Karaoke Forums

Jam and Severin, I didn't say that I agreed with the scenario I gave, I was just trying to figure out WHY someone would put out a book that had song listings that he really didn't have. I didn't expect to get such a NASTY response to post. At least I tried to give the person that originally posted SOME reason why a KJ would do it. I don't ATTACK anyone on this forum, and don't think I should be attacked for giving an OPINION.

THANKS
Rosario

I will say many times a disc is rereleased with new songs... SC did that after their rights to some of the songs on their foundation 1 was up for a re-release. Four songs were changed... so when I was copying and pasting the songtitles and artists from an online database and (thank God) verifying them on the discs, I immediately asked the SC admin what was the deal. I was told that these songs the license was refused, and SC couldn't sell them any more. Really teed me off as three of the four were EXACTLY why I wanted to get this core set!

So I had to get them elsewhere!

Not saying this is this fool's situation, but just that it may have been human error.

Also, many karaoke companies divide their music between two or more systems when having another gig... and they may not update their books. Not saying I agree with this practice, but I know when I first set up my second system, I was going through the books determinine what was going to be on what system!

can I ask a silly question?

Kamergurl, why don't you ask the particular KJ involved what she/he is doing?

Why are we exerting energy trying to be "mind readers"?

While there have been reasonable explanations that have been provided as to why a book might lack available tracks or list tracks that are not available, the real question, it seems to me, is why does that particular show have books with the described inconsistencies?

geesh

srnitynow, I never had any intention to attack you... at all. Actually I think your explanation is logical and probably the only reasonable explanation for this situation.
I honestly apologize if you misunderstood my posting and feel this way!

EDIT: I reread the whole thread until your posting. I think, jamkaraoke didn't mean your posting with "the dumbest thing he ever heard". I think it was in regards to the subject, that someone has songs in his book, that he actually doesn't carry in his library. That's where the misunderstanding comes from.

Sevarin, thanks for the post, NO HARM, NO FOUL. Sorry I mistook the responses.
Have a nice day, and good luck on that new gig.

Rosario

I'm glad we could clear that up.

being computerised, I keep most of my books thin by singers request as it is better for them when they are just looking for ideas. I do keep 1 or 2 full books depending on the venue. really the book is just a good place to put pens and slips.

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the voices arent real, but they have some good ideas

yeah the thing is that this company could have any disc they wanted to since they also owned a karaoke supply store.

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The Line Array Experiment is over. Nothing to see here. Move along.

I hadn't heard of dummy books before now. I agree; it sounds dumb. It makes the KJ look pretty stupid and annoys the singers. This has to be a no-win situation for the KJ.

I did run into this situation a while back and just chalked it up to bad luck. The first time I sang at her show the KJ had told me she had new equipment but had some problems so she was using her old stuff. When I went back several weeks later she had the new equipment up and running but was using the same book. She had gone from discs to a laptop. I figured she had copied all of her songs onto the laptop. Nope! She didn't have about 2/3 of the songs I asked for even though they were in her book. She couldn't explain it. Now I'm thinking that she didn't want to explain it.

Larry

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"Life is too short for diet soda and lite beer"

Am I missing something?

Kameragurl started this thread and in describing a situation she ran into, SHE coined the term "dummy book". In a brief statement she tried to explain the term "dummy book". Frankly, some of us found her description contradictory. Only after Nlouch asked for more details about the term "dummy book" did we get some sense of what she had experienced.

Please note that the KJ at the show she visited did not use the term "dummy book" nor did Kameragurl ask him to explain why there were apparent inconsistencies between his song catalog and his actual library.

Meanwhile, we don't really know how those books came into existence or why there are inconsistencies. Nonetheless, there have been posters who have criticized the use of a "dummy book", and on and on.

I don't get it. If someone can explain what this thread is accomplishing I'd love to know. If nothing else, I might gain an insight into how some postings in other threads have gotten so misconstrued because of the assumptions reached and misunderstandings made by posters who "jump into the middle" of threads!

Lastly, how and why did Kameragurl come up with the term "dummy book"?

Actually the term "dummy book" is an accounting term and used in audting. The dummy book is also known as the second set of books. The real book shows the true value of a company, the other (dummy) is used to defraud the government of taxes owed or even to mislead investors.

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You can be strange but not a stranger

That usage of "dummy books", Timberlea, is something I am fully aware of. Still, that doesn't explain Kameragurl's usage

My next printing is going to be a "dummy book" in some ways. I am not going to list all my songs, just the ones that have been sung at some time in the past. I am going to put at least one song for every artist, with an asterisk* if I have other songs for that artist. Then they can come talk to me to ask for more.

I am also going to select a few artists that I will show all their songs, like Frank Sinatra, Elvis, the Beatles, George Strait, Reba McEntire, Tim McGraw, Patsy Cline, Shania Twain, etc. Finally, if the song is in SoundChoice Foundation or Supercore, it will be listed.

As I approach 10,000 unique songs, I am hoping this will keep the books fairly slim yet still relevant. I love my book style, with artist and title on opposite sides of the book, and want to keep it.



P.S. My book title is Karaoke Songs* with the asterisk standing for * and test for drunk people. You see "Karaoke Songs By Title" on one color cover, and upside-down "Karaoke Songs By Artist" on the other side. One guy kept opening the book and finding the text upside down, then flipping it over and finding it still upside down. He came up to me and said "Is this a test to weed out the drunk people?"

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[color=#ffff55]Mickey J.[/color]
Alas for those who never sing, but die with all their music in them.
-- Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr.

Eric equate it with a woman who is a 36A and stuffs her bra to 36C. It looks impressive on first sight. It happens all the time in businesses that want a foot in the door.

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You can be strange but not a stranger

But Timberlea, the OP said there were songs in the library that weren't in the catalog. So it's like the same woman also getting a breast reduction! (see Nlouch's post)

Meanwhile, Kameragurl also stated that she is starting to find "dummy books" at computer run shows! Huh?

I still don't get the whole thread. Without knowing the facts we're dreaming up possibilities!

I aksed him but he had no response.

Dummy or just plain terribly out of date books are common. If a pirate kept updating their book, with their 100,000 song library, they wouldn't have time to eat or sleep. I went to a pirate show and the guy hadn't updated his book since 2005. "Just tell me what you want to sing, I have it," he reassured me. Three strikes he was out. He was ticked at me for wanting to sing my own songs off my own CDGs. Last time for that show and he was out of that venue in no time at all.

I know that most KJ's these days, in their books if they have them, have a list of songs with the name of the song and artist. The version may it be Soundchoice or Pop Hits Monthly, etc. are in his/her computer. A dummy book has, for example SC2210 or PHM 1005(just throwing out a number). More songs will be in his/her computer than what's in the book. If someone looks in the book and wants a particular song from it, and that one is not in his computer, the kj will give them another version of that song the he/she actually has.

I too hate shows where the KJ says he/she has everything and doesn't have printed books. And, in reflection, it is ONLY the pirates that operate that way.

I haven't found any commonality among the shows that won't play discs; my partner doesn't like to bother with them at his shows while I have no problem playing discs!

But I am still returning to this thread in hopes of learning what a "dummy" karaoke catalog is and why more and more "computer" shows are starting to use them?

ericlater, I also always use discs and have no problem with them. All my bought and paid for disks match all my books. I still feel that KJ's use dummy books just to cover their back sides.