https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iKmlcb4HSLM
Start at 29:00 in.
Stephen Stills makes it seem so effortless, you can't believe he's wringing that sound out of his guitar, no one should be able to play that well, no wonder he was friends with Jimi Hendrix, who played on Stephen's solo debut.
I was reading about Manassas on Music Aficionado, the story is entitled "Why Manassas Was Stephen Stills' Best Band" (http://bit.ly/2jiaAVI), and I don't believe that, but I do have a soft spot in my heart for Manassas so I had to read the article, no one ever talks about the band anymore, it's like they didn't even exist, but that initial double LP is a killer, in an era when double album packages were de rigueur and too often there was too much filler and not enough nougat, but not in the case of "Manassas."
I bought the solo LP, you've got no idea how big CSN and sometimes Y were. It took a while for their sound to penetrate, everybody didn't know "Suite: Judy Blue Eyes" until "Deja Vu" came out and then their records were on every turntable, the songs were a part of the fabric of this nation in a way unfathomable today. If you were under thirty you knew. Now we all live in our own little silos, just looking for community.
Which we got at the show.
But it was different. It wasn't a show, it was a CONCERT! It was about the music, there was no production, rarely a light show, you were there to hear the sounds, and watch the musicians play them.
That's what'll blow your mind about this clip, the way everybody can play, before it was possible to fake it.
You probably don't know Manassas's material, and when you don't it can be hard to get hooked, which is why I led you to that instrumental passage above, but if you wind the YouTube clip back to the beginning not only will you see and hear Stills' exquisite playing, you'll hear that of the other band members, who are virtuosos in their own right and all hang together in a way that seems impossible with so many musicians on stage. Joe Lala's percussion stands out, it's anything but superfluous. And Paul Harris and Al Perkins are virtuosos on organ and pedal steel respectively, but that's not to denigrate the rest of the players, you watch Dallas Taylor behind the kit and you want a shirt like him, didn't he get the memo that you're supposed to dress up, put on your stage outfit, a monkey suit for the Grammys no one watched or cared about, no this was before everybody went formal, when it was more important how you played than how you looked.
So I didn't buy "Stephen Stills 2." Even though I knew every lick of the solo debut, I found it somewhat disappointing, in retrospect it's phenomenal, it's just that I was comparing it with CSN(Y) and "Love The One You're With" was not quite up to the standard of "Suite: Judy Blue Eyes" and "Carry On," I played the "Deja Vu" opener every day I woke up in April 1970, it put me in a good mood, sometimes music can do that, irrelevant of what is going on in your life.
But the buzz on the Manassas album was so good, I took the plunge. And if I were gonna introduce you to the package I'd say to start with side four, "What To Do" is instantly accessible, as is the follow-up, "Right Now," you don't have to hear them multiple times to get them, you get them right away. But the piece-de-resistance is the eight minute long "The Treasure" and then listening to the closing cut, "Blues Man," you'll be jetted back to your childhood bedroom, it'll warm you up and creep you out at the same time, just like adolescence.
But those are not my favorite songs.
My absolute favorite is "Johnny's Garden."
"There's a place I can get to
Where I'm safe from the city blues
And it's green and it's quiet
Only trouble was I had to buy it"
Wow, truth! A sense of humor! None of the poor-mouthing of the holier-than-thou wannabes, Stephen Stills worked hard and is now testifying from a new perch.
And work hard he did. You can't pick like that if you don't practice. The path to stardom is not straight, and just when it looked like he was on top of the mountain Buffalo Springfield broke up, but not before he wrote "For What It's Worth."
"There's something happening here
What it is ain't exactly clear"
That's for sure. This was 1967, FM underground radio was just being hatched, most people in America wouldn't be exposed to rock on the frequency modulated dial for at least half a decade, this was long before "Easy Rider," most people had no idea what a hippie was, most of America was categorically unhip, but in Los Angeles, on the Sunset Strip, the seeds of disquietude were starting to blossom and after the riot at Pandora's Box Stephen Stills was inspired to lay down his thoughts and the result became an anthem that sounds just as fresh today as it did yesterday, and the obvious question is why today's younger generation can't emulate, can't follow in the footsteps of this giant and his work.
Because it's a different time with a different generation. People are afraid. To harm their career, to piss anybody off. You're in bed with the man, who's not the enemy. Just think about that, you hear people testifying again and again in support of the police, back then they were the enemy of the youth, we're not even starting from the same block. Then again, back then the younger generation were all on the same page and that page was written in recording studios and read on radio stations. Radio was the internet of its day and everybody involved knew it. Television was moribund, radio was positively immediate, and if you liked what you heard...
You went to the show.
Not everybody, not at first, their parents wouldn't let them. It wasn't like today, where parents accompany Madison and Mason to the gig, most parents wanted no part.
But some of us had liberal parents.
And we went and our minds were blown.
And if you watch the Manassas clip above you'll know why.
P.S. Don't email me and tell me I overlooked Chris Hillman, that I didn't mention Fuzzy Samuels because he's black. The truth is the players were always hipper than the fans, they knew it wasn't about accolades, that everybody knew the truth. Funny how culture has changed, today you have to tell everybody how great you are on social media, over and over and over again. Yesterday, you just had to pick out one note, pure and easy, and we all got the message.
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Saturday, 28 January 2017
Alexa Is The New AOL
Jim just iMessaged asking whether his mother-in-law should get an Echo or a Dot. You know a revolution is brewing when a septuagenarian jumps on the technology bandwagon. It reminds me of 1995, the heyday of AOL.
Now in that year most people did not own computers. Ironically, many said they were waiting for a device you could talk to. But then AOL exploded.
Not that it hadn't been hiding in plain sight, the online enterprise had launched years before. It wasn't even first to market, initial traction was gained by CompuServe, Prodigy and GEnie. But none were as easy to use, and ease of use begets buzz. Interestingly, Prodigy was backed by Sears and GEnie by GE, the behemoths were in the know, kind of like Xerox, with PARC. But they gave up too soon, they didn't adjust on the fly, and they were left in the dust. Proving it's not always first mover advantage, but continued improvement. AOL was Facebook to its competitors' MySpace. Hell, even many who tried the ultimate also-rans gave up, there's no greater frustration than a computer that does not do what you want it to, even if it's human error. That's what made the Mac so successful, what ultimately caused Apple to become the most valuable company on the planet, not only ease of use, but the Genius Bar, where those who were inept or time-challenged could make an appointment and be walked through something that most geeks could figure out by themselves. And only geeks were on the other online services.
But AOL was a revelation. It was easy to use. And so exciting. Within twelve months seemingly all of America did sign on, forget that the service did not access the World Wide Web at first, to suddenly be able to hook up with the rest of humanity, both intellectually and socially, was an incredible thrill. You know how you wait for a text or an email on your mobile device? When you logged on to AOL and heard that voice saying "You've got mail!" you felt like the most popular person in the world, the dopamine hit was staggering.
That's where the Echo is now.
Talk about ease of use, you just talk to it. But when it talks back, you get that same tingly feeling you did when you heard "You've got mail!" And just like in the early days of AOL, most of what you're doing with the Echo is unnecessary and irrelevant, but it's so much damn fun. To the point where you can't stop talking about it, you're a member of the club, you want to demonstrate the device's wares to everybody you encounter.
And at first AOL was like Google search, it spread by word of mouth, not advertising. Which may have you scratching your head when you think of all those giveaway discs you ultimately kept getting in the mail, but despite being available to all, AOL was a secret club, that anybody could join, and you did. First because of the buzz, then because you didn't want to be left out. You might have heard of the Echo, but you didn't need one until the buzz reached you, and to this point it's being sold on word of mouth.
Now once you decided you wanted to play on AOL, you needed a computer. Or if you already had one, a modem. And every couple of months both were improved. Talk about a technology boom, talk about the eradication of the national deficit, funny how technological breakthroughs can benefit the economy. The rich do get richer, because when you're selling something to everyone with little labor you garner great wealth, but our nation as a whole benefited. And there have been technological breakthroughs since...
But now you don't need a new phone.
A new computer only once a decade for many people.
But the Echo is a gateway to a whole new world of acquisition, one we've been hearing about for years which is just now coming to fruition. Kinda like digital photography, we heard it was going to kill film for a decade and it didn't, but then, overnight, it did.
Smart home here we come!
There was Nest.
Apple's been bloviating about the smart home for years.
But with Echo, the public finally gets it. They want their device to control their environment, not only the temperature, but the lights.
Now many forget all the AOL naysayers. People were addicted! It was gonna end human interaction! The same way they're uptight about the Echo and privacy. But the truth is you already gave up your privacy, wanna know how? Look at the ads following you around the web, Google and ad networks know all about you already, never mind all the info that's hiding in plain sight. If you can't find anybody you ever knew online within half an hour, pictures and everything, you don't know how to surf, and others do, they can find you. So if you're afraid of Alexa listening all the time... Amazon says it doesn't. But that's not convincing to you, because you've got culture shock, you don't want to throw in with another new device, but everybody else does.
And Apple was the first company with mainstream voice activation, but Siri was a disaster upon launch and still isn't very good. In this case, Apple appears to be CompuServe/ Prodigy/GEnie.
And Google has a competitive product, but Google's track record of arriving late and obliterating first movers in new markets is just terrible. It tried to kill Facebook and didn't come close. As for Google Home... It understands me very well, maybe even a bit better than the Echo, when it hears me, which oftentimes it does not. It seems to have a dead zone in the back, and if I'm not right up close and sometimes even if I still am, I end up yelling at the device and getting frustrated with it, makes me want to use it less, unlike the Echo, which I want to use more and more. And Amazon was brilliant in using the name Alexa, the geeks at Google don't know how to be hip. "Hey Google"? Where's the fun in that? And AOL taught us first and foremost it has to be fun. Also, the speaker in Google Home is too small and the device is unattractive. Sure, the Echo might be ugly beautiful, but you never want to be bland.
And unlike Apple, and very much like Microsoft, never forget, the success of AOL coincided with the launch of Windows 95, the Echo is an open system, anybody can play. You've got Spotify, but no Apple Music. How can that be?
Amazon is playing a long game wherein it wants to become the standard, and so far it appears to be winning.
Now what killed AOL was the World Wide Web and broadband. Proving that you can be here today and gone tomorrow in tech, and you have to reinvent the wheel every damn day. But every Friday I get an email from Amazon all about new Echo features. Some utilitarian, some just fun, so...
You're gonna own an Echo, it's just a matter of when.
Voice activation/response is the latest technological breakthrough. While we were waiting for flying cars, when it looked like there were no breakthroughs on the horizon, it snuck up on us, kinda like AOL back in '95.
This is only the beginning. In an on demand world, we can now all have a personal concierge, at our beck and call. One we can use and not feel guilty about. One, in the tradition of modern tech, which is not expensive to buy.
This is a juggernaut.
Now in that year most people did not own computers. Ironically, many said they were waiting for a device you could talk to. But then AOL exploded.
Not that it hadn't been hiding in plain sight, the online enterprise had launched years before. It wasn't even first to market, initial traction was gained by CompuServe, Prodigy and GEnie. But none were as easy to use, and ease of use begets buzz. Interestingly, Prodigy was backed by Sears and GEnie by GE, the behemoths were in the know, kind of like Xerox, with PARC. But they gave up too soon, they didn't adjust on the fly, and they were left in the dust. Proving it's not always first mover advantage, but continued improvement. AOL was Facebook to its competitors' MySpace. Hell, even many who tried the ultimate also-rans gave up, there's no greater frustration than a computer that does not do what you want it to, even if it's human error. That's what made the Mac so successful, what ultimately caused Apple to become the most valuable company on the planet, not only ease of use, but the Genius Bar, where those who were inept or time-challenged could make an appointment and be walked through something that most geeks could figure out by themselves. And only geeks were on the other online services.
But AOL was a revelation. It was easy to use. And so exciting. Within twelve months seemingly all of America did sign on, forget that the service did not access the World Wide Web at first, to suddenly be able to hook up with the rest of humanity, both intellectually and socially, was an incredible thrill. You know how you wait for a text or an email on your mobile device? When you logged on to AOL and heard that voice saying "You've got mail!" you felt like the most popular person in the world, the dopamine hit was staggering.
That's where the Echo is now.
Talk about ease of use, you just talk to it. But when it talks back, you get that same tingly feeling you did when you heard "You've got mail!" And just like in the early days of AOL, most of what you're doing with the Echo is unnecessary and irrelevant, but it's so much damn fun. To the point where you can't stop talking about it, you're a member of the club, you want to demonstrate the device's wares to everybody you encounter.
And at first AOL was like Google search, it spread by word of mouth, not advertising. Which may have you scratching your head when you think of all those giveaway discs you ultimately kept getting in the mail, but despite being available to all, AOL was a secret club, that anybody could join, and you did. First because of the buzz, then because you didn't want to be left out. You might have heard of the Echo, but you didn't need one until the buzz reached you, and to this point it's being sold on word of mouth.
Now once you decided you wanted to play on AOL, you needed a computer. Or if you already had one, a modem. And every couple of months both were improved. Talk about a technology boom, talk about the eradication of the national deficit, funny how technological breakthroughs can benefit the economy. The rich do get richer, because when you're selling something to everyone with little labor you garner great wealth, but our nation as a whole benefited. And there have been technological breakthroughs since...
But now you don't need a new phone.
A new computer only once a decade for many people.
But the Echo is a gateway to a whole new world of acquisition, one we've been hearing about for years which is just now coming to fruition. Kinda like digital photography, we heard it was going to kill film for a decade and it didn't, but then, overnight, it did.
Smart home here we come!
There was Nest.
Apple's been bloviating about the smart home for years.
But with Echo, the public finally gets it. They want their device to control their environment, not only the temperature, but the lights.
Now many forget all the AOL naysayers. People were addicted! It was gonna end human interaction! The same way they're uptight about the Echo and privacy. But the truth is you already gave up your privacy, wanna know how? Look at the ads following you around the web, Google and ad networks know all about you already, never mind all the info that's hiding in plain sight. If you can't find anybody you ever knew online within half an hour, pictures and everything, you don't know how to surf, and others do, they can find you. So if you're afraid of Alexa listening all the time... Amazon says it doesn't. But that's not convincing to you, because you've got culture shock, you don't want to throw in with another new device, but everybody else does.
And Apple was the first company with mainstream voice activation, but Siri was a disaster upon launch and still isn't very good. In this case, Apple appears to be CompuServe/ Prodigy/GEnie.
And Google has a competitive product, but Google's track record of arriving late and obliterating first movers in new markets is just terrible. It tried to kill Facebook and didn't come close. As for Google Home... It understands me very well, maybe even a bit better than the Echo, when it hears me, which oftentimes it does not. It seems to have a dead zone in the back, and if I'm not right up close and sometimes even if I still am, I end up yelling at the device and getting frustrated with it, makes me want to use it less, unlike the Echo, which I want to use more and more. And Amazon was brilliant in using the name Alexa, the geeks at Google don't know how to be hip. "Hey Google"? Where's the fun in that? And AOL taught us first and foremost it has to be fun. Also, the speaker in Google Home is too small and the device is unattractive. Sure, the Echo might be ugly beautiful, but you never want to be bland.
And unlike Apple, and very much like Microsoft, never forget, the success of AOL coincided with the launch of Windows 95, the Echo is an open system, anybody can play. You've got Spotify, but no Apple Music. How can that be?
Amazon is playing a long game wherein it wants to become the standard, and so far it appears to be winning.
Now what killed AOL was the World Wide Web and broadband. Proving that you can be here today and gone tomorrow in tech, and you have to reinvent the wheel every damn day. But every Friday I get an email from Amazon all about new Echo features. Some utilitarian, some just fun, so...
You're gonna own an Echo, it's just a matter of when.
Voice activation/response is the latest technological breakthrough. While we were waiting for flying cars, when it looked like there were no breakthroughs on the horizon, it snuck up on us, kinda like AOL back in '95.
This is only the beginning. In an on demand world, we can now all have a personal concierge, at our beck and call. One we can use and not feel guilty about. One, in the tradition of modern tech, which is not expensive to buy.
This is a juggernaut.
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Friday, 27 January 2017
The Michael Lewis Book
"The Undoing Project: A Friendship That Changed Our Minds": http://amzn.to/2kcB8aD
I'm pretty sure most buyers never finished this book.
So why did I?
Maybe it's fandom, I'm a Michael Lewis believer. He writes well about subjects I find interesting and he's not self-aggrandizing and thin-skinned like Malcolm Gladwell, whom I've lost faith in. But both oftentimes write about science, when neither has any true expertise in the field. And after reading Clayton Christensen's latest tome I've realized you're much better off going to the source, only oftentimes the source can think, has experience, but can't write.
Maybe it's because of my Kindle policy. If I buy it, I read it. My inbox fills up constantly with print supporters, they're even more vociferous than CD supporters, maybe not foaming at the mouth quite like vinyl supporters. And that's part of what "The Undoing Project" is about, the investment the old guard has in debunking new theories. I got an email from a friend in Bora Bora telling me she had nothing to read, that the book she'd brought was boring her. I told her I was lying on my bed reading about a new book on my iPhone and went on Amazon and bought it and started reading it right away on my Kindle and was engrossed. Funny how the people addicted to their mobile devices can't stray from hardcover books. Then there's a publishing industry that won the war with Amazon by pricing digital copies almost the same as physical ones, and that just doesn't feel right. And that's another thing in "The Undoing Project," how emotions, however irrational, creep into decision-making. If I had the hardcover I could lend it, it could sit on my shelf forever, even though lending can be rare and we end up weighted down by our possessions.
Maybe it's because of Middlebury. I vividly remember Professor Andrews saying in anthropology freshman year that we were never going to discuss the reading in class, if we'd gotten this far and had trouble comprehending the book we had bigger problems. That was what Middlebury was about, reading. You'd sit in the dorm lounge on sunny afternoons for hours, poring through books you had little interest in, because you knew you'd have to expound upon them in the test, and expound you did, there were no objective exams at Middlebury, only subjective ones, essays, three hours long. So I know how to read a boring book and soldier on. Is this an asset? I oftentimes wonder. We hear all the time about pivoting, but I stay the course, I'm starting to think to my detriment, sometimes you just have to give up.
Like I'm sure most of the purchasers of "The Undoing Project" did.
But the reviews were so good!
Ever since Michiko Kakutani raved about "The Revenge of Analog: Real Things and Why They Matter," I've doubted her opinion. Kinda like Steve Bannon. Who wondered why no one in the media that got the election so wrong lost their job. Because it's a club, they circle the wagons, and the press keeps doing its job, reporting what it sees as the truth not realizing it didn't work against Trump yet and it probably never will. And then you've got the lefties saying to throw money at the newspapers. Now I get three, but I will never look at them the same way since they got the election wrong. It's kind of like a spouse lying to you outright. There should at least be consequences. And the truth is Trump and his cronies will not be beaten in the press or at protests but in the election booth. Like the Tea Party the left wing needs to line up Congressional candidates far to the left of Hillary, closer to Bernie, who excite the younger generation and will get people out to vote. But so far, the left has learned nothing from Trump's election, it's painful to watch, how the best and the brightest have their heads in the sand. And none of the reviews said "The Undoing Project" was nearly unreadable, they all focused on the bond between the two protagonists, but the truth is this is a story of psychological theory, do you care about that? I can't say that I do very much, and I would have liked it better if it was a ten page article in "The New Yorker."
But the media buys the pitch of the publisher and then the public buys the book and no one reads it. But it appears a best-seller. Once upon a time Amazon published how far people got in books, they've got that data (yes, you people afraid of Alexa can feel good about your position), but publishers don't want that information out, certainly not authors. Then it would be like the music business, where we can see on YouTube and Spotify what people are actually listening to, and it oftentimes doesn't square with sales, never mind the media spin. Hip-hop is even bigger on streaming services. Chew on that for a while.
And then there's the curious case of "All The Light We Cannot See," one of the best sellers of the last half decade. I was intrigued at first, but it took me a month to plow through it, because of the writing style. I don't think that many people finished this book either. More than "The Undoing Project," but... You see academics and critics laud that which squares with their principles. And if it cuts like butter and it's easily readable it's considered pop trash and pooh-poohed. But accessibility is a virtue. Anthony Doerr has won a slew of prizes, but I think they'd be better off going to a more populist writer, then again, the committees don't want to acknowledge that work. The lunatics have taken over the asylum, and they want to keep it that way. You do know that prizes are a scam, that it's a club and if you're not a member the odds of getting one are almost nonexistent. But I will say Doerr's book does qualify as art. The sense of loss and the suffering and consequences of war and the power of radio... They're all in there. Funny how we live in a world where emotions are pushed under the rug, when emotions are the only thing worth living for.
So, if you're gonna read one of these books, read "All The Light We Cannot See."
As for "The Undoing Project"...
It starts off with an NBA anecdote, you're riveted, but then it moves on to economics and psychology. You're waiting for the NBA to return, but it never does. There are detours to a hospital in Canada, but most of the book is dry psychological theory, very important, but written in a fashion and at such length that unless you majored in the subject your eyes will glaze over.
The truth is people don't act rationally. And economists thought they did. Amos and Danny proved them wrong. Over and over and over again.
We'd like to read the application of their theories, but mostly we just get theories.
And a bit of their interpersonal relationship, but if you're reading this book for that you're gonna throw it against the wall.
So what I'm saying here is we have a fact problem in the left wing world. We don't question our media sources, we accept as a given everything put forth to us. We feel proud that we own unreadable books. We don't look back and evaluate our choices. We're overconfident and proud of it.
Not that I'm lauding the down and out Trump voters who don't read at all and just dig in their heels as they vote for policies against their interest.
But first and foremost we must change us.
When you see people with a house full of books, ask how many they've read. Then pull one and quiz them about it. They like showing off, why else build a collection/monument to themselves?
Question authority.
Most learning takes place outside the classroom. Some of the dumbest, least analytical people have college degrees. Find an interest and pursue it.
Know that if you gain traction, if you break taboos, people will come after you, and no matter how much you fight back, you can never shut them up, this is what Amos and Danny realized, it drove Amos nuts.
We live in very dark times. My head is spinning from the inanity of the wall and the support of pipelines and dumb economic policies, but not only must we complain, we must put our faith in leaders and support them. Who is carrying the Democratic torch? Looks like no one at this point. We need someone to be our mouthpiece, and we've got to work the refs just like the right, call them on their b.s. when they attack our leader(s).
So it's no wonder people turn to books.
Just don't turn to this one.
I'm pretty sure most buyers never finished this book.
So why did I?
Maybe it's fandom, I'm a Michael Lewis believer. He writes well about subjects I find interesting and he's not self-aggrandizing and thin-skinned like Malcolm Gladwell, whom I've lost faith in. But both oftentimes write about science, when neither has any true expertise in the field. And after reading Clayton Christensen's latest tome I've realized you're much better off going to the source, only oftentimes the source can think, has experience, but can't write.
Maybe it's because of my Kindle policy. If I buy it, I read it. My inbox fills up constantly with print supporters, they're even more vociferous than CD supporters, maybe not foaming at the mouth quite like vinyl supporters. And that's part of what "The Undoing Project" is about, the investment the old guard has in debunking new theories. I got an email from a friend in Bora Bora telling me she had nothing to read, that the book she'd brought was boring her. I told her I was lying on my bed reading about a new book on my iPhone and went on Amazon and bought it and started reading it right away on my Kindle and was engrossed. Funny how the people addicted to their mobile devices can't stray from hardcover books. Then there's a publishing industry that won the war with Amazon by pricing digital copies almost the same as physical ones, and that just doesn't feel right. And that's another thing in "The Undoing Project," how emotions, however irrational, creep into decision-making. If I had the hardcover I could lend it, it could sit on my shelf forever, even though lending can be rare and we end up weighted down by our possessions.
Maybe it's because of Middlebury. I vividly remember Professor Andrews saying in anthropology freshman year that we were never going to discuss the reading in class, if we'd gotten this far and had trouble comprehending the book we had bigger problems. That was what Middlebury was about, reading. You'd sit in the dorm lounge on sunny afternoons for hours, poring through books you had little interest in, because you knew you'd have to expound upon them in the test, and expound you did, there were no objective exams at Middlebury, only subjective ones, essays, three hours long. So I know how to read a boring book and soldier on. Is this an asset? I oftentimes wonder. We hear all the time about pivoting, but I stay the course, I'm starting to think to my detriment, sometimes you just have to give up.
Like I'm sure most of the purchasers of "The Undoing Project" did.
But the reviews were so good!
Ever since Michiko Kakutani raved about "The Revenge of Analog: Real Things and Why They Matter," I've doubted her opinion. Kinda like Steve Bannon. Who wondered why no one in the media that got the election so wrong lost their job. Because it's a club, they circle the wagons, and the press keeps doing its job, reporting what it sees as the truth not realizing it didn't work against Trump yet and it probably never will. And then you've got the lefties saying to throw money at the newspapers. Now I get three, but I will never look at them the same way since they got the election wrong. It's kind of like a spouse lying to you outright. There should at least be consequences. And the truth is Trump and his cronies will not be beaten in the press or at protests but in the election booth. Like the Tea Party the left wing needs to line up Congressional candidates far to the left of Hillary, closer to Bernie, who excite the younger generation and will get people out to vote. But so far, the left has learned nothing from Trump's election, it's painful to watch, how the best and the brightest have their heads in the sand. And none of the reviews said "The Undoing Project" was nearly unreadable, they all focused on the bond between the two protagonists, but the truth is this is a story of psychological theory, do you care about that? I can't say that I do very much, and I would have liked it better if it was a ten page article in "The New Yorker."
But the media buys the pitch of the publisher and then the public buys the book and no one reads it. But it appears a best-seller. Once upon a time Amazon published how far people got in books, they've got that data (yes, you people afraid of Alexa can feel good about your position), but publishers don't want that information out, certainly not authors. Then it would be like the music business, where we can see on YouTube and Spotify what people are actually listening to, and it oftentimes doesn't square with sales, never mind the media spin. Hip-hop is even bigger on streaming services. Chew on that for a while.
And then there's the curious case of "All The Light We Cannot See," one of the best sellers of the last half decade. I was intrigued at first, but it took me a month to plow through it, because of the writing style. I don't think that many people finished this book either. More than "The Undoing Project," but... You see academics and critics laud that which squares with their principles. And if it cuts like butter and it's easily readable it's considered pop trash and pooh-poohed. But accessibility is a virtue. Anthony Doerr has won a slew of prizes, but I think they'd be better off going to a more populist writer, then again, the committees don't want to acknowledge that work. The lunatics have taken over the asylum, and they want to keep it that way. You do know that prizes are a scam, that it's a club and if you're not a member the odds of getting one are almost nonexistent. But I will say Doerr's book does qualify as art. The sense of loss and the suffering and consequences of war and the power of radio... They're all in there. Funny how we live in a world where emotions are pushed under the rug, when emotions are the only thing worth living for.
So, if you're gonna read one of these books, read "All The Light We Cannot See."
As for "The Undoing Project"...
It starts off with an NBA anecdote, you're riveted, but then it moves on to economics and psychology. You're waiting for the NBA to return, but it never does. There are detours to a hospital in Canada, but most of the book is dry psychological theory, very important, but written in a fashion and at such length that unless you majored in the subject your eyes will glaze over.
The truth is people don't act rationally. And economists thought they did. Amos and Danny proved them wrong. Over and over and over again.
We'd like to read the application of their theories, but mostly we just get theories.
And a bit of their interpersonal relationship, but if you're reading this book for that you're gonna throw it against the wall.
So what I'm saying here is we have a fact problem in the left wing world. We don't question our media sources, we accept as a given everything put forth to us. We feel proud that we own unreadable books. We don't look back and evaluate our choices. We're overconfident and proud of it.
Not that I'm lauding the down and out Trump voters who don't read at all and just dig in their heels as they vote for policies against their interest.
But first and foremost we must change us.
When you see people with a house full of books, ask how many they've read. Then pull one and quiz them about it. They like showing off, why else build a collection/monument to themselves?
Question authority.
Most learning takes place outside the classroom. Some of the dumbest, least analytical people have college degrees. Find an interest and pursue it.
Know that if you gain traction, if you break taboos, people will come after you, and no matter how much you fight back, you can never shut them up, this is what Amos and Danny realized, it drove Amos nuts.
We live in very dark times. My head is spinning from the inanity of the wall and the support of pipelines and dumb economic policies, but not only must we complain, we must put our faith in leaders and support them. Who is carrying the Democratic torch? Looks like no one at this point. We need someone to be our mouthpiece, and we've got to work the refs just like the right, call them on their b.s. when they attack our leader(s).
So it's no wonder people turn to books.
Just don't turn to this one.
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Thursday, 26 January 2017
An Artist...
Does not give its audience what it wants, does not tell it what it wants to hear.
Is not in it for the money.
Is not a member of the group. If you're the quarterback of the football team or the head cheerleader chances are you are not an artist. An artist is a misunderstood outsider who doesn't get along with others, sorry, but it's true (see #1 above!)
Lives for feedback but hates that they do.
Is not an activist for rights they are not participating in. When you hear someone complain about streaming payouts and they've got none, beware. Pay attention to those in the game. You earn your presence in the game, until then what you say doesn't matter.
Is not entitled to an income.
Speaks truth. To power, to everybody. If you're afraid of the reaction to your work and flinch and don't put it out you're a sniveling wimp, not an artist.
Knows that the audience is the ultimate arbiter. Gatekeepers are to be tolerated, at this late date critics are nearly irrelevant. If you're getting a good response you're on the right track, ignore the haters.
Knows that awards are meaningless. Sure, they're nice to get but they don't represent quality, only acknowledgement by people you probably wouldn't want to go to dinner with.
Knows chops are important, but they're no match for inspiration.
Knows that credibility is everything, if people don't believe in you, they will not believe in your work.
Looks for inspiration everywhere. The more you interact with the world, the better your art. In other words, an artist is CURIOUS!
Will take no for an answer, but will not stop creating.
Wants to give up on a regular basis, but always comes back to creating.
Is willing to sacrifice. If you want a house and a spouse and children and a cushy income art is probably not for you.
Knows when they ring the bell, which they do infrequently.
Gets better with time. Unless they've reaped huge success, then they usually get worse, because they worry about the audience's expectations and are afraid to take risks and then become slaves to their income.
Challenges norms.
Is a student of history. If you don't know how we got here, who came before, how the game works, chances are you won't succeed. You've got to learn the parameters and see where you can test limits. You want to reinvent the wheel, but not EVERY WHEEL!
Is inspired by other artists. No "Sgt. Pepper" without "Pet Sounds." You're part of a community, some of the best art is a reaction.
Lives for stimulation.
Knows how to capture lightning in a bottle. Art is not 9-5 work, it's about getting inspired and letting your freak flag fly.
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Is not in it for the money.
Is not a member of the group. If you're the quarterback of the football team or the head cheerleader chances are you are not an artist. An artist is a misunderstood outsider who doesn't get along with others, sorry, but it's true (see #1 above!)
Lives for feedback but hates that they do.
Is not an activist for rights they are not participating in. When you hear someone complain about streaming payouts and they've got none, beware. Pay attention to those in the game. You earn your presence in the game, until then what you say doesn't matter.
Is not entitled to an income.
Speaks truth. To power, to everybody. If you're afraid of the reaction to your work and flinch and don't put it out you're a sniveling wimp, not an artist.
Knows that the audience is the ultimate arbiter. Gatekeepers are to be tolerated, at this late date critics are nearly irrelevant. If you're getting a good response you're on the right track, ignore the haters.
Knows that awards are meaningless. Sure, they're nice to get but they don't represent quality, only acknowledgement by people you probably wouldn't want to go to dinner with.
Knows chops are important, but they're no match for inspiration.
Knows that credibility is everything, if people don't believe in you, they will not believe in your work.
Looks for inspiration everywhere. The more you interact with the world, the better your art. In other words, an artist is CURIOUS!
Will take no for an answer, but will not stop creating.
Wants to give up on a regular basis, but always comes back to creating.
Is willing to sacrifice. If you want a house and a spouse and children and a cushy income art is probably not for you.
Knows when they ring the bell, which they do infrequently.
Gets better with time. Unless they've reaped huge success, then they usually get worse, because they worry about the audience's expectations and are afraid to take risks and then become slaves to their income.
Challenges norms.
Is a student of history. If you don't know how we got here, who came before, how the game works, chances are you won't succeed. You've got to learn the parameters and see where you can test limits. You want to reinvent the wheel, but not EVERY WHEEL!
Is inspired by other artists. No "Sgt. Pepper" without "Pet Sounds." You're part of a community, some of the best art is a reaction.
Lives for stimulation.
Knows how to capture lightning in a bottle. Art is not 9-5 work, it's about getting inspired and letting your freak flag fly.
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Migos
What does this mean for radio?
"Bad and Boujee" is number one on Spotify, even number one on the "Billboard" Hot 100, but it's nowhere to be found on the Mediabase Top Forty chart.
I'm fascinated by the Oscar nominations, because other than the voters and the media savants no one cares about these pictures. How can such a disconnect take place?
Both are run by old people, the Oscars and radio, and they want to believe they're hip, but they could not be more out of touch.
If I write anything negative about radio, my inbox fills up with lifers saying I just don't get it. As if waiting to hear one's song come on works in an on demand culture. As for personality radio, theatre of the mind, that's in podcasts, not over the air transmissions. All the story has been expunged from radio. But those involved keep saying it counts. And those in the industry, who grew up in the world of adds, kneel at the feet of radio, should they?
The Oscar organization has not realized its lunch has been eaten by television. That's where you go for long form story. Where personalities are explored and you get invested in real life. Movies are for popcorn releases, flicks made to play around the world, with special effects and comic book heroes and you're expecting the people who keep the industry alive to care about the Oscars?
No way.
But that's a baby boomer for you, talking out of both sides of his mouth, believing if they wear the clothes of their children they know what's going on.
The same media that trumpeted the effort known as Beats 1. Heard much from Zayn Lowe recently? The story is today's young 'uns don't cotton to radio, they want what they want and they want it now, but the oldsters keep playing by the old rules, when's it gonna change?
Sure, radio is the icing on the cake, a victory lap where you can make even more money, but songs that cross over from streaming services are hits there months later, appealing to the most casual of listeners, and we all know it's the dedicated who pay our bills. Used to be you listened to radio for the new releases, for exclusive announcements, now you go there to find out what happened last spring. When is it going to change?
The truth is streams count, they're all that matter, all sales are nearly irrelevant, because streams tell how much people are actually listening, they're the ultimate arbiter, they illustrate that Lady Gaga's new work is an incredible stiff, something the NFL could never fathom when it booked her for the Super Bowl, but they'd be better off booking Migos.
And radio spoon-feeding us tracks in a world where hit artists constantly release new material? Explain to me how this works?
The model is broken.
We have to bring everybody into the present. A fluid world where acts are built on streaming services and live there. Late night TV is a circle jerk. Why does everybody love Jimmy Fallon? When it counted, he punted, he didn't ask Donald Trump the hard questions, but he needs to be liked, whereas artists are edgy, hell, Migos's career was stymied by a member being in jail, and I can't say I approve of that, but it's definitely an illustration of refusing to color inside the lines.
Oldsters don't believe it until they see it in the newspaper. As if the reporters had a crystal ball wherein they could see truth. But too often reporters are harried writers with little expertise subject to the efforts of public relations people. There's no news there.
But there's plenty of news on the internet.
If only we had a chart for news on the internet...
But we do have music charts. And they show what people are really listening to. Why does radio, why does the industry ignore them? A hit is such the moment it's released, so why isn't radio playing Rag'n'Bone Man? Number one in many countries, they're waiting for the green light from the label, they're so behind the times it's not funny.
Music is about immediacy. When you capture that people are excited. We should all get on the same page and lionize that which is happening now, instead of confusing the customer. And if radio wants to survive, it must add tracks when they are new and turn over the chart more.
So the internet has disrupted music exposure, not only distribution. It's a hit first on the internet. Why can't we all accept and embrace this?
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"Bad and Boujee" is number one on Spotify, even number one on the "Billboard" Hot 100, but it's nowhere to be found on the Mediabase Top Forty chart.
I'm fascinated by the Oscar nominations, because other than the voters and the media savants no one cares about these pictures. How can such a disconnect take place?
Both are run by old people, the Oscars and radio, and they want to believe they're hip, but they could not be more out of touch.
If I write anything negative about radio, my inbox fills up with lifers saying I just don't get it. As if waiting to hear one's song come on works in an on demand culture. As for personality radio, theatre of the mind, that's in podcasts, not over the air transmissions. All the story has been expunged from radio. But those involved keep saying it counts. And those in the industry, who grew up in the world of adds, kneel at the feet of radio, should they?
The Oscar organization has not realized its lunch has been eaten by television. That's where you go for long form story. Where personalities are explored and you get invested in real life. Movies are for popcorn releases, flicks made to play around the world, with special effects and comic book heroes and you're expecting the people who keep the industry alive to care about the Oscars?
No way.
But that's a baby boomer for you, talking out of both sides of his mouth, believing if they wear the clothes of their children they know what's going on.
The same media that trumpeted the effort known as Beats 1. Heard much from Zayn Lowe recently? The story is today's young 'uns don't cotton to radio, they want what they want and they want it now, but the oldsters keep playing by the old rules, when's it gonna change?
Sure, radio is the icing on the cake, a victory lap where you can make even more money, but songs that cross over from streaming services are hits there months later, appealing to the most casual of listeners, and we all know it's the dedicated who pay our bills. Used to be you listened to radio for the new releases, for exclusive announcements, now you go there to find out what happened last spring. When is it going to change?
The truth is streams count, they're all that matter, all sales are nearly irrelevant, because streams tell how much people are actually listening, they're the ultimate arbiter, they illustrate that Lady Gaga's new work is an incredible stiff, something the NFL could never fathom when it booked her for the Super Bowl, but they'd be better off booking Migos.
And radio spoon-feeding us tracks in a world where hit artists constantly release new material? Explain to me how this works?
The model is broken.
We have to bring everybody into the present. A fluid world where acts are built on streaming services and live there. Late night TV is a circle jerk. Why does everybody love Jimmy Fallon? When it counted, he punted, he didn't ask Donald Trump the hard questions, but he needs to be liked, whereas artists are edgy, hell, Migos's career was stymied by a member being in jail, and I can't say I approve of that, but it's definitely an illustration of refusing to color inside the lines.
Oldsters don't believe it until they see it in the newspaper. As if the reporters had a crystal ball wherein they could see truth. But too often reporters are harried writers with little expertise subject to the efforts of public relations people. There's no news there.
But there's plenty of news on the internet.
If only we had a chart for news on the internet...
But we do have music charts. And they show what people are really listening to. Why does radio, why does the industry ignore them? A hit is such the moment it's released, so why isn't radio playing Rag'n'Bone Man? Number one in many countries, they're waiting for the green light from the label, they're so behind the times it's not funny.
Music is about immediacy. When you capture that people are excited. We should all get on the same page and lionize that which is happening now, instead of confusing the customer. And if radio wants to survive, it must add tracks when they are new and turn over the chart more.
So the internet has disrupted music exposure, not only distribution. It's a hit first on the internet. Why can't we all accept and embrace this?
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Entitlement
I remember when it was a badge of honor to be a lawyer. Before all the attorneys lied during Watergate and the profession was revealed to be ethically challenged.
Now I never mention I'm an attorney. Because the people on the other side of the desk will laugh. If I amp it up and say I'm gonna take action, they say to go ahead and sue, which calls my bluff, because any attorney knows it's a long hard process to achieve minimal goals.
I just read a story in the "New York Times" about nut allergy people being kicked off airplanes.
These weren't coal miner's daughters from West Virginia, not heartland denizens going to visit grandma, but the sons of a doctor flying off to Turks and Caicos. They said they just mentioned there was a nut allergy and they were kicked off the plane and if you believe that you probably believe George Soros and the Koch Brothers eat at McDonald's.
I'm not saying nut allergies aren't real. But I am sure these people felt entitled to special treatment and that just doesn't happen in America anymore.
Why can't the elites see that their act is offensive? That the disadvantaged and left behind can't wait to shove it up their rear ends?
That's why they voted for Donald Trump. And I'm not endorsing Donald's actions, but I just can't get over how the educated left acts so superior and believes it is entitled to rule because it worked hard in school to get good jobs.
Kinda like the people who pre-board on Southwest Airlines. I pay extra for early boarding but the better part of twenty people get on before me. What makes them so special? Why does everybody in America feel entitled to win?
Then there's the issue of "facts," the laughing at Kellyanne Conway by the holier-than-thou. But these are the same people who will not believe Spotify pays out 69% of its revenues to rights holders. They're really no different from the Trump voters. Their cheese has been moved and they want to jet everybody back to the past.
Everybody's trying to hold on to what once was, only some people have more power than others.
The elites rigged the game in their favor, and if you don't believe this, you can't see that money and power yield advantages and the left wing lawmakers did not stand up for unions.
So this is the country we now live in. Where the rich hold sway over the poor and feel entitled to do so, they have contempt for everybody not like them, who wasn't born with a silver spoon in their mouth and didn't work hard to get into a good school and slave seventy hours a week to get ahead.
And the left behinds believe the canard that manufacturing will come back to the States and the problem is all immigrants.
And the winners don't reach down and lift these people up, but laugh at them.
And the truth is there are more losers than winners and that's how Donald Trump got elected.
So the next time you ward your privilege over us, beware of the backlash.
And the next time you laugh at alternative facts ask yourself what you refuse to believe, because it doesn't fit in with your world view.
This is not the twentieth century. Technology has fostered income inequality and the spread of alternative, often false views, and everybody in power thinks it's the same as it ever was, and they're entitled to rule.
Not so.
"Travelers With Nut Allergies Clash With Airlines": http://nyti.ms/2kwYCHK
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Now I never mention I'm an attorney. Because the people on the other side of the desk will laugh. If I amp it up and say I'm gonna take action, they say to go ahead and sue, which calls my bluff, because any attorney knows it's a long hard process to achieve minimal goals.
I just read a story in the "New York Times" about nut allergy people being kicked off airplanes.
These weren't coal miner's daughters from West Virginia, not heartland denizens going to visit grandma, but the sons of a doctor flying off to Turks and Caicos. They said they just mentioned there was a nut allergy and they were kicked off the plane and if you believe that you probably believe George Soros and the Koch Brothers eat at McDonald's.
I'm not saying nut allergies aren't real. But I am sure these people felt entitled to special treatment and that just doesn't happen in America anymore.
Why can't the elites see that their act is offensive? That the disadvantaged and left behind can't wait to shove it up their rear ends?
That's why they voted for Donald Trump. And I'm not endorsing Donald's actions, but I just can't get over how the educated left acts so superior and believes it is entitled to rule because it worked hard in school to get good jobs.
Kinda like the people who pre-board on Southwest Airlines. I pay extra for early boarding but the better part of twenty people get on before me. What makes them so special? Why does everybody in America feel entitled to win?
Then there's the issue of "facts," the laughing at Kellyanne Conway by the holier-than-thou. But these are the same people who will not believe Spotify pays out 69% of its revenues to rights holders. They're really no different from the Trump voters. Their cheese has been moved and they want to jet everybody back to the past.
Everybody's trying to hold on to what once was, only some people have more power than others.
The elites rigged the game in their favor, and if you don't believe this, you can't see that money and power yield advantages and the left wing lawmakers did not stand up for unions.
So this is the country we now live in. Where the rich hold sway over the poor and feel entitled to do so, they have contempt for everybody not like them, who wasn't born with a silver spoon in their mouth and didn't work hard to get into a good school and slave seventy hours a week to get ahead.
And the left behinds believe the canard that manufacturing will come back to the States and the problem is all immigrants.
And the winners don't reach down and lift these people up, but laugh at them.
And the truth is there are more losers than winners and that's how Donald Trump got elected.
So the next time you ward your privilege over us, beware of the backlash.
And the next time you laugh at alternative facts ask yourself what you refuse to believe, because it doesn't fit in with your world view.
This is not the twentieth century. Technology has fostered income inequality and the spread of alternative, often false views, and everybody in power thinks it's the same as it ever was, and they're entitled to rule.
Not so.
"Travelers With Nut Allergies Clash With Airlines": http://nyti.ms/2kwYCHK
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Monday, 23 January 2017
Tidal/Sprint
Why does everybody have to be a business.
Man.
I get that artists have been ripped off from time immemorial, but the acquisition and promotion of Tidal have proven that when it comes to understanding technology, artists are clueless.
But they are greedy.
That's what this is all about, money. Forget the wannabes, forget the middle class, if you think the winners care about them you probably think the Koch Brothers care about the little guy. The truth is when you make it in music, you're exposed to a whole class of people much richer than you are, with lifestyles you can only envy, so you want some of what they've got.
Like your own private plane.
Like a vacation on a private island.
Like access. You see, these artists want a seat at the table. Worst case offender? Bono. He loves to hobnob with the government elite, believing he can make a difference. Maybe if he writes a hit song about how the upper class is ripping off his audience he can have an impact, but he won't do that because the dirty little secret is no one wants to offend those in power, those who can give them some of what they want. Hell, that's how Trump won, he channeled the anger of the proletariat, people who were pissed that everybody paying them lip-service ultimately didn't do a thing for them.
Oh, don't get your knickers in a twist, whether you support Trump or not, I don't want to hear it and the truth is no one is listening to each other anyway. The left wing says no one went to the inauguration the Trumpers say just as many did as for Obama and the facts have become irrelevant. It doesn't even matter, you believe what you want to believe. The truth is irrelevant, because everybody's hunkered down in their bunker, throwing grenades while they're worried about losing a little bit of what they've got.
How did we get here?
Pure, unadulterated greed. The right wing is famous for this, but even the left wing...they make their billions and give a few away. Doesn't put a dent in the fabric of our society, because the game is broken!
Used to be artists spoke truth, especially to power. Assuming you grew up before nitwits like Mariah Carey took over the airwaves and made it about pipes and dancing and all the stuff that's entertainment without substance.
But that was back when there were no American billionaires. When a musician could be as rich as anybody. But now all those blowhard billionaires, they didn't inherit the money, they made it, and they want to lord it over us, believe you me, they've got no idea how the underclass lives. But if you've got cash in America, you're entitled to an opinion, how can that be?
So no one with a brain is gonna become a musician. No one with a good education, who can hold two conflicting thoughts in their brain at the same time. So we end up with these wankers who sell out to corporations and are envious of those with more.
So Jay Z thinks he can win at streaming.
First and foremost, he doesn't know the first rule of the internet, which is one company ends up with seventy percent of the market. There's no room for Tidal, Spotify's already gobbled up the market share. And if Jay Z read a book, which no musician seems to be able to do, since they're so busy networking, he would know that Peter Thiel wrote that you go into a business where no one else is. That's how you make your money.
Or, Jay Z could have read all the hype from Masayoshi Son, head of SoftBank, when he bought Sprint, saying he was gonna win, which he didn't. It's right there in the business page, again and again and again, but if you're a musician, do you have time to read and keep up with the paper?
So Jay Z found a mark, whoop-de-doo. Did you notice no cash amount was put forth? If it was high, that would have been in the press release, but it's not.
As for telco/music streaming tie-ups, they've been around forever, and none of them have yielded significant results. Hell, Beats planned to triumph that way, but failed miserably before it was sold to Apple.
And no one seems to be in touch with the audience. You go where your friends are, and there's a first mover advantage, and if you keep improving your product you win.
But then who would expect a musician to know all this? A musician is supposed to make MUSIC!
But they're even afraid to do that. U2 works with songwriters du jour and the biggest star in the world is Max Martin, and he's talented, but whatever happened to reaching down deep and writing your own music, making your own statement?
Now I'm gonna be inundated with music from wannabes. The great unwashed who believe they're entitled to attention will spam anybody who might give them a chance, not knowing that in today's world only the great triumph and we are immune to hype. Whatever happened to our country? Everybody's self-promoting as opposed to focusing on their art, and everybody who got a trophy for finishing last in soccer believes they're entitled to win at their heart's desire. Huh?
We do need new, we do need winners, but few can succeed. Work at it, it's a long hard road, but know there's no easy way there and no one can give you your one big break, it's a cumulative effort and it takes time and now...
I'm completely off point.
And the point is those who have won, are not focusing on music. Or, if they are, they're playing it safe. And, most wannabes are imitating them, so music is circling down the drain.
When did we last have a new sound?
Tidal's a bust, a disaster, it cannot succeed, it's as dead as BlackBerry.
As for exclusives... No act is gonna give one because then Spotify's gonna blackball them, not give them the push they want, which everybody wants. You don't piss off your biggest distributor. And if you do it for the cash, you're truly dumb, because cash comes and goes, but careers, when done right, last.
So, can we stop focusing on bands as brands?
Can we stop hearing about musicians becoming tech investors?
Can we get music back into the schools, so we can have some building blocks, so someone can be inspired to become a great artist? That's how Adele made it, Max Martin too. They went to state-sponsored music schools. But in America, we believe the government wastes money and there should be no taxes and the arts are an afterthought.
Give me a break.
If you want to be a businessman, get an MBA.
If you want to be a musician, practice your instrument, write songs.
And know that one great song trumps a corporation any day of the week.
Remember when Jay Z took that cash from Samsung to make a stiff album?
He thought he won.
But he was just a pawn in their game.
Imagine if Jay Z had written an ANTI-SAMSUNG SONG! All hell would have broken loose.
But no, you kiss up to the man, because he might rain down some coin.
Makes me sick.
I just wish there were some talented people with backbones who could say no.
But we haven't had that spirit here since 1969. When you slaved to get a deal and recording was expensive and if you got it right, you can still tour today.
How many of today's bands/brands will be touring tomorrow?
Hits, schmits. What's building your career is honesty, credibility and talent. We need to believe in you.
Get out of the boardroom and into the studio.
Most startups fail, as do most bands.
But most startups are eclipsed. When did you last use your iPod?
But a great record with a great message?
That's FOREVER!
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Man.
I get that artists have been ripped off from time immemorial, but the acquisition and promotion of Tidal have proven that when it comes to understanding technology, artists are clueless.
But they are greedy.
That's what this is all about, money. Forget the wannabes, forget the middle class, if you think the winners care about them you probably think the Koch Brothers care about the little guy. The truth is when you make it in music, you're exposed to a whole class of people much richer than you are, with lifestyles you can only envy, so you want some of what they've got.
Like your own private plane.
Like a vacation on a private island.
Like access. You see, these artists want a seat at the table. Worst case offender? Bono. He loves to hobnob with the government elite, believing he can make a difference. Maybe if he writes a hit song about how the upper class is ripping off his audience he can have an impact, but he won't do that because the dirty little secret is no one wants to offend those in power, those who can give them some of what they want. Hell, that's how Trump won, he channeled the anger of the proletariat, people who were pissed that everybody paying them lip-service ultimately didn't do a thing for them.
Oh, don't get your knickers in a twist, whether you support Trump or not, I don't want to hear it and the truth is no one is listening to each other anyway. The left wing says no one went to the inauguration the Trumpers say just as many did as for Obama and the facts have become irrelevant. It doesn't even matter, you believe what you want to believe. The truth is irrelevant, because everybody's hunkered down in their bunker, throwing grenades while they're worried about losing a little bit of what they've got.
How did we get here?
Pure, unadulterated greed. The right wing is famous for this, but even the left wing...they make their billions and give a few away. Doesn't put a dent in the fabric of our society, because the game is broken!
Used to be artists spoke truth, especially to power. Assuming you grew up before nitwits like Mariah Carey took over the airwaves and made it about pipes and dancing and all the stuff that's entertainment without substance.
But that was back when there were no American billionaires. When a musician could be as rich as anybody. But now all those blowhard billionaires, they didn't inherit the money, they made it, and they want to lord it over us, believe you me, they've got no idea how the underclass lives. But if you've got cash in America, you're entitled to an opinion, how can that be?
So no one with a brain is gonna become a musician. No one with a good education, who can hold two conflicting thoughts in their brain at the same time. So we end up with these wankers who sell out to corporations and are envious of those with more.
So Jay Z thinks he can win at streaming.
First and foremost, he doesn't know the first rule of the internet, which is one company ends up with seventy percent of the market. There's no room for Tidal, Spotify's already gobbled up the market share. And if Jay Z read a book, which no musician seems to be able to do, since they're so busy networking, he would know that Peter Thiel wrote that you go into a business where no one else is. That's how you make your money.
Or, Jay Z could have read all the hype from Masayoshi Son, head of SoftBank, when he bought Sprint, saying he was gonna win, which he didn't. It's right there in the business page, again and again and again, but if you're a musician, do you have time to read and keep up with the paper?
So Jay Z found a mark, whoop-de-doo. Did you notice no cash amount was put forth? If it was high, that would have been in the press release, but it's not.
As for telco/music streaming tie-ups, they've been around forever, and none of them have yielded significant results. Hell, Beats planned to triumph that way, but failed miserably before it was sold to Apple.
And no one seems to be in touch with the audience. You go where your friends are, and there's a first mover advantage, and if you keep improving your product you win.
But then who would expect a musician to know all this? A musician is supposed to make MUSIC!
But they're even afraid to do that. U2 works with songwriters du jour and the biggest star in the world is Max Martin, and he's talented, but whatever happened to reaching down deep and writing your own music, making your own statement?
Now I'm gonna be inundated with music from wannabes. The great unwashed who believe they're entitled to attention will spam anybody who might give them a chance, not knowing that in today's world only the great triumph and we are immune to hype. Whatever happened to our country? Everybody's self-promoting as opposed to focusing on their art, and everybody who got a trophy for finishing last in soccer believes they're entitled to win at their heart's desire. Huh?
We do need new, we do need winners, but few can succeed. Work at it, it's a long hard road, but know there's no easy way there and no one can give you your one big break, it's a cumulative effort and it takes time and now...
I'm completely off point.
And the point is those who have won, are not focusing on music. Or, if they are, they're playing it safe. And, most wannabes are imitating them, so music is circling down the drain.
When did we last have a new sound?
Tidal's a bust, a disaster, it cannot succeed, it's as dead as BlackBerry.
As for exclusives... No act is gonna give one because then Spotify's gonna blackball them, not give them the push they want, which everybody wants. You don't piss off your biggest distributor. And if you do it for the cash, you're truly dumb, because cash comes and goes, but careers, when done right, last.
So, can we stop focusing on bands as brands?
Can we stop hearing about musicians becoming tech investors?
Can we get music back into the schools, so we can have some building blocks, so someone can be inspired to become a great artist? That's how Adele made it, Max Martin too. They went to state-sponsored music schools. But in America, we believe the government wastes money and there should be no taxes and the arts are an afterthought.
Give me a break.
If you want to be a businessman, get an MBA.
If you want to be a musician, practice your instrument, write songs.
And know that one great song trumps a corporation any day of the week.
Remember when Jay Z took that cash from Samsung to make a stiff album?
He thought he won.
But he was just a pawn in their game.
Imagine if Jay Z had written an ANTI-SAMSUNG SONG! All hell would have broken loose.
But no, you kiss up to the man, because he might rain down some coin.
Makes me sick.
I just wish there were some talented people with backbones who could say no.
But we haven't had that spirit here since 1969. When you slaved to get a deal and recording was expensive and if you got it right, you can still tour today.
How many of today's bands/brands will be touring tomorrow?
Hits, schmits. What's building your career is honesty, credibility and talent. We need to believe in you.
Get out of the boardroom and into the studio.
Most startups fail, as do most bands.
But most startups are eclipsed. When did you last use your iPod?
But a great record with a great message?
That's FOREVER!
--
Visit the archive: http://lefsetz.com/wordpress/?utm_source=phplist5715&utm_medium=email&utm_content=text&utm_campaign=Tidal%2FSprint
--
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