Musicians Jan - 01 - Nashville Musicians Association

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30 The Nashville Musician January-March 2009 Legislation & Labor reporting President Pomeroy and Secretary/Treasurer Krampf have been invited by AFM President Tom Lee to be part of the AFM's Legislative Action Committee.The committee also includes AFM Director of Government Relations Hal Ponder and AFM Local officers from New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, and Atlanta. All will participate in sharing ideas and plans for upcoming legislative action and events.This year is shaping up to be an important year for legislation that affects musicians and creative performance rights. Local 257 supports the AFM's "$2 Drive" to fund the AFM Legislative Action Fund (formerly known as TEMPO). This Fund is used to promote musician-friendly legislation and support those legislators who are working with the AFM to pass important bills like the Performing Rights Act which is currently before Congress. A mere $2 is the requested donation but you can donate any amount through the Local and we will pass it on to the AFM Legislative Action Fund. Beginning with a preliminary AFM caucus on Feb. 18, President Pomeroy will be in Los Angeles participating in the Motion Picture and Television Negotiations between the AFM and the TV and Film Industry on behalf of Local 257. Dave will also attend the AFM's Western Conference in San Diego the weekend of Feb. 20, and return to L.A. for the actual Negotiations that begin on Feb. 23. Drawing on his experience as one of two Rank and File negotiators for Phono recording, Dave will be looking out for Nashville musicians' best interests in the Film and TV worlds. Secretary-Treasurer Krampf along with a small diverse group of Local 257 members will be guests at a luncheon/meeting at Lowe's Vanderbilt Friday, Feb. 20. Rep. Jim Cooper and perhaps, Rep. Marsha Blackburn, will be in attendance along with representatives, officers and members from AFTRA, The AFM and The Recording Academy. The topic of discussion will be the latest status of the current campaign to get Performance Rights legislation enacted by Congress, so that the artists and musicians who create recorded performances and the music labels who invest in the creation of those musical performances get royalties when their music is played on AM/FM radio, like almost everywhere else in the world An update from Hal Ponder, AFM Director of Government Relations. The recent inauguration of President Obama and the beginning of the 111th Congress means that it is time to ramp up our performance rights campaign for this year. As many of you may remember, this past summer AFM and the MusicFIRST coalition hosted many AFM members and other musicians in Washington, D.C., so that they could lobby members of Congress on performance rights. As a result, the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Courts, the Internet and Intellectual Property approved our performance rights bill. That was a good beginning. This year, we intend to have the bill passed by the House and Senate. To launch this effort we will have a lobbying “fly-in” on March 3. For those that may not recall, the MusicFIRST coalition is made up of 13 founding organizations, Agenda items for the 6:30 pm. Wednesday, March 18, General Membership meeting in George Cooper Hall. (Continued from page 1) being proposed by officers and board members of AFM Local 257 to the existing By-Laws of the Nashville Association of Musicians. For information on these and any other information needed, prior to the next General Membership meeting, feel free to contact Secretary-Treasurer Craig Krampf at his office, or telephone (615) 244-9514, Extension 224, or via e-mail: craig@afm257.org Free Speech By-Law change proposal Whereas, Local 257 By-laws contain two sections: Article II, Section 7 – “Any member found guilty of fraud upon the Association, or as an accessory thereto, or who imperils the interest of any member or members shall, after due trial and conviction by the Hearing Board, be fined an amount to be determined by the Hearing Board, and approved by the Executive Board.” Article III, Section 2 – “Any member who by improper conduct, in any way becomes a disgrace to this Association, or who imperils its interest and existence, might, upon specific charges in writing and after due notice of opportunity to be heard, proof-hearing and conviction, may be fined and/or suspended or expelled in accordance with the By-laws.” that protect individual members and the Local from improper behavior, libel charges and harmful acts damaging to the overall welfare of the membership; and Whereas, Article II, Section 8 - “The members shall consider all the business of the Association private. Any member found guilty of discussing the private business of this Association on the street or any other public place, where it imperils the existence of any member, or the Local, shall be fined an amount to be determined by the Executive Board.” is confusing in its intent and language, is redundant and offers no additional protection to members, and could potentially be used to suppress free speech rights under the First Amendment; Therefore, be it Resolved, That Article II, Section 8 be struck from the By-laws; and, be it further Resolved, That the cross references to Article II, Section 8 [which is misidentified as Section 9 in the current By-laws] in Article I, Section 26 (Executive Board) and Article I, Section 39 (Hearing Board), be deleted as follows: Article 1, Section 26 - Executive Board members shall refrain from breaching the confidence of any Executive Board proceeding and shall be guided by Article II, Section 9. Article 1, Section 39 - Hearing Board members shall refrain from breaching the confidence of any Hearing Board proceeding and shall be guided by Article II, Section 9. And, Be it further Resolved, That the following language be added to Article XIV, Standing Resolutions as the new No. 12: “All meetings of the Executive Board, Hearing Board and Emergency Relief Board shall be considered private business of the Association and shall remain confidential, except for any necessary public records such as minutes of said meetings. Regarding General Membership Meetings, all members attending agree that it is in the best interest of all concerned that the private business of the Association shall remain confidential.” - Submitted by Dave Pomeroy Board Recommendation: Favorable including AFM, The Recording Academy, AFTRA, RIAA, A2IM, Sound Exchange and others, and 160 founding artists. You can learn more about the Coalition by going online to www.musicfirstcoalition.org . The Coalition's goal is to secure the passage of legislation, the Performance Rights Act, which would grant a performance right on all sound recordings broadcast over AM/FM radio. Currently, terrestrial radio broadcasters do not pay performers when their work is aired. The Performance Rights Act will change that. Satellite radio, Internet radio and cable radio all pay a performance right, but due to a loophole in the copyright regulations AM/FM radio is exempt. For the “fly-in,” we are targeting members of Congress who sit on key committees, particularly the Judiciary Committee. These members are from the states listed below. Members of Congress are especially attentive to issues affecting their state or district. By showing them that the Performance Rights Act would have a positive impact on their constituents, it becomes more likely that the Senator or Representative will favor it. AFM and the MusicFIRST Coalition will be meeting with members of Congress from the following states: Vermont, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, California, Iowa, New York, Arizona, Illinois, Alabama, Maryland, South Carolina, Rhode Island, Texas, Oregon, Oklahoma, Minnesota, Delaware, Tennessee, Colorado, and West Virginia. Name Change Proposal Whereas, the name “Nashville Association of Musicians” does not easily lend itself to acronyms, abbreviations, or easy pronounciation, and, Whereas, in an era where marketing is essential to continued success, an effective logo and title helps to brand an organization or product effectively, and that a name change to “Nashville Musicians Association” will help identify AFM Local 257 with “Nashville Musicians,” who we exist to represent, and Whereas, we have been advised by legal counsel that a name change to “Nashville Musicians Association” will not cause any undue confusion or legal issues to the way in which Local 257 does business within the AFM and in the community at large, Therefore, be it proposed that the name “Nashville Association of Musicians” be changed to “Nashville Musicians Association” legally and in practice from this day forth. Accordingly, Article 1, Section 1 of the Local 257 By-laws shall be amended as follows... ARTICLE I - NAME AND JURISDICTION Section 1. This Association is and shall be known as the Nashville Association of Musicians, Nashville Musicians Association, Local 257, American Federation of Musicians. It is understood that some time will be needed for this transition to be complete, and care shall be taken to use all existing materials with the previous name as long as possible in order to be financially prudent. Respectfully submitted, Dave Pomeroy, President Local 257 Craig Krampf, Secretary/Treasurer, Local 257 Board Recommendation: Favorable Road-scale By-Law change proposal Worker, Retiree and Employer Relief Act of 2008, now the law By unanimous consent, on Dec. 2, 2008, the Senate passed this important legislation, modifying the Pension Protection Act of 2006, to react to the current economic downturn. President Bush signed this into law on Dec. 23, 2008. This act protects multi-employer benefit pension plans like ours, the AFM-EPF. The Employee Free Choice Act Labor's eyes are watching whether or not President Barack Obama will sign the Employee Free Choice Act. The EFCA would restore workers' freedom to form unions and bargain for better wages, benefits and working conditions. Obama co-sponsored and voted for the EFCA, which is supported by a bi-partisan coalition in Congress. For union groups, hopes are high the EFCA will prevail in the new administration.The President has said that he wants to “strengthen the union movement in this country, and put an end to the kinds of barriers and roadblocks that are in the way of workers legitimately coming together in order to form a union and bargain collectively.” Union advocates say the Employee Free Choice Act would level the playing field for workers and employers and help rebuild America's middle class. (Editor’s note: Report by Linda Rapka, Local 47’s Overture publication.) Whereas, Local 257 scale rates for Road Engagements have not been changed in over 15 years, since 1993; and Whereas, It is a well recognized fact that Road Engagements are an important part of our business; and Whereas, One of Local 257’s goals is to promote an increased participation in the AFM-EPF (the Pension Fund) by Nashville-based touring groups; and Whereas, A cost of living increase for those 15 years would result in a large increase of what is considered minimum scale; Therefore, be it Resolved, to make the following changes to the Nashville Road Scale: a. Raise the established minimum of $140 to $250 along with the corresponding 10% pension contribution; b. Add language to clarify that “This rate reflects one show in one location”; c. Raise Back-Up Performance Scale from $50 for each additional artist to $100 and the Music Preparation Scale (chord number charts/musical arrangements) be raised from $15 to $25 per hour; d. Raise the daily per diem from $25 to $35; e. Raise the daily per diem rate on days without show pay from $35 to $70. - Submitted by Kathy Shepard and Dave Pomeroy Board Recommendation: Favorable
January-March 2009 The Nashville Musician 31 . . . . Duane and his days as king of twang (Continued from page 23) it the way they want to hear it. I work off the audience.” Does he wish that he was a flashier picker? “I love it when they play flashy. I just wish I could do it,” he wryly replies. “But I also know I always liked the playing on records where people were commercial with it. Billy Byrd with Ernest Tubb’s Texas Troubadours is a good example. He just kept it simple and layed that melody in there and it was thrilling. The people at home or young musicians who heard that record would be able to play that solo after a few minutes. “I’ve probably taught more kids to play than anybody who does the fancy stuff, because they pick up a guitar and could probably play ‘Rebel Rouser’ in five minutes or approximate it enough to where they can recognize it and think, ‘Oh, I’m doing pretty good. It doesn’t take too long to learn.’ A lot of people have told me they learned off those records of mine.” Does Duane have any how-to instruction booklets or tapes? “No, but I would’ve liked to have done that, but I never did.” Too late now? “I don’t guess it is.” Eddy would welcome another tour abroad. “After that first major visit to England, I came back about two years later, and then went back a couple times in the 1970s. I did visit some bases here and there in Europe through the years, playing for the troops. Then I went over in the ’90s with the Everly Brothers.” Don’t mention the Germany-based Bear Family Records or its compilation box-sets: “They put one out on me, but they didn’t pay anything and the stuff they put on it (liner notes) was pure fiction. You know they don’t pay copyright or anything.” What discs still available does Duane recommend as most representative of his twang? “Rhino Records has an album (1990) called ‘Twang Thang: The Duane Eddy Anthology’ (boasting two discs) and it’s available on the Internet.” (www.rhino.com or Amazon.com) Does Eddy have any guitar models on the current market? “In the 1990s, Gretsch finally caught up to me and made a Duane Eddy Signature Model (DE-6120, issued in 1997), just like the original one I bought in 1963. Then I parted company with them and Gibson heard about it and called me up, asking if I’d like them to build me one? “Sure, I said. Well, my friend Mike McGuire’s out there and he had wanted to build me one all those years. He knew what kind of a guitar that I like anyway. (Duane Eddy’s Signature Gibson premiered in 2004).” Does Duane still practice daily? “Well, there’s practice and then there’s practice. I have a guitar all day where it’s handy, whether I want to pick it up to relieve some stress or just to try something, whatever. I may try to write something that I could record, or just come up with a different approach to a song . . . More Grammy winners (Continued from page 19) Two Graves,” Ashley Gorley & Bob Regan; “I Saw God Today,” Rodney Clawson, Monty Criswell & Wade Kirby; “In Color,” Jamey Johnson, Lee Thomas Miller & James Otto; “You’re Gonna Miss This,” Ashely Gorley & Lee Thomas Miller; and “Stay,” Jennifer Nettles, the winner. Best Country Album - “That Lonesome Song,” Jamey Johnson; “Sleepless Nights,” Patty Loveless; “Troubadour,” George Strait; “Around the Bend,” Randy Travis; and “Heaven, Heartache and The Power of Love,” Trisha Yearwood. Veteran Strait earned his first Grammy, thanks to “Troubadour.” Al Gore’s “An Inconvenient Truth,” featuring Beau Bridges, Cynthia Nixon and Blair Underwood, won for Best Spoken Word Album. For a complete list of NARAS’ Grammy nods, check out Grammy.com that might work even if it wasn’t a hit. I’m always lookin’ for something that might be unusual.” Has Duane contemplated retirement? “No . . . like Les Paul says, ‘Real men don’t retire.’ I just played with him a few weeks ago in Cleveland and he’s like 93, an amazing man. They did a tribute to him for the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and he brought his trio up there for Les Paul Week. I think his mother lived to be 98. Hey, he might outlive us all!” New officers named to Recording Musicians’ Association (RMA) . . . Dave Pomeroy, upon being elected president of the Nashville Association of Musicians AFM Local 257 on Dec. 12, 2008, promptly resigned as president of the Recording Musicians Association (RMA). Mike Brignardello, former vice president, has agreed to fill the vacancy (see page 9 RMA column ). The following list represents the current RMA roster: Mike Brignardello, president; Tom Wild, treasurer; Lauren Koch, secretary; and Executive Board members David Angell, Barry Green, Tim Lauer, Duncan Mullins, Carole Rabinowitz, Jim (Moose) Brown and Jeff King. . . . Rex’s ‘remarkable life’ (Continued from page 8) “I would have to say his devotion to music. That devotion was almost like a religion to him. He also had an excellent sense of humor.” There was a sensitive side, as well, apparent when Rex told Ryan about an incident he witnessed on the road that bothered him: “One time when the Goodman group was riding on a tour bus down South, they stopped at a restaurant. Dad remembered someone, maybe (black trumpeter) Charlie Shavers, asking, ‘Hey Rex, can you get me a sandwich while you’re in there? I can’t go in,’ and that injustice really impacted him.” For most of the last 20 years of his life, Rex and Barbara, his wife of 56 years, had resided in Hawaii. Survivors include his daughters Rachel Peer Thompson, Cindy Peer Green; son Ryan; sister Dorothy Zehr; four grandchildren and five great-grandchildren. Arrangements were handled by Lawrence Funeral Home of Chapel Hill, Tenn. Graveside services were held Oct. 17 at Swanson Cemetery, Chapel Hill. - Walt Trott Union music is best! Alison Krauss and duet partner Robert Plant win big. Donate to the Legislative Action Fund, formerly TEMPO . . . Nathan, Caleb, Matthew and Jared Followill. Kings Of Leon ONCE NASHVILLE’S BEST-KEPT SECRET One of Nashville’s most exciting success stories has been the rise of the Kings of Leon. Amazingly, they’re all from the same family; you see, even yesteryear’s hugely popular Andrews Sisters and country’s soulful Gatlin Brothers couldn’t do better than a trio, but the Followill four feature brothers Nathan, Caleb, Jared and first cousin Matthew Followill. Awesome, too, is the fact that the Kings of Leon attained their first star status in the UK, specifically England and Ireland, and even Down Under in Australia, where they celebrated #1 records. Now they’re Grammy winners. Yep, finally, the U.S.A. has recognized these rockin’ Dixie talents - who appropriately enough call Music City home - in no small part due to their smokin’ CD, “Only By the Night.” That album peaked at #5 on the prestigious Billboard Hot 200 albums list, and at press time (when was that?) was still in the Top 20s after that many weeks (as of Feb. 14, actually). Incidentally, “Only By the Night” debuted at #1 in England. Helpful, too, was their sizzling single “Sex On Fire,” an adult Valentine if there ever was one. These Southern rockers have already opened for legends like Pearl Jam, U2 and Bob Dylan. It doesn’t get much better than that, except that soon they’ll be the ones engaging opening acts. How many rock units are headed up by a chap like Nathan, who graduated from an institution called Christian Life Academy in Henderson, Tenn.? In fact, brother Caleb only departed in his senior year to pursue their joint musical Odyssey. That’s not surprising when we learn their pop is an evangelist, who moved his family hither and yon, while his adoring wife helped multiply their brood. (She also for the most part home-schooled her sons.) Seems their pere’s influence, along with his father’s, came to the fore in their name: Kings of Leon. Matthew, of course, shares the same granddaddy Leon, but calls the preacher Uncle Leon. Guess it’s something of a Southern tra- Substance abuse problem? Need to talk? Please call: Bobby Kent, LADAC Licensed Alcohol & Drug Abuse Counselor (615) 300-0036 30-year member of Locals 802/257 ALL CALLS ARE CONFIDENTIAL dition, but all the boys go by their middle names, i.e., on his birth certificate it reads Ivan Nathan, while Caleb’s states Anthony first, then it’s Michael Jared, while their cousin’s reads Cameron Matthew Followill. It was in 1996 when the brothers moved to Nashville, and in 2000, with Matthew, launched their band. They got lots of attention, thanks to their experimental “Holy Roller Novocaine,” an impressive boogie rock EP. How’s this for interesting tidbits? “Holy Roller Novocaine” was heard in the movies “Stuck On You” and “Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby.” Caleb, who plays rhythm guitar, is their gritty lead vocalist, augmented by backup singing from Matthew playing lead guitar, Jared on bass and synthesizer, and eldest player Nathan, born in 1979, playing drums. Under the guidance of Angelo Patraglia, they polished off their Southern swagger and its follow-up, “Youth and Young Manhood,” exhibited a new maturity and proved an instant success abroad. England’s New Music Express, which followed their early releases, took their “Because of the Times” ’07 album right to its bosom, noting it “cements Kings of Leon as one of the great American bands of our times.” The overall European media began labeling our Kings as being at the forefront of a New Rock Revolution, on the heels of Kings of Leon’s “Aha Shake Heartbreak” (2004). Come 2008, and the early release of “Only By the Night,” co-produced by Patraglia and Jacquire King, and due to generous airplay and subsequent sales, it shot straight to the top of the UK pop charts. Their “Sex On Fire” spinoff became their first to go #1 on the Billboard Hot Modern Rock Chart. Meanwhile, on Australia’s coveted Triple J Hot 100 list, their single “Use Somebody” hit #3, followed by “Sex On Fire” peaking at #1! The result of all that was the Kings of Leon’s product proved to be the UK’s third biggest seller, and top seller for the Aussies in 2008. Veterans of sold-out concerts and major music festivals overseas, one can Google the internet to find Kings of Leon’s adoring females anxiously waiting their next visit. One peasant maiden in Portugal, however, was bemoaning that she didn’t have enough Euros to attend an upcoming gig, or couldn’t get the time away from work to attend their concert, noting she was willing to do what it took to meet the boys. Needless to say, these true sons of the South merely remind all those shut-out that their music’s available for download via iTunes. Further, with those great Followill genes, they don’t have any problem appealing to the opposite gender sans bribes. Meanwhile, just being on the cover of Spin magazine, and subsequent appearances on national telecasts like Saturday Night Live! have made them an equally red-hot act on these shores. “This kind of feels like our honeymoon with America now,” Nathan proclaims. “It’s amazing just how more popular we’ve become by playing on SNL or having a song on a TV show here and there. Pop culture does play a big part in it.” What’s so great about all this is that The Kings of Leon are your fellow brothers of AFM Local 257. Congratulations guys on your success and Grammy win - we are proud of you. Keep rockin’ and spreading the message of the great musical diversity of Nashville and your Union, Local 257. - WT Bass Bow Quivers, Chin Rest Pads, Shoulder/Chin Pads Cello & Bass Aprons, Stool Cushions I Sell Musician Comfort Items, Retail and Wholesale Visit my eBay Store at FiddlePadsPlus.com
Page 1 and 2: AFM Local 257 election ’08 result
Page 3 and 4: January-March 2009 The Nashville Mu
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Musicians Jan - 01 - Nashville Musicians Association

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