I photographed a band this week that might be around for the long run. They are so young that they had to cancel a show a week ago because the band members weren’t  old enough to get into the venue. They are called Dawes and hail from Los Angeles. Two of the guys are brothers, whose father, Lenny Goldsmith is the singer of the legendary Tower of Power. They have a great album out and are getting a ton of great critical acclaim.

Thursday night they played a sold out concert at the Metro in Chicago. An hour of great pop music, reminiscent of the Byrds, played to a sold out crowd who seemed to know the words to every song, the band gives me faith that there might be a future to the world of music.

Hanging out with them before the show, they were  very nice to me and the people that I was with, constantly offering us something to drink. When they hit the stage, there was a great intensity to what they were doing, coupled with some great musicianship and some perfect harmonies. Go see them while you can still get a ticket!!

In June of 1997, one of the radio stations in town (now defunct) put on the usual hodgepoge summer concert spectacular comprised of all the top people who they were playing at the time. It is a tradition throughout the industry that if you “make nice” with the radio station b=y playing their show, they will keep playing your records, or, if you are new they will start playing your records.

I would always ask for a photo pass, because it was a good way to get photos of many bands, both established and up and coming. One of the bands playing that day was Veruca Salt, a local band that was famous for about 5 minutes. They looked kind of cute and sassy so I took a few pictures of them.

After their set, we were all waiting around in the pit for the next band, a very weird set comprised of one half of the band Bush (Gavin the singer- Mr. Gwen Spefani and Nigel, the guitar player) doing acoustic versions of a few Bush songs. As they were very popular at the time, it was a perfect time to photograph the two guys on a big stage with good lights.

Into the pit walked a very harried manager type, who proceeded to pass out contracts to all the photographers, telling us that we couldn’t photograph the Bush guys unless we signed the contract. Many of the photographers pulled out their pens, but I proceeded to actually read the contract! Imagine my surprise when I found out that the contract was for Veruca Salt. I yelled for everybody to stop, and I asked the guy why he was bringing us their contract after they played (illegal and unenforceable- you can’t ask someone to agree to something after the fact; they have to be given the right to read a document beforehand and decide if they want to sign it). He admitted that he had forgotten to get them signed before the band went on. He told us that he worked for a big management company, and he forbid us to shoot Gavin and Nigel until we signed the contract. I tore up the contract and handed him the pieces as the Bush guys took the stage, and proceeded to photograph them. There was nothing he could do. The rest of the photographers followed my lead.

Too bad neither band had any real success after that and the pictures are pretty worthless!!

I have been watching the new season of Bored to Death, the fine HBO series on Monday nights. The stars of the show are Jason Schwartzman, Ted Danson and Zach Galafianakis. Great stories and great acting. Every time I watch it I am reminded of some time spent with the star of the show.

In February, 1995, my friend Dan called me to ask me if I wanted to photograph a new band he was managing called Phantom Planet. I went to the House of Blues and met the band who showed me a cool passageway in the backstage area that had a Blade Runner feel to it. When I finished the shoot, the drummer was the only guy who stuck around to talk and even helped me carry my equipment to my car. We talked a lot about his starring role in the movie “Rushmore” but not much about his famous relatives- Cousin Nicholas Cage, Uncle Francis Ford Coppola, and Mom Talia Shire (Adrian from the Rocky movies.) The most amazing part of all this that a kid born and raised in privilege to Hollywood royalty was one of the most down to earth people I have ever met in this business- one of the truely nice guys.

Skip forward to 2000, and I was tour managing Brian Wilson. We played two nights at the Roxy in Los Angeles. I new that Jason was a Beach Boys fan, so I called Dan and invited him to bring Jason to the show. After the show, I found them in the back of the room and asked them to follow me to the dressing room to meet Brian. Jason laughed and told me he didn’t want to meet Brian, he just wanted to steal Brian’s empty Diet Coke can off the  keyboard on stage. I told him to go for it – he did. I hope he still has it as a souvenir!

Shortly after that, Jason left the band to be a full time actor, but the band still called me whenever the came to town. During one of those stops, Jacques Brautbar one of the guitarists showed me a little point and shoot camera that he had just purchased. He asked me for some photo tips, and became one of my long distance students:

http://www.facebook.com/jbrautbar

He must have gotten pretty good! Here is a quote from his Wikipedia bio:

He left the band in 2004, after their self-titled third album, to pursue a career in photography. Brautbar’s photo credits include Rolling Stone, Spin, Nylon, Jane and High Times magazines.

Wow- another student hits the big time

Just flew round trip to NYC this week and used it as an opportunity to read a great new book by my friend Aaron Cohen, the associate editor of Downbeat. His book is part of a series by Continuum Books. Each book dissects the making of a classic album. Aaron picked “Amazing Grace” by Aretha Franklin, the best selling gospel album of all time. A lot of people who write these books are fans who write about the album as a fan. But Aaron incorporates into the narrative not only the making of an album and the coming together of a group of people at the height of their careers, but also includes an examination of race and religion! He packed a ton into 150 or so pages and wrote in a manner that makes it impossible to put down.

This book reminded me of an Aretha experience that I had in the late 1980’s. I was assigned by InStyle magazine to cover a Christmas party at Aretha’s house outside of Detroit. The details were: Aretha cooks a Christmas meal for 20 or so of her closest friends, including many members of the Detroit Pistons. After dinner, the Temptations play in her living room! Sounds like a great time.

Went out to the airport to catch the short flight to Detroit. At the gate, I picked up the USA Today sports section. First thing I noticed was the headline about the great matchup in Los Angeles that night between the Lakers and the Pistons. Oh well, no Pistons at the party. Got to Detroit in the late afternoon so I could take pictures of Aretha cooking, rented a car and headed to Aretha’s house in the suburbs of Detroit. First thing I saw when I got to her house were two giant catering trucks parked in the driveway! Oh well. No Aretha cooking pictures! During the party, guests sat around and ate catered food! The biggest stars were some local Detroit TV anchors. Then came the entertainment- one Temptation (not an original member) singing with a karaoke machine!

Oh well, at least the plane trip was uneventful.

Over the last few weeks, I have been scanning my Kiss file and thinking back of my time with them. Kiss was the first big band that understood the idea of photography helping define their image. As big as they got, they always allowed people to shoot the whole show. It was an embarrassment of riches- wherever you pointed the camera, a great photograph was happening. Every Kiss show was the ultimate photo op!!

In the 1980’s, their career went on the skids, and so did their photo policy. In the beginning of that period, things were still good, and photos were plentiful. The band was playing without makeup, and they wanted pictures out there.

But then, things went downhill. In 1987, I was working for the Oprah Winfrey Show. They were doing a show about Jackie Collins, celebrity author, who had just released a book called “Rock Star.” They had already booked Pamela DesBarre, the legendary groupie and author of the book “ I’m With the Band.” They needed some rock stars, and called me for advice. I looked at my calendar and saw that Kiss was going to be playing in the area the day after the taping. So I called their office, and found out that Gene and Paul would be delighted to be on the show. This show produced the famous moment when Oprah asked Gene how long his tongue was and he replied “Long enough to make you a happy woman.”

After the taping, their road manager came up to thank me and asked me if I was shooting the show the following night. I told him to put a pass at the box office for me. When I got to the venue (50 miles away in northern Indiana) I found out that I would be allowed to shoot the first three songs and only license photos to one publication! I went backstage and found the road manager- he told me that the word came down from Gene. I asked him to ask Gene if the rule could be changed. He checked with Gene and came back and told me no. I handed him back the pass, got in my car and went home. I never photographed them again.

The final chapter in the story occurred when the band put the makeup back on and went back to world domination. Their road manager called me before the tour to tell me that the band had come up with a great way to get photographers in the fold. I asked him what it was. Here is his explanation: “First off, you get to shoot the whole show from wherever you want. At the end of the show, I will meet you at the side of the stage with an envelope. You will put all of your film in the envelope and write your contact info on the outside. We will then pay for all the processing! At that point we will send you back 5 or 6 frames approved by the band for you to use to send to magazines. The band will then own the rest of your photos, but you will have some great shots to send to magazines!” After a shocked silence, I asked him who had agreed to this. He answered “Plenty of people.” I asked him if any of the known photographers who had helped the band get to where they were had agreed to the terms, and he answered “No- I don’t understand it.” I tried to explain, but I was wasting my breath.

Hey, good folks at Nasty Little Man Publicity:

My name is Paul Natkin, and I have been photographing in the music business for 38 years www.natkin.net , although I rarely leave my house any more due to the restraints put on photographers at most rock shows these days. Recently, your company has come under some discussion concerning the photo contract used for the Foo Fighters on their currant tour. I am curious to see if you would like to open up a civilized discussion on this subject. Someone from your company was quoted by City Pages in Minneapolis as saying:

“The language might be severe but that really isn’t the intent. Its just to protect the Foo Fighters from having their image sold and licensed without their knowledge or control.”

My observations are as follows:

1. Does this mean that the band is concerned with images being used for something other than editorial purposes? If that is the case, why not present a contract that says: “Photos taken tonight of the Foo Fighters can be used  for editorial purposes only. Any other usage must be negotiated in writing with the band.”

2. Is the band concerned with any particular publication? Why not add that to the contract? List the publications that the band does not want the photos going to.

3. Does the band really want the copyright to everyone’s photographs without paying for it?  First off, it is very doubtful that anyone is going to get anything great shooting three songs- most long time professionals will never agree to the three song rule in the first place. So why is it so important for the band to own such mediocre images? A better idea would be to let people shoot as professionals, and then ask them for a disc of their ten best images, clearly marked with all of the photographers contact information. THEN… if the band is in need of some good photos, they can negotiate fair market prices for usage of any of those photos. I will not leave my house unless I am allowed to shoot the entire set, or at the least most of a bands set. At that point, I want the band and/or management to see my work, as it will most likely result in a sale (at an agreed upon fair price) or will result in even more increased access the next time the band tours.

4. There seems to be some kind of disconnect regarding the amount of money photographers are making on licensing fees these days. In January of this year, I added up every licensing fee I had received from the agency that represents me for the 2010 calendar year, and divided it by the number of images licensed in that time period. It came to an average of $18.10 an image. At that rate, it is not worth my while to grab my bag and leave the house to shoot when the contract states that I can only supply images to one magazine. Most publications today don’t pay enough to even cover gas and parking, so the only way I can earn a living (such as it is) is to be able to license images to as many legitimate publications as possible. This never seems to be a problem when bands are coming up; it only crops up when the band is big enough to be able to “control” their publicity.

I just received my invitation to the 10^th anniversary party next month at the Morrison Hotel Gallery in NYC. One of my proudest moments was when I was accepted as one of their photographers, having my images hanging among the work of all of my idols! I carefully edited the images that I wanted to show. When I had printed them all. I made this observation: the most recent image that I show was taken in 1994. Tells me that I have not taken any photos in the last 17 years that I am proud enough of to display in the galleries. Right around the time the restrictions started getting really bad- and I pretty much stopped going to a lot of shows.

Last point: Record companies are now releasing Greatest hits and Box sets from bands that were around during one of the golden eras of music photography- the 70’s and 80’s. Not a week goes by without someone calling to ask to see my images from a band who has been around for 20 years. Most times I have a lot to show them, and they end up using a lot of my stuff. So the question has to be asked- What is going to happen 20 years from now when companies are asking for photos of the bands of today? What are they going to do with hundreds of photos taken from the soundboard for the first minute of every show? What about all the great moments in the second half of every show?

So, Nasty Little Man publicists. I would love to hear from you, if you would like to respond, either in public or private, and explain why the contracts that you send out work for you.

Sincerely,

Paul Natkin

paul@natkin.net

(773) 255-1290

Yesterday, under a gray sky and a rainstorm, the 15^th Annual Hideout Block Party was held. The brainchild of Tim and Katie Tuten, the owners of the Hideout, the coolest venue in America, it is a 10 hour party for 10,000 of their closest friends. Every year they hold a giant party to celebrate their venue’s anniversary, and bring back acts that have played their in the past- and some new ones. AND… they also give all the proceeds to education charities!!

So, magically, the rain stopped right at the opening of the event, and a beautiful sunny day appeared. The show kicked off with about 40 people playing guitar in the center of the field (you bring a guitar and an amp and you get in free.) The first act on stage were the brother-sister team White Mystery.

Francis and Alex White’s video had just debuted on MTV the day before, and they played a rollicking ½ hour set of great garage rock.

They were followed by a group of high school kids called Kids These Days and a punk reggae band called the Eternals. At this point there was a slight glitch in my day as the over zealous security guy in the pit kicked the photographers out of the pit, citing the fact that “That’s what everyone does.” A five minute discussion with Tim cleared that up and we were all good to go to shoot the whole show from that point on. Following the Eternals was the great Booker T. Jones, who was so well received that Tim kept pushing him out to do more encores (4) screwing up the schedule for the rest of the day! Isn’t that what music is supposed to be about??

Following Booker T was Jon Langford, who was seen wandering around in the crowd watching Booker T and drinking something that was not soda pop. Appropriately fueled for the event, Jon (singer of the Mekons and Waco Brothers and  about 10 other bands around Chicago) kicked off a 45 minute set, backed by a great band included fellow Mekon Sally Timms, resplendent in a horned Viking hat, and a 30 piece Welsh choir (who were mostly from Canada). Combining Welsh political and mining songs with Tom Jones covers, they rocked the house.

Following Jon was the incomparable Mavis Staples. Tim and Katie had manufactured her a giant golden throne, which stood majestically at stage right. Mavis kicked butt for an hour, combining some great gospel stuff with her classics and some of her newer material from her 2008 CD, appropriately called “Live at the Hideout.”

Andrew Bird closed the show with an hour of  violin playing and whistling, and some rocking! This was what music is supposed to be about- no contracts- no treating people like crap- just great music and a lot of smiles on a lot of faces.

Several people have emailed me asking me to write about the Foo Fighters contract, but I say F-CK the Foo Fighters. Go out and photograph someone who actually wants to be photographed!!

I was going to write about the Foo Fighters contract this week, but that is just another story about a screwed up situation. Next week for that! Sunday morning and I am sitting on a plane flying back home from New Orleans, home of the greatest food in America, and, this weekend, the Ponderosa Stomp, one of the greatest two day events in music that I have ever been to. It is the brainchild of an ex Chicago guy- a doctor and music lover named Ira who for ten years has put on a concert of music he loves to raise money for his charity- to help musicians who play music he loves. Two days of roots music and lots of people with smiles on their faces

Day one started with a bunch of Swamp Boogie people like Al “Carnival Time” Johnson, Classie Ballou and CP Love, among others. The centerpiece of the night was a set by the king of New Orleans- Allen Toussaint, one of the greatest songwriters, producers and piano players New Orleans has ever produced. His hour long set included many of his hits, some great piano playing, and a few guest stars. First Robert Parker joined the band, singing a few songs, including his hit song, “Barefootin.” Then the band was joined by Clarence “Frogman” Henry. Clarence has had some health problems lately, but he pushed aside his walker to do a spirited set, including his hit “I Ain’t Got No Home.”

Day 2 began at 11AM (after ending at 3AM the night before) when I walked over to the hotel across from the venue to photograph a collection of soul legends rehearsing in a conference room. Having grown up listening to Stax music, it waqs a thrill to be sitting in the middle of the horn section of a great soul band, listening to some amazing singers working out their songs. The band was the Bo-Keys, a mostly young Memphis band, which included Howard Grimes, who has backed Al Green, among others, and Skip Pitts, the original guitar player for the Bar-Kays, and the only member of the Bar-Kays that didn’t get on the fateful final plane ride with Otis Redding in the 1960’s. The singers were Eddie Floyd, Sir Mack Rice, Otis Clay and William Bell, who among them have had more hits than most of the so-called superstars of today. Their combined 90 minute set that night was a lesson in musicianship and showmanship that proved that age is just a number. I will take them over the Foo Fighters any day!!! A sleepless night was a small price to pay for some amazing music.

This week past was bookended with some amazing music. It started out on Labor Day with the 40^th Anniversary Tribute to Soul Train. What a day. I met up with Don Cornelius at about 1PM when he was in between 5 television interviews! Did a quick photo of him, and headed out to soundcheck. I watched from the side of the stage, occasionally running out to take pictures when something amazing was happening. The Chi-Lites, The Emotions, The Impressions and Jerry Butler, all backed by a large orchestra arranged and conducted by Tom Tom Washington, of Earth Wind and Fire fame.

It was a two hour love fest of music and good cheer, ending with Don proclaiming (as he did at the end of every Soul Train Show: LOVE, PEACE AND SOUL.

The end of the week brought more fabulous music to Chicago. Friday the reunited Alison Krauss and Union Station arrived in town to play a sold out show at the Chicago Theater. First off- the voice!!! Alison has one of the most beautiful voices in music. Along with Emmylou Harris, they are the premier singers in country music.

Then there is the unbelievable musicianship on stage. Five people, almost no amplification, just a bunch of microphones and acoustic instruments, played by some of the best musicians walking the planet:

Jerry Douglas- the best dobro player on the planet in any genre.

Dan Tyminski- Guitar player extrordinaire and an amazing singer (He was the singing voice of George Clooney in Oh Brother, Where a Art Thou)

Ron Block- Plays pretty much everything, mostly banjo and guitar

Barry Bales- plays an upright bass and holds is a one man rhythm section

Alison- adding some great fiddle runs in between her singing

They also added an occasional piano player and a drummer for a few songs.

3000 people sat there for two hours listening to some great music. Except for massive applause, you could hear a pin drop in the audience, especially for the encores, when the band gathered together center stage around one microphone and sang 5 breathtaking songs with just voice, bass and a few guitars. The only problem for me was that during parts of the show, I forgot to shoot. But only for a while!

In the 1980’s The Bangles burst on the scene with some catchy pop music and a lot of cuteness. I started photographing them when they first started touring to promote their first album. They were a lot of fun and really nice people. At one point, while we were sitting in a park on Chicago’s lakefront Susanna Hoffs asked me about my heritage. Seemed that she had relatives with the same last name as mine, and we figured that we might be related in some way. Turned out not to be, but it was a fun fantasy (maybe having holiday dinners together). Oh well.

In 1986, the band hit it big with the song “Walk Like an Egyptian” and started playing large venues. So, I capitalized on my relationship and asked for a photo shoot when the band came to town to play the 25,000 seat Poplar Creek Music Theater. Got to the venue early and set up a studio backstage (backdrop, light, etc.). At the appointed time, three of the four band members walked in and we made small talk while we waited for Susanna to arrive. Five minutes later, she walked in with a piece of paper in her hand. She told me that she had just gotten off the phone with their manager and he a=had dictated a contract for me to sign. CRAP!!! She handed me the hand written contract, and I read it over. It stated that I would have to get photo approval before using any of the photos. I would also have to tell them what magazines the photos would be submitted to. My heart sunk as I started to reread the text, getting ready to tell the band that this was all for nothing. And then…. I saw two fateful words in the first line that I had missed the first time I read it. Photographs taken in concert at the Poplar Creek Music Theater. Seeing as the photos I was about to take were not in concert, but instead a backstage portrait, I quickly signed the contract and had a great photo shoot!

After the shoot, I packed up all my stuff and left before the show even started (the part the contract was written for).

When I got the film processed, I sent images out to every major magazine I worked for at the time, and almost all of them published them. I also sent a letter to the bands manager, explaining why I wasn’t going to send him anything for photo approval, and also sent him a quick note every time a photo was published with the name of the publication and the page number of the image. Never heard from him again!!

I just read that the band has a new album and they are probably going to do a tour. I wonder what their photo policy is going to be in 2011.