alocispepraluger102 Posted June 19, 2012 Report Share Posted June 19, 2012 (edited) letter from david lowery "Emily: My intention here is not to shame you or embarrass you. I believe you are already on the side of musicians and artists and you are just grappling with how to do the right thing. I applaud your courage in admitting you do not pay for music, and that you do not want to but you are grappling with the moral implications. I just think that you have been presented with some false choices by what sounds a lot like what we hear from the “Free Culture” adherents. I must disagree with the underlying premise of what you have written. Fairly compensating musicians is not a problem that is up to governments and large corporations to solve. It is not up to them to make it “convenient” so you don’t behave unethically. (Besides–is it really that inconvenient to download a song from iTunes into your iPhone? Is it that hard to type in your password? I think millions would disagree.) Rather, fairness for musicians is a problem that requires each of us to individually look at our own actions, values and choices and try to anticipate the consequences of our choices. I would suggest to you that, like so many other policies in our society, it is up to us individually to put pressure on our governments and private corporations to act ethically and fairly when it comes to artists rights. Not the other way around. We cannot wait for these entities to act in the myriad little transactions that make up an ethical life. I’d suggest to you that, as a 21-year old adult who wants to work in the music business, it is especially important for you to come to grips with these very personal ethical issues." item continues with link----- Edited June 19, 2012 by alocispepraluger102 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pete C Posted June 19, 2012 Report Share Posted June 19, 2012 Why do you say it's from Larry Goldings? The author is David Lowery. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
colinmce Posted June 19, 2012 Report Share Posted June 19, 2012 A good read, I recommend it. The original letter is quite amazing, too. The ability of this generation to announce to the world that they're doing the wrong thing and they could care less is jarring. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eric Posted June 19, 2012 Report Share Posted June 19, 2012 A good read, I recommend it. The original letter is quite amazing, too. The ability of this generation to announce to the world that they're doing the wrong thing and they could care less is jarring. good read, I particularly enjoyed this passage: "Congratulations, your generation is the first generation in history to rebel by unsticking it to the man and instead sticking it to the weirdo freak musicians!" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Magnificent Goldberg Posted June 19, 2012 Report Share Posted June 19, 2012 A good read, I recommend it. The original letter is quite amazing, too. The ability of this generation to announce to the world that they're doing the wrong thing and they could care less is jarring. good read, I particularly enjoyed this passage: "Congratulations, your generation is the first generation in history to rebel by unsticking it to the man and instead sticking it to the weirdo freak musicians!" Nice sentence but not true. The sixties/seventies generation who thought that underground rock was a rebellion against the man were buying records almost exclusively from COlumbia, RCA, Warner/Elektra/Atlantic and EMI - the majors, anyway, who fooled the flower power kids into believing they were on their side. As I recollect, the only indie company that sold a shed load of records in that period was Fantasy. MG Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fasstrack Posted June 19, 2012 Report Share Posted June 19, 2012 letter from david lowery "Emily: My intention here is not to shame you or embarrass you. I believe you are already on the side of musicians and artists and you are just grappling with how to do the right thing. I applaud your courage in admitting you do not pay for music, and that you do not want to but you are grappling with the moral implications. I just think that you have been presented with some false choices by what sounds a lot like what we hear from the “Free Culture” adherents. I must disagree with the underlying premise of what you have written. Fairly compensating musicians is not a problem that is up to governments and large corporations to solve. It is not up to them to make it “convenient” so you don’t behave unethically. (Besides–is it really that inconvenient to download a song from iTunes into your iPhone? Is it that hard to type in your password? I think millions would disagree.) Rather, fairness for musicians is a problem that requires each of us to individually look at our own actions, values and choices and try to anticipate the consequences of our choices. I would suggest to you that, like so many other policies in our society, it is up to us individually to put pressure on our governments and private corporations to act ethically and fairly when it comes to artists rights. Not the other way around. We cannot wait for these entities to act in the myriad little transactions that make up an ethical life. I’d suggest to you that, as a 21-year old adult who wants to work in the music business, it is especially important for you to come to grips with these very personal ethical issues." item continues with link----- Hear hear..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WD45 Posted June 19, 2012 Report Share Posted June 19, 2012 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fasstrack Posted June 19, 2012 Report Share Posted June 19, 2012 Damn, I spent a half hour signing up and making a comment---and seem to have gotten nowhere...... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
colinmce Posted June 20, 2012 Report Share Posted June 20, 2012 I think this steamrolls some of the nuance out of what he's saying. It's not like Jefferson Airplane got nothin' out of those records they sold. A good read, I recommend it. The original letter is quite amazing, too. The ability of this generation to announce to the world that they're doing the wrong thing and they could care less is jarring. good read, I particularly enjoyed this passage: "Congratulations, your generation is the first generation in history to rebel by unsticking it to the man and instead sticking it to the weirdo freak musicians!" Nice sentence but not true. The sixties/seventies generation who thought that underground rock was a rebellion against the man were buying records almost exclusively from COlumbia, RCA, Warner/Elektra/Atlantic and EMI - the majors, anyway, who fooled the flower power kids into believing they were on their side. As I recollect, the only indie company that sold a shed load of records in that period was Fantasy. MG Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cih Posted June 20, 2012 Report Share Posted June 20, 2012 Some sweeping statements about the behaviour of respective 'generations' - is it true that only 'kids' are willing to duplicate music without paying the artists? I think not. And no way do they 'gladly' hand over money for expensive software - if they can copy it they do - just ask any design student. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pete C Posted June 20, 2012 Report Share Posted June 20, 2012 When I was a teenager in the '70s, Sam Goody's had a policy where you could return up to 5 LPs that had been opened and played simply because you didn't like them. I used to tape a lot of albums on a reel-to-reel recorder. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CraigP Posted June 20, 2012 Report Share Posted June 20, 2012 When I was a teenager in the '70s, Sam Goody's had a policy where you could return up to 5 LPs that had been opened and played simply because you didn't like them. I used to tape a lot of albums on a reel-to-reel recorder. Didn't you use a wax cylinder? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Alfredson Posted June 21, 2012 Report Share Posted June 21, 2012 I thought this was a well-rounded response to the essay. http://www.salon.com/2012/06/20/steal_this_album_what_happens_if_no_one_pays_for_music/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paul secor Posted June 21, 2012 Report Share Posted June 21, 2012 I thought this was a well-rounded response to the essay. http://www.salon.com/2012/06/20/steal_this_album_what_happens_if_no_one_pays_for_music/ Thanks for posting that, Jim. Thoughtful article. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RDK Posted June 21, 2012 Report Share Posted June 21, 2012 What will be interesting is the "next generation" of artists - those who grew up in the "steal this album" culture. I doubt it will stop anyone who's truly creative, but I'd also bet that we currently have no idea of what the next "business model" for the music business will be in, say, twenty years. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Alfredson Posted June 21, 2012 Report Share Posted June 21, 2012 Right now, to me at least, it seems the only answer is to get paid beforehand. Crowd-sourcing and the like. Like my music? Want me to make more? Than pay upfront. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CraigP Posted June 22, 2012 Report Share Posted June 22, 2012 I thought this was a well-rounded response to the essay. http://www.salon.com/2012/06/20/steal_this_album_what_happens_if_no_one_pays_for_music/ Yes, thanks. It was interesting to read the opinion that the brief gap in time between the demise of Napster and the start of iTunes was a significant contributor to the "Free Download" culture. As someone who still mainly buys CDs, that period bypassed my radar. But stealing is stealing, and I think it's disingenuous to refuse to pay for an artist's work under some misguided notion of "sticking it to the man" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JSngry Posted June 22, 2012 Report Share Posted June 22, 2012 What will be interesting is the "next generation" of artists - those who grew up in the "steal this album" culture. I doubt it will stop anyone who's truly creative, but I'd also bet that we currently have no idea of what the next "business model" for the music business will be in, say, twenty years. I remember a Lee Konitz interview from a while back where he said that for him, the ideal would be to live in a culture where everybody played at an "amateur" level, not in terms of skill, but in terms of motivation and "career expectations". Truthfully, I think there's too much music and too many musicians right now for whom "career" is the primary motivator, at least when it comes to product and such. The marketplace is clearly showing that supply exceeds demand for too much more tahn music as a lifestyle accessory ('twas ever so, but the trend has snowballed past the point of no return). Lee's ideal of people playing and listening together out of mutual purpose for mutual enjoyment and not too much else is actually sane and sensible for this day and time. Let the careerist herd thin. It'll work out ok in the end. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fasstrack Posted June 23, 2012 Report Share Posted June 23, 2012 Lee Konitz talks too much. Little Lee Konitz: eat first-then you'll talk... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fasstrack Posted June 23, 2012 Report Share Posted June 23, 2012 It's not 'career first'. It's 'I got bills and kids too'. It's 'I'm doing this a long time and was taught on the stand by the best, then labored in the vineyards for years for next-to-nada' It's 'my heart and soul and considerable experience and expertise went into this music'. And especially it's 'you pay the doctor, the lawyer, the supermarket. PAY ME TOO' End of fucking story. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JSngry Posted June 23, 2012 Report Share Posted June 23, 2012 I like what Lee Konitz said. It makes sense to me in a logical/rational kind of way. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
A Lark Ascending Posted June 23, 2012 Report Share Posted June 23, 2012 (edited) Nice sentence but not true. The sixties/seventies generation who thought that underground rock was a rebellion against the man were buying records almost exclusively from COlumbia, RCA, Warner/Elektra/Atlantic and EMI - the majors, anyway, who fooled the flower power kids into believing they were on their side. As I recollect, the only indie company that sold a shed load of records in that period was Fantasy. MG And 'The Man' quickly caught up. Infamous advert from the late 60s: 'The Man' then proceeds to present the latest product. "The Revolutionaries are on Columbia." Edited June 23, 2012 by A Lark Ascending Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
_forumlogo.png.a607ef20a6e0c299ab2aa6443aa1f32e.png)
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.