Gary Spivack is the talent buyer for the Danny Wimmer Presents rock festivals. Hear how the lineup is built.

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/gary-spivack/id1316200737?i=1000662620656

 

 

 

https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/9ff4fb19-54d4-41ae-ae7a-8a6f8d3dafa8/episodes/f1e8fa98-ce73-414c-923a-947193aae744/the-bob-lefsetz-podcast-gary-spivack

 

The number one recommendation according to my inbox is “Line of Duty,” which is a fantastic series, I wrote about it here: 

Line Of Duty

In 2021 I also listed it as #4 in “Best Series On Amazon Prime-In Order”, here:

Best Series On Amazon Prime-In Order

You can watch the first five seasons on various services (check justwatch.com), but if you want all six seasons, you must subscribe to BritBox. “Line of Duty” is all about “bent coppers,” and it’s one of the strongest word of mouth series extant.

I combed through the rest of the BritBox recommendations and I came up with the following list. Once again, these shows might be on different services outside the U.S., and just because a series is English, that does not mean it is on BritBox.

You know that unless it has a score of 80 in the Critics category on RottenTomatoes I don’t watch a series. There’s just so much to see, and so little time. All of these reach this threshold. In the numbers posted, the first is the Critics Score and the second is the Audience Score. I know RottenTomatoes is imperfect, but I’ve found it to be the most useful metric. (Certainly better than personal recommendations, which I find to be wildly inaccurate, people are passionate about series that are oftentimes mediocre…if you enjoyed it great, but that does not mean I necessarily will. I take my television watching very seriously, it eats up so much time, I don’t want to waste it.) If there is no RottenTomatoes rating in one of the two categories, you will see “—”

One more thing… When I write about streaming television I get much more feedback than I do when I write about music.

In no particular order:

THE TOWER – 100/83

We started here because of the 100 Critics rating. This is not a huge investment, there are two seasons, the first has three episodes and the second has four and each is forty five minutes long.

The series is based on books by Kate London, not that I know who that is. It stars Gemma Whelan, whom dedicated followers of U.K. TV might know, but I did not. Interestingly, Whelan made her bones as a comedian, but this is a straight, dramatic role.

Wilson is the heart of the series, but the supporting actors are up to her level. You don’t see this cornucopia of faces in an American series. Everyone is not beautiful, but in some cases that makes them more believable (like Fat Elaine, who owns this moniker even though Wilson’s Sarah Collins blows back).

“The Tower” is not revolutionary. It’s somewhat predictable, then again there are twists and turns, and the second season is more dense and better than the first. All in all a winner. Not the best series I’ve ever seen, but definitely a cut above.

 SHETLAND – —/83

KAREN PIRIE  – 91/85

SHERWOOD – 100/73

GRACE  – 80/62

WALLANDER  – 88/89

NO OFFENCE   – —/92

CRACKER  – —/93

VERA  – —/82

THE RESPONDER  – 100/76

THE THICK OF IT – —//93

STONEHOUSE – 95/74

HATTON GARDEN – 86/—

WHY DIDN’T THEY ASK EVANS – 100/76

LUTHER – 88/88

INSIDE NO. 9 – 100/93

MIRANDA LAMBERT “AIN’T IN KANSAS ANYMORE”

Spotify: https://t.ly/kgkqt

YouTube: https://t.ly/3s0_I

This is a hit, even though it sounds like sh*t on Spotify and Amazon. However, “Ain’t in Kansas Anymore” sounds great on Qobuz! It’s all compressed, squished together on Spotify, and in Amazon Ultra HD it’s a bit clearer yet bottom heavy, whereas on Qobuz it’s much cleaner and the instruments are separated, it sounds like music, whereas on the other services it sounds like it’s coming out of the dashboard on an AM radio, and does anybody listen like that anymore? Even country fans have great car stereos. As a matter of fact, just like power windows and A/C, every car now sold has a reasonable stereo, but tracks are still being mastered for the old way of listening.

Yes, this is a country record. But it’s not that far from a rock record. Take the twang out of Miranda’s voice and punch in some guitars and you’ve got an anthem, the kind that used to blast out of the speaker when you drove your Camaro listening to AOR radio back in the seventies.

First and foremost it’s got a hook. It ain’t rocket science folks, even though with so many of today’s tracks missing the target you’d think it was. You hear that fiddle and you can’t forget it. And it’s right up front, introducing the song, it’s the anti-skip strategy necessary in today’s overloaded economy.

But there’s also melody in the verse. And attitude. She’s singing like she believes it, like she wrote the words, there’s that essence too often lacking in today’s written by committee tracks, although Miranda did have two co-writers.

And the chorus is memorable. With multiple voices. It’s the kind of number you sing along with, thrilled just to be alive. This isn’t music for your head, but your heart, which is directly attached to your genitals. Not that it’s directly sexy, it’s just that it enlivens you, makes you feel powerful, like all those rock anthems of the past.

And then there’s the post chorus, the na-nas, that’s the sound of the summer, something simple, not playing to the last row, but evidencing its own glow.

The words are simplistic, verging on stupid, but when did that really matter? First and foremost comes the sound.

And it’s not like “Ain’t in Kansas Anymore” is made to last, it’s of the moment, but with so many pandering tracks missing the mark it stands out, like a flower.

As for the movie it comes from, “Twisters,” the original wasn’t that good, so I wouldn’t bet on the sequel. But you never know.

As far as terrestrial radio play, chart numbers, that’s a controlled market. Who knows if the song will triumph, PDs look for reasons not to play records. But if you’re a fan of country music, if you’re a fan of classic rock, this is the sound you know and covet, it rings the bell.

DAVINA MICHELLE “ALL IS OURS”

Spotify: https://t.ly/Evfow

YouTube: https://t.ly/I7tWZ

WHO?

I didn’t know either.

I follow Mikaela Shiffrin, probably the greatest ski racer of all time, on Instagram Reels. Honestly, I watch more Reels than TikTok, because they’re shorter, however the Reels algorithm sucks, you end up seeing the same videos over and over again, which doesn’t happen on TikTok.

So if you don’t know, Mikaela is engaged to her Norwegian boyfriend Aleksander Aamodt Kilde, another great racer who had an horrific accident last season, putting his future career in jeopardy, for a long time he couldn’t even walk.

And Mikaela posts reels of her and Alexander working out, on the beach, skiing, from all over the world. And Mikaela’s personality…

She is not a jock. And I know, I’ve been around these people. Too often the strong silent types, never mind uneducated. Mikaela is very verbal, alive, she screwed up at the Olympics and gave long responses to probing questions by commentators, she didn’t slink away.

And another thing Mikaela loves to do is dance. As well as play hits of the day on the guitar. A veritable renaissance woman I tell you! 

No, not really, she’s just a typical twenty nine year old who happens to have paid her dues to become an athletic great.

Anyway…

I came across this video of Mikaela and Aleksander working out and dancing, and the song registered immediately, I loved the pre-chorus, and it too contains a hook. AND IT WASN’T EVEN IN ENGLISH!

So I looked up Davina Michelle. Turns out she’s Dutch. Had a number one hit in her home country.

Wait a second, IT IS IN ENGLISH! But since Davina Michelle is not singing in her native language, it takes a bit to realize this.

You know, the first language of the world, English. We rule, don’t we?

Well, not anymore. It’s not the seventies and eighties anymore, with the internet and streaming media hits are popping up all over the world.

So how did Mikaela discover “All Is Ours,” which isn’t even a hit, at least not yet.

Well, Mikaela spends months in Europe…

But most people don’t even know about developing acts in the U.S.

“All Is Ours” is a trifle, but it’s a very catchy trifle.

Instagram Reel: https://t.ly/EEchN

GOOD NEIGHBOURS “DAISIES”

Spotify: https://t.ly/0omq9

YouTube: https://t.ly/khX3o

Once again, WHO?

THEY DON’T EVEN HAVE A WIKIPEDIA PAGE!

I love this song, and you will too if you’re a fan of early eighties English stuff, you know the one hit wonders on MTV. It’s catchy, with electronic sounds. And even spacey at times.

Trying to learn more about the act, I found this video on YouTube, a live version of “Daisies” performed at the Village Underground in London:

https://rb.gy/5cf98l

Well, the more I watch it I realize it’s not really live, then again, none of those videos in the eighties heyday were either, and this slots right in.

I have no idea if this was all staged, whether they selected the girls down front, but the vibe is infectious, it’s no different from how it used to be, when you had to go to a club to see it, to feel it, when you listened to the radio, read the throwaway rag to find out where the new English sensations were playing, you just had to go.

Now “Daisies” is a new song, but “Home” does have 227,678,123 streams on Spotify.

We don’t have acts like this in the U.S. It’s a cultural thing.

I could go on, but listen to “Daisies” and you’ll either love it or hate it, from the very beginning. It’s a direct descendant of Depeche Mode’s “Just Can’t Get Enough” and so many of those cuts way back when, but not imitative, it’s fresh. This is the kind of tune that could revolutionize music in America, the way Wham! and so many acts did all those years ago.

“Daisies” draws you in. It doesn’t alienate. It makes you happy, it excites you.

You’re not being TOLD to be excited, the effervescence is baked into the track.

It crosses genres, from pop to rock. It’s got modern sounds.

I don’t want to overhype it, “Daisies” is not revolutionary, but this is the sound that made music the most powerful medium in the eighties. We tuned into MTV just to see it. Radio fell in lockstep, spinning the tracks. It made you optimistic, this music is the antidote to today’s dark pessimistic days, and it’s not a trifle like the Davina Michelle cut, it’s more than that.

Is there more to come or is Good Neighbours just a modern day Haircut 100?

I DON’T KNOW!

Live by the hit, die by the hit.

That’s why you don’t want to be a pop star.

Used to be it was a reasonable trade. Everybody in the world knew your name and you could tour forever on even one hit.

Not anymore. Now you can have a hit and not be able to sell any tickets. But even worse is the hype machine, although still extant, no longer reaches many people. So you can be in “People,” be on TV, be exposed in all the traditional media and the public doesn’t even shrug, because it is not paying attention to these outlets and is completely unaware of what you’re doing.

Back in the last century, if you were on TV constantly, and you gave the public what it wanted, odds are you’d have a modicum of success. Katy Perry was on television every week, and after a couple of stiff records decided to give the audience the girl power anthems she’d built her name on.

But everybody rejected it. I haven’t seen backlash this big…EVER!

This is what happens when you live in a bubble.

In the old days, the labels controlled the narrative. Not any longer, today the public controls the narrative, and fans are watching every move, and it all happens online, so looky-loos will come across opinions…that’s right, on social media you get opinions, not raw hype. This is what many acts don’t understand about social media, if you don’t have an opinion, if you don’t have an edge, you won’t get any traction.

Meanwhile, scores of acts that have never had a pop hit are doing prodigious business on the road. Their fans own them and support them. They feel invested. As soon as it is perceived you’re a tool of the machine, that you’re being forced down someone’s throat, you’re toast. Maybe, just maybe, if you have a track so good… But in this era of me-too, and I’m talking about sound, not sexual abuse, the idea of a revolutionary sound…never comes into play. And the traditional avenue of exposure, i.e. terrestrial radio, doesn’t want anything new and different, it doesn’t want to upset the apple cart, it doesn’t want to risk a tune-out.

So… The world is bifurcated, between pop and the rest of music. But all we ever read about in industry press is pop. It’s easily quantified. Are you on the chart or not, as if recordings ruled the roost when they do not, today it’s all about live.

So who are the Katy Perry fans?

A certain demo of women. No longer young, not in the active group participating on social media. And that’s how you drive a hit, on social media. Most Katy Perry fans are out of the loop. And there are a limited number of them. Perry could not say no, she appeared everywhere, she stood for nothing so much as…stardom. And that’s not enough.

Today to sustain you must have an identity, that you curate. You have to be “on brand,” you have to be able to say no. You have to look at your career through your hard core fans’ perspective.

And the thing about fans is that they’re active. They’ll tell everybody they know about you. Trey Anastasio just had an interview in “Rolling Stone.” So the Phishheads are e-mailing me. As if I didn’t see it to begin with. As if I’m really that interested in what Trey has to say, sorry.

To tell you the truth I’m not interested in what most musicians have to say, because it no longer moves the needle. They don’t stand for anything.

Ironically, Perry stood for Democrats. She was in the mix during the last presidential cycle. If she’d stood up today, spoken her truth, said Biden should stay or step down it actually would have helped her. Because she would risk alienating part of her audience. If you’re not willing to risk losing fans, you’re not going to create strong bonds with the fans you’ve got, never mind new ones.

And we’ve been told for eons that press doesn’t matter.

Well, not the minion press. Not the brain dead press. Not the me-too press. Certainly not the traditional music and movie press.

Do you think I don’t know you’re publishing a story about this or that person because they’ve got new product, an album or a movie? It’s not like they’ve got something special to say, they’re just selling, there’s no there there. Best to do your hype when you’ve got nothing to sell. Then it looks more genuine. And the songs are there to be streamed every day of the year. You’re building an identity, not selling product. An identity, personality, lasts, you trade on it, whereas what you did on the chart yesterday no longer matters.

So there’s a whole cabal out to get those who cross the lines.

We’ve seen this in media re Biden. It was started in the “New York Times,” the media is doing the elected officials’ job, and looking good in the process. If some people hate what the “Times” has been saying, it’s doing it right. Which is to call it as it sees it, not to pledge fealty to any tribe, but to be independent. As a result, the paper has power.

As do those not just reciting pablum, tools of the label, who are pushing back.

But the bottom line is give the people what they want at your peril. It looks easy. You go back to the garden…

But the public has moved on.

This is a conundrum. Because you keep hearing from fans and your handlers and your label to go back to your golden era, but we’re not going back to horses and buggies, EVs are here to stay, and I’m fine with you making America greater than it is today, but it ain’t gonna look anything like it did back in the fifties, the era you’re fantasizing about. We only move forward, we never move back. You only gain traction in the future by pushing your own artistry.

Sure, there’s a business in going on the road and playing your hits. Assuming you created them before the internet killed the old paradigm about twenty years ago. I hope you like the money, because in many cases it’s soul-deadening. You’ve taken yourself out of the game, I thought you were a musician!

And don’t tell me no one wants the new stuff. No one wants ANY new stuff, because there’s so much new stuff out there (never mind the old stuff!) That’s the modern world, if you’re shooting for the moon you’re missing the point. Everything is happening online, grass roots. And if you only want to play new music do it in a small venue and make the public aware. There’s a business in that, but not an arena or stadium business.

But if you were on MTV, if you even had a hit in the first decade of this century, you think the public is waiting with bated breath for your new work. But this is patently untrue. In the old days, there was a limited amount of product, your tunes got a modicum of exposure no matter how good or bad they were, people would check them out. But today they don’t. Come on, the big number one hit is Shaboozey’s “A Bar Song (Tipsy),” you could even call it “The Song of the Summer,” an outdated concept if there ever was one. Not my summer. Not your summer. Just the summer of the circle jerk publicity machine that needs to feed the pipeline. And if you think “A Bar Song (Tipsy)” is going to become legendary and have the legs of “Summer in the City,” you believe in magic.

So Katy Perry completely miscalculated. She’ll ultimately lick her wounds and climb back into the hole she came out of. This is what J.Lo did, this is what all the pop stars of yore do when they’re confronted with the fact that the game has changed. But if she was smart, Perry would release new music almost instantly. That was more raw, not made with legendary producers. Then again, can she make the music alone?

It all comes down to talent. Artistry. We’re back to the basics. Because there’s just too much junk, too much low grade stuff trying to fill the pop pipeline. Odds are you’re going to fail. But especially if you build up the hype, if you’ve got us waiting to see what you’re going to do.

It’s complicated. And Nancy Meyers can’t have a hit in the theatre anymore.

The game has changed. The public bites back. This is the world we now live in. Don’t be true to your school, but yourself. That’s the essence of artistry, the individual. Who is Katy Perry? Damned if I know!