Today, we say a few sad words about the ones who never made it.
As I’ve said before about One-Hit Wonders, “You know how many artists never even come up with one good song?” As I figure it, once you’ve done “Louie, Louie,” you’re off the hook; you’ve already achieved more magnificence than most of us.
In any artistic pursuit, for every person you’ve ever heard of, there are thousands more who never made it. If you’re lucky, you at least get your one shot. Today, we’ll present two people who got their records released, but it doesn’t seem like they were able to hit three cherries.
In late 2000, Texas singer Shea Seger released The May Street Project. Seger was a little Janis Joplin, Alanis Morissette and Sheryl Crow. The album had touches of pop, blues, folk, and hip-hop. She was 21.
The album had a lot of hype; Seger made all the rounds. Five years later, the only hint to her fate I could find was in the comments section of this page, which indicates that she quit, got married and had a baby. She’s 26 now.
All I know is, I find “Last Time” to be a catchy pop song. Sometimes that’s enough, at least in the world of pop. For some folks, immortality is found in the cut-out bins.
David Mead represents the other breed: The marathon runner. The artist who keeps plugging away for years — recording, touring, doing the work. Perhaps cursed to never break out, but blessed to keep working.
He was born in New York and then moved to Nashville as a kid. He moved back up to New York in the late Nineties; he moved back to Nashville two years ago. His style mixes that blend of the NYC singer-songwriter and the Nashville singer-songwriter.
Here is the title track from his 2nd album, Mine and Yours (2001), which was produced by Adam Schlesinger of Fountains of Wayne. Mead got dropped by RCA after this album’s disappointing sales, but he was later picked up by Nettwerk. Over the course of his six-year career, he’s released three albums and one EP (just out this June).
Maybe you’ve never heard of him before. If so, now you have.
Shea Seger – Last Time — BUY
David Mead – Mine and Yours — BUY