‘By joining ASCAP you can begin to register your songs, collect performance royalties….’
‘That’s funny, Vern, ‘Didn’t they tell you that YOU needed to get a performance set list from Keith’s people’.
‘Why, yes…’
‘But Vernon, they state categorically in their rules, regulations and governing documents that they collect performance royalties for the writer’.
I quote from their website:
“For live concerts, ASCAP uses set lists provided to us by concert promoters, the performing artists and our own members.”
Hmmmmm…
‘Well..honey (he doesn’t really call me that, it just sounded good…I haven’t received anything in the thirteen or so years that Keith has been performing those songs in concert’.
And let me tell you, the evidence is out there.
Log on to you tube.
It’s all there, beautifully documented by the fans cameras’, iPhones’, etc.
The artist is there on stage singing your song and it’s quite possible there’s a kid from the audience on stage, too. Sweet…
That’s a lot of foot work for a person to do.
That’s a tedious task for any individual.
Do you have any idea how many people, emails, phone calls it takes to get that information…for one concert year, let alone years of performances?
But what really bites, and bites really hard is being told by the organization that you are a member of that its your job to do.
EXCUSE ME for being a member!
Unhappily, but sorely in need of these severely back dated funds we contact Keith Urban’s folk.
‘That comes from ASCAP, Vernon. We don’t give out set lists.’
Next follows a barrage of expletives which I choose not to repeat, but as you can imagine and will understand this is extremely frustrating!
I wonder how many writers have missed out on their ‘God given right to their royalties from performances over the years.
It was probably too much trouble getting the concert set list themselves.
Perhaps, even a little bit of ‘well, maybe its just not worth my trouble, it’s too small’.
No earnings are too small and its organizations like ASCAP that bank on, and I mean BANK on the little (but with HUGE talents) guys not going to the trouble and just letting it slide. That’s a very large annual revenue for ASCAP, let alone the interest.
So we go back to ASCAP…but hang on they’re out of the office ’til Tuesday.
“ASCAP receives payment for public performances of songs and compositions by negotiating license fees with the users of music (radio, TV, cable, bars, clubs, restaurants, shopping malls, concert halls and promoters, web sites, airlines, orchestras, etc.) and distributing these monies to members whose works were performed.”
“There are billions of performances licensed by ASCAP each year. ASCAP is committed to paying our members for these performances fairly, accurately and efficiently. ASCAP collects and distributes more money in performance royalty income than any other organization and our payment system is by far the fairest and most objective in the U.S.”
Not so…
check this out, a hugely funny and timely interview with Vernon Rust that we recorded a while ago…
Wow…I haven’t logged on, blogged on or rambled on about anything in ages. And I mean absolutely ages…probably since the beginning of this wonderfully artistic new year of 2012…
So, whats been happening in our lives?
Well…since we got up off the dusty streets of Nashville last summer and found ourselves in a beautiful but dilapitated 20 plus year old Nissan Stanza this winter so much has changed…
it was a harsh winter but we have been so blessed with such awesome friends as John Perkins, Bo Barber, Cowboy Eddie Long and so many many others, strangers abound ready willing and able to come to the assistance of two crazy and in love artistes!
Vernon and I started filming a somewhat silly, very quirky but hilariously funny mini reality show…and it all started here, on you tube:
since I didn’t gain much of a following on you tube and heavens to betsy, it sure takes a lot longer to upload there than my awesome account on flickr, we aimed our daily funnies at my stellar friends and artists on flickr:
And goodness gracious it has grown, and grown and grown…
We have 500 plus viewers and countless Twitter followers! It is all so very exciting!!! I can’t begin to tell you all about the fun we have making these short video clips of basically Vernon cutting up in front of the camera…
The friends we have made, online, on the street, at wal-mart, the gas station…in the police force! Thank you the boys in blue @ Nashville Metro for always showing us your sense of humor.
The Nissan finally spluttered and died about a month or so ago and we now have a much more comfortable and reliable ride in the form of a Ford Taurus. Its getting pretty hot here in Nashville and its still terrribly hard living in a car together but the creativity and love between us deepens each day…
It shouldn’t be long before we are on the road and Vernon is out playing music for the audience he so deserves.
Here is Cadillac, Tennessee written & performed by Vernon Rust (hint: its about livin’ and lovin’ in your car!)
Please check in and continue to follow the Nashville Wild Child project on Facebook…
You would not believe what has happened over the last couple of days!
Boy…does our saga continue.
The guys from Shreveport, that is John Perkins and Scott Floyd Crain came up to shoot some film for the Nashville Wild Child documentary.
It’s a rags to riches to gutter and then redemption life thus far story of my man Vernon Rust.
He’s the hottest songwriter in Nashville right now, with 6 cuts from a variety of recording artists namely; Scotty McCreery, David Nail, The Oak Ridge boys and new comer John Damian.
PLUS…he recorded and released an extremely spiritually inspired ‘A lot more Jesus’ with a group of the most amazing artists I have ever had the joy to meet…
Funny thing though…it doesn’t mean jack right now, as those kind of credits take a good 3-4 months to trickle back to the real man behind the freakin’ great tune that you just can’t get outta your head!!!!!!!!!
Filming went really well in the shadow and setting sun of the Parthenon…
Vernon and I were a wee bit anxious as we’re not crazy about being portrayed in our current homeless state.
However, Vernon rose admirably to the occasion & played an awesome couple of songs, ‘A lot more Jesus’ and ‘Wheels’…
We slept in the car that night when some thing disastrous happened…Old Bessies heating motor went out.
It was so cold in the car we wound up driving around the corner to Southern Hills hospital at 5am and sat cold protest in the ER waiting room.
Now the night shift are one heck of an easy going bunch and they put the telly on for us & gave us hot coffee, crackers, etc….how sweet!
The next day felt quite dire.
With dwindling funds, (the dollar goes absolutely no where these days, neither does the pound, the euro, etc, etc) we were really worried about the night ahead.
Temperatures were dropping fast making the thought of lasting the night in a cold car more and more dicey.
Then Vernon produced a card from a really cool musician dude we had met briefly while on our pilgrimage down to Montgomery, Al and recording ‘A lot more Jesus’.
Something had told Vernon to hang on to that card. It had not even made its way in to his wallet.
To top it all, add insult to injury…the driver’s side window powered down and stuck…and stuck fast!
Just what we needed, a nice open window for the 20 degree weather we were facing.
Enter ‘Cowboy’ Eddie Long…a veritable angel and THE hostess with the mostest.
He completely took us under his wings and got us in to a room in a motel near his home in Lebanon, TN.
Not only that but he entertained us at his place, made sure we were fed and watered, like only a true cowboy would…
On top of such wonderful hospitality he also hooked us up with two of the coolest motor mechanics….Elisha and Joe of E&J auto repair (615)347-8358….
They come HIGHLY recommende and spent the afternoon putting in a new heating motor and trying to fix the window.
The heater was a success, alas the window not.
So we taped it up good and proper with plastic…talk about a hillbilly ride!
And then it’s back to Nashville, and straight to the library before I would have serious internet withdrawal or writers cramp….
And to defy any logic to recent event…Guess what happened? Old Bessie’s radio came on good and loud with some pretty solid speaker action…
Wow…what a crazy few days and finally the realization of a dream and vision I had a year ago when I first met Vernon. It was Christmas morning and he came downstairs to the living area of a very depressing rooming house that we had both found ourselves trapped in.
He played a handful of his brilliant songs. Like I have written about so many times, his songs are like beautiful stories and it was one Christmas day that I will cherish forever. But what really impressed me and amazed me no end was the fact that Vernon is an incredible performer. If anyone should sing his songs, it is HIM!
The whirlwind months have been filled with wonderful news of one artist or another covering a Vernon Rust song…each and every day it’s something new and exciting. His songs are timeless classics, as cool and moving today as they were when he first penned them 5, 10, 15 plus years ago.
What struck me, this time last year…is the fact that if anyone should be out performing, wowing the crowd and singing from his vast repertoire, it is Vernon.
Last night he took the stage at The Werehouse and totally rocked the house with the help, support and creativity of an awesome group of musicians…Cody Cooke, Jackie Brock and Ryan Dougherty. It was an awesome set of shared songs, music and I can tell you the crowd loved it all! They opened for David Allen Coe and if any artist needed the audience warmed up, David surely was one lucky son of an outlaw gun.
Check out this awesome clip from last night’s show:
More importantly, earlier on that evening Vernon received an award and was inducted in to NXNWLAMusicFoundation (North by Northwest Louisiana Music Association) hall of fame. He joins an illustrious group of musicians and songwriters…Lead Belly and Bob Campbell, who is truly a radio icon and recorded artists such as Hank Williams and Elvis.
It was truly a blessed day…and a huge thank you must go out to Dan Garner for his long-standing friendship and support of Vernon and his music.
Me?
Wow…I loved every minute of seeing Vernon on stage, living his passion…finally doing what he should have been doing all these years.
My chest swelled with pride as I surveyed the happy crowd digging my man…
Thank you, as always for John Perkins who was there filming more footage for the Nashville Wild Child documentary so please head on over to Kickstarter and support this project.
So what prompted the recording of this fascinating documentary about one man?
One man who came to Nashville 25 years ago with a boat load of songwriting ideas and a sub conscious vision of having an influence on country music. Or on the recording industry for that matter…
Nashville had most certainly changed over the years and as my personal guide, historian and street companion, Vernon spent our homeless summer telling me all about country music people, the places, the recording studios on Music Row, his experiences….good and bad.
He reflected on what used to be, what once was and what no longer is…
Much has changed since the advent of the internet.
Since the proliferation of personal computers.
LP’s became cassettes…became CD’s…became downloads and unfortunately it all morphed in to file sharing…
Music became barely intangible…
Sadly, and to quote Vernon “you can’t wake up Christmas morning and find a download in your Christmas stocking….”
Illegal downloads whittled away at talented royalty cheques. They ensured that the most important people behind that awesome song you love to listen to on your Ipod, mp3 player, your laptop… is definitely not paid for his work. For his creation. For his idea.
This summer we visited the closed up studios and offices along Music Row. So many musicians, songwriters, technicians left with nothing to do but find a job, earn a paycheck, try to survive…in a rapidly changing business and city.
In Nashville, many (having come here from all over the country) wound up on the streets, their hopes and dreams of making it in the music industry vanished for good…
Vernon’s never vanished. He always believed in his music.
His songs became a dormant volcano, just waiting to erupt in popularity and figure out a way to beautifully infiltrate our technologically driven lives…
What I learned about Vernon though, is that he never lost his love of and belief in people.
Even when life had seemingly beaten him down.
Sometimes because of others, admittedly through his own faults.
His sense of humor kept him going, a constant lifeboat on a dodgy raft. One that has seen him through many a storm.
Most importantly, in my opinion he has songs to share with the world. Music that he is driven to share, with all walks of life.
He draws on his lifetime experiences, both hardships and joys and turns his emotions in to songs that we can all relate to.
His lyrics know no boundaries.
His songs are timeless pieces, more relevant today than when they were born years ago.
Stories about the hard cold life of reality,
of the changes in town when the factory closed down,
of the love we had even though our family was poor and how upon ‘looking back we were the rich kids, after all’,
of how ‘We need a lot more Jesus and a lot less of everything else’.
He currently has young artists such as Scotty McCreery, David Nail and Adam Brand recording and performing his songs.
Rising stars that weren’t even born when Vernon’s lyrics and music were conceived.
I will never forget the morning I found out Scotty McCreery was to include ‘walk in the country’ on his debut album.
The latest winner of American Idol, a young man with a rich, velvety smooth voice and stellar stage presence, wanted to sing my man’s song, a Vernon Rust song!
And sing it so well, too! I ran upstairs, where Vernon was asleep and did something I should never in a million years do, I woke him up….
“Hey, Scotty McCreery is gonna record ‘walk in the country’ for his album ‘Clear as day’”.
Sleepily,Vernon murmured and with very little excitement ‘Hmmmm, so…who is Scotty?’ ‘some local club singer?’ and then added ‘that’s good’ basically meaning ‘let me go back to sleep honey’.
I proceeded to bug him….tripping over words ABOUT how freakin’ wonderful this is, how he had better get up and BE excited! Scotty is HOT. He’s arguably the best winner, ever, of the very popular TV show.
I went on to get him up to full steam on Facebook. To re-connect him with friends from his past. Friends that very much wanted to help him with his future.
John Perkins had tried to find Vernon two years earlier by writing to him via everyone’s favourite social network.
Thankfully, John is a patient man.
He also happens to be a lifelong believer in Vernon’s music too.
During this period of Thanksgiving, family get together’s and comfortable times, Vernon and I never forgot how precariously we had spent the summer months on the streets of Nashville.
We are constantly thankful for the help, support and creativity of a friend in John Perkins.
For Vernon’s younger brother Ken and his beautiful family, who took us in over the holiday of gratitude…made us feel most welcome, wanted…loved.
Not once have we forgotten our friends less fortunate, who still face the struggle of day-to-day survival in a homeless world.
We think of them more so now than we ever have, now that winter brings colder weather.
Now that the holidays are here and families are united, share food, enjoy gifts and comfort…
So many have no family. Or they have long been estranged.
There are few friends on the street. It’s very hard to trust anyone or let your guard down.
Sub consciously you find yourself putting up a wall. An imaginary wall of protection from the elements, from figures of authority or others trying desperately to survive, just like you.
They spend Thanksgiving and Christmas alone or perhaps with a church group willing to sacrifice their own time for those in need or without.
Forever more, Vernon and I are particularly thankful because we have been there. We have experienced homelessness.
We both have encountered a rocky road in life. Poor choices, bad decisions…untimely or inopportune. Call it what you will.
Vernon enjoyed success. He met and mingled with the famous and talented. He was given opportunities…
Some may say he blew it all, that he lost everything because of his own excesses.
That he, quite possibly is his own worst enemy.
I, too followed a similar path.
Struggling so much with myself. Fighting the flow of life…
Maybe we are all guilty of doing just that, at some point or another in our lives?
There is, all of a sudden time to indulge ourselves.
The rewards of hard work, talent and success, uplift and ply our ego’s.
We finally see a fruition to all our hard labours, to all the hours we have struggled with the coming to reality of our art and ideas.
We squander the chance to enjoy a time rich with comforts. We experience a momentary lapse of responsibility.
Success…
It’s a very hard time for some to handle. Everything happens so quickly.
Friends that you thought were friends really never were.
We become self-absorbed…
Without thinking, we choose a path of self-destruction.
And then something happens to turn it all around.
A soul search.
A casual conversation with someone who cares.
We both have many to thank for our renaissance.
To come out of such a wilderness, relatively unscathed…
and to be given a second chance.
What a unique and special blessing!
One that we both cherish everyday.
The gift of having survived.
The opportunity to now make the right decisions.
And to do good with all that comes our way.
For that we are truly thankful.
“It’s not what you have, but who do you love?”
From the song, Rich Kids (written by Vernon Rust)
Please visit Kickstarter and support our documentary.
Please click on the above link for more information about the documentary ‘Nashville Wild Child – The Vernon Rust Story’and to make a donation towards the production of Vernon’s highly entertaining and poignant story…
Now I would never in a million years claim to be an aficionado on great music. Neither would I say I’m a huge fan of country music. But I know what I like and I most certainly like what I know.
Recently I got to see behind the scenes of the making of a documentary titled ‘Nashville Wild Child – The Vernon Rust story’. It is a film about the man, the song writer that has become such a huge part of my life this year.
I first met Vernon when I moved to Nashville December 2010. I came here reluctantly and really with nowhere else to go, my life at a distinct crossroads with some definite changes to be made. Vernon happened to rent a room upstairs and he appeared Christmas morning, armed with his beautiful, unique and one-of-a- kind green guitar. I had already been told that he was one of the best songwriters in Nashville. What I heard that morning certainly backed that statement up.
Vernon is credited with having discovered and assisted in the making of country music’s very own Keith Urban. The two had written together nearly all of Urban’s first US album release ‘The Ranch’. An album that many fans claim to be Urban’s best with songs like ‘Walk in the country’, ‘Homespun love’ and ‘ Desiree’.
For whatever reasons, the two parted company. Urban went on to a very successful career in country music and Rust slipped in to relative obscurity, enjoying over time the income from smaller and smaller royalty checks. He hid himself away, rarely performed and lived life on the razor thin edge of poverty.
So what was a hugely talented singer/songwriter doing hiding in a fairly run down rooming house in Southern Hills, Nashville? Trying very hard to not pawn his unique guitar, for one and trying to survive on the erratic income from frozen meat sales.
What I encountered that Christmas morning were some of the most awesome songs I had ever heard. They flowed like beautiful, sometimes sad but forever hopeful rivers of human emotion and experience. They sung like stories.
Stories shared by couples falling in and out of love. And finding love again.
Stories that are sung to children at bed time.
He had my attention…
And I met a man who has become my lifelong friend, companion, mentor and inspiration…
Check back real soon for my blog – Nashville Wild Child Part II…
I have thought a lot lately about why I feel, or any artist feels, the need to produce art….be it music, painting, sculpture. I can completely understand and relate if the driving force is to earn a living. However, if I HAD to paint, photograph or write in order to survive, I’m very unsure of my abilities to produce. Working under that kind of pressure is very hard, it can even obstruct the creative flow. Up until about a year ago, I was a member of the regular workforce of the world. Art, among other interests, was strictly an interest. Over the years, I paid little attention to what is essentially my life force, to the blood coursing through my creative channels. What was I thinking? Or more realistically, not thinking? At the close of a days work, I had a hard enough time winding down from the craziness of the day let alone remotely feel like getting my arty groove thing going and sinking my teeth in to a few hours of self-expression. Silly, really because the one thing I have learned that helps me relax, or work through my fears and frustrations is to create. Be it losing myself in a painting, going for a ramble with my camera, or write about something that’s bouncing around in my head. It is fascinating tome, to see how my art has changed periodically along with my moods and the stability of my situation. Anxious or upset? Dark and disturbing pieces materialize. It is all so very sub-conscious with me.
Anyway, I experienced a pretty severe burn out from my career.It was a difficult time and the best way I could cope was through expressing myself with drawing and painting. Sometimes I would stay up 2 or 3 days at a time, determined to work it out…push through the troubled thoughts. Art became very much a comfort and a therapy for me. I no longer wanted it to play second fiddle to a job, to spending time in a place that I really, really didn’t care to go to. And loss of income did not matter what so ever. Poor but so alive ! Nothing but a resounding relief to be off of that mad hamster wheel of my former life.
Maybe it was this realization that forced me to self destruct in the real world, to throw in the towel of conformity. I quit, gave up and gained so much more. I adopted the lifestyle of a nomadic artist, winging it from day-to-day. To quote my best friend, “If you’re not living on the edge, you’re taking up to much space.” It was time, high time to start living on the edge.
Getting together with my best friend and eternal companion, Vernon was quite the epitome of a drama fueled soap opera! Immediately, upon meeting, our muses sparked and burned brightly together. We were to experience and form a centuries old cosmic connection. This is something that doesn’t come along too often in a person’s lifetime. It was not gong to be easy and without elaborating on the details, our union would in turn piss off quite a few mortals here on earth.
Needless to say, we found ourselves thrown out of a wasp’s nest of confusion and without a roof over our heads. Out of the fat and in to the proverbial fire. And so began the incredibly intense, life-rewarding challenge of street survival, or as the two of us coined our new life together, urban camping. It find oneself in a brand new, astoundingly intense and mind-blowing relationship is one thing but then throw in to the insanely beautiful mix the onset of homelessness and the challenges that accompany it. I don’t think too many couples would be able to survive. But then this is no ordinary love affair. No run-of-the mill infatuation or affection for each other. We felt as though we had known each other for a very long time, that we had been searching for one another forever. Nothing or no one had ever felt so right.
As a way to survive, I displayed my art on 2nd and Broadway. I asked for donations. Actually, no…I hated to ask for anything. I often gave my pictures and painted stones away, especially to the children who simply could not resist stopping and looking. They made my day. They made me realize that I truly am blessed with a wonderful gift. I couldn’t possibly accept money.
The experience bought to mind the expression,
‘Art for art’s sake.’
French in origin, ‘l’art pour l’art’ expresses a philosophy that the intrinsic value of art is far removed from any practical application or implication. Art for art’s sake….the only true art. Such expression is often described as autotelic, a word of Greek origin meaning ‘complete in itself’. This concept is used to describe people who are internally driven, self motivated with a sense of purpose and curiosity. It differs from being externally driven where things such as money, comfort, power and fame are the motivating forces at play.
A person who is considered autotelic needs little distraction from the world. They require fewer material possessions. Comfort, power and fame are simply not important because they are completely rewarded by what they do. Their lives have a fluidity in relationships, with other people, when purely going about activities of daily life. They are invariably never bored and find themselves constantly involved with all around them and engaged in the current of daily life.
To be an artist for art’s sake! To be so content and at peace with the world because of your creativity. Could there be anything better to attain in life? Anything more rewarding or soul satisfying…
I discovered that I love to write about life, people, photography and art, it’s something I really enjoy. I enjoy sharing what I love with others and nothing could please me more than to know someone likes and appreciates my expression.
Money has nothing to do with it.
Now, to have the luxury of being able to paint away, to not be concerned about paying bills, etc is surely a dream come true for any struggling artist.
Vernon and I are no longer homeless. We are blessed to have the most amazing families and friends. We are very blessed to have an awesome future together. We take absolutely nothing for granted and we cherish the simplest of life’s necessities and pleasures. We learned invaluable lessons on the harsh streets.
I having finally found the soul mate that I have searched for all my life. We inspire each other. We feed each others creativity. We nourish each others soul. There is no time for petty bothersome travails. We do not even attempt to try to change the other person. Why, what could I possibly want to change! Most importantly, we want for the other to be the best person they ever wanted to be. To go farther than they ever imagined. To explore all they want to explore.
I have finally found my long-lost home with another artist.
I haven’t performed this task too often. I’m not sure why, could be any number of reasons; I am not worthy, it’s too much hassle, I don’t have the time (I say that with embarrassment, but it’s so very true/farther from the truth).
Quite frankly, I love it!
It gives me the time to ponder laboriously, but shamelessly over my photographic past and recap moments frozen in time…
…isn’t all art never finished, just abandoned?
Not that I should feel any guilt, surrounding looking at my work. Actually, what really has stopped me over the years from doing this more? You know, from feelin’ good about my stuff, from diggin’ my own s#@t !
So start loving on your art, be proud of your music, “emerge from the jungle and let them hear you roar”!
To me it’s about a system of elimination that involves the five facts of a fabulous foto;
Does it seize my attention when I see it for the very first time? Is the image ‘arresting’?
Does it challenge me? Even disturb me or make me feel strongly in a certain way.
Could it be interpreted by some as controversial ?
Are there ideas presented that flow from the norm?
Does it contain a subject matter that is considered taboo or might offend someone?
Good questions to ask. When contemplating any art form.
See to me, I expect all answers of the rule of five to be a resounding ‘YES’ ! Without a doubt, ‘SHOCK ME’.
And this desire has always been a part of me. Most people formulate in their minds, exactly what they like from a pretty early age and ‘By Golly’, they are gonna stick to it. So don’t ‘you dare challenge my thinking’, or ‘throw off my sense of order and beauty’. ‘I may grow a wee bit more open-minded as I get older, but don’t expect much’.
My Dad and I have forever been a pole apart on this one. Generational? Maybe. Experience? Possibly.
I always wanted to grow up and not be an adult.
I am celestially blessed to be this way. Only now, am I learning acceptance of myself and what I like. Define what really is normal and keep me posted…
Talking of boring, Maslow’s theory of self -actualization honestly popped up during conversation just the other day.
Don’t ask, I’m completely psyched hanging out these daze…
…..it’s the type of company I’m around. It has a lot to do with it, for real!
It’s more of a process of maturation. Of developing a discerning eye, an impeccable sense of your own passion and learning when to put that forth.
Some call it a mid-life crisis, some may term you a late bloomer….
Call it what you want…
We can only hope that it is soon followed by a renaissance.
Rarely, do I ‘touch up’ my photography.
If I look at it, rapidly assess and analyze the rule of five then its pretty much good to go.
And there is most definitely a place for perfect photo-shopped pictures, absolutely!
It’s just that I’m more organic. What you see, is what you get.
I have always seen the beauty in desolation, dilapidation and despair.
…it’s just taken me a while to realize that that’s okay.
The first time I submitted a photo for local publication was 20 odd years ago. It was a 35mm taken of the word ‘WAR’.
