08.13
Breakfasting Zone, Hotel Acceptable, Silver Spring, Maryland.
Bookmark: a postcard from the Akasaka Prince Hotel, where the Breakfasting Room of Wonder & Height provided morning-reading solace while on tour with Porcupine Tree.
In What World We’re Living? Posted by Crimsoid on October 29, 2007
From The Sunday Times October 7, 2007
The day the music industry died
There is no money in recorded music any more, that’s why bands are now giving it away Robert Sandall
… Currently out of contract and thus entitled to dispose of their recordings as they see fit, (Radiohead) one of the most popular bands in the world had decided to let the fans decide how much their latest album was worth. An MP3 file of In Rainbows would have no price tag. Honesty boxes, it seemed, were the new rock’n’roll.
If the Radiohead faithful appeared somewhat nonplussed by this move – “The danger is that people will stop seeing their music as important,” one fan posted in a blog; “I will gladly pay $20 knowing the artist will get the money,” pledged another…
The emphasis is on the band getting the money. Now, that’s a good idea, and one I support. Here’s an example of the artist getting the money, The EG Way…
EG, as licensor, received the advance from its major label distributor. This was used to fund the making of the album, and the advance recovered from record sales. The costs of making the album was therefore paid for by the artist, who received royalties when sales generated income that exceeded the production costs. EG, however, were paid a royalty from Day One, on the First Sale. If sales did not recover the advance, the advance on this album was cross-recouped by EG against sales on other, more successful albums of the artist. And, whether the album was successful or not, EG owned the copyright on it. So, when the going got tough, EG sold those copyrights & the new owner continued not-to-pay royalties to former EG artists on un-recouped albums on which EG had received the advance in full – but had never distributed to the artist because the record had not recouped!
Bright wheeze, or what?
I can offer further detailed commentary on how The EG Way developed & changed over a 21 year period, becoming at the end of the period a very different creature to that at the beginning, where costs / copyrights were shared 70/30 between artists / management.
Here’s an even better wheeze, the information on which I was only given years after the event by a Virgin insider… On Journey to Inaccessible Places by Elan Sicroff, which I produced for Editions EG (the budget line), the Editions EG advance was £15,000 (the standard advance for Editions EG). However, EG drew down from Virgin the advance for an RF solo album, even though this was not an RF solo album; at the time, I believe this was £50,000. So, sales of Elan’s album never recouped the costs (and given the nature of the music, could never have recouped); that the advance received was for an RF solo album, I was never told, and would have been cross-recouped against my own record royalties leaving EG with £35,000 over the (reasonable budget advance) of £15,000.
This is only one small example of a small record made within the EG under the control & direction of Mr. Alder. Information on the actualite of money-flows within EG was not quite in accordance with norms of The Ethical Company; and it was only when the catalogue was sold to Virgin that I learnt many things that, otherwise, were unknown and/or informed guesswork & often in contradiction to what I was told directly by Mr. Alder – the honest, God fearing family man (to quote Mr. Alder in a personal, hand-written letter to me in response to my expressed concern that I had not been receiving my royalties); that Mr. Alder had a family was never in doubt.
Is Mr. Alder forgiven? Of course! Nevertheless, when music industry practices are under discussion; or claims of probity & sound business practices are made when the behaviour under examination is exactly the reverse, the hypocrisy is a little too rich; or innocent visitors & audients seek information on the actualite of the music industry; good to know what happens on the ground.
Well, we seem to be on a music industry roll this morning. From John Trevethan, hero & genuine good guy…
Yet another article on the state of the Music Business::Posted by ArtOfTheGroove on October 28, 2007
More interesting reading and discussion on downloading, piracy, major labels, the RIAA, etc.
… It was 1999 when I got my first taste of the inner-workings of a major record label - I was a young college student, and the inside of a New York label office seemed so vast and exciting. Dozens of worker bees hummed away at their desks on phones and computers. Music posters and stacks of CDs littered every surface. Everyone seemed to have an assistant, and the assistants had assistants, and you couldn’t help but wonder "what the hell do all these people do?" I tagged along on $1500 artist dinners paid for by the labels. Massive bar tabs were regularly signed away by record label employees with company cards. You got used to people billing as many expenses back to the record company as they could. I met the type of jive, middle-aged, blazer-wearing, coke-snorting, cartoon character label bigwigs who you’d think were too cliche to exist outside the confines of Spinal Tap. It was all strange and exciting, but one thing that always resonated with me was the sheer volume of money that seemed to be spent without any great deal of concern. Whether it was excessive production budgets or "business lunches" that had nothing to do with business, one of my first reactions to it all was, "so this is why CDs cost $18..."
Well. This Diary would be endless, and endlessly negative, if I fully responded to the above. The quick response is, the waste & excess – probably - used to be worse than today; because the record industry used to have more money (in real terms) than it does today. Three brief, and everyday (rather than extravagant), examples:
1. In 1979 Polydor paid $8,000 for an aftershow party in Soho, NYC, for UK (Billy & Johnny & Eddie). The tour support Polydor provided RF for 2 months travelling the US & Canada, nominally waving the flag for Exposure, was $10,000. (And Exposure outsold UK).
2. Late 1990s, London. The wife of a former Crim was at a ladies’ lunch with several pals. When the check arrived, a call came in from the husband of one of the ladies. He worked at Virgin. The lunch was paid for by the Spice Girls.
3. Amsterdam 1979. Once again, Polydor & touring nominally in support of Exposure.
I had asked to meet the Polydor people, responsible for promoting Exposure, personally. I arrived at a long table & a big dinner for a dozen or so at Restaurant El Posho. This is pretty well exactly the opposite of the small, mobile & intelligent ethos I was investigating: large, entrenched in corporate un-thinking, un-personal, extravagant, serving the interests of record company personnel at the expense of the artist’s budget. This is where the promotional budgets went: into the stomachs of record company characters.
I apologised, explaining that I was unable to participate, and walked away. (The Power-Possessor responsible appeared again, in a KC context, several years later).
What is the fundamental lesson here? Perhaps, that record companies exist to serve the interests of those who work within record companies, regardless of the interests (and sometimes flagrantly against the interests) of the artists? And, in today’s business world, also against the interests of shareholders.
Let us simply acknowledge: the basic position that the music industry is, for all its honest mistakes, problems & faults, an honest trading-operation that does its best to accommodate itself to rapidly changing technological developments; is fundamentally driven by music; and suffers occasional outbreaks of corruption & inequitable treatment of artists; is exactly & precisely the reverse of everyday life in the industry.
The basic position of the music industry is one of exploitation, theft & corruption (from small & subtle to choreographed, planned & driven); with occasional eruptions of remarkable music which manages to escape the industry’s control; a few industry staff who retain their passion for music; and (rarely & occasionally) prompt, accurate accounting.
The Virgin business empire is based, at root, on Richard Branson’s ownership of the copyrights to Mike Oldfield’s Tubular Bells; and Boy George / Culture Club probably helped to get Virgin Airlines off the ground.
09.55 Views from a room I…
II…
III…
10.37 Borders.
Computing at a table in the café section. Borders’ cafe seems to function as the neighbourhood’s free office space. As the doors opened right on 10.00, the man presently sitting behind me pushed me out of his way. Of my two visits here so far, significant rudeness has been present on two occasions.
13.11 Punctual collection of suitcases & guitar at noon, I am checked out & online in the lobby area, awaiting personal collection in The League van at 14.30.
18.54 Birchmere, Alexandria.
Punctual personal collection in Silver Springs & an interesting beginning-journey, visiting several parts of the town not necessarily on the way to Alexandria…
Along the way: sights of the Capitol building & the Pentagon…
Arriving at the Birchmere c. 17.40, our Four Quarters’ Maintainers were already in attendance.
Dressing room of the star…
Corridor of The League…
Corridor of history I…
II…
Soundcheck I…
II…
Showtime at 19.30.
01.43 Comfort Inn, Somewhere, Virginia.
A reminder that, however carefully we prepare, however well-defined & protected the performance space might be, live performance is always hazardous, always contributing elements unlikely to be foreseen. This evening: flashing red lights in two areas.
The first, straight ahead of me, directly in my sightline over Director Nunez’ right shoulder: one of the venue’s infra-red motion detectors. Every time there was a movement in that part of the space, it triggered an irregular series of flashing reds.
The second, directly in front of the stage, a very young person sitting on adult lap, with a wonderful pair of sneakers fitted with onboard flashing red lights. These had the flashing-merit of regularity.
The performance was an honourable debut with a few small wrinkles, to a supportive & generous audience. Various friends & family were in attendance, including DuVersity pals Anthony Blake & Karen Stefano. I reported to AGEB afterwards that I have carried a draft of Higher Intelligence around the world, reading it while listening to a mix of Beethoven & Bartok SQs, which I have found to support the reading. Anthony mentioned that there is now a later draft of Higher Intelligence in existence. I’m keenly anticipating popping beadies on this little sucker.
Backstage supper at c. 22.30, including tasty cheesecake of terror, departure in the Jerry Can with Mr. Beefy c. 22.20, arriving here c. 01.30.
"The more failures, the more successes."
