Well Well Well, look who is back. Hey OD, great to see you back in the old homestead. We've been seeing each other around different places, but it is always good to catch up here.
Eddie, good that you put on a show. It gives you an idea of how much work and how hard it is to bring people in. Hope it gives a little perspective on the Frank Brown festival. They really pull some things together down there. We are all lucky to be a part of. A lot of songwriter festivals have popped up over the year, I am involved in a few. But they always find it harder to pull off than most people realize.
The number one thing you have to have is CELEBRITIES. People want to see someone they have a connection with. So when you have multiple people who are the writers with songs people hear on the radio, they are going to be much more interested in showing up. And the Frank Brown Festival was actually FOUNDED on celebrities. When it got started with people like Sonny Throckmorton, Danny Dill, Wayne Carson, Micky Newbury, Guy Clark, etc. all gathered to actually just hang out at the beach with Joe Gilchrist, who owned the Florabama and paid them all to come down. It grew from there. As people in the area heard about it, and planned their vacations around that time, it grew in the telling. but it took about 25 years before it actually turned profits and still takes corporate funding to keep it in the black. BP actually paid for it a few years after the big oil spill. They still have to get corporate funding each year to keep it running.
So I wouldn't look in the term of a "festival.' I would just get into the Atlanta music community and present another semi regular event. It takes a long time to build these things, and if you are going to be serious about it, you will have to do many more. But glad you did this one. I'm sure the people there enjoyed it.
Yes, we're looking for the three amigos, Justin, OD and Phil to come to town in July. The Birthday show seems to be all lined up, with JIMBEAU HINSON, WOOD NEWTON, JOIE SCOTT, RIDAWN RAE, ALLEN SHERVELLE, ALICE BARGERON, BONNIE LEE PANDA, and a few others taking the night over at the Commodore. A Broken Spoke reunion, which was a big writersclub for about ten years, and a big party that weekend, we should be having a grand time, and Justin will be doing two days with me. Interestingly enough, Shelly Monahan, from Iowa, will be coming in for a day also. She is bringing her daughter with her for their first "Nashville experience.
So July will be quite busy.
Even before that it is pretty happening. Tomorrow is Buffaloes Grill, a very small dive bar about 45 minutes out of town. it is run by Buffalo, who actually did a Buffalo bill Wild West Show in the 80's and now has a biker bar.
Saturday, I am really looking forward to a homeward trip to Birmingham to play for my home folks. It will be a really great place, MOONLIGHT ON THE MOUNTAIN, which is a Bluebird style theater up on the mountain in my home town. am taking some friends down to see where I grew up. Should be fun. Opening the show is Megan Kane, a very talented, very cute girl (GRADUATION HIGH SCHOOL TOMORROW!) That I worked with a couple years ago. Looking forward to seeing what she has been up to in the past year.
In Two weeks, I head to Boston where our old buddy Matt Casey, has lined up four shows and a workshop for me. That guy has really got it going on. Founding his own Facebook group, NEW ENGLAND TO NASHVILLE, set up a publishing company, has a song plugger, and writers, has dozens of artists, and doing shows for charity both here and in Boston. He has really come into his own.
So that is everything for now. Hope you are all well and hope to hear more from you.
MAB
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