Friends and Music
I first met Abigail in the early ’90s when we were both playing at the Nameless Coffeehouse in Harvard Square. It wasn’t the kind of place you played to get rich or famous, but it was a nice room to hear acoustic music and make a few fans, and, just as important, make a few friends. It’s twenty-plus years later, and as far as I can tell neither Abi or I ever got rich or particularly famous, but I have had the opportunity to play my songs in lots of places, for lots of people, over the years, and a lot of that’s come about because of friends I’ve made, and kept. Which is why I think this website is such a great idea. We all have the ambition to have our music be heard by the widest possible audience, and I wish everyone the greatest success. But odds are we won’t all be the next John Mayer or Taylor Swift, with a manager, agent and lawyer to book tours and handle business. Chances are a lot of your best gigs and experiences will be through friends – the classmate who moves to LA and is willing to split a gig with you when you come through town, the friend whose partner is producing an indie film and remembers your song about your crappy apartment that would be perfect for it. And it should work both ways – when your former classmate whose songs you always liked has an important gig, you should be there to cheer them on. And when, five or ten years from now, you find yourself living in Prague or Anchorage and a classmate is coming through, you can offer to host a house concert so they can sell a few CDs and make a few new fans. In Nashville they tell songwriters new to town not to expect to co-write with established hit writers right away. It takes time to develop a track record, and contacts who know you’re not going to waste their time. But those new writers find each other at open mics and writer’s nights and in the waiting rooms of BMI and ASCAP, and if they like each other’s stuff, they’ve found possible co-writers to double their chances of getting a break. And when one of them gets a break, it improves the chances for all of them. At the release concert for my new CD The Post-American Century I had singing with me a friend from high school, a singing partner from college, bandmates from my ’80s band Loose Ties, a harmony singer I met in New Jersey when she was singing with another act, and yes, a friend I met at the Nameless Coffeehouse. It was a magical night, in a not so rich and famous way, and I owe its success largely to my talented friends. So enjoy the website, and keep in touch.
Terry Kitchen
Boston folksinger Terry Kitchen has released ten CDs of original music since the 1990s, and his songs have won the Mid-Atlantic and USA Song Contests and been runner-up in the John Lennon Songwriting Contest. In the photograph, you can see Terry and friends at the release concert for his new CD The Post-American Century. You can find his music at www.terrykitchen.com<
Site of New England’s award-winning contemporary folk singer/songwriter Terry Kitchen, providing discography, order page, calendar, and contacts for bookings, press, calendar updates.
