Yes I Have To Say I Like My "Priv-a-see"

I was watching an interview with Steven Wilson (of Porcupine Tree fame)* and was a bit surprised to hear him say "I don't talk about my personal life" when the interviewer asked a question he perceived to be a little too personal. He wasn't a dick about it, he just politely but firmly drew a line. In this day and age of over-sharing (yes I'm looking at you, Ozzy Osborne) it was actually kind of refreshing.

It also started me thinking about how different things are now between an artist and their fans.

"Back in the day..." it used to be that artists were on a pedestal, locked away from all but the most determined fans and groupies. I suppose their mangers found it easier to maintain the mystique and control the image they desired to project. Somehow, I guess that reverence and awe was beneficial to the bottom line.

Now, with artists Facebooking, Twittering and blogging, a lot of barriers have been removed between "stars" and their adoring public. For the most part, this is a very positive development, perhaps somewhat necessitated by the changing business model of the music industry.

As a music fan, I really enjoy seeing an artist more as a whole person, rather than a cardboard cutout, like the fake people in the fake Rock Ridge in Blazing Saddles. I first became aware of this listening to the old "Rockline" radio show. It was refreshing and interesting to hear an artist interact, in real time, with fans. (I distinctly remember hearing Greg Allman and thinking "Damn this guy is a complete burnout..." and then being blown away as he did an acoustic cover of "Jessica"). Now, I don't know how knowing that Matthew Good enjoys riding horses in his "spare time" makes me appreciate his music more, but it I suppose it deepens the connection - and that's what I listen to music for, in the first place. I think maybe it helps fill in some of the gaps in the dialog, which is inherently one-sided.

As an artist, I would imagine it's better as well. There are far too many songs that reference the "bird in a gilded cage" metaphor. Having had the very disturbing feeling of feeling alone in a city crowded with people, I can understand what the latter part of "The Wall" was about - feeling completely alone on stage, in a packed arena. Electronic media lets you stay in touch and interact with your fans, without being overwhelmed. Back in the day, at best, there was the old standby "record store appearance", but even there, fans shuffled through the line, thrust out their album cover to be autographed and moved on.

No, I don't care what brand of toilet paper an artist uses, but somehow, I think the more modern model of the artist/listener relationship is more fulfilling for both.

*hence the lyric from PT's "Deadwing" -complete with faux English pronunciation- in the post title....

Help Wanted: Lock Tender

...I doubt you'll see THAT on Monster.com any time soon...

I was out chasing the ghost of the Black River Canal a couple of weeks ago, driving up NY 12, looking for remnants of the 109 locks that used to be. Just north of Boonville, "The Five Combines" -five locks all together, one right after the other- have been somewhat preserved.

There is a house of the appropriate vintage about halfway through the lock set, that I suspect was the lock tender's house.

When I visit historical sites, I try to visualize what it was like, in it's heyday. (The only problem is my visions always seem to be in sepia...) I tried to envision the lock tender going about his business, locking cargo boats through, with the skill and economy of movement that only comes from experience.

...and then wondered how he felt watching the canal slowly slide into irrelevance, thanks to the railroad.

How did he feel, knowing his occupation would fall by the wayside, as well?  How did he feel, knowing his skills, his knowledge and his experience - things that helped define who he was- were no longer of use to him? And no one seemed to care. Let's face it, it's not like there were other canals in town where he could earn a living. How did he feel, knowing he'd have to move, or learn a new trade? Did he feel uncertainty  about how he was going to feed his family? How did he feel, watching the world changing around him, coldly casting him aside?

Then it occurred to me I know how he felt.

Too well.

Ev'ry Single Day...

 Buffalo-based singer/songwriter Davey O has a wonderful song called "Ev'ry Single Day". (Download it here.)  It's a song about about having a solid work ethic, inspired, he says, by watching his dad make it to work, every day, no matter what.

 It's been a favorite of mine, because I realized -to my surprise- it sort of applied to me. "Ev'ry Single Day" for the last 35 years, I have dragged my ass to work, and done what I was asked, no matter what. (Ok, so there were a few "mornings after" when I was in such a sorry state that I didn't last all day...)

 I look around, and all the things I have - decent house, car, toys - because "every single day, the work got done". No one gave me anything. Yeah, I was lucky to be born a white, middle class male in a great country,  but what I have is mine, because I've earned it. Huh. I never thought of myself as particularly responsible before.... Who knew?

 So where's the song about the flip side of that? The song about a guy who's done his job to the best of his ability and gets his picture plastered all over the company "telescreens" -with all the bosses smiling and congratulating him on his "35 Years of Service"- and then gets let go, a week later? (No, not me. As much as I'm sure they would have loved to have gotten rid of me - I think my file in HR says "Does not play well with others" across the top - I know stuff no one else does).

  I suppose there are plenty of songs about betrayal that could be adapted to this situation, but the most apropos one I could come up with was Flogging Molly's "Revolution":

I spent twenty-seven years in this factory
And the boss man says, 'hey you're not what we need'
The penguins in the suits they know nothing but greed
It's a solitary life when you've mouths to feed
But who cares about us?

 "Well...." you might say, "these things happen.." "Times are hard, when there's no work, or the company isn't making money, they have to cut back...." That's just the thing, though - we HAVE work and we ARE making money. The reason there was (about) a ten percent reduction was because we weren't making enough money. Someone, somewhere decided they wanted "more" and they wanted it now. "Penguins in suits who know nothing but greed" is a great way to describe them, but there's a much simpler term for someone who takes something from someone else.

 In an effort to understand, I said "Well they were "just following orders"..." and the blame shifted further up the food chain...but it has to stop somewhere. Someone, somewhere made the decision. Someone, somewhere decided to ignore the fact that those numbers on a spreadsheet were people.  As Seth Godin so eloquently points out, there's no such thing as "business ethics" only people can have ethics, but businesses are made up of....people.

 No matter where the blame lies, though it still makes me think "It must take a special breed of amoral asshole to be able to do that..." I know I couldn't.

 I guess that's why I'll never be a CEO or anything more than a blue collar mutant and I'm OK with that.  I'll continue to get mine the old-fashioned way, not by violating the Eighth Commandment.