One Year Later (More Q&A With The Author of Birds With Broken Wings)

Q: So after exactly one year of publishing Birds With Broken Wings, what is your take on the success of the site today?

BWBW: Well, it’s been a challenge, a second job almost. Putting together what I hope is a literate and intelligent weekly journal entry involves a bit more time than I might had first hoped. Although I enjoy writing, it takes a while to construct a comprehensive piece while balancing my other hobbies, interests, and responsibilities. Cobbling together a custom mix for each entry is also time consuming, although I do enjoy it. But the process is not at all like radio where you just put it out in real time. There are a lot more steps, you know? Select the tunes, record them, edit them, adjust the differences in volume from track to track, transfer them, convert the format, label them, tag them, upload them. Man, I don't know how other bloggers do it! Some post entries on a daily basis, while others maintain several blogs concurrently. What are they? Retired? Unemployed? Independently wealthy? Collecting Disability Insurance? Superhuman? What? I don't know where they find the time! Maybe they only sleep 3 hours a night, you think? I'll tell you, if there's a simpler way to do this, I wish someone would let me know what it is. Perhaps they're just married to their computers. I've never fallen for machines though, regardless of how intelligent, attractive, or sexy they might be. I'd rather have flesh and blood with those qualities.

There are some great blogs out there though, several of which I've listed to the right, and presently there are 2 or 3 guys who are just doing some outstanding things --- Simon at 'Never Enough Rhodes,' El Goog at 'El Goog Ja,' Ish at 'Ile Oxumare.' El Reza too! These guys have got some real passion and dedication. I believe I've got roughly 80% of the passion, but only about 2% of the drive, sadly.

As for success of Birds With Broken Wings? Well, I'm not certain how successful it really is. I am encouraged by the response I’ve received, but it hasn't exactly been overwhelming. It's been very positive however, I'll have to say that, and I do value every comment I get. Subscriptions have grown a bit, but I think that's just because my wife got all her relatives on board. Man, she's got a million of 'em. But the site has been very slow in finding its audience. I get a couple thousand visits a week. Approximately. That may sound like a lot, but when you take into consideration just how many of those hits are actually people looking for information on how to mend a bird's broken wing, it sort of negates the number. The blog aggregator, Totally Fuzzy however has been particularly helpful in publicizing my work. They, along with the others who have picked me up have been an invaluable resource.

Beyond that, I must say that I’ve meet some very interesting people on-line, and have made some new friendships along the way. I’ve also re-established contact with others who over time have drifted out of my orbit.

Q: Has the response dictated in any way the direction you’ve taken?

BWBW: No, not really. Initially, I thought that it would. Like when I first began, I consciously went looking for an audience, but I've only just recently decided that rather than to court a readership, or worse yet pander to one, to instead just to do it for myself, to please myself. Of course I do hope that others will find something in it for themselves as well. You know, I'd like to believe that if you stay true to your heart, everything will sooner or later fall into place and the readers will eventually come. It's never actually worked for me, but it always seemed to work for Miles Davis. Of course Miles was also consistently two or three steps ahead of the curve, and he was also very cool.

Q: Have there been any entries that particularly resonated?

BWBW: Well, I’d hoped that the short stories I’ve published would have garnered more feedback, but maybe they’re just not that good. The entries that seem most popular are those in which the music mix focuses exclusively on one artist only. It confirms my long held theory that most visitors are looking mainly to fill gaps in their record collection. Downloaders will accept a personalized mix of a singular artist's music, but tend to shun eclectic mixes that feature a variety of people or genres (like this week's). I have to admit though, I was kind of disappointed that the recent Doug Sahm piece didn't get more attention. Man, I loved that guy and I'd really like others to share the same enthusiasm for him as I've always held. He was the real deal, like Thelonious Monk, only white, a guitarist, a Texan, and a man of many, many words. So come to think of it, they were nothing alike. But seriously, what I really mean is that they were both originals and true to themselves. I don't think Sahm's an acquired taste, but the two of them like BWBW were pretty eclectic and hard to pin down, so you have to approach his music with open ears and a bit of acceptance. But you know what? My file host problems may have stunted the interest on that one as well. It's too bad.

I guess there was one entry that generated a bit of controversy, and that was the Jaco Pastorius recollection. For some reason, a few people walked away with the impression that it was a defamatory piece, you know, like how could I have conceivably told a master musician to go take a hike? Those readers didn’t seem to fully grasp the situation I was faced with --- professional responsibility vs. one man’s deteriorating mental stability --- and insist on defending his actions as being above reproach by virtue of his status. Maybe it could have been handled differently, but under the circumstances, I did what I thought was needed to be done, good or bad with no lingering regrets.

Q: What, if anything, have you gained from publishing your site?

BWBW: (Long pause) Well, I've been reminded to not give too much of myself, too readily and too swiftly. You learn quickly that in any profession or industry like radio --- an industry that blatantly puts you out in front of the public --- that you've got to guard certain aspects of yourself. People interpret information in different ways, and use it in different ways. And sometimes it can work against you. Blogging I've realized is no different. It doesn't feel public, because it's done from the privacy of your own living room, or where ever you choose to work. But you forget, or I sometimes forgot, that your words have the potential to reach millions of eyes throughout the world. It's actually a bigger public forum than any other that I've ever participated in, and that can open you up all sorts of vulnerabilities. It's a great tool for marketing yourself, but inherently, it can also be hazardous to one's privacy.

Q: Is that why don’t you work in radio anymore?

BWBW: No, not at all. Radio just isn’t as interesting as it once was for me. As far back as the late 1970’s on a cross country trip, I heard the same formats from region to region --- same songs, same approach, same contests --- the only thing different were the announcers names and the call letters. It became homogenized. Nothing new, nothing different --- like finding a McDonald’s or a Starbucks in every town today --- no regional personality, no individualism. Cookie cutter programming. That was the future of commercial radio, and it’s continued unabated. Not even satellite radio has changed anything that much. They do offer some interesting programming, but you've got to pay for the privilege to access it. I've actually heard nothing but great things about Dylan's show, but somehow this new trend of offering established celebrities an exclusive radio show just rubs me wrong. Sure, as in the case of Dylan, it might be fascinating to glimpse the muse that has shaped the man we've all come to know, but I personally prefer to keep the minds and hearts of those I admire an enigma. Sometimes the more you learn about a person, the less interesting they become. I doubt this would be true of Dylan, but I don't think I want those I revere to be that accessible. Now when I look at the trend from a professional standpoint, well Christ, they've already got a successful career! Do they really need to be offered a second or third, regardless of how interesting they may be? I mean, I see this all the time, like Scarlet Johannson recently recording an album on a major label with musical support from David Bowie no less! If her name weren't a commodity, would a record label have given her the opportunity? No. It's a indicator of where the music industry is at, which is fairly vapid, and in her case, it's a vanity project. And it's not even a very good one at that! It's all a form of nepotism and it should be an insult to every working musician who struggles week in and week out trying to eek out a living. Well that's the way I feel about rock star DJ's. It offends me. But I realize that it's also an on-going part of our society's insatiable and frankly obscene preoccupation with fame and celebrity. This drift in radio largely is just pandering to that, and believe me, they're doing it strictly for the numbers. Don't let them fool into thinking that a few hours each week with Jon Bon Jovi or someone is gonna' enrich your life in ways you never imagined. They just want your time, your money, and your Arbitron rating. And personally, I also think the participants should feel ashamed for stoking that machinery.

I remember once, a Program Director from a new radio station called me while I was on the air, and said he liked my style and would I consider sending an air check for consideration. What did I have to lose? I did, and what I got back was a mimeographed checklist of potential reasons cataloging why I didn’t fit the station’s needs. The reason checked was ‘style inappropriate.’ Well what was that all about? First you say you like me, then you say you don't? After listening to the station, I found that the playlists were pre-generated, complete with pre-scripted front and back announcements coming in and out of music sets. That’s just pushing buttons. The timbre and sound of each of the DJ’s was identical, formulated to create an overall and non-intrusive mood --- a collective personality, rather than individual personality --- and why would I want to do that!? If I hadn’t already tasted ‘free form’ programming, and if my ego actually depended on being ‘out there on the airwaves’ regardless, it may have been a golden opportunity. But as it was, it held no interest for me. Besides, after really listening to me, the Program Director obviously realized that I was not a good fit after all. And he was right. But I thought the impersonal, mimeographed response was a bit low class however, and indicative of the station’s vibe. Anyway, with the former thread in mind, you know who hosts their morning show today? Whoopi Goldberg, only a white bread version. It might be the lamest thing I've ever heard.

There’s always non-commercial radio of course, but you can’t make a living with that. Birds With Broken Wings has become my non-commercial outlet, and meanwhile, I’ve moved on to other career pursuits.

Q: Like what?

BWBW: Well, for a while I considered golf pro, astronaut, pirate, and fashion consultant, in that order. Being out all day at Pebble Beach couldn’t be so bad. I don't know jack about the game, but I figure I could learn it. But man, it’s the slacks, and the Banlon shirts! I just couldn’t roll with that. As for deep space? Well it now scares the hell out of me, especially after seeing ‘Alien.’ Although hanging out with Sigourny Weaver as she walked around in a sweaty tank top over white cotton panties might make it a little easier to handle. The flame thrower is a sexy accessory item too, but it could be a dangerous combination, you know what I mean? As for pirate? Well, I never really wanted to actually pillage and plunder, just carry myself like a pirate. You know, the swagger and everything? As long as I were in character, I could say most anything I wanted and no one would take offense. Their reaction would be like, "What an odd, but colorful man." But that whole Johnny Depp/Jack Sparrow/Keith Richards thing kind of blew it for me. It's a pretty hard act to top. Besides, if I didn't actually pillage and plunder, how would I make a living out of it? And then of course there was my one certain fashion prediction. I was convinced that the ‘Amish’ look was going to be big one day but it's yet to pan out, so I guess I won't be getting any calls anytime soon.

Q: So what’s next?

BWBW: Well, I’ll continue with BWBW until it no longer fills a personal need for me. After that, who knows? I've thought about starting my own radio station, but man, that’s a lot of work, and I’m not really that ambitious. My life is not planned. Almost everything that has ever happened to me has been purely happenstance --- being in the right places sometimes, and the wrong places other times --- I’ve never really ever set out specifically to do something, or be something. I suppose I should start thinking about it more seriously though. After all, I’m not getting any younger. If I don’t figure something out soon, I might end up being one of those guys you see standing on a street corner, banging a tambourine with spittle dripping down his chin playin' for small change.

Q: Miles, one last question in the tradition of the old teen magazines. What color would you say most exemplifies you?

BWBW: Uh, recently I'd have to say brown, 'cause quite honestly, most days I just feel like shit.

'One Year Later'

The Mix That Nobody Especially Wants

(But Only Cheat Themselves By Ignoring)
It's Really Good, And It's Free!

1 & 2) The Rascals

Medley: Little Dove/Visit To Mother Nature Land

(with Alice Coltrane and Hubert Laws)

3) Joni Mitchell/Don Juan's Reckless Daughter

(with Jaco Pastorius)

4) Doug Sahm/In The Dark

(with The Sir Douglas Quintet)

5) Terry Reid/Highway 61 Revisited
(with his band)

6) Nick Drake/Joey
(with his guitar)

7) Brian Wilson/I Went To Sleep

(with The Beach Boys)

8) Dr. John, The Night Tripper/Mama Roux
(with his band)

9) Eric Idle/The Rutland Isles
(by himself)

10) The Headhunters/6/8-7/8

(with Billy Childs)

11) Donald Byrd/Estavanico

(with a cast of hundreds)

12, 13 & 14) Santana

Medley: Going Home/Love, Devotion And Surrender/Samba De Sausalito

(with Leon Thomas, Wendy Haas, and Armando Peraza)

15) Willie Nelson/I Never Cared For You

(with Emmylou Harris)

16) Lucinda Williams/Everything Has Changed
(with her band and that voice)

17) Tom Waits/Candy Apple Red

(with Jack Sheldon)

18) Thelonious Monk/Locomotive

(with Charlie Rouse)

To download, click here.