CD R.I.P.

So the CD is dead, or at least terminally ill. For the past 6 years the format has been on its way out. Some consumers want it gone and haven't purchased one in years, others still support the format. One group that desperately is holding on to the CD is the record labels.

The CD represents their business model -- a model they refuse to evolve and develop so it can be legitimate in the new century. The old rules don't apply anymore. Bands and artists do not need the label to break them, do not need to embrace the top 40 format on Radio (another format in big trouble), need to give up ownership of their masters, or to be locked into long-term deals that pay nothing. And the labels did it to themselves. They stopped developing REAL talent. They became used car salesmen. They took an artist and simply made it into a product. Forget about being a true vocalist, musician or writer; to make it on a label the past few years all you need to do is follow their rules of promotion. That is what the vast majority of music the labels push is; promotional product. It is not real and in many cases, it is not lasting music. The labels no longer cultivate the talent and give artists a chance to grow and develop naturally. In today's music climate, a legacy artist like The Who would have been dropped after their 3rd album due to poor sales and a lack of commercial appeal and the world would have been robbed of the chance to hear their 4th album "Tommy" -- an album that changed Rock (and made millions for the record label). Does anyone really think Justin Timberlake is legitimate? Is he real? NO. Timberlake is a complete joke. What does he bring to the table? What is lasting about the crap he and his producers have produced? He is a product, plain and simple. The media and the publicists that control it have been telling you to like him, that he is the best thing since sliced bread (although they have nothing to back that up) and that he is good looking (even though he looks like an inbred). They hammer it down your throat. A few million people are suckers. But with that heavy promotion machine you would think he would have sold more albums in a country of over 300 million people. Maybe even with all the promotion, the majority still sees past the hype and can safely say he sucks (By the way, why the hell would anyone want to tune into Timberlake's HBO concert special?).

Timberlake and the heavy handed promotion behind him is a glaring example of why the record business is in huge trouble. Real music fans are turning away. They aren't sheep. They want music and they want it to be real. They are finding the real deal on the internet and at clubs. The executives at the label continue to live in fantasy land convincing themselves that the consumer wants to spend up to $20 on a single CD with maybe one radio friendly track and 12 others of filler. The sales aren't there and continue to dwindle. The labels are greedy and short-sighted because there is no reason to continue selling CDs in this era at upwards of $20 especially when music fans can freely trade files and download individual tracks for $.99. Hello?! Maybe slash your CD prices by at least half and you won't see such a rapid decline in sales. Of course the bigger problem is, are there any good new choices of talent to choose from? Because if there are, you aren't finding them at Walmart. Another reason the CD's death is speeding up; record stores are gone!

But the labels still have assets. Their publishing catalogues are like gold and of course, they have catalogue. The mighty catalogue. Who is more of an important artist to BMG/Sony, Justin Timberlake or Elvis Presley? Will Justin be moving a million units per year 30 years after his death? The labels should spend some time looking at their catalogues. Yeah, the labels will continue to issue hits compilations for The Beach Boys and Elvis Presley for years as the casual consumer takes the bait every time, however, those types of legacy artists are where they are at because of a large fan base that developed over years. You may get some of the hardcore fans to make a purchase of another hits compilation if you add an unreleased bonus track, but you will move units if you open the vaults and give the real fan base something to be excited about. The problem is most vault releases will not sell the 6 or 7 figures worth of units (unless you are talking about The Beatles....) the labels want. The labels do not want to spend $100,000 mixing and mastering 30 year old tapes if they are only going to potentially move 50,000+ units. Is this the only way? Here is a question, other than The Beatles; do labels ever really promote vault releases? They are pumping their money into Timberlake and Beyonce campaigns. The labels no longer promote music, they promote talentless pawns.

What is my position on CDs? Personally, I love them. Not the round piece of plastic. I love what the CD still represents -- Product. I love physical product. The album once meant something. The artwork, the sequencing of the tracks, the liner notes, etc. Musicians treated the album like a piece of art. Of course there were always Pop artists that labels promoted for the moment just to move some units before the 15 minutes ran out, but there were also a lot of legitimately talented artists and bands that were producing important work and this important work was selling. A Led Zeppelin album was a home run for the label, and yet, the label never meddled with the creative process of that band. How many bands have that freedom in today's climate? U2, Pearl Jam or Radiohead? Only a handful, the rest are playing by the major labels' rules. So I am holding on to the format because I will miss the physical product when it is gone. I love my iPod and certainly have downloaded plenty of music, but when the CD officially dies, the album will die with it. That will be a sad day.