Some people say there’s a quiet shift happening in music right now, and it’s not coming from the newest apps or the youngest creators. It’s coming from musicians who have been playing for decades - the ones who lived through vinyl, cassettes, CDs, MP3s, and now...

Hey everyone, when rock and roll started back on old terrestrial radio, songs were rarely over two or two and a half minutes long.  (And DJs usually talked over the intro until the vocal started!).  In the 70's and 80's songs became longer - three or four minutes were...

We sent a question two weeks ago asking musicians if live gigs have now increased, compared to the time immediately before Covid.  Result:  About one third said it has increased, one third said it is worse, and one third said it's about the same.  Check out the...

Close to three years ago when Covid finally ended we sent a newsletter asking musicians if they thought live music gigs would return to pre-Covid levels, be worse, or become better.  About half of the respondents replied positively and about half reported negatively. ...

We recently sent a survey request asking if social media has helped your musical career, and if it has, to what degree.  We received varied responses from negative to positive and everything in-between. Here are a few replies: Our email list is what informs fans about...

Social media has transformed the music industry by giving artists direct access to fans, collaborators, and gigs.  How has it helped your musical career?  Or has it?  We hear from countless musicians who tell us that correctly using social media has increased their...

I have my own experience with running a rehearsal studio which I will relate below, but first here are some facts about the current rehearsal studio situation: Studio costs are going up.  The cheapest is $15-20 an hour for a bare minimum room up to $150 per hour or...

I worked at the San Fran Guitar Center in the mid 80's for awhile. Yamaha wanted GC to carry a line of guitars. We didn’t want them. Yamaha said “we’ll GIVE you the four components of our personal recording studios for free“. GC agreed. We sold those things, each...

I was looking through some old LA music magazines and papers from the 80's and saw so many ads for LARGE music stores in southern CA, ones just as large as Guitar Center.  (And I remember the original "Vox Guitar Center" on Sunset in the late 60's).  Sam Ash, Mars,...

In our last newsletter we mentioned the recent soaring popularity of tribute bands.   Below are some reader comments.  But first, why is it that almost every tribute act is composed of older players?  Wouldn't a crowd rather see a 23 year old Elvis, or Beatles...