Hi Mike.

Thanks for the kind words! it's my hope that others can benefit from what I've learned, and vice versa. My secret motive in all this is to find a brilliant lyricist for my music.

Your sports analogies are great. It's true, there's no 'in place development' plan for rock, country, pop music... Jazz, marching band and classical you can at least touch on in school, but the rest is learned in the basements of other obsessed artists you hope to meet somehow who's not only not insane but one who you actually find common interest with. What's worse is those environments aren't always the healthiest. Sports has that positive, socially embraced and accepted component to it. Musicians aren't viewed quite the same way.

Thanks for your addtional development to my little theory. It mystifies me more than anything how someone can think they're ready for the big leagues when they're not even ready for sand lot. I got a song today that was so absolutely, incredibly, horrifically, astoundingly BAD that I almost couldn't bear to listen to it, but this artist was CONVINCED the song would be a PERFECT MATCH for Reba McIntyre. I'm like, "how can you possibly think that????" I KNOW if they heard something LIKE it on the radio, they'd be like, "Huh?" But because they wrote this song, they think it's ready for Reba. Go figure....

thanks again.

br

Read my articles in American Songwriter Magazine:

http://www.americansongwriter.com/?s=renfrew

http://www.nashvillemusicpros.com/profile/BillRenfrew

My CD: http://www.CDbaby.com/billrenfrew.