Posted by Carl L on December 14, 2000 at 11:24:30:
In Reply to: Re: Re: Re: Bill Bell and His Tuba posted by Rick Denney on December 13, 2000 at 15:41:59:
Rick, when I was a kid growing up in Buffalo (no wise cracks...) Al Hirt came to town. He was about to start a rendition of "Java", when he lowers his horn, looks at the audience, and says the following: "You know, I play this commercial crap for the money- but it's dixieland that really moves me..." That was over thirty years ago, and I remember how that honest statement hit me like a ton of bricks. I took my family to see Glen Campbell this last weekend and as he's singing "Galviston", I'm thinking to myself, how many times has he sung THIS song in the last thirty-plus years? (Bennett and "San Fransisco"?)
I agree with you, we call it a commercial instinct; and I remember what Ricky Skaggs told me at a bluegrass gathering a couple years ago. "The public is a fickle lover. If we don't keep ourselves in front of them, they forget us real quick!" It's a grind for artists to tour, but do they have a choice? Sousa himself was quite a showman and maybe that's what it take to gain that public zeal, eh? And the bucks.