Are we in Show Business?

Subject: RE: Are we in Show Buisness?
From: Big Al Whittle
Date: 24 Oct 05 - 04:33 PM

we know Martin! we know!

Subject: RE: Are we in Show Buisness?
From: GUEST,Martin Gibson
Date: 24 Oct 05 - 04:19 PM

It's definately show biz!

Too many navel gazing folkies who think that their songs are interesting just don't realize it.

Personally, I love entertaining.

Subject: RE: Are we in Show Buisness?
From: fat B****rd
Date: 24 Oct 05 - 01:43 PM

And there's NO business like it.

Subject: RE: Are we in Show Buisness?
From: GUEST,leeneia
Date: 24 Oct 05 - 01:26 PM

When I invite friends to my home and we play music together, it is not show business.

When I stand on stage and ask others to listen to me, it is show business, whether I'm paid or not.

When a person yells something haughtily and then rushes off, that is a dirty emotional trick called "hit and run."

Subject: RE: Are we in Show Buisness?
From: greg stephens
Date: 24 Oct 05 - 12:39 PM

Of course it's show business. It's just not a very successful branch of show business.

Subject: RE: Are we in Show Buisness?
From: alanabit
Date: 24 Oct 05 - 10:07 AM

I can only say what it felt like for me. The gigs from busking to television jobs all felt like doing a show to me. The only real difference was that in my case, although the busking was usually harder, it was also usually more interesting (and certainly better paid) than the supposedly glorified world of TV.

Subject: RE: Are we in Show Buisness?
From: Ernest
Date: 24 Oct 05 - 09:48 AM

Showbiz covers everything from Shakespeare to soap operas, from opera (in the musical sense of the word) to mass-produced "artists" in current pop music. The word itself is as meaningless as anything. Defining "Showbiz" is just as controversial as defyning folk music (as we all know)
Regards
Ernest
P.S.: The episode Stephen L. Rich told above is not very good showmanship.... ;0)

Subject: RE: Are we in Show Buisness?
From: Leadfingers
Date: 24 Oct 05 - 09:39 AM

No one will ever convince me that when any of the earlier members of the Copper family were singing for free beer in the pub in Rottingdean
they were NOT being entertainers !

Subject: RE: Are we in Show Buisness?
From: GUEST,i go, u go, ego
Date: 24 Oct 05 - 09:34 AM

paid or not

its all show off business

otherwise we'd all be content to sit quietly in a corner
not bothering anybody elses ears

Subject: RE: Are we in Show Buisness?
From: mack/misophist
Date: 24 Oct 05 - 09:26 AM

As an outsider, I have to agree. It's show business if you perform for the public, even for free.

Subject: RE: Are we in Show Buisness?
From: Jerry Rasmussen
Date: 24 Oct 05 - 09:01 AM

You gets paid, its show business.

Jerry

Subject: RE: Are we in Show Buisness?
From: GUEST,Betsy
Date: 24 Oct 05 - 06:36 AM

It's show business by any other name - however you like it .
It's about charging money for people to hear your performance , most would like to be paid double what they presently charge in order to make their lives a little more comfortable.
Most would jump at the chance to appear on radio and T.V. and raise their profile and become more well-known.
How many would like the career path of Billy Connolly , Barbara Dickson, Mike Harding,the Dubliners etc - the folk club is a spring- board for all of that.
Stephen ,if one pays ones bills from performance - it's showbiz , and not really a thing to be embarrassed about, the only embarrassment is denying it's show biz.

Cheers,
Betsy

Subject: Are we in Show Buisness?
From: Stephen L. Rich
Date: 24 Oct 05 - 05:47 AM

Here we go again skipping blithely through another philisophical mine-field. It's a question which has been at the back of my mind for some time, however.
    A while back I was sitting around drinking coffee and talking shop with a few other performers. No doubt you've been in one of those coversations in some coffehouse or bar. You gossip a bit. You catch up a bit with people you perhaps haven't seen for a while. You gab a bit about politics, food, music, pop culture, politics, women, men, politics, movies, television, and, if there's still time, politics. Eventually the converstion moves to the "horror story" phase. Each of you starts telling about the worst club or festival you ever worked.
    On this particular occasion on of us came up with an especially interesting (in the Chinese Curse sense of that word) story (which I will not detail here) about a sries of mishaps at a festival which had us all laughing and wincing, alternately. The whole thing was caused by a string of miscommunications and misdirections ( the primary elements of high comedy). None of of it was anybody's fault, as such. It all happened because nobody seemed to be paying complete attention to anybody else.
       He concluded the story by shrugging and saying, "Well, that's show biz."
       In response one fellow jumped upfrom the table and yelled haughtily, "Folksingers are NOT in show biz!" and then left.

    It's not the first time that I've heard that said. That sentiment has been bouncing around for a long time. What do you think?
Is someone who sing for money in show buisness or are folkies somehow "above" that?

Stephen Lee