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Monday, March 28, 2016

Trop Rock Radio Poll and Tips on Recording



With Dani Hoy and I doing not one, but two podcasts that are aired on so many Trop Rock stations, we take the opportunity to listen to them as well. One of the things that has always blown me away is the fact that virtually all of these stations play different music from different artists! In addition to that, many radio personalities tell me that they are inundated with artists who are sending them material, to the point that they can’t keep up with it! That’s a healthy genre!

Granted, while some of it is stellar, that’s the pinnacle. There’s likewise the above average, average, and below average, like anything else in life. I don’t envy the one who makes decisions. It’s really tough when someone calls to follow up on their submission and they have to be told that their music “Wasn’t what we were looking for”. On the same token, these radio guys aren’t drill sergeants, they’re radio personalities. They are expected to be nice guys. So it’s got to be tough for them to put on the rejection hat and tell someone they are not going to play their recording and actually make them feel good about it!  

As a songwriter/musician/recording artist, there have been times when a song comes on and I say to myself, as I change the station “How did that song end up on the radio? My goodness!” My guess is that the artist was a really, really nice guy and the radio folks didn’t have the heart to tell them their song wasn’t up to par.

I think one of the best advices I’ve heard told to artists from a radio personality, was from the late DJ Jeff Allen. Jeff suggested many times, over and over, for the artists is to get a great producer. That not only was a great way of telling someone that he wasn’t going to use their recording, but in the end when the artist did seek out a good producer, they had a work that was vastly superior to what they had before and it was air quality.

Producers have very unique personalities by nature. A good producer has the ability to tell an artist that a particular song is crap and it shouldn’t be included on a recording, having the artist agreeing with them and feeling good about it. The great producer will also help cherry pick the best songs, which in the end, make the artist look their best.

As I say, we listen to a lot of radio, specifically Trop. One thing that one particular Trop station is doing that is quite unique, Radio A1A in Islamorada, Conch Republic Florida Keys has started its weekly top 40 vote. Again, as I stated earlier, every station has its unique artists, as well as common ones tossed in the mix.

What I found, by far, is that the artists who have been winning, are a bit out of the norm. Also consider that these people voting are listeners. They don’t have to pay to be in a private club. These are fans who listen to the station.

For the week of March 13, the top ten votes of the forty were for Todd Trusty, Conch Republic Band, Bill Cockrell, Beach Bum Pirate, Flip Flop Boys, Roger Jokela, Ron Bell, Donny Brewer, Max Soelzer, and B Man and the Missbeehavins.

For the week of March 20th - Cory Young, Todd Trusty, Joe B, Todd Donnelly, Sean Gassaway, Barefoot Reggie Starrett, Ray West, B Man and the Miss Beehavins, Jimmy Buffett, and Bill Cockrell.

What this does is inspire food for thought. Here’s what the people of one radio station are voting for. The group that coined the name “Trop Rock Music Association” hold their Trop Rock Music Awards every year, none of these names have ever appeared on their list of nominees. Additionally, none of the Trop Rock Music Association’s nominees, or winners are on either of these lists this top ten. On the 3/20 list, Don Middlebrook was #20, Brittney Kingery was #25 and Southern Drawl Band was #40. On the 3/13 vote Howard Livingston was #22, Don Middlebrook #28, and Brittney Kingery #35.

It certainly raises an eyebrow and leaves one to ponder.


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Thanks for reading the blog!  All The Best From Key West!

My book “Bar Stories” is available through Amazon! At this moment it has 10 five star ratings! Only $3.99!!!!





To obtain my music:

My CD is available on iTunes, CD Baby, CD Universe, Rhapsody, and Beachfront Radio.
Search: Key West Chris

Thank you everyone!!



  



Thursday, March 24, 2016

The Longest Lasting Gig!!!!






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A lot of people are familiar with the restaurant/bar in Card Sound, Key Largo, Alabama Jack’s. For those who are not, Alabama Jack’s is twelve miles east of The Last Chance Saloon, which is in Florida City, down Card Sound Road. Card Sound Road is the alternate route to Key Largo from the mainland. Here you have a place on a thin strip of land between Card Sound and Barnes Sound, in the middle of nowhere. Nowhere being the Everglades. It’s a fabulous, open air Keys bar. I’ll get into Alabama Jack’s in the book I’m writing “The Absolute Best Bars in the Florida Keys”, which you can follow the progress on Facebook at this link:



While Alabama Jack’s is a fascinating location, it remains the backdrop for this particular blog. Today’s blog is focused not on the bar, but on the band that plays there, The Card Sound Machine. The name of the band stems from a tongue-in-cheek take off on The Miami Sound Machine, a very popular Latin/American pop band fronted by Gloria Estafan, who were popular and from the general area.
If you go to Alabama Jack’s on a Saturday, or Sunday afternoon, you’ll catch the Card Sound Machine playing. Here’s the interesting catch: If you went to Alabama Jack’s Saturday or Sunday since 1985, you would have seen the Card Sound Machine!!!!!

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The Card Sound Machine



Yes, The Card Sound Machine has had that gig for thirty one years, at this writing! They started there in 1985! Truly amazing! As you can imagine, over the years there have been some changes in the band, however the drummer, Billy Bob, and the pedal steel player, Jimbo, are charter members.

Here’s a fun one! Jeff, the lead guitarist, is the youngest member. Jeff replaced his parents when he joined the band! As I say, he’s the lead guitar player, but before that he was the bass player and another wonderful guitar player, Tommy Potter, was on guitar. Tommy left the band and Jeff stepped into the guitar player shoes. I was floored when this happened because I couldn’t believe what a great guitar player he was. I had only heard him playing bass before that! His sister, Salina, also sings with the band as a featured vocalist. 


Artie, the bass player, is the new guy in the band and my guess is he’s been with them ten years, or so, picking up where Jeff left when he moved to lead guitar. Keith will often accompany them on guitar. Before he passed, Bill “The Cox that Rocks”Cox would sit in with them as well on harmonica, keyboard, and fiddle. That was his biggest thrill too!


I recall reading years ago in a music magazine, about a band in the mid-west who lost their gig after twenty years. Most bands hold a gig for a matter of months, or even weeks. Some, a couple of years. I was amazed they held a gig that long! On the flip side, here we have The Card Sound Machine playing Alabama Jack’s for thirty one years and counting! Totally amazing!

These guys are the nicest guys you’d ever want to meet. I’ve known them for years, since I lived on the mainland in Southern Miami/Dade. I’d often sit in with them in various combinations of personnel, in a few bars in the Homestead/Redlands area.

It was funny. When we arrived there doing research for my next book (The Absolute Best Bars InThe Florida Keys), drummer Billy Bob was delayed. Jeff gave me his guitar and hopped on the drum seat and we belted out Kansas City, Girl From The North Country, and You Win Again. What a blast! Thank you guys!

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Picture by Dani Hoy

This is a fun, Country based band! There will always be folks out on the floor dancing

You can catch The Card Sound Machine every Saturday and Sunday afternoon at Alabama Jack’s, Card Sound Rd. Card Sound, North Key Largo. It’s a Keys tradition so stop by for an afternoon of fun. Do yourself the favor and make it happen!

My book “Bar Stories” is available through Amazon!



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To obtain my music:

My CD is available on iTunes, CD Baby, CD Universe, Rhapsody, and Beachfront Radio.
Search: Key West Chris

Thank you everyone!!

Sunday, March 13, 2016

The Absolute Best Bars In The Florida Keys - The next book! Follow our progress bar by bar!



The Absolute Best Bars In The Florida Keys

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With the writing completion and release of my book “Bar Stories”, not only the quest of promotion is at hand, but also the start of the next book has begun. My blog from 2013 about bars in the Florida Keys has always been on a rolling boil. This week, nearly three years after it was written, it stands as the #5 blog of the week. I recall I posted it on Facebook again about six months ago and it went crazy again.



The writing was on the wall. Plus, what a fun project! In the 2013 blog it was based on the top ten of the time. The book will comprise of a lot more than ten however, and of these, who’s to say which are top ten and which are not?

The criteria will be somewhat specific, to a loose degree. The new bar with the hostess who says “Hello, welcome to %&#! My name is Gertrude!” will not make the grade. Sorry. What we’re talking about here is:

The Absolute Best Bars In The Florida Keys


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The bars that will be considered have to have authentic Keys character from the get go. Authentic Keys character is not some refugee from the mainland landing in the Keys and having their own concept of what the Keys are… and are usually wrong. I enter those bars only with a crucifix and a load of garlic. No, most of these bars will have been established for a very long time in the Keys. Some, not so much, but they have the feeling of the Keys. The bars selected have the pulse of the Keys within them.

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Many of the finest bars in the world are here throughout the Keys. When I mentioned this on Facebook I had several comments about how excited they were that I was writing a book on Key West Bars! Actually, I’m not writing a book on Key West bars. I’m writing a book on bars in the Florida Keys, which of course includes Key West! There’s no way I could exclude some of the finest bars in the world from this book, based on the fact that they are not in Key West. Besides, there are so many folks that just come to Key West and have never discovered the other Keys. Hopefully this book may encourage them to get a little out of their comfort zone and explore a little. They truly are missing a lot!



The book is officially in progress! Dani and I, The Shanty Hounds, had a gig way up above Tampa last week and on our way back we stopped at six bars on the way home! My camera however wasn’t working properly, so we have to stop there again. We got some pictures, however the camera would take around fifteen seconds to take a picture. Consequently, we have to do these bars over again.
C’est la vie!

A new camera is on the way. As soon as it’s here, we’ll continue on the best bars in the Keys quest.

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I’ve set up a Facebook page that will follow our adventures! Please feel free to join it! The more the merrier. I’m hoping to have pictures and videos as we hit bar after bar. Just to keep things interesting, the not all the bars in the book will be on the Facebook page. Likewise, none of the pictures that will be in the book (the best ones) will be on the FB page.

The book will also have text on the bar itself, in addition to a story, or two that has happened there, similar to the stories in Bar Stories.


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So come and join us on this adventure. You can be a part of it! Talk back and forth with us and give us ideas if you like!

Here’s the Facebook Page link! Follow us bar by bar and JOIN THE PAGE!!!!! :-)








My book “Bar Stories” is available through Amazon!


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Book20Cover20Org_zps60f5jcov.jpg






To obtain my music:

My CD is available on iTunes, CD Baby, CD Universe, Rhapsody, and Beachfront Radio.
Search: Key West Chris

Thank you everyone!!