MARKETING: CRUCIAL TO ANY VENTURE (A “niche” business takes extra creative energy)

June 12, 2011

By Bob Burnham

Marketing is at the core of what makes any business survive or die.

I know this from first hand experience.

It the world of old-time radio, many years ago, it could’ve been something as simple as copies of a hand-typed list of shows available on tape for a negligible cost…snail-mailed.

Today, “simple” doesn’t work and hasn’t worked for a very long time.

People are more sophisticated.  If I stop marketing, the business stops. Period.  A big slick catalog that cost thousands of dollars to produce doesn’t work either.  People throw away catalogs. 

If they want to look at a LOT of content, they will go to the website.  That’s what I do whenever I need something… ANYTHING!

As far as audio content, they will either stream it or download it for later consumption probably on a portable device.  This is how MOST entertainment and music is marketed. 

Old-time radio fans, however, ARE different in the traditional sense (at least the hard-core ones, and not the youngest listeners).  They still like the physical media.  They will still respond to something physical on paper.  The newer ones may respond to something e-mailed to them. 

CHANGES…FORCED OR NOT
Who writes checks anymore?  The people who responded to a PRINTED piece will write checks.  Further, almost single-handedly, hearing screaming and yelling, I was able to convert those with large audio cassette collections to the more practical (and cost effective to produce) audio CD while others went directly to the mp3 data disc.

Both formats, however, are now completely obsolete as far as the rest of the world is concerned. An entire collection can now be acquired without waiting for anything in the mail, writing a check, or touching physical media (such as a disc or tape).  That entire collection can be played directly on the device that downloaded the audio, moved to another more portable device, or “streamed” to devices in your home.  There’s no tape heads to clean, racks of jewel cases to contend with, or bookshelves full of boxes reel to reel tapes….EXCEPT for people like me who are constantly transferring content of older media to digital electronic formats.

AUDIO FROM “SOMEWHERE”
Old-time radio from “The Clouds” is merely another way of saying shows are stored somewhere on the public internet. 

One can get anything about anything on the internet.  Tens of thousands of full length movies, television shows, music of every imaginable genre are all downloadable sometimes for a fee, but sometimes completely free.

Those of us (who in a previous decade) acquired huge accumulations of old-time radio are trying valiantly to keep up with the rest of the world by copying our old reel to reel tapes to digital formats.  None of us will live long enough to complete the task even on an individual basis, but we will get a lot done in the meantime (and I personally will let you know which titles are coming out as they are re-mastered!).

We do not, however, have the financial backing of major media or motion picture people financing our efforts.  Because of this, it takes longer than some people would prefer.  Fortunately, the cost of physical storage devices like hard drives is constantly dropping.

MARKETING STIRS UP INTEREST & DOLLARS
For me, Marketing old-time radio is still my source of financing for that part of my business.  It is at the core of what allows me to do what I do.  Marketing also takes time, creative energy, and yes, there is a cost involved to marketing itself.

I’ve tried most forms of marketing, and for a niche product (like old-time radio), it’s an aspect you have to keep re-inventing.  There is no “tried and true” approach or method in the year 2011.  But…the more you keep trying, the greater your chance of success, especially if you land on something that IS successful.

If you stop or give up, or become discouraged too easily, the response WILL stop almost immediately.  People don’t really save old mailings nor do they re-visit a spot on the web if you don’t give them a reason to do that.

THE BOTTOM LINE OF MARKETING SUCCESS
Successful marketing is merely offering a product THEY want at a TIME they want it, for a PRICE they’re willing to pay.  Of course, the product must be cost effective to produce.  They MAY return to you for more only if you delivered a good experience for them.  

My “good experience” starts with a good product, developed from a lifetime of collecting old shows from good sources.  I use professional-grade hardware, including several custom-built computer workstations.  I rely on software from Adobe for both the audio itself and the Creative Suite and FileMaker database software for marketing.

The core concepts behind the marketing are the same, however, if I was still running cassette decks, a rack full of sound equipment, and IBM typewriters, I would not be competitive.  

The other part of “good experience” is customer service.  Many businesses over-look this crucially important aspect.  If one constantly works toward being the best, they develop a good reputation.  I am happy to say I’ve managed to achieve a decent reputation.

When friends of mine in the old-time radio business complain business is not what it once was, I’m working on my next promotion and enjoying some success.

Marketing to a business IS a major part of success, but so is ATTITUDE! 

This is your new blog post. Click here and start typing, or drag in elements from the top bar.

So how are things in my bands going?

June 10, 2011
By Bob Burnham
I am a Broadcast Engineer and a Detroit area musician.

The bands I’m in and those involved have been the victims of the economy.  Most of us are surviving on a personal level, but paying work for “your local band,” no matter how great they (the band) may be, is fairly rare these days (at least so I’ve been led to believe). 

More than that, those of us who in the past spent time “pounding the streets” for band work are NOW  a.) spending more time at the day job, b.)  have taken a second job or c.)  having other personal problems, or (of course) any combination of the above.

People in bands also become discouraged when the band commits to too many “freebies” that lead nowhere and the band seems to be in forever in a passive mode.  The set-list seems to be frozen in time.  The best way to get the best out of any performer is to help them feel good about themselves.  I’ve spent a lifetime doing this at various levels, also as a former studio owner.  When band members are bored or discouraged, they will  not be at their “best:” In fact, they will be at their absolute worst. I've been on both sides of that fact.

There are two reasons I play music in addition to being a broadcast engineer:   Fun and Money. The two go together.  If it’s not FUN it damn well better be putting some money in my pocket!

When it IS a lot of FUN, anyone can survive as an actively playing musician when they have a daytime non-music profession.  With no money, when it Ceases to Be FUN, I stop doing it, or at least move on to another project with people who ARE having FUN and making some money.  

I’ve managed to have FUN for a as an actively playing Detroit area musician for decades, however, that music FUN has started to fade. 

If it’s PAYING music work, the tolerance level may be extended a little longer, but without the FUN-factor, it won’t last..

But for me, the real “PAY” is that “religious experience” or “magic” we make when we play music and we are all in synch to each other. 

In some ways, music IS my religion.  NOT everyone is up to that “magic” level, but those that are, that I’ve worked with – know who they are.

Will we ever get back to prosperity?

Will people NOT be burned out on life and living, and playing the same songs over and over, and in a passive mode for (on top of that)  NO Money?

I don’t have the answer to that, but in the meantime, I have a lot of stuff to accomplish.

I AM inherently optimistic and still look forward to making more “magic” on a daily basis and at least one more time playing music tonight (where I promise to give 110% no matter what).

----Bob B

“Old-time” Radio Takes Backseat to Paying its own expenses
June 5, 2011
by Bob Burnham

WHO AM I TO THE “OTR” WORLD?
I’m the guy for the last several years who has sat behind tables of thousands of audio CDs and a few other products. I have been a “regular” for many years at both the Cincinnati and Friends of Old Time Radio conventions in Newark.

Fewer and fewer people, however, really know who I am who still attend these events today. I’m not much of a “recreation” fan.  While I’ve met a lot of really amazing radio “celebrities,” since I’m in the business anyway, I don’t regard any of them as anything more than “regular people” with unusual occupations – and that’s what the best of them are like. 

I’m the one who developed the audio product from the ground-up.  I’m not an mp3 peddler, content to be salesman.  I’m an audio engineer, too.

Clean up, creation and production of those products requires a lot of technology.  Fortunately, that’s my business, too, but it does not come without some cost.

HOW IT STARTED & PROGRESSED
I began the business long ago with little more than a Smith Corona typewriter and a bunch of tape decks.  Eventually, better quality tape decks and typewriters were acquired.

Then we computerized much of the operation in the 1980s.

Dot-matrix printers and eventually Laser Writers were used for such things as cassette labels and catalog layouts.  Hand-typing labels of any kind became a thing of the past and the old-time radio world readily supported this advancement.

OUT WITH THE OLD IN WITH THE NEW
However, the end of the 1990s phased out, the audio cassette product, replaced by audio CDs.  This was a change we had to “force” upon many loyal supporters who already had very large accumulations of analog tapes.   We all managed to survive.

On the plus side, that product has also evolved as the technology to clean-up and “master” audio evolved and became more affordable.

LOOKING BACK
Thirty-five years is a long time to be doing anything, but during that time, a few things never changed:  That we would support any entity or person who supported us, that we would have uncompromising attention to detail with regard to sound quality, and that we’d deliver the best service we were able to at reasonable prices.

There are a lot of “methods” to my madness – and madness IT CERTAINLY IS having operated the “old-time” division in the “red” for the last couple years.

Yet we have many friends, and the “enemies” if there ever really were any – have faded away. By nature, I’m a survivor and we never REALLY stopped.  We took a couple years “off” to work on the newer product plus nurture a “professional services” business.

HOW IT’S DONE
To make the catalog marketing work today (now essentially as a one-man-operation), we use several mostly custom-built networked computers. Along with those workstations are two HP printers, four network-attached storage boxes, plus specialized “nostalgia” audio equipment (to retrieve the content of original masters). Such old-school equipment includes Otari and Tascam reel to reel and cassette decks.  We have no “consumer-grade” equipment in service at this time.

The computer software has also evolved and I have to know enough about everything to be fairly dangerous, but fairly efficient at the same time.  Once in a great while, there are equipment failures.  We don’t generally use repair centers, as that is also one of my specialties. 

A variety of methods have been used to help pay the bills.  Of recent years, the most “profitable” (if you could call it that) of which has been the two conventions we attend every year.  

One of those conventions will cease to exist after this year.
What this will mean to my operation is unknown at this time.
I intend to continue to issue periodic supplements hopefully on a quarterly basis.  These are primarily recent additions to the digital library.  Occasionally, there are still new shows found and brought into circulation.

A LOOK TOWARD TOMORROW
With a look toward the future, all shows are mastered at a higher quality grade than that of a standard CD.  If there is some variation of “SUPER MP3” that catches on, our archive will already be ready for it. 

My audio work will eventually all be downloadable at minimal cost. Anyone who has already posted any of my work without my permission will eventually fade away as well.

I have a lot more to accomplish as one of “sources” to the digital world of original material.  The fact is it’s available right now in a couple different popular digital formats, but wait!  There’s more:  Those who have supported my work over the past couple decades will have free access to the downloadable archive library… as mentioned, I am a “survivor,”. but it’s going to be A WHILE!

----Bob Burnham 
----06-05-2011

Planning a Home Broadcast Studio
April 09, 2011
By Bob Burnham

One of the most frequently asked questions I get asked is what it takes to put together a home studio. 

I have very high standards myself, but a lot of people think they can assemble something “on the cheap.”  Perhaps they can, but it will never give them professional results, and it will be very difficult to use.  

They simply HAVE TO spend $300 or more bucks on the basic audio software.  Period.  They probably also need a GOOD soundcard, and NOT the $19.95 Sound blaster from Best Buy, or the built-in sound.  It may work to an extent, but it will fall short on some capabilities and may crash the computer on certain functions. 

But let’s back up and start at the beginning.

PRIORITIES & PURPOSE…
The first thing that needs to be decided is the PURPOSE of the studio.  This is directly related to what capabilities will be built-in, and what the budget requirements are going to be.  If the budget is tight, I would suggest mentally designing in your **minimum** requirements and adding more capabilities as the budget and needs allow.

An example of this is phone equipment for interview or call-in segments:  Hybrid and especially multi-line broadcast phone equipment is expensive.  If your phone interviews will only occur infrequently, put that part of the set-up aside until time (and cash resources) allow.

There is also a tendency for people to think they can locate some used equipment and save some money.  With the exception of only certain pieces, this is a mistake.

Modern technology and advanced manufacturing methods have put new equipment within the reach of almost everyone.  The latest technology will out-perform and (usually) out-last any equipment out of the past that may also be a source of problems and failure.

Today, the central piece of equipment is no longer the mixer or console (again, as determined by the purpose of the studio). 

Today, the computer is the centerpiece.

MAC OR PC?   THE DEBATE NEVER WENT AWAY…
Apple MacBooks and Mac-based systems have become popular, however, as a former Mac user, I recommend PC-based desktops if you plan to run any type of pro or semi-pro broadcast software.  

The second reason I prefer a PC is a desktop PC, if designed correctly, is less expensive and more easily expanded and serviced over a period of many years.  The Operating Systems, however, (i.e Mac OSX and Microsoft Windows 7) for general use, are very equivalent in terms of what they do and how easy they are to use.  The bottom line, however, is to choose whatever YOU are accustomed to.

Video editors seem to have overwhelmingly settled on the Mac platform, and some recording studios use Mac.  In the broadcast area, however, Windows-based systems rule. Mac users may argue and defend their platform.  A broadcast station may actually have a Mac in the Production studio, but the On-Air system runs on a PC-platform.  Sorry, but that’s the way it is.

THE COMPUTER IS THE CENTER OF YOUR UNIVERSE…
Even if you plan to produce your own music DJ shows, it usually is NOT necessary to have two CD players, or two turntables as in “the old days.”  The twist is if you plan to use the computer as both your source of audio AND your recorder, you need both a the hardware that supports it (including a soundcard or device that can handle multiple streams) AND the right software.  The second requirement for audio is more than one hard drive; preferably something faster than a USB drive.  In the case of a PC-based system, a secondary internal SATA drive will work fine in most applications.

Hard drives are inexpensive these days. Solid state drives are even better but they are currently considerably more expensive.

Having the right software is equally crucial for success, and I’m referring only to a legitimately licensed copy!  Bootleg copies are not only illegal, but not supported by the software developer. 

CONNECT IT TOGETHER!
...And don’t skimp on cabling!

It is not, however, necessary to buy the most expensive “Monster” brand, but try to avoid the Radio Shack bargain bin pieces.  Ideally, you are friends with a broadcast engineer who routinely “builds” cables from scraps around the shop.  If not, head to the website of a supplier like MCM Electronics, figure out what you need and get the credit card out.

Understand your equipment if you’re doing it all yourself:  Understand the difference between balanced and unbalanced audio, microphone and line level and how to make them all work together.

To many people, there are a seemingly bewildering details involved in assembling a studio.  There are a lot of specialized skills and knowledge required of installing pro or semi-pro hardware, but everything starts with determining TWO basic things:  What you want the studio to accomplish NOW and how much (or how little) of a budget you have to work with.  If you want it to sound as good as your local FM talk station, or network-fed show, realize some equipment is just expensive by nature and there’s no way around it.    

On the other hand, if you look at it as a project that you can assemble over a period of time, half of the enjoyment is in the assembly and anticipation!  It’s almost like putting money in a savings account, but it’s much more fun.

If you’re thinking about doing any of this and are a student or staff at Specs Howard (or simply a good friend of mine!) feel free to bounce any of your ideas off me.  Remember I am primarily an “audio” guy although I may dabble in photography, video and of course, computer-related issues. 

My old-time radio AND live music friends are in two completely different worlds altogether and I have many thoughts and experiences in these areas as well.

[email protected]
[email protected]

-Bob Burnham
  April 9, 2011

by Bob Burnham
I guess you have to be "older" to start figuring stuff like this out.

As I say over and over, I've been doing what I do “for a very long time.”

I have knowledge and skills in a wide variety of areas broadcasting; some I'm better at than others, but none of it came overnight.

All those audio studios (and there's a lot of them!) at Specs Howard are my "babies," especially the ones with digital consoles (again, there's 25 of 'em!).  Over the years they get a little beat up, but they are still something that came out of cartons and became reality because of my work.  They are also works in progress.

I am grateful to TOM PROFIT who has trusted my judgement at Specs from day 1. I do have my "methods" but they are *MY* variations of what I picked up from the best in the business, and based on years of experience. As a result, I RARELY get a support call on any of the studios.  If anything, it's usually computer-related or a CD player that just died. 

I've come to realize it boils down to three people over the years whom I've crossed paths with, worked for or with at one time or another.  There's lots of other GOOD people whom I work with, but these are the top guys.

BOB SNEDDON...  was one of the earliest.  You never realize how important people like this are going to be at the time you're working with them.  For a few years before and after my commercial radio career began, Sneddon was the GM at WSHJ, where I spent endless hours hosting programs, at all hours of the night.  The format was tight hit radio and album rock.  My "Third Phone Endorsed" FCC operator license (required at that time) hung at WSHJ until I took it elsewhere.  Even after I got hired by a commercial station, I would still get calls from WSHJ:  "we're in a jam, can you do midnight to 6?"  It was such a cool station, I never said no...even AFTER I got off the air elsewhere working 6:00-10:00!  That wouldn't have happened without Sneddon. He lit the fire in me that still burns.

JACK HOOD...  the late great programmer worked all over central Michigan and had a stop at WJR before he arrived as Operations Manager at WAAM in Ann Arbor.  Thanks to my years at WSHJ and elsewhere I fit in to his air staff like a glove, and was named Production Director within a year of being hired.  Jack took me under his wing, gave me some encouragement and a nudge:  "I think you can do this Bobby!"  And I never stopped.  At the same time, their Chief Engineer tapped into my help to install new consoles and set up remotes (while also being the on-air dude every night).  On our first meeting, we listened to a few minutes of my demo in his office together. Jack didnt say much, but hired me on the spot.   Under Jack Hood, WAAM was known as "WJR WEST."

BILL MULLEN…  was our local consultant at WCAR many years later.  Bill is by far, one of the best engineers in the Detroit area. WCAR took me on a series of adventures over a 10 year period I'll remember for a lifetime.

Bill and I would frequently go over the facility with a fine tooth comb, not just for reliability issues but for FCC compliance. I quickly became a walking version of FCC Rules book!  WCAR had a "surprise" FCC inspection and to this day, I fully credit Bill's help for for us passing that FCC visit with "flying colors."  Bill also took me on adventures and projects at other stations and I took on many on my own. He has hung his hat at at Channel 4, WDIV for many years.

Mullen's standards, like Sneddon and Hood were uncompromising.  In later years as I undertook massive projects at Specs Howard and elsewhere, I would ask myself "Would this be good enough for Mullen?"  If it wasn't, it wasn't good enough for me.  Of those I’ve worked with, Bill was the Gold Standard as far as studio design and construction.

These became the standards which I require of any Operations Interns who work under my direction today.  There is no room for sloppy work in my world, yet at the same time, have a pleasant demeanor!

Not everyone has been as "lucky" as I, but it's really much more than just luck:  If you build a good life, good people will come. 

Thanks to everyone mentioned.

-Bob B

AN EARLY RADIO EXPERIMENT
I found an old raw speaker, mounted it in a shoebox, snipped off the earpiece end of the earphone of my transistor radio (which I’d won in a TV contest), connected to the speaker terminals…plugged it into the radio’s earphone jack, and of course, it worked. The “shoebox speaker” sounded better than the radio all by itself.

That was one of my earliest radio “experiments” I can remember.  I must have been about 10 years old at the time.  Throughout my life, my “experiments” got more and more advanced, until eventually I was able to earn a salary doing stuff I enjoyed doing

HOW I GOT INTO IT (GET NOTICED)
Being in broadcasting and music was just a matter of knowing the right people at the right time.  Whether I worked on those crafts as a hobby or a source of income, enough of the right people took notice, and here I am today.

I could have easily gotten work in fields that paid better, even gotten a business or journalism degree, but that’s not what I wanted..

STARTING OUT (RECOLLECTIONS)…
In the mid 1970s, Eastern Michigan University actually paid us to put in time at WEMU.

I did an afternoon show and was paid $2.90 an hour (minimum wage at that time was $2.65). I thought I was doing well, but as a Commercial Radio Guy, I didn’t quite fit into their National Public Radio “sound”!  I loved Detroit’s WJZZ, but that’s not the approach THEY wanted (and I heard about it, too!).

I’ll never forget the PD (later GM), Art Timko’s words: “So you’re leaving us to become a superstar, huh!?”   Art was a good guy though, but I was a commercial radio jock!

STILL TIME TO HAVE FUN…
Somewhere it the midst of it all, I was also spending time doing album rock overnights at Southfield’s WSHJ under Bob Sneddon.  Of course, it was a volunteer situation, but I didn’t care…in the least!  This was what I loved to do. 

(If you’re in the Detroit area, several of us from that WSHJ era are planning to take over the station on April 29…88.3 starting at 4:00)  

TREAT US WELL OR WE ARE OUTTA THERE!
Next, I was on the air mid-days at the long defunct, WBRB-AM out of Mt. Clemens, Michigan. I was paid a fixed salary of $150 per week.  There was some things I wasn’t happy about, as when I say “fixed” salary, it truly was.  Remotes were frequent and sometimes out of range of the stations’ signal.  I was expected to wear a sport coat and tie even on hot summer days when the air conditioning was busted in the remote trailer.  There were no gas allowances or talent fees, and they expected me to do shows on weekends in remote locations almost at a moments notice.  When they hired a new PD who took my shift, I was busted down to part-time and they STILL expected me to do those remotes.  I probably could have negotiated for a higher rate of pay, but I was already burned out from the whole situation. 

ANN ARBOR & BEYOND…
Being at the right place at the right time, I was introduced to Jack Hood, then Operations Manager at Ann Arbor’s WAAM.  Jack and I got along great.  He took me under his wing and soon gave me the title of Production Director at WAAM while I was also on the air full time.  Those years I always say were career highlights.  I don’t even remember what I was paid, because it was never about money.  Hearing tapes of my work at that time, you can tell I was having a good time.  Not every day was great and after Jack and our original General Manager left, I saw the end of my time there closing in.  

It took a while, but eventually I hooked up at WKHM in Jackson Michigan, briefly got rehired at WAAM, and after a few more stops, wound up at WCAR in the Detroit area, and the story goes on from there.  Every station that actually hired me for money came from contacts I had developed or again, being in the right place.

It’s not about how good you are, what your demo sounds like, or how fancy your resume is.  Those things certainly help, but mostly it’s about the people you know and being in the right place at the right time. 

There’s a lot of people who helped me get to where I am, and you will encounter similar people down the path of life if you pursue it to the extent I did.  If you want to make a lot of money especially in the beginning, you’d better find another business.

But if you want to be involved in a tough meaty business that you can really sink your teeth into, and hang with some of the coolest people anywhere.  Do what I did:  Go radio. 

Just make sure you develop those CONTACTS!

I’VE BEEN DOING THIS A LONG TIME
By Bob Burnham

There was a short period of time when I was in four bands at the same time.  I was not particularly happy, nor was I unhappy either.  None of the bands, however, seemed to be “going anywhere” and I was not sure if I was the reason for that or not.  I didn’t think so.

But only the strongest survive as far as bands. This is the story of one band (my most recent and current one), that somehow fit in with the rest of my professional life in broadcasting.

I was encouraged to sit in with TRI-COUNTY BLUES (which I’ll call TCB for short) at the suggestion of a mutual friend. I was reluctant to do so, but the forces in place were determined to persuade me to at least give TCB “a shot” in my life.    

Everything I’ve ever done in broadcasting and radio always led to something better at least in some ways, and this is also the case with local bands I’ve been in.  Maybe TCB was another one of “those.”  Nothing happens overnight, though.

In music, I started out at about 12 years of age being the sideman with my Dad at many family gatherings.  For a while I played drums, but most of the time I was a teenage rhythm guitar player. My sense of rhythm was developed at an early age.  In fact, one of my guitar teachers was fanatic about timing and even had me practicing to a metronome.  It paid off.

In 7th grade, I enrolled in Intermediate Band (skipping the beginning band class altogether).  Nobody seemed to notice and the fact that I could read simple charts meant I was the only drummer who could play bells and chimes or even tunable tympani and also hit the right notes! 

This was where I first met Shawn Whiting.  At times we shared snare drum duties, but usually I played bass drum (and he on snare) in the school bands and there were other guys in the rhythm section.  This applied when I wasn’t playing something that required hitting not only the right beat, but the right notes.

I had soon recruited a sax player (his name was Scott Boyer) and Shawn to put together a “jam” band.  Of course, we went nowhere and the only song Scott was any good at was “Born Free,” but Shawn and I continued “jamming” for a while. Another friend, John ZeBranek, a trumpet player, had mastered most of  the Herb Alpert & the Tijuana Brass catalog and we were doing tunes like “The Lonely Bull.” 

We wanted to do something a little “heavier” though!  Shawn’s older brother Craig, introduced me to his “Cry Baby” guitar pedal.  I owned the ATCO 45 rpm record of Cream’s “Sunshine of Your Love.” This at least got me into the mindset beyond playing what was merely “convenient” for other people to play. It was also beyond my Dad’s collection of Mitch Miller music books and songs he’d played during the Korean War.  Shawn and I did a cover version of The Frost’s “Rock & Roll Music” which Shawn sang. That’s all I remember. Fortunately for us, no recordings were made or pictures taken to my knowledge.

Many years and many people and great bands later, I would not have believed Shawn (now Dr. Whiting!) would resurface as one of the premiere drummers of TCB, and one of its “brother” bands which he started and named WHEREZ MY LIMO!?

A SIDE NOTE: Somehow, during the mid 1980s, I picked up a bass guitar and never put it down. 

FLASH FORWARD TO A FEW YEARS AGO:  The first couple practices I sat in with TCB there was no drummer, but somehow the “package” of Tom, Kelly and Doug impressed me.  I didn’t think individually there was yet anything spectacular, but I could sense collectively the band was on the verge of making that elusive “magic.”   The haunting TCB version of “Gold Dust Woman” sent shivers down my spine.  I decided I wanted in, and luckily, I seemed to be able to fit and add to what they were doing.  I stayed in the band, and they didn’t kick me out!  

A few weeks later, I was at a WHEREZ MY LIMO practice and Mr. Scola (Tom) called to discuss the elusive drummer problem.  Shawn was sitting behind one of his kits a few feet from me and with Tom on phone, asked directly if Shawn’d be interested in sitting in with TCB. He did.

TCB actually has a few drummers that are alternated based on availability.  They are all different, but I have found ways to lock in with each and help form the backbone of the TCB “sound.”  I make no secret of the fact I love Jim Crichton’s style, and Craig Trunoske is mega-talented as well, but there are no “bad” drummers used by TCB.  In fact, Shawn was “on fire” at our most recent gig.

Everyone in the band in fact – myself included – has grown in musicianship.  Our versions of songs evolve slightly with each show within the structure of the arrangement, style, etc.

My prior years of working with other players and singers had paid off. This was just like my years of staying up all night being an album rock jock on Southfield’s WSHJ-FM.  Then waking up the next day for my “daytime” job on Ann Arbor radio. 

Of course, anyone appreciates being complimented after a show, or listening to an aircheck that is 30-something years old that I may only consider “average.”

They get a simple “thanks” with a simple answer:
Broadcasting and Music:  “It’s what I do and I’ve been doing it a long long time.” 
(So I’d better NOT suck too badly, or I’ve wasted a lot of time!)

And the best “pay” is coming to a show and watching the crowd become absorbed in what we’re doing.

-          Bob Burnham

            2/13/2011