope rather than fervent excitement. And there's a difference of emphasis in the lyrics too. "This Train", as befits a singer like Tharpe who belonged to a Pentecostal "holiness" sect which taught the need for upright conduct at all times, is mostly a list of those sinners who won't be allowed on the train. Mayfield, by contrast, had been brought up in a Spiritualist church, and one of the nine affirmations of Spiritualism is "We affirm that the doorway to reformation is never closed against any soul here or hereafter". Mayfield's song does talk about how "There ain't no room for the hopeless sinner, Whom would hurt all mankind just to save his own", but the emphasis is on how "there's hope for *all*, among those loved the most", and how "you don't need no baggage", and "don't need no ticket". It's a song which is fundamentally inclusive, offering a vision of hope and freedom in which all are welcome: [Excerpt: The Impressions, "People Get Ready"] The song quickly became one of the most important songs to the Civil Rights movement -- Doctor King called it "the unofficial anthem of the Civil Rights movement" -- as well as becoming yet another big hit. We will continue to explore the way Mayfield and the Impressions reacted to, were inspired by, and themselves inspired Black political movements when we look at them again, and their political importance was extraordinary. But this is a podcast about music, and so I'll finish with a note about their musical importance. As with many R&B acts, the Impressions were massive in Jamaica, and they toured there in 1966. In the front row when they played the Carib Theatre in Kingston were three young men who had recently formed a group which they had explicitly modelled on the Impressions and their three-part harmonies. That group had even taken advantage of Jamaica's nonexistent copyright laws to incorporate a big chunk of "People Get Ready" into one of their own songs, which was included on their first album: [Excerpt: The Wailers, "One Love (1965 version)"] Bob Marley and the Wailers would soon become a lot more than an Impressions soundalike group, but that, of course, is a story for a future episode...

Shaman drummer at the Musicians Union in Nashville, TN from October 2018

"Success in music is not guaranteed, but as long as you are persevering and helping others along the way, you will reach your goals."In this episode of MFM Speaks Out, Adam Reifsteck interviews conductor and pianist Geraldine Anello about immigrating to the United States from France in her early 20s which ultimately led to a career as a Broadway musician. Topics discussed include how she created an online community and professional development resource called Theatre Music Directors, the issue of gender inequality on Broadway, and finding a new creative outlet as a writer and poet during the pandemic.Geraldine Anello has conducted Kinky Boots and School of Rock on Broadway, The Fantasticks off-Broadway, and played in the orchestras of Broadway’s School of Rock, Bronx Tale, Aladdin, and On the Town. She has also worked on the Broadway productions SpongeBob the Musical, An American in Paris, On Your Feet, and Matilda. Anello served as music director of We Are the Tigers off-Broadway, and of Renascence for the Transport Group, Finian’s Rainbow at the Irish Repertory Theatre, and Children of Salt at the New York Musical Festival.Visit Geraldine Anello at geraldineanello.comOrder Geraldine's new book of poetry on Amazon.The following music is featured in this episode:Opening track: "Fragmented Fractals" by Adam Reifsteck featuring Geraldine Anello (piano) and Roberta Michel (flute)Middle track: "Wallflower” from the musical We Are the Tigers by Preston Max Allen; Geraldine Anello, music director and pianistEnding track: "Renascence” from the musical Renascence by Carmel Dean, Dick Scanlan. Edna St. Vincent Millay; Geraldine Anello, music director and pianist

#58: 23.10.1980 – Top Of The GearThe latest episode of the podcast which asks: has anyone ever done that to someone else’s nostrils? Really?Neither willing to go out and pissed off with staying in, your favourite podcast about old episodes of Top Of The Pops elects to bury its head once more into the comforting bosom of the Eighventies, so come and join us, Pop-Crazed Youngsters – it’s a many-teated beast.This particular episode of The Pops sees our Thursday-evening treat still enclagged with the amorphous goo off the chrysalis it emerged from after the Musicians Union strike of the summer. They’ve had celebrity guests, a news section, two interviews with The Old Sailor and a wedding announcement from Dollar, but this week they’ve gone too far: they’ve done a tie-in with the 1980 Motor Show and filled the studio with cars that no-one can actually see and none of the audience gives the slightest fleck of a toss about. And oh dear; the combination of the smell of new car and the sight of bored-looking women in Talbot t-shirts standing about brings on predictable changes in our host, clad in a racing driver one-piece with the zip slung low: The Living Gnasher Badge… Musicwise, it’s cast-iron proof that 1980 really was the Ken of the Eighventies. Quo tap their noses at us as they lumber into the new decade. The Nolans get ready to rip through Japan like a four-headed Kay’s Catalogue Godzilla. Andy McCluskey gets given a bass in a doomed attempt to put him off his dancing. Poor Legs & Co get stared at by blokes in cars, like a Disco version of Never Go With Strangers. The Number One is more adult-orientated rammel. And DLT goes full-on PLP with Elkie Brooks. Rock Expert David Stubbs and Taylor Parkes join Al Needham for a leaf through the Exchange and Mart of Pop, swooping off on such tangents as how rubbish it’s going to be when we come out of lockdown, how unprepared your local market was for the onset of New Romantic, Gilbert O’Sullivan’s Erotic Meat Buffet, Eighties synth-duo intermarriage, and SCREW YOU, JOANNE GREENWOOD FROM CLASS 4A.Video Playlist | Subscribe | Facebook | Twitter | The Chart Music Wiki | Patreon See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Glenn Price, Secretary of the Musicians Union of Australia + Vice President of the Australian Italian Club in Prospect

Keith Ames, MU Communications Official, Editor of The Musician magazine, songwriter and lyricist, joins us to talk about the challenges facing working musicians in the post COVID/BREXIT world of 2021.   Also joining me is Andrea Vergani, London based gypsy jazz guitarist and band leader of Swing Train 42.

"We're operating under a significant cloud... it is important to not only take care of yourself but support your fellow musicians in any way that you can."In this episode of MFM Speaks Out, Adam Reifsteck interviews composer, guitarist, and MFM Board member Roger Blanc. His concert music has been performed at major New York City venues and abroad. As an arranger, orchestrator, and music producer for media including the Tonight Show, Saturday Night Live, David Letterman, Conan O’Brien, and Arsenio Hall, as well as 80 feature films such as Frida, The Untouchables, Wag The Dog, Flirting With Disaster, Fargo, and the Stepford Wives. Roger Blanc has also worked in the recording industry with many artists including Barbra Streisand, Yoko Ono, Michael Jackson, John Lennon, Paul Simon, Bruce Springsteen, David Bowie, Bette Midler, Luciano Pavarotti, among others. The topics discussed include insight into navigating today's music industry landscape, adapting and finding ways to work as a musician during the coronavirus pandemic, and the importance of music rights advocacy.Website: https://www.facebook.com/rogerblancThe following music is featured in this episode:Opening track: "Fashion One" co-written, produced, and arranged by Roger BlancMiddle track: "Mood Swings for Jazz Quartet” by Roger BlancEnding track: "What a Night” featuring Terry Iten, produced by Roger Blanc

Episode one hundred and eleven of A History of Rock Music in Five Hundred Songs looks at “Heat Wave” by Martha and the Vandellas, and the beginnings of Holland-Dozier-Holland. Click the full post to read liner notes, links to more information, and a transcript of the episode. Patreon backers also have a ten-minute bonus episode available, on “My Boyfriend’s Back” by the Angels. Tilt Araiza has assisted invaluably by doing a first-pass edit, and will hopefully be doing so from now on. Check out Tilt’s irregular podcasts at http://www.podnose.com/jaffa-cakes-for-proust and http://sitcomclub.com/ (more…)

Beth Lano has maintained a very successful career as a French horn player while working as a marketing, advertising, and public relations professional. After moving to Las Vegas in 1982, Beth spent five years in the traveling orchestra backing Wayne Newton, followed by a two-year stint in the orchestra for Bally’s “Jubilee!” show, where she was also assistant conductor. In 1986, she began playing with Frank Sinatra, and toured with both his East and West coast orchestras. She also toured with Ann-Margret and Johnny Mathis.In 1989, Beth began her public relations career working as Director of Public Relations for the Musicians Union of Las Vegas during a serious labor dispute. At the end of the strike, she continued her career as an independent publicist for various arts and labor organizations, eventually joining local public relations and advertising agencies.She continued to freelance in music and public relations throughout the 1990s, and during this time became an award-winning voice actor. She also became a morning radio DJ, hosting a daily lifestyle/entertainment show and a nightly show. She later became an announcer for Nevada Public Radio.Beth was solo horn in “Monty Python’s Spamalot” at Wynn Las Vegas, and principal horn in “Phantom: The Las Vegas Spectacular” at the Venetian Resort and Hotel. She has performed with many entertainers appearing in Las Vegas, including Tony Bennett, the Who, Elton John, Stevie Wonder, Seal, Andrea Bocelli, Luciano Pavarotti, Placido Domingo, Kelly Clarkson, Cheap Trick, and many others. She can be heard on several critically-acclaimed jazz recordings, most notably Carl Saunders’ “Eclecticism”, Harry Skoler’s “A Work of Heart”, and Paul Broadnax’ “Here’s to Joe”, a tribute to Las Vegas jazz legend Joe Williams.Beth is currently Director of Marketing and Public Relations at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas School of Music, where she is also an adjunct instructor of horn. She is associate principal horn with the Las Vegas Philharmonic, an active freelancer, private horn instructor, and voice actor. Support the show (https://buymeacoff.ee/doublerspodcast)

Pakistan has become the latest country to extend its ban on flights from the UK into the New Year. The clampdown will have a knock-on effect on the whole aviation industry. It's thought that Covid-19 has already wiped out 21 years of global aviation growth. We get the latest from the Independent's travel expert Simon Calder and hear from a woman who had to quarantine in a hotel room for 2 weeks with her husband and baby on return to her native Australia. The new post-Brexit trade deal doesn't yet have any provisions for creatives, and their road crew, to freely travel for work within the EU. Horace Trubridge, general secretary of the Musicians Union, explains why this will be a big issue for artists. Plus, how have our eating habits changed during a year when lockdowns have seen more of us cooking from home and fewer of us sharing meals out with colleagues? And can Zoom calls replace the networking coffee or dinner? Our reporter Elizabeth Hotson has been finding out.

Welcome to this special episode of the Vocal Freedom Podcast. My guest this week is multi-award winning social impact entrepreneur, champion of diversity, inclusion and equality Joanna Abeyie, MBE.  I asked Joanna onto the Vocal Freedom Podcast after recently hearing her give an inspiring talk concerning anti-racism for the Musicians Union.    I find voices like Joanna's so inspiring and  important to help bring about the change we need in this world.    Joanna is the founder & creator of Blue Moon click here to visit her website and learn how she can help you and your workplace.  Their consultancy work champions culture transformation to ensure all voices are being heard and treated fairly in the workplace as well as other services.  Tune in and ask yourself how you feel about speaking about race.  Does it make you feel too uncomfortable?  Do you understand the concept of white privilege?  Would you say you 'don't see colour?'  Do you understand why that phrase can be taken offensively?   It can really help us grow to hold a mirror up to ourselves and ask these difficult questions about our beliefs and behaviours.  How we feel about race, diversity and inclusion is reflected in how we contribute to bringing about actual change against systemic racism in the arts and well... world! Doing nothing, will help no-one.  Staying silent will not change a thing.  Have you addressed any of these issues head on? Would you like to share your story with me?  Join in the conversation and use your voice to make a difference.   References made through this episode include some great further reading on this topic, links here: Natives by Akala Minor Feelings by Cathy Park Hong Why are all the black kids sitting together in the cafeteria? by Beverly Danial Tatum, PhD Me & White Supremacy by Layla Saad Why I'm no longer talking to white people about race by Reni Eddo-Lodge How to be an Anti-racist by Ibram Kendi Untamed by Glennon Doyle Songbird by Eva Cassidy If you are on facebook @vocalfreedom, please give us a like or follow to keep up to date with new episodes and special offers coming over the holidays! Come learn more about us and how you can share your story here Wishing you all a happy and healthy Christmas Season! Stay well and be kind xx   

In an age of technological disruption and digital streaming services. live music has been the once place where musicians could still hope to earn enough to follow their dream or calling. But since March, even that tap has been turned off, as coronavirus restrictions mean venues must remain closed or operate at low capacities. Lots of freelance musicians have fallen through the gaps in financial support made available to the sector and a survey by the Musicians Union suggests one third may be forced to quit the industry. To get a better perspective, in this podcast episode, we hear from James Slater and Dan Hammersley, two professional musicians with the Royal Northern Sinfonia. By their own admission, as salaried employees James and Dan are better off than most musicians. But they also know well the hard work, long hours, repetitive practice and sacrifices made by every professional artist trying to make a living from their craft.

Shop with Ros & Adele at the Opera Dolls by this link: https://theoperadolls.com/?ref=z6xg6kfaroab and click for a FREE opera-themed activity book. In this episode, Ros and Adele interview Naomi Pohl, deputy General Secretary of the Musicians Union, about her work on the Safe Space campaign, and the MU's development of an app which will allow anyone working in the music industry to report inappropriate behaviour that they have either witnessed or personally been victim to. The girls discuss their own instances colleagues stepping in to defend them at rehearsal, and also of colleagues overriding bodily autonomy. Follow us on Instagram at @fachmylifepod or on twitter @fachpod --- This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app

The Justice At Spotify campaign has gathered more than 19,000 signatures. Their demand? Pay artists one cent per stream.

I interview Becky Baldwin the bass player from Fury. She discusses Fury new album The Grand Prize, their re-released first album The Lightning Dream, the Bristol Rock Centre and the Musicians Union.The interview was done on the 9 October 2020 and their latest music video which Becky mentions is Upon the Lonesome Tide which came out on 23 October 2020. Twitter @rockchattrace

Pete Farrugia Pete Farrugia is a professional guitar, bass guitar and ukulele teacher based in Carshalton, Surrey, UK. Lessons are also available worldwide via Skype. Pete started playing in 1972, and started teaching in 1977. He has had a long, varied career in music. His first professional recording session, for a corporate client was in 1975. The first of his bands to reach any level of notoriety was the Fast Set in 1981. They were featured on the Synth-Pop classic Some Bizarre Album, and played all over the UK. Around the same time Pete played bass on “Pass Myself”, a highly collectable single by Neo-Psychedelic band the Third Eye, and several singles and albums for Danielle Dax. He has toured and recorded with many British Blues Bands, notably Chad Strentz & The Chad-illacs, Shout Sister Shout, Breakout Blues and Mo’Indigo. Pete has also toured as lead guitar sideman with several American Blues and R’n’B artists, including Earl Gaines, Al Garner, Deacon Jones, Chick Willis and Taka Boom. Pete has an honours degree in humanities with music, as well as two diplomas: one in music, and one in guitar performance. He is a member of the Registry Of Guitar Tutors, and the Musicians Union. He is also registered with the Disclosures and Barring Service (DBS).   https://www.pfmusic.co/ https://www.petefarrugia.co.uk/ https://www.youtube.com/user/PeteFGuitar Email: info@pfmusic.co Phone: 07889 563531 https://www.sistercookie.co.uk/ http://www.chadstrentz.com/ https://katiebradley.co.uk/   To support the podcast and get access to features about guitar playing and song writing visit https://www.patreon.com/vichyland Also  news for all the creative music that we do at Bluescamp UK and France visit www.bluescampuk.co.uk    

Hello! Music streaming has made it easier than ever to listen to our favourite artists, but too many musicians earn next to nothing from it. We chat to Naomi Pohl from the Musicians’ Union and Tom Gray from the Broken Record campaign about fixing problems with the industry. But first, violinist Tasmin Little talks about why musicians need more support during the crisis.PLUS Blue Peter legend Konnie Huq on reimagining our favourite fairy tales. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

In the second of our bonus Let Music Live episodes, Seb and Verity report from the protest at Parliament Square on Tuesday 6 October 2020.They chat to a number of the 400 players who turned up to perform the opening of Mars by Holst, followed by a two minute silence - the aim being to shine a light on the current plight of freelance musicians who have been largely overlooked throughout the Covid crisis. As well as a selection of short conversations with the players and high profile supporters, including violinist Nicola Benedetti and conductor David Hill, Seb and Verity capture some of the atmosphere on the day, before and after the event. Listen out for guest reporter Robert Simmons who does some stirling work catching up with various performers. Also stay tuned to the very end to hear the inspired thinking of trumpeter Bill Cooper......A big thank you to everyone who chatted to us:Amy Heggart, Dave Brown, Rebekah Allen, Millie Ashton, Alan Berlyn, Jonathan Hennessy-Brown, Rebecca Jordan, Sophie Gledhill, Hannah Lawrance, David Hornberger, Bill Cooper, Nicola Benedetti, Alice Kent, Ruth Rogers, David Hill, Jack Jones, Errika Horsley, Rachael Lander, Gabriella Swallow, Toby Street, Dickie Evans......And of course the incredible Jessie Murphy who put together this huge undertaking. Massive congratulations and thank you so much for making this happen.///Show NotesInstagram: @letmusicliveukTwitter: @letmusicliveukThis event was supported by We Make Events and The Musicians’ UnionFollow #letmusiclive on Twitter and Instagram. Click here to join the Members' Club on Patreon! See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn the history of broadway drummers dating back to the days of Vaudeville, up to the modern times where shows are technical marvels that run Ableton, have screens on all the music stands, and the drummer is often playing remotely in a complete different part of the building! Warren Odze is a broadway veteran and has been performing on the stage since the 70's, but his music career has been in full swing for over 50 years. He takes us through the changes that drummers on Broadway have faced over the years and the importance that the Musicians Union plays in keeping them working. Warren has performed on broadway shows such as "The Life", "Civil War", "Kat and the Kings", "Seussical","Thoroughly Modern Millie", "Lennon" , "Come Fly Away", The Wedding Singer", “Priscilla", “Rocky” , “An American In Paris” and “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" - in addition to performing on the Tony Awards, being the drummer for the 1968 season of the Dick Cavett Show, and recording with a long list of A List artists. Enjoy this episode!

Learn the history of broadway drummers dating back to the days of Vaudeville, up to the modern times where shows are technical marvels that run Ableton, have screens on all the music stands, and the drummer is often playing remotely in a complete different part of the building! Warren Odze is a broadway veteran and has been performing on the stage since the 70's, but his music career has been in full swing for over 50 years. He takes us through the changes that drummers on Broadway have faced over the years and the importance that the Musicians Union plays in keeping them working. Warren has performed on broadway shows such as "The Life", "Civil War", "Kat and the Kings", "Seussical","Thoroughly Modern Millie", "Lennon" , "Come Fly Away", The Wedding Singer", “Priscilla", “Rocky” , “An American In Paris” and “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" - in addition to performing on the Tony Awards, being the drummer for the 1968 season of the Dick Cavett Show, and recording with a long list of A List artists. Enjoy this episode!

Musician, Composer, Bandleader, Educator and Activist Roxy Coss has performed around the world, headlining at the Newport Jazz Festival, Melbourne Big Band Festival, NYC Winter JazzFest, Earshot Jazz Festival, San Jose Jazz Summerfest, Jazz Standard, and Jazz Showcase. A recipient of an ASCAP Young Jazz Composer Award, the Downbeat Critics’ Poll listed her as a "Rising Star" on Soprano Saxophone the past six years, called her "An exceptional young talent”, and Jazziz Magazine listed her an “Artist to Watch in 2019”. She has performed as a side musician with Clark Terry, Billy Kaye, Maurice Hines, Rufus Reid, Louis Hayes, Claudio Roditi, Willie Jones III, Jeremy Pelt, Darcy James Argue, and the DIVA Jazz Orchestra. Her fourth album as a leader, The Future Is Female (Posi-Tone Records), received 4.5-Star reviews from Downbeat and All About Jazz. The Roxy Coss Quintet, featuring some of the world’s finest young musicians, is the first ever recipient of the Emerging Artist Project, a four-year grant from the Local 802 Musicians Union. Roxy is on the Board of Directors for the Jazz Education Network, is on Jazz Faculty at The Juilliard School, The New School, BMCC (A CUNY College), and is the Founder of Women In Jazz Organization (WIJO). Roxy is an endorsing Artist for P. Mauriat, Vandoren, and Key Leaves.

In this episode of the MFM Speaks Out, Adam Reifsteck interviews Keith Levenson. Keith's career has run the gamut from Broadway's Annie to Meatloaf, from the London Symphony Orchestra to The Who. He is equally at home in a regional shed, Broadway theatre or a large arena. In 2018 Keith helmed a very successful tour of the rock opera "Tommy", with band and symphony orchestras across the country. It resulted in the 2019 release of "Tommy Orchestral" album produced by Keith and Roger Daltrey. The album went straight to the top of Billboard magazine's classical crossover chart."The (my) rage turned into knowledge." - Keith Levenson​The pandemic, however, has affected the livelihood of all professional musicians. Keith explains the challenges of going from mounting another tour with The Who early this year to fighting for unemployment assistance from the Department of Labor. This gave rise to his new venture Fustercluck Music Productions to produce parody music videos calling out the U.S. Government's lack of support for the freelancer workforce. Visit Keith at https://www.keithlevenson.net/ The following music featured in this episode is provided courtesy of Keith Levenson"It Would Have Been Wonderful" from the Broadway Musical Annie Warbucks, featuring  Marguerite Macintyre. Arranged and conducted by Keith Levenson"Gra Can Chrioch" and "After the Rain", from India, composed and produced by Keith Levinson

Today Millicent wraps up Season 1 of 'Success Beyond The Score' with a summation of the episodes, and gives 7 homework tasks for you to complete to move your music forward while waiting for Season 2 which commence in Autumn. Get your free copy of 'Revealed - 25 Secrets of the Successful Gigging Musician, Singer, Rapper and Spoken Word Artiste' here: https://www.millicentstephenson.co.uk/pl/120288 full with information and insights to help musicians, singers, rappers and spoken word artiste find their way in the music industry by Millicent Stephenson, a Multi-award winning saxophonist. At the time of this recording Millicent is a member of the Executive Committee of the Musicians Union and also a member of Midlands Regional Committee and Equalities sub-committee of the Musicians Union; Founder and Creative Director of Cafemnee. Millicent is featured on Radio and TV. Millicent is a Harry Hartmann Fiberreed Endorser. Website: www.millicentstephenson.com Contact: info@millicentstephenson.com

Today Millicent wraps up Season 1 of 'Success Beyond The Score' with a summation of the episodes, and gives 7 homework tasks for you to complete to move your music forward while waiting for Season 2 which commence in Autumn. Get your free copy of 'Revealed - 25 Secrets of the Successful Gigging Musician, Singer, Rapper and Spoken Word Artiste' here: https://www.millicentstephenson.co.uk/pl/120288 full with information and insights to help musicians, singers, rappers and spoken word artiste find their way in the music industry by Millicent Stephenson, a Multi-award winning saxophonist. At the time of this recording Millicent is a member of the Executive Committee of the Musicians Union and also a member of Midlands Regional Committee and Equalities sub-committee of the Musicians Union; Founder and Creative Director of Cafemnee. Millicent is featured on Radio and TV. Millicent is a Harry Hartmann Fiberreed Endorser. Website: www.millicentstephenson.com Contact: info@millicentstephenson.com

In our second Covid special, host Lucy Heyman speaks to artists MIRI and Lauren Housley about how the pandemic has affected them financially. General Secretary of the Musicians Union, Horace Trubridge, discusses whether the latest Government investment will reach musicians, and industry expert Mike Burgess offers ways to maximise income streams, and make the most of royalty payments. Help Musicians Creative Funding - https://bit.ly/3hajVIx Financial assistance, benevolent and hardship funds - https://bit.ly/3h7xx7q Funding Wizard - https://bit.ly/2B6IO8z Guide to accessing Universal Credit video - https://bit.ly/2CmwAcv  Hardship Fund Phase Two - https://bit.ly/3fD06sV    Business and debt advice Business debt advice and support - https://bit.ly/32qy8ge Government advice for individuals and business - https://bit.ly/30kiuAn Stepchange (debt advice) - https://bit.ly/3eCsWIS Musicians' Union financial advice Crowdfunding - https://bit.ly/2ZEX0iO Coronavirus Hardship fund - https://bit.ly/2WwcX8K Financial advice - http://bit.ly/2MouMlv Live Rates - https://bit.ly/3h8kfrd Session Rates - https://bit.ly/3j97ZJ3 Teaching Rates - https://bit.ly/3h6bLAU Tax Savings Guide - https://bit.ly/32EVfEf    UK Collecting Societies PPL (performers and recording owner royalties) - http://bit.ly/2YM1stG PRS for Music (music writers and publisher royalties) - http://bit.ly/2PiA3Ne MCPS - https://bit.ly/3eED3ge  

What things should you put in place now to help your music go to the distance? In episode 29 'Future proofing your music business' of Millicent's podcast 'Success Beyond The Score', Millicent shares an extract from her Keynote speech given at the 'Get Business Ready' conference by Sound Connections, Trinity Laban and Musicians Union: - Music is relational, treat people right! - Plan for the long haul, not the short cut! - Grow a fan base - Create a Team - Keep learning! Get Business Ready conference Fri 10th July 2020: https://www.sound-connections.org.uk/events/get-business-ready Complete the 'Making Music Making Money' Survey here: https://www.millicentstephenson.co.uk/Making-Music-Making-Money-Survey Get your free copy of 'Revealed - 25 Secrets of the Successful Gigging Musician, Singer, Rapper and Spoken Word Artiste' here: https://www.millicentstephenson.co.uk/pl/120288 full with information and insights to help musicians, singers, rappers and spoken word artiste find their way in the music industry by Millicent Stephenson, a Multi-award winning saxophonist. At the time of this recording Millicent is a member of the Executive Committee of the Musicians Union and also a member of Midlands Regional Committee and Equalities sub-committee of the Musicians Union; Founder and Creative Director of Cafemnee. Millicent is featured on Radio and TV. Millicent is a Harry Hartmann Fiberreed Endorser. Website: www.millicentstephenson.com Contact: info@millicentstephenson.com

What things should you put in place now to help your music go to the distance? In episode 29 'Future proofing your music business' of Millicent's podcast 'Success Beyond The Score', Millicent shares an extract from her Keynote speech given at the 'Get Business Ready' conference by Sound Connections, Trinity Laban and Musicians Union: - Music is relational, treat people right! - Plan for the long haul, not the short cut! - Grow a fan base - Create a Team - Keep learning! Get Business Ready conference Fri 10th July 2020: https://www.sound-connections.org.uk/events/get-business-ready Complete the 'Making Music Making Money' Survey here: https://www.millicentstephenson.co.uk/Making-Music-Making-Money-Survey Get your free copy of 'Revealed - 25 Secrets of the Successful Gigging Musician, Singer, Rapper and Spoken Word Artiste' here: https://www.millicentstephenson.co.uk/pl/120288 full with information and insights to help musicians, singers, rappers and spoken word artiste find their way in the music industry by Millicent Stephenson, a Multi-award winning saxophonist. At the time of this recording Millicent is a member of the Executive Committee of the Musicians Union and also a member of Midlands Regional Committee and Equalities sub-committee of the Musicians Union; Founder and Creative Director of Cafemnee. Millicent is featured on Radio and TV. Millicent is a Harry Hartmann Fiberreed Endorser. Website: www.millicentstephenson.com Contact: info@millicentstephenson.com

Teaching or live streaming you want to make sure that your students or your fans hear your what you are saying, singing and playing but how does the noise cancellation feature found in many web cams and video conferencing platforms help or hinder your music work? Listen to episode 28 'Noise Cancellation - help or hinderance?' of Success Beyond The Score by Millicent Stephenson, Get Business Ready conference Fri 10th July 2020: https://www.sound-connections.org.uk/events/get-business-ready Complete the 'Making Music Making Money' Survey here: https://www.millicentstephenson.co.uk/Making-Music-Making-Money-Survey Get your free copy of 'Revealed - 25 Secrets of the Successful Gigging Musician, Singer, Rapper and Spoken Word Artiste' here: https://www.millicentstephenson.co.uk/pl/120288 full with information and insights to help musicians, singers, rappers and spoken word artiste find their way in the music industry by Millicent Stephenson, a Multi-award winning saxophonist. At the time of this recording Millicent is a member of the Executive Committee of the Musicians Union and also a member of Midlands Regional Committee and Equalities sub-committee of the Musicians Union; Founder and Creative Director of Cafemnee. Millicent is featured on Radio and TV. Millicent is a Harry Hartmann Fiberreed Endorser. Website: www.millicentstephenson.com Contact: info@millicentstephenson.com

Teaching or live streaming you want to make sure that your students or your fans hear your what you are saying, singing and playing but how does the noise cancellation feature found in many web cams and video conferencing platforms help or hinder your music work? Listen to episode 28 'Noise Cancellation - help or hinderance?' of Success Beyond The Score by Millicent Stephenson, Get Business Ready conference Fri 10th July 2020: https://www.sound-connections.org.uk/events/get-business-ready Complete the 'Making Music Making Money' Survey here: https://www.millicentstephenson.co.uk/Making-Music-Making-Money-Survey Get your free copy of 'Revealed - 25 Secrets of the Successful Gigging Musician, Singer, Rapper and Spoken Word Artiste' here: https://www.millicentstephenson.co.uk/pl/120288 full with information and insights to help musicians, singers, rappers and spoken word artiste find their way in the music industry by Millicent Stephenson, a Multi-award winning saxophonist. At the time of this recording Millicent is a member of the Executive Committee of the Musicians Union and also a member of Midlands Regional Committee and Equalities sub-committee of the Musicians Union; Founder and Creative Director of Cafemnee. Millicent is featured on Radio and TV. Millicent is a Harry Hartmann Fiberreed Endorser. Website: www.millicentstephenson.com Contact: info@millicentstephenson.com

Some people were just born to do what they do, and Hugh Fink was born to be funny. Or was he born to play the violin? Because even though comedy has set the course of Hugh's life, he has performed violin solos to a packed Carnegie Hall, something I can't boast about! Hugh is one of a very few comics who has been able to fuse his musical life with his stage persona, much like the late great Jack Benny, whose violin I'm fortunate to play. Ever since he was a child, Hugh loved getting up in front of people and performing, no matter what form it took. Eventually, he discovered that not only could he create material for himself, but he had a talent for writing material that would suit any number of other talented performers! And that was the key that unlocked doors throughout show business, most notably at Saturday Night Live, where Hugh enjoyed a seven-year tenure and wrote more opening monologues than any other SNL writer. Hugh and I talk about growing up alongside Joshua Bell (and later using him in a wicked stage act with Tracy Morgan), how stand-up relates to musical performance, and how TV shows get made. Of course I also sit back and listen to behind-the-scenes tales from SNL! Transcript Nathan Cole: Hi and welcome back to Stand Partners for Life. This is Nathan Cole and today with me, really excited to have as my guest, Hugh Fink, comic, writer, violinist. He's been gracious enough to join me here at Disney Hall for a change.  Welcome to Stand Partners For Life, Hugh. Hugh Fink: Thank you. It's great to be here, Nathan, instead of taping a podcast at a smoke filled comedy club, to be in a classy concert hall. I like it. Nathan Cole: We try to keep it classy here at Disney most of the time. Well, we can just jump right into that. I mean, you've spent so much of your life in those clubs performing, writing, but what's not usual for a comic is that you have a serious history as a violinist. We were talking about that just a bit ago, you and I, but give us the quick version of your violin life, because that was either came before or maybe concurrently with your life in comedy. Hugh Fink: Sure. My parents were classical music lovers. My dad was the Attorney for the Indianapolis Symphony, the Musicians Union. As a very young kid I would be taken to these concerts at the orchestra and I loved it. I guess I told my parents at age four or five that I wanted to study violin. They were not so sure about that because they knew it was a tough instrument. They already owned a piano, but they were friends with the concertmaster of the Indianapolis Symphony at the time, Eric Rosenblith. He had known a little about this new Suzuki method, although he was not a proponent of it at all because he was like a pupil of Carl Flesch or some of these old- Nathan Cole: Old school. Hugh Fink: He was super old school, but he wasn't sure how to tell my parents to start off a five year old with lessons. He wasn't going to do it. There was a Suzuki teacher, one in Indianapolis, and that's who I studied with. Nathan Cole: This would have been not so long I bet, after the method really took hold in the U.S. because I started Suzuki and that was early 80's. Hugh Fink: You are right. I started in the late '60s. I ended up studying Suzuki for eight years, and going to the Suzuki Summer Institute at the University of Wisconsin Stevens Point. Nathan Cole: Stevens Point. Okay. Hugh Fink: Right. Shinichi came. Nathan Cole: Wow. Hugh Fink: Yes. I actually was part of the generation where I got to see him live. Nathan Cole: Well, that's extraordinary. Hugh Fink: It was extraordinary. I didn't have much interaction with him, but I remember, I think he was chain smoking and he looked like a ripe old age and very Buddha-esque just this is why He didn't speak much English either, but that was a great experience. I think what it taught me, Nathan, was beyond the violin part, to meet other young violinists who are just normal kids. It was a camp,