What's Wrong with OKOM by David Pilot
	(not recommended for those who offend easily or are unable to appreciate the occasional strategic use what is sometimes called profanity)   If positive happy thoughts are what you're looking for, go read Scott Snidow's excellent commentary on what is right with OKOM. It can be found under Scott's name on the Features page of this website. It points out many of the things that make this music community so special to each of us, and gains momentum by clearly showing that many of the same feelings are shared by those behind the mics and guitars. If you really appreciate our kind of music-and you must if you browsed to this site-then you'll find Scott's editorial pretty damned heartwarming. This column and this writer share those sentiments, but aim to point out some glaring flaws in Texas music in particular and Americana in general. The easy place to start is the stupid behavior of drunken UT frat boys screaming "David Allan Coe." Hell, Chris Wall pointed that out himself. And a visit to any Pat Green or Cory Morrow show these days confirms it. Pat has done a lot of growing up since "Songs About Texas," but it's pretty hard to realize that when you're being elbowed out of the way by underage bimbos and buffed up wannabes inhaling Shiner and believing that makes them Texan. Go listen to Pat and Cory's "Songs We Wish We'd Written" disc while you're cruising down any Texas highway on a beautiful sunny day. You'll find two young guns with outstanding talent and ability who really do understand where this music came from. You're liable to think you'd like to go see 'em play the next time they're around. But when you do. . . it's a damn shame what the gimme cap wearing beer-swilling out of control crowd will make you miss. But as I pointed out, that's the easy place to start. A slam dunk. And part of what's wrong with OKOM is the sweeping generalizations we all tend to make anyway, so I'll try to avoid them. There are a bunch of college age kids who contribute to, enjoy and benefit from the wide range of artists around Texas today. It's wrong to lump them all together and say "Let's keep out the college punks." Though not so wrong to expect the venue owners to have an impact on that front. So that's where I'll start: Venues. By default, most of the places our artists play are small. Which is not bad. There are highly respected and even historical venues like the White Elephant Saloon, Gruene Hall, the Broken Spoke, Dallas' Sons of Hermann Hall and so on. These are great places to go and listen to a band or solo artist create music that matters. And for the most part those venues manage to include a good local flavor combined with a sense of Texas pride to consistently offer great nights out on the town. There are lesser known joints like the Lone Star Café and Club in Dallas that do the same. Even the Texas Spirit Saloon in Rio Medina, which is roughly 39.5 miles west of nowhere, sets the stage for musical magic. There's the good. But these days, with our kind of music surging in popularity and gaining attention even in the calloused sterile hallways of Music Row, new venues are popping up like biceps on a 'roids freak. Which should be good, right? Well. . .sometimes. But too many of them seem to exist simply to follow the money. And where does that money come from? There's you and me, for sure, out trying to support both Texas music and any venue that's willing to play it. That's good. But money also flows freely from the Daddy-lined pockets of underaged two fisted drinkers who don't know the difference between Garth Brooks and Max Stalling and couldn't care less anyway. That crowd knows one thing: somewhere some waitress or bartender on some Saturday night will let them drink. To show their appreciation, they'll drink a lot. Frequently. And since there's no such thing as a happy and quiet 20-year-old drunk, the music gets drowned out and you and I take our money elsewhere. I've seen it countless times at Brian Burns shows, which amazes me. If you can't shut up and listen to Brian Burns, you've flat out got issues-and they might not be issues that age and maturity can overcome. Now, when I've seen it, Brian and other artists have had a top notch solution every time. It has always involved talking to the offending party directly from the stage, and has ranged from a polite "Where are y'all from, anyway?" to knocking on the door of flat out rude. Not that an artist can truly be classified as rude for defending their turf and the right of the rest of the paying audience to hear what they came for. As a rule these encounters are entertaining for most of us, and often actually increase our opinions of the artist authoring them. But why do they happen to begin with? How hard is it, really, for a club owner or manager or head bartender to politely but firmly suggest that a clueless patron or patrons shut the hell up? Why should Chris Wall ever have to get so frustrated with a crowd that he walks off the stage? Why should Ed Burleson be involved ­involuntarily--in a fistfight at the end of a gig? They shouldn't. But venues that consistently choose to serve minors put the musicians in that position on a regular basis. So what do the artists do? Say they won't play there anymore? Sure---since none of 'em hold day jobs to pay the bills, right? Bullshit. From instantly recognizable names like Tommy Alverson and Max Stalling down to the lesser-known but equally deserving Jay Johnsons and Doug Burrs of the world, every last one of these men and women has a "real" job. Most of 'em wind up taking gigs for three, four hundred bucks tops, nearly all of which goes directly to the band. So the artists can't just say they won't play the Thirsty Armadillo anymore. Not consistently. And if the venue doesn't step up to the plate, you and I lose because somebody who doesn't like the music anyway wants to drink shots and request Tim McGraw pap. It's wrong, and it's up to the offending venue owners to fix it. It's also up to you and me as paying customers to make sure the owners and management at venues that avoid these types of problems know that we recognize and appreciate their efforts. That topic leads directly into the next thing that's wrong with OKOM, but this one doesn't have a solution sitting out in plain view. It's the money, or lack of it. Since you and I work hard and juggle bills too, it really can be a sacrifice to show consistent support for the one or two favorite artists we might pick out of the bunch. And then the rare opportunity to check out someone new to us benefits that artist, but only once or twice. Sometimes all we can do to hear new talent is attend the various festivals and campouts every year, and of course when that happens the majority of the green we hand over goes to hands not picking the guitars we think we're paying to hear. So our artists scramble to pay the bills, feed the kids, get the wife an anniversary gift and keep the car/truck/van running, and then, about the time you and I would be settling in to check out HBO, they're setting up their own sound equipment in another roadside bar and looking for the energy to perform. Not saying they deserve pity for the sacrifices, because those come with the job and that's well-known up front. But they do deserve every penny they get for their efforts, and they do deserve for you and me to be conscientious in our support. That means doing the little things like ordering or purchasing merchandise directly from the artists. For the most part they all have ordering links or information on their respective web pages. And they certainly all bring CDs to their shows. So buy your music direct when you can, and let Jay Johnson put that fifteen bucks in his pocket. Of course, the music also needs to be purchased at record stores in enough volume that they'll want to keep it stocked. Less upfront money for the artists, but the added exposure pays dividends in the long run. That's a good thing, but too many times too many people forget that some of these men and women won't make it to the long run if they don't see some upfront support. That sucks about OKOM, and unless one of us out here hits a huge lottery there isn't much we can do about it other than show our support where we can. It's not just the money, though. In this business, money and sincere appreciation often wind up fairly equal. First one pays the bills and buys the gas, but the second one gives motivation when the next road trip just seems like too much. Show yours by hitting mp3.com and other music sites and searching for your favorites in our genre along with new acts you may have heard of but aren't familiar with. Join eGroups that support the musicians. There are artist specific lists on the web, as well as several group ventures that provide their own individual flavors but all come back to the music as their reason for being. Don't kid yourself into thinking the people who make OKOM don't subscribe to those lists or hear about their contents regularly. This is a great way for you to show your support even if your daily circumstances don't let you go out on a Saturday night and listen and tell the artists in person. Americana fans in general tend to understand this fact very well, and are some of the most vocal and supportive fans in the music business. Just make sure you're on board as well. But when you join, for cryin' out loud, don't lose your common sense and go off like Don Quixote and the friggin' windmills. Why do some people get a keyboard and turn into Captain Jackass? There are more and more "Americana" fans coming into the genre who don't understand the loyalty and honesty and common sense country values that our music grew out of. It's not entirely their fault I guess, since they haven't been exposed to the culture we treasure, but it is our responsibility to include them and teach them by example. The problem is that a lot of the newbies join these lists and start tossing flames left and right about who can or can't sing and whose opinion does or does not matter. That truly pisses me off. Which brings me to my next point: provincialism. It's all over OKOM. I'm guilty (see paragraph above). You're guilty, or have been at one point. We want to say these are OUR artists and OUR music and anybody who doesn't really "get it" should get out yesterday. We rail against the college kids and Nashville and sometimes against each other for tolerating either of those two. Sometimes we pick our favorite artists and won't listen to or support any others. Or we break it down into "old Jerry Jeff" vs. "his wussy new crap." Don't get me wrong, I'm all for opinions. But too many people in our music community believe their personal opinion is a mandate from the Almighty and anyone who doesn't agree with their view must be the Lord's own jackass. But that argument's like riding through the desert on a horse with no legs, which is only funny if Kinky Friedman is singing it. Our community is far too small and close-knit to suffer much infighting over who's sold out and who's a wimp and who used to be good but sucks now. Sure, JJW doesn't have the edge he used to anymore. But he does have a lot of good insight, wisdom and bullshit to offer, and now it's just easier to tell which is which. Deal with it. If our kind of music is going to truly thrive, it will need a wide and enthusiastic fan base that can appreciate all the facets of its beauty. There's no value in me loving the music of David Allan Coe (which I do) and hating Lyle Lovett (which I've recovered from). Same goes for you and whoever you enjoy. Throwing verbal jabs at each other over personal preferences is second-rate grade school bullshit, and brings up bad memories from small town Baptist churches where everybody wants to be in charge. Lose the egos, people. The music matters, and the friendships that grow from the music matter, and everything else can go to hell. So now that I've contradicted myself and said I hate the college kids that can't control themselves but scolded you for not accepting those that can, you have a perfect example of why it's tough to love OKOM. Tough to avoid drawing battle lines all over the place when our music is under fire from Nashville and commercial radio and Britney lovers everywhere. Tough to ignore the blank looks on faces when you say out loud that you really like Kevin Deal's new CD. (I reckon the new review in Playboy will help to fix THAT little problem, though). Tough to listen to Brett being a jackass on KHYI and then put up with people posting on egroups and message boards and guestbooks that make Brett look like the Spirit of Hanks Past. What's wrong with OKOM is that too many people don't remember what it's about, where it came from, and why it matters. Club owners, and if you're one I'm talking to here you know it, get your damn ducks in a row. Don't serve minors. Make it clear whether you're running a party club meat market or a beer hall where music comes first. Pay the artists like you said you would. If you have to cancel a gig, do it ahead of time and help the artist get a replacement booking. Geez, it's common courtesy and professionalism, and those of you that don't understand that are an embarrassment. You're a vital part of something bigger than you and your club and the cover charges. Take a page from the established venues' playbooks and do it right. College kids, enjoy your youth. Party your heart out. Knock that blonde up so you can bitch about being married to her the rest of your life if that's what you want. But when you come into a venue where Texas music is on stage, show some damn respect for those around you who might care to make out a lyric or two. Don't get to thinking your cold beer and new pickup make you a real Texan, because a lot of men died at the Alamo and Goliad for something much bigger than your damn buzz. This land was built on hard work, real values and solid handshakes that meant everything. This music flows directly from that heritage, and it can and will teach you something if you'll let it. Older crowd, get off the kids' backs for a bit and give 'em a chance. Remember what it was like to be 21 and loose in the world. Smile a little. Ask 'em politely to keep it down if their chatter keeps you from hearing the music. Beat 'em like a redheaded stepchild if they come back talking smack. But give 'em the chance, and don't lump all of the kids together. Some of them appreciate what we have here more deeply than you and I do, and we can learn from them too. There's my rant for today. I love this music and this state more than anything outside of my family. The best thing I've ever done is have my children in Texas, and my proudest possession is the picture of them (twins) sitting on the stage at Gruene Hall when they were still shy of six months old. OKOM has given me friends truer than brothers and experiences better than sex. (Don't tell me that means I ain't doing it right, unless you really want me to send your wife home.) There are so many things about this music and every one of you reading this that make me proud to be a part of this community. There is something sacred about music that makes strangers feel like they've known each other for years on end. You know what I'm talking about. And I feel better now having griped about the few things that are wrong with this movement that in so many ways is nothing but right. We have in our CD players and in our towns world class music that most of the world does not have the class to listen to and certainly cannot understand. Everybody needs to quit getting caught up in the stupid piddly sideshows that bring it down to something less. And one last thing: Club owners (yes, you again, and you still know who you are): KEEP THE DAMN BEER COLD. I heard that's easier to do if you aren't handing it over the counter by the case to 18-year-olds with fake boobs.   You can contact David Pilot at: tailgunner-at-rockzilla.net

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