Mr. Brown, I certainly respect what you do and understand that what you do is a very tough and competitive field and great success in the field takes skill, determination, a bit of luck and good timing. I know even a casual look beyond the article reveals the people mentioned in the article are not only the exception to the norm, but their fortunes derive from many streams of income and not just royalties. The purpose of Harold's comment to me was to motivate me to start back writing. His comment didn't promise success or that the journey would be easy or anything other than how you and Herb describe it. You and Herb give us a wonderful and insightful look from the inside perspective you have of the reality, difficulty and the harsh statistics. I believe every word you guys shared.

I think my post may have touched your "selling the myth" button a little and I regret that it did. I had stopped writing songs at the time Harold made his comment to me and his intent was to motivate me to write again. Over my lifespan, writing has always been at the hobbyist level. I've never attempted to make my living writing or performing music. I've never pitched a song. I've never joined a PRO.

I think it's unlikely you nor your peers you phoned have ever written a song while in high school and later recorded it onto an album that didn't sell 500 copies yet 42 years later a producer cold called and purchased the rights to include that song in a documentary. Virtually impossible but that's what happened to me. That company also got the song included into the sound track of a movie, which is something I could never accomplish on my own. The song just wasn't included in the sound track but was also the focus of a scene in the movie.

Believe me, it is not a hit song, great recording or 'art'. It is an amateurish, poorly recorded, obscure song that somehow did not pass through a single roadblock or obstacle you detailed. It's not a song that contributed to my retirement but the advance was more than the total album sales. The original songs on the User Showcase are better quality in content and production.

I appreciate your's and Herb's insight into the real world and completely agree it's the norm. Hopefully you understand the motivational aspect of my post and that I have no intent to "sell the myth".

Last edited by Charlie Fogle; 05/30/20 03:43 AM.
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