TIME FOR TAXI TO DIG A LITTLE DEEPER

[clarketheshark]

Point taken Bruce Wendel. But understand that I live in Africa and have no idea who "Michael" is despite the fact that he may be a helluva nice guy. I regard TAXI as a business entity and am therefore addressing my comments to a business on a non-personal level. Of course, us songwriters have no such immunity because every criticism or rejection is directed straight at the heart of a single individual. And so, given that Michael runs a business that every day is involved in the justifiable wounding of many individuals, I'm sure that he is big enough to take a small knock to his own business from one individual.
But that's not the point. I believe I have every right to voice an opinion on the system of any business that I am transacting with. Let's say you hired a local plumber who totally stuffed up your job. Would you have me believe that you would not point out what you believed to be his derelictions on the basis that he was a "nice guy?"
Clarke The Shark

[Kelil]

Point taken Bruce Wendel. But understand that I live in Africa and have no idea who "Michael" is despite the fact that he may be a helluva nice guy. I regard TAXI as a business entity and am therefore addressing my comments to a business on a non-personal level. Of course, us songwriters have no such immunity because every criticism or rejection is directed straight at the heart of a single individual. And so, given that Michael runs a business that every day is involved in the justifiable wounding of many individuals, I'm sure that he is big enough to take a small knock to his own business from one individual.
But that's not the point. I believe I have every right to voice an opinion on the system of any business that I am transacting with. Let's say you hired a local plumber who totally stuffed up your job. Would you have me believe that you would not point out what you believed to be his derelictions on the basis that he was a "nice guy?"
Clarke The Shark

Nobody is saying you dont have a right to post your opinion, you have and you did but criticism of taxi isnt an argument. The response to your criticism from Michael was simply clearing up many misconceptions you had about his business. You can not just come on and tarnish someone with a false view or opinion of the personally. Taxi is Michael and Michael is Taxi.

Stephen

[orest]

Point taken Bruce Wendel. But understand that I live in Africa and have no idea who "Michael" is despite the fact that he may be a helluva nice guy. I regard TAXI as a business entity and am therefore addressing my comments to a business on a non-personal level. Of course, us songwriters have no such immunity because every criticism or rejection is directed straight at the heart of a single individual. And so, given that Michael runs a business that every day is involved in the justifiable wounding of many individuals, I'm sure that he is big enough to take a small knock to his own business from one individual.
But that's not the point. I believe I have every right to voice an opinion on the system of any business that I am transacting with. Let's say you hired a local plumber who totally stuffed up your job. Would you have me believe that you would not point out what you believed to be his derelictions on the basis that he was a "nice guy?"
Clarke The Shark

I do not agree at all, how can you compare this business with a plumber.
If a plumber does a bad job, it will be a bad job. But in this business it's your emotions versus the screeners, but not only emotions, there are also a lot of directions that a screener needs to follow.

And, your comparison with a plumber doesn't add up. There are many many satisfied members here at TAXI (me included), and there will always be a few unsatisfied members.

Does your bad plumber give you money back? You get your member fee back if you're not satisfied the first year at TAXI.

You have every right to voice your opinion, but think everything through before you post it.

[DaNolman]

Listened to Fantasy - nice vocals and musicianship. Nice song. Maybe a little dated to fit today's listings. Also tried Every day just feels like Monday. Instrumentation sounds dated and I don't think that would fly for any listing. Tried a little of Hey-Na-Africa. I didn't hear any automatic hits. Did Perfect Pitch keep any of your songs in their catalog? And, what's the motivation for Perfect Pitch to mark a member's song a "hit"? Sounds like you have to pay to keep your "hit" song in their catalog (along with the tens of thousands of other songs).

Anything with a financial motivation to call your music a "hit" doesn't sound like a good business model.

Best of luck

[DaNolman]

Michael is a good businessman, he could be a better businessman if he didn't have that big heart of his! I made my first million by the time I was 34 years old and a few more after that, I did it with passion, but I did not have to deal with people and their emotions, I did not try to feel what they feel, I would never have thought to answer a internet post that attempted to degrade my business. I can tell you that the person doing the degradation would have been crushed like a fly on the wall. Michael is a special person in a nasty, sometimes heartless business, he constantly tries to put heart in a business that is devoid of heart. As a enterprise matures, the owner never takes his eye off the ball, he stays current and never let's his guard down, if he does, he and the enterprise will fail, if he does not support his people with passion and skill they will fail with him. Business is a balancing act that never fails to slap the unbalanced. Celebrate the fact that Michael has that big heart, it is a rare thing to find a executive with compassion and heart, I know, I am not one of them, we both know how to make money, Michael does it with class, some of us do it with brute force, Michael found the balance.

Agreed. Great insight in this post.

[ocean]

Point taken Bruce Wendel. But understand that I live in Africa and have no idea who "Michael" is despite the fact that he may be a helluva nice guy. I regard TAXI as a business entity and am therefore addressing my comments to a business on a non-personal level. Of course, us songwriters have no such immunity because every criticism or rejection is directed straight at the heart of a single individual. And so, given that Michael runs a business that every day is involved in the justifiable wounding of many individuals, I'm sure that he is big enough to take a small knock to his own business from one individual.
But that's not the point. I believe I have every right to voice an opinion on the system of any business that I am transacting with. Let's say you hired a local plumber who totally stuffed up your job. Would you have me believe that you would not point out what you believed to be his derelictions on the basis that he was a "nice guy?"
Clarke The Shark

You're talking about the equivalent of selling a faulty cd to a customer. Submitting your music to a listing/critique can be viewed as sending a prototype of a contraption in for testing its suitability for a certain purpose. The feedback you get will tell you what parts need adjusting/addition/removal for this particular purpose. These changes might not apply for another purpose.

You have to seperate yourself from the work you produce as these aren't the same, and both are ever evolving if you let them.

[Casey H]

I've written a few songs that definitely belonged in places only a plumber could get to. 'Jes sayin'...

I hate these types of threads. Taxi works for many , doesn't work for others. So what? If someone is *TRULY* having more commercial success outside of Taxi, good for them! But, most often you'll find that dated sounded material (unless period pieces for film/TV) doesn't meet with success anywhere.

Using myself as an example, a lot of my material is dated and doesn't sound like the "a la" acts I've barely heard of in the Taxi listings. So, I get some success using the backing tracks for TV instrumentals such as on cable TV. However, to reach hire I need to collaborate with others who can produce tracks that are more modern "a la". I've been doing more of that as of late. I do world instrumentals of melodies I've written, period pieces for some of the dated stuff, and collab/work for hire to get more of the 'a la' thing. I'm signing more and more library deals because of this.

So, unless you are doing fantabulously well on the outside, if you have dated sounding material, bitching at Taxi for not seeing the “song” beneath it isn’t productive. Industry expectations are that you can show them something that has the sound they are looking for from the get-go. A better approach would be to either figure out what it takes to make more current sounds or work with others who can get you there.

Best,
Casey

[sedge]

For the very reason Don that you are responding here shows that you like it here!

Or else I would be now posting in the Pepsi forum that I don't like Pepsi ... never happens, we are too busy

So admit it, you like us guys loads, you know Taxi is legit, and you want to get some tunes forwarded and placed

get on it and we can help!

: ) sorrry for being the awkward one

[sedge]

've written a few songs that definitely belonged in places only a plumber could get to

ha!

[clarketheshark]

Ha ha ha sedge! Good one. You're a witty guy and one definitely needs a sense of humour in this business. You may enjoy my song "The Peri-Anal Haematoma Blues" about the dreaded piles! And of course I love you guys. Even the ones that are kicking my butt. Dialog and opinion are important; even if certain opinions are taken personally. I come from South Africa, a country that almost defined peaceful transition from an opressive regime via tough dialog. We don't mince our words here my man. And we haven't grown soft yet. Although certain American imports like KFC and McDonalds are making my brothers fat and TAXI is getting me into trouble via my big mouth. Rock on people! I think I enjoy communicating with you more than I like submitting songs!