The Year Of The Tour ... And Humpty Dumpty

A couple of times a day lately news hits the e-mail box of a new tour or an expansion of a previously announced one. Kenny adds Nashville and so does Stevie Wonder. Mariah heads to Vegas and so does The Voice winner.

The big tours are adding dates and the competition for fan dollars has never been greater. Where are we getting all this money for so many shows and festivals? So many sound so good, too!

Heard a booking agent send up a quiet red flag six months ago. Too many tours going for too few dollars ... somebody is going to get hurt!!!

The dust has not settled but how are the fans going to pay for all the shows that sound so great. Coming in waves. The great undetermined consequence of 2015.

Well, hardly the only issue ... what's going on in the streaming war? How much lobbying is underway in Washington to help the songwriters? And who will go against them? Streaming payment rates earmarked for the songwriter just may require federal law since the record companies are getting their money and aren't barking very loud.

Taylor Swift and her people are looking very smart right now ... pulling her music was the right thing to do. You can NOT stop the future but you can resist the temptation to commit suicide. Giving away your intellectual property for pennies is foolish!

Overcrowded tour calendars and streaming money ... those are the two big issues.

See this stat? In the Top 100 Country Songs of 2014 in Billboard, 69 had drinking references? Add that YouTube video where all the songs sound alike and you have a content issue that is a real killer. Cookie-cutter Country is not a great future ad campaign.

Just thought of another issue ... and I thought we were rolling along pretty good.

The sudden decision to declare Music Row a National Treasure. I guess the old saying, "Better late than never." What's the percentage of anything music-related left in that zone now? Compare it to 10 years ago, on 16th ... 17th ... 18th Ave. ... You would be shocked.. Think of all the folks who moved ... or buildings torn down. It's ugly. Studio A is a good place to make a stand, but it is probably too late. The business has moved on ... To the Gulch, Downtown and Berry Hill. A few of the big publishers remain, but Big Machine holds on. Nothing stays the same. History is preserved but the present has moved on since the days of everyone altogether in a few blocks ... It was unique. Nashville condo mania and the expansion of Vanderbilt has won the battle and probably the war.

Preserve the history and put up some historical markers. Humpty Dumpty can't be put back on the wall. The music business evolves and lives now in the cloud ... not on your block.

A big week for the Glen Campbell supporters ... from their press folks:

Music icon Glen Campbell's Grammy-nominated song, "I'm Not Gonna Miss You," can now add Oscar nominee to its growing list of accolades. It was announced this morning that the song has been recognized by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences in the category of Best Original Song.

The song appears in the critically praised documentary, Glen Campbell ... I'll Be Me, which follows Glen's final tour and his struggle with Alzheimer's Disease.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, only 20 Oscar nominations have ever been accorded to documentary features in categories other than the one designated for them (Best Documentary). Glen Campbell ... I'll Be Me will now be added to that list.