October 12, 2007
(Part 1 of a 2-part entry)
As you may have noticed I have mentioned before about the downward spiral of the music industry. For those of you who don’t know what I’m talking about, here’s a short explanation of what I mean.
I subscribe to several music industry newsletters and blogs, so I am always reading the ongoing debates between execs, analysts, and fans on these three subjects; records, radio, and concerts.
Records: In the early days of the record labels, artists were discovered, signed to a contract, and brought along by the record exec, producer, manager, etc. The artist felt nurtured, respected, and looked after by the label they signed with. When they went into the studio to record, much care was taken with the material and to cultivate the creative expression of the artist. As a result of this, concept albums emerged, for example, Pink Floyd’s ‘Dark Side of the Moon.’ Albums were aggressively promoted by radio and TV appearances, record store signings, and finally going on tour.
With the development of MTV in the early '80s, the care given to artists began to slowly decline. This visual exposure caused the record labels to focus more and more on the image and look of an artist, on the ‘formula’ for a hit song, and the bottom line (how much money the artist could bring in). Seasoned artists who had paid their dues and felt the need to expand, stretch, and express their personal creativity, were told those records wouldn’t sell. If the artist insisted on doing it their way, the label would lose interest and fail to promote the album, choosing to do only what they had to, to fulfill the terms of the contract. Consequently, some of our favorite artists have chosen to retreat into the background (Joni Mitchell) or have put out music we don’t get to hear (The Who). Which brings me to the next subject.
Radio: When we were in high school and college and our young adult years, radio was the medium in which we were exposed to the music that meant so much to us. DJ’s were as enthused as we were about the magic of music and couldn’t wait to spin the latest offering of a band in the form of a single or even playing an entire album.
In 1966, when I was 16, I used to lie in bed at night when I was supposed to be going to sleep, with my transistor radio next to my pillow, quietly listening to the sounds of Clyde Clifford, a DJ on an AM radio station in far away Little Rock, Arkansas, doing his underground music show called Beaker Street. It was mesmerizing hearing his low, mysterious voice against a background of eerie space music and sound effects, while he introduced you to King Crimson’s "In the Court of the Crimson King" or some other unknown or seldom heard album of that time. That show always made me come back for more.
(I recently discovered that it still airs on Sunday nights from 7 p.m. to midnight. Check it out: www.beakerstreet.com)
What do I have to say about radio stations now and how they’ve changed? There are still a few out there that are trying to play quality music, in general on public radio stations. But mostly, your typical station is fully equipped with slick, fast-talking DJs with nothing pertinent to say, continuous ads, and playing the latest hits by untalented, fly-by-night acts. Veteran artists can’t count on today’s radio for any kind of decent exposure or promotion. Satellite radio has brought back some of the merit, but not everyone wants to invest in it.
Here is a statement from a guy named Terry Malloy writing in an industry blog: “My question is... with the relevance of radio diminished, how can people hear full songs without buying them (or in most cases downloading them on P2P)? If I am a developing artist on Interscope with a :90 clip of music out there, why is someone going to care? Sure, if you're a major artist, you probably don't need to put out more than a clip to get people to buy the song on iTunes. You're only as good as your last hit though, and if people can't hear your new hit, why are they going to buy it? How can you EXPOSE music if you don't let people hear it?”
That about puts it in a nutshell. That’s how radio has changed.
(Springsteen has a killer new song on his just-released album on this subject, "Radio Nowhere.")
News Flash…I have to add something here as I attempt to end Part 1. I know this is longer than usual, but this so pertains to the Record and Radio sections of this blog.
As I write this at midnight, I’ve just received a download via email for an album that I purchased online earlier this week by a very popular English band called Radiohead. They announced on their website on the 1st of October that they were releasing a new album. This surprised all their fans, because Radiohead is currently without a label and wasn’t supposed to be releasing a new album until next year, as they have been shopping around for a new label they like. Their contract with EMI, one of the largest recording and music publishing companies in the world, ran out two years ago and they have been without a label ever since. Unheard of in the industry, especially for such a hugely popular band. (They have always been rebellious and controversial.)
So, what this means is Radiohead is releasing an album on it’s own, on the Internet, without a label and here’s the catch. They are telling people they can download the album for whatever the consumer wants to pay, it’s up to them, but they won’t be able to download it until the 10th. Unbelievable! So people have been pre-ordering this album all week without even hearing any of the music and paying whatever they feel they want to pay for it. People that aren’t even fans are buying it just to support what Radiohead is trying to do. And this is what everyone on these music blogs are talking about. I’m delighted to say, I just received mine and I think it’s outstanding.
In conclusion, this is a very exciting move in the world of music. A major act is rebelling against the corporate machine of the business of music and breaking brand new ground. Let’s hope this is just the first of many shake-ups to get the music back to the people. If you want to download this album, go to www.inrainbows.com and join the revolution.
Next time I’ll be writing from the road and I’ll talk about the third aspect of this subject, the concert business.
Until then, rock on and be excellent to each other… Penny
Comments
dave (anonymous) says...
I feel I was fortunate to witness the birth of FM radio in the Chicagoland area. Album sides, stoned DJ's who were very much into the music was certainly the norm. The internet seems to have a lot of good music, but there is also a lot of junk to weed through. I enjoyed your thoughts Penny and couldn't agree more.
October 12, 2007 at 1:14 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
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