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Concert tix a high note in down era 
By ISAAC GUZMAN
DAILY NEWS FEATURE WRITER

Though record sales continue to droop, the struggling
music business found some solace in this summer's
concert season. 

While the major publications that track concert
revenues, including Billboard and Pollstar, have yet
to tally summer figures, music-business insiders say
grosses grew. In the Northeast, sales were "slightly
up," says Jim Steen, regional marketing director for
Clear Channel, which handles Jones Beach, PNC Bank
Arts Center and the Garden.

With a few exceptions, major tours  including those
of Bruce Springsteen, Britney Spears and Dave Matthews
 met financial expectations. Still, a significant
number of shows did not sell out.

While concert income may be steady, the number of
people actually going to shows has been dropping, says
Gary Bongiovanni, editor of Pollstar. With Paul
McCartney, the Who and Cher commanding up to $150 a
ticket, stars can make more from fewer fans. "We're
selling fewer tickets but grossing more money," he
says. 

"There wasn't anything that was an absolute home run,"
adds Ray Waddell, senior editor for touring at
Billboard. "Even traditional superstars at the box
office, like Springsteen and the Eagles, they
experienced a little softness."

A few big tours didn't do as well as hoped. With the
hype from "The Osbournes," Ozz- Fest seemed like a
sure-fire smash, but some venues were less than full.
Likewise, the presence of David Bowie on Moby's "Area"
festival resulted only in lower attendance than last
year's inagural tour. 


=====
-Brian in Atlanta
The Who This Month!
http://www.thewhothismonth.com

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