on the scene

You could write a dissertation on the self-destructive nature of the Hamilton music scene.

Now don’t y’all jump on me and tell me how supportive you are of one another.  Yes, yes, yes.  It’s all true.  In theory, on paper, we’re all quite supportive of one another.  We all want one another to succeed.

However, haven’t you noticed that whenever someone starts to do well, there’s some kind of (unwarranted) backlash?  I first noticed it back in the ‘90s when the Killjoys would sell out the Horseshoe, but could barely fill the top floor of Amigos in Hess Village.  I mean, really, WTF?  Maybe it’s a subconscious state of self-sabotage.  You know, the way your sister says she wants to date a great guy, but always ends up dating assholes.  She’s not doing it on purpose, and yet…

Anyway, if anyone has seen the scene before, it’s Tom Wilson (Junkhouse, Blackie & the Rodeo Kings).  Tom told me a joke a few months ago – its origins are unknown, so if you know ‘em, feel free to pipe up.  It’s only funny to those who inherently get it…but it certainly sums up the way things can be on the Hamilton music scene.

If you’re a local musician, tell me if things sounds familiar.

Bill and Ted, two Hamilton musicians, meet by chance in front of Jackson Square.

“Hey, Bill!”  says Ted.  “How are ya?  I haven’t seen you in years.  What have you been up to?

“Well,” replies Bill, “I went down to L.A. to do some session work.”

“You’re kidding,” says Ted.  “I didn’t hear about that.”

“Yeah,” continues Bill.  “It was pretty amazing.  While I was recording, I got asked to produce some demos.”

“You did some production in L.A., really?”  says Ted.  “I didn’t hear about that!  That’s awesome.”

“It gets better,” Bill says.  “Someone passed those demos to – get this – Quincy Jones, and the guy actually called me up!  Well, okay, his assistant called me up, but still, it turned out Quincy Jones liked my work and wanted me to co-produce a track with him.”

“Shut up!”  Ted exclaims.  “Co-producing with Quincy Jones!  I didn’t hear about that!”

“Well, did you hear that the track got nominated for a Grammy?”  asks Bill.

“No way!”  Ted shakes his head in disbelief.

“Not only that, pal, but it won,” says Bill.

“Oh, man!”  Ted says.  “You won a Grammy.  How did I not know that?  I swear, I didn’t hear about that!  Congratulations!  What have you been doing since?”

“Well,” says Bill, “I came back to Hamilton and I’ve just been kicking around a bit.  I was doing some sessions down at Grant Avenue, but they didn’t work out very well.”

“Oh yeah,” says Ted.  “I heard about that.”