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Colin Randall writes: Unlike the newspapers for which I have worked, on the staff or as a contributor, Salut! Live does not hold editorial conferences (nor, as you’ll have noticed, does it publish a print edition).
The three of us – Andrew Curry, Bill Taylor and I – bounce ideas off one another but there’s no equivalent of the “sorry, we’ll pass on that” response freelance journalists often get from commissioning editors [as I can vouch – CR]. Beyond that, and a general desire to avoid published items clashing, it’s pretty much laissez-faire.
Salut! Live pays no one, much as we probably all wish it might, and there is no great incentive apart from our shared love of the music we write about to spend excessive amounts of time on our various contributions.
Thanks to Andrew Curry and Bill Taylor, the “mostly written by Colin Randall” bit no longer applies
It is still a site to be proud of. The slight formalisation of our trademark informality – Andrew as deputy editor, Bill as North America editor – has had a remarkable effect, Andrew and Bill’s fresh ideas raising interest significantly. Then there is the Facebook group …
Join the Salut! Live Facebook group. Visit this link now
And currently the star feature of the group is our Artist(s) of the Week slot. Andrew, Bill and I take turns to nominate a performer, duo, trio or band that has made a special impact on our lives and musical loves.
With only a few hundred members, the ensuing post at Facebook draws limited numbers of visitors. Until, that is, the item is shared around the many other groups devoted to folk, folk-rock and related forms. So an item seen only at our group may attract a couple of hundred readers whereas making it available elsewhere on Facebook makes the “reach” massively greater.
I always make a point of engaging with the members of these other groups – we are, musically at least, cousins after all – rather than simply sharing a link, which would seem unethical. And I am grateful for the results: June Tabor as Artist of the Week, mentioned only at our group, drew a seemingly pitiful response in three figures whereas Andrew’s much-shared choice of the Dubliners has been seen by a staggering 5,700 people, Bill’s on Paul Brady by almost as many.
Bill, in one of our non-conferences, wondered whether it was really worth telling our readers all of this. My resp0nse was that the three of us put in a lot of effort and it is entirely natural to hope people see the results. The Facebook group has crept up above 400 members but should have 1,000+. The site attracts 200-450 visits each day but deserves more. Otherwise, I’ll pipe down!
And this, to date is the Artist(s) of the Week roll call: tell us who else we should be featuring.
Aug 15 Paul Brady
Aug 8 Linda Thompson
Aug 1 Maddy Prior
July 24 Tom Paxton
July 17 Alan Price
July 11 Wizz Jones
July 4 Eric Bogle
June 27 The Chieftains
June 20 The Dubliners
June 14 Greg Quill
June 6 Leon Rosselson
May 31 Richard Thompson
May 23 Bob Dylan
May 16 Shirley Collins
My 11 June Tabor
May 2 Alan Hull
April 25 Kate and Anna McGarrigle
April 18 Martin Simpson
April 7 Barry Skinner
Aprol 4 Show of Hands
March 28 Nanci Griffith
And next up, this week, will be the late Norma Waterson,
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