It Is What It Is

     Where my music is concerned I suppose I have reached a point in life where doing what is honest and true to myself trumps the opinions of the "experts". While it is absolutely true that I enjoy and, dare I say, sometimes crave approval of my music by others I realize now that if I don't do what is genuinely me, then I don't approve of it nor do I enjoy it. That isn't to say I'm incapable of listening to and taking constructive criticism. The key word there is "constructive". More times than I care to remember I have had producers/A&R executives/publishers and such dismiss something that I know is good. Left-handed compliments abound with those guys. It took a close friend of mine to point out what should have been obvious to me. Almost all of those people were nothing more than frustrated artists and songwriters who had actually been given every opportunity to succeed, but had failed and now when they hear something truly good they are unable to recognize it due to their own bruised egos and mediocrity.


     I have no doubt that someone reading this is going to think "This guy is full of himself." Well, that's just not true. Nobody is as hard on me as I am. If you ask my closest friends, then they will tell you that I have long suffered from self-doubt. It is what has kept me from being on stage for many years. In my heart I know that I sound good, but my head has a hard time getting the message. Oh, and believe it or not, I am terribly bashful. It's one thing to write this and post it (it does take courage for me to do so) and a totally different thing to look people in the eye, ask them to give you money for simply being you, and not turn red and simply dissolve out of sheer horror.

     When I recently released my CD, "Sojourn of Love", I was (still am) very proud of the results. Mostly I have heard very good reviews of it by people who have listened to it. However, it's those "experts" that I was talking about that get me. No less than three ex-musicians/songwriters who are now in some capacity in the music business have told me "It sounds great, very 60's sounding, but it just won't sell today. Try doing something new." Well, to that I have a couple of things to say. First, how do you know it won't sell if you don't try to sell it? Secondly, given the music of the 60's is in general more inspired, more alive, and more talented than 99% of what is new today, I'll take that as a compliment even though it wasn't meant as such. When someone says to me "Your CD sounds Beatle-ish or if your CD had come out in 60's we'd still be listening to it on classic rock stations today", then that's high praise to me. The most amazing thing is that I believe I am offering new fresh music that happens to sound like it might have come out back then while the market for classic rock/singer-songwriter music of that era is huge with the top selling touring acts and catalog sales yet no "record company" is interested.

     Well, I read something yesterday that brought it more into focus for me. It was a quote from Jon Bon Jovi. Keep in mind that he came along in the 80's and while I do think he is very talented I'm not a huge fan of his music. It's just not my bag. Yet, he nailed it when he said that "Steve Jobs destroyed the music business." Downloading music is very convenient. Apple has made it very easy to do so. But it takes away so much of the fun we had when we used to buy an album. A perfect example is when "Band On The Run" by Paul McCartney came out. I got that album for Christmas in 1973. I couldn’t wait to get home with it. It was a fantastic experience to do the following. Slice open the shrink wrap and lovingly take the album out of the jacket and place it on the stereo turntable. As the opening of side one begins I discovered inside a huge wall poster folded up. I took it out and the smells of the printing, the texture, and the visual effects of the candid photos of the group while recording the album filled my senses. I laid back on my bed and let the music lift me up. It made me feel like everything was right in the world. Most of all it inspired me to want to write and perform music like that. Young people today don't know what they are missing. You download an album. There's nothing tangible. Nothing to look at. Nothing to feel with your hands, Nothing to smell. (The Raspberries first album had a scratch and sniff patch on it that made it smell like raspberries - now THAT's good marketing!) You get your little ear buds and listen to the album and mainly the kids like the beat or how nasty the lyrics are. Sad, very sad.

     The great thing is I can still experience those feelings from years ago every time I listen to "Band On The Run". The sensual delights are still there in my memory and all it takes is the music to bring them back. BTW - Profs to Paul McCartney for his recent remastered CD release of the album. He included (although a tad smaller) the original poster and artwork inside the packaging. Very cool.
Well, I suppose I went off on a tangent there, but that's the way it is. I'll close by saying that I have come to a decision where my music is concerned. I will only record and write music that is true to me. If it doesn't make me a dime, then that's ok because that's not why I do it anyway. Oh, I would love to have some retirement income from it, but if not, so be it. I won't do something I don't want to do. To all those "experts" - if you don't like it or can't handle it, then go sell your mediocre digital drivel to the poor kids who don't know any better than to buy it. For all you good people who truly like my music and want to hear more, then please know that I will continue to make it available as long as the money holds out and I'm able! To you good people, I thank you from the bottom of my heart for your encouragement and kind remarks.

Take care,

Randy

P.S. If you're interested in previewing my CD, including videos of 6 of the songs from the CD, then go to http://www.jamesrstout.com/. If you would like to purchase the CD or download it, then just navigate to the "buy CD" tab on my website and there are links for iTunes, Amazon, and CDBaby.