Actually starting to save the arts.

It's the wave of the future, the only way we'll ever survive. Artists will save the arts. Ten years ago my comedy partner and I went to Sisters Oregon. We did a concert with, dear sweet voiced, Kenny Rankin and the next month Kevin Meany performed with Hal Ketchum and the following month it was Kevin Nealon with David Wilcox. Mack and I did this for a few years and after the second year I returned to my school district and said, hey, we should do this. It fell on deaf ears. Then, ten years later "As the Universe Turns", I was approached by two city council members to help them put on a concert to raise money for the arts. I knew that through Jeri and Dan Fouts and the Sisters Oregon Starry night Concert Series that Vince Gill, Amy Grant, Lee Ann Womack, the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, Deana Carter, Michael McDonald, John Hiatt, J.D. Souther, Kim Carnes, Matraca Berg, Greg Barnhill, Mark Collie, Jeffrey Steele, Al Anderson, Gary Morris, David Wilcox, T. Graham Brown, Stephen Bishop, Nicolette Larson; comedians Mack and Jamie, Michael Davis, Wayne Cotter, Don McMillan, John Caponera, Tom Parks, Maryellen Hooper, Dana Daniels and Kevin Meaney had all raised money and awareness for the arts and much more. As a matter of fact, the 2002 series raised nearly $100,000 in net proceeds, for a six year total of $330,000. The revenues have funded a multitude of programs including music, art, science, athletics, reading, math, home economics, technology, outdoor school and other vital co-curricular and classroom activities, while a portion is also set aside each year to help fund an endowment that will provide the foundation with long-term growth.

So if these two guys were coming back to me with a concept I had pitched 10 years ago, who was I to say no? I called Michael McDonald, Christopher Cross and they said sure, "whens the date? We're there."

We partnered with the Artist for the Arts who had done similar shows with Jackson Browne, David Crosby, Heart, Osomatli, Billy Idol and Dave mason and we produced a concert that put over 72 student musicians on stage with these artists and raised $102k in ticket sales of which 100% went to programs for the arts in our school district.

This is something ever artist in America who has the honor and privilege of making their living as an Artists should want to be a part of. More to come. Blog this, Jamie