tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-995615252839539172.post6318754683247663130..comments2024-03-09T08:32:09.187+00:00Comments on ratter: Just for the recordratterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09056842592399489363noreply@blogger.comBlogger19125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-995615252839539172.post-77151132302934600482013-05-01T17:32:56.841+01:002013-05-01T17:32:56.841+01:00I just stumbled upon this today. As written by a m...I just stumbled upon this today. As written by a man who has experienced life from WW2 to the present day, this was an extremely well considered essay touching on many topics near and dear to my heart. I often wonder at just how I came to have such a bond with music given that I was weaned on early 70s USA AM radio top 40, which was no walk in the park, let me assure you! But I absorbed it all for almost a decade until the post-punk explosion caught my ears and then off went the radio. The music I was buying never got airplay in the US, so why give them my time? By 1993 I stopped watching TV as well - that time was better spent listening to music. As our culture became more horrifying [and as I became more and more sensitive], I found that it paid huge dividends to ignore it to the best of my ability. I accept that my values have almost nothing to do with the dominant culture running the world.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-995615252839539172.post-6981109662034513532012-09-29T21:14:15.147+01:002012-09-29T21:14:15.147+01:00Funny, I have often thought about how much easier ...Funny, I have often thought about how much easier it must have been to come up with some new music in the 60s but really, (good) songwriting has always been difficult. The music scene has always been commercial too, at least the modern scene, since the 50s. The songwriters, like Lennon/McCartney who mostly did their own songs, people like Boyce and Hart who mostly wrote for others, and Page who mostly borrowed all did good work. It may have been a little easier to not get accused of musical plagiarism but I think it was never easy... just so many notes and phrases, as you said. I think the biggest horror is the theft of music that is so rampant and accepted today.. and it is a horror, we really need a remedy. Good writing.jbownoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-995615252839539172.post-48377353045735103442012-03-14T16:53:30.148+00:002012-03-14T16:53:30.148+00:00A truly excellent piece Jet!
I would add that mus...A truly excellent piece Jet!<br /><br />I would add that music at the moment (despite all the Cowellesque X Factor stuff) is actually going through quite a vibrant time. The internet has removed the need for record companies and i think it's that which causes people to bemoan the "death of the music industry". <br /><br />In actuality musicians have far more freedom and control than ever and really don't need a record company any more. They just need to build a good fanbase.<br /><br />Interesting sites like pledgemusic and kickstarter are offering genuine artefacts for fans direct from the artists, including good old vinyl and many more even more exciting experience based things! <br /><br />There is a swing back towards tangible product again by larger record companies, and the penchant for large box sets (like the recent pink floyd boxes) which previously would have only been available as promo items, is becoming more popular, although it is elitist because they usually cost vast amounts of cash!<br /><br />The main issue seems to be visibility on the high street, with the demise of most of the music shops (in the UK at least) the general public are pretty unaware of things that are not in the 'mainstream' world of x factor etc. <br /><br />The lack of a regular program like TOTP on TV is also a factor as well, in the old days we used to care who was number one etc and when bands who we followed (like the stranglers etc) appeared on TOTP it was a big thing and we felt like we had contributed to that in some way. Nowadays i think most people would be hard pushed to know who is at number one at all. And yes we have Jools Holland but it is a very cliquey muso program and not watched by the general public, that's the problem.<br /><br />So basically we need to crack the awareness thing and things will get better i guess?<br /><br />And maybe start some kind of campaign to get a TOTP type program back in telly!Dan Doughtyhttp://www.facebook.com/skinnyboychubbsnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-995615252839539172.post-24470676669687030522012-03-03T18:09:36.424+00:002012-03-03T18:09:36.424+00:00As a radio listener in the 1960's and a immedi...As a radio listener in the 1960's and a immediate convert to the pirates - Caroline first then Big L on the tranny - I have to defend the BBC where you say the <br /><br /><i>"corporation’s attitude towards music was painfully Dickensian. They had to be dragged kicking and screaming into the 20th century.<br /><br />The internal mentality at the Beeb meant in turn, that a large part of it’s output was of an ‘orchestral’ nature"</i><br /><br />The major inhibitor of playing records on the BBC was the record industry and the musicians union who limited the amount of recorded music via the infamous 'needle time'. The pirates ignored that and also often ignored playing any royalties so could play recorded music 24 hours a day.<br /><br />The reason BBC's output was largely orchestral was because they funded orchestras to play music because they couldn't use recordings.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-995615252839539172.post-69772022322629693022012-02-05T05:35:47.218+00:002012-02-05T05:35:47.218+00:00i read once that someone thought The Beatles and T...i read once that someone thought The Beatles and The Stranglers were two of the best British pop bands. in part that seems true, the arts and crafts of songwriting being the key ingredient in providing the shot-in-the-arm so to speak in an otherwise digitized and copy-paste format of modern popular music. the essential pop element, a hook, something that digs deep into the soul of the listener whilst listening - that was part of the fun in going to record stores and getting a fine slab of vinyl, the other part being the always-creative record sleeve/dustsleeve artworks and/or lyric sheets.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-995615252839539172.post-91326567213886230322011-12-17T00:55:54.669+00:002011-12-17T00:55:54.669+00:00Keep those old vinyl records! Move them one at a t...Keep those old vinyl records! Move them one at a time if you have to. And to hell with Simon Cowell and that crap. I'm proud to say that I've never even watched a single episode of 'that show'. Go to the pubs. Watch REAL bands.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-995615252839539172.post-46794021168407824572011-12-14T13:50:03.502+00:002011-12-14T13:50:03.502+00:00I got to the point of a housemove this week, where...I got to the point of a housemove this week, where fuelled by backpain I was about to throw out all my vinyl. Predictably, reminiscing ensued & I couldn't bring myself to do it.The reason was the loss of some truly great record covers and inner sleeves. I was too busy to be bothered by this when cds first arrived. <br /><br />The old record sleeves were scrutinised to the nth degree back in the day due to a lack of accessibilty to information, & it is the loss of imagination provided by these products and the stimulation they promoted I miss. <br /><br />The "meaningful alternative" to the vacuous immediacy of "a Cowell contrived" music industry is where the stranglers started: The pubs.The media to sell through, i'm not sure.<br /><br />"Freedom of choice - is what you've got, freedom from choice is what you want".Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-995615252839539172.post-49328686494023394332011-12-13T13:05:10.790+00:002011-12-13T13:05:10.790+00:00@ Robert Although Jet didn't deal with his rep...@ Robert Although Jet didn't deal with his reply to JR's question in his Ratter, he did do so on the evening at the Convention when it was asked. What he said, more-or-less, was that he wasn't sure exactly what it was - being that it was so long ago - but thought it was something by Buddy Holly, but couldn't remember exactly which one. I can add an 'extra' for you, he told me, that one of his biggest disappointments was that he had bought tickets to see Buddy Holly way back then, and never got to see him because of his premature demise.<br /><br />ratterAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-995615252839539172.post-86145476158218590142011-12-13T12:37:05.408+00:002011-12-13T12:37:05.408+00:00Hi again
This is a fascinating and well written a...Hi again<br /><br />This is a fascinating and well written article by Jet.<br />He says he had no idea the CD was going to wipe out the CBS balance sheet.<br />I wonder did anyone at all see what would happen when music became digital and would be easy to copy, file share etc.<br />Did the inventors not envisage the effect this would have, along with the arrival of home computers and the internet.<br /><br />I would be interested to know if Jet or anyone else could answer these questions.<br /><br />The Stranglers did see that technology would change things, and stated so with the release of Aural Sculpture and the manifesto along with it.<br /><br />Jim Morrison also talked about this during an interview.<br /><br />http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iS3dIyHpAgc<br /><br /><br />Pete Townsend recently had some interesting things to say during his speech<br />at the inaugural John Peel Lecture. <br /><br />http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4mXukYtOcsADarrennoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-995615252839539172.post-77576166916994735542011-12-12T12:39:49.222+00:002011-12-12T12:39:49.222+00:00Hello all.
I am glad to say that Vinyl has been ma...Hello all.<br />I am glad to say that Vinyl has been making a big comeback over the last couple of years, so much so that I would reckon that over 60% of new music by credible artists is being released on Vinyl again. I agree it almost died out in the 90s and into most of the 00s. There is also a big resurgance in reissued Vinyl of classic albums...(Aural Sculpture & Feline being amoung these this year). I think a lot of true music lovers have realised that MP3 is quick, convenient but that's all, the sound reproduction is poor (played on proper hi-fi equiment) it has no special warmth or excitement on recieving it, it ends up on your MP3 player then gets forgotten about, it's not really a record collection is it?<br />An album should be a body of work which you hold in your hands, with artwork, sleeve notes, lyrics. You only visit have to your local independant store (if your town still has one) to see the resurrection of Vinyl, also go online to the likes of What Records, Recordstore, Amazon, Diverse Vinyl, Rhino to see what I mean. <br />Which only leaves me to conclude....'Really hoping that Giants makes it's way to vinyl release!<br />The Stranglers have a awesome vinyl back catalogue, we'd all love to add a new release to our "record collections" Cheers AndyR1_Andynoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-995615252839539172.post-28801303411144860632011-12-11T23:02:44.687+00:002011-12-11T23:02:44.687+00:00Further to Jet's comment regarding skipping th...Further to Jet's comment regarding skipping the ads on youtube, I have a suggestion how to remove them.<br /><br />1. Install google chrome <br /><br />2. Download and install adblock plus<br /><br /><br /><br />This should remove all ads from youtube.<br /><br />...and without impediment you can enjoy <br />'How much is that doggie....' etc.Darrennoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-995615252839539172.post-73584530604883640692011-12-11T20:50:38.301+00:002011-12-11T20:50:38.301+00:00We as the music loving public, have been fortunate...We as the music loving public, have been fortunate enough to be living in an era where technology has had a maissive impact on the way we listen to and own the music we love. Some of that has been amazing in terms of the speed, ease and quality of the music we can access, but there have been massive downsides as well in terms of the physical product, the fun in collecting, the wow factor etc. Many will prefer the quick, clean way of buying music, but I like many feel that too much has been lost. It is also interesting just hiow many of the bands of 'our era' are compelled to go with the flow and have to join the way of the world and even have to release product digitally through their own websites/fan clubs etc. I trust that 'Swine' will be one off and that there will not be any future releases that are download only. Putting a Tesco CD will 'swine' written on it by me into my vast Stranglers collection is just not on.<br />I was fortunate enough to be brought up in the music business. My father was News Editor at the NME for 35 years and so I experienced a lot in terms of the changing industry bith musically and the way the record buying changed. My father was responsible for forming the first pop chart in Nov 52, apporx 5 years or so before the Beeb picked it up. At that time the NME was the sole provider of a hit parade as it was called and that itself was the start of big changes to the business. As Jet eluded, vinyl and the single just exploded in the early 60's adn things never looked back from there. During the 70's we had those wonderful gatefold double/triple albums with fantastic sleeves, booklets etc, and then in the late 70's collectors had a minefield with coloured vinyl, picture discs etc. I used to travel miles to the best collector record shops in an around the London area. It was fun! Personally I miss all of that, but the CD has been a good format in terms of the sound quality it gives us. It is still possible to produce great sleeves(inlays) and all the information that albums can do just smaller....but downloads no sorry - just too impersonal and thoughless if you ask me. Growing up in the 70's was fun inetrms of the music I was listenting too and what my dad was bringing home and talking about. Bu the late 70's I was going to see everthing from The Stranglers, Gary Numan, Deep Purple, Genesis and the new NWOBHM bands, thanks to my old man being able to get passes<br />76 to 84 has to be the music fantastic 9 years for people of our age (47!!!) in terms of the diversity it offered. I just feel that whilst there is still great music out there, a lot of it doesn't stand a chance and with modern technology, the internet etc, you have to go really searching for it, rather than the likes of the mainstream TV companies forcefeeding the crap that they do.<br />Live music now, is more important than ever. I think true music fans appreciate that this is now the best way to really appreciate good music, and real bands play real music.Very few bands have the ability to still play live and sell records (sorry Cd's (sorry music))which is a huge shame. Unforutatley the Stranglers arent in that category. Yes they can play live and are still as good as ever, the way the music industry is now means that not enough 'new' people get to hear their music.The Mike Peters story about 45rpm in that The Alarm released a song a few years back under a false name with a bunch of teenagers on the cover and it did immensely well, until the embarrassed radio stations etc were told the truth and they dropped it like a stone. Enough said really.<br />Dave Johnson, Devon.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-995615252839539172.post-27403972992918707102011-12-11T01:48:29.263+00:002011-12-11T01:48:29.263+00:00@Anonymous
I know. That is why i emphasised AS A ...@Anonymous<br />I know. That is why i emphasised AS A SINGLE!!junkmalehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11177949865315728718noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-995615252839539172.post-64439065153614828892011-12-11T00:42:16.154+00:002011-12-11T00:42:16.154+00:00Dear Jet,
Thanks for the awesome article and exte...Dear Jet,<br /><br />Thanks for the awesome article and extended answer to the Q&A.<br /><br />It was me who put the question forward and I was happy with the answers given at the convention (I think “probably something by Buddy Holly”, was part of your original answer) but this is brilliant!<br /><br />I’m one of those rare creatures who still buys CDs. Although, I promptly digitize them and put them on my mp3 player there’s nothing quite like having something tangible in your hands - cover art/booklet/lyrics etc. I’ve only ever bought one download track and that was your last single!<br /><br />The first single I ever had was ‘Two Little Boys’ By Rolf Harris (I was four at the time). The first album was ‘The White Album’ by The Beatles.<br /><br />The first music I got into for myself in a big way was The Stranglers. And, although my tastes have spread further afield in the convening years, your music is still just as important to me.<br /><br />Keep on bashing those skins man!<br />Best Wishes,<br /><br /><br />EiTCElvis in The Cloudshttp://www.youtube.com/user/elvisinthecloudsnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-995615252839539172.post-22371460960640490302011-12-10T23:32:58.369+00:002011-12-10T23:32:58.369+00:00i've long since wanted to live in a world wher...i've long since wanted to live in a world where jet calls the shots.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-995615252839539172.post-42216458711852535782011-12-10T19:42:31.426+00:002011-12-10T19:42:31.426+00:00For what it's worth My First Record was 'P...For what it's worth My First Record was 'Puppet on a String' by Sandie Shaw. Well, I would have been just about three at the time. I've just downloaded it from i-tunes. I've no idea how much of the few pence the download cost me will get to Ms Shaw and the writer(s) of the piece - whomever they were. But that surely is the point here. None of us would be happy gong to work and be told that we would no longer be paid for all of our hours we toiled. Note to file sharers perhaps and note also when the riots were happening earlier this year, the papers interviewed people who stated that their motivation to steal was simply because they could. They will only stop if they are stopped. Some people really do expect something for nothing. There will always be those with low morals and I think the music industry will never be able to properly counter that. Thirty years ago the MU produced stickers saying 'Home taping is killing music' Plus ca change etc. etc. Cripes - this is sonding a tad depressing. Time to have a glass of red, put another record on. TV resolutely turned off. Here's to the eagerly awaited release of 'Giants' (box set pre-ordered!) and the British and Euro tours in the Spring. <br /><br />Cheers, Robert<br /><br />PS - Jet - your piece was facinating but you don't seem to have ansered JR's original question!<br /><br />See also Radio 4 i-PM earlier this afternoon. This included an interview with a chap who collected very early sound recording and playback equipment. You can probably hear it on BBC's i-player.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-995615252839539172.post-66464912380137001582011-12-10T18:59:54.886+00:002011-12-10T18:59:54.886+00:00Actually Retro Rockets IS on CD (Decades Apart):
...Actually Retro Rockets IS on CD (Decades Apart):<br /><br />http://amzn.to/rCRP4AAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-995615252839539172.post-45805909367126852332011-12-10T12:18:35.869+00:002011-12-10T12:18:35.869+00:00Rattus Norvegicus was a remarkably good LP. Why no...Rattus Norvegicus was a remarkably good LP. Why not release The Stranglers' complete United Artists works in high resolution on blu-ray music discs, with original stereo and new 5.1 mixes?oxenholmenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-995615252839539172.post-32209419773353723812011-12-10T11:51:31.267+00:002011-12-10T11:51:31.267+00:00Good points Jet, but a bit ironic considering Retr...Good points Jet, but a bit ironic considering Retro Rockets (as a single) was download only???junkmalehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11177949865315728718noreply@blogger.com