RE: Article...Music Industry Out of Tune

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Music Industry Out of Tune

NEW YORK — The Boss is back, but the rest of the company -- the music business -- is singing the blues.


Between illegal music-swapping, the rising price of CDs and the increasingly vocal movement that claims music company contracts are unfair to artists, the multi-billion dollar industry is struggling to hit the right note.

"Consumers feel ripped off, CD prices are high, concert tickets are high," said Anthony DeCurtis of Rolling Stone magazine, detailing the industry's downfalls. "When consumers started downloading music from the Internet they were treated like criminals."

In the first six months of 2002, music sales in the United States were down nearly 13 percent compared to that same period last year. And while concert grosses were up for what the industry calls "old timers" -- Paul McCartney, Elton John and Billy Joel -- fewer people are paying the high prices to attend large concerts. Even though Napster has been busted, other less central music-swapping sites have been quick to fill the void.

DeCurtis said part of the problem is that the music industry hasn't nurtured enough talented new acts to keep listeners interested.

"In failing to develop significant new acts, the music industry has created, in a sense, a number of faceless bands who have one hit or two hits or even three hits," De Curtis said. "But you'd be hard-pressed to identify [them] in a police lineup."

Independent music producer Jon Montgomery said that's why older acts like Bruce Springsteen and Elton John can still sell out stadiums.

"They really sing. They really write their songs. They really perform," he said. "Is it any simpler than that?"

Pop stars like Britney Spears have been roundly criticized for lip-synching during concerts.

Springsteen's new album, The Rising, shot to No. 1 on the charts in its first week, selling about 526,000 copies. The critically acclaimed disc is his first studio album in seven years. Most of the songs on it revolve around the Sept. 11 attacks.

While some acts like Eminem and Nelly buck the trend of the downward spiral, the 'rap' on the rest of this $14 billion business is that many albums -- which can cost as much as $20 these days -- contain only one or two hits and a lot of padding.

And the record industry is spending a lot of its resources just trying to discourage people from downloading free music online.

"A number of record companies are developing divisions that are taking care and trying to come up with a happy formula," Montgomery said.

And in the meantime, high-profile acts like the Eagles, the Dixie Chicks, Stevie Nicks and Sheryl Crow have created the Recording Artists Coalition (RAC), which is fighting with record companies for better contracts and more creative control for musicians.

But music executives are still mining old talent for new sales. Without a lot of fresh product in record stores, albums by bands like the Beatles and even Elvis are topping the charts.

And there's another big seller in sores -- the blank CD. That's right, last year 1.2 billion dollars were sold in blanks. That means people are going into the recording industry on their own.

So while Bruce kicks a little Asbury Park and Britney continues to sell out -- when it isn't raining -- the rest of the music industry needs a tune-up.

Fox News' Bill McCuddy contributed to this report.
 
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