Music Before the Money

In the ’60’s and ’70’s, “cutting a record” was the Holy Grail of musicians. To be able to drive down the street with your song playing on the radio was the equivalent of climbing Mount Everest. You could die after the song ended and your life was complete. There was never any thought about monetary compensation or who owned what percentage of the royalties. It was about the feeling and knowing that people were listening to something you created. Unlike the great artists and musicians of the 1800’s you did not have to be dead to be recognized.

The studio itself was similar to the inside of a “boogey van”: plush carpets on the floor, and sometimes on the walls and ceilings. The whole world was revealed to the engineer through the triple-paned picture window in front of the console and the huge speakers suspended on each side of the room.

My first studio experience was called a “quick dip” and was done at Total Sound West Studios in Vancouver. For $500 (1978 money) you could get in for the day and have 2 songs recorded. Then it was pressed onto a 45 and you got 250 of those to keep. You didn’t get to keep the 2″ tape but they gave you the master. It was not an unpleasant experience but - as I found myself doing many times later - everyone watched the clock. The producer was renting the studio and his profit depended on the time. He was getting the 2 musicians for $25 a pop.

The musicians we had were great and a harmonica player showed up and played for $10, just enough to get a few beers afterwards before his next gig. It was his harp that made the songs.

It was good experience. I knew my songs and could sing them in the first couple of tries, because that’s all we had. The guitar player doubled on bass and the drummer used the studio kit. Because the producer was a rocker the songs were mixed drum-heavy.

And, y’know, they didn’t turn out badly at all. I guess I received a total of $97 in royalties over a couple of years and several TV appearances so, all-in-all, it was a great experience. I also got more work because I was a”Recording Act.”

I later went on to do an album - also a “quick dip”- which also received some airplay from the FM stations and a few TV spots. And some country DJ in Edmonton played a cut off the album for almost a year.

Relaxing is becoming a dying art. We feed ourselves, drink beer, exercise, take showers and pop pills, all in the effort to relax. The first two can lead to dangerous addictions - if we seek comfort there - as can the last one. Some exercise junkies suffer injuries and worn parts if they constantly take it over the limit. And people who take lots of showers - well, we won’t go there!

A non-invasive exercise to instantly relax is something we do naturally but rarely build on its virtues: breathing. From India we have learned yoga exercises, meditation and a vegetarian diet and from that country we have to learn a practice that even bablies do. But in Indian Buddhist philosophy, breath is sacred and is called “Prahna.”

For those of us who want to skip philosophy get to the nuts-and-bolts here is a simple breathing exercise that works and can be done almost anywhere. It is a 7-7-7-7 breathing system - and it works:

1) Inhale for a count of 7. (This can be as long or short a count as you want but it has to be equal for all stages. This energizes the system)

2) Hold for 7 (In this process, the metabolism slows down and and the body chemistry takes over to absorb nutrients and get rid of waste.

3) Exhale for 7: (Expels impurities and waste)

4) Hold for 7 (Body rests for the next round)

Do this 6 more times. At the end of it, based on my results, you will be energized.

Now, anytime you feel stressed, take a few minutes and breathe. It beats counting to ten.

For tracking the plot of a new novel here is a trick that really works:

Pick a favorite book that you have read a few times and know the storyline by heart. Get a big sheet of paper - packing paper is great - and spread it out on the table. Next, draw a line down the center. This is the timeline. Then, at the far left end of the line put an “X” to denote the main character - or the name. Lastly, take a ruler and put in bisecting lines at regular intervals ( 1″ will do).

This is the site diagram of the book. If it’s the “Wizard of Oz” you chose you would have a defining line when the movie switches to color and then back to black-and-white. As Dorothy meets each character an extra parallel line could be added in a different color. But make sure you put notes down. When you finally step back and look at the Oz trip there are many side roads and switchbacks until she gets to the balloon.

The main point of this exercise is to get you brain thinking in 2D, or even 3D. This is just a tool where you can invent all types of scenarios for you character - and characters. You can provide you own detours and switch backs, and roads that go nowhere, just like in the movie. The chapters can be put in after this.

Now, start again with your idea for a novel. Use pencil so you can erase ideas that don’t work. Pin the paper to the wall and look at it from time to time. You’d be surprised at the ideas that come from daily updates.

And don’t be afraid to throw it away and start again. In the meantime, write. . . .write every day. That’s what writers do.