Re: One more thought...

[mdean@godzilla.athensnet.com (Michael W. Dean)]

In article <199602101634.IAA03204@gryphon.com>,  <violet@bbs.np1.com> wrote:
>If you ever hear anyone in the future who sounds like Kate or Tori, it
>may be me.  I fully expect to be tortured and roasted on a slow spit
>bacause of it. And that's why that first line is a contradiction;  you
>probably won't ever hear me.  I'm still too afraid of the inevitable
>criticism of the flavor I see here...criticism without any apparent,
>good reason other than two artists being birds of a feather and people
>being unable to fathom that.  Even after lots of encouragement, I'm
>still afraid of that.  I know that's my own weakness, but maybe
>something I might have said could have changed your life.  That's what
>makes me the saddest.  That you are the very person I write songs for
>and I can't reach you.

    There's "birds of a feather," and then there's "derivative" (not to 
mention the all-too-frequent "blatant rip-off").  The line is a little blurry
between those first two, hence the criticism.  Misguided as it may sometimes
seem, public criticism serves a good purpose in that it does in fact weed out
some of the snake oil salesmen.  The listening public has every right to
decide who they do and do not want to listen to, and criticism is a natural
product of this.  You cannot attempt to reach us without putting yourself in
our hands.  We get to reach you too, and we are under no obligation to make
all of our input positive.
    On the other hand, you could choose to be true to your artistic vision,
whatever that may be, and simply stop giving a damn what the world thinks.  
It is when your art becomes product, when you want us to start paying for it,
that we truly become involved.  We will criticize you from the wallet at that
point, and that's the most honest criticism there is.

Mike
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