Lonely At the Top Of The Mountain

There is only one way to go when you get to the top ... down!

A very successful Nashville producer/publisher told me once that all the fun was getting to the top. Once you get to the top it's all downhill. I'm thinking of this because the Billboard Music Award nominations came out with what I call the New Five.

Top Country Artist:
Jason Aldean
Zac Brown Band
Lady Antebellum
Blake Shelton
Taylor Swift

All deserve to be in that list ... five ... just five ... only five at a time can be there. So that leaves out Keith Urban, Brad Paisley, Carrie Underwood and a lot of others.

Those folks have been at the top of the mountain. They are on the other side ... for the most part. Things could change and they get back in the five, but for the most part their careers are in the next phase.

It's hard on artists when they work hard ... win the top awards and then no longer get nominated. They act like they don't care but they do. It's only human to care.

The entertainment business is tough and cruel at times. "Idol" kicked off a young man this week, Colton Dixon. My youngest daughter says she will never watch that show again. The best of times and the worst of times. Only one can be the "Idol" winner. Same with "The Voice." Miranda Lambert is still trying to find a way to help ousted contestant Rae Lynn. It's all hard and then harder.

Reinventing yourself, your company is part of the gig. Just because you once did it doesn't mean you get to keep doing it. Or even should be doing it. Timing and knowing when to change is critical to happiness and success.

Keith Urban going into the Opry is a win/win for all involved!

Fame is fleeting. When Levon Helm died this week, my TV newsroom really didn't know who he was. Might have heard the name but was not aware of his standing in the critical music world. His death might not have meant much in Country radio stations but his musical career was a good one. The Band and Levon Helm ... two names ... Google and iTunes search!

Most people would be writing about Dick Clark. I think it's all been said pretty much. I loved him! He was my broadcast role model. Carson was cool but Clark was cooler. So Sad to have another role model, Mike Wallace, die recently, too.

Dick Clark was the man, from his countdown shows on radio to his voiceover on KOST/Los Angeles. Smooth as silk. Where The Action Is was my home-from-school show. American Bandstand was freaky with all those dancing couples. The game shows and everything else. The producer part of Dick Clark was just as great. You know the credits by now. He was kind and really knew how to handle a crisis backstage.

He did it all. I hated seeing him struggle after that stroke. Wanted to reach through the radio and pop the jocks who were making fun of him in the mouth.

Ryan Seacrest has a great role model and I hope he starts making more worthwhile TV as a producer. Just being rich isn't enough. Aim higher, young Seacrest. Aim higher.

Sad week for the music business. That image of the space shuttle Discovery flying over the U.S. Capitol and Dick Clark standing at that podium of American Bandstand. Two great symbols burned onto my memory.

Is anyone making a memory today? A good one? I hope so.