Bootie Chewning

Bootie. Even her name makes me smile…and I’m not alone. She makes everyone smile. She just has that thing…that “it” factor.  That “too much abundant joy not to share” kind of vibe.

Bootie is a generational blessing to me.  She and her brother George knew my dad from high school days and my mother continues to count Bootie among her dear friends. I can’t remember a time when I did not know her. And now, my daughter Maddi shares in our generational joy of knowing, loving and being loved by her.

Bootie seemed to always be involved in any kind of live performance when I was growing up.  To my mind, she was/is Vinton’s link to the Broadway and Hollywood. She was and is a star.

Whether it was a school play, the Vinton Lions Minstrel Show, the Junior Miss Pageants (local and state level), Showtimers or the Miss Virginia Pageant, Bootie brought it!  In fact, she STILL brings it!  Her talents and fingerprints were all over the shows.  Production. Music. Choreography. Lighting. Sound. She knows how to bring out the best in everyone.

And…she can dance. And she can sing.  And she can make everyone smile and laugh.

Bootie, thank you for being one of the giants upon whose shoulders I stand. I love you.

Bootie and my mom, Miss VA 2016.

 
Until next time, friends….be nice!

Chris Keaton is a Nashville TN based entertainment industry executive, music consultant, bon vivant and lover of great music, wine, fashion and fast cars.

Jabez

The sun is shining brightly as I write this.  My coffee cup is filled and steaming. My life feels pretty good right now.  In fact, my future’s so bright I gotta wear shades!

I’m thankful to be right where I am at this particular moment.

This month has been amazing and we’ve STILL got tomorrow!!!!

Once again, I want to thank everyone I have mentioned in my posts this month.  There are many others who assisted me and, in time, I will mention them as well.

The crazy thing to me is how it all happened.  It just seemed that at every turn, something else wonderful showed up (and I was fortunate enough to be aware to notice it.

In his book, The Prayer of Jabez, Bruce Wilkinson refers to “divine appointments”.  These are people and events God places on your path and in your life.  I am a firm believer in this concept because I have seen it happen in my life.  In fact, I continue to see it daily.

So for today, thank you!  And watch for those divine appointments in your life!

Until next time, friends….be nice!

Chris Keaton is a Nashville TN based entertainment industry executive, music consultant, bon vivant and lover of great music, wine, fashion and fast cars.

Jim Peterik

Bah da ba pa daaaa….yah!  That’s the signature lick from The Ides of March song, “Vehicle.”

Bomp…bomp bomp bomp…bomp bomp bomp…bomp bomp baaaa…bomp.  That’s the signature lick from “Eye of the Tiger.”  Both songs were written by Chicagoan, Jim Peterik.

Thanks to Chuck Poss, I first saw Jim play with The Ides at the Kings Inn in Roanoke VA when I was a teenager in the early 70s.  I quickly became a fan of the band…bought the records and wore them out.

When I was in Dazzle Boys in the early 80s, I rediscovered Jim as a founding member of the band Survivor.  I loved the first album and the song “Somewhere in America.”  Not too long after that the band found fame with “Eye of the Tiger”.

I moved to Nashville in 1993 and shortly after arriving I was introduced to Jim and I was able to tell him what a huge fan I was.  He was/is as gracious as they come and we have been friends ever since.

He invited me to his home when was in Chicago in the late 90‘s and we spent the afternoon talking and listening to music in his home studio.  A defining moment for me. I mean, here I am sitting in the studio with the writer of “The Search is Over”, “Hold On Loosely”, “Is This Love?” and many, many more.

His life in music has touched so many others (including me).  He even wrote a book about his journey “Through The Eye of The Tiger”. His gift of music, performing and songwriting has endured and he just keeps on keeping on. And his gift of friendship to me is a real treasure.

Our paths continue to cross and we still bump in to one another in Nashville, Chicago or LA and it’s always great to see him…and every time I do, I remember that through his music, he has touched so many lives…brought smiles, tears, happiness and joy to so many people.

So as I celebrate the last few days of ROCKTOBER and my trip down memory lane, I just want to say, Hey, Jim, thanks for sharing your gift of music. The gift of your songs really made defining moments for us all.

Until next time, friends….be nice!

Chris Keaton is a Nashville TN based entertainment industry executive, music consultant, bon vivant and lover of great music, wine, fashion and fast cars.

Bo Goldsen

Rodney Crowell introduced me to Bo Goldsen and he said, “You’ll never meet a finer guy in the music business.”  He was so right.

Bo and I became friends and later business associates.  His company, Criterion Music was one of the great independent music publishers and it was started by Bo’s dad, Mickey Goldsen.

Bo grew up around stars like Johnny Mercer and Frank Sinatra. His dad made deals with them and pitched them songs.  He even signed Lee Hazlewood and the copyright to “These Boots Are Made for Walking” was in the Criterion catalog.

So Bo came by it honestly.  Bo was deeply involved in the careers of many of music’s greats; Rodney Crowell; Roseanne Cash; Jackson Browne; Lyle Lovett; Michael McDonald and many more. He had an ear for a special song and the knack to identify and nurture writers from good to great.

I love Bo and his wife, Maribeth like family.

During this month of remembrances and memories, another defining moment occurred when Bo succumbed to cancer on October 6.  There will never be another Bo.

I will miss speaking to him on the phone and hearing his gentle laugh.  asnd his guidance and wisdom.

The lesson here is simple.  Love your friends.  Tell them how much you love them. Tell them what they mean to you. Let them know right now.

Until next time, friends….be nice!

Chris Keaton is a Nashville TN based entertainment industry executive, music consultant, bon vivant and lover of great music, wine, fashion and fast cars.

Mike Bare

Who knew? Mike Bare is not in the music business but he is a an incredibly successful businessman and friend…and he taught me quite a bit over the years.

Who knew? I was an associate with his company during my early years in Nashville.  A secret shopper. I saw an ad in the paper which stated something to the effect of “if you like to eat and you like to write, this job is for you.” (Of course, it didn’t state that, but that was my interpretation. Who knew?) So I applied for the position and was visiting restaurants and filling out secret shopper reports immediately. It was great fun and we got to eat at quite a few nice restaurants.

Then, one day, Mike, the president of the company and I met for lunch and during the lunch he asked if I would like to be trained to evaluate hotels.  Another defining moment. He explained the process and I agreed to give it a try.  He then asked if I had a passport and I told him I did.  As we concluded the lunch he said he would be in touch.

Three days later, he called and said he had purchased a ticket for me and we were to meet in Miami on the way to Aruba for my training. WOW!  Two weeks later, I met him in the Miami airport and we were off.  In the four days in Aruba, we evaluated seven restaurants, a time share and three hotel properties.

During this training trip, Mike taught me an incredibly valuable lesson. He taught me how to break a project into small parts and once I would get one part done, take some time to play and enjoy my surroundings (hey, it’s ARUBA, for crying out loud!) for awhile then work some more.  Work. Break. Repeat. Who knew?

Mike and I used to laugh until we’d cry and ask each other at random times, “Who knew?” In fact, when I met him in Hawaii for another whirlwind evaluation trip, he had hats made with “Who Knew?” printed on them.

The gift of this part time job with his company was it allowed me to travel for music business and get paid. I essentially underwrote my business travel by evaluating hotels. Work. Break. Repeat.

His (and his wife Dale’s)  friendship has meant the world to me over the years.  I even attended his son Jason’s bar mitzvah.

To this day, I practice the “Work. Break. Repeat.” techniques I learned from him.  It helps me be more productive and less prone to burn out. It also helps me to maintain a positive attitude because it gives me little victories all day long.

Thank you, Mike.

Until next time, friends….be nice!

Chris Keaton is a Nashville TN based entertainment industry executive, music consultant, bon vivant and lover of great music, wine, fashion and fast cars.

Bill Aucoin

Defining moments.  We all have them. One of mine was meeting Bill Aucoin.

I met Bill in 1998 in Miami.  My artist, Mike Younger had been invited to play at a  songwriter’s showcase hosted by Desmond Child.  When Mike was performing at soundcheck, Bill, who was there with his client, Cindy Bullens, came over and introduced himself.  It took me a moment, but when I realized who he was, it hit me like a bolt of lightning.

Kiss.  Billy Idol.  Billy Squire.  They were all who they were in large part because of Bill. Wow!

During Mike’s performance that evening, Bill came over and sat beside me and gushed over Mike’s talent and how fortunate I was to have found him.  We traded contact info and over the next few days by phone, really got to know and like each other.

In short order, we became business partners and the fun began. His stories of the time with Kiss and Billy Idol were legendary…grandiose…mind blowing.  Indeed, Bill was legendary…grandiose…mind blowing.

When he walked in the room, people noticed. His confidence was evident in everything he did.  He was the man. And he taught me.

How to dress.  Not like the majority of the slobs in the music business, but like someone important.

How to speak. With confidence but not arrogance.

How to listen. Intently and actively.

How to pick artists.  They must be characters.

How to have fun.  It was over the top.

I got the call on June 28, 2010 that Bill had passed.  I’m still not over it.  I still hear his sing-song voice on the phone.  I still see his smile…that laugh. I still see the look on that hotel desk clerk’s face in Austin as he asked, “THE Bill Aucoin?”

Thank you, Bill. Onward and upward.

Until next time, friends….be nice!

Chris Keaton is a Nashville TN based entertainment industry executive, music consultant, bon vivant and lover of great music, wine, fashion and fast cars.

Homecoming

Last week was absolutely amazing. The time went so quickly it was difficult to absorb everything in real time.  The trip to North Carolina; the Hall fo Fame Induction ceremony; visiting band mates and friends; recalling fond memories; performing with the band; making new friends. And then, Friday, we rushed home to Nashville to celebrate Homecoming at Maddi’s school by attending the football game and ceremonies.

Yesterday I realized that I was actually able to celebrate two homecomings last week. And I really don’t believe it was coincidental. I fact, to carry the notion even further the Band of Oz’s name is, of course, based on the film.  In the film, Dorothy is always trying to get back home but in the climactic final scenes, she is reminded of two things- there’s no place like home and that “home” is/was always with her and all she ever had to do to get back there was click her heels and say, “There’s no place like home.”

Well, there truly is no place like home and I will always carry the “home” of my memories in my heart. And I know that I can “get back” any time I choose.

What a wonderful feeling. I hope you will experience the same joy.

Until next time, friends….be nice!

Chris Keaton is a Nashville TN based entertainment industry executive, music consultant, bon vivant and lover of great music, wine, fashion and fast cars.

The Fans

In this walk down memory lane this month, thinking about my time playing in bands, performing and traveling, something occurred to me. The notion struck me that the fans, friends and people around us made us feel like stars…like real rock stars.

It wasn’t the money…most of the time, we had no money, but, wow, we felt rich.

It wasn’t the fame…we really weren’t that well known, but, wow, we felt famous.

Sometimes we weren’t even that good, but wow, we felt like we were great.

But it was real.  The energy between the band and the fans and from the fans to the band was and is real. And powerful.

That’s what music does.  It creates a feeling for all to share. And it has the power to change lives. It certainly changed mine.

Thank you!

Until next time, friends….be nice!

Chris Keaton is a Nashville TN based entertainment industry executive, music consultant, bon vivant and lover of great music, wine, fashion and fast cars.

The Songs

Continuing on the theme that music really does have the power to change lives, I’d like to invite you to join the conversation.  Today, I’m going to randomly (REALLY randomly) list some songs that are important to me and I’d love for you to do the same.

Roll Over Beethoven-Chuck Berry; I Want To Hold Your Hand – The Beatles; Lucretia McEvil-Blood, Sweat and Tears; Gymnopédie No.1-Erik Satie; Beginnings-Chicago-Cool Jerk-The Capitols

Vehicle-The Ides of March; I’ve Got You Under My Skin-Frank Sinatra; Back in Black-ACDC; He Stopped Loving Her Today-George Jones; Can’t You Hear Me Knockin’, Brown Sugar, Jumping Jack Flash- The Rolling Stones; Sun Goddess, Mighty Mighty-Earth, Wind and Fire; It’s Your Thing-The Isley Brothers; Your Song-Elton John

Mandolin Wind-Rod Stewart; A Change is Gonna Come, You Send Me, Twistin’ the Night Away-Sam Cooke; In the Midnight Hour-Wilson Pickett; Green Onions-Booker T and the MGs; Strawberry Wine-Deana Carter; Everybody Love’s Somebody Sometime-Dean Martin

You get the idea…bring it!

Until next time, friends….be nice!

Chris Keaton is a Nashville TN based entertainment industry executive, music consultant, bon vivant and lover of great music, wine, fashion and fast cars.

The Journey

Music really does have the power to change lives. That realization, which should have been obvious all along, has really struck me this month… and really hit home this week.

Seeing friends and bandmates I had not seen in years and being able to pick up where we left off before. Meeting people who were fans of the Band of Oz and hearing them share the stories of seeing us perform and hearing our music back in the day. And then to see the love, happiness and joy in their eyes.  To know that I played a part in all of that brings me joy. It’s astounding, really.

I have always been in the music/entertainment business.  It has always been my vocation and my avocation. The journey has been amazing, filled with twists and turns, ups and downs and I am exceedingly grateful for every moment. Well, okay, I would have preferred to not endure a few moments…

But I’m also aware that many times I have let it become a job and in doing so have missed the joy.  And the fact that God gave me these gifts to share and by sharing them I am paying him back.

Thank you for indulging me this month.  Sharing the memories has been fun and has opened my eyes and allowed me to stop..and remember to count my blessings.

Until next time, friends….be nice!

Chris Keaton is a Nashville TN based entertainment industry executive, music consultant, bon vivant and lover of great music, wine, fashion and fast cars.