Editorial

Every month, I lash myself to my computer to tackle my least favorite duty related to the monthly RAG -- compiling the listings. Some people are listmakers and revel in organizing this sort of data, but I'm definitely not in that camp. (A look at my desk would confirm that.) I equate this sort of chore with water torture. By the time everything is posted to the appropriate list, the floor is strewn with massive piles of newsletters, press releases, brochures, printed e-mails and letters, and my brain is fried.

Each month, I tell myself that I just can't go through all that material. The lists will just have to be shorter. But every month I'm back at it till the wee hours of the morning, culling through newsletters and trying to pull information out of my various sources. And, as I type away, I bless the musicians who have sent me concise e-mails with their gigs presented in the proper format (name of artist, date, time, venue, city, state, contact information).

You might think that the reason I compile these lists is because I want to encourage patronage of trad jazz and ragtime events, and you'd be right, but there is a reason beyond that. I just can't ignore the fact that there are so many jazz and ragtime devotees who bite the bullet every month to meet their own deadlines for club newsletters, and I feel a responsibility to at least make a stab at disseminating the information they try so hard to provide.

Some newsletter editors, like Eddy Banjura of the Illiana Club of Traditional Jazz, have been editing their newsletters for decades, packing them with tidbits, profiles, obituaries and promotions. Many editors have learned desktop publishing programs so they could upgrade and expand their publications, and I'm amazed at how many newsletters include excellent research and fascinating historical features. Nearly every newsletter has lists of gigs, festivals and hotlines, and there's no question in my mind as to the hours that go into compiling those.

In June, a tired West Coast newsletter editor apologized for producing a small newsletter, commenting that he was "tired of writing the damn thing, especially when so few members apparently read it." Yet, in this newsletter, he included an incredibly touching remembrance of a jazz friend who had just died after a sad sojourn in what was eloquently described as "the strange indescribable darkness of an Alzheimer world." His editing made that little four-pager a treasure, and anyone who didn't read the newsletter missed something special.

So, here I am, surrounded by the familiar piles of papers and annoyed because I know that my lists aren't as complete as I would like due to time and space constraints. But I know I'm not alone. Plenty of newsletter editors have donated their time month after month, year after year, to keep the lines of communication open for their members. It can be a very lonely task, and they richly deserve our thanks for their efforts.

Sincerely,

Editor/Publisher

Viewpoints

Editorial