30 years ago, my late father, William Barry Braheny, retired from the Chicago, Milwaukee, St Paul and Pacific Railroad. I thought I’d bring back an old letter I’d written to him on that occasion to let him know how his job, and trains in general, had impacted my life. After he’d passed away in ’93, [...]
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Pump Audio cuts Writers Share
In my book, The Craft and Business of Songwriting, I’ve recommend Pump Audio as a viable non-exclusive service for making your songs available for film/TV use. They offered a 50/50 spit with writers/master owners like most other services. However, Pump Audio recently sent a letter to those with music on their service, that they were [...]
Is A Jazz Guitar Degree Worthwhile?
I was just wondering if you could offer any advice to me as an aspiring musician. Many people have told me that jazz as a popular art form is dead. Some of my biggest influences are jazz guitarists, and I genuinely enjoy playing and listening to jazz. Do you think the skills and technique I [...]
My Carribbean Adventure
or “How I almost made an early exit from the planet” Those of you who saw my short Facebook post about 3 weeks ago and were interested in knowing what happened on my highly anticipated seminar in Jamaica, the first gig I ever missed. I said I’d record the story so I wouldn’t have to [...]
Mike Bloomfield and Me at the Fickle Pickle
- The late great guitarist Mike Bloomfield used to tell me, “Man you’re the only REAL folksinger I know.” I took it with a grain of salt since I knew a lot of “real folksingers” myself and held many of them in awe at the time. But I fit his romantic image of the folksinger [...]
10 Good Reasons To Join A Songwriters Organization
Many of you are active members of several different songwriters groups but there are a lot of loners out there who may not be aware of the opportunities organizations provide. From needing a local support group to involvement in national legislation, their services are rarely one-size-fits-all and there is a great diversity of services available. [...]