[FM] Industry Awards

[Christian Bauman]

OK, I lied in my last post.
I guess I am following this thread.
Call it a boring week...  :)

I think Mr. Swanson's comments about locality having
something to do with the reception given a particular
award winner are pretty good.  He mentioned, because
of his experience combined with his geographic
location, that he'd be more inclined to pay attention
to a Kerrville winner than a WAMMIE winner.  Of
course, it makes sense.  But, by the same token (and
not knocking the Kerr awards), there are some Kerr
award winners that make me cringe; so, it's not a
cure-all.

I think the real purpose, and beauty, of these
regional awards is being a bit lost, here. (And
Kerrville doesn't really count...it's a different
thing.) An award of this nature may (or may not) be a
boon to the booking process.  Certainly, if one WON an
award, it would be foolish to not trumpet this fact in
some way on the bio.

But I don't think most of these awards were created to
help an artist in the booking process.  The awards are
regional, and if anything, they're more for the region
than for the artist.

Take The Kennedys, from whence this discussion sprang.

The Kennedys (like The Hooters in Philly in the 80s)
are a band that the metro DC area is immensely proud
of.  And why wouldn't they be?  They're a great band. 
But they're off the national radar screen (in the
cover-of-The-Rolling-Stone catagory, anyway).  The
WAMMIES are Washington's way of saying (year after
year) "Screw the national press...we think The
Kennedy's are great, we're proud they call D.C. home,
and once again we're gonna SHOW our
appreciation...before they do something stupid like
break up or retire."

Same with the Boston Music Awards and, say, Ellis
Paul.

I think it's just cool that there is enough of a
cultural scene in these cities to give some talented
artists the respect they deserve.  
There are plenty of metro areas that don't do
this...talented home-towners are on their own, and
many of the most talented find more respect in other
locations than they do at home.

So, yes, if you have an organization giving awards
year after year to the same artist(s) AT THE EXCLUSION
OF OTHER DESERVING ARTISTS, you have a problem.  But I
don't think that's happening (from what I can see)
with the WAMMIES.  In other words, better the WAMMIES
than a regional disregard for hometown music.

Of course, having said all this, I still think the
world would be a much more boring place without Tom
Neff to keep us all on our toes...

-Chris


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Christian Bauman  http://www.folkweb.com/christianbauman
christianbauman@pobox.com
"You may grow old, even ugly, but if you are a good cook
people will always find a path to your door" -James Beard
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