Pete Townshend calls Apple 'a vampire'

[dipsydoodle]

The Who guitarist Pete Townshend has urged Apple's iTunes to use its power to help new bands instead of "bleeding" artists like a "digital vampire".

Townshend made the comments in BBC 6 Music's inaugural John Peel Lecture, named in honour of the legendary DJ.

He also argued against unauthorised file-sharing, saying the internet was "destroying copyright as we know it".

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-15528101

[NYC_SKP]

1. I gather he'd like to charge more per song than $0.99???

Odd, because if he's arguing in favor of digital rights to music, iTunes helped extinguish the former free access to any number of music files, IMHO.

[PoliticAverse]

2. I thought 'home taping' was 'killing music'...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Home_Taping_Is_Killing_Music

[GodlessBiker]

3. And I thought it was the record player itself that was killing music. Allowing people to hear ...

the musician's art, through listening off another's Victrola, without having to pay for the privilege at a performance.

[ProgressiveProfessor]

4. Even if he was the the Silicon Valley equivalent to Daddy Warbucks, what does it matter

[davidwparker]

5. In my opinion, the problem with artist and iTunes comes

down to this:

Artists would like to put out an album with 3 good songs and 7 crap songs.

iTunes allows consumers to buy the 3 good songs and pass on the crap songs.

Therefore, iTunes forces artists to put our COMPLETE offerings that their fans would appreciate. I have no regard for artists who cannot see the value of iTunes.

[Confusious]

6. Once paid $20 dollars for one song

1 song on the album was good, the rest was crap. My album buying slowed to almost nothing after that.

[davidwparker]

10. Agreed. iTunes is the way. If an artist can't deliver, then

buy the songs you like and ignore the rest.

[thelordofhell]

7. Artists don't think their art is crap

"Artists would like to put out an album with 3 good songs and 7 crap songs"
No....They would love to have all their songs off their albums to be hits. It will never happen though, it's the nature of art, but don't let that stop you from bitching about songs that aren't up to your snuff. I'll keep liking an artist for their entire artistic output, not just their greatest hits.

[davidwparker]

9. Unless it is a concept album, like The Wall or Dark side of

the moon, artists know what is good work and bad work. Lazy artists will put good work on an album, along with filler, and keep the remainder of the good songs for the next album.

Exceptions to the rule, of course, but please. iTunes is just a distribution method.

[thelordofhell]

12. "Lazy artists"

That's all I need to hear from you..........goodbye

[Bluenorthwest]

8. Click the link. Townsend is not talking about compensation

he is talking about the supporting elements of the music business that Apple does not do. Support for new artists, all manner of slack left by the record companies and not picked up by those such as Apple who picked up the cash but never joined in the culture and art of the music, they just sell it. That's what Pete's talking about, not wanting to sell his own songs. He's rich, he's established. He knows that some of the industry elements that got him where he is are not available to new artists in the 'i-Tunes' age. An industry that is happy to profit from a garden it is unwilling to seed or tend is in fact vampire like, and Apple is 75% of all online sales, they are the industry.
Pete is among the class who do see benefit from iTunes, what he is concerned with is Apple not seeing the value in the artists, and in the growth of the art itself. He is making excellent points, none of which have to do with income for his level of artist, and everything to do with others becoming his level of artist, having had the support to create his level of art.

[davidwparker]

11. Not at all true. I listen to non-secular, non-mainstream

music and have NO problem getting my albums through iTunes.

In the iTunes age, it also opens these artists to electronic distribution from their websites. Apple (computers in general) make it so much easier to record music to be distributed through the web. If you truly have talent, you will be heard.

The digital age, the web, and iTunes. Don't buy his argument or yours.