Tiny Dancer

Tiny Dancer finding me is better than me finding Tiny Dancer. 

That’s why radio…or the idea of radio will never die. 

I don’t always want to pick out my music. I don’t always want to know what track is coming next.

I even remember making mix tapes for the cassette player in my 92’ LeBaron.  I would make a tape with all these songs that I loved, but the best listens through the tape were the first handful…when I’d forgotten which song came next. So when it came on it was “Ahhh, yes, this feels good”.

When a song finds us we feel taken care of.

It’s someone or something else taking care of us rather than us taking care of us.

Hold me closer…

p.s. And specifically pertaining to the song Tiny Dancer: If you know THAT scene in Almost Famous, you know EXACTLY what I’m talking about.

(In case you’ve forgotten: Penny Lane)



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

Ownership Is Everything

Ownership is everything. 

Whether songs or stocks, this is your future.

Thirty years from now you need to own something so you’re not out looking for a gig.

Owning parts of lots of songs (that get played somewhere) is kinda like a mutual fund.

So if you don’t own parts of lots of songs, get a mutual fund.

There are A-list musicians who after years of amazing gigs all of a sudden stop getting amazing gigs.  They spent all the money when the money was good and now they got nada. Back on Broadway 10pm-2am.

But in the above scenario you can sub out ‘A-list musician’ for just about anything else in the music business if you don’t start down the road of ownership now.

Songs have legs and the royalties are forever. You can pass them down to your children and grandchildren.

As you can do with the guacamole from mutual funds.

Pick songs. Pick investments. Pick both.

Ownership is everything.

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

Where Are My Paper Towels?

I can do a really great job of explaining to you where the paper towels are in our kitchen, but I don’t need to. 

You know where they’re going to be. 


Knowing what information to spare your audience of is just as important as the information you decide to share.

Here’s a good example:

If you make a show poster for your next gig, the reason you go around and hang it up is so that, ultimately, people who see it will come to your show.

So what purpose does the poster have? What needs to be on the poster? 

Your name. The date. Possibly the venue (but probably not).

It’s not the time of the show. You can leave that off.  

It’s not because you listed the city.  If I see your poster on a street pole in Nashville I already know the advertised show is in Nashville with out you telling me.  You can leave that off.

It’s not how artsy the poster is.  A poster is to inform, not persuade.

If the poster is hanging in the venue, don’t use up space on the poster listing the venue.  If you’re poster is hanging up at Exit/In, I automatically assume that’s where the advertised show is.

It’s not the price.  For sure not on the show poster anyway. Leave it off.


If I know who you are and what date you’re coming to town via your show poster I have everything I need in order to take the next step.  And truthfully I’ve probably already made my decision with those two factors.

Don’t over complicate.

Your audience is smart.  They connect the dots.  Their eyes see and remember the most important information and discard the rest, so you can do them a favor and not tell them things they’re going to discard anyway.


With this idea in mind…sorry this post was so long.

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

The Good Thing About Needing Experience

The good thing about needing experience is you can always get it

…a little at a time.

You can never get lots at a time but always a little.

But lots of littles equal lots. So a great wealth of experience is available to you if you’re willing to keep experiencing.

I’m sure there’s many avenues we can go down about what type of experience you need right now, but I’ll leave that to you.  I’m sure something has already occurred to you.

The main thing is that you GO and get it…a little bit at a time.

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

No One Goes To Shows Anymore

“Nobody in Nashville goes out to shows anymore.”

That was/is the cry of many an artist when show after show in Nashville, the amount of people they wanted to be at their show didn’t show up.

Saying “Nobody in Nashville goes out to shows anymore” is a great way to minimize the feeling of failure.  Because after all, it’s Nashville’s problem not yours.

But if that’s truly true, now you also have to admit that you’re acting like an idiot by booking a show in Nashville and expecting people to be there, “knowing full well” that Nashville is a city where people don’t go to shows anymore.

If you want people to come to your shows it’s best to book shows in cities where people go to shows.

If you’re correct in thinking “Nobody goes out to shows (aka the type of show the I put on) in Wherever-ville”,then never ever ever book a show there.

However, if you’re honest (about Nashville and most markets) and looking to learn something you would change your reaction to:

“Nobody in Nashville came out to THIS show tonight. Why?”

With this new statement and question, you now open yourself up to things that you could do better and also what factors might be out of your control on a given night that you need to plan around.  And you’ll do better next time.  

And that’s the great thing about shows…there can always be a next time.

p.s.  The next step of this idea is to not have to play in a city before you find out if there are an adequate number of people in that city who want to go to a show like yours…in turn saving an immense amount of time, money and emotional energy.

So how would you know? Ask around.



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

Manager: Care and Relationships

You need to be with the manager who cares about you and has the most relationships that will benefit you.

Both of those things.  Care and relationships.

Be honest. You know in your gut if you’re choosing to blind yourself to an obvious deficiency on one side or the other.

The big shot manager has tons of beneficial relationships but doesn’t care about you.  But you REALLY hope this manager will magically begin to care.

Your manager buddy who loves you can’t do much more than tag along while you hang up show posters.  But your buddy is REALLY passionate and might be able to go meet some people in the biz.

Find someone smart. Someone connected, who understands you and cares about your career as an artist.

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