An open letter to anyone who wants to read it

I'm sending the following letter around to various friends/acquaintances who may have a way to help me get to that proverbial "next level"....it's probably a bit too revealing, but that's OK, I don't think I've ever had a surplus of shame when it comes to promoting myself, and I'm not about to start now.  Feel free to share it with anyone who might be interested - thank you!

Hi there-

I’m going to try to make this as quick and to-the-point as I can.  I know you are a busy person.  I know you must get tons of notes like this.  So please, if you would, just take a couple minutes and read this if you don’t mind.

 

My name is Dan Israel.  I’m a reasonably well-known singer-songwriter in the Twin Cities – I wouldn’t say a “household name” but most people in the Minnesota music scene have at least “heard” of me at some point.  I grew up in the Minneapolis suburb of St. Louis Park, which is also where the Coen Brothers, Al Franken, and NY Times columnist Tom Friedman hail from, along with musicians such as Peter Himmelman, Dan Wilson, Marc Perlman (Jayhawks), classical guitarist Sharon Isbin, and others.  Pretty good list for a little inner-ring suburb. 

 

I’ve been playing music since I was a kid – first forced to play piano, then fell in love with guitar.  After high school, I went to college in Chicago and started playing my own music in clubs in Chicago in the late ‘80s.  After graduating, I moved to Austin, TX and played there for 3 years, putting out my first CD with my band Potter’s Field.

 

I moved back to Minneapolis in 1995, got married, had 2 kids, and formed “Dan Israel and the Cultivators” – released 12 more albums (some full-band, some solo) to pretty widespread acclaim.  My 2007 album “Turning”, which featured members of the Jayhawks, Semisonic, Son Volt, and the Honeydogs, got a 4-star review in the UK’s Uncut, with favorable comparisons made to Tom Petty and Paul Westerberg.  In 1995, I was named one of Austin’s top 15 songwriters in the annual Austin Chronicle music poll.  I was named Songwriter of the Year in the 2006 Minnesota Music Awards.  Local weekly City Pages named me “Best Acoustic Performer” in 2005, though I play out with a kickin’ 4-piece band too. I played South by Southwest multiple times.  I play 80 live shows a year and have a full-time day job (for the last 20 years) working for the Minnesota Legislature, so I can feed my kids and pay my bills.  I work my freakin’ butt off, to be honest.

I’ve gotten to open for a lot of great artists over the years...here’s the updated list, which might help you understand me a bit more, musically:

Steve Miller Band, Morrissey, Marshall Crenshaw, Ramblin' Jack Elliot, Blue Oyster Cult, Foghat, Rick Springfield, Loudon Wainwright III, the Tragically Hip, Todd Snider, Iris Dement, Kevin Costner and Modern West, Tommy Keene, Slim Dunlap, Soul Asylum, the Gear Daddies, Peter Himmelman, Fastball, the Silos, Martin Sexton, Steve Poltz, Jon Dee Graham, Mary Lou Lord, Susan Cowsill, Amy Rigby, Mason Jennings, Martin Zellar, Honeydogs, Chris Koza, Trampled by Turtles, the Rev. Horton Heat, Ben Weaver, Yael Naim, Spoon, Chuck Prophet, Ol' Yeller, Ike Reilly, Joe Ely, Lucy Kaplansky, and Paula Cole

 

My latest album, simply called “Dan,” really got a nice response.  It’s a divorce album, for lack of a better term.  It got great reviews in No Depression and Paste, and it charted on both European Americana charts (reaching #15 and #18).

 

I’ve been compared to Randy Newman, Elvis Costello, Wilco, Paul Westerberg, Tom Petty, Neil Young, and of course, Bob Dylan – with a strong Beatles/Stones/Who influence as well.

 

Here’s my official website:
http://danisraelmusic.com/

 

There are links to several of my music videos right here:

http://danisraelmusic.com/video.shtml

You can hear more of my music here:

 

https://soundcloud.com/dan-israel

 

and here:

 

https://danisrael.bandcamp.com/

 

And this is a page we set up for pitching songs for TV/Film placements and licensing opportunities:

http://danisraelmusic.com/Licensing/

 

Oh, and WHY am I writing to you, exactly?

 

Because I’ve just never, yet, had that “big break.”  Or even that exposure that just gets my music out to a lot more people, via mass media.  And I’m ready for it.  I’ve put out 13 albums, earned the respect of my peers in a VERY strong music scene in the Twin Cities, built up a nice little devoted fanbase (I raised several thousand bucks from my fans in 2013 in order to release a 2-LP vinyl “best of Dan Israel” compilation called, fittingly, “Danthology” – would love to get you a copy of that as well)....but I need some help to get to that next level.

 

That’s why I’m writing to you today.  Because maybe, just maybe, you can help somehow.  So please, watch a video or two, listen to a song or two, and if you like what you hear, let me know.  I truly appreciate it.  Maybe you know a music supervisor who might like it.  Or someone at a label.  Or someone who might know someone.  Maybe I could go on tour with another artist?  Write a song for a movie?  Write a jingle?  Collaborate with another songwriter?  The possibilities are endless.  My goal here is just to get to that next level, if possible.  Try to make it so someday I can quit the day job and make a living off of music (I can hear you laughing all the way over here – I know how tough it’s gotten to do that, I know how the business itself is in shambles, in many ways, and yet...I still think there’s a place and a need for good new music).

 

Here’s how to contact me if you’re interested in talking further...first, you can follow me on Twitter @danisraelmusic

 

or, just reach out:

ph. 612-280-8902

email: danmyspace@gmail.com

 

From the bottom of my heart, thank you

 

Sincerely,

Dan Israel