Finished my Music PEI project – only a month or two late and despite their stinking, cheap budget

Yours truly in a singing, summer mood

Need a little pick me up? Try my new song for a rollicking, romp through good enough is good enough. Let’s see, you can find it on ReverbNation.
I call this my beta mix – depending on your feedback and how I feel I may mix it again someday. Who knows? I’ve got dozens of these songs to lay down. 

“(Music PEI) sounds like one creativity crushing SOB.” industry insider

Last spring I got 56% of the normal funding to complete a demo CD. The whole reason was the Music PEI Board, those wonderful people didn’t think I could succeed being a disabled person and all.

The second reason is I was going to NS or Moncton to get the recording done. The wanted me to spend money with their buddies.

Gordon Belsher is one of Music PEI directors. He and three other directors run recording studios. If you don’t spend your grant with them, they don’t like it.

It’s a trick. Music PEI give the musician $1,000. In order to get a decent CD you will spend $2,000 or more.

So where do you spend the money? Either with Board members or their friends. What goes out comes back in.

Independent thinking is discouraged.  I thought the Music PEI mandate was to help musicians. Nope, they discouraged me.

It’s not the money. The difference wouldn’t take you to Halifax for a weekend concert with trimmings. It was the disdain and criticism they heaped on me. Not being a member of their club has its rewards, negative rewards.

A musician buddy said they hated and feared me for years once I started performing. One of my relatives told me I would never be accepted as a musician by the “inner circle.” The scuttlebutt: unlike most musicians I’d been a successful businessman.

Sorry, I’m trying to be more of a failure these days so Music PEI can feel superior. How am I doing?

The project was like an albatross around my neck. I try to finish everything I promise. Working for those sweethearts got under my skin. I worked some of it out by writing a song called 56 Percent Man.

I dropped it off to Music on my way to Baba’s for the cheap lunchtime burger at suppertime – arrive before five.

A music industry insider who read one of my previous rants wrote “(Music PEI) …sounds like one creativity crushing SOB.” Yeah. I put that in my cover letter. Seemed appropriate what do your think? I like to communicate openly. Why shield them from reality.

I did teach myself tons about recording since I did it all myself. Not true, I had friends who helped. I played all the parts which was cool. You should hear the wonky lead guitar on 56 Percent Man, very spacey.

You can tell me if you like the mix – we’ll call it a pre-release, beta, rough, only-if-you-like-it mix.

I gotta go clean up the studio – OMG what a mess – and my office. I get frantic at the end of projects and throw things everywhere. Where are the CD labels? God the printer is jammed. I hate the mix. Arghh. That’s why I repaired to Baba’s for supper. Nothing like a cool one to cool one down.