Is today's music model a repeat of the 60's?

[Magic]

In the 60's, music was geared for the hit single. Artists were pumping out masses of songs hoping to get the number 1 hit single. It wasn't unusual for a band or artist of the 60's to make 2 or 3 albums a year or more.

Lets take The Beatles as a good example: in 1963 they released 3 albums, all these albums contained hit singles. In 1964, they released a whopping 10 albums, all of which contained songs that hit the music charts.


The Beatles weren't the only ones making hit singles......it was the trend of the 60's.


Today, bands are releasing albums in multiple formats; from the EP, to the studio album, to digital downloads, to 'best of' albums, to box CD/DVD sets, to ultimate collections. The trend today is to release a "sneak peek" song for radio play and to purchase, then another song and another song...........then the whole album.

My question is......is this new trend just another business model which resembles the 60's and an attempt to release hit singles?

 

[Harkat]

Personally I put it to greed.
Record labels get the bands to make as many albums as they can per year.\
More albums = more money
Then they release a 'sneek peak' and allow people to buy that = more money.
Then they all the purchase of a single = more money.
Then another single = more money.
More hit singles = more people buying the song = more money.
Then the album = more money.
More hit singles per album = more people buying = more money.
More albums = more chance of a hit song = more money.
Rinse and repeat.

I can't see this as a repeat of the 60's because record labels are only interested in money. If they werent then why isnt today's music more influential and creative?
Why do some bands complain that the record labels are bullying and manipulating them?
Todays pop music isnt lifting the music bar as it was in the 60's, so why would it be a repeat of the 60's?

 

[LG]

The business model i-tunes uses is definitely a throwback to the days before long playing records became the dominant format. Before that bands main objectives were to create hit songs that their management would take around to radio stations and sometimes Pay the DJ's to play it a certain number of times a day. Once a band was successful they would continue to release single after single cashing in while they had momentum.

The biggest thing I see in music is a degradation of the recording quality from the analog days of the 70's, and losing the value of a well thought out written complete album all for the sake of generating money from a hit song.

i-tunes should Never have been allowed to sell single songs. That is taking us back where we started and is not good for music in the long run.

They should feel ashamed of themselves for what they have done, and the record labels should fire every executive that led them into the digital age, they are beyond incompetent.

Fortunately music will survive, it has always been part of our culture and always will be. And it's only in our lifetimes that musicians and the record labels have acquired Massive amounts of wealth, you just have to look back at the great composers to realize they had to struggle just to live and support their families like we do today.

 

[Kuaizi]

Fortunately music will survive, it has always been part of our culture and always will be. And it's only in our lifetimes that musicians and the record labels have acquired Massive amounts of wealth, you just have to look back at the great composers to realize they had to struggle just to live and support their families like we do today.

That's a good thing to point out LG. Alot of the great composers had to work crappy jobs to make ends meet while they wrote their music. They were writing it for the love of the music, and because they had something they wanted to share and express with music.
Artists now just want fame and lots of money, which is why they have gone back to the singles format. To be famous is something that has been put on a pedestal, it's something that has snuck into our culture in the US and poisoned us! Everyone gets this seed of desire to make it rich and become famous, we all are fed the lie that every single person can "follow their dreams" and make it big.
A new craptacular song that sums it all up... no longer do we want to be millionaires, it's just NOT enough!


I have to say, what a BULLSHIT song!! :mad

Back in the 60's, new forms of music were coming up and musicians had to be creative and talented to be noticed. The hard work had to be put in by everyone to be successful. These days you just fiddle with a guitar and karaoke a lot on youtube and production companies can try and analyze and pick up joe shmoe beiber off the street and try to make as much money off of him before he fizzles and the teenie boppers with their short attention spans move on to something else.
One of the key differences is for the 60's, those singles are still listened to and sought out now, and are standing the tests of time. Do you think these kids will actually be throwing on a Justin Beiber, Kanye West or Britney Spears album when they are 50? I highly doubt it!!

 

[Harkat]

^^^^ seconded!

 

[METALPRIEST]

^^ Third...I see it as alot of greed too and also see a bit of the 60's in the fluff department which the 60's had alot of. Every decade had their pop stars , teen idols and singles.

But we called them 45's.

 

[Kuaizi]

^^ Third...I see it as alot of greed too and also see a bit of the 60's in the fluff department which the 60's had alot of. Every decade had their pop stars , teen idols and singles.

But we called them 45's.

I agree there MP, but at least the fluff of the 60's was more respectable and the subject matter of their songs wasn't like how it is today, where it just got flushed to a most heinous level!

 

[METALPRIEST]

^^ No doubt about that....I have CD's by band s like Heman's Hermits and at times it sounds like Mozart depending on who it's compared with.

 

[Mr. Shadow]

Today's music sucks.

 

[joe]

I don't follow the music industry as much as I used to so my comment may not be relevant. I don't and haven't seen any changes in the music industry. It's alway been about the hit song or album for the record labels. Yes, somewhat slightly different business model because of the musical formats and technology of today. Bottom line, the conglomeration of record labels is about maximizing profit. No different than any other multi-national corporations.