Is Choreography Appropriate in Country Music?

Ron · Post by **Ron** » 9 Oct 2000 3:58 pm

I agree with all you all have said but it was better than last year!! I couldnt even watch that one. And who was the heavy weight one there? Merle Hag

Ron Frazier

Theresa Galbraith · Post by **Theresa Galbraith** » 9 Oct 2000 5:41 pm

David,
Yes, Brian is very humble! He really needs to be doing session work

About the dancing thing, I like change!
Theresa

David Pennybaker · Post by **David Pennybaker** » 9 Oct 2000 7:09 pm

Yes, Brian is very humble! He really needs to be doing session work

Get him some session work, will ya? Then I can go on tour with The Wilkinsons. Wait, does that mean I'd have to learn to play the guitar first?

Actually, I don't know how he (or anybody else) does that for very long. I'd get cabin-fever pretty darned quick on a bus like that, especially with 16 people on it.

About the dancing thing, I like change!

I guess change is good - but I gotta be changed VERY slowly.

I still like it best when the singer(s) and a few musician(s) with acoustic instruments are sitting in chairs doing ballads. But, hey, I've progressed -- I think it's OK now if they mic the instruments and voices.

I guess I'm just spoiled by small venues. I really don't like crowds above a few hundred or so.

But more on-topic, I was at whatever awards show was going on in downtown Nashville during Fan Fair this year. I thought the big "production" of Joe D. Messina's song "That's The Way It Is" was way overdone. I don't mind her music all that much (esp. the stuff written by Phil Vassar) -- having something a little more upbeat for a change is OK. But the big fireworks and dance stuff just seems a little out of place.

Perhaps it's all a "big venue" vs. "small venue" thing. In a big venue, maybe people at the very back feel cheated if there's not a big "show" they can see and enjoy?

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The Unofficial Photographer of The Wilkinsons

Terry in H-town · Post by **Terry in H-town** » 11 Oct 2000 6:14 pm

I think they should re-name the CMA awards show "Nashville gone Hollywood" I've seen less glitter on Christmas trees! Was that live from Nashville or was it Vegas? I remember when the "music" would captivate us and carry us through the night, Now they need smoke, fog, mirrors, 60 dancers in the background, and enough lights to melt a small town. I guess when the music is lacking, they need all the props they can get. I wonder what next year will bring.

Smiley Roberts · Post by **Smiley Roberts** » 11 Oct 2000 11:35 pm

In answer to the original question,a resounding NO!!

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Garryharris · Post by **Garryharris** » 14 Oct 2000 6:30 am

Are you old enough to remember the Jimmy Dean show on TV. Each night they would feature an uptown version of square dancers and I fell in love with the cute brunette on the end. (female of course)

Theresa Galbraith · Post by **Theresa Galbraith** » 14 Oct 2000 7:39 am

I remember the Lawerence Welk show and the Jackie Gleason show. Dancing was a part of the show. Maybe not while some where singing all the time, but it's called entertainment!
Not all the artist on CMA had dancing and singing!

Donny Hinson · Post by **Donny Hinson** » 14 Oct 2000 9:43 am

THERESA! You actually liked those "old shows" like Lawrence Welk and Jackie Gleason? Aren't you afraid people will say you're "stuck in the past", like me? (LOL!)

Theresa Galbraith · Post by **Theresa Galbraith** » 14 Oct 2000 7:01 pm

Donny,
Yes, loved watching those shows, but I'm not stuck in the past.

Joe Casey · Post by **Joe Casey** » 15 Oct 2000 5:44 am

"To thy own self be true". I don't think I am stuck in the past,but I do like to take trips back into it.What last longer than a memory?..Once things change they can never be the same.A person can change but they always remain the same. They never lose their identity. So why should Country music have to lose it's true identity?. Next year the CMA broadcast ought to originate from Broadway.

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CJC

Missy James · Post by **Missy James** » 15 Oct 2000 6:20 am

Wow! What a stir this has caused! Here's my $.02:

When producers put on shows such as this, they are looking to grab and hold as big an audience as they can. This means that they try to cater to the inexperienced and ignorant (meaning "unknowledgeable") masses as well as the more sophisticated or dedicated fans. Sometimes their tactics work, and sometimes they don't.

I've seen instances where dancing can really add to the effect of a song. Reba seems to have a good handle on what kind of song can be enhanced by choreography. I saw her perform "Why Haven't I Heard From You" with dancers and it was a knockout success. However, I feel that the SheDaisy production on the CMAs was lacking in class and just seemed silly. And LeeAnn Womack was ironically not dancing when she performed "I Hope You Dance" as they instead chose to have a background performance which probably had more effect on the live audience that attended the awards.

I guess for me it depends on the mood the artist is trying to relate to the audience that makes the dancing effective or not. It's hit or miss as to what the general audience will like.

A true artist with a great song, however, can come out on stage and bowl you over without all the glitz. Take Martina McBride, for instance. Now SHE's the WOMAN!!!!!!!!

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I don't drink or lie, but I swear I steel!!

Theresa Galbraith · Post by **Theresa Galbraith** » 15 Oct 2000 8:38 am

Missy James,
I agree with you. I think the CMA was trying to capture everyone's attention! Can you blame them?

p.s. Still Martina gets criticism because not enough steel?
It's always been a no win situation. Maybe thats why the newer artist are trying to please themselves first.[This message was edited by Theresa Galbraith on 15 October 2000 at 09:48 AM.]

David Pennybaker · Post by **David Pennybaker** » 15 Oct 2000 9:24 pm

However, I feel that the SheDaisy production on the CMAs was lacking in class and just seemed silly.

Didn't they just basically walk around the stage a little, and maybe some arm gestures when they preformed?

I'll have to admit, I wasn't paying THAT much attention, since I was at the outside bar at a hotel in Grand Cayman at the time.

Still, I don't remember anything "un-classy".

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The Unofficial Photographer of The Wilkinsons

Missy James · Post by **Missy James** » 17 Oct 2000 5:18 am

My apologies, David. I certainly didn't mean to imply that the obviously talented ladies of SheDaisy were "un-classy." I guess my opinion of the choreography on "I Will Be Your Everything" was that it didn't look like it had any great thought behind it and did not *add* to the song. It was also evident by the sporadically bad intonation that the choreography they were doing was taking them out of the ear shot of their monitors.

Maybe "lacking in class" was a bad term to use. I guess that I personally equate this term with "making bad decisions" and meant it thusly. Of course, all of this is opinion, anyway. And you know what they say about opinions!!!

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I don't drink or lie, but I swear I steel!!

David Pennybaker · Post by **David Pennybaker** » 17 Oct 2000 6:40 am

I agree it didn't add anything. And, as you suggest, probably took away.

I've seen how poor monitor mixes can really screw up tight harmonies.

These groups should use personal ear monitors, and have a sound-check beforehand, preferably with THEIR OWN sound guys (for the monitor mix). Their own sound guys should be doing the monitor mixing, too, if at all possible.

The days of floor monitors should be numbered, IMO. Especially for vocal groups. Typically, each person prefers a different monitor mix. It DOES make a difference.

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The Unofficial Photographer of The Wilkinsons