The Oppenheimer Report 9/17/18

Clearly, the world has big problems. There are monster hurricanes and typhoons spinning around the seven seas, Russian operatives are running around poisoning their enemies with toxic nerve agents, Rohingya refugees are being slaughtered by the thousands in Myanmar, wildfires and draughts are decimating the Western states and provinces, and the United States of America seems poised for some kind of civil war thanks to Rump, The Orange Emperor…. but do you want to know what really frosts my donut? Those little stickers they put on fruit won’t come off. We bought a food dehydrator a while ago and have been using it to dry fruits and vegetables, and I spend half of my prep time removing the stickers they glue to the produce. I don’t think it is necessary to superglue  those labels to every single apple I buy.

Last Saturday night, I drove to the Huntsville Legion to see my friend Juan Barbosa open for Grace Solero and Dan Beaulaurier, two artists from London. I really went to support Hunters Bay Radio and Juan, but Solero and Beaulaurier were really good. Solero has a powerful, distinctive rock voice and the two artists together performed a really strong set. Regrettably, the show was under-attended. That seems to be a problem nationwide from what I understand. On the one hand, YouTube and social media allow bands to present their acts, building their audience without having to impress some myopic music industry middle man. On the other hand, at least in Canada, we as a collective audience seem to be less inclined to see live original music. In this community, I’ve attended many half-filled concerts featuring great acts. I’ve read that festival attendance has been suffering as well. I’m not sure why that is, and was discussing it with Jeff Carter, managing director of the radio station during the concert Saturday night. Some acts, like Matt Andersen, fill seats, but then some equally talented artists do not. Is it in the promotion? Perhaps, with the stricter rules about drinking and driving, people aren’t going out to clubs as much as they used to. 

I spoke a few weeks ago about the lonely life of a touring musician. I suppose it’s intoxicating when you’re under the lights and one hundred or more people are digging what you’re playing, but it must be discouraging when you’re singing your heart out to ten people, and seven of them are plastered, while the other three have their noses buried in their cell phones. I can’t speak from personal experience, but over the years I’ve talked to a lot of great performers after a slow night. It might be a paying gig, but the money for original music isn’t great, and a troubadour’s life can be discouraging. Two of my younger colleagues are out on the road right now. Christina Hutt is out in BC, and James Gray is on tour in Switzerland. Christina just finished recording background vocals on the song Watch For Wolves, which I co-wrote with Sean Cotton and my wife Shauna, and then she hopped on the ViaRail train to do a transcontinental gig from Toronto to Vancouver. Now she’s out west for a few weeks and I’m sure she will delight those who have the opportunity to hear her sing. I hope it is a successful trip for her.  James has done several tours abroad as well as one tour of Australia with my friend Gina Horswood.  

As I began writing this report Sunday, I sat out on the front porch watching the remains of the day slowly fade to purple. I am not ready for summer to be over, but over it will be, before the next report comes out.  Do you ever feel like you're not making the best use of your time?  I do, all the time. One of the things I'm going to try to do is attend more live concerts.

Written By Jamie Oppenheimer c 2018 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED