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Just Plain Day 2
"How Bizarre, How Bizarre" OMC
When I was in Nashville, the big song was "Wide Open Spaces" (Written by fellow Just Plain Folks Member Susan Gibson). I heard that song over and over and over all week. I wondered what would be the theme song for this trip. We turned on the radio and in the first couple days we heard the song "How Bizarre" by OMC over a half dozen times. Why this nearly 3 year old song was all over the radio in Los Angeles is unknown, but quicky the term "how bizarre" was turning up in our daily conversations.
So as we sang the refrain, "every time I look around" we got on the interstate headed into downtown LA to visit the NAMM show. Quickly we were introduced to a foreign concept called the "car pool lane." For once, something the government was doing actually worked to our benefit. Being with my two brothers was already manifesting itself as a benefit, as we were able to zip around anywhere in LA in minutes via this restricted part of the highway that is only for people with at least 2 folks in the car. Now I understood all those Jay Leno jokes about the car pool lane. It was excellent!
We got near the LA convention center and for the first time realized the scope and sheer enormity of the event. (See picture of the NAMM entrance on the Web Site.) NAMM, for those of you not familiar, it the music industry manufacturers trade show. For more information, you can visit their site at www.namm.com. We found the place by watching the price of parking lots. They started at 3 dollars a day and as we got closer went up to 10, then 20, then 30. When we hit 30, there we were, right in front of the place. We opted for the cheap seat parking, paid our 10 bucks and walked a few blocks to the event.
Upon entering the hall, it was clear this was not for the timid or whimpy. There were people wall to wall, handing out shopping bags with every manufactures name on it you can think of, giving away free issues of every music industry publication, literature on products new and old and video screens showing NAMM TV. And we were still in the lobby! We checked in at the press center, and got our Press Badges for the event. I briefly talked with the organizer, an amazingly busy Ronnie Lippin, who had offered to introduce me to some of her clients, which include (among many) folks like Eric Clapton, Brian Wilson, Peer Music and many others. She had just finished doing the trade show for the Television industry and immediately followed with NAMM and after that was going to Europe, the Grammys (where 4 of her clients were nominated) and an endless and non stop stream of high end events and meetings. She was in the middle of a trade show crisis, but still took time to say hello and invited me back later in the trip. I could write a whole issue about Ronnie, and hope that someday soon she will let me do a story about her. (In true PR fashion, she shied away from self promotion and always brought the conversation back to her clients.) She is an amazing woman!
"Walking in a (musical) wonderland" Fair use parody! ; )
Finally we enter the first major hall, and it is clear that it is Christmas in Brian town. I have always been a bit of a music gear addict, and it was clear that I was off that particular wagon in a major way as I walked through the door. I expected a totally deafening blast of music from thousands of instruments, but found they had done a great job organizing and controlling the set ups. Each manufacturer had demo's running with banks of headphones for people to put on to hear the presentations and hear the instruments. A simple, yet brilliant idea that made a huge difference. There were also larger presentations on an array of products that made even this jaded former Creative Marketing Director for a major music retailer impressed. Within minutes, we made our way to the Gemini booth, which is always known for putting on the best entertainment show. I always seem to be a magnet for these types of folks, (ask me about my 3 appearances on the Oprah Winfrey show, in one of which Oprah called me profound!). True to form, I was immediately pulled out of the background and used as a prop for their fire juggling, chainsaw wielding madman who delighted the audience with humor and skill all while getting in some pitches for Gemini gear. Yes, we had arrived in music gear nirvana!
Although there didn't seem to be the major technology breakthroughs of previous years, it was evident that the power of computers and the Internet was making it's way more and more into the instrument and music production area of the business. One of the most anticipated new releases involved music equipment giant (and Just Plain Folks members favorite manufacturer) Roland. They had the most new product roll outs, but it was an upgrade that was getting a lot of the attention. Their VS1680 16 track digital recorder had two major enhancements. First, they added on board mastering software so that you can record, mix, edit, master and burn your CD all from one box. Although there are many options in recording, it is hard to imagine a more compact, self sufficient and user friendly system for any amount of money. And they added these and other feature and didn't raise the price. If you already own one, you can upgrade for free! Now that, in this day and age of gouging folks for software upgrades every 6 months, is truly customer service friendly!
The second upgrade really hit home.
They are now packaging the ability to turn your recorded songs directly into liquid audio files for direct upload onto the net. This was the first big example of a company totally embracing the Internet and the inevitable cross over I had seen. I was quite impressed with the forward thinking of this action. I would expect this type of integration for net ready use to pop up throughout everyones product lines very soon. I have to give them credit for being the first (or at least the first to catch my attention) hardware integration of a product this high profile and the Internet. I caught up with member and Roland Keyboard Product Manager Doug Hanson as he was immersed in demonstrating another product I, and many of you might as well, have great interest in. As a keyboard player who uses lots of midi keyboards, but finds sometimes having to hook into a computer to be a creative limitation, especially when you have a quick inspiration, I have been searching for a good and easy to use stand alone hardware sequencer. For those of you who don't know what I am referring to, think of it like a tape recorder that electronically "tapes" your keyboard performances through midi tracks, as opposed to audio tracks. Their new unit allows you to record 16 separate tracks, a major upgrade to their 8 track version that has been out for years. For more info on Roland products visit their web site. I also hope to run a technology issue to address these and other products in more detail in the future. Roland Corporation U.S.
Of course, not only was I in music gear territory, but so were many other Just Plain Folks members. I made a b-line to see rock guitar prodigy extraordinaire member Steve Booke, who was at the Sammick booth representing them, (among several other manufacturers he represents). I caught up to him as he was checking out their line and chatted with him about the show and told him how much I enjoyed his in progress CD project that he let me check out. (See picture on Website). Sammick is lucky to have Steve involved with them!
Just Plain Funk
I ran into George Clinton, the King of Funk after visiting
with Steve, and he was nice enough to pose for a picture with
me. (See it on the website.) If you are unfamiliar with George
Clinton and his legendary solo work and with Parliament/Funkadelic,
first, shame on you, and second, here is a web page from Robert
Clough, with tons of information, The Motherpage - Makin'
Your Funk The P-Funk I particularly enjoyed his extensive FAQ
section. If you want more, here is a link to a real audio interview.
LiveConcerts.com - Archive - Concerts I like Georges politics
of inclusion and how he reaches out to bridge gaps between race
and political agendas. He is a credit to music and society
both! And his manager signed him up for Just Plain Folks!
(Hi George!)
Next I was off to the Yamaha booth, where I salivated over the 7 foot Yamaha Grand piano. The sounds of a piano are an aquired taste, and my taste is totally satisfied by the bright tones of Yamaha Grand pianos! Of course, I wasted no time playing it, and even with my chunky playing style, attracted a group of folks while I did. (I am sure the wonderful sound of the piano was the attraction! = ) Yamaha also makes a lot of great products Yamaha Corporation of America, Yamaha Music, ... .
One of the great things about NAMM are the folks you simply bump into while walking the halls. Some are famous, some are infamous and some are Just Plain Folks. I turned a corner and nearly ran smack into Member Steve Cooper, who is also my long time friend and music sales expert here in Indianapolis. He currently works for a company called IRC AUDIO, so if you are in the area, stop in and see him! He is also a member of a great band I hope to cover in the member CD issue. (See Pic on Website). It was nice seeing a familiar and friendly face so far away from home!
Speaking of running into folks on the floor, a couple of others I enjoyed seeing were David Hidalgo from Los Lobos, and CC Deville. I even saw Eddie Van Halen performing live, although the crowd around was inpenatrable. Still, it is great to just walk up and see legends milling about and mixing in!
Tons and tons of other interesting companies and products were all around, and we will cover some of them over the next few months. After a full day of finding my bearings and getting over the gear lust, we headed out for the day. We had plans to meet up with another Member Scotty Kormos and his Catch 22 Band up in Burbank.
Why did Johnny Carson hate Burbank?
I am not sure why Burbank was the butt of so many Carson jokes over the years, but then I guess I have never worked or lived there. Our experience was a great one, made so in large part to meeting up with our friends at the Burbank Bar and Grill. Website: http://www.bbgrocks.com/ Member Scotty Kormos, an enthusiastic Just Plain Folks member who has turned on a large number of new members to the group, is a drummer for a band that obviously knows how to please their audience. Right away, when we entered the club, it was clear that this was THEIR TURF. Folks all about were happy to tells us that they showed up everytime Catch 22 played, and that this large crowd loved them! The crowd was heavy on young single women, reminding me that I really need to get back to playing with a live band! We met another Member, Julie Sue Mack, who is doing some promotional work with the band. (And we signed up a few other new folks that night!)
The band came out and opened with several originals, two of which I thought were very strong. (The first, my two brothers were sure was a cover of a hit song, but was their own original!) After getting the audience pumped, lead singer and Member Kelly Cain, (brother of Dean Cain of Superman fame), had the jammed dance floor in the palm of his hand. The band ripped into a set of covers that had the group in a frenzy the rest of the night. Even my brother Lewis couldn't help but get out on the dance floor and do his thing. (See website for pics of Scotty and Brian and of the whole band playing live.) We brought the our Hi8 Video camera along to shoot the show, but we got an error message that the tape was jammed and couldn't shoot it. Later in the evening, when we got back to the room, the tape popped right out. Little did I know that the camera was broken, and later that would come back to bite me on the ass!
Click Below to Enter the World Of Catch 22
www.Catch22Band.com
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