Mary McCaslin's Roundup

Mar. 24, 2007

 

 

DOWNLOADS, MP3s AND IPODS

 

            Sentinel writer Graham Howarth’s March 2nd Listening Station column was of special interest to me. It was across from my Roundup column in which I discussed my Luddite tendencies. Graham’s piece focused on the debate of whether or not the proliferation of mp3 technology and download services like iTunes and eMusic would eventually (or maybe not so eventually) cause the demise of the “album.”

            As an artist with many recordings out (CDs and LPs re-issued on CD), I am not particularly happy about the Download Phenomena and the fact that it’s taking an enormous bite out of CD sales. Yes, Dylan and the Stones will make lots of money from downloads, but the majority of artists out there are not household names and will receive far less income from downloads than from the sales of complete CDs – no matter how often and honestly the downloads are reported and paid.

            Recently I received an email from a guy who requested that we send him some mp3s from my new CD – he wanted to hear it before buying it. He also was under the impression that I had recorded the Beatles’ “I’m Looking Through You,” on this CD I guess, and asked for an mp3 of it. I wrote back telling him that I performed that song from the mid 1960s into1970 but had never recorded it.

            In his column Howarth made the statement that the life and death of the album remains in the hands of the musicians, not the consumers. He sites bands who have consistently made strong albums and remained ever popular through changes in format. He mentions the Beatles, Pink Floyd, Led Zeppelin and Jimi Hendrix among other more recent artists who all have recorded their albums as complete units.

            I remember when CDs first came on the scene. They were perceived as the devil’s own threat to recorded music by diehard vinyl enthusiasts. It seemed to be the end of the world as they knew it – until selected artists and companies began pressing limited runs of vinyl editions, along with CDs, of new releases. This is still done, especially in the Hip Hop world. But by and large, the CD format was accepted and life resumed, with all of the household name artists’ LPs being re-issued onto CD. No surprise there. Of course some vinyl classics have still not made it onto CD or can only be found on import label re-issues.

            Song downloads probably will become the singles of “tomorrow,” or maybe next month. IPODs are sprouting from more ears every day and some artists truly only have one or two good songs in them. And in the last couple of years folk and acoustic artists such as James McMurtrey and Mike Beck have offered free downloads of songs from upcoming CDs. This approach can be successful if a song manages to make its way onto the airwaves, as did McMurtrey’s “Can’t Make It Here Anymore” or Beck’s “Oildale.”  

            Neal Hellman of internationally known local acoustic music label Gourd Music sings the praises of iTunes for furnishing an outlet for tracks from his artists’ CDs. When asked if he sees any revenue from these downloads he said that iTunes is very prompt in payment.

            But I’m not going to hold my breath until I receive that big check from single song downloads.

 

Mary McCaslin’s new CD is called Better Late Than Never. Email her at roundup@marymccaslin.com.