"The Joy Of The Single": http://bit.ly/Xa23lq
My first single was "Martian Hop," by the Ran-Dells.
I heard it on my transistor. Probably WABC. I needed to own it. I begged my mother to take me to the store to buy it. You didn't have access to shops in the suburbs, you were reliant on the transportation of your parents. But I do remember riding my bike miles to Topps' discount store to buy the Beach Boys' "Summer Days (And Summer Nights!!)" a few years later, I needed it just that bad, I had to walk my Raleigh up the steep hill of Kings Highway on the way back.
But that was an album. After I realized singles were a raw deal. For the cost of a couple I could own LPs. Stuff like Gary Lewis & The Playboys' "She's Just My Style." I remember being infatuated with the title track, and the album included covers of "Lies" and "All I Have To Do Is Dream," which I first discovered on Jan & Dean's "Command Performance."
But I started with singles. "Martian Hop" had a pink label. And as much as I remember buying it, what I remember more is dropping the needle on it. That moment of anticipation, removing the disc from the paper sleeve, placing it on the heavy platter, and then lifting the tonearm with the ceramic needle and dropping it on the entry groove and hearing that static and then...THE MUSIC!
I'd like to say this BBC Four production is perfect. Alas, it's not. But it gets so much so right that you've got to stop what you're doing right now and watch it.
Highlights?
Norman Cook, aka Fatboy Slim, showing how you hold a record. How you reach into the sleeve and put your third and fourth fingers on the label and your thumb on the outside. Because THE GROOVES ARE SACRED!
There were never any fingerprints on my records. That would be sacrilegious. Like mistreating the Torah, leaving my baseball glove out in the rain. Records were to be respected. They were gifts from above. Limited in quantity. And never disposable. I've still got "Martian Hop," so many of us still have our first single.
And then there's Jimmy Webb. Testifying about hearing Glen Campbell's "Turn Around Look At Me" in Oklahoma and praying to God that he can one day write a song for him. And years later, achieving his goal, proving that God truly does exist. When you hear "Wichita Lineman" come out of the speakers you'll swoon. That's what's amazing about a great single. It doesn't have to be your kind of music, you can't explain why you like it, but you love it!
Kind of like "MacArthur Park." I remember wincing every time it came on the radio, pushing the buttons frantically to find something else. And then, decades later, coming to love it. That's what we adore about music, the way it's set in amber, finalized, waiting for us to discover it.
Which brings me to Graham Gouldman's quote about "I'm Not In Love." 10cc knew it was great, but they didn't know it would be this big. It was all about the voices. And then Graham says:
"Part of the art is in saying 'It's done, walk away from the tape machine sir.'"
Eureka! How do you capture perfection? How do you get the sound in your head down on wax? How do you not screw it up? Because if you do, you can miss the target. How many songs have been remixed from stiffs to hits? Listen to "Help Me Rhonda" on "Beach Boys Today!" and then spin the hit version. Same song, with completely different impact.
Gouldman is the highlight of this show.
Because we didn't really believe these people existed. Oh, we listened and saw their names on the records but they lived far away, they were gods, they were untouchable. And then there they are, talking on the screen, delineating the experience. It's like opening the Bible and having it come alive, in 3-D, as if Moses stepped from the pages and started explaining how he parted the Red Sea.
And you've got Neil Sedaka referencing the "diamond needle." That was the goal, something exotic and expensive that extracted all the juice from the vinyl.
And I still remember going to my one and only manufacturing plant, Rainbo Records in the industrial section of Santa Monica. The workers were distracted as the black goo was stamped into a single. For me it was like going to the Wailing Wall. I finally made it to the destination, the epicenter, the place where it all began.
We're never going back to what once was. Because music is now unlimited, it doesn't drive the culture. Kids today don't get their driver's license at sixteen, they're not interested in cars, the manufacturers are freaking out, trying to find out how to entrance them. Automobiles are now transportation, whereas once they were more than that, art, objects of fascination, just like smartphones.
But smartphones will be utilitarian and taken for granted soon.
But if you want to have an impact in the music business, you're best off making a single. Not something that gets played on the radio so much as something that makes people turn their heads, that they need to hear again and again and again.
That's one thing I hate about Spotify, the inability to click a button and hear the same track ad infinitum. iTunes has this button, although it's less prominent and clickable in iTunes 11 than in all the previous iterations. You see when I find something great, I can play it for hours straight. I learned that from 45s. It's an extended orgasm. You don't want to let the feeling pass. And eventually it does. Suddenly, after twenty or two hundred plays the novelty wears off, you don't get the same rush, and you've got just one option.
Go out and buy another.
And I think that's one reason the older generation has given up on music. Because of the disappointment, the bends you go through after discovering something incredible and being unable to replace it. When they were kids, they only had to turn on the radio to hear something new, something they'd save their money to be able to buy. Today, radio is last and they play the same songs forever. They're not performing a service, but making money. Whereas in the sixties, radio was the leading edge of the zeitgeist, where risk was taken, where the manna was exposed.
Albums are great.
Then again, people are still making them even though space is unlimited, form has left the building.
But a single song, however long, when done right, is the height of human experience. A trip on the roller coaster, a stroll down memory lane, an experience enhancer that you cannot forget.
The public has spoken, they only want singles. Are you ready to deliver them?
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Friday 30 November 2012
Rhinofy-Heart Like A Wheel
It's criminal Linda Ronstadt's not in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. If she were ugly, she'd have been in eons ago. But the east coast establishment can't fathom that a hedonist from the west coast could be beautiful, live the free and easy rock and roll lifestyle and end up the darling of both the cognoscenti and the supposedly ignorant.
It's not like she didn't pay her dues. She even had a monster hit with the Stone Poneys. But her solo career never gelled until this.
And it's all about "You're No Good."
Like "Tainted Love," it was a cover of a track no one ever heard. Still, when you heard the original, it paled in comparison to Ronstadt's remake, her version was the kind of cut you heard on the radio that forced you to go to the record store to buy the album just so you could hear it again...and again...and again.
There's that pregnant intro. Like a door has opened and you're gonna hear some secrets.
And then that silky voice that doesn't play the victim but ultimately evidences power. With the chorus of female voices making the point. Hell, the backup vocals are a key element throughout. Listen, they're baked in so perfectly they don't stand out, they just add emphasis.
And then there's the way the track breaks down almost ninety seconds in and there's that twinkly guitar and then that explosive, bending guitar and if you weren't sold before, if you thought the track was too wimpy, sans testosterone, you're hooked now.
And then comes the piece de resistance, two and a half minutes in, the outro, that goes on and on, for over a minute, with the strings entering from the side of the stage and then swooping and you just hope and pray the track will never end.
And "You're No Good" sounded like nothing else on the radio. And that's why it was so special, such a hit. Because perfection cannot be ignored.
Then there's "Faithless Love," the first well known version of the J.D. Souther classic, who sings backup here.
It's the bridge that convinces you...
"Well I guess I'm standing in the hall of broken dreams
That's the way it sometimes goes
Whenever a new love never turns out like it seems..."
Ain't that the truth. You've got such hope. And then you hit a dead end. Sometimes love fades, more often it crashes into a wall and you're left picking up the pieces for months, sometimes years, wondering what went wrong.
Of course, the other gigantic hit was "When Will I Be Loved," the Everly Brothers tune. A two minute tear, you'd hear Linda Ronstadt pouring out of stereos, in the canyons, in your car, she was part of the soundtrack of the summer.
And, of course, there's the cover of "Willin'," the Lowell George classic. I still miss Lowell. And you do too, if you're familiar with Little Feat.
And did you know that "It Doesn't Matter Anymore" was written by Paul Anka?
And then there was "Heart Like A Wheel."
"Some say the heart is just like a wheel
When you bend it you can't mend it"
Whew! That's the genius of Anna McGarrigle. I bought the McGarrigles album on this one cover. I had to. I had to get closer to this truth.
"And it's only love and it's only love
That can wreck a human being and turn him inside out"
Ain't that the truth. That's why we listen to music, to hear and feel our emotions expressed in a way no other medium is capable of doing.
And then there's the cover of "You Can Close Your Eyes," the masterpiece from James Taylor's "Mud Slide Slim." And Linda's take is not as good. Hell, I'll argue J.D. Souther's version of "Faithless Love" is superior. But the curation on "Heart Like A Wheel" is so incredibly stellar its magic cannot be denied.
This was our introduction to Andrew Gold.
It was a coronation of Peter Asher's production skill.
But first and foremost "Heart Like A Wheel" was the album that made Linda Ronstadt a star, who didn't falter, but continued to deliver for the rest of the decade, delivering tunes that are now indelibly inscribed in the DNA of every baby boomer who was privy to electricity.
The music still sounds crystal clear and fresh almost forty years later.
More people listened to it and were affected it by anything Patti Smith ever did.
And I give Patti credit for being a writer.
But her biggest hit was written by Springsteen.
Just because someone's a singer, not a writer, that does not mean they deserve no credit. Especially when they're so skilled and respect the material.
Linda Ronstadt was "Star Wars." She was a superstar loved by men and women alike. And like too many from that era, she survived. If she were dead, we'd be canonizing her. Just because she's still alive that does not mean she should not get her due.
1. I've included the original Dee Dee Warwick rendition of Clint Ballard, Jr.'s "You're No Good" as well as Betty Everett's hit take. Everett's version peaked at number 51 on the Pop chart. Knowing the history of music pays dividends, it allows you to unearth gems like this.
2. "It Doesn't Matter Anymore" was first a hit for Buddy Holly, I've included his 1959 hit version.
3. J.D. Souther's version of "Faithless Love" appeared on his 1976 album "Black Rose," along with his versions of ultimate Ronstadt favorites like "Simple Man, Simple Dream" and "Silver Blue."
4. "Dark End Of The Street" hit number 10 on the Black Singles chart and number 77 on the Pop chart. Sung by James Carr, it was composed by Dan Penn and Chips Moman.
5. Listen to the McGarrigles' "Heart Like A Wheel," and search out their original "Talk To Me Of Mendocino," which Ronstadt covered on "Get Closer."
6. The Everly Brothers were giants in the U.K., but if you came of age with the Beatles, you probably know of them but are not entranced. They got a good shot opening for Simon & Garfunkel in 2003, but this is music that needs to be rekindled for the echo boomers.
7. Little Feat cut "Willin" on both of its first two albums, but my favorite cover is by Seatrain. Alas, their Capitol debut is not on Spotify.
8. "I Can't Help It (If I'm Still in Love with You)" is a Hank Williams original. Funny thing about Williams, either your parents exposed you to him or they didn't. East coasters tend to be in the dark on Hank, their parents didn't cotton to the country sound, and it wasn't until acts like Ronstadt, Gram Parsons and the rest of the SoCal mafia brought it to the forefront that they heard it.
9. Paul Craft wrote "Keep Me From Blowing Away." Ronstadt made it famous. He also wrote "Midnight Flyer" on the Eagles' "On The Border."
10. Although uneven, "Mud Slide Slim" has absolutely stellar moments, some of its songs are still featured prominently in JT's live sets today. "You Can Close Your Eyes" is the best. But I love "Riding On A Railroad" and "Machine Gun Kelly" almost as much. And listen to "Highway Song"... One of those days the highway song does lose its appeal and you want to settle down. Our rock stars were always a bit advanced, they always got the memo before we did.
Spotify link: http://spoti.fi/p6HcZ8
Previous Rhinofy playlists: http://www.rhinofy.com/lefsetz
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It's not like she didn't pay her dues. She even had a monster hit with the Stone Poneys. But her solo career never gelled until this.
And it's all about "You're No Good."
Like "Tainted Love," it was a cover of a track no one ever heard. Still, when you heard the original, it paled in comparison to Ronstadt's remake, her version was the kind of cut you heard on the radio that forced you to go to the record store to buy the album just so you could hear it again...and again...and again.
There's that pregnant intro. Like a door has opened and you're gonna hear some secrets.
And then that silky voice that doesn't play the victim but ultimately evidences power. With the chorus of female voices making the point. Hell, the backup vocals are a key element throughout. Listen, they're baked in so perfectly they don't stand out, they just add emphasis.
And then there's the way the track breaks down almost ninety seconds in and there's that twinkly guitar and then that explosive, bending guitar and if you weren't sold before, if you thought the track was too wimpy, sans testosterone, you're hooked now.
And then comes the piece de resistance, two and a half minutes in, the outro, that goes on and on, for over a minute, with the strings entering from the side of the stage and then swooping and you just hope and pray the track will never end.
And "You're No Good" sounded like nothing else on the radio. And that's why it was so special, such a hit. Because perfection cannot be ignored.
Then there's "Faithless Love," the first well known version of the J.D. Souther classic, who sings backup here.
It's the bridge that convinces you...
"Well I guess I'm standing in the hall of broken dreams
That's the way it sometimes goes
Whenever a new love never turns out like it seems..."
Ain't that the truth. You've got such hope. And then you hit a dead end. Sometimes love fades, more often it crashes into a wall and you're left picking up the pieces for months, sometimes years, wondering what went wrong.
Of course, the other gigantic hit was "When Will I Be Loved," the Everly Brothers tune. A two minute tear, you'd hear Linda Ronstadt pouring out of stereos, in the canyons, in your car, she was part of the soundtrack of the summer.
And, of course, there's the cover of "Willin'," the Lowell George classic. I still miss Lowell. And you do too, if you're familiar with Little Feat.
And did you know that "It Doesn't Matter Anymore" was written by Paul Anka?
And then there was "Heart Like A Wheel."
"Some say the heart is just like a wheel
When you bend it you can't mend it"
Whew! That's the genius of Anna McGarrigle. I bought the McGarrigles album on this one cover. I had to. I had to get closer to this truth.
"And it's only love and it's only love
That can wreck a human being and turn him inside out"
Ain't that the truth. That's why we listen to music, to hear and feel our emotions expressed in a way no other medium is capable of doing.
And then there's the cover of "You Can Close Your Eyes," the masterpiece from James Taylor's "Mud Slide Slim." And Linda's take is not as good. Hell, I'll argue J.D. Souther's version of "Faithless Love" is superior. But the curation on "Heart Like A Wheel" is so incredibly stellar its magic cannot be denied.
This was our introduction to Andrew Gold.
It was a coronation of Peter Asher's production skill.
But first and foremost "Heart Like A Wheel" was the album that made Linda Ronstadt a star, who didn't falter, but continued to deliver for the rest of the decade, delivering tunes that are now indelibly inscribed in the DNA of every baby boomer who was privy to electricity.
The music still sounds crystal clear and fresh almost forty years later.
More people listened to it and were affected it by anything Patti Smith ever did.
And I give Patti credit for being a writer.
But her biggest hit was written by Springsteen.
Just because someone's a singer, not a writer, that does not mean they deserve no credit. Especially when they're so skilled and respect the material.
Linda Ronstadt was "Star Wars." She was a superstar loved by men and women alike. And like too many from that era, she survived. If she were dead, we'd be canonizing her. Just because she's still alive that does not mean she should not get her due.
1. I've included the original Dee Dee Warwick rendition of Clint Ballard, Jr.'s "You're No Good" as well as Betty Everett's hit take. Everett's version peaked at number 51 on the Pop chart. Knowing the history of music pays dividends, it allows you to unearth gems like this.
2. "It Doesn't Matter Anymore" was first a hit for Buddy Holly, I've included his 1959 hit version.
3. J.D. Souther's version of "Faithless Love" appeared on his 1976 album "Black Rose," along with his versions of ultimate Ronstadt favorites like "Simple Man, Simple Dream" and "Silver Blue."
4. "Dark End Of The Street" hit number 10 on the Black Singles chart and number 77 on the Pop chart. Sung by James Carr, it was composed by Dan Penn and Chips Moman.
5. Listen to the McGarrigles' "Heart Like A Wheel," and search out their original "Talk To Me Of Mendocino," which Ronstadt covered on "Get Closer."
6. The Everly Brothers were giants in the U.K., but if you came of age with the Beatles, you probably know of them but are not entranced. They got a good shot opening for Simon & Garfunkel in 2003, but this is music that needs to be rekindled for the echo boomers.
7. Little Feat cut "Willin" on both of its first two albums, but my favorite cover is by Seatrain. Alas, their Capitol debut is not on Spotify.
8. "I Can't Help It (If I'm Still in Love with You)" is a Hank Williams original. Funny thing about Williams, either your parents exposed you to him or they didn't. East coasters tend to be in the dark on Hank, their parents didn't cotton to the country sound, and it wasn't until acts like Ronstadt, Gram Parsons and the rest of the SoCal mafia brought it to the forefront that they heard it.
9. Paul Craft wrote "Keep Me From Blowing Away." Ronstadt made it famous. He also wrote "Midnight Flyer" on the Eagles' "On The Border."
10. Although uneven, "Mud Slide Slim" has absolutely stellar moments, some of its songs are still featured prominently in JT's live sets today. "You Can Close Your Eyes" is the best. But I love "Riding On A Railroad" and "Machine Gun Kelly" almost as much. And listen to "Highway Song"... One of those days the highway song does lose its appeal and you want to settle down. Our rock stars were always a bit advanced, they always got the memo before we did.
Spotify link: http://spoti.fi/p6HcZ8
Previous Rhinofy playlists: http://www.rhinofy.com/lefsetz
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Thursday 29 November 2012
Priceless Video
"Album of the Day (Ep. 9): Ryan Adams & the Cardinals - Cold Roses": http://bit.ly/Tuz0mr
What I love most is the crooked glasses!
1. I found out about this from Matt Holt, of Wiley Publishers. He's a diehard Ryan Adams fan.
2. Matt found this video from Ryan Adams's tweet:
@TheRyanAdams - Best Review I Ever Got. Honored. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HeLVJzA29fI&feature=share
Fans just can't get enough (Did you catch the Depeche Mode reference?? That's what fans do, quote lyrics, evidencing their tribal affiliations and sending smoke signals to try to find like-minded individuals.)
We live in a world that percolates from the bottom up, as opposed to the top down. Music has gone from snow to grass. It's no longer something shaken down from the sky, but something nurtured that grows up from the ground.
Play to everyday people. They live to adore you.
3. Tweeting
You've got to play for all this to happen, and Ryan Adams did. And what I love is the lack of irony, the lack of hipsterdom, he's being as sincere as he possibly can, he wants to send a message to both the reviewer and his fans that he APPRECIATES IT!
4. Just start
You've got the tools. You've got the laptop with the built-in video camera, you've got the Internet connection, you can post on YouTube for free. Don't be afraid to play. Only by doing so can you get lucky. And better.
5. Music makes live worth living
Especially when you're alone and dorky. The Internet allows you to hook up with the rest of those who are alone and dorky. It's the best anti-suicide machine ever invented. Technology kills loneliness. The only people bitching about the perils of tech are those too old and too entrenched to see the benefits.
6. Normalcy
What's appealing about this video is it's the anti "American Idol," the anti "X Factor." The kid's not remade to fit in, to win, he's just being himself. Nerds rule the world. One of my favorite e-mails from the past week was this:
From: Rob Getzchman
Subject: When the Nerds Go Marching In
Hey Bob,
Take a look at this photo of Obama's tech team and tell me it doesn't look like Canned Heat or some other '60s act. I think you're right - tech is the rock and roll of this era. I haven't seen a photo of a band look as cool or authentic as this in years.
http://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2012/11/when-the-nerds-go-marching-in/265325
cheers,
rob
Click the link. You'll be stunned.
It's what's on the inside that counts.
If you've got a stylist and are putting gel in your hair, you're doing it wrong. You're a fashion accessory, not an artist.
7. Artists
It's not Rihanna or Bieber or any of the Top Forty wonders the media tells us the kids adore. Rather he's reviewing Ryan Adams and Bright Eyes and Stephen Kellogg...
We want substance, that which touches us, we can tell fake from real.
8. Honesty
He could have just chopped off the intro, where he talks about screwing up yesterday's take. Makes you love this kid. He's so real! It's our imperfections that bond others to us. You think if you're cool and have a perfect nose you'll have better relationships. WRONG! Be yourself and interact and your life will work out fine.
9. Schedule
He's got none! It took him longer than usual to come up with his next "Album of the Day." I love that! He wanted to get it right.
(I'm not saying sticking to a schedule is wrong, but sometimes you've got to break the rules, sometimes you've got to wait and get it right.)
10. Knowledge
You think he's reading off the computer screen at first...but then you realize he knows quite a lot. He even riffs on Lost Highway. Fans want to know everything, and they do!
11. Reality
At 1:45:
"Sorry I got a cough drop in my mouth, so I'm trying my best to keep it in there. Just let you know that, I apologize for all the noise."
My favorite moment in the whole clip! How could he be so unselfconscious!
12. The Room!
A Hollywood professional couldn't get it so right. With the banners, the poster, the guitar and even the teddy bear nightlight!
Looks like my room. Different posters, same identity.
13. Non-Promotion
If you Google his screen name, you don't get a website where he's selling stuff and begging you to make him famous. He's doing it for the love of it
We're gonna be just fine. The Internet's gonna save us. We've inherited the earth, taken it away from the hipsters and the rich who always told us we were inadequate, who pissed on us. This kid may be bullied at school, but he's a king in his bedroom. And he's not alone. None of these clips have gone viral, but most have hundreds of views. Pre-Internet you were lucky if you had one friend, never mind this many!
P.S. I'm not writing this so this kid will get famous. I don't want him on Jay Leno, I don't want him being plucked from obscurity to end up back home wondering what happened to him a short while later. But I do want to give him a pat on the back. We all want this encouragement. Maybe he'll be grow up to be an astronaut, maybe an accountant, even a fireman. One thing's for sure, he'll never forget the music he grew up with, it's the bedrock of his life.
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What I love most is the crooked glasses!
1. I found out about this from Matt Holt, of Wiley Publishers. He's a diehard Ryan Adams fan.
2. Matt found this video from Ryan Adams's tweet:
@TheRyanAdams - Best Review I Ever Got. Honored. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HeLVJzA29fI&feature=share
Fans just can't get enough (Did you catch the Depeche Mode reference?? That's what fans do, quote lyrics, evidencing their tribal affiliations and sending smoke signals to try to find like-minded individuals.)
We live in a world that percolates from the bottom up, as opposed to the top down. Music has gone from snow to grass. It's no longer something shaken down from the sky, but something nurtured that grows up from the ground.
Play to everyday people. They live to adore you.
3. Tweeting
You've got to play for all this to happen, and Ryan Adams did. And what I love is the lack of irony, the lack of hipsterdom, he's being as sincere as he possibly can, he wants to send a message to both the reviewer and his fans that he APPRECIATES IT!
4. Just start
You've got the tools. You've got the laptop with the built-in video camera, you've got the Internet connection, you can post on YouTube for free. Don't be afraid to play. Only by doing so can you get lucky. And better.
5. Music makes live worth living
Especially when you're alone and dorky. The Internet allows you to hook up with the rest of those who are alone and dorky. It's the best anti-suicide machine ever invented. Technology kills loneliness. The only people bitching about the perils of tech are those too old and too entrenched to see the benefits.
6. Normalcy
What's appealing about this video is it's the anti "American Idol," the anti "X Factor." The kid's not remade to fit in, to win, he's just being himself. Nerds rule the world. One of my favorite e-mails from the past week was this:
From: Rob Getzchman
Subject: When the Nerds Go Marching In
Hey Bob,
Take a look at this photo of Obama's tech team and tell me it doesn't look like Canned Heat or some other '60s act. I think you're right - tech is the rock and roll of this era. I haven't seen a photo of a band look as cool or authentic as this in years.
http://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2012/11/when-the-nerds-go-marching-in/265325
cheers,
rob
Click the link. You'll be stunned.
It's what's on the inside that counts.
If you've got a stylist and are putting gel in your hair, you're doing it wrong. You're a fashion accessory, not an artist.
7. Artists
It's not Rihanna or Bieber or any of the Top Forty wonders the media tells us the kids adore. Rather he's reviewing Ryan Adams and Bright Eyes and Stephen Kellogg...
We want substance, that which touches us, we can tell fake from real.
8. Honesty
He could have just chopped off the intro, where he talks about screwing up yesterday's take. Makes you love this kid. He's so real! It's our imperfections that bond others to us. You think if you're cool and have a perfect nose you'll have better relationships. WRONG! Be yourself and interact and your life will work out fine.
9. Schedule
He's got none! It took him longer than usual to come up with his next "Album of the Day." I love that! He wanted to get it right.
(I'm not saying sticking to a schedule is wrong, but sometimes you've got to break the rules, sometimes you've got to wait and get it right.)
10. Knowledge
You think he's reading off the computer screen at first...but then you realize he knows quite a lot. He even riffs on Lost Highway. Fans want to know everything, and they do!
11. Reality
At 1:45:
"Sorry I got a cough drop in my mouth, so I'm trying my best to keep it in there. Just let you know that, I apologize for all the noise."
My favorite moment in the whole clip! How could he be so unselfconscious!
12. The Room!
A Hollywood professional couldn't get it so right. With the banners, the poster, the guitar and even the teddy bear nightlight!
Looks like my room. Different posters, same identity.
13. Non-Promotion
If you Google his screen name, you don't get a website where he's selling stuff and begging you to make him famous. He's doing it for the love of it
We're gonna be just fine. The Internet's gonna save us. We've inherited the earth, taken it away from the hipsters and the rich who always told us we were inadequate, who pissed on us. This kid may be bullied at school, but he's a king in his bedroom. And he's not alone. None of these clips have gone viral, but most have hundreds of views. Pre-Internet you were lucky if you had one friend, never mind this many!
P.S. I'm not writing this so this kid will get famous. I don't want him on Jay Leno, I don't want him being plucked from obscurity to end up back home wondering what happened to him a short while later. But I do want to give him a pat on the back. We all want this encouragement. Maybe he'll be grow up to be an astronaut, maybe an accountant, even a fireman. One thing's for sure, he'll never forget the music he grew up with, it's the bedrock of his life.
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Paperless In Little Rock
I just got off the phone with Michael Marion. He runs the Verizon Arena in Little Rock.
He does paperless for every show.
EVERY SHOW!
The 4,000 best seats, that's the only way you can buy them.
If he scales the house down from its usual 18,000 seat capacity, he reduces the percentage of paperless tickets, like with Robin Williams, who played to 4,000, 1,500 were paperless.
Why?
BECAUSE HE WANTS PEOPLE TO COME TO MORE SHOWS!
That's the goal of paperless. Building the business. Better fan experiences lead to repeat attendance, benefiting everybody.
So how did this happen?
Michael heard from Ticketmaster this was an option. He's run the building since its inception, a little over a decade ago, and for the past four years every single concert has been paperless.
Ticketmaster provided the infrastructure.
But there wasn't that much involved, just switching out the scanners.
The public?
IT'S THRILLED!
Michael surveyed Taylor Swift fans. 88% said they'd do paperless again.
As for your grandma buying tickets, or having to go to a funeral... Just call the box office, tell your story. Michael's the last resort, and only a couple of cases have gotten to him. Everything gets worked out. He tells grandma, and according to StubHub, grandma buys all the concert tickets, to send the kids down with her credit card and a copy of her I.D. Then they get in. Ditto if you can't go yourself. You give this info to your brother or best friend.
This is a non-problem. And it's proven to not even be a tempest in a teapot by Michael Marion's experience.
But what about the learning curve?
Yes, there was one. Two or three shows.
What about the lines?
You can be scanned at any entrance. There's no delay.
And the sliver lining is there are fewer tickets for Marion's building on StubHub than at any other arena in the country. He's beaten them at their own game.
But what about scalpers buying a ticket and then bringing four people in with him?
You can't stop everybody. And L.A. and New York are more complicated. But in the rest of the country, this is not an issue.
Then again, there's an anti-scalping law in Arkansas.
But the issue is not brokers outside the building, people buy their tickets online from brokers in Connecticut and other states.
But now they don't.
But what about gift cards?
No can do. It's got to be a real, regular credit card.
What if your credit card gets canceled or replaced?
They've got a window for that.
Marion does eighteen or nineteen concerts a year. These country acts come through every eighteen months. He wants to make sure patrons can afford to come again next time, that they had such a good experience they want to come, and can afford to come.
So why hasn't everybody followed Marion's lead?
Because they're afraid to be responsible, they don't want to have to answer to the acts for mistakes/problems.
But come on, if Taylor Swift, Michael Buble, Journey and Jimmy Buffett, all of whom sold out, Buffett in 90 minutes, have had seamless experiences with paperless, do you really think you're gonna have a problem?
Paperless is the answer.
It's not for every seat in the house, but the best. The most expensive. The ones everybody wants, including the scalpers.
Does it eliminate the scalping problem entirely?
No, but it goes a long way.
P.S. Marion/Verizon makes clear that the paperless tickets are non-refundable. Information is key, best to be clear.
P.P.S. Only those at the center of a conflagration really know what's going on. To rely on government to solve scalping issues is ridiculous. This is a problem that needs to be solved in-house. Furthermore, if you think all those tickets on StubHub are from non-professionals, individuals caught in a bind, I've got a bridge to sell you. Furthermore, if we can kill speculation by amateurs as well as professionals, that's even better.
P.P.P.S. Just because StubHub/brokers yell loudly, that does not mean their take is correct. There aren't always two sides to every story.
P.P.P.P.S. We're going to paperless. It's just a matter of when. Does the touring business have to be the record business, see untold hurt before it begins to change? Frustration at the inability to get good seats is the number one concertgoer complaint, shouldn't this be addressed?
P.P.P.P.P.S. There are no pre-sales in Arkansas because of legal issues. I say good riddance. You can still do I Love All Access, but all regular tickets need to go on sale at one time, everybody's got to have a fighting chance at getting the good seats. Inequality generates a bad taste in the U.S. The concert business should have no part of it.
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He does paperless for every show.
EVERY SHOW!
The 4,000 best seats, that's the only way you can buy them.
If he scales the house down from its usual 18,000 seat capacity, he reduces the percentage of paperless tickets, like with Robin Williams, who played to 4,000, 1,500 were paperless.
Why?
BECAUSE HE WANTS PEOPLE TO COME TO MORE SHOWS!
That's the goal of paperless. Building the business. Better fan experiences lead to repeat attendance, benefiting everybody.
So how did this happen?
Michael heard from Ticketmaster this was an option. He's run the building since its inception, a little over a decade ago, and for the past four years every single concert has been paperless.
Ticketmaster provided the infrastructure.
But there wasn't that much involved, just switching out the scanners.
The public?
IT'S THRILLED!
Michael surveyed Taylor Swift fans. 88% said they'd do paperless again.
As for your grandma buying tickets, or having to go to a funeral... Just call the box office, tell your story. Michael's the last resort, and only a couple of cases have gotten to him. Everything gets worked out. He tells grandma, and according to StubHub, grandma buys all the concert tickets, to send the kids down with her credit card and a copy of her I.D. Then they get in. Ditto if you can't go yourself. You give this info to your brother or best friend.
This is a non-problem. And it's proven to not even be a tempest in a teapot by Michael Marion's experience.
But what about the learning curve?
Yes, there was one. Two or three shows.
What about the lines?
You can be scanned at any entrance. There's no delay.
And the sliver lining is there are fewer tickets for Marion's building on StubHub than at any other arena in the country. He's beaten them at their own game.
But what about scalpers buying a ticket and then bringing four people in with him?
You can't stop everybody. And L.A. and New York are more complicated. But in the rest of the country, this is not an issue.
Then again, there's an anti-scalping law in Arkansas.
But the issue is not brokers outside the building, people buy their tickets online from brokers in Connecticut and other states.
But now they don't.
But what about gift cards?
No can do. It's got to be a real, regular credit card.
What if your credit card gets canceled or replaced?
They've got a window for that.
Marion does eighteen or nineteen concerts a year. These country acts come through every eighteen months. He wants to make sure patrons can afford to come again next time, that they had such a good experience they want to come, and can afford to come.
So why hasn't everybody followed Marion's lead?
Because they're afraid to be responsible, they don't want to have to answer to the acts for mistakes/problems.
But come on, if Taylor Swift, Michael Buble, Journey and Jimmy Buffett, all of whom sold out, Buffett in 90 minutes, have had seamless experiences with paperless, do you really think you're gonna have a problem?
Paperless is the answer.
It's not for every seat in the house, but the best. The most expensive. The ones everybody wants, including the scalpers.
Does it eliminate the scalping problem entirely?
No, but it goes a long way.
P.S. Marion/Verizon makes clear that the paperless tickets are non-refundable. Information is key, best to be clear.
P.P.S. Only those at the center of a conflagration really know what's going on. To rely on government to solve scalping issues is ridiculous. This is a problem that needs to be solved in-house. Furthermore, if you think all those tickets on StubHub are from non-professionals, individuals caught in a bind, I've got a bridge to sell you. Furthermore, if we can kill speculation by amateurs as well as professionals, that's even better.
P.P.P.S. Just because StubHub/brokers yell loudly, that does not mean their take is correct. There aren't always two sides to every story.
P.P.P.P.S. We're going to paperless. It's just a matter of when. Does the touring business have to be the record business, see untold hurt before it begins to change? Frustration at the inability to get good seats is the number one concertgoer complaint, shouldn't this be addressed?
P.P.P.P.P.S. There are no pre-sales in Arkansas because of legal issues. I say good riddance. You can still do I Love All Access, but all regular tickets need to go on sale at one time, everybody's got to have a fighting chance at getting the good seats. Inequality generates a bad taste in the U.S. The concert business should have no part of it.
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Wednesday 28 November 2012
Fascinating Statistics
Week Ending Nov. 25, 2012. Albums: Crash And Burn: http://yhoo.it/WvtK32
Winners and losers. That's the world we live in today. Despite huge promotional campaigns, wherein these acts get reams of old wave media mentions, it turns out the public either wants you or it doesn't, either knows of you and must buy your new work, or can quite handily avoid you.
Then there are the juggernauts, like Rihanna and Taylor Swift... People buy what they know, what's happening, they want to be au courant...
In other words, you're a winner or a loser. That long tail Chris Anderson spoke of? Turns out it's a very steep ride. The bottom is far from the top. And there's very little in between.
The industry is employing an old model in a new world. Used to be we were information starved and had to buy albums to hear them. Now we're on info overload and you can hear anything you want on YouTube. Ownership is only for the very most dedicated.
And all that promo is front-loaded. A month after the album is released you hear nary a word.
You've got to plan for the long haul. Something that's anathema to not only the music business, but American business at large. You've got to have a career. You've got to build.
In the old days, when your album stiffed it was returned by retailers and cut out of the catalog, it no longer existed. Whereas today your work lives online forever, ready to catch fire if it's good and you can continue to draw fans to it. This is an opportunity. As is the streaming compensation model. You can continue to be compensated for decades if people care and listen. Listening is the key today. Hell, everybody knows "Gangnam Style"... It's the most popular YouTube video of all time, topping 840 million plays. It didn't enter public consciousness via radio, radio was last. And sales are puny compared to streams. This is the new world.
So when you see the endless hype for has-beens in mainstream media laugh. Know that the reporters are dumber than you are. They're clinging to a dead model. Unwitting couriers for old men at labels inured to what once was as opposed to what now is.
Never have so many been exposed to something they care about so little.
The game has changed. Unless you're one of the chosen few, and that's a very few, less than five, you build from the bottom up instead of the top down. It happens slowly. But like anything with a good foundation, it lasts.
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Winners and losers. That's the world we live in today. Despite huge promotional campaigns, wherein these acts get reams of old wave media mentions, it turns out the public either wants you or it doesn't, either knows of you and must buy your new work, or can quite handily avoid you.
Then there are the juggernauts, like Rihanna and Taylor Swift... People buy what they know, what's happening, they want to be au courant...
In other words, you're a winner or a loser. That long tail Chris Anderson spoke of? Turns out it's a very steep ride. The bottom is far from the top. And there's very little in between.
The industry is employing an old model in a new world. Used to be we were information starved and had to buy albums to hear them. Now we're on info overload and you can hear anything you want on YouTube. Ownership is only for the very most dedicated.
And all that promo is front-loaded. A month after the album is released you hear nary a word.
You've got to plan for the long haul. Something that's anathema to not only the music business, but American business at large. You've got to have a career. You've got to build.
In the old days, when your album stiffed it was returned by retailers and cut out of the catalog, it no longer existed. Whereas today your work lives online forever, ready to catch fire if it's good and you can continue to draw fans to it. This is an opportunity. As is the streaming compensation model. You can continue to be compensated for decades if people care and listen. Listening is the key today. Hell, everybody knows "Gangnam Style"... It's the most popular YouTube video of all time, topping 840 million plays. It didn't enter public consciousness via radio, radio was last. And sales are puny compared to streams. This is the new world.
So when you see the endless hype for has-beens in mainstream media laugh. Know that the reporters are dumber than you are. They're clinging to a dead model. Unwitting couriers for old men at labels inured to what once was as opposed to what now is.
Never have so many been exposed to something they care about so little.
The game has changed. Unless you're one of the chosen few, and that's a very few, less than five, you build from the bottom up instead of the top down. It happens slowly. But like anything with a good foundation, it lasts.
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Tuesday 27 November 2012
Advice
1. Empower Your Fans
They're the key to your success, not the mainstream media. Fans are forever, newspapers are not, never mind the reporters who write for them. Your fans believe in you, have time for you, are dedicated to you, reciprocate.
Fans want information. Which they can spread. Encourage fan sites. Give exclusives. Give interviews. These are your partners.
2. Say Yes Not No
No only applies if you're a superstar. And there are very few of those left. Let me be clear, say yes to your fans, to the Internet, don't say yes to intermediaries, like corporations or hustlers who say they can do something for you, which they almost definitely will not, and if they do will extract compensation far in excess of what you desire to pay them.
There are no rules. Do it your way. Stumble upon new ideas, forge new pathways, there's no right way, only your way.
3. Be Three-Dimensional
Mystery is history. The more you reveal, the more people can bond to you.
Social media is a running dialogue that pays dividends long after you wish. It's a walk into the wilderness that could leave you very lonely. So don't start unless you plan to finish. It's a commitment almost as strong as your music. Only try to goose it with contests and stunting occasionally. But giving away something people want always works. Give away a free house concert, a free guitar lesson, and don't do this to increase your reach, but to motivate your fan base.
The best tweets are not self-promotional. Sure, you can say you're here or there occasionally, but if you're using the channel as a sales/promotion outlet, people will tune out. Twitter is where you're real. Post thoughts and ideas. Pictures of what's interesting to you. Social media is about coming down from the mountaintop to engage, just like everybody else. But in your case, people are insatiable in their desire to know more about you.
4. Live
Is free and should be promoted ad infinitum. Every one of your shows should be on YouTube and available on the Internet for streaming and downloading. Make every one different, change the set lists, improvise, and your fans will be hooked.
The web is all about getting people to come back. And they'll only come back if you change your site and deliver something intriguing. Live tracks are a reward for those who already come see you and buy your stuff. They're thrilled you're giving back. And they won't stop talking about you.
That's how you succeed today. By having third parties hear about you from your fans. Which is why you want your fans talking about you constantly, to wear down the resistance of third parties. Don't pressure your fans to convert others. Give them the tools, the music, and they'll spread the word.
Come on, who hasn't been on a car or plane ride with their seatmate boring them to death about their passion. But then, if you hear about this same passion from another person, you check it out.
5. Mistakes Count
In other words, make them. We're all imperfect. If you're not making mistakes, you're not taking chances. When you screw up, people love it and are endeared to you. Your screw-up evidences your humanity.
6. Don't Shoot Beyond Your Limits
If you make klezmer music, you're not gonna get on Top Forty radio. Be realistic. If you're making cutting edge, dissonant music, few people will be interested, certainly at first. If your goal is to be ubiquitous, make music in a genre that dominates, like Top Forty/rhythmic or country.
7. Don't Be Sour Grapes
Nobody likes a complainer.
8. Don't Always Be Positive
This is hogwash spread by religious zealots and self-help book writers. Express your disappointment and frustration, just choose your moments. People love to sympathize, and they gloat in your triumph down the line.
9. Honesty & Transparency
Scalping and other ticket shenanigans are for the ancient classic rockers and the here today, gone tomorrow Top Forty stars. The more information you give people, the more they understand. Go to all-in ticketing. Those fees are promoter profit, not kickbacks to Ticketmaster, only acts can change this perception, to the benefit of the industry at large. Go paperless. If you're not doing your best to get your hard core fans into the show, with their rumps in great seats, you're doing it all wrong, you're part of the problem, not the solution.
10. If You're Not Going To Play Your Hits Say So
People might pay to see you once, but not again. If you're not delivering what people expect, be sure they know. And play smaller halls and charge less.
11. Tastemakers
If they've got credibility and a loyal audience they can get you tons of look-sees almost instantly. But you'd better be ready when you get the attention. Justin Bieber broke Carly Rae Jepsen. Howard Stern boosts careers on a daily basis. Stern has a reputation for being honest. If he endorses something, if he says it's worth checking out, his audience does so. If you're a classic rocker or a Gen-X'er there's no better place to promote your product. But Howard does not take you from zero to sixty, you've already got to have a head of steam.
Just because someone has an audience, don't believe they'll give you a ride to commercial heaven. Most talking heads are meaningless. Get on morning television and you think you've made it, but you're part of an inner circle of jerks unaware the rest of the world is laughing at you.
12. Friends
You've got to have them. They're the ones who will get you gigs. Yup, you've got to have a good relationship with not only your fans, but other bands, so you can trade favors. If you think you can make it alone you're wrong. It's okay to have enemies, but if you have no allies, you're going to be defeated.
13. Charts
Are for dummies. It's a full time job keeping your position. And no one's on top forever. You live in the heart of your fans. That can't be quantified. Other than in your income, which no one other than yourself will ever truly know.
14. Criticism
Be wary of it. Don't try to be what others want you to be. They're never satisfied. You're best off being yourself. People don't know what they want until you give it to them. Unless you're giving them what they've already got, which puts a time stamp on your career. Ignore people who say your songs aren't political, that you can't play your instrument, that you've got to do it their way. Unless, of course, you've got no traction. But if you've made it, ignore the naysayers. They just want to turn you into a faceless ideal they're going to put on the scrapheap. Artists are not remade. Artists are singular. Artist go against the grain. Artists are leaders.
15. Advice
Don't heed it if it doesn't feel good. Resonate with your inner tuning fork first and foremost. But don't be afraid to question yourself, don't be afraid to learn.
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They're the key to your success, not the mainstream media. Fans are forever, newspapers are not, never mind the reporters who write for them. Your fans believe in you, have time for you, are dedicated to you, reciprocate.
Fans want information. Which they can spread. Encourage fan sites. Give exclusives. Give interviews. These are your partners.
2. Say Yes Not No
No only applies if you're a superstar. And there are very few of those left. Let me be clear, say yes to your fans, to the Internet, don't say yes to intermediaries, like corporations or hustlers who say they can do something for you, which they almost definitely will not, and if they do will extract compensation far in excess of what you desire to pay them.
There are no rules. Do it your way. Stumble upon new ideas, forge new pathways, there's no right way, only your way.
3. Be Three-Dimensional
Mystery is history. The more you reveal, the more people can bond to you.
Social media is a running dialogue that pays dividends long after you wish. It's a walk into the wilderness that could leave you very lonely. So don't start unless you plan to finish. It's a commitment almost as strong as your music. Only try to goose it with contests and stunting occasionally. But giving away something people want always works. Give away a free house concert, a free guitar lesson, and don't do this to increase your reach, but to motivate your fan base.
The best tweets are not self-promotional. Sure, you can say you're here or there occasionally, but if you're using the channel as a sales/promotion outlet, people will tune out. Twitter is where you're real. Post thoughts and ideas. Pictures of what's interesting to you. Social media is about coming down from the mountaintop to engage, just like everybody else. But in your case, people are insatiable in their desire to know more about you.
4. Live
Is free and should be promoted ad infinitum. Every one of your shows should be on YouTube and available on the Internet for streaming and downloading. Make every one different, change the set lists, improvise, and your fans will be hooked.
The web is all about getting people to come back. And they'll only come back if you change your site and deliver something intriguing. Live tracks are a reward for those who already come see you and buy your stuff. They're thrilled you're giving back. And they won't stop talking about you.
That's how you succeed today. By having third parties hear about you from your fans. Which is why you want your fans talking about you constantly, to wear down the resistance of third parties. Don't pressure your fans to convert others. Give them the tools, the music, and they'll spread the word.
Come on, who hasn't been on a car or plane ride with their seatmate boring them to death about their passion. But then, if you hear about this same passion from another person, you check it out.
5. Mistakes Count
In other words, make them. We're all imperfect. If you're not making mistakes, you're not taking chances. When you screw up, people love it and are endeared to you. Your screw-up evidences your humanity.
6. Don't Shoot Beyond Your Limits
If you make klezmer music, you're not gonna get on Top Forty radio. Be realistic. If you're making cutting edge, dissonant music, few people will be interested, certainly at first. If your goal is to be ubiquitous, make music in a genre that dominates, like Top Forty/rhythmic or country.
7. Don't Be Sour Grapes
Nobody likes a complainer.
8. Don't Always Be Positive
This is hogwash spread by religious zealots and self-help book writers. Express your disappointment and frustration, just choose your moments. People love to sympathize, and they gloat in your triumph down the line.
9. Honesty & Transparency
Scalping and other ticket shenanigans are for the ancient classic rockers and the here today, gone tomorrow Top Forty stars. The more information you give people, the more they understand. Go to all-in ticketing. Those fees are promoter profit, not kickbacks to Ticketmaster, only acts can change this perception, to the benefit of the industry at large. Go paperless. If you're not doing your best to get your hard core fans into the show, with their rumps in great seats, you're doing it all wrong, you're part of the problem, not the solution.
10. If You're Not Going To Play Your Hits Say So
People might pay to see you once, but not again. If you're not delivering what people expect, be sure they know. And play smaller halls and charge less.
11. Tastemakers
If they've got credibility and a loyal audience they can get you tons of look-sees almost instantly. But you'd better be ready when you get the attention. Justin Bieber broke Carly Rae Jepsen. Howard Stern boosts careers on a daily basis. Stern has a reputation for being honest. If he endorses something, if he says it's worth checking out, his audience does so. If you're a classic rocker or a Gen-X'er there's no better place to promote your product. But Howard does not take you from zero to sixty, you've already got to have a head of steam.
Just because someone has an audience, don't believe they'll give you a ride to commercial heaven. Most talking heads are meaningless. Get on morning television and you think you've made it, but you're part of an inner circle of jerks unaware the rest of the world is laughing at you.
12. Friends
You've got to have them. They're the ones who will get you gigs. Yup, you've got to have a good relationship with not only your fans, but other bands, so you can trade favors. If you think you can make it alone you're wrong. It's okay to have enemies, but if you have no allies, you're going to be defeated.
13. Charts
Are for dummies. It's a full time job keeping your position. And no one's on top forever. You live in the heart of your fans. That can't be quantified. Other than in your income, which no one other than yourself will ever truly know.
14. Criticism
Be wary of it. Don't try to be what others want you to be. They're never satisfied. You're best off being yourself. People don't know what they want until you give it to them. Unless you're giving them what they've already got, which puts a time stamp on your career. Ignore people who say your songs aren't political, that you can't play your instrument, that you've got to do it their way. Unless, of course, you've got no traction. But if you've made it, ignore the naysayers. They just want to turn you into a faceless ideal they're going to put on the scrapheap. Artists are not remade. Artists are singular. Artist go against the grain. Artists are leaders.
15. Advice
Don't heed it if it doesn't feel good. Resonate with your inner tuning fork first and foremost. But don't be afraid to question yourself, don't be afraid to learn.
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Keys Without Clive
Stiffs.
The power of the individual is underestimated in America. For every person who feels powerless there's another who confronts the headwinds and wins through sheer determination.
Not that there's not talent involved.
And I'll argue Clive Davis did not find his niche at Columbia. He takes a lot of credit for signing those Monterey Pop acts, but it wasn't until Clive took hold at Arista, after Patti Smith, when he embraced Barry Manilow, that Clive truly became who he was.
The Doors without Jim Morrison?
Nothing.
Apple without Steve Jobs?
We'll see.
Sure, Sammy Hagar successfully replaced David Lee Roth in Van Halen, but anybody who thinks the Sammy years are better loved Sammy to begin with. And there's an exception to every rule. But in this committee-run business we forget how important individuals are. Like Rick Rubin.
But I'm getting ahead of myself.
Clive knew it was about material. Like that old Orson Welles advertisement, no album was released before its time. If the songs weren't ready, the deadline slipped. Better to put it out when it's done than hit the Christmas selling season. An album, when executed properly, is for the ages, not a few months of selling.
And as Clive prepared the album, he promoted the artist. He introduced him or her, and usually it was a her, at tastemaker events, letting the artist shine, giving her his imprimatur. Clive didn't give this treatment to all his artists, just a special few. And everybody paid attention. Because Clive earned it.
Not that I liked most of these records.
Not that I don't think Clive took undeserved credit.
Clive was not Mr. Ears. Most of his records were forgettable. But one thing you've got to give him credit for, he was unmistakably, one hundred percent Clive.
And he was the exception. Most originals didn't work for the man. They played alone. Which is kind of funny in today's mainstream music world, where a faceless label is in control and every producer wants a record deal. If you can't do it alone, you probably shouldn't be doing it.
Clive was an impresario. A whirling dervish who demanded attention.
Although as Clive has headed into the sunset the paradigm he was a manipulator of has evaporated as well. Clive believed in free promotion. He spent heavily, but on hair and makeup for TV, it was about getting the media to do his work. And when Clive was happening the mainstream media was still king. All we had were the newspapers and TV. Can you imagine everybody in the nation watching the same TV channel today? But that's how it was in the eighties, when Whitney Houston broke.
So Alicia Keys puts out a single and it stiffs.
Clive never would have allowed this. Artists chafed under his direction, but that was the deal you made, he was king, he was in charge. Without Clive, Alicia Keys is an attractive piano player with middling songs. Clive made her a superstar. She was nothing at her previous label. It took Clive to make her.
So now she's doing it just like everybody else. Tying in with corporations, like Adidas, going the clothing route, as if that had anything to do with music.
That's commerce. And once you let commerce get in the way of music, you're screwed. If you're tying in with Fortune 500 corporations to spread the word, you're unaware that you're cheapening your image and your music, what is unfortunately known today as your "brand." Music, when done right, sits above commerce, inhabits its own ethereal space, when you tie in with the man you become subservient to his agenda.
Clive knew you had to enter the agora with a stone cold smash.
You could learn a lesson from this. All you white boys playing indie rock wondering where your success is. "Fallin'" was a track so superior you had to run to the record store to buy it. I know I did. Even though it was a rip off of a James Brown cut and the rest of the album was mediocre.
And once you've entered the marketplace, once you've succeeded, you've got to maintain the quality, you've got to be the same person. Change and the audience is flummoxed.
That's what happened with Mariah Carey. Fresh-scrubbed hedonist turns into club rat and suddenly everybody's scratching their head and wondering who she is.
Who is Alicia Keys?
I won't say without Clive she's nothing, but I will say her career is a shadow of its former self.
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The power of the individual is underestimated in America. For every person who feels powerless there's another who confronts the headwinds and wins through sheer determination.
Not that there's not talent involved.
And I'll argue Clive Davis did not find his niche at Columbia. He takes a lot of credit for signing those Monterey Pop acts, but it wasn't until Clive took hold at Arista, after Patti Smith, when he embraced Barry Manilow, that Clive truly became who he was.
The Doors without Jim Morrison?
Nothing.
Apple without Steve Jobs?
We'll see.
Sure, Sammy Hagar successfully replaced David Lee Roth in Van Halen, but anybody who thinks the Sammy years are better loved Sammy to begin with. And there's an exception to every rule. But in this committee-run business we forget how important individuals are. Like Rick Rubin.
But I'm getting ahead of myself.
Clive knew it was about material. Like that old Orson Welles advertisement, no album was released before its time. If the songs weren't ready, the deadline slipped. Better to put it out when it's done than hit the Christmas selling season. An album, when executed properly, is for the ages, not a few months of selling.
And as Clive prepared the album, he promoted the artist. He introduced him or her, and usually it was a her, at tastemaker events, letting the artist shine, giving her his imprimatur. Clive didn't give this treatment to all his artists, just a special few. And everybody paid attention. Because Clive earned it.
Not that I liked most of these records.
Not that I don't think Clive took undeserved credit.
Clive was not Mr. Ears. Most of his records were forgettable. But one thing you've got to give him credit for, he was unmistakably, one hundred percent Clive.
And he was the exception. Most originals didn't work for the man. They played alone. Which is kind of funny in today's mainstream music world, where a faceless label is in control and every producer wants a record deal. If you can't do it alone, you probably shouldn't be doing it.
Clive was an impresario. A whirling dervish who demanded attention.
Although as Clive has headed into the sunset the paradigm he was a manipulator of has evaporated as well. Clive believed in free promotion. He spent heavily, but on hair and makeup for TV, it was about getting the media to do his work. And when Clive was happening the mainstream media was still king. All we had were the newspapers and TV. Can you imagine everybody in the nation watching the same TV channel today? But that's how it was in the eighties, when Whitney Houston broke.
So Alicia Keys puts out a single and it stiffs.
Clive never would have allowed this. Artists chafed under his direction, but that was the deal you made, he was king, he was in charge. Without Clive, Alicia Keys is an attractive piano player with middling songs. Clive made her a superstar. She was nothing at her previous label. It took Clive to make her.
So now she's doing it just like everybody else. Tying in with corporations, like Adidas, going the clothing route, as if that had anything to do with music.
That's commerce. And once you let commerce get in the way of music, you're screwed. If you're tying in with Fortune 500 corporations to spread the word, you're unaware that you're cheapening your image and your music, what is unfortunately known today as your "brand." Music, when done right, sits above commerce, inhabits its own ethereal space, when you tie in with the man you become subservient to his agenda.
Clive knew you had to enter the agora with a stone cold smash.
You could learn a lesson from this. All you white boys playing indie rock wondering where your success is. "Fallin'" was a track so superior you had to run to the record store to buy it. I know I did. Even though it was a rip off of a James Brown cut and the rest of the album was mediocre.
And once you've entered the marketplace, once you've succeeded, you've got to maintain the quality, you've got to be the same person. Change and the audience is flummoxed.
That's what happened with Mariah Carey. Fresh-scrubbed hedonist turns into club rat and suddenly everybody's scratching their head and wondering who she is.
Who is Alicia Keys?
I won't say without Clive she's nothing, but I will say her career is a shadow of its former self.
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Monday 26 November 2012
The Stones
They scalped their own tickets.
http://bit.ly/U5NV7V
Where do you think the touts got those seats?
THE STONES THEMSELVES!
This is how it works. The band gets $26 million for four gigs and a private. But that's not enough. They've got to make more. So they take a bunch of their seats, mark them up and sell them to the scalpers.
The scalpers just need to make their investment back. They don't care if the band plays to an empty arena.
So the Stones play Barclays and the Prudential Center and how many seats do you think are available to the general public, at the public on sale? A few thousand. Most of the ducats flew out during the massive pre-sales. Friends and family, AmEx... And to the scalpers.
How many did the scalpers get?
Probably 2,000 a show.
How much did the scalpers pay?
Probably double face value. Or a $500 markup. That's a million bucks extra per show. Assuming the scalpers bought the tickets that cheaply.
The Stones could have gone paperless. Could have charged their high prices and played to full places. But they got greedy.
So what happens now?
More shows. Assuming everybody's health is in order.
But at what price?
Business sucked at the tail end of the last tour. Are enough people really interested in overpaying them to see them now?
This truly could be the last time.
And it's all about the money.
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http://bit.ly/U5NV7V
Where do you think the touts got those seats?
THE STONES THEMSELVES!
This is how it works. The band gets $26 million for four gigs and a private. But that's not enough. They've got to make more. So they take a bunch of their seats, mark them up and sell them to the scalpers.
The scalpers just need to make their investment back. They don't care if the band plays to an empty arena.
So the Stones play Barclays and the Prudential Center and how many seats do you think are available to the general public, at the public on sale? A few thousand. Most of the ducats flew out during the massive pre-sales. Friends and family, AmEx... And to the scalpers.
How many did the scalpers get?
Probably 2,000 a show.
How much did the scalpers pay?
Probably double face value. Or a $500 markup. That's a million bucks extra per show. Assuming the scalpers bought the tickets that cheaply.
The Stones could have gone paperless. Could have charged their high prices and played to full places. But they got greedy.
So what happens now?
More shows. Assuming everybody's health is in order.
But at what price?
Business sucked at the tail end of the last tour. Are enough people really interested in overpaying them to see them now?
This truly could be the last time.
And it's all about the money.
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Silver Linings Playbook
What's in it for me?
Now if you're planning to see this flick, and you want to go in cold, stop reading right now. Not that I'm gonna reveal any more than a typical reviewer, but I want to evade the mountain of abuse I'm gonna get from those who no longer realize that secrets are passe, and forgotten just about as fast. Hell, Jill Kelley was last week's news!
This movie has gotten the best reviews this year. I wish I could concur. I wish I could recommend you see it. But it's really two different movies in one. A serious drama and a screwball comedy. "Rachel Getting Married" and "It Happened One Night." Furthermore, who knew that bipolar disease could be cured by love? You leave the theatre having enjoyed the ride, but believing whatever substance was involved was thrown out the window in a quest for laughs.
Yes, Bradley Cooper is bipolar. As a result, he loses his wife.
Well, it's a bit more complicated than that. He finds her in the shower with a colleague from school, as his wedding song plays on the boom box.
This all happens early on, don't get pissed at me, this is the kind of stuff you see in the trailer. Hell, the trailer was the best part of "Argo"...it included almost all the footage of Alan Arkin and John Goodman, the former of whom could very well be nominated for an Oscar, deservedly so. Then again, if you're involved with the CIA are you really worried about ruining a take?
Ah, now I've gotten too inside baseball. If you haven't seen "Argo" you're clueless as to what I'm talking about. But I don't recommend that flick either. It's great, but then the bad guys chase the good ones down the runway and as a friend of mine said...in reality, the jeep would be blown off the tarmac!
So, Bradley Cooper is deservedly pissed. I mean could you get that image out of your head? Of your spouse in the shower with someone from work, while your wedding song is playing in the background? Could you ever hear that song again? Hell, I can't even go to the same restaurants we used to frequent.
Yup, the first half of "Silver Linings Playbook" freaked me out. Because it was all about unrequited love. Wanting to get back together...even though the other has sent strong signals it's over. Hell, sometimes they even want to get back together, all you've got to do is say yes, but you know you can't do it, that your life will end if you go back, it takes every ounce of strength to say no.
But you don't stop thinking about them.
And that's the movie I thought I was seeing. About Bradley Cooper's realization Nikki wasn't coming back.
That wasn't the movie I saw.
The movie I saw was mentally ill boy meets mentally ill girl and they fall in love, with a bookie dad and a Marisa Tomei performance in the middle. Yes, when Jennifer Lawrence points out the truth to Robert DeNiro, and DeNiro ultimately nods his head in agreement, you smile.
But before the movie takes this turn you cry.
Jennifer Lawrence's husband has died. How... You know how guilt plagues you forever? That comes into play. And then she sleeps with everything that moves and then she wants Bradley Cooper to participate in this dance contest with her and that's when she comes up with the initial line...
That's what stuns me about life. The takers. If you don't say no, they'll never give up. They play friends, but really they just want a favor. That's why I never talk on the phone. You've got to endure twenty minutes of weather and sports to get to the part where they ask you for something you don't want to give.
And part of you likes them.
But they're never really interested in you.
Can you just say no?
But the givers are afraid of being closed out. Of being rude.
But at some point you become fed up. Like Jennifer Lawrence. You're mad as hell and not gonna take it anymore.
And that's when you start to get what you want.
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Now if you're planning to see this flick, and you want to go in cold, stop reading right now. Not that I'm gonna reveal any more than a typical reviewer, but I want to evade the mountain of abuse I'm gonna get from those who no longer realize that secrets are passe, and forgotten just about as fast. Hell, Jill Kelley was last week's news!
This movie has gotten the best reviews this year. I wish I could concur. I wish I could recommend you see it. But it's really two different movies in one. A serious drama and a screwball comedy. "Rachel Getting Married" and "It Happened One Night." Furthermore, who knew that bipolar disease could be cured by love? You leave the theatre having enjoyed the ride, but believing whatever substance was involved was thrown out the window in a quest for laughs.
Yes, Bradley Cooper is bipolar. As a result, he loses his wife.
Well, it's a bit more complicated than that. He finds her in the shower with a colleague from school, as his wedding song plays on the boom box.
This all happens early on, don't get pissed at me, this is the kind of stuff you see in the trailer. Hell, the trailer was the best part of "Argo"...it included almost all the footage of Alan Arkin and John Goodman, the former of whom could very well be nominated for an Oscar, deservedly so. Then again, if you're involved with the CIA are you really worried about ruining a take?
Ah, now I've gotten too inside baseball. If you haven't seen "Argo" you're clueless as to what I'm talking about. But I don't recommend that flick either. It's great, but then the bad guys chase the good ones down the runway and as a friend of mine said...in reality, the jeep would be blown off the tarmac!
So, Bradley Cooper is deservedly pissed. I mean could you get that image out of your head? Of your spouse in the shower with someone from work, while your wedding song is playing in the background? Could you ever hear that song again? Hell, I can't even go to the same restaurants we used to frequent.
Yup, the first half of "Silver Linings Playbook" freaked me out. Because it was all about unrequited love. Wanting to get back together...even though the other has sent strong signals it's over. Hell, sometimes they even want to get back together, all you've got to do is say yes, but you know you can't do it, that your life will end if you go back, it takes every ounce of strength to say no.
But you don't stop thinking about them.
And that's the movie I thought I was seeing. About Bradley Cooper's realization Nikki wasn't coming back.
That wasn't the movie I saw.
The movie I saw was mentally ill boy meets mentally ill girl and they fall in love, with a bookie dad and a Marisa Tomei performance in the middle. Yes, when Jennifer Lawrence points out the truth to Robert DeNiro, and DeNiro ultimately nods his head in agreement, you smile.
But before the movie takes this turn you cry.
Jennifer Lawrence's husband has died. How... You know how guilt plagues you forever? That comes into play. And then she sleeps with everything that moves and then she wants Bradley Cooper to participate in this dance contest with her and that's when she comes up with the initial line...
That's what stuns me about life. The takers. If you don't say no, they'll never give up. They play friends, but really they just want a favor. That's why I never talk on the phone. You've got to endure twenty minutes of weather and sports to get to the part where they ask you for something you don't want to give.
And part of you likes them.
But they're never really interested in you.
Can you just say no?
But the givers are afraid of being closed out. Of being rude.
But at some point you become fed up. Like Jennifer Lawrence. You're mad as hell and not gonna take it anymore.
And that's when you start to get what you want.
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The Hypebot Article
http://bit.ly/10YxIWd
Artists don't like change. Despite the ability to make records on their computers and reach all their fans via e-mail and social media, they want said fans to buy albums, preferably in physical form, in prodigious numbers, they want to get rich!
Want to get rich?
Go into tech.
That's what will.i.am has done:
http://bit.ly/10zdm6A
You may not like his music, but will.i.am is far from stupid. He's going where the money is, just like Bono.
But that's got little to do with Napster and more to do with income inequality. To get the best and the brightest making music we need artists to be able to make the same amount as bankers. Now they're not even in the same league. Don't beat up on Spotify, attack the Koch brothers.
As for Spotify...it may be history.
Microsoft is a lumbering giant with a flawed operating system strategy but music is free on Windows 8. Just like on Spotify. While you're attacking Daniel Ek, the titan of Redmond is doing its best to make inroads into the streaming sphere, hell, that's where all the money will be, just ask Google, it paid a fortune for YouTube which made nothing and is now generating significant revenues.
And Spotify's inability to engage the artist community, to get them to testify about the service like they once did for MTV, means that it might get killed by MOG, which is revamping its service in a matter of days. Do you really expect Jimmy Iovine not to bend the arms of his acts to promote MOG? If Jimmy can make a mediocre headphone line the industry leader by utilizing stars and design, do you really think he can't put a stake in the heart of Spotify?
And then there's Apple... It's just about the right time for the Cupertino giant to enter this sphere. To do it elegantly. With search that works.
So while you're railing at Spotify and its payments, you fail to realize that the streaming train has left the station and it's only a matter of who is Cornelius Vanderbilt, who eventually triumphs.
Read the above article. Or at least part of it.
Cold, calm analysis beats vitriol every day of the week.
We're moving to a new paradigm. One in which nobody owns anything and you get paid based on usage.
You stream movies. Cell phone calls are streaming. Both have moved into an all you can eat payment formula. Why do you think music is any different?
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Artists don't like change. Despite the ability to make records on their computers and reach all their fans via e-mail and social media, they want said fans to buy albums, preferably in physical form, in prodigious numbers, they want to get rich!
Want to get rich?
Go into tech.
That's what will.i.am has done:
http://bit.ly/10zdm6A
You may not like his music, but will.i.am is far from stupid. He's going where the money is, just like Bono.
But that's got little to do with Napster and more to do with income inequality. To get the best and the brightest making music we need artists to be able to make the same amount as bankers. Now they're not even in the same league. Don't beat up on Spotify, attack the Koch brothers.
As for Spotify...it may be history.
Microsoft is a lumbering giant with a flawed operating system strategy but music is free on Windows 8. Just like on Spotify. While you're attacking Daniel Ek, the titan of Redmond is doing its best to make inroads into the streaming sphere, hell, that's where all the money will be, just ask Google, it paid a fortune for YouTube which made nothing and is now generating significant revenues.
And Spotify's inability to engage the artist community, to get them to testify about the service like they once did for MTV, means that it might get killed by MOG, which is revamping its service in a matter of days. Do you really expect Jimmy Iovine not to bend the arms of his acts to promote MOG? If Jimmy can make a mediocre headphone line the industry leader by utilizing stars and design, do you really think he can't put a stake in the heart of Spotify?
And then there's Apple... It's just about the right time for the Cupertino giant to enter this sphere. To do it elegantly. With search that works.
So while you're railing at Spotify and its payments, you fail to realize that the streaming train has left the station and it's only a matter of who is Cornelius Vanderbilt, who eventually triumphs.
Read the above article. Or at least part of it.
Cold, calm analysis beats vitriol every day of the week.
We're moving to a new paradigm. One in which nobody owns anything and you get paid based on usage.
You stream movies. Cell phone calls are streaming. Both have moved into an all you can eat payment formula. Why do you think music is any different?
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