Catalog Albums Outsell New Records Online for the First Time
 

‘OLD’ ALBUMS NOW OUTSELL NEW ALBUMS ON ITUNES IN AMERICA
JANUARY 29, 2015 BY TIM INGHAM

They don’t make ‘em like they used to: MBW has discovered that ‘new’ albums were outsold by ‘old’ (catalogue) albums online in the US for the first time in 2014.

The feat of catalogue albums outselling frontline releases was first achieved back in 2012, but that was a momentary blip; it’s never taken place over a whole year before.

The iTunes/downloads tipping point, as shown by Nielsen stats, is undoubtedly a cute moment, but it also highlights what will be a serious worry for the industry in the future: as you can read/see below, there has been a shocking erosion of sales of ‘new’ albums on physical formats in the past decade.

Such data asks two very clear questions of record labels: are people merely starting to consume their new music on streaming services rather than buying it in album form? Or are they increasingly less impressed with the new album releases that arrive year-in, year-out?

One thing looks certain: it now only appears a matter of time – very possibly in 2015 – when catalogue albums outsell new releases across all formats in a single year.

http://www.musicbusinessworldwide.co...EW-768x576.jpg



PHYSICAL ALBUM SALES
Annual physical album sales of ‘current’ or new albums fell by a shocking 80% from 2005 to 2014, down from 379.8m to just 77.6m.

Interestingly, the fall in catalogue sales has been more gentle, dropping 67% in the same time period, down from 222.8m to 73m.

http://www.musicbusinessworldwide.co...EW-768x576.jpg



OVERALL ALBUM SALES
As the graph below demonstrates, catalogue album sales on all formats have proven notably more stable than new album sales in the US in the past decade.

Annual ‘new’ album sales have fallen by a massive 150m since 2005, down to 130.5m in 2014.

Meanwhile, catalogue album sales have dropped by 103m in the same period.

If the decline in current album sales continues at its current pace, catalogue albums will almost certainly outsell new albums on all formats by 2016, and possibly even in 2015.

If you want a one-glance indication at how the might of the new album has fallen vs. its catalogue sister product, check out the graph at the bottom – obviously, the space between the two lines represents the dominance of new albums in any given year.

http://www.musicbusinessworldwide.co...ll-768x576.jpg

http://www.musicbusinessworldwide.co...ne-768x576.jpg




http://www.musicbusinessworldwide.co...tunes-america/

Maybe I did not read this right.I probably need some sleep.

What are they comparing here.

Old music from a band or artist with their new current release or old artists to new artists.

English is not my first language, but they are absolutely comparing sales of old albums vs sales of new albums during this past year.
I found it interesting because in effect during this year I haven't bought any newly released album besides 24K gold, I bought the umpteenth Janis Joplin greatest hits, a David Bowie LP and an old Black Sabbath album but the only other new release I purchased I downloaded it for free.

I'd like to think people are increasingly less impressed with the new album releases that arrive year-in, year-out but rather than admit that they poke their nose in and decide they know what people want in new product (and don't) the labels will deflect all blame by claiming it's because people are merely starting to consume their new music on streaming services rather than buying it in album form. There may be some truth to this to an extent anyways assuming it's younger consumers who would buy the new albums and I doubt they care about a physical product (though I think they should, so they can re-rip etc. if necessary instead of being forced to rebuy an e-copy of something which is clearly where companies want to go anyway, like how you can't get CD-R's of software anymore because they just want to give you the 3 PC download rule so you have to buy the e-version from them again later).

John

That's certainly true but market laws have always been the same, always working this way.
I think it's a combination of a new culture of fast-music that quickly lose interest in music products and prefers hit singles instead of the over the quality of a whole album and the musical industry that takes advantage of it in a mutual circle.

Yes, the fact you can buy just a song now instead of a whole album has added to this as well (I guess it could be argued you could buy singles "in the old days" but that still cost a lot more than downloading 1 mp3 now).

John

Bingo and you can also pirate all the music you want on the web.

I bet Rumours outsold many new releases

I believe in the sustainability of the album format as an art form, even though technology now allows consumers to self-select individual songs -- not taking the time to respect and see the album as a whole. Personal instant gratification takes precedence. In this instant process of pick and choose, songs they might grow to love in time aren't given a chance and are discarded.

Perhaps because of the easy accessibility of music from generations past, listeners are discovering a world of artists and groups that they were unaware of; music that is appealing to them. There is so much great music previous eras that holds value. It's like discovering buried treasures. Just because something is new and currently popular doesn't mean it's better that what came before it. In fact, most new music owes it's viability the influences of past artists.

I'm always impressed when an contestant on American Idol or The Voice chooses a great song generations behind them. It shows they have a depth of reference and influences beyond their current demographic. If they choose a more current or recent popular song, it reveals they influences have only scratched the surface.

That's very true, I think one of the results of this tendency is the disappearance of the "concept album". In the past they were very present, The who, Pink Floyd, Beatles, Beach boys, David Bowie and the Kinks widely used concept album as an artistic mean but the only modern concept album that I know of is American idiot, and that was 10-15 years ago.

OK I understand.I have not buy any other classic artists or bands myself besides Stevie's work.I know it sounds crud for the artists.Most of their work shows up on Youtube or other video sites for free.

I wish this single pick feature was available when I was buying albums like hotcakes back in the 1970's and 80's.It would eliminate all the filler crap tunes.It would be music a la carte .Pick what you went.Eliminate the fluff filler.

Yes it's very useful, but it transforms music into another capitalist consumer good to use and then trash when it's not in vogue anymore.
I prefer to listen free online and then if I really like the music I'll buy the CD.

Yes .I like that feature of previewing before you buy.Its like the local record shop in town years ago let you take it for a spin in their turntable before you buy it.

I never had to do that for Stevie records.

I just saw and corrected an unfortunate misspell in my previous post ( though it matters little now).

In this instant process of pick and choose, songs they might grow to love in time aren't given a chance and are discarded.

Even if was Street Angel?:lol:

If I mate with a artist or band, it's a given that I will buy whatever they release. It may not meet my expectations immediately. But with repeated listens I will find some value in it. Sometimes I listen to an album once or twice, then shelve it and forget about it. Years later I will rediscover it give a listen and, in circumspect, end up understanding its place in the span of the band's history, and appreciating or loving it.

Tusk is a good example of that. I was a bit confused when it came out. Most of the songs and they way they were rendered didn't fit my concept of what Fleetwood Mac was. It took years to understand it. It was universally cast as a dud. Now, with the passage of time, the album has risen in status as one of their most artistic works.

If the digital age/iTunes existed then, the Tusk album would have been picked to pieces. After a quick listen, consumers would have the option of choosing to buy only the songs that provided instant gratification. It would hardly be seen as collective body of work, but as a self service " have it your way" menu. That makes more sense for food, but it decimates tradition art forms, which is how I see albums.

I can image the future when this concept could be applied to other art forms.

iArt.com - Purchase new original or vintage paintings, with the option of buying just the portions you like the most.
iFilms.com - Why buy an entire film with scenes that don't appeal to you? Save money by cutting out the slow, boring scenes.
iBooks - Edit and eliminate passages, chapters, or subjects that don't hold your interest. Save valuable time.

Sorry for my stream of thought rambling. I've gone deeply astray from the original topic.

When you hear a s single song that you like from an artist you are unfamiliar with, it is convenient to be able to sample their work before committing to buying their album.

I think you're not wrong after all.
By the way ibooks already kind of exists since there are Kindle and google books.

:lol: You are so considerate! I am very aware of ibooks. But when you buy the book, don't you have to purchase the entire book? Why can't you have the option to buy separate chapters?:lol: I'm happy you're here, as fellow Italian. You are very fluid in written English. Did you grow up speaking both?

Wordreference is a huge help! By the way I am self-taught. I learned english reading english books, watching english movies, listening to english music and writing in english. I don't speak fluently as I write because I don't happen to find many people to talk with. In fact I understand very well the literal meaning of a conversation but I still find difficult to understand allegorical meaning. For example I don't get a lot of western jokes; people of different countries have very different kinds of humour...

P.S. By the way congratuations, not all the elders are in line with the times about technology. My mother still doesn't know how to close ads.

Didn't know this
 

Neil Young Slams Vinyl Sales As ‘Nothing but a Fashion Statement’
by Nick DeRiso February 4, 2015 10:25 AM


Flannel-clad Neil Young might come off as a throwback figure at times, but that doesn’t translate into a passion for vinyl. In fact, Young recently slammed the resurgence in old-fashioned album sales.
At issue for Young, who recently launched his own digital music player called Pono, is the lack of fidelity with these new vinyl releases — especially in relation to his own audio project. Pono, which he calls a “high-resolution digital player,” is capable of storing up to 2,000 hi-res tracks.
“A lot of people that buy vinyl today don’t realize that they’re listening to CD masters on vinyl, and that’s because the record companies have figured out that people want vinyl,” Young told the Frame radio show. “And they’re only making CD masters in digital, so all the new products that come out on vinyl are actually CDs on vinyl, which is really nothing but a fashion statement.”
Whichever format you prefer, Young has certainly been giving fans plenty to digest. He released not one but two new studio efforts in 2014. First came March’s ‘A Letter Home,’ a low-tech project recorded at Jack White‘s Nashville studio and record store. The follow-up ‘Storytone,’ issued in November, found Young working in an orchestral format. And he’s reportedly already at work on another album.


Read More: Neil Young Slams Vinyl Sales As 'Nothing but a Fashion Statement' | http://ultimateclassicrock.com/neil-...ckback=tsmclip

New Music Will Soon Be Released on Fridays
by Dave Lifton February 26, 2015 10:38 AM

There’s going to be a major change to the way new music is released starting this summer. The music industry has decided to streamline the process by making Friday the global release day for new records.
The International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPA) made the announcement after discussions with labels and musicians around the world. “Release days currently vary from one country to another, causing frustration for consumers when music fans in other parts of the world can access new releases before them”, they posted on their website. “As well as helping music fans, the move will benefit artists who want to harness social media to promote their new music. It also creates the opportunity to reignite excitement and a sense of occasion around the release of new music.”
They believe it will have an added benefit: “The move to an aligned global release day will also reduce the risk of piracy by narrowing the gap between release days in different countries.”
Prior to this new decision, every country’s record industry had the authority to set its own release date. Germany and Australia already have the new Friday standard, while in the U.K., new music was available on Mondays. Tuesday has long been the release date in the U.S. Even though experts say the day was chosen to maximize music sales, they disagree on the reasons. NPR Music suggested that it allowed for a full week of sales, because Billboard publishes its charts on Wednesday, while industry writer Mark Berman theorized that it had to do with understanding the mindset of consumers. Record executive Joe McFadden said that it was a way to “level the playing field” by giving distributors time to get the product in stores, and showed a degree of foresight when he noted, “There have been backroom conversations among labels recently about moving the street date to Friday.”
The switch is expected to begin this summer, with new records going on sale one minute after midnight on the day of release.


Read More: New Music Will Soon Be Released on Fridays | http://ultimateclassicrock.com/new-m...ckback=tsmclip

Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPA) Maybe they sh0uld update their name.Its outdated with the word Phonographic.LOL..............

The release days here are Tuesdays .Don't ask me why they pick Tuesdays for.

I can see where Neil Young is coming from.

They should of recorded the music the old way to make vinyl sound better.

Its like the movie industry putting movies on VHS and Betamax with digitally produced movies.

In my opinion "phonographic" has a certain vintage charm and highlights the origin of the industry, instead of the present that it's very short-lived in the music field.
In Italy release days are Tuesday too!
By the way I'm glad that music industry is trying to fight for album sales in a positive and proactive way instead of hitting out at piracy sites (how do you call them?)
Vinyls of new albums always sounded fishy to me, now Neil Young gave me proof.

Jimmy Page Is Not a Fan of the MP3
by Jeff Giles March 12, 2015 10:01 AM


Jimmy Page has been instrumental in bringing Led Zeppelin‘s classic catalog into the digital music era, but that doesn’t mean he’s accepted the limitations of the MP3.
In fact, as he explained during a recent interview with Kerrang! Radio, his decision to painstakingly remaster Zeppelin’s studio albums for the band’s current deluxe reissue series may have been partly motivated by a deep dissatisfaction with the predominant digital file format, which he called the “most annoying” of all modern listening options.
“I’d be confronted with Led Zeppelin music on MP3. It almost sounded like it had been remixed, and not very well at that,” Page argued. Saying the songs lost their “transience and depth” on their way to MP3, he pointed out, “They were mixed in stereo with a depth-of-field to them, with everything in focus. To have it squashed down is not how it was intended to be.”
Lamenting “the jiggery-pokery that goes on” from analog to digital, Page seemed encouraged by the growing number of hi-res format options. “If you review the situation of how things are listened to, and approach vinyl, CDs and digital separately, it’s not one size fits all,” he noted, and predicted that his remastering efforts would future-proof the Zeppelin catalog for years to come. “We’ve got high-resolution files for whatever’s going to come down the line. It was essential to do that, to make sure you don’t have to remaster again for a number of years.”


Read More: Jimmy Page Is Not a Fan of the MP3 | http://ultimateclassicrock.com/jimmy...ckback=tsmclip

I agree with Jimmy.They sound like sheet especially when you got to pay for them.

They are just fine to just listen to tunes with an ipod.I would not master my entire music collection with mp3 but I will encode them to wave files.128kbps is the lowest I go with music but I mostly encode at 320kbps.

Stick with Wave since there is no compression .Flac is ok since it alittle loss in the sound quality.

I notice that Madonna and Kelly Clarkston's new albums are on sale for $7.99. That is pretty horrible. They are just hoping someone buys them. Everytime you think that sales can't get worse, they do.

Since I store and listen to music on my laptop I prefer to keep Mp3 formats because otherwise I woud overexert my pc; it's not so bad because not all MP3s are ****ty, but if i could transfer everything on CD it wouldn't be worth.

New Steve Jobs Bio Claims He Hated Neil Young
by Jeff Giles March 25, 2015 11:46 AM

The public picture that’s been painted of Apple co-founder Steve Jobs is one of a brilliant entrepreneur with a distinctly ruthless streak, so it isn’t hard to imagine that he’d be annoyed by Neil Young‘s long crusade against the compressed audio that Apple’s iTunes store helped popularize.
According to the Daily Beast, that’s exactly what happened after Young went public with his distaste for lossy file formats. Quoting from the new biography Becoming Steve Jobs, which is written by Brent Schlender and Rick Tetzeli, the Beast offers a peek into how Jobs reacted after Young referred to iTunes’ audio as “compromised.”
“F— Neil Young, and f— his records,” Jobs reportedly fumed, claiming he was angry because Young had the nerve to “pop off in public like that without coming to talk to us about his technical concerns first.”
To his credit, Young didn’t just grouse about 21st century audio. He labored over his long-discussed Archives series for years before settling on Blu-ray as his preferred hi-res media format for the first volume, released as a 10-disc set in the summer of 2009 — and then he went a step further, lending his backing and approval to a heavily hyped, Kickstarter-backed high definition player dubbed the Pono.
In fact, after Jobs’ death in October 2011, Young claimed that toward the end of Jobs’ life, the two had been working together on an Apple device that could have made the Pono unnecessary. “Steve Jobs was a pioneer of digital music, but when he went home he listened to vinyl,” said Young. “I have to believe if he’d lived long enough, he would have tried to do what I’m trying to do.”


Read More: New Steve Jobs Bio Claims He Hated Neil Young | http://ultimateclassicrock.com/steve...ckback=tsmclip

Roadies Flourish During Record Industry’s Decline
by Jeff Giles March 25, 2015 12:55 PM

As music fans buy fewer albums and bands increasingly turn to concert revenue to make a living, one largely unseen sector of the industry is enjoying enhanced job security: roadies.
As a new Wall Street Journal report points out, the 21st century rise of the roadie reflects an overall shift in the industry that’s wiping out “cultural middlemen” like label executives while rewarding those with the skills to be “technical middlemen” between artists and their audience. It isn’t the flashiest type of employment, and for some — like managers and promoters — there can be a fair amount of risk involved, but the opportunities are definitely still there.
Citing reports from the Bureau of Labor Statistics and the Berklee College of Music, the WSJ places roadies — or “concert technicians,” as they’re increasingly known — in a fairly broad economic spectrum that can average between $57,000 and $175,000 a year, depending on one’s position. As an example, the article points to 40-year vet Tom Weber, who got his start filling in for a no-show crew member at a Kiss concert and is now an in-demand guitar tech who numbers Eddie Van Halen and Lyle Lovett among his clients.
While Weber’s one case of a tech near the top of his field, there are plenty of opportunities on the ground floor — and as the article notes, “few roadie jobs require formal credentials, so candidates with limited skills or experience can apply.” It adds up to a flourishing subset of a business that’s often portrayed as being on the continual verge of collapse.
“Employment opportunities in the live-music industry have never been better,” insisted Pollstar editor Gary Bongiovanni in the WSJ‘s report. “While record-company jobs have nearly disappeared, road- and tech-production-crew gigs continue to grow.”


Read More: Roadies Flourish During Record Industry's Decline | http://ultimateclassicrock.com/roadi...ckback=tsmclip

Wow.Thats interesting.Thanks for sharing.

The Mac is keeping their crew employed which is great.

It looks like fans rather see live shows then playing albums.

I cant say to much about the current artists outings because I'm not a fan of any but this is one good reason that the Mac is doing so great with this tour and thanks to Chris returning and making it happen for them.

I hope the Mac will win the tour of the year at the end of the year with Pollstar and Billboard.

I wonder why that is? I'd much rather listen to an album myself.

John

Well, you get to share a little bond with the your favourite artist and the songs, the way they are played and how they changed through time, details about who wrote them and why...

You're welcome!

Yes, I realized that fans rather see live shows then playing albums the last summer when I went seeing Aerosmith in Milan. They had released only 8 months prior their new album; I bought it for my best friend and it was very good, but the setlist had just two songs from their latest work and they played a brand new song never previously released and no one gave a ****, they only went crazy when they played the 80's hits, and in my opinion their 70's work is far better. People want to hear always the same old ****.

I'm glad for Fleetwood Mac too, but I don't think I'll ever see them live so all I have left is hope for a new album coming out.

Why Has Las Vegas Become a Home for Classic Rock?
by Dave Lifton

For generations of music fans, Las Vegas has always been seen as the place where showbiz, the antithesis of rock, reigned supreme. But the past few years have seen a shift in that way of thinking, with bands now flocking to Sin City in the form of high-profile residencies. With Journey set to become the latest group to take the plunge, it seems like a good time as any to look at the reasons for this change.
Mostly, it’s the simple passage of time that’s caused the shift. As the stars who ruled Vegas for decades aged, fresh names were required to get tourists into shows. Because the idea of the all-around entertainer no longer existed, and acts with no track record outside of Vegas were meeting with diminishing returns, it made sense for the casinos to look for other musicians with decades of success behind them as live draws.
“Much of the past stigma about Las Vegas being the place where acts go to die has faded,” says Tim Dressen, a Vegas enthusiast who, for 10 years, has hosted the popular Five Hundy by Midnight podcast. “If bands can play for fans who still love their music and make decent money doing it, the location probably doesn’t matter much. Vegas resorts are generally good at promoting live events, so tickets sell well, and the casinos booking these acts know that their fans are in their 30s, 40s and 50s. They’re likely to have some disposable income to spend not only on tickets, but on food, drinks, hotel rooms and gambling as well.”
But why travel to Vegas to see a band when it will eventually make its way to your town? Dressen — who has seen numerous concerts on his travels to Vegas over the years, including Sammy Hagar, the Scorpions and U2 – notes that it creates a different mindset when you’ve traveled cross-country for a concert rather than to have the concert come to you. And when coupled with Vegas’s singular vibrancy, it becomes a special event rather than just an ordinary night out.
“A lot of people are looking for an excuse to visit Las Vegas,” Dressen says. “And even if they’re going to Las Vegas mainly to see a band, the rest of the trip — the food, the gambling, the madness of the city — adds to the experience and makes it special.”
A good portion of the recent classic-rock activity has centered on the Joint, a 4,000-seat concert venue located inside the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino. Since February 2012, when Motley Crue sold out 12 shows in a two-and-a-half week stretch, the Joint has reached out to other hard rock bands. Def Leppard, Kiss and Guns N’ Roses all launched similar residencies to great success, with Motley Crue and GNR doing a second run of shows in 2013 and 2014, respectively.
While those bands can play to considerably more people on a nightly basis, Dressen notes that playing Vegas residencies offers musicians a chance to perform something besides the usual greatest-hits show.
“Def Leppard did a top-to-bottom performance of Hysteria every weekend for three weeks,” Dressen says. “Fans didn’t get to see that particular show elsewhere because they didn’t tour it. There are rumors that they plan to do the same with Pyromania in 2016, so it must have worked out.” (Def Leppard and Guns N’ Roses have released DVDs of their Vegas shows, so fans who didn’t make it to one of them can now see them.)


Read More: Why Has Las Vegas Become a Home for Classic Rock? | http://ultimateclassicrock.com/las-v...ckback=tsmclip

It seem like everyone's sister or brother open up a theater there.Its like the classic country artist took over Branson MO years ago.

Maybe Mick should open up a theater restaurant on the mainland in Vegas.

I'd like him to. Maybe then we would get a last live DVD of a Fleetwood Mac show...

Yes Thats the thing.They just want to hear the hits from the past.

That a good question.I haven't been to many concerts of any other artists lately and rather stay home and listen to the radio or fire up the iPod or give the turntable a spin or play a tape or two .I know it sounds sad and lazy but the shows are too expensive .Probably in the last 10 years I've only seen two other people live which are Keith Urban and comic Lewis Black.

I think I'm done with FM touring this year so far .Who knows what Stevie will do with her break time from the tour.

I would like t hit the local casinos for some cheap shows in the summertime.

Right on!

Isn't there incongruity in comparing live shows to records?

Live performances are fluid transitory events. Album are a stable art form.

Neil Young’s Pono Music Player Is Finally Available
by Michael Gallucci January 7, 2015 1:24 PM


More than two years after Neil Young unveiled his hi-def Pono music player on ‘The Late Show With David Letterman,’ deep-pocketed music fans can finally buy the thing.
Young announced the Pono back in October 2012 during an appearance on Letterman’s late-night show. A year came and went, and Young once again said his tiny yellow music player — which can play high-quality music files that the puny iPod can’t handle — would be on the way soon.
In March of last year, the product reached its Kickstarter goal in one day, and a pre-order date was all set.
Now, finally, the Pono is available. Or at least it will be on Monday. And as the Verge notes, it won’t be available everywhere — just 80 stores. And it’s not cheap. The price of owning a Pono is $399.
But wait, that’s not the end of it. What are you going to play on that expensive new music player? Probably not the MP3s you already own, since the player is equipped for hi-def files like FLAC (tech specs, if you’re interested: 24-bit 192kHz). You can still play your old MP3s, but chances are, you’ll want something a little better sounding than that.
You can convert what you already own, or as Young and Pono’s backers are hoping, you’ll go straight to their just-opened store to download high-quality audio files to fill your new tiny yellow player.
Seeing that albums are way pricier than their iTunes versions, stuffing the Pono can drain your budget in no time. Young’s ‘After the Gold Rush’ goes for $21.79. The Who‘s super-deluxe version of ‘Quadrophenia’ sells for $43.29. And AC/DC‘s new ‘Rock or Bust’ is a relative steal at $17.99, but still almost twice its iTunes’ cost. (Some individual songs are available for download, too.)
So why upgrade to an expensive portable music player as the rest of the world seems to be happy with just streaming their music? As Young explained to an audience at the CES electronics and technology show yesterday, ”I didn’t listen to music for the last 15 years because I hated the way it sounded, and it made me pissed off and I couldn’t enjoy it any more. I could only hear what was missing.”
He’s hoping there are music fans out there who feel the same way and, more importantly, are willing to pay for the privilege of hearing what they’ve been missing.


Read More: Neil Young's Pono Music Player Is Finally Available | http://ultimateclassicrock.com/neil-...ckback=tsmclip

so cool...
 

Tom Petty on Hi-Res Audio