Ah, the truth – the hard-to-figure point that lies somewhere between the two sides of a story. Today, we got one side of the story thanks to a detailed explanation from bass player Bryan Dondero about why he left Grace Potter and the Nocturnals four months ago. In a very web 2.0 move, Dondero took Potter to task with a post on his blog.

grace

[Potter and Dondero in happier times]

The bassist is in the middle of a contentious negotiation with the Potter Camp over proceeds from GP&tN’s 2007 release This Is Somewhere and let us know exactly what he’s looking for and what he’s been offered…

My terms remain firm: along with the agreements made on NBTW and the other tracks that I have already signed off on, I am standing behind asking for 10% of This Is Somewhere from release through the life of the copyright. Thus far, you have firstly agreed that 10% was a fair number so long as it does not include the retroactive money (ie. money that was made in the publishing from songs appearing on Grey’s Anatomy, One Tree Hill etc….) and would only be for a 5 year period. Then you agreed to include everything but Apologies. After you finally agreed to include Apologies, and the retroactive money, you decided to increase the amount that I owed the band since my leaving…

Towards the middle of his post Dondero basically transcribes a conversation he had with Potter that led to his departure which shows some diva behavior from both participants…

Grace: I feel like the things you do go against the grain of the rest of us.
Me: Like what? Give me an example.
Grace: This may sound vain, but the things you wear on stage…I think some of the things you do like putting your foot on the monitor or jump on the riser are at really inappropriate moments.

READ ON for more of Bryan’s post on leaving The Nocturnals…

Grace: You were against the song “I want something I want” and guess what, I really like that song. I feel like you are not going to be prepared to play things like that or do things that I want. And trust me, there are going to be A LOT more of those kinds of things coming up.
Me: I played “Apologies” didn’t I? And you know what, I wasn’t that dead set against that song. I didn’t like it as much as your other songs. I didn’t think it was your best song. I think “Falling or Flying” or “Can’t See Through” or some of the new stuff we recorded are WAY better songs. Am I not allowed to have an opinion?

Of course this is only one side of the story and we’ll be interested to see how Grace responds. The only mention we could find about Dondero’s departure from Grace and her band was this note on her website from March…

We want to apologize for the unfortunate cancellation of the trio of shows scheduled for the end of March (Revolution Hall, 8×10, and Mr. Small’s). GPN and bassist Bryan Dondero have recently parted ways. Bryan is an important part of the band’s growth over these last five years, and he will be missed and not easily replaced. We thank everyone for understanding and look forward to playing for you this summer.

We have a feeling we haven’t heard the last of this story. [HT - Tube]

Scott Bernstein

Scott Bernstein co-founded Hidden Track in October 2006 and was managing editor until taking over as EiC in January 2008. Scotty also writes for Relix Magazine and curates YEMblog.com.

Website - More Posts