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SUBJECT:	OT AAJ Review: John Kelman’s Best Live Shows of 2012 Back to Subjects
djbinder Dec 23 2012 at 8:03 AM	A best live shows list for 2012, published today at All About Jazz. In a year traveling from South Africa to Sweden, Norway to the Netherlands, and covering everything from the Trondheim Jazz Festival to the TD Ottawa International Jazz Festival, it was another banner year of over 100 performances. Here are 25 that stood out amongst a batch of shows with only a couple of missteps. Review here: http://j.mp/YApZPC
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john Jan 12 2013 at 7:50 AM	Dj - keep on keeping on as they say. Nice photos - I loved the Brian Blade one, the essence of BB in a single photo. Cheers John
djbinder Jan 07 2013 at 1:22 PM	Thanks, Frank, for your ongoing support, it’s truly appreciated.
franksexton Jan 07 2013 at 11:24 AM	John , you are WAY more patient when being subject to unprovoked attacks than I would be. Rmember that this is a moderated forum and posts wouldn’t be accepted if they were deemed self-serving in any way. Thanks for replying to me and for the good work you do, you perform a service just as valuable as the musicians who create such fine music do. As for money, the good book say’s "The love of money is the root of all evil". Being able to do what you love is one of the greatest riches of all.
djbinder Jan 06 2013 at 9:46 PM	bluepno and hman01, thanks for the kind words and the support. No, hman01, I don’t need it, but it’s always nice to have it! :) I just try to share things about which I figure folks here might be interested. I share my work the same way that I encourage other writers to with theirs, but sadly too many don’t realize that at this time, just as is true with musicians, you need to be a bit of a shameless self-promoter. Just as it is true, for most musicians, that simply releasing a cd is not enough to get you attention, just being published is not enough either - you have to let people know your work is out there, whether it’s through forums like this or via social media lke facebook, twitter, google+, etc. I also believe that engaging with your readers, if you’re lucky enough to get some (!), is important, the same way some musicians are realizing it’s beneficial for them to engage with their lsteners. I figure if people who are kind enough to read my stuff are even kinder and take the extra step of investing the time to write comments about it - positive OR negative, btw - I think it’s important that I acknowledge that by replying. That’s why I’ll even engage with folks like lol (though my last post was, indeed, my last one for him/her)...we can’t always agree, but I do believe if someone takes the time to write in, it’s the right thing for me to do to try and respond and, if possible, at the very least explain my position or provide more information. Thanks again, guys!
djbinder Jan 06 2013 at 9:35 PM	My final message to lol: it’s absolutely the norm for reviewers to get promotional materials and press passes to shows. As for getting expenses covered, that is dependent on the event having a budget for media..or the publication having a travel budget. Some do, some don’t. Being volunteer-driven, All About Jazz certainly does not. I’ve been offered opportunities to cover festivals abroad,and when I inform them that I need airfare and accommodations and they don’t have suffiicient resources, budget, we just say, ’ok, maybe next year’ - or, in some cases, if I can schedule two festivals back to back, which reduces the travel budget, it then becomes possible. And yes, there are other All About Jazz writers who’ve had similar coverage from festivals abroad, so it’s certainly not just me. I have, however, worked at building a network over the past decade that has resulted in perhaps more opportunities than have been offered to others, but as my profile at All About Jazz says, anything I’ve managed to accomplish in this regard, whether it’s travel, liners, speaking engagements, whatever, these are all opportunities any writer at All About Jazz can create for themselves, if they’ve the time, the energy and the networking skills. That’s been e beauty if being a part of All About Jazz, the opportunities are all out there for you if you want to go after them. If you cover a festival, don’t just go to the shows with your head down, go back to the room (or home) and write them up. Take the opportunity to meet people - festival presenters, other writers from around the world, artists, publicists and more. You never know where it might lead. I’ve been very, very fortunate, but it’s been a combination of hard work, doing a decent job at what I do, some definite ’right place right time’ circumstances and taking advantage if every opportunity placed in front of me. As for why the picture? Well, there’s actually a funny story behind it and, after all these years, amongst the folks I know, it’s become something of a joke, so I see no need to change it. It honestly, lol, it’s a little disingenuous for you to question me on disclosure when you operate under a handle like lol. Seriously.
hman01 Jan 05 2013 at 7:17 PM	After doing a search for "lol",I’ve noticed that there are only three posts for this person.All in this thread only.All other posts for LOL were simply for the abbreviation normally used online.The best thing to do with a character like this is to ignore him,although I can’t tell others what to do. I am however thankful for "djbinder"s responses,in that they do give some insight into the life and circumstances of a music writer,which to me is interesting.He also,out of mutual respect and in the interest of great music,contributes much to us who frequent this website. He does not need me to come to his defense,but he does deserve appreciation for his breadth and knowledge of the music that he shares with us.
lol Jan 05 2013 at 2:59 PM	Just quickly, off the cuff, I’ll say I’m glad you’re sorry. Maybe a sense of humor would help with that though I would think the ability to read would be essential to your work. I only said "he" has an agent if "you" were not "he". A reasonable enough assumption being that "you" never inform anybody about any of the other writers at AAJ. But enough with assumptions. Since your "industry" covers your expenses they must know your face so why do you cover it with your hand at your profile page? You also say it’s "the norm" for these events to cover your expenses. Is this true for all of the correspondents at all of the events you "cover"?
bluepno Jan 05 2013 at 1:46 PM	Thank you djbinder, your additions to this site have helped me find music of similar intensity and intelligence...you have always fairly identified your associations...others simply snipe from behind a joke (lol)...no need to defend. I thought personal attacks ended with the closing of the basement.
djbinder Jan 05 2013 at 9:25 AM	Actually, lol, I don’t pay for travel. As is the norm, festivals and events who have a budget for it pay for airfare and accommodations; if I can’t get my expenses covered, I can’t cover the event unless it’s nearby to where I live. I’ve no agent (that really shows how little you know; I don’t know more than a couple jazz writers who can afford one). And before you even go there, festival/events covering expenses does not mean they expect anything but a review, any more than labels who send out promo copies to writers hope for one - in both cases they hope for a good one, but the don’t expect it. It’s the way the industry works. So, I’m sorry, lol, your comments have been both uninformed and untrue, based on nothing more than assumptions. Why I use multiple handles is, to be honest, none of your business but part of it is for protection on the web. Hope this clarifies. If you still think my works suggests some kind of grand income, well, you’re just plain wrong. I don’t know a single jazz writer who is getting rich doing this. Most, like myself, can’t even come close to making a living, and those few who do aren’t living high on the hog.
lol Jan 04 2013 at 7:04 PM	"Where do you get the impression that he is making ANY money." From you being able to pay for all that travel and afford to refer to yourself in the third person. You are "he", right? If not then add being able to afford an agent.
djbinder Jan 04 2013 at 5:27 PM	Hi Frank Unfortunately AAJ simply cannot pay..but paid work does come as a result of writing for AAJ. Last year alone, I curated a series in Kongsberg, Norway; wrote liner notes for Highnote/Savant, ECM, Hatology and some indie artists; did press sheets for Joe Locke, John McLaughlin, Samuel Blaser, Eric Honoré/Greta Aagre; and had photos published in Jazzwise (UK), Jazzthetik (Germany) and other sources. So I appreciate your kind words of encouragement and support, and while I’ll tell you there’s nowhere near enough money to live on, paid work is beginning to roll in. Already, this year, have a speaking engagement in the UK end of Jan, doing another ECM liner and may have some pix used in another ECM title...so it’s all good, Frank. Thanks.... :)
franksexton Jan 04 2013 at 8:40 AM	John, I think you review very well. You should get paid for what you , in my opinion anyway. You should try to sell your pictures , too.
bluepno Jan 04 2013 at 7:40 AM	Regina Carter....Eliane Elias/Marc Johnson...Dave Sanborn/ Joey DeFrancesca. Would have loved to have made many more visits to the clubs and theaters.
djbinder Jan 03 2013 at 10:58 PM	Hi Frank. All but one photo, yes. Glad you like ’em, tx!
djbinder Jan 03 2013 at 2:47 PM	"Love the irony of a jazz critic earning more than most of the musicians he reviews. How do you do it?" Where do you get the impression that he is making ANY money. AAJ is volunteer-driven, so nobody is paid for any of that work - either writing or back end. There is some money in liner notes and press sheets, photography, curations and speaking engagements, but it ain’t a living by a long shot. Funny how you make an assumption that couldn’t be farther from the truth....
franksexton Jan 03 2013 at 10:52 AM	I loved your pictures, did you take them yourself ?
lol Jan 02 2013 at 5:42 PM	Love the irony of a jazz critic earning more than most of the musicians he reviews. How do you do it?
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