The Time Dave Elkins Played in My Living Room

Prelude to a Dream This is the story of my best birthday present ever.  One of the hallmarks of adulthood is realizing that paychecks allow you to buy yourself gifts; and who knows you better than you?  Armed with a modest but steady income, on the eve of my quarter-century day, I made an investment…

How to Support the Artists You Believe In

Today I’ve got a message for you that’s near and dear to my heart.  Remember that band Mae?  If not, it’s cool, but they were a big part of my musical life.  And for the last three records they put out, Mae was a self-managed band from top to bottom. Lead singer Dave Elkins has…

The End of Two Eras

Goodness knows there are more active musical artists today than there were thirty years ago – or five years ago, or yesterday.  Just like the global population, the “band population” has a birth rate that exceeds its mortality rate.  (Don’t ask for an analogue for shifting line-ups or new group formation – it gets gruesome.)…