5 Hours of Music from 1971

walrus · Jul 24, 2019

Music is a matter of personal taste, of course. I liked all the Stones albums I mentioned above, I didn't think they were "lazy" at all, but that's one man's opinion. And sales do matter - it is an indicator that somebody likes it, if not you or me. Somebody is buying Kayne West, Miley Cyrus, and Ed Sheeran, but not me!

I liked Paul McCartney's last album, too. I consider him still "vital". But I couldn't listen to Yes' latest stuff, and haven't paid for any of Elton's music in a long time, even though I loved both of them in the 70's.

To each his own...

walrus

adorshki · Jul 24, 2019

JF-30 said:
And do you believe album sales mean anything? People supposedly buy Miley Cyrus's (so called) music too.

I can recall taking a chance on a record based on the gold record sticker back when one of my biggest fears was buying an album for a song I loved and getting stuck with a bunch of crap filler on the rest of it:
In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida
:glee:
Hey when you're in 7th grade in 1968 and the nearest record store is over 5 miles away and County Transit Buses didn't exist yet, you get real careful about what you spend your shekels on, even after you consider the cost of records themselves.
45's were much less of a worry.
So that gold record sticker actually helped sway me.
I got lucky that I did in fact like much other material on that album, too.
But it's just an amusing anecdote.
The corollary is that "back in the day" before Klein negotiated the first good deal for the Stones, artists made their real money from the concerts, not the album sales.
And I've seen reports that in some cases that's still the "deal".
And I can't blame some of these "historic" acts for giving the audience what they want, I blame the lowest common denominator of taste that applies to the average audience more than the artist's greed.
Why does classic rock radio always focus on a given artist's top 3 hits?
And finally, I finally came around to realizing anybody who works as hard as a touring musician deserves everything they can get if it's available at all.
My favorite example is Fleetwood and McVie and all the dues they paid before becoming the Big Mac.
I can forgive 'em for that now.

JF-30 · Jul 24, 2019

adorshki said:
I can recall taking a chance on a record based on the gold record sticker back when one of my biggest fears was buying an album for a song I loved and getting stuck with a bunch of crap filler on the rest of it:
In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida
:glee:
Hey when you're in 8th grade in 1968 and the nearest record store is over 5 miles away and County Transit Buses didn't exist yet, you get real careful about what you spend your shekels on, even after you consider the cost of records themselves.
45's were much less of a worry.
So that gold record sticker actually helped sway me.
I got lucky that I did in fact like much other material on that album, too.
But it's just an amusing anecdote.
The corollary is that "back in the day" before Klein negotiated the first good deal for the Stones, artists made their real money from the concerts, not the album sales.
And I've seen reports that in some cases that's still the "deal".
And I can't blame some of these "historic" acts for giving the audience what they want, I blame the lowest common denominator of taste that applies to the average audience more than the artist's greed.
Why does classic rock radio always focus on a given artist's top 3 hits?
And finally, I finally came around to realizing anybody who works as hard as a touring musician deserves everything they can get if it's available at all.
My favorite example is Fleetwood and McVie and all the dues they paid before becoming the Big Mac.
I can forgive 'em for that now.

I used to spend hours in Tower Records in Campbell when I was a teen. I remember paying maybe $3.99 was sticker price when I first started buying records.

Lindsey B is so damn good FM had to get 2 guitarist to replace him. I saw him solo once. I was in the second row. He is beyond good and no pick whatsoever.

adorshki · Jul 24, 2019

JF-30 said:
I used to spend hours in Tower Records in Campbell when I was a teen. I remember paying maybe $3.99 was sticker price when I first started buying records.
Lindsey B is so damn good FM had to get 2 guitarist to replace him. I saw him solo once. I was in the second row. He is beyond good and no pick whatsoever.

When Fleetwood Mac hit I was violently against it, being a Peter Green era purist.
It took me 20 years to give Buckingham grudging (and now unqualified) respect.
It was actually hearing "Gold Dust Woman" in the Pink Poodle that turned me around, had never heard it before, had to ask the DJ who it was.
:glee:
You know me, love that "drone-y" stuff.

Oh yeah, Tower's been gone about ten years now:
http://www.ktvu.com/news/220330405-video
And yeah shopping the internet is in no way comparable to being able to read the liner notes and credits on the back of an album to help one make up one's mind.
Or just cruising the racks to see what caught your attention.
I actually bought a ton of cassettes there at bargain pricing in late '80's when they were getting phased out, and didn't actually get a CD player until around '05 if you can believe it!
(I'd actually spent much more time playing than listening between '94 and '04)

matsickma · Jul 24, 2019

I just picked up that Iron Butterfly CD for a few $. And the otherbsongs sure at a challenge to listen to. If I recall their album with the big stone ear on the moon wasn't much better!
One hit wonder band!
M

adorshki · Jul 24, 2019

matsickma said:
I just picked up that Iron Butterfly CD for a few $. And the otherbsongs sure at a challenge to listen to. If I recall their album with the big stone ear on the moon wasn't much better!
One hit wonder band!
M

Heavy, first one:

Actually only 2 of 'em were still in the band that made "Vida".
Never took the plunge on that one, even enticing as the cover art was.

Quantum Strummer · Jul 25, 2019

There are very few musicians who make money from music sales nowadays. Unless you can scale up to Taylor Swift, Adele or Gaga levels the per-unit-sold income doesn't amount to much. And those folks are outliers, nowhere near the norm. So you gotta tour. The '60s–90s, rock stars getting rich on album sales, were an aberration…now we're back to something more like the norm. Except smart and industrious musicians can go it alone now and still make a decent living.

-Dave-

JF-30 · Jul 25, 2019

adorshki said:
When Fleetwood Mac hit I was violently against it, being a Peter Green era purist.
It took me 20 years to give Buckingham grudging (and now unqualified) respect.
It was actually hearing "Gold Dust Woman" in the Pink Poodle that turned me around, had never heard it before, had to ask the DJ who it was.
:glee:
You know me, love that "drone-y" stuff.

Oh yeah, Tower's been gone about ten years now:
http://www.ktvu.com/news/220330405-video
And yeah shopping the internet is in no way comparable to being to read the liner notes and credits on the back of an album to help one make up one's mind.
Or just cruising the racks to see what caught your attention.
I actually bought a ton of cassettes there at bargain pricing in late '80's when they were getting phased out, and didn't actually get a CD player until around '05 if you can believe it!
(I'd actually spent much more time playing than listening between '94 and '04)

The Pink Poodle. A classy joint. Been there myself.

gjmalcyon · Jul 25, 2019

Quantum Strummer said:
There are very few musicians who make money from music sales nowadays. Unless you can scale up to Taylor Swift, Adele or Gaga levels the per-unit-sold income doesn't amount to much. And those folks are outliers, nowhere near the norm. So you gotta tour. The '60s–90s, rock stars getting rich on album sales, were an aberration…now we're back to something more like the norm. Except smart and industrious musicians can go it alone now and still make a decent living.

-Dave-

Spotify pays something like $0.00473 per stream. Apple pays $0.00735. Those are not extra zeroes - less than 1 cent per stream.

Which is why I buy CD's (still) and try to buy merch at live shows we attend. Often it is the merchandise that keeps musicians afloat.

fronobulax · Jul 25, 2019

gjmalcyon said:
Which is why I buy CD's (still) and try to buy merch at live shows we attend. Often it is the merchandise that keeps musicians afloat.

I tried to buy a CD of a band I like for just that reason. CD only available at their web site - not Amazon or any other retailer. Price discounted to $12.99. I add it to my cart and then find the only shipping option is $8.99. Needless to say I don't have the CD.

gjmalcyon · Jul 25, 2019

fronobulax said:
I tried to buy a CD of a band I like for just that reason. CD only available at their web site - not Amazon or any other retailer. Price discounted to $12.99. I add it to my cart and then find the only shipping option is $8.99. Needless to say I don't have the CD.

Yeah, I wouldn't buy for it $9 shipping either. I've had some (limited) success by emailing merchants and pointing the absurdity of shipping charges that about equal the cost of the item sold and that clearly do not represent actual shipping costs.

Sometimes they'll change it for you.

walrus · Jul 26, 2019

I'm with you guys!

This article explains it pretty well. The key is the difference between a "stream" and actually buying the download. You can support the artist by downloading their music if you can't find the CD, or it's just cheaper. It's the streaming, which of course is very popular, that really screws the artists.

https://investinganswers.com/articles/who-really-profits-your-itunes-downloads

walrus

JF-30 · Jul 26, 2019

Nobody is making $ off album sales its all touring and merch. Artist used to sell millions of copies now its a few hundred thou. I may buy 5 CDs or albums a year. I used to buy that many every month.

gjmalcyon · Jul 26, 2019

JF-30 said:
Nobody is making $ off album sales its all touring and merch. Artist used to sell millions of copies now its a few hundred thou. I may buy 5 CDs or albums a year. I used to buy that many every month.

Oh man, I'm still buying CD's by the ton.

This month's (so far):

James Taylor: The Warner Bros. Albums: 1970-1976 (6CD)
Tony Joe White - Hoodoo - CD
Tony Joe White - Bad Mouthin’ - CD
Tony Joe White - Rain Crow - CD
Yellow River, Yellow River CD, by Jim Stephens
Bruce Springsteen - Western Stars

walrus · Jul 26, 2019

gjmalcyon said:
Oh man, I'm still buying CD's by the ton.

Bruce Springsteen - Western Stars

+1. Me too!

And another +1 for Springsteen's latest - great album!

walrus

5 Hours of Music from 1971

walrus

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adorshki

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JF-30

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adorshki

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matsickma

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adorshki

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Quantum Strummer

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JF-30

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gjmalcyon

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fronobulax

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gjmalcyon

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walrus

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walrus

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