“The Islander: My Live in Music and Beyond”: https://amzn.to/3wV6iI0

1

He’s no Clive Davis…

But that’s a good thing!

As a matter of fact, when most people were being influenced by the music Blackwell brought to the world, they had no idea who he was. After all, in the U.S. Island records were distributed by a cornucopia of labels, and if the company’s logo appeared on the label, it was tiny.

Did you know that “Back in the High Life” was an Island record?

You have no idea how big that album was unless you were conscious back in ’86 when it hit the airwaves, when oldsters became uncomfortable watching Steve Winwood “dance” in the ubiquitous video for “Higher Love.” But today when I hear that John Robinson intro I start to smile. Actually when I think of the song I hear that drum intro in my head. Do you know who JR is? Check him out: https://bit.ly/3POEYCD

That was the difference between “Back in the High Life” and the two Winwood solo albums that came before, which he essentially did all by himself. 

1977’s “Steve Winwood,” was unjustly ignored when it was released, then again at that time the music scene was inundated with sounds, and FM had become playlisted, the equivalent of Top 40. And Winwood even rapped in “Time Is Running Out,” not that he gets any credit.

After licking the wounds of this commercial failure, Winwood returned with “Arc of a Diver” in 1980, which yielded a hit single, “While You See a Chance,” and prodigious sales and I play “Night Train” all the time, to this day.

But the follow-up, “Talking Back to the Night,” yielded a minor hit with “Valerie,” but was considered to be a disappointment after the huge success of “Arc of a Diver,” and his albums now being released through Warner Brothers he could work with Russ Titelman who freshened the sound, brought in all the New York players, and turned Steve Winwood into a superstar, when that meant everybody in the world knew your name, at this point Tom Freston had brought MTV around the globe. Today you can reach everybody via the internet, but getting them to listen, to pay attention? That’s nearly impossible.

And then having had this huge success, Winwood ankled Island for Virgin, where he proceeded to release ever less successful albums, both artistically and commercially. Maybe he needed Chris Blackwell.

Yes, Chris Blackwell signed Steve Winwood, as part of the Spencer Davis Group. And it’s not like other labels were clamoring to make a deal, like there was a big bidding war, the band was hiding in plain sight, you just had to find them. And Blackwell did, when the major labels were to a great degree asleep at the wheel, at least in the U.K.

Forget “Gimme Some Lovin'”…

Then again you can’t forget it, that’s just the point. Clive Davis keeps telling us how great he is, the promo is endless, he’s got to have his party  at the Grammys, as if the cutting edge was ever recognized by that male-driven out of touch organization, but as far as remembering all the music he released, when he had total control at Arista and J? Well, there’s Whitney Houston… And maybe those Patti Smith records in the initial days. You see Clive specialized in hit singles, Blackwell specialized in albums. And a great number of those albums are part of the classic rock canon and are still listened to today.

It all started with “My Boy Lollipop.” Then again you don’t get to the Millie Small smash until about sixty pages in. There’s a good overview of the scene in Chris’s homeland of Jamaica first, almost all of which is unknown by the average person.

As for “My Boy Lollipop”… We had that single. I didn’t know Chris was responsible for years!

But this was a different Chris, a svengali, like Clive, and he realized that was a fool’s errand, better to focus on the music than the image, because the hit singles business was always an uphill climb.

So who did Blackwell sign?

Well, there was Cat Stevens, and King Crimson, Roxy Music, Free, Grace Jones, Robert Palmer, Melissa Etheridge and that underrated band from Ireland, U2. And you have heard of Bob Marley and the Wailers, haven’t you?

Clive may have had singles in the hit parade, but usually that’s not where the action was. Do you remember Marianne Faithfull’s “Broken English”? What a surprise that was, angelic beauty returns as hard-edged croaker with an undeniable cut that was anything but me-too, I can remember roller-skating to it at Flipper’s. You can’t listen without nodding your head, yet it’s anything but mindless dance music.

Oh, did I say that Blackwell produced a good amount of this music? He had no technical training, he just tried to steer the artists to deliver their essence. Oftentimes he said nothing, just sat there in the control room smoking a spliff. Then again, he was the one who toughened up the Wailers’ sound, to appeal to the rock world.

And unlike Clive, Blackwell gives credit to others. Dave Robinson for turning Marley into the cultural icon he ultimately became, Nick Stewart for U2. That’s right, Blackwell believed in people. They generated the music, not him. Blackwell enabled artists to go on a journey, as opposed to demanding instant hits.

2

Oldsters are constantly complaining that young sports stars know nothing about history, especially in baseball.

It’s even worse in the music business. Today’s hitmakers believe the business began with Napster, disrupting what once was so new acts could flourish on the internet.

But if you were conscious before this…

The music business was a haven of scrappy individualists who proffered hit singles. Sure, there were majors, but like I referenced above, they were often behind the times, and anything but nimble. The business didn’t really enter the future, really blow up, become solidified, until Steve Ross purchased Elektra and Atlantic at the end of the sixties and then created Warner’s own distribution arm, WEA, in 1972. Back then music made more than movies and was uber-profitable. You see music scales like no other entertainment medium. You make the record and thereafter your costs are de minimis. Sure, most of the records stiff, but there are ones that sell millions, that rain down cash, which is why Steve Ross wanted in.

And it was clear that the artists were in charge. You made a deal, they delivered your record, oftentimes without interference, and then you had to put it out. And successful artists made more than almost anybody at the label. Today it’s reversed.

But then in 1979 it all started to crumble, but MTV and CDs caused a renaissance with untold riches, music was raining dough. You didn’t seek endorsements, you didn’t have to! You were making so much money!

Today there are only three major label groups.

There used to be six.

Just like there are two major concert promoters. You see the business is mature, consolidated. And therefore the excitement is elsewhere.

But back in the sixties…

And in the eighties, with all that new money, there were endless expansions, endless new labels, you had too many records to promote, you might as well create a new imprint, which labels constantly did.

But the seismic shock came when A&M and Island were sold to PolyGram. That’s over thirty years ago. Seems like a footnote, but back then it was unthinkable, incomprehensible, as were the payments to the owners of said indies, for Island $300 million.

But that was the beginning of the end for Blackwell. He chafed under the corporate umbrella and started anew at too big a level and failed, which he admits, and then became a real estate baron, renovating hotels in South Beach before selling them for money to build back in his homeland, Jamaica.

3

Blackwell literally says he’s a member of the lucky sperm club. And he delineates all of the above, in-depth. As for the man himself? You read all 320 pages of the book and he’s still a cipher.

Sure, he talks about his mother’s relationship with Ian Fleming, but we get even fewer details about his love life. He mentions wives, girlfriends, but you’re still not sure whether he’s got biological or step-kids.

Blackwell tells you what he did, and how he did it, but you don’t really get to know who he is.

Oh, he goes everywhere in his flip-flops. And shorts. Sans tie. That used to be the rock and roll ethos, the music spoke for you, if you made it you could dress however you wanted to, that was one of the privileges of making it outside the mainstream, being rich. Yet today, all the musicians want to sell clothes, and the execs are all dressed up.

And he has relationships with one babe after another. He’s a good-looking dude, but you don’t quite get his charm in this book. And you’ve got to be charming to be uber-successful as an entrepreneur, that’s what outsiders don’t understand, that’s one of Irving Azoff’s superpowers.

There’s talk of building Compass Point Studios, and creating a house band.

And there’s also reference to the label’s financial issues. Not having the cash to pay U2 royalties and giving them 10% of the label instead.

The business stories are all here. And a lot of the creative ones too. But who Chris is and what makes him tick? You can only infer.

And the money…

An independent doesn’t have deep pockets. Blackwell was selling himself, not attracting acts with cash. And like Winwood, Robert Palmer walked to EMI after Blackwell coddled and built him up, but like Winwood without Chris it wasn’t the same.

Yet then there’s the reference to buying property whenever he had a win. Well, how much money did Chris take out of Island? WHO KNOWS!

But what we do know is the Island story is ancient history.

But if you were there, you will enjoy getting an inside peek at the creation and workings of Island. And remember when a gig at the label was your heart’s desire. Just to be closer to the music.

Blackwell is an icon because the buck stopped with him, he could make a decision, he needed no approval, and he gave you enough money, room and time to do it your way, to find yourself.

And there are amazing insights. Free was wary of releasing “All Right Now,” for fear it would ruin the band. And it did!

U2 insisted on using Eno, a man Chris knew and had made many records with but was reluctant to agree to, after “War” because they were fearful of getting pigeonholed as a hit singles act. And it was “The Joshua Tree” that made them legends, and “Achtung Baby” delivered their bona fides. First time through you didn’t understand “Achtung Baby,” didn’t get it, and then like “Exile on Main Street” you realized it was one step beyond, SPECTACULAR!

And Asylum wouldn’t let Tom Waits release what became “Swordfishtrombones,” it was too out there, but he signed with Chris and became the revered Tom Waits he is today, before that he was just an out there singer-songwriter with a ragged voice, after signing with Island he became a cultural icon.

They don’t make them like Chris Blackwell anymore. Not in music anyway. Then again, you can make much more money in tech. And the heart and soul evidenced in the records is absent. It’s been commercialized. Funny how the further Chris and his brethren got from commerciality, from delivering me-too stuff that was expected, the more successful they became.

Blackwell is 84. Actually, he’ll be 85 next month. He survived, many did not.

And he got a longer run than most in this business, until just past 60.

You see the music business chews you up and spits you out. You’re hungry to have a seat at the table, you prove yourself, become inured to the benefits and then you get squeezed out without even realizing it.

And the man is in charge, the corporations, they’re publicly traded.

But it used to be different, and if you want to know how it was…

Read “The Islander.”

Netflix Official Trailer: https://bit.ly/3PS6DCz

This is riveting television.

It will make you smile and it will bring tears to your eyes. As a matter of fact I’m holding back the waterworks right now.

You know someone on the spectrum. Even though they may not even know it themselves. But in the last thirty years incredible advancements have been made.

The spectrum… Usually with every little thing taken away, something is added back in. You’ll be wowed at Subodh’s mathematical skills.

So that’s what this show is about, people on the spectrum dating, many for the very first time.

Do you remember the first time you went on a date? Remember your anxiety? Somehow this show gets it right better than any movie. There’s anxiety, wishin’ and hopin’, and a fear of playing the game.

We’ve got Dani who not only has an undergraduate degree, but a master’s too. She seems so competent, but the longer you’re exposed to her the more her issues are revealed. The diagnosis. It wasn’t until she was nearly an adult that her aunt realized she was on the spectrum. And usually this is a relief, it explains so much.

Like the people making fun of you. You’re trying your best, but you just can’t read the signals. But you want what everybody else does, love.

Boys don’t talk about it. They say they want a girlfriend, and then they shuck and jive and you realize you’d better start cracking jokes too or you’ll become a pariah. You don’t want to be sensitive around the guys, you’ll be labeled a sissy and ostracized. Hopefully you find your people, but some people never do. And then there are others who yearn to be accepted into a group that in truth they’d rather not belong to. But the inner desire to be accepted, that never goes away. And everybody is sensitive, they just might not show it.

As for the girls? Sure, they can be catty, but they’re also supportive. They dream, they fantasize, they know what they want and even articulate it, but getting it? That’s harder.

And even harder if you’re on the spectrum.

The signs start coming early. You get kicked out of pre-school. You have trouble making friends. Everybody tells you to fly straight but you don’t know you’re not, you just know you’re not approved of, and that feels awful.

Hopefully you can get into a special program tuned to your needs. But frequently you have to have money and tenacious parents. And with both parents working outside the house and the hurdles you need to jump to get government assistance, it’s hard. And then you become an adult and no one cares about you anymore, you’re on your own. And if you can work at all, you can’t pay your bills. Just pull yourself up by those bootstraps why don’t you!

And it is a spectrum. They no longer call it “Asperger’s.” So there are people on both ends of what I describe above, highly functional and less functional, but one thing is for sure, you never detach from your parents, who worry about how you’ll survive after they die.

Loneliness. It’s the scourge of America. That’s what’s great about the internet, you can find your people. Sure, there’s a lot of hate, but those who decry screens are denying the need to connect, to talk. Of course this connectedness comes at a price, hate and showing off, but all progress comes with negatives, you’ve just got to adjust your vision, because the past is never coming back.

So the six episode series starts with people who are yearning for love, but they don’t know how to get it. There are coaches.

And then they dive in.

Will the other person accept their autism?

This is a big issue for Dani. And Kaelynn too. Once the boys find out who they really are, will they dump them?

There are so many interesting plot twists, but in this case they are real.

Maybe you can’t watch this. Because you can’t own your feelings. You can’t own your needs.

And on some level it’s painful, because you see where your own inadequacies are, none of us are perfect.

But the humanity shines bright! In a country where everybody’s trying to become rich and famous, in truth most people are just living their lives, and the penumbra is ultimately irrelevant, it all comes down to the personal, your feelings.

It’s conversation, it’s touch.

One of the things I like most about being in a relationship is the floor. What I mean by that is when you’re involved with another person your feelings only get so low. But if you’re alone…you can sink to the point of suicide. You’re bouncing off the walls. And not everybody has a community around them. And as Chris Rock says, you get married because you don’t want to be the oldest guy in the club. Yes, you age out of a lot of behaviors. And if you’re old and single… It’s a couples world and some will include you as a third or fifth wheel, but you don’t always count on it and after the conversation you go back home alone.

You’ll breeze through the series in a day. Because you’re instantly invested, you want to know what happens.

We’re all looking for truth. And in most reality television there is none.

But that’s at the heart of “Love on the Spectrum U.S.” WATCH IT!

Have you listened to this album? IT’S A REVELATION!

The insider buzz got to me. How could a guy have the same last name as one of the biggest stars in country music? I couldn’t take him seriously. But when I started seeing his name everywhere…

Let’s be clear, I’m not talking about consumer publications, that’s hype. I’m talking about trade publications. There’s hype there too, but they’re really focused on numbers, and they’re all talking about Zach Bryan, so I decided to check out the music.

And I’m stunned. This is closer to 1972 than 2022. This is mostly one guy on his acoustic guitar, singing from the heart.

So I start to do some research.

I’m late to the party. This guy had indie success, he’s got a hit on the country chart. But how is anybody supposed to know?

Also, you dig deeper and you see his music was featured in one of Spotify’s fakokta new programs, promoted by the streaming company. But that’s not the interesting part of that story, but the fact that people continued to play it. You can get it on the playlist, but will people listen to it more than once, will they save it?

The music is so AUTHENTIC!

Authenticity is rare these days. Do I really care what Britney Spears has to say about the Texas school shooting? At first I couldn’t find any musician weighing in, but then I searched. Were any of them canceling gigs, putting their careers on the line? Of course not, that would be too much to risk. They’re no different from the Republicans, they offered thoughts and prayers. Remember when Boston called on James Brown to quell riots? Who would you call today?

The acts are so busy selling out that when you encounter authenticity you’re stunned, you’re drawn to it.

And it didn’t happen in rock. Because rock considers streaming the devil. Did you watch that Ted Gioia YouTube video with Rick Beato? It’s laden with so much b.s. I wanna puke. Why don’t people understand that streaming saved the recorded music business instead of killed it? As for Sony and Warner immediately selling their shares in Spotify, they didn’t do that because they thought it was gonna tank, they wanted that money right away, to add to their bottom line. If you think major label executives are thinking long term, you’ve never seen their contracts. All the action, the upside, is in the bonus, just like in Silicon Valley it’s in the low-priced stock options.

Not that anybody on the inside is going to listen to Ted Gioia. But my inbox is full of recs of this video. Yes, the key is to sell physical recordings, that’s the future for artists? Huh??? Do you see the movie studios putting all their energies into DVDs? Hell, it’s all about getting the product as soon as possible on their proprietary streaming services. And vinyl? Talk to anybody in the recording business, vinyl is an inherently flawed reproduction method and the vinyl “warmth” you’re hearing is mostly distortion. Never mind the inherent problems with the needle being at a different angle in every groove. And all these damn records are cut digitally to begin with. And now streaming services allow you to listen to them at HIGHER than CD quality. But you’re telling us to go back to vinyl? To come out with a better vinyl record? That’s like movie studios championing VHS tapes.

And there’s no understanding of popular music and the money involved. It’s a business.

I could go on and on, and not all of what Gioia says is wrong, but too much of the nuts and bolts is, and he’ll be steering the wannabe musicians and even the real musicians the wrong way. It’s not only the Republicans who are prey to misinformation.

Anyway, turns out Zach Bryan was in the military. And he’s from Oklahoma. I listened for right wing b.s., which permeates the country scene, I couldn’t find it right away, but I’m not sure it’s not there. But there are THIRTY FOUR SONGS! Yes, Zach Bryan’s new album, “American Heartbreak,” is two hours long. That’s double the length of “Exile on Main Street.” It’s gonna take a long time for me to digest this. But I wanted to hear it, I listened to the whole damn thing, it was more interesting than any of the usual suspect podcasts, more genuine, more lifelike, it’s what music can do that no other art form can, assuming you’re trying to get it right.

That’s the funny thing about music. Play the game by the rules and the result is rarely transcendent and ubiquitous. But go on your own hejira and your honesty might resonate with the public, blowing you up in a way that could not be foreseen.

And if you listen to Zach Bryan’s hit, with 92 plus million streams on Spotify, you’ll find “Heartbreak South” is sans all the studio tricks, it’s got a feeling of life absent from all the stuff on the hit parade. And he’s singing about being alienated and misunderstood, remember when that was the essence of hit music as opposed to bragging about how rich you are or singing about how you love your family?

And “Heading South” is almost three years old.

And those focusing on the marketing as opposed to the music will talk about the “Yellowstone” synchs, when the truth it’s in the MUSIC!

I mean start playing “American Heartbreak” from the top. You’ll be amazed, this is not in-your-face, this is just someone playing their music, you’re eager to lean in.

And unlike too many lauded singer/songwriters, Zach Bryan has a good voice. Bob Dylan could get away with having a less than perfect voice, BUT HE WAS THE BEST LYRICIST OF ALL TIME!

Another thing about “American Heartbreak,” its success is ahead of the usual suspect sites. I couldn’t find credits for the album on AllMusic or Discogs, which are usually extensive. The guy is in the spotlight, but the album in so many ways is still a mystery.

But one thing I can tell you is that Zach Bryan did not do it how everybody else does it these days, HE WROTE THE SONGS HIMSELF! At least that’s how it appears based on my research, like I said, there’s so little info.

But really it’s all about the music.

In case you haven’t been paying attention, the biggest album of the last eighteen months has been Morgan Wallen’s “Dangerous,” another double album. But on Bryan’s more than double album there’s none of the studio trickery, it’s not overproduced, it’s closer to one of the initial, magical Bonnie Raitt records, with that homemade feeling.

Maybe Zach Bryan is so good because he’s been removed, in Oklahoma and the Navy, he’s not in Hollywood groveling for attention.

Not that Bryan is Dylan, and…

You may click to stream and turn “American Heartbreak” off immediately. It’s not noisy enough, not punk, not loud enough. Or maybe you’ll lament the absence of beats. But that’s just fine, because there are enough people looking for this stuff to build an audience and a career.

Zach had to prove it independently before Warner got on board. That’s the majors for you, they don’t believe in it until you prove it, they don’t want to take a risk.

But Zach Bryan is not a business story, it’s a MUSIC story.

And I’m not gonna provide any links. Either you’re interested in checking him out or you’re not. That’s right, a real music fan makes an effort…is looking to be plucked from the desert, saved by what they cannot articulate, but they know it when they hear it.

And in this case it is Zach Bryan.

You know when you do something great.

Conventional wisdom is no one knows anything in Hollywood. Only hacks believe that. Certainly when it comes to music, some songs are UNDENIABLE!

My favorite story here involves Al Kooper. He was being inducted into the Guitar Center RockWalk and we’re sitting in the green room after the ceremony and Lonn Friend was interviewing him, he’d scored that gig, and Al said that Lynyrd Skynyrd cut “Sweet Home Alabama” a year before it came out.

He was in Atlanta, he’d moved there because of the music scene, funny how it’s one of the epicenters of hip-hop today, and he’d signed Lynyrd Skynyrd to his label Sounds of the South and had recorded the first album and “Free Bird” was just starting to gain notice and Ronnie Van Zant called him up and said the band had a new song they needed to cut right away, and Al booked the studio time and they cut the track and like I said above, it wasn’t released for another year. So I asked Al if he knew it was a hit. And he said…IT WAS SWEET HOME ALABAMA!

If you listen to the John Fogerty podcast, you’ll hear the story of how he wrote “Proud Mary,” as well as how he decided to start playing Creedence songs live again. I don’t want to step on the story, but the bottom line is he wrote nearly all of “Proud Mary” in a flash, alone. And when he was done he felt like he’d written a standard, something on the level of Stephen Foster, something that would last forever. HE KNEW!

So the arc of this season of “Hacks” is Deborah Vance, i.e. Jean Smart, has lost her residency in Vegas… That happened last season, but now I’ll give a spoiler alert, even though you know how these shows play out, maybe you want to be surprised and can stop here but…

Deborah goes on the road to hone her new routine. She’s throwing out the old, the stale one that worked for decades in Vegas, and is starting with a clean slate, she wants to tell her story, she wants to be honest.

But it’s not working.

Get this straight. She’s come down from the mountaintop. She had a steady gig in Vegas baby, and now she’s back on the road, paying her dues, in small clubs, in secondary, TERTIARY markets and you’d think a star of her caliber would kill, but that’s not how it plays out. She keeps missing the mark, she wants to give up.

That’s another thing, the greats not only know when they’ve hit a grand slam, created an 11, they also wrestle with giving up. If you haven’t thought of giving up, you’re probably a hack. Because a true great may project an image of confidence, but inside many feel like a fraud. After all, they need the success to make themselves complete, it’s all that counts, success, they’re just that damaged.

And after you decide to stick with it, the light bulb does not go on instantly, you just have a little more oomph, a little more inner strength that keeps you keepin’ on. You’re in the creative wilderness, looking for hooks. And if you’re honest with yourself, you know what’s B material. You not only know what is B material, but B+ too. You need to be in the A category to play, especially today. An A- will get you notice, but to transcend the pack, to truly gain traction with the public, you need a solid A, and hopefully an A+.

And the dirty little secret is no one can reach that level every time out, NO ONE! Furthermore, the best stuff usually comes when you’re not even trying. You’re taking a shower, you’re driving in your car, you’re out and about and suddenly you have a blast of insight. And sometimes the insight feels good but ultimately is not good, but then there are other times when your adrenaline starts to pump, you know you’re on to something, and you know you have to commit, catch lightning in a bottle, or the moment may pass, your opportunity will be history.

Deborah keeps missing the mark.

But then it comes to her in a flash. Like my shrink says, sometimes you change one little thing and the whole picture changes. And suddenly she’s back on track, it all works and now she wants success even bigger than she had, more than Vegas and…

This is a business built on dishonesty. Either people are falsely humble or falsely bragging. It takes years to understand the game. Actually, someone had me going today, and then I got off the phone and realized I knew much more about the subject than they did, but they had me convinced for a while there, I just needed to step back and give it some context.

And when you hit a grand slam, create an 11, you’re not thinking about the money, the sponsorships, none of the crap that the amateurs can’t stop talking about. No, you get this feeling inside, like you’ve climbed Mount Everest. You’ve planted your flag but you’re solo, there is no audience, it’s just you, and that’s enough.

Sure, after the fact, when the track is released, you might get the accolades, even win an award. But if you think it’s about the award you’ve probably never been in the zone and hit it far over the fence, nearly 600 feet. Which is why the greats put their Grammys in the bathroom, if they even know where they are.

The feeling of victory is fleeting. On one hand you’re excited, on the other you’re scared.

You see you want to try again, you need to try again, but you’re afraid you won’t reach the same level.

And A+, undeniability, is very rare. A great will always produce something serviceable, but something transcendent? If you can do it once or twice a year that’s a good record.

And you know it!