You know, when we always get into threads like this, I am always drawn to everyone talking about what they consider hit songs and what artists and writers should do, record labels, etc. I would pose this question? Do you always know what your song is going to be? What you write yourself?

I have to because I am in the public almost all the time. If I don't write songs that connect with the public, it doesn't bring me business both from writers, artists, and the industry. Mike, you talk about you and I not writing hit songs. Maybe not. But that doesn't mean we don't have songs in our catalogues that could be hits. I know I do.

I have songs that people who have not seen me in ten years can quote the lyrics to.I have songs that industry people, the insiders so many of us quote here, hit writers, producers, etc. that tell me how much they would love to get them cut and how much they play them for others. I have songs that have been so close so many times they get trumped by another song who someone wrote with an artist or the label insisted mine be dropped.

I have had three songs that were the "Next single" but the first two tanked so they didn't get a third one. One that was cut after thirteen years and then the record company president died.
It is not always the song. It is about 15% the song. It is 85% the other things, networking, being heard by the right person at the right time, being in the right place.

Jim is right about there being some amazing songs and artists out there. There are. We hear them all the time. And I sit on stages with dozens of hit writers, some hall of famers, that play some of their most amazing songs that didn't get cut yet some piece of fluff that they wrote in 15 minutes went to number one for 6 weeks and enabled them to buy a house, a car and set up a 401 K.

I don't know any of the answers to what you guys talk about. I don't understand this silly assed business any more than you guys did. I am sitting in a bedroom in Gulf Shores Alabama playing every night over the weekend looking at some of the most pristine water and beaches in the world, with bulldozers and workers everywhere waiting for the oil to come in. And if you listen to the press, there is oil in people's living rooms and hot tubs down here. There is NOTHING on the beach. It is BEAUTIFUL. I don't understand any of that either.

I can only do what I can do. I played two sets last night. One was three hours and 15 minutes, the other was two hours. And I had people all night sitting there listening to every line I wrote and every note I sang. And the songs I did were songs I have written with literally thousands of people all over the world. I am proud of every one and I don't think any of them suck. That is all I can do.

I just think we get too much into this negativity on the business, artists writers and what they do. We all think we have some credibility in what we do and I'd like to think we work pretty hard at it. I know I do.

Through all of these conversations on pitch services, the industry, downloading, record company crap, egos, movers and shakers the lack of money, etc. I wish we could always remember that. We still have the ability to write and say whatever we want. Be aware of these other things. But don't get too caught up in them other than conversations like these.

Do what you do and do it the best you can. Can't do much about anything else.

MAB