Help for Boscoe France

Hey Curby,
I will give a longer reply by email. To be honest unless he is willing to soend a lot of money and build up some PR, it would be a waste of time. The scene is not vibrant to say the least. Artist that are much more prominent have tried and left with their tails between their legs. Although it depends what he is looking for. He has to be very very careful who he deals with. There are some real turds in the business and it is hard to spot them until its too late. Obviously there are some daimonds too but daimonds are rare. It really depends on what he is looking to do. Have a few gigs and a jolly or try and make a go of it. Ill get to your by email in the next few days, at the moment I have my hands full with the DVD.

Hi Mary,

You're absolutely right about Boscoe, he is a great guy, but to my wife he's become a spark-plug for her yearlong recovery from radiation treatments.  She and I both love seeing him play and one thing I've noticed real quick is he has as many gears in his playing as an Italian sports car.  I don't think there's anything he can't do with a guitar and it's just getting those stars lined up.  I will say that he measures up favorably to many bandied here and I think I'm speaking from experience.

If he does well in Memphis then there'll be callers at his door in Madisonville, but I'm hoping for input from people here that might have a few connections, or wisdom to impart.  What Martin said was a bit of a damper, but I know he knows worlds more than me about the music business and his opinion carries a great deal of weight.  If Joe Bonamassa reads this I hope he remembers the guy he announced winner of Battle of the Blues and lets him open for him somewhere.

I have not heard of TD, but will check him out.  I am close to joining the local blues society (River Basin) and they have three entries for IBC.

Your words above are right on the mark.  Going across the pond is probably more than a risk though.  First thing is for Boscoe to win IBC, and he opens at B.B. King's Blues Palace.  Next to the Rum Boogie it is the top place to play on Beale St.

Jim sums it up nicely. Every artists needs a strong web presence. Breaking new ground should only be done when you have broken existing territory.
When contemplating coming over to europe, advance promotion is a must. Get a buzz going, get folks talking about you and sharing your internet offerings (make sure it is worth sharing). Have a plan and follow it through. If you have any money (well thats a joke for 99%)  for PR use it wisely.
Being able to deliver nice guitar and vocals is only part of it. Time and time again, I have seen good (if not great) talent being wasted with shitty stage presence. Honestly some artists must have blinkers on when they watch videos of their own performances. Too many times I see "here is an amazing vieo rom last night" and quite frankly it is a medeocre video, usually with yhe artists looking like he has just turned of from his day job and climbed on stage. It only takes little effort to make a much better impression. Frankly I love it as it makes my lot look better before they even enter stage.
I sent an amail to Curby, pretty much covering what Jim has also noted. To get a touring base in europe, I would be aiming for some decent support tours and a festival or 2. To do this takes time and effort. These will get you seen by agents/promotors. Coming and playing to 20 people in small pubs and clubs is a very expensive way of doing it and will keep you under the radar. Where you play is also very important. I have seen a couple of artists do well with promo gigs. They pick 1 venue in london (I  think birmingham would be better) and make it a free showcase for agents/promotors.
Mary mentioned that the world is on notice for Boscoe. Not sure sure how, as oustide of this forum I have never heard his name mentioned (I get around in the business a lot and know most of the promotors covering this genre). His web site is no help to him either. I have never heard any another artist mention his name. He needs to to do lot of PR work to get his presence out there. Jim hinted at the problem, try googling Boscoe and see what you get, not a lot.
Jim makes an excellent point in that he booked a 'winner' for $200 and would not rebook them. Not sure who it is but I would hedge my bets that they are self managed and have noone looking criticaly at the band, pointing out the little things that add up to make a big difference.
Having talent is only part of it. How many times have we all seen support acts and early festival slots that are talented but have poor stage presence and deliver a perfomance inline with their place on the bill.. What a wasted opportunity, they should be out there with sole purpose of f'ing up everyone else on the bill. Anyway starting to ramble.