I’m in Syracuse.

Yes, I went to the Dinosaur.  I even went to Heid’s!

How BBQ blossomed in upstate New York, I’ll never know.  Just like how white sausages in the region are named "Coneys".  But I got the full on feel.  Of a place off the beaten path where houses are cheap but the living is good, where people look after each other and there’s a scene.

I’m here for the Music Industry Conference.  Liz Nowak wanted to create a SXSW for her region, this is the inaugural year.  And you meet these people via e-mail, you show up in their town and you’ve never even spoken to them.  I had no idea until I went to the Hall of Fame dinner at the Dinosaur that Liz was in a wheelchair.

My mother just had back surgery.  Back in April, to be exact.  She could barely walk before, doesn’t walk a whole hell of a lot better now.  But I keep telling her people spend their whole lives in wheelchairs.  In Liz’s case, it was a car accident at nineteen.  She’s been through the emotional trauma, but she’s so bright and sunny and alive, without being fake in the least, that she’s an inspiration, makes me feel guilty for focusing on my own problems.

And after my presentation today, Max Weinberg took the stage.

People talk a lot of shit about Max.  And after hearing he wanted to meet me and getting the perfunctory glazed over look as he shook my hand I’m wondering if what they say is right, but his interview with Big Mike was utterly fascinating.

Last night I watched that Springsteen documentary on HBO.

I went to dial up Bill Maher on my Slingbox, but the channel was already on HBO and this doc had just begun.

I’m a huge fan of "Darkness".  I played "Candy’s Room" for my ex on our very first date.  I bought all the Springsteen albums in order. Saw the band at the Bottom Line the year before "Born To Run".  So I was really looking forward to this documentary.

You can miss it.

It’s not that it’s bad.  It’s just that it’s not that good.  Oh, let me clarify that…  It’s good, but it’s not great!  And in today’s world, we only have time for great.  There are too many other diversions.  I kept waiting for the payoff, and when it was done an hour and a half later I was frustrated, I wanted my time back.

But I could have listened to Max Weinberg all night.

Bruce is a legend, but sometimes others tell your story better than you do.  Like Howard Stern, Bruce is best doing his act.  When he’s not singing, when he’s not performing…he’s not riveting.

But Max was.

He told the story of becoming a drummer.

But even better was the story of becoming Bruce’s drummer.  Answering the ad in the "Village Voice".  Taking direction from the Boss.

That’s why they call him that.  Most people don’t know that.  Because Bruce acts like the Boss!  He’s in charge, he tells you what to do.  You may be a band member, but you’re not equal.  It’s his name on the marquee, as much as you care, he cares even more. And while you’re watching football, he’s writing music.  Like "Born In The U.S.A."  Written and recorded, twice, in half an hour.  The classic take is the second.

So Max is going to college, playing for $275 a week in the pit for "Godspell", and living at home.  He gets the gig with Bruce, by following the instruction in the ad and not being a junior Ginger Baker, and the plum gig he accepts pays fifty bucks a week.

At this point in the narrative, Max quoted Duke Ellington, who said: "A musical profit outweighs a financial loss."  Tell that to all the wannabes who just want to get paid.

I mean watching that doc last night was like peering into a time capsule.  All that time spent getting it right…  No one pays that much attention to music anymore, and if you want to impact society invent Facebook, and if you want to get rich, be an athlete or work on Wall Street or invent the aforementioned social network.

In other words, music is once again for musicians.

After Bruce broke up the band, and Max referenced the date to the minute, Max took a job at the BMG Record Club, learning the music business.  This was after going back to college, being the son Springsteen’s mother wanted Bruce to be, and getting his degree.  He didn’t want to set a bad example for his children.  He even spent a month in law school.  But when he sat down to play the drums, something was missing.  He had to think about it, he just couldn’t play.  He may have only been off by a millisecond, but he knew.  He quit his job and became a drummer once again.

And Max did tell the story of running into Conan outside the Carnegie Deli and pitching him ideas for O’Brien’s nascent late night show.  But in the unfolding story it kept being reinforced that Max was a musician and a hustler.  If you’re not a hustler, you just can’t make it.  You’ve got to hone your craft, look for opportunities and make your opportunities.

And one other thing…  Max said Bill Ludwig put two guys out of business.  He invented the bass pedal.  That used to be a separate guy, hitting the big bass drum.  And then there was the cymbal stand.  Suddenly, one guy could do the job of three.  If you think technology replacing musicians is a new thing, you just don’t know history.

Max wouldn’t have been as good on television.  Certainly not as good in L.A. or New York.  It’s when you’re relaxed, off the beaten path, when you can stretch out and be the real you that you’re riveting.

How you play in Syracuse is just as important as how you perform in the metropolis.  Because you never know who’ll hear you, you never know who’ll spread the word.  Especially in this era where one person can be heard worldwide.

Meanwhile, Steven Page tracked me down.  He lives in Syracuse now.  He’s picking me up for dinner at 7:30.  See you later!