The Kids Are Offspeed; Money in various configurations; MP please

["Mark R. Leaman" <mleaman@sccoast.net>]

> FWIW I notice that thewhodirect.com is also carrying the DVD of WN
> now.  (Plus a snazzy black bomber jacket with the band's logo.)

Phil:

I didn't know that. I wish I had, but now it's too late.

> Then there's no point in buying it.  Might as well just get another
> copy of the VHS when it wears out than upgrade.

Ah, but is it still in print on VHS? Most movies aren't, once they're
released on DVD.

> How you handle money has to do with your value system.  Obviously they
have 
> put money aside, but the way they generally run things, you'd suspect 
> they're more artistically oriented than business oriented.

Keets:

You've got a good point, but it's not brain surgery. Buy land. That's all
you have to do. No way to lose on that one, really.

> Pete has show signs of an urge to accumulate wealth just lately

But he has the ability to create, whereas the other two aren't so apt in
that department.

> a studio to do it for you, you can always finance it yourself.

I would have thought he'd rather anyway, in order to retain control. Look
what happened with Tommy, when he handed complete control to Ken Russell.

> >Roger and John should promote their songs for use in ads and  movie
>
> Good idea.

Alan:

Uh, maybe not in Rog's case. Hey, I like the guy and all but his
songwriting skills are extremely limited.

> I just read on petetownshend.com today that he's released Scoop and
> Another Scoop remasters on the eelpie records label.

Phil:

I guess he kept the rights, having learned from his experiences with MCA.

>      I've ordered from CDNow for 3 years, and I have had to order the
Who's 
> Next DVD 4 times, each to no avail.  I finally told them to cancel the 
> order, and I'm going to get it from TheWhoDirect.

Jon:

You guys fill me with hope, you and Derick. I got nothing again today.

> 	So this is the deal. You sign away a little chunk of your immortal soul
> and most of the profits on recorded media in return for distribution and
> promotion. 

Uh, THIS is rather biased. What about the money put up by the label to
distribute and promote the band, which obviously the artist doesn't have?

> 	The numbers are pretty harsh. You pay $12 to $16 for a new CD. That CD
> cost around $1.80 to manufacture, including the disk, printing,
> packaging, and insert. 

Actually more like $.80. Let's keep this argument accurate.

> 	The rest of the profits, $4-$6, goes to the record company. For the
> service of being the record company and doing what record companies do. 

Yeah, like getting the artist an audience.

> 	The record industry standard contract is pretty simply "Give us all the
> money, or at least almost all the money, or nobody will know who you are
> and nobody will come to your shows and nobody will buy your t-shirts."

That pretty much sums it up. No artist is forced to sign anything at
gunpoint. It's called business, and everything works that way. If you want
to reject business as it's done, then buy nothing more from anyone. Check
out the situation with farmers. I hate capitalism, but if you live in the
USA it's be a capitalist or be on Welfare. Thems the grits, as they say
around here. You could always move to Cuba, and if you do please take
Ellean with you...

> 	The RIAA is more or less a music mafia that makes sure nobody gets a
> better deal than that.

I don't like these guys either. But someone lets them push everyone around.
It doesn't have to be that way.

> 	What the internet provides is a distribution channel that the RIAA
> can't control. 

And a way for the artist to make even less money.

> 	Back to the topic. No, short of application-layer firewalling, which
> would be horribly inconvenient for everyone and hugely intrusive,
> gnutella can not be stopped.

It depends on how you look at it. Check out Liquid Audio while you're
researching, and see where the future really lies.

> some other reasons. Be your own person and don't tell another man to
> tell to govern you just because you feel like someone else should be
> governed as well. 

A nice idea, but anyone over 12 knows it's not realistic. Next thing you'll
be saying a 6 year-old knows what's best for him.

> This point can be argued, but I don't think that MP3 files sound good at 
> all.  They are decent, but they are not quite CD quailty.  I think that
MD 
> sounds better than MP3.

Joe:

I have found the same thing; MP3's sound OK but not as good as a CD.

> It has been over a week and I still haven't received my copy!

Yeah, well that's the downside of ordering it. Obviously.


       Cheers                  ML