DOING BUSINESS

Big George's Guide To Commercial Success

Published in SOS November 1999
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People : Industry/Music Biz

This month, Big George uses his regular no-holds-barred column to give you a factual snapshot of a life in music.

Since this column started four months ago, I've been bombarded with comments from people who'd love to make their living from music in one way or another. The one type of question I've been asked above all others, though, has been along the lines of "Dear George - what are the exact steps I personally need to take to ensure that I end up the world's greatest writer of film soundtracks/composer of theme tunes/ad jingle writer/session musician/rock star?" (fill in music-related career of choice as apt). Now, as I've said many times before, there is no one answer to this question, no matter how much detail about your lives, experience and careers to date you supply me with. But it seems no amount of tales drawn from my own experience will put off the people who write that kind of letter. So let's totally ignore what I've got to say and take a look at the stories of how some of my fellow professionals - from all walks of life - have survived. There's no finer way of showing what a game of chance the music business can be than to tell you about how some of them ended up where they are today. These are all true stories, but I'm afraid I'm keeping their names to myself for blackmail purposes. Put it down to a temporary lapse in my indiscretion.

* A dance producer friend of mine got a deal a few years ago with a yuppie go-getter. Their relationship culminated in his tunes getting released and included on TV-promoted dance compilations, which sold in bucketloads. The only problem was, the money never actually came through. It all ended up in court; the law took more than a year to come to the conclusion that the money had all gone and the masters were now out of date. The stuff the bloke had done in the meantime didn't get released due to the legal action. It was a total nightmare - until one day his missus sent all of his stuff to a major library music company, who called him up. And now the cheques just keep coming - but it's driving him up the wall with boredom...

* Another mate used to have a small studio, and worked recording bands, doing corporate work, even repairs and maintenance. He had a bash at doing pop music, which failed, but he got into writing technical manuals and doing reviews and beta-testing. An opportunity arrived and he ended up as senior hack for a music magazine.

* Then there's an unbelievably talented guitar player I know: he can play rock, classical, country - anything, frankly. Sadly, he hasn't got the prettiest face in the world, but he's a funny bloke who just wants to play guitar all the time. He got into the major-league session musician scene and ended up as a first-call player for a top Hollywood producer in Los Angeles. Over the past few years, he's done about a dozen major-selling albums by household names. Sounds perfect - but the thing was, he didn't like the LA way of life, and it was becoming a necessity to be living out there and doing the LA thing. He's back in the UK now, playing with most of the TV gameshow and light entertainment house bands.

* Whereas the drummer from Brighton who was into the same LA scene stayed out there, got a gig with an up-and-coming touring sensation, and a part on the biggest TV show in the world (at time of press). He now lives in a modest but beautifully appointed gaff in the LA hills, with a pool. His family love it - while it lasts.

* There was this young band I know who got a free pop video made, with high production values, so it could be included on the video company's showreel. At the same time, they got a singles deal with a connected independent. The video landed plays on MTV, and airplay on Radio 1 and XFM followed. Result: buzz buzz buzz! After two weeks, the record didn't chart, all airplay dropped, and the record company went cool on the band. Disillusioned, they split about a fortnight later. The singer/songwriter is currently DJing at a dive somewhere and still dreaming (he'd make a perfect pop star, but wouldn't we all).

* Mind you, the drummer from the same band got a touring gig with an upcoming teen group and is off round the world earning a handsome wage.

* But another drummer I know is going through the higher-education system, playing with loads of poxy bands and struggling to get a break. Nothing much has happened yet - but he's grafting, and learning the business from all sides.

* One well-qualified musician I know got a call to do a bit of arranging for a new band of good-looking singers who went on to make a million girls weep. He moved from session-playing arranger for the group, to remixer, to musical director when the act went on tour across the globe. But then the boy band split. Some members went on to greater things, while others just disappeared (thankfully). Their erstwhile musical director now has to fight to get a remix here and a pub gig there - although he has had some success in the USA jazz chart.

"To get ahead, you have to continue doing work, because it's only work that can generate more work. Of course, it doesn't always, but you can't move forward without having done something in the first place."

* Most fairy-tale of all, there's the old pub rocker from the '70s, who carved himself out a niche as a producer after his solo career ran out of steam, and then became a cabaret turn. One day, out of the blue, as he headed towards his half-century, a song he had written as a teenager, and which had appeared on a punk-rock B-side, was used on a film soundtrack, which went mega. He's now a multi-millionaire, and all because of a song he'd written decades before and virtually forgotten about.

So you see, you never know what's going to happen. But two common threads run through all these stories; firstly, to get ahead you have to continue doing work, because it's only work that can generate more work. Of course, it doesn't always, but you can't move forward without having done something in the first place. The other key point is to be flexible. Sure, have a direction you'd like to be going in - but be prepared to go wherever the flow takes you if something more promising turns up. If you take sure steps from firm ground you're bound to get somewhere - unless you give up or have impossible standards.

See you next month, when we'll look at tax self-assessment forms. It may sound dull, but if you do earn some money from music, surely you'd rather keep as much of it as possible yourself instead of giving it to the taxman?