Why We Do What We Do

I mentioned in an earlier post that this job, this industry, can be very frustrating, sometimes disheartening. The battle for ratings, the cutthroat competition among stations in the marketplace, trying to keep the programming interesting and fresh, listening to the flood of new music we're always receiving and then, despite hearing a great song, for one reason or another not being able to play it (no space at the time, not a fit for the audience, etc.) all of it...it can wear a man down.
The upside, the rewarding part of the job, is just as significant. The experiences we have with artists, getting a great email or phone call from a listener, playing a local band and then hearing their enthusiasm at hearing themselves on the radio for the first time, seeing well over 100,000 people show up at EarthFest, just enjoying the people we work with on a daily basis and getting to wear jeans to work every day...it's a unique balance. Ultimately, for me, it still just comes down to the music.
Last week, we kicked off the 2007 Copley series with Brandi Carlile and The Dennis Brennan Band. I expected a large crowd, as Brandi is a major artist at this point and has a dedicated fanbase that will always show up. She didn't disappoint, either. Brandi and her band rocked the crowd, her Patsy Cline-esque voice carrying over the crowd in a banshee wail of rock & soul. This young woman, whom I had the pleasure of meeting for the first time several years ago, has blossomed into a star and yet remained herself; no airs, no drama, no bullshit. Just a girl who sings because her life depends on it, because it does. This is who she is, all she wants to be.
However, the true highlight for me was watching The Dennis Brennan Band kick things off and leave a large, unsuspecting crowd with mouths agape. There were several thousand people already at the park when Dennis took the stage, and he took them by storm. Playing mostly tunes off of his extraordinary new "Engagement" CD, Dennis & his ace band, whom he called "the best band in Boston" and is probably right, killed. From Stones-y rockers like "Sugar Falls" to the beautiful Americana soul of "Crying on the Avenue," it was just one of those perfect rock & roll moments, a time and a place and an artist and an audience all aligned at just the right angle. Kevin Barry's lap-steel solo wails, Duke Levine's guitar mastery, and Billy Beard's lockstep drumming just sounded so right, so true. Dennis had a look of bliss on his face, and he should. He's a local legend, been at it for what? 30 years? This is his time, and it's a damn shame that he's not on par nationally with his true contemporaries, people like Bob Dylan (yeah, I said it), Bruce Springsteen, hell, even the Stones themselves at this point. "Sugar Falls" would've been the best thing on their last record if they'd done it. If Dennis were 22, this would've been his coming out party. If there's any cosmic justice, it still will be.
It's the music. It always is, always will be. That's why we do what we do. Have a good week.