Although currently living in the Nashville area, Caroline returns to the area in March to open for country legend Reba McEntire at the Florida Strawberry Festival.

Check out some of our pictures from the show.

Disclaimer: No, these pictures aren’t our best work, but in our defense, we defer to our earlier comments.

An open letter to Kelly Clarkson and other artists who think that “soundboard shoots” are a good idea.

 
Dear Ms. Clarkson,
While I am genuinely  excited about your upcoming show in Clearwater, Florida, I was quite disappointed to hear that you have restricted professional photographers to the back of the venue.  Commonly referred to as a “soundboard shoot”*, this will force press photographers back to a position approximately 150 feet from the stage and elevated several feet above your head. While this might be the perfect vantage point for a sniper, it’s an atrocious location for a concert photographer. By the way, the throng of press covering your show will also be fighting for aisle space next to the soundboard, possible blocking the view of some fans.

This practice of making professional concert photographers shoot from the soundboard is not a new concept, but has transitioned from an occasional occurrence to a more-regular requirement.  Artists such as Josh Groban, Andrea Bocelli, Motley Crue, Dolly Parton and Alison Krauss have also sent Tampa photographers to the back of the venue in recent months.  It’s a concept that I don’t completely understand, unless it’s a technical or safety issue with the show or staging.

Before you take the stage, you will have spent a great deal of time working out the staging, sets, lighting and choreography. You will have also selected the perfect wardrobe, styled your hair and adjusted your makeup. This planning and preparation should combine to offer fans and the press your absolute best look. Taking this into consideration, it confuses me as to why you would make photographing your show so difficult.

View of the Ruth Eckerd Hall Stage from the soundboard.

No matter where we are forced to work, professional concert photographers will adapt. From the soundboard, most of us will pull out our best zoom lens and monopod, and fire off as many frames as we can. Unfortunately, we’ll be limited to mostly head-on shots with no option to alter our position. You are going to look slightly shorter or “squatted”, due to the angle and a distorted perspective. The microphone will most likely block your mouth or face in most shots and we’ll have trouble dealing with the lighting from that distance. If you’re wearing a hat, we might not be able to see your face.  In venues where the soundboard is at floor level, most of our shots will include the hands and heads of the crowd blocking the lower part of your body.  These, and many other issues, will limit the quality of our photographs. With all that you’ve put into the show; it’s a shame that the pictures won’t accurately reflect your efforts.

I would like to make a request to you, and other artists considering this practice, on behalf of my fellow concert photographers and press; don’t send us to the soundboard. If you have an issue with photographers down front during your show, let us offer an alternative. We might be able to shoot from a side or middle aisle, security station or other location in the venue that doesn’t affect your show. In some cases, I’ve been able to utilize unused handicapped seating areas for great shots, without blocking the view of other fans. With each venue, the options will be different but I’m sure that nearly any option would be better than shooting from the soundboard. Most professional photographers aren’t out to make you look bad, but would rather turn in great pictures that might bring some praise to our talent as well.

Thank you for your time.

(Photos by Tracy May)

THURSDAY
• Check out some great blues rock with five-time Grammy winner Robert Cray. Jannus Live, St. Petersburg

Brandi Carlile at The Capitol Theatre

FRIDAY
• Enjoy the sounds of The Florida Orchestra as they present one of the most popular of all romantic concertos, Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No. 2, in a night with Nielsen’s Helios Overture and Sibelius’ Symphony No. 1. The Straz Center, Tampa
• While we can’t take credit for discovering Brandi Carlile, we did make a big deal during her last visit to the area. The Capitol Theatre, Clearwater. READ OUR 2010 INTERVIEW WITH BRANDI
• Can’t wait to see Bruce Springsteen next month? Check out Southside Johnny and the Asbury Jukes for a little Jersey Shore rock. Jannus Live, St. Petersburg.
• Need an injection of soul? Gladys Knight has exactly what you need. The Mahaffey, St. Petersburg.
• Spend an evening with a songwriting legend; Paul Anka. Ruth Eckerd Hall, Clearwater.

SATURDAY
• Yonder Mountain String Band blends traditional bluegrass with many other influences to create a unique sound. Jannus Live, St. Petersburg.

SUNDAY
• The weekend weather should be great for some fun rides and a little 80′s rock with reality TV star and Poison front man Bret Michaels, Busch Gardens, Tampa

“I’m excited that we will be able to turn these initial select few shows into a full fledged tour! It means a lot to us that our fans wanted more shows and we look forward to performing these albums for them,” said front man Scott Stapp.

2012 marks the 15-year anniversary of Creed’s debut blockbuster album, My Own Prison, which has sold more than 6 million copies to date. The follow-up, 1999’s massive global hit Human Clay has sold more than 11 million copies to date and features the rock radio mainstays “With Arms Wide Open” and “Higher”.

Reserved tickets priced at $69.50, $49.50 and $39.50 will be available at the Ruth Eckerd Hall Ticket Office located at 1111 McMullen Booth Road in Clearwater or by calling 727.791.7400. The Ruth Eckerd Hall Ticket Office is open Monday through Saturday, from noon to 6 pm and one hour prior to showtime. Patrons may also purchase tickets at www.rutheckerdhall.com 24/7.

For readers who might be a bit young to recognize some of these musicians or bands, here are a few bits of BCC trivia:

* Andes, Bartley, Burnett, Muse and Roberts formed Firefall in the mid-70’s, along with ex-Byrds drummer Michael Clarke, who died in 1993. As Firefall, they racked up eleven Billboard Top 100 hits, with “You Are The Woman” spending 22 weeks on the charts, reaching as high as #9. This tune is currently credited with more than 5 million radio plays.

* Rick Roberts replaced Gram Parsons in the Flying Burrito Brothers, performing with ex-Byrds member Chris Hillman.

* Spirit’s 1969 hit, and rock standard, “I Got A Line On You” features Mark Andes on bass and vocals. Andes also co-wrote Heart’s 1983 hit “How Can I Refuse” and stayed on to play bass with the band for nearly ten years.

* Bobby Caldwell’s signature drum sound can be heard on Rick Derringer’s 1974 hit “Rock and Roll, Hoochie Koo”, Johnny Winter’s iconic live album Johnny Winter And, as well as The Allman Brother’s Live at the Fillmore East.

* Paul Cotton spent more than forty years with country-rock band Poco, penning hits such as “Heart of the Night” and “Barbados” along the way.

* Percussionist Joe Lala was a member of Blues Image and has played with everyone in the business. No, seriously, we checked. Check out Lala’s list of credits online.

While many super-groups or artist collaborations rely on the past success of each member to carry the new project, Boulder County Conspiracy plans to combine a vast catalog of existing hit songs with new material to create a distinct personality for the band.  During rehearsals, I got a chance to hear the band working on a new song by Larry Burnett, titled “Romeo”. It’s a very cool tune that carries a lot of the old school sound with some new twists. It should prove to be a great addition to the set list.

The band has several more rehearsals scheduled for the coming months, with plans to start touring in the spring. A new CD project has been discussed and may be part of the not-too-distant future for the band. I’ll be sure to keep tabs on the band’s plans and pass along details as I get them.

Check out a few pictures from the rehearsals: