A Good Bad Thing by Tweeter

After three consecutive years, two of those as a chili and bean judge, my streak of attending the LJT Fest came to a very sad end.  It was just my unfortunate luck as that's the way the automobile sales industry goes.  Rest assured that I will be more than prepared to rectify myself next year.  Hopefully, my inaugural Tommy Alverson Festival will ease my pain.  It was an extra shot to the heart in that I had this billed as one of the top two lineups of talent that I could remember.  I'll be anxious to hear the stories from this one.  But enough of the heartbreak for now.

Today in my weekly conversation with my folks, I got the lo-down on their Jerry Jeff and Django Walker experience in Wichita Falls Saturday night.  A long time friend of our family had tickets to see the icon at Memorial Auditorium, and they decided to take in the show.  From what I heard, they were all like a group of college kids who had an exam the next day...a drink at the Oyster Bar before hand, the show, breakfast at IHOP afterwards and the hour drive home.

Now my Dad is the single reason for my musical taste.  He raised me like all Texas parents should.  Bob Wills, Ray Price, Willie Nelson, Merle Haggard, Waylon, and Marty Robbins were played in good doses for me as a child.  And while my folks might not be as into some of the newer acts of OKOM as I am, they really enjoyed the show this weekend.  They were also impressed with Django and even managed to sing along with a few songs. But one thing caught my attention and prompted this article.

The place was riddled with a lot of high school/college "Tom, Dick, and Harrys".  My Mom thought it was strange and a bit tasteless how many would sing along with some of the well-known songs but used the rest of the time for social hour.  She noted one time of a lady next to them asking some punk to politely hold it down who proceeded to give her a nasty look.  Now if I had even thought of giving a lady a nasty look, at any age, Dad would have taken me to the woodshed.  Kids raised right, as most of us were, just have manners.  This is a lost art today, and I say parents today just need to suck it up and get some discipline back into things.

I guess this is just a price we pay.  Growth in something we love never comes without some setbacks.  I, for one, think this is a good kind of problem to have.  As the artists we all know and love grow in popularity, the music will continue to become the "cool thing".  Never is it more evident than at shows of Jerry Jeff, Pat Green, REK and some others.  The "new longtime fans" come out, support the artist, and sing along.  But when a song comes on they don't know, it becomes social hour.  Hopefully, with the continued growth, the problem will fix itself in its own way.  The way I look at it is that growth is growth and exposure is exposure.  Kind of like certain "Texas Country" radio stations, the crap still goes on but the bottom line is that the fan base is growing, too.  If this is a price we must pay, then I say just bring it.  I doubt Ed, Tommy, Davin or Max would mind selling a few more CDs.

Until next time, keep the wheels spinnin' and the beavers grinnin'. Ten Four.

                                                                                                   Tweeter
 

Written by Brandon Evans, April, 2002                  

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Brandon Evans is a free lance writer for Miss Lana's Texicana Music Central.  The opinions expressed by Texicana Music Central columnists do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Miss Lana or MissLana.com.  All content © 2002 Miss Lana's Texicana Music Central. All rights reserved.  No part of this site may be reproduced or copied without the permission of the site owner. This includes html code.