John Mellencamp isn’t known for mincing his words. The co-founder of Farm Aid is as outspoken in his beliefs about the often slimy music industry as he is on the subject of music itself. But give a man an account at the Huffington Post, and he’ll really give you a piece of his mind.
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John Mellencamp isn’t known for mincing his words. The co-founder of Farm Aid is as outspoken in his beliefs about the often slimy music industry as he is on the subject of music itself.
But give a man an account at the Huffington Post, and he’ll really give you a piece of his mind. On March 22, Old Man Mellencamp turned in a impassioned 2,349 word screed, titled “On My Mind: The State of The Music Business,” detailing his feelings on SoundScan, Wal-Mart, Bruce Springsteen, Billboard, and the role of popular music in “the good old days.”
Here’s but one choice paragraph to get you going:
These days, some people suggest that it is up to the artist to create avenues to sell the music of his own creation. In today’s environment, is it realistic to expect someone to be a songwriter, recording artist, record company and the P.T. Barnum, so to speak, of his own career? Of course not. I’ve always found it amusing that a few people who have never made a record or written a song seem to know so much more about what an artist should be doing than the artist himself. If these pundits know so much, I’d suggest that make their own records and just leave us out of it. Nora Guthrie, Woody’s daughter, once told me a story about a reception she was at where Bob Dylan was in attendance. The business people there were quietly commenting on how unsociable Dylan seemed to them, not what they imagined an encounter with Dylan would be like. When that observation about Dylan’s behavior and disposition were mentioned to Nora, the response was very profound. She said that Bob Dylan was not put on this earth to participate in cocktail chatter with strangers. Bob Dylan’s purpose in life is to write great songs like “Blowin’ in the Wind” and “The Times They Are A’ Changin’.” This sort of sums it all up for me. The artist is here to give the listener the opportunity to dream, a very profound and special gift even if he’s minimally successful. If the artist only entertains you for three and a half minutes, it’s something for which thanks should be given. Consider how enriched all of our lives are made by songs from “Like A Rolling Stone,” a masterpiece, to “The Monster Mash,” a trifle by comparison.
Read the whole thing here, and tell us what you make of it.
I agree with John whole-heartedly. While it’s true that the digital age has opened new doors for artists and new avenues of promotion, it’s also true that it’s harder to be heard… it’s so over-run that people just don’t care anymore. Why pay for a good band when you can get 5 clones for free.
35-years in this business and I love making music, but for those who think the artist should do everything – I now have 2 albums on hold because my mind is so busy with business that it can’t dream enough to come up with decent lyrics. That’s a nightmare for someone who is known for making up songs during shows.
When John implies “good old days” I think what he’s seeing is what all of us are seeing – royalties have become almost non-existent since the advent of the compact disc. Like Bon Jovi said, no one will ever be able to make those kinds of sales again.
Instead of retiring and bowing out gracefully, we have to keep going.