Glaring Void Of Bluegrass Music In Branson...

[barney 59]

John Mckuen was spending some time in Branson a few years back. Ronnie Reno does spend time there and is tied into Stan Hitchcock and the RFD-TV stuff that comes out of there. You would think that if someone thought that there was a buck to be made with a Bluegrass Venue it would be being done. Maybe the people that are behind this resort consider bluegrass people a "bad element" --I mean, we do consort with banjo players.

[MikeEdgerton]

It's also interesting that someone in Branson has owned the domain name www.bransonbluegrass.com for years.

[JeffD]

It's also interesting that someone in Branson has owned the domain name www.bransonbluegrass.com for years.

Yea, and he makes money by threatening to do something with it.

[allenhopkins]

Excuse my general ignorance, but isn't the Branson "SOP" that artists build their own venues, which then feature each artist's performances, along with guests etc.?

Is there any bluegrass group that could afford to build its own theater, and then tie itself down to playing at that single venue for most of the year? I mean, AKUS, Rhonda Vincent, Ricky Skaggs, McCoury, bands at that level probably do a whole lot better touring, playing the Opry, perhaps working out of Nashville.

Again, there may be a number of Branson venues which feature a schedule of touring groups, but my understanding is that Branson performers own most of the theaters. Please set me straight if I'm in error.

[LoneStarMandolin]

I'm not necessarily talking about big theaters as venues. Perhaps smaller venues that would provide for a less costly, more intimate setting, yet large enough to bring in enough numbers to pay the bills.
Obviously, I don't know squat about the business end of BG music, but it just seems to me that Branson and BG fans could benefit tremendously from a smaller-ish BG oriented venue sort of on the order of a Station Inn but maybe a little larger. I know, I know, The Station Inn is a well established, BG promoting, venue...arguably the most famous BG club in the world.

maybe I'm just as "out of it" as the rest of you but I think it's a genius idea -- especially building a replica of the Station Inn - and I think it'd work. It could become a "must stop" on any tour by any of the big bands and if you worked it right you could have a big name band most weeks out of the year (I'd think). yes, you'd probably need to work in some old style country music and maybe let a fiddler in (!) but if you built a venue that promoted itself as "good old fashioned music" and "pickin' and grinnin'" I think it'd work and work big. but I don't know "the biz" and sure don't know how to make money in bluegrass music.

[Willie Poole]

I think a lot of the theaters are owned by multiple people and use a stars name to draw attendance...Mo Bandy has a theater and he is touring quite a bit still....The last time I was there there was theater being built FOR Johnny cash and it fell through, Johnny didn`t put one penny into having it built or so I heard...The company building it went bankrupt....maybe someone else pick it up and finished it....

Someone might get the idea to hold a whole week of bluegrass in one of the theaters and see if people respond to it....

Those Stan Hitchcock shows are as old as I am, well not quite, but almost....

Willie

[Bernie Daniel]

Doesn't Branson have the reputation as a place where fading "country" bands go to die?

No, I don't certainly would not think that. Some of the theaters there have been there for years and the fourth generation pickers are on stage. The Presleys' are a good example. They are not dying. I might mention that the Presleys usually incorporate a little bluegrass into every show -- they can pick it!

[Bernie Daniel]

Excuse my general ignorance, but isn't the Branson "SOP" that artists build their own venues, which then feature each artist's performances, along with guests etc.?

Is there any bluegrass group that could afford to build its own theater, and then tie itself down to playing at that single venue for most of the year? I mean, AKUS, Rhonda Vincent, Ricky Skaggs, McCoury, bands at that level probably do a whole lot better touring, playing the Opry, perhaps working out of Nashville.

Again, there may be a number of Branson venues which feature a schedule of touring groups, but my understanding is that Branson performers own most of the theaters. Please set me straight if I'm in error.

I think that is generally right. But one might think that some organization acting with a broader vision might consider bringing together a number of major BG bands along with organizations like IBMA and the IBM and others to, in turn, attempt to corner some high rollers for funding and build a theater that uses bluegrass as its theme and where multiple bands could spend a few weeks each year? Trading off to another band then another? I could imagine many visitors willing to spend at least one night of their stay being entertained by a BG group even if their main focus is more on Branson-style country?

[MikeEdgerton]

I'm shocked that all those business type folks in Branson haven't figured out that there's a ton of money to be made here. Several years ago a friend of mine came into a large amount of money and decided that what the town he lived in needed was a 24 hour a day Star Trek station on cable. I was shocked when he lost every dime he had trying to make it happen. There really are a lot of Star Trek fans, heck they even have conventions every year. Maybe I wasn't really shocked.

[JeffD]

I could imagine many visitors willing to spend at least one night of their stay being entertained by a BG group even if their main focus is more on Branson-style country?

Hundreds of them.

[Bernie Daniel]

I'm shocked that all those business type folks in Branson haven't figured out that there's a ton of money to be made here. Several years ago a friend of mine came into a large amount of money and decided that what the town he lived in needed was a 24 hour a day Star Trek station on cable. I was shocked when he lost every dime he had trying to make it happen. There really are a lot of Star Trek fans, heck they even have conventions every year. Maybe I wasn't really shocked.

Yeah I could have told him that -- he should have started RFD TV instead.

Maybe its been examined as an opportunity already and maybe not I don't know.

We were there years ago when it was not as big as now --but none of the crowds in the theaters were as large as the crowd for the Dillards that we attended the next day at the theme park. I can't even remember the name of it now.

[journeybear]

I would be really surprised if a money-making opportunity for Branson hadn't been examined, thoroughly. And if a venue devoted to bluegrass doesn't exist, the numbers must not be right - especially considering how many venues there are, and how many of which present, um, not exactly high quality entertainment. It does seem possible for theaters to operate there even without presenting big name acts. But as I said, we don't know why there isn't such a place, nor will we, not being privy to such number-crunching - but that won't stop us from speculating.

Speaking of which ... the notion of a theater being started up around several top name bluegrass acts, each of which commits to spending a few weeks a year there in some kind of rotation, with the rest of the slots assigned to lesser known acts but still with some drawing power, has a lot of appeal, and sounds like a logical premise. There must be more to this than we know, or else it would have been done. One would like to think so, anyway.

[Charlieshafer]

Speaking of which ... the notion of a theater being started up around several top name bluegrass acts, each of which commits to spending a few weeks a year there in some kind of rotation, with the rest of the slots assigned to lesser known acts but still with some drawing power, has a lot of appeal, and sounds like a logical premise. There must be more to this than we know, or else it would have been done. One would like to think so, anyway.

Outside of the size of the bluegrass fan base as opposed to the Tony Orlando fan base is that the numbers of top-flight musicians that would really draw is probably a big part of the problem. The top-line bands who tour heavily simply get tired and need a break, and having to spend time in Branson performing 8 shows a week may not be their idea of a little R&R. Branson seems like a place many musicians go to after they don't want to tour anymore, or simply can't book enough tours to make a go of it. Those who still tour extensively need the break from touring, especially as European and Asian tours are becoming big income producers for a lot of American music. That just tires out the musicians that much more.

I think having a successful place in Branson means that that's all you're doing. Big tour buses rolling in don't want to see lesser-lights. Half-hearted won't cut it, and I bet the best musicians won't want to be pinned down to having to perform that frequently. What artist is going to give up the festival season and it's income to have to hang in Branson while everyone else is out having fun?

[John Flynn]

Why would bluegrass want to be in Branson?

Good point. I would go further and ask, "Why would anyone want to go to Branson to hear it even if it was there?" I'm from Missouri. My family went to the Ozarks and all the area tourist attractions every summer for many years when I was growing up. It was nothing more than a tourist trap and black hole for culture back then. Now it's just a lot bigger...

[Scott Tichenor]

Good point. I would go further and ask, "Why would anyone want to go to Branson to hear it even if it was there?" I'm from Missouri. My family went to the Ozarks and all the area tourist attractions every summer for many years when I was growing up. It was nothing more than a tourist trap and black hole for culture back then. Now it's just a lot bigger...

Or as I privately call it, Branson is Las Vegas for people with not as much money and fewer teeth, minus gambling, unless you consider driving in town that definition (I do).

The fact is those shows in Branson are for tourists and big bus loads of old folks from all over the country that want some simple entertainment. They want to hear the songs on the radio. Bluegrass won't and can't provide that. My mom did one on those once when she was still with us and raved at Boxcar Willie's show. She'd heard of him and he played all the songs she'd heard on the radio and TV commercials. Ever hear of a bluegrass group? Nope, except for the one I played in. Country shows are all about entertaining the audience, and if no one understands what that means then no need in discussing further. Bluegrass is not the same kind of entertainment, and Del McCoury every night in Branson isn't going to pull in enough folks to pay the electric bill. You have to understand the coverage a Loretta Lynn and some of those other shows have over bluegrass. It ain't even close, and it ain't never gonna happen (grammar!).

[Mike Bunting]

Scott and John nicely summed up both my comments. Thanks. I also believe that bluegrass is too good to achieve mass appeal.

[Bernie Daniel]

...The fact is those shows in Branson are for tourists and big bus loads of old folks from all over the country that want some simple entertainment. They want to hear the songs on the radio. Bluegrass won't and can't provide that. ....

So in your opinion most bluegrass festivals do not have a lot of "old people" in the crowd..........?

Totally out of curiosity how much personal experience do you have with Branson? Just aking.

[Mike Bunting]

So in your opinion most bluegrass festivals do not have a lot of "old people" in the crowd..........?

Totally out of curiosity how much personal experience do you have with Branson? Just aking.

Read the rest of what you quoted. The term "old people" was quite well qualified. E.g. "They want to hear the songs on the radio."
The old folks who go to BG festivals obviously don't come to hear the music that they hear on the radio.

[Bernie Daniel]

...Thanks. I also believe that bluegrass is too good to achieve mass appeal.

Sounds kinda silly to me -- but what the heck. Some guy called Monroe thought it was for the folks.

[Pete Summers]

Or as I privately call it, Branson is Las Vegas for people with not as much money and fewer teeth, minus gambling, unless you consider driving in town that definition (I do).

You probably should have left that private.

[Bernie Daniel]

Read the rest of what you quoted. The term "old people" was quite well qualified. E.g. "They want to hear the songs on the radio."
The old folks who go to BG festivals obviously don't come to hear the music that they hear on the radio.

I don't see your point. Old folks do go to bluegrass festivals to hear bluegrass -- whether they hear it on the radio or not I guess. They don't come to Branson now for bluegrass because there is none now -- I say they would if it was there -- radio or no.

Of relevance, cruise ships with "bluegrass themes" fill several thousand openings in a few weeks - - they have to go to Florida or Alaska to get on the ships. Missouri seems possible.

[Beanzy]

Why serve champagne in a beer mug?

[Mike Bunting]

Sounds kinda silly to me -- but what the heck. Some guy called Monroe thought it was for the folks.

Mass appeal is not the "folks".

[Mike Bunting]

Why serve champagne in a beer mug?

'Zackly.

[Bernie Daniel]

Why serve champagne in a beer mug?

Well when you shell out your $2500 - 3200 for a 7-day Royal Caribbean cruise with Rhonda Vincent and the Rage -- you will get beer served in champagne glasses!
Say what you wish these cruises fill up fast.