That New JT Song

I wasn’t planning on writing about it.

But I HAVE TO.

That new Justin Timberlake song, Can’t Stop The Feeling.

It made life better when I played it yesterday. And then played it again and again and again.

Obviously it’s the smash of 2016 and it’s only been out for 48 hours at this point.

You think you need a simple chord progression to have a smash?  

No way, you just need a progression that feels this GOOD.

You think you need to follow a certain verse/chorus structure?

No way, you just need parts that are this catchy!  You wanna have a verse and then a pre chorus and then another different pre chorus and then a chorus and THEN the hook? You can…this song does.

“Just imagine, just imagine, just imagine…”

Mmmmm, so good.

And that bass!! 

Could the bass guitar actually become cool instead of simply necessary??!!!!!

On top of it all…or maybe underneath it all…how does Max Martin keep doing it?

The track is fresh, the sounds are fresh, the melodies are insane….and this has been true of his tunes forever.

I don’t know anything about Max Martin other than his songs. I’ve never dove into his story or process as I’m sure many of you have…but man, the dude has an intuition for making people move their bodies through the power of music.

Give yourself over to it. Let it happen. Turn it up and move.

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I’m always interested in your perspective, whether affirming or dissenting. Continue the conversation anytime: gabethebassplayer@gmail.com

They’re Doing Something Right

They’re doing something right.

Who is?

Everyone.

We’ve trained ourselves to find the flaws, the short comings, to be the snarky peanut gallery.  And where has that gotten us?

Can we learn from others’ mistakes?  Yes…but in the music business and in show business it’s not black and white.  Its a continuum.  A thing, an idea, a decision, a set list choice could be better, could be worse…sometimes it suits someones career a little better, or a little worse.

It’s rare to truly have a case of “he shouldn’t have done that”…usually the truth is “he should have done that a little more this way, or that way” “he should have waited a little longer” “he needs to tweak it”.

No one succeeding in show business is a complete idiot (although some seem to continually make their case).

Get out of the mud and start learning from what other artists are doing right.

Growing your list of what not to do (that is, what you’ve decided you yourself are not going to do, or ways in which you won’t do things) is valuable.

But if that’s all you have, and haven’t built your list of things TO DO, you’ll never be great.

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I’m always interested in your perspective, whether affirming or dissenting. Continue the conversation anytime: gabethebassplayer@gmail.com

How Can We Save More Money?

Approaching the issue from “what’s best for my team” as opposed to “how can we save more money”, will save you more money.

I know, money is scarce. It almost always seems to be.

“How can we save more money?” triggers immediate scheming and thinking, short term solutions, often times sacrificing long term success.

You can always find a cheaper guitar player.  You can always negotiate one percentage point less for your agent.  That will save you money….but at what cost?

“What’s best for my team?” triggers long term thinking…long term solutions…and that always saves money, the right way.

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I’m always interested in your perspective, whether affirming or dissenting. Continue the conversation anytime: gabethebassplayer@gmail.com

Come To Our Show, It’ll Be Great!

“Hey come out to our show next week, it’ll be a really great time.” 

Ha, ok.

That doesn’t work. (Unless I was already planning on coming)

Because everyone says that…and it’s barely ever true.

We’ve all gone to so many shows guaranteeing us a great time, but then it’s not a great time and there’s nowhere to cash in the guarantee. 

If we could cash in the guarantee there might still be value to the words “it’ll be a great time”.  Instead, the value of the words get watered down.

And watered down and watered down more, and less believable and then unbelievable. 

So when they hear it from you, and you’re telling the truth, it doesn’t matter. They’re hearing it through their own experience and the unfulfilled expectations built via countless Twitter or FB posts over the years.

You’re not lying, but you do need a better story.

p.s. Pertaining to the opening line…your true fans will see the words “show next week” and be there no matter what, that’s all they need to know.  All the other words in the opening line are trying to grab the fence riders…that’s who you need a new story for.



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I’m always interested in your perspective, whether affirming or dissenting. Continue the conversation anytime: gabethebassplayer@gmail.com

Job Listings In The Music Business

There are no job listings. 

Everything is referral. 

Everyone is self employed.

Job security is defined by your own ability to fulfill needs consistently. 

Ownership is everything.

If all you do is get paid for the gig, you’ll always be looking for the next gig.

It’s an honor to be the one signing the checks, even if you have to write a lot of them.

It’s ok to make a lot of money.

Desperation makes you the stinky kid.

Please and thank you go a long way.

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I’m always interested in your perspective, whether affirming or dissenting. Continue the conversation anytime: gabethebassplayer@gmail.com

To Have An Artist Career

It’s more likely you’ll have a successful artist career if you are playing music people want to hear.

If you’re making music that you love, but no one wants to hear it, you have a hobby, not a career…even if you’re spending the majority of your time making this music, hobby.

It’s also more likely you’ll have a successful artist career if you are someone who others hope gets on stage.

If no one is looking forward to you getting on stage, taking the spotlight…hobby. Even if you get on stage a hundred times and play a hundred shows…if no one really wants you up there…hobby.

So then, the opposite bears mentioning…

If you play music that people want to hear, and people hope you get on stage…career artist.

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I’m always interested in your perspective, whether affirming or dissenting. Continue the conversation anytime: gabethebassplayer@gmail.com