Thursday Links and "It's Odds and Ends" And Something Completely Different!
I'm Considering An Investment!!
Today’s post will have some new and perhaps unusual features. We’ll see how that works out…
First - the usual disclaimer:
Disclaimer: This SubStack is free, always will be, and I receive no compensation or other benefit (except the unsolicited, occasional, and much appreciated shoutout from readers and other SubStackers!) from any of the people or companies I link to or write about.
Michael Acoustic
That may be more important than normal (not always sure what “normal” is on Michael Acoustic), but, here we go:
First - there’s a reason for the disclaimer - I’ve chosen to stay a “free” page on SubStack. I realize that’s not the choice of other authors on here, and I respect their choice, and I also recognize the folks who run SubStack have significant costs in making this available. That makes me a kind of “free rider” here. But it also makes me very independent and allows me to publish on here how I want to, without having to solicit for paid subscribers, or favor certain sources for links over others. At one point I was actually going to be open to the idea, if SubStack had broached the subject, of paying some amount, probably the base amount of a paid subscription, for the privilege of writing about a subject I (obviously) love to write about. SubStack probably would have lost a significant number of free subscribers if they had made something like that mandatory, since unpaid pages actually make up the majority of writers, and everyone would be the poorer for the loss. So, a new and intriguing idea is being considered by SubStack:
Please don’t misunderstand - I am not encouraging in any way anyone who reads Michael Acoustic to invest in SubStack. That is absolutely an individual choice always, just as SubStack writers have the choice now to elect paid or free status. For what it’s worth, I’m going to invest a not insignificant amount in SubStack when (and if - so far they’re sort of gauging reaction, apparently) the opportunity becomes available. Your mileage may vary, and my choice will never affect the free status of Michael Acoustic. The insert above has a “Read more” box, but I’m not sure that will actually work as a link - in edit mode on SubStack, what actually works or not isn’t always clear. In any event, if it doesn’t, the link is here if you’re at all interested: SubStack Funding
A preview for tomorrow: We’ve talked about the copyright process and how you should own the various copyrights available for your works. Tomorrow I’ll talk a bit about a very good email conversation I had with a U.S. Copyright specialist and how helpful, professional and courteous that exchange was - and it was very good and encouraging in every way. We sometimes use the DMV as a bad example for government offices (actually the one in my state, at least locally, is very helpful), but based on this experience with the U.S Copyright Office I can say the experience was very positive and I learned some things I’ll pass along in tomorrow’s post.
Also: New subscribers! And you know what that means!!
From the Hmmmm…. files: Did I get a shoutout somewhere for last Friday’s post? If I did, thank you so much! For whatever reason, last Friday’s post was, in terms of views and opens, off the charts!! Thank you, Dear Readers, engagement like that is far more valuable to me than subscription revenue could ever be!
Some Links for today:
Our friends at Acoustic Guitar Magazine have some great articles:
We’ve talked before about W.C. Handy and how he heard a forever anonymous guitarist playing now ubiquitous chord progressions, notably the IV-V-I resolution and how the music world changed thereafter. This is a great read:
Didn’t know this was a thing, but pretty interesting:
This is how we all learn, right? We play someone else’s music and learn how to write and play our own:
From Carvin Audio, if you’re an independent artist and it’s just you and an acoustic guitar:
Filling Out A Song With Minimal Instrumentation
Some great stuff from Disc Makers/CD Baby:
A couple of “how to do it” links
Tips For Mastering Audio Files
I think the answer is “You Do”, but read more here:
We’ve talked about suspended chords before, and how they’re great to use for that hammer-on/pull-off “dawdle” sound:
The Mechanical Licensing Collective collects and distributes royalties your songs earn from streaming services. Learn more about them here:
My favorite online guitar instructor. He won’t take the place of a local guitar instructor, but if you need some between lessons help, Sean Daniel is my go-to (and he’s pretty funny!):
Well, this isn’t normal….
Some interesting screen grabs from some accounts I follow on Instagram. Some made me laugh, some were informative and useful and highly recommended!! (You can open each image in the gallery separately in a new window by shift-clicking on it, though it may work differently on different devices):
And now for…..
SOMETHING COMPLETELY DIFFERENT!:
This guy always cracks me up!
It’s Odds And Ends!:
This week’s underrated or obscure band, from a reader suggestion:
Smalltown Poets
Background information: Origin: Georgia, US Genres: Christian rock
Years active: 1996–2004, 2010–present Labels: Friendly City Records
Members:
Michael Johnston
Danny Stephens
Byron Goggin
Kevin Breuner
Miguel DeJesúsWebsite
Smalltown Poets is a Christian rock band formed in 1996. It was formed in Tifton, Georgia by high school friends Michael Johnston (guitars/vocals), Danny Stephens (keyboards), and Byron Goggin (drums), along with (then) Nashville musicians Kevin Breuner (guitar), and Miguel DeJesus (bass).[1]
The band started under the name Villanelle.
Career
Smalltown Poets achieved recognition with their eponymous first album, released on Ardent Records in 1997. This release earned the band the first of its two Grammy nominations (Best Gospel Rock Album)[2] and numerous Dove Award nominations. In 1998 they released their second album, Listen Closely. The song "Anything Genuine" from that album became their biggest hit.[2] Their third album, Third Verse was released in 2000.[2] In 2004 they released their fourth studio album, It's Later Than It's Ever Been on BEC Recordings.[2]
Smalltown Poets went on hiatus several months after It's Later Than It's Ever Been, but regrouped in the fall of 2010 to produce a Christmas album, Smalltown Poets Christmas, in 2011 (co-produced and mixed by former Smalltown Poets drummer Matt Goldman). In anticipation of that full-length release, the band released a Christmas single in December 2010 titled "In the Bleak Midwinter."
In 2012, the Smalltown Poets released a digital EP, "Under the New Sun".
Smalltown Poets' second Christmas album, Christmas Time Again, was released on November 25, 2014, followed by live performances. They funded this project through a campaign on PledgeMusic which allowed fans to support the project and receive a digital download in advance of the release.[3]
A new album called Say Hello was released in May 2018.[1] Say Hello, like many of their early works, was recorded at Ardent Studios in Memphis.[1]
The fact that the band members don't all live in the same city makes collaboration difficult for them, although technology has facilitated their continued work.[2]
Credit: Wikipedia Link: Smalltown Poets
Regular post tomorrow!
Cheers, and keep playing!
Michael Acoustic