The church is getting on the right track
August 31, 2018
THE TIMES IS NOW!
August 31, 2018
In 1915, great songwriters Irvin Berlin, Jerome Kern, John Philip Sousa and others formed the “Association of Songwriters. Composers and Producers” (ASCAP), to protect copyrights on recordings and live performances but excluded Jazz. Blues and “Hillbilly” Music, today’s “Country” which were not considered “professional”.
In 1940. 600 radio stations created Broadcast Music. Inc. <;BMI) to license the excluded music now popular with Gene Autry. Ernest Tubb, Louis Armstrong and later Elvis and “Rock A Roll”, Prom then on BMI ate ASCAP’s lunch, and herein begins the local connection.
In the I960’s, ASCAP attempted to get BMI writers to switch and since Vin Bruce and I had built up a catalog of songs, they scheduled a meeting at Reb-stock’s Dance Hall in Golden Meadow inviting us. Harry Anselmi and Ebdon Barrios the only other certified (B.M.L) local artists.
After discussions with our publishers we declined. Right decision? I don’t know but ASCAP believed signing multitudes of small tuners like us would retrieve their loss. It didn’t and they quit trying.
At the height of my song writing years I960 to 1985. B.M.L Listed me as having published 130 songs solo or with co-writers using 12 publishers and recorded by 25 recording artists, many recorded by several artists and one recorded 9 time.
The Eddie Powers affair:
By the 1970’s I’d had dozens of successful productions, three national hits. 150 songs being published and recorded and was co-writing with Mac Rebenac (Dr. John) and other local and national and artists in foreign countries.
One day KTIB fellow announcer Jim Swiler approached me about his cousin, Eddie Powers, a young New Orleans rocker seeking to record and needing a demo record.
By this time I was back playing country and Cajun music with and managing “Vin Bruce and the Acadian., I had gotten VIN a recording contract with Floyd Soileau’s Jin/Swallow Records Company and he and I formed a great new touring band.
I reformed my rock and roll band “The Vikings”, consisting of mean bass. Lloyd Toups and Don Stevens on sax. Pat Curole on trumpet. Lenny Boudreaux on piano and Sherill Rivet on drums We were back at Cosimo Recording producers and liked oar South Louisiana sound (known today as Swamp Pop).
In the 1960’s we backed dozens of recording artists Mickey Gilley, Joey Long, Jimmy Donley and Phil Bo. resulting in three million selling hits, including my productions of Joe Barry’s” I’m a Fool To Care”, Barbara Lynn’s “You’ll Lose a Good Thing” and Jerry Raines’ “Teen Age Leve.”
For his demos. Eddie Powers recorded two of my compositions “I’ll Dream No More” and “No Cure for the Blues” and Jim began shopping them around. Meanwhile Powers, without our knowledge, had signed a contract with another Label and recorded a New Orleans hit called “Gypsy Woman” for another company.
Cosimo Matassa remembered our demo, called me and we made a deal to release Powers on his label He reworked the recording: took oat the horns; added a girl chorus, “The Dixie Cups” who had a national hit with “Chapel of Love”, got Earl Stanley to record two instruments to back the two songs and “voila”, we had two of Eddie Powers’ 45’s to release.
Such was the recording business then, done with 3-tract recording, later fl. 24 and 32. and today with digital, innumerable tracks.
Cosimo released I’ll Dream No Mare, which was an instant hit in New Orleans, going to number 5 in one week, and major labels began knocking on our door to lease the record for national distribution.
Then something hit the final Eddie Powers got an injunction and. stopped the radio stations from playing the record. Although it had already sold over 10.000 copies, the radio plays and the record sales hit a brick wall.
My lawyer and friend the late Charles Leblanc and I went to court and WE WON! The judge ruled we retained ownership, but the record died and so did Eddie Powers’ career.
My friend the late Charles Leblanc (later a Thibodaux city judge and father of Lafourche Parish Judge John E. Leblanc) did this Pro Bono and all he earned was my eternal gratitude. More next week. BYE NOW!
