DEATH OF THE NON-PERFORMING PUBLICITY-SHY SONGWRITER

The only constant in the world of music is rapid change. There have been many examples of non-performing hit songwriters over the past 5 decades, ranging from Liebler and Stoller to Max Martin, and the reason why these songwriters are known by face is because the enormous success of their bodies of work has “forced” them to become stars.

What becomes of the journeyman non-performing song writer in the modern age of music?

Garry Paige is an established Australian song writer with over 250 compositions in his catalogue, who has been selling his craft to artists across the globe for the past 35 years. The apex of his work is “Words Are Not Enough” [a Top Ten hit in 1978 for Jon English] and “Heading In The Right Direction” [Renee Geyer’s 1975 signature song]. Both of these songs continue to receive regular airplay on Australian radio stations to this day, however Paige has been forced to take a day job due to the advert of mp3 file sharing and illegal downloading of music via the Internet.

The Internet has forced song writers [both performing and non-performing] to “give away” their music in order to maintain and/ or build a public profile AND then entice the greater public to purchase their music.  Using the Paige example, he has very little coverage when conducting a Google search of his name. If Paige improved his Internet presence, would the frequency and size of his royalty payments increase?

A message to all non-performing publicity-shy song writers; take the time to make a presence to the world [just as a performing artist must do] and watch your income skyrocket…

OLD ROCKERS GIVING AWAY DISCARDED RIFFS?

Recent media reports that Lars Ulrich [Metallica], Brian May [Queen] and Tony Iommi [Black Sabbath] will be giving away their respective band’s discarded riffs has opened the proverbial Pandora’s Box for commentary.

It is difficult to imagine very successful artists surrendering their copyrights without some form of financial consideration being in play, or is this really a case of wealthy musicians giving to the next generation?

Ulrich’s riff giveaway concept appears to revolve around selling the song fragments by way of an Ebay-style arrangement, whilst May and Iommi’s ideas involve mixing the unused guitar parts into another artist’s unreleased song. Either way, the established artist will profit most favourably from such a deal, whether it be “selling” the discarded riffs or song writing royalties from their established and lucrative publishing deals.

I am a fan of each of these artists’ back catalogue, however the cynic in me views this concept as a novel approach to maintaining publicity for each band in a new world of music.

Old rockers never die, nor does their quest for public adulation…

MUSIC FESTIVALS: GETTING THE BALANCE RIGHT

From Woodstock to Live Aid to Live 8, music festivals can make or break both a music promoter and a music artist.

At first sight, the concept of a music festival per se is a logistical nightmare in anybody’s mind. How do you control the weather, the artists’ performance, the sound quality, the crowd’s behaviour et al?

With so many obstacles in play, why do promoters continue with the concept of a music festival?

Recent data released in Australia indicates that people in the 18-35 age bracket remain keen to attend music festivals, thus it’s a youth thing.

This being said, we are only touching the surface with this revelation. A youth audience will pay to attend a music festival if the music acts are appealing. This is a particularly important point, because Australian music promoters are generally filling their festivals with unknown local acts, on the pretense that they will “become” a major act on the back of their live performance.

Thirty years ago, the Narara Music Festival on New South Wales Central Coast was an artistic and financial success because the headline acts were Simple Minds, The Pretenders, The Eurhythmics and [the relatively unknown] Def Leppard. Great musicians who could all cut it live. The following year, Narara took a risk by leveraging off the “goodwill” of its name, and cut its costs by hosting only local acts. That was the final Narara Music Festival.

Nothing has changed in 40 plus years of music festivals. Yes, it’s going to be hot [or wet], crowded and uncomfortable, however all is forgiven if a promoter can attract great live acts. 

SUPERIOR COVER VERSIONS

Recent media reports that Linda Ronstadt is privately battling Parkinson’s Disease has been a genuine cause of concern for her many fans around the globe. The extent of the disease has rendered Ronstadt unable to sing, thus the music world will never hear her superb voice again.

Ronstadt is best known as an “interpreter” of other people’s songs, and some say that she is the best in the business at this craft. Roy Orbison had a smash hit with his self-penned “Blue Bayou” in 1963, however Rondstadt’s 1977 cover version may be the apex of her 40 plus year singing career. “Hurt So Bad”, “It’s So Easy”, “When Will I Be Loved”; these songs are key components of her body of work however we often overlook that each song was a hit in its previous life.

Rarely is a cover version of a song “better” than the original version. Let’s outline a selection of Superior Cover Versions:

“Without You” – Harry Nilsson heard the 1970 original by Beatles protégés Badfinger at a party, and made a mental note that this album track held all of the ingredients of a hit song. Nilsson hit the top of the charts in 1972 with his memorable re-work, and it is his version which still gets regular airplay to this day.

“Jealous Guy” – rarely can anybody “out-Lennon” John Lennon, however Roxy Music’s 1981 cover version surpassed the 1971 album cut from “Imagine”. Notwithstanding the “tribute” aspect of the release of Roxy Music’s version in the wake of Lennon’s assassination, Bryan Ferry’s vocal sensitivities and seminal whistling outro make this song very special.

“With A Little Help From My Friends” – Lennon and McCartney knocked out a catchy little ditty for Ringo Starr’s vocal debut on 1967’s “Sergeant Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band”, however Joe Cocker chose the following year to transform the song into an unforgettable psychedelic soul anthem. It’s also impossible to acknowledge that each version is one and the same song.

“All Along The Watchtower” – plenty of artists have covered Bob Dylan, ranging from The Byrds’ “Mr Tambourine Man” to Olivia Newton John’s “If Not For You”. Jimi Hendrix waited 6 months to re-work Dylan’s 1968 release of “Watchtower”, and in doing so he invented psychedelic rock.

The sure fire method of releasing a hit song is to release a cover version of a popular song. The real art is “outdoing” the original version of the song…

SINGING FOR THEIR SUPPER: MUSICIANS AND THEIR RESTAURANTS

Media reports indicate that Pete Murray is a co-investor in the recently opened “Frankie Brown Café” located in Byron Bay on the North Coast of New South Wales, Australia. Murray, who is a highly respected singer-songwriter and a local resident, will be occasionally performing at the new eating establishment albeit the focus will be upon showcasing new musical talent in conjunction with an up-market menu.

It’s no secret that Murray is no longer burning up the music charts, however this investment outlines a shrewd equation of eating + music = general entertainment. Murray remains a famous and popular face in Australian music, thus we can expect some large crowds at “Frankie Brown Café” for the immediate future.

Musicians and their restaurants is not a new phenomena; Alice Cooper [Cooperstown Sports Bar in Phoenix, Arizona] and Bill Wyman [Sticky Fingers Café in London, United Kingdom] are some of the famous pioneers who have successfully combined the art of music and food.

Here are some other musicians who have quietly made the foray into the restaurant trade:

• Boz Scaggs – the success of 1975’s “Silk Degrees” enabled Scaggs to acquire the “Blue Light Bar and Restaurant” in his home town of San Francisco, where Tex-Mex dominates the menu.
• Bill Danoff – “Afternoon Delight” was a speciality on the menu of his favourite café AND the music charts in 1976. Danoff sang and composed “Afternoon Delight” for the Starland Vocal Band, and he is now the proprietor of “Starland Café” in Washington, DC.
• Jon Bon Jovi – the “Soul Kitchen” in Red Bank, New Jersey operates on the premise that you PAY WHAT YOU CAN when ordering meals. If you can’t afford to pay for your meal, JBJ and his crew will set you a simple task to complete within the establishment as your gratuity.
• Toby Keith – when you have a hit record named “I Love This Bar”, it only makes sense to open an eating house named “I Love This Bar and Grill”. Keith is a success; he now has establishments in 9 US cities.
• Jimmy Buffett – they don’t come any bigger than Mr Buffett. “JB’s Margaritaville” [named after his 1977 smash “Margaritaville”] offers up a seafood menu in more than 20 cities in the USA, plus Mexico, the Caribbean and Sydney, Australia.

This puts a nice little twist to the homage of “singing for your supper”!!

A DIFFICULT DECISION: VIVENDI RETAINS UNIVERSAL MUSIC

Recent news reports that media giant Vivendi rejected an $8.5 Billion offer for Universal Music from Japanese telecom group SoftBank has many music writers scratching their heads.

At face value, Vivendi have foregone an once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to sell the asset at a significant premium; Bank of America Merrill Lynch valued Universal Music at $5.8 Billion in June. Simple numbers aside, the intricacies of the offer warrant comment.

SoftBank have acquired US telecom firm Sprint Nextel, with a vision of providing music via its wireless services in the huge North American market and their homeland. There are many observers who state that SoftBank have a viable strategy, as market research firm Nielsen SoundScan have released figures to suggest that digital albums now account for more than 40% of all recorded music sales and music streaming subscription services have increased almost 25 % in the past 12 months.

On the flipside, Vivendi are placed in an awkward position because asset sales are urgently required. The European corporate owns global media assets however attempts to sell telecom assets in Brazil and Morocco have failed to reach closure.

Notwithstanding the very tempting offer from SoftBank, Vivendi can’t afford to sell Universal Music. The music imprint is the pivotal asset, without Universal Music it is feared that Vivendi’s market value would suffer a substantial decline as the balance of assets have minimal synergistic worth.

And who said you don’t need a record label in modern society?

MUSIC SUBSCRIPTION SERVICES: IT’S A CULTURAL THING

Many people believe that Apple dominate the paid music market by way of the enormously popular iTunes brand. The general consensus has been that the public haven’t changed their behaviour towards music; people are willing to purchase their favourite songs in order to be able to play these songs as and when they choose to.

The concept of music subscription services or “streaming” music services is a relatively new process, however it is changing the manner in which the public are willing to pay for and listen to their favourite songs.

Recent data has revealed that about 20 million people worldwide pay a monthly fee to listen to music on the Internet. Sweden, South Korea and France lead the way in this cultural change, with music subscription services outweighing paid download services three-fold. Interestingly, the largest music markets [USA, UK, Germany and Japan] still favour the paid download service.

QUESTION: Why is this happening?

ANSWER: Smart-phones.

Music lovers appear to be happy to pay about USD$10.00 per month in order to hear their favourite tunes via their smart-phones 24/7. This change in mindset has forced Apple to strategise a music streaming service, in order to stay competitive with the likes of Spotify and Google.

But what about the recently revamped MySpace music streaming service? The public can join MySpace for free, and choose from an impressive catalogue of songs for free.

Music copyright owners probably aren’t making as much money today compared to previous generations, however the general public have never had a better opportunity to listen to music for next to nothing [or nothing at all!!].