| "CIRCLE YES OR NO "I was performing in Louisville, Kentucky at one of the many KENTUCKY DERBY parties. Kay Krill, my Fan Club President at that time, was travelling with me. And there was a "guy" that we had met at the show, that was acting "SO SWEET" and "VERY INFATUATED"........(of course, he was only SEVEN years old!!!!) Kay says to me, "I expected him to hand you a note any minute saying, "I like you....Do you like me?....Circle yes or no!!!" And laughed!!.......And me, being the songwriter, said "Oh, my GOD, what an idea for a song!!! EVERYBODY has done that at one time in their life with the little notes!!!" After my show, instead of going to another party that we had been invited to, I couldn't WAIT to get to pen and paper to write down all the ideas that were running through my head on THIS SONG!!!! So......we ended up going through the drive-thru at WHITE CASTLE and then directly to Kay's kitchen (she lived in Louisville)....where I stayed till four o'clock in the morning......and wrote a song I called "CIRCLE YES OR NO". This was at a time when I was singing out on the road every weekend......and SO......I started singing this song on my show.......and EVERYBODY (especially the women!!!!!) absolutely LOVED this song!!!! Well.......it just so happened.....I was making an appearance on a television show in Georgia.....one of the LIVE TV SHOWS where you promote the Club where you're working that night......and the Host said to me, "Sing something you wrote"......and I picked up my guitar and sang this song "CIRCLE YES OR NO".......and the phones went CRAZY!!!!! ( I was there right up until SHOWTIME, talking to these people calling in....wanting to know where they could BUY my record, and how much they LOVED this song, and so on......even after we went off the air!!!) I went back to Nashville, where I was living at the time, and practically RAN, directly to "one of the people" that had always said to me, "Toni, if you ever have the RIGHT SONG"............. and I "commenced" telling him about the INCREDIBLE RESPONSE I was receiving to this song, "CIRCLE YES OR NO"!!! I played him a Demo tape I had recorded of the song, and he said "WOW!!! I would like to pitch this to --------(a certain artist)",......and he continued with "If we just change the part where they're in a divorce court to.....an Anniversary!!!......or something more positive"........ And I said (smile)......."This is MY song. If it's good enough for "HIM" to want to record it, I feel like this could by "THE SONG" I have needed to BREAK MY CAREER as an artist".......And........"Futhermore....(smile)......The part of the song where they end up walking out of the divorce court is the BEST part!!! That's the part that the women are REALLY LOVING about this song!!!!!!"..............(Okay, so ......."IF".........I had it to do over again, I'm not "so sure" that I would make THAT same decision. (smile)............And..........so the story continues....... As we all know how it is........even with "THE SONG"........a week turns into a MONTH!!........and then SIX months!!.......and then a YEAR!!!........of trying to get the "RIGHT SOMEBODY" to listen to my song.......and give me "MY BREAK". When one Sunday.........after being out on the road singing all weekend........I came home to find an answering machine FULL of messages..........all congratulating ME!!!........for getting --------(A certain artist) to cut my song. (Hmmmmmmmm!!!!!) A couple of days later, I'm getting into my car and hear what SOUNDS LIKE..........MY SONG!!!!......on the radio!!!!..........(MELODY, STORYLINE, EVERYTHING ("They even start out in the THIRD GRADE!")............EXCEPT.........The people in THIS SONG end up in a "LIMO celebrating their ANNIVERSARY!!!!"..........(Sound Familiar?????!!!!!!) And they were "CHECKING" the yes or no box, instead of "CIRCLING" it!!!! ANYWAYS..........after learning that the PUBLISHER of THEIR SONG "just happened to be" the SAME PUBLISHER that I had "pitched" MY SONG to............and a YEAR of legal fees.......and news about two other songwriters I'd never even heard of.......winning BMI Awards.......and CMA Awards.......and ACM Awards.......and GRAMMYS!!!!!!........ It turns out that you "CAN'T COPYRIGHT AN IDEA".........and......as far as the melody part of THEIR SONG that was EXACTLY (NOTE FOR NOTE) the SAME as the melody of MY SONG........it was also........the same melody as the PUBLIC DOMAIN song..........."THREE BLIND MICE"..............Sooooooooo......... On the positive side of all this............In my heart, "I" know that "I did have a GRAMMY WINNING IDEA!!!!!!!"......and an "AWARD WINNING SONG!!!!!"................And........ I smile every time I hear THAT SONG on the radio. Moral of the story is........."They might can take your IDEAS........and even your MELODY.........but they can never take your TALENT........TO WRITE............MORE GRAMMY WINNING SONGS!!!" Toni Lynn Streur wtstreur@commandnet.net |