The rich seduce the poor and the old are seduced by the young

"When You Gonna Wake Up"
Bob Dylan

You can buy these albums, in this case "Slow Train Coming", but as time flies by it becomes clear they’re going to be forgotten. Not like "Tubthumping", which someone e-mailed me about last night. I’m not talking about one hit wonders, I’m not talking about never-beens, but albums that permeated society once upon a time that spurned no obviously repeatable hits, great listening experiences that have seemed to fade away and not radiate.

What’s most notable about "Slow Train Coming" is the sound. Unlike so many Dylan albums, the recordings were not done in an instant, throwaway fashion, where the urgency is more important than getting it right.

Even better, the players were an amalgamation of Muscle Shoals and Dire Straits, after the English band had broken through but before they went into hyperspace on MTV. Yes, "Slow Train Coming" was Dylan’s Christian album, but it came on like a freight train moving through molasses, a weird combination of black and white, north and south, masterminded by the legendary producers Jerry Wexler and Barry Beckett. Yes, as memorable as Mark Knopfler’s guitar work is, it’s Beckett’s keyboard playing that holds the whole thing together, it’s the religion that keeps all the players connected. Listen to "Gotta Serve Somebody" for a demonstration.

But that’s far from the only great track on "Slow Train Coming". I’m partial to "Man Gave Names To All The Animals", "Gonna Change My Way Of Thinking" and…

"When You Gonna Wake Up".

Sounds obvious.

But it’s not.

First of all, the song starts subtly, like everyone’s in the studio, looking at each other, counting in, trying to find the groove.

And despite the Christian underpinning, there’s infinite wisdom, it’s thirty-odd years later, the names and faces have changed, but the story remains the same, and once again, Dylan was ahead of the game.

And a great record continually rewards, you think you know it by heart, but successive listenings reveal truths you couldn’t see previously. Like the lyric above.

Isn’t that what’s going on in our country right now, the rich are seducing the poor? Making them believe they too can become wealthy, even though the odds are stacked against them, worse than it’s been in decades? What do the Republicans say…"the party of the rich and the soon to be rich"?

What a load of crap.

Not that the Democrats are innocent. It’s not a party thing, it’s class warfare. They keep warning us against calling it that, but that’s what it is.

But the seduction of the old by the young is almost as big a problem. Mothers diet down and wear the clothes of their children, as if your exterior denotes your interior, as if once you’ve had your face lifted, you’re truly thirty five.

But you’re not, there’s no fountain of youth that will prevent you from aging on the inside.

The young are inexperienced, they’re stupid. They’ve just got smooth skin and less physical pain, a bit more optimism.

Would you like to be operated on by a teenage MD?

Do you really think the prepubescent music is best?

But afraid of dying, being told by marketers and media that they’re over the hill, the old are chasing the young.

And that’s ridiculous.

Sure, I’m closer to death, I’ve got lines on my face, aches in my body, but I’m happier than I’ve ever been. Age gives you perspective, wisdom. But those concepts are irrelevant in a world dominated by nitwits like Kim Kardashian.

Stop being embarrassed by your age. Stop lying about it. You can even stop dyeing your hair. All you are is vain. Take a look at Dylan…did he get plastic surgery, is he going out to clubs, trying to recapture a youth that won’t make him or you happy?

No, he wears his age as a badge of honor.

But he was always wise beyond his years.

Then again, he was so much older then, he’s younger than that now.

Yup, kids think they know everything.

Oldsters know how much they don’t. They’ve got more questions than answers. They’re honest.

Assuming they’re not too busy chasing the youngsters off a cliff.

Spotify link

Previous Rhinofy playlists

There’s a turntable in the room. With a hip note saying use it, but if you abuse it, if you break the needle, you pay.

And there are records too!

And cruising through them I know they were not put here by the IMS, the electronic music organization I’m here to confab with. Because the four albums are by the Cars, the Kinks, Blondie and Steve Perry. But they’re not cut-out items. It’s the Cars’ debut, which is the best. Blondie’s "Eat To The Beat", with "The Hardest Part"…do you know that cut? Here, let me link to it on Spotify, never a hit, it’s close to my favorite of theirs ever. And it’s an Arista Kinks album, "Give The People What They Want", with "Destroyer" and "Around The Dial". And Steve Perry’s "Street Talk", his debut with "Oh Sherrie". And if you’re too hip to love this cut, I’m gonna put it on Spotify too, because you’re no friend of mine if you can’t enjoy the exuberance of this mini-masterpiece.

Yes, I’m in a hipster hotel.

What a crazy world, where the hospitality business is hipper than the media business. Network TV is afraid of breaking rules and cable is playing to the lowest common denominator, it gives us no respect. But this cinder block edifice in the heart of Palm Springs is closer to my heart than anything that emanates from the airwaves.

They’ve got a Polaroid camera too. They’ll sell you the film, for $25 in the mini-bar, and if your heart desires, you can take the whole thing home with you for $120.

It’s my first time to Coachella. But perusing the bodies by the pool, the high grade room service and the south of the border vibe, I get it. It’s a party. You can camp in the dirt in Bonnaroo, or you can live large in the desert.

But it’s gonna cost you.

Then again, the attendees like that, they like being separated from the riff-raff. They like the fact that it’s hard to get to and costs some bucks.

Staying with the hotel…

You never want to stay on the ground floor, right?

I’ll admit, I’ve got hotel room paranoia, that I’m always gonna get a bad one. And I walk in and the carpet is stained. But when I remove my sunglasses, I see it’s concrete! That distress adds character. And downstairs is where you want to be, I’ve got my own walled-off patio!

I’d like to say the drive in was a breeze, but there’s traffic in California where you’d least expect it, where there’s no visible habitues and no construction. Made it in two and a half hours, but I could have shaved thirty minutes if I’d driven at 2 A.M. I listened to Tom Petty’s "Buried Treasure" on the satellite. He played some gems, like this version of "Soul Deep" by Clarence Carter that I’d never heard. But I wish he’d talk about the tracks more. And he’s been hanging with Dylan too much, he’s now starting to sound like him.

And when I got close I saw billboards. Music billboards. Not only for the soon to be gone and back from the dead playing the casinos, but electronic music. There was a sign advertising the drop of Paul van Dyk’s new CD and another promoting Avicii’s summer tour.

AEG paid for that.

That’s one thing Pete Tong wants to get into tonight. Is electronic music on the verge of being whored out? Are the big boys gonna come in and ruin it?

All I can say is I remember Bill Graham closing the Fillmore East, ranting about the end of the business before it truly penetrated the hinterlands. And everybody likes money. Most especially the acts.

But there’s already a culture, that’s profitable, we’ll see.

So driving out here my mood began to sink.

And when I saw the exterior of the hotel I was crestfallen. Upscale it is not. Then again, there was an R8 in the parking lot. That’s what I love about music, when done right it throws off a ton of cash. And right now, all that cash is in electronic music. The popsters try ever so hard to break through and the deejays rake in the dough and fly private. Furthermore, the little girls understand. That pop is controlled by old farts, that it’s a lowest common denominator money-seeking machine, and electronic’s for them. Where the audience counts. Where it’s about the experience.

I’m having an experience right now, and I just got here!

IMS USA: A Symposium

Pete Tong: don’t let big business ‘destroy’ EDM scene

Spotify playlist

P.S. Just ran a speed test (at speedtest.net). Download is 6.46 Mbps and upload is 2.48 Mbps, which is markedly faster than the connection at any mainstream, especially four or five star, hotel, I’ve ever stayed at. The hipsters know what’s important.

He produced Adam Cohen’s new record.

That’s where I was tonight, at the Hotel Cafe, listening to Adam and his cohorts play for not only his father, but his producer, who came up on stage and tickled the ivories on a couple of numbers.

And after the gig was over, we’re standing outside the venue and I say to Patrick, "You did "Live To Tell", right?"

Then he told me the story. He was trying to break into scoring, the notes of the track were the theme for a film entitled "Fire With Fire". He phoned Madonna to ask her to write the lyrics, but on her way to his house, he got fired.

But Madonna figured she’d do the work anyway. And that rough tape made it into James Foley’s hands, and that’s how it ended up in "At Close Range" (in its original demo form, that was the final record…magic is captured and it’s hard to improve).

I love "Live To Tell". It’s my favorite Madonna record. It’s got all the heaviness of the movie.

And then I asked Patrick how he got the gig, how he hooked up with Madonna.

It all came down to the Victory Tour. You remember, the Jackson 5 juggernaut after Michael became a superstar, he did it for his brothers, it was a financial fiasco, but it played to huge audiences.

Patrick Leonard was the musical director.

How’d he get the gig?

He called his buddy Hawk Wolinski, told him he had to get out of Chicago, where he was working for three years doing jingles. This was after his major label deal with Epic for his band Trillion. Patrick was making a living.

Hawk told him about the Jackson 5 gig.

Patrick beat out thirty other competitors, even though no one knew he was, because the guys in the band said HE WAS THE ONLY ONE WHO COULD KEEP TIME!

And you think it’s about tweeting and Facebooking, image, everything but the music.

You’re wrong.

You can fake it to make it, but it won’t last long. Keep every dime you earn, because there probably won’t be any more.

But if you’re a real musician, chances are what looks like your one big break is not gonna be, and if you persevere, you’ll get your chance, if you do the work.

That’s the part that everybody wants to avoid, seeing Snooki on MTV. They think that’s the gig they want. Why is everybody shooting so low?

So, Madonna calls Patrick’s manager, he’s got no desire to talk to her, she’s only done the first album. But his manager insists, and she says she’s a newbie, she’ll give him complete control, she wants him to do for her what she did for the Jackson 5.

You got it? SHE COLD-CALLED HIM!

She wanted Patrick because of the work.

And then Patrick ended up writing not only "Live To Tell" with Madonna, but "Cherish" and "La Isla Bonita" (the music which was originally written for Michael Jackson, who passed!), even stuff years later on "Ray Of Light", the last great thing she did in my book.

And don’t get the idea Patrick was boasting. I pulled the story out of him. Because a fan knows so much, and is eager to hear even more. He’s probably horrified I revealed so much.

But I just had to tell you.

Because it all comes down to the work.

EXPERIENCE

Kevin Systrom wrote his first photo sharing application in 2004.

In case you’re math-challenged, that’s eight years ago.

Think of it this way… How much better would Justin Bieber be if he didn’t emerge into public consciousness until he was 22 instead of 14?

Bieber’s already been eclipsed by One Direction and the Wanted. And if you don’t know that, you’re probably lining up for the Bobby Sherman show.

Paying your dues is never overrated.

SCHOOLING

Zuckerberg tried to get Systrom to work on photo-sharing for Facebook back in 2004. But Systrom decided to stay at Stanford.

Life is long. Sure, dropping out of college works for a few, like Zuckerberg and Jobs, but not most. I don’t think college is a requirement for success, but if you’re bothering to attend, stay in. What you learn in the classroom is only part of it. Your horizons are broadened, you interface with new people, you learn about yourself and ideas. Without a foundation, you’re living on your wits, you’re one false move from failure.

FAILURE

Photobox was in 2004. Then came Burbn. And then Instagram.

Why do you expect to be successful the first time out?

Pros stay at it, amateurs give up.

TWEAKING THE PRODUCT

Instagram was a stripped-down Burbn. You always think you need more, but usually you become successful with less. Less on the track. Fewer cuts.

Send a label three certified smash tracks with your voice and talent way up in the mix and they’ll be salivating to sign you.

Send a label twelve mediocre cuts with bad production and you won’t even get a response.

It’s less about money, less about production, less about slick than letting your talent shine.

iPHONE

Attach yourself to a hot product.

Play Coachella, Bonnaroo and Lollapalooza. You don’t have to reach everybody, just the vocal minority who testify.

Despite the inroads of Android, you’d think the world is run by iPhones…MAYBE IT IS!

CONCEPTION

It took eight weeks to build Instagram. Great work is done upon a burst of inspiration, quickly. Get an idea and act upon it. Don’t overthink it, get it done before you have time to reconsider.

EMPLOYEES

They started out with four, two of them founders. Upon sale to Facebook, there were only thirteen.

Don’t watch too much television, a posse is irrelevant.

More just cocks up the works. Which is why Apple is nimble and Microsoft is a frostbitten behemoth.

TRACTION

Burbn had hundreds of users, Instagram had 25,000 in twenty four hours, 200,000 in seven days and a million in ninety days.

If your idea is not taking off, maybe you need to tweak it.

You’ll know when you have something hot…by the reaction!

SALE TO FACEBOOK

Labels are cash-starved. When entities have tons of cash to throw around, we’ll know the music business is healthy once again.

Facebook needed Instagram. Does the person you’re selling to need your music?

SALE TO FACEBOOK 2

Tech is littered with companies that are sold to someone else for a high price and then abandoned. Can you say Palm? Never mind Geocities? Getting paid is not the be all and end all in music. If you’re into cashing out, you’re in the wrong industry.

SALE TO FACEBOOK 3

Instagram’s fans are up in arms over the sale to Facebook. In a world where MySpace was killed by Facebook and Tumblr is hotter than Facebook, you don’t want to piss off your fans. The amount of ill will towards Facebook is staggering. The company rips off your information and despite constantly apologizing, does it over and over again. Facebook is close to a monopoly. No musical act has this status. Play to your loyal fans first.

Fans are members of a club. If you’re playing to everybody, you’re playing to nobody.

MONETIZATION

Instagram has none.

Then again, Stanford graduates tend to be smarter than musicians.

You’ve got to play for the long money. Once everybody had Instagram, it could fetch a high price from Facebook. Worry about becoming ubiquitous, indispensable, not rich. If everybody needs and wants you, there’s money to be made.

SAYING NO

Systrom said no to Facebook more than once. He didn’t sell until he owned the sphere, had launched for Android and was beginning to be threatened by competitors.

Timing is everything.

Make your deal when you’ve got leverage.