Hello, as you may know from the"about me section" I am a writer and a poet. I have currently one collection of Poetry out called "Still Growing" which is available from lulu.com and I am in the process of writing its follow up as we speak.
Over the coming weeks and months other than have extended rants at the music industry and various other organisations, I will hopefully give you all an insight into the mind of a poet as he puts together his "difficult" second collection.
For now that's where I am.
Thursday 25 September 2008
The Sony Music Rip Off I'm Not Buying
As some of you may know I am a massive fan of Bob Dylan. The guy is a genius; I have all his official albums and have seen him in concert twice.
I openly admit I have always been a sucker for "Special Editions" and "Deluxe Editions" of albums and not just for Dylan. If there is a special edition of an album I want I will do my utmost to get that version instead of the bog standard one. I have even taken a shine to the new-trend of limited edition box set versions of albums that are being released. You know the sort, apart from the cd album you get a DVD, an extra cd of unreleased music, the album on vinyl, a badge, a hardback book, the kitchen sink etc...
Now I, like many others I know do my fair share for the music industry and its artists' in purchasing Cd's and buying tickets for gigs, festivals and the like, but something I have just come across has angered me so much I had to share it with you.
You may know, or may not even care, but the afore-mentioned Bob Dylan has a cd coming out in October. It is Vol 8 of an Official Bootleg series of cds that Sony have been releasing over the last decade or so. The cds contain never-before released versions of Dylan's songs, either in the studio or in concert and to fans like me are real treasure troves. Needless to say I have all the previous editions and will be purchasing this edition to sit nicely along side Vol 1-7.
Imagine for a moment my excitement at the news that aside to the 2cd version Sony would be releasing a "Limited Deluxe 3CD Edition with a hard backed book of Dylan Vinyl Artwork" The 3rd Cd (I was informed by the advertisement) would include 12 extra tracks not available anywhere else including the 2 cd version. I was jumping for joy!!!! This feeling did not last very long.....
Now if I am aloud to digress slightly, for these "extra cd/hard backed book/postcard artwork/Limited/Deluxe/All singing dancing Edition thingamabobs you can usually expect to pay around £20-30 depending on how much extra you get. Compare that to the usual £8 -£12 you pay for the standard versions and most of you would find that too much to pay for what you get extra, and I would be included to agree with you. I have paid up to £20 for something like this and would be quite prepared to do that again with this Dylan cd......
However, the price for this Dylan "Limited Edition" is £119!!!!!! For an extra cd and a Hard back book!!!! Is this the way Sony Music wants to combat Music Piracy!!? The standard 2cd edition is £16.99 RRP and in most online music stores you can pick it up from £12.99. The 3cd version on the online stores are selling from £89.99 upwards still a massive rip off, and in my opinion a rip off too far.
This kind of obscene pricing by Sony should leave everyone in no doubt that the Music industry itself is more to blame for the so-called music piracy epidemic than the general public ever was or ever will be.
Most Dylan fans (including me) will want the 3cd version and Sony knows that. So in their infinite greed they have decided that we, the "music buying public" will dig our hands into our ever-emptying pockets and fork-out the amount of money what would be more appropriate for a deposit on a car!
Fuck off Sony music this is one step too far!! I am not buying it!!!
I am now personally calling for ALL Special Editions and the like to be banned!!!! If it's not on the actual Cd then it isn't on the cd!!! If the music label that is releasing the cd has 12 extra tracks then make the only version the 3cd version with the "extra" 12 tracks at a reasonable price, or don't bother at all! I would suggest in this case around £15-£18 would be reasonable. This kind of fair pricing would go more towards combating online and other music piracy than the totally obscene pricing we are seeing here with this Dylan CD.
I openly admit I have always been a sucker for "Special Editions" and "Deluxe Editions" of albums and not just for Dylan. If there is a special edition of an album I want I will do my utmost to get that version instead of the bog standard one. I have even taken a shine to the new-trend of limited edition box set versions of albums that are being released. You know the sort, apart from the cd album you get a DVD, an extra cd of unreleased music, the album on vinyl, a badge, a hardback book, the kitchen sink etc...
Now I, like many others I know do my fair share for the music industry and its artists' in purchasing Cd's and buying tickets for gigs, festivals and the like, but something I have just come across has angered me so much I had to share it with you.
You may know, or may not even care, but the afore-mentioned Bob Dylan has a cd coming out in October. It is Vol 8 of an Official Bootleg series of cds that Sony have been releasing over the last decade or so. The cds contain never-before released versions of Dylan's songs, either in the studio or in concert and to fans like me are real treasure troves. Needless to say I have all the previous editions and will be purchasing this edition to sit nicely along side Vol 1-7.
Imagine for a moment my excitement at the news that aside to the 2cd version Sony would be releasing a "Limited Deluxe 3CD Edition with a hard backed book of Dylan Vinyl Artwork" The 3rd Cd (I was informed by the advertisement) would include 12 extra tracks not available anywhere else including the 2 cd version. I was jumping for joy!!!! This feeling did not last very long.....
Now if I am aloud to digress slightly, for these "extra cd/hard backed book/postcard artwork/Limited/Deluxe/All singing dancing Edition thingamabobs you can usually expect to pay around £20-30 depending on how much extra you get. Compare that to the usual £8 -£12 you pay for the standard versions and most of you would find that too much to pay for what you get extra, and I would be included to agree with you. I have paid up to £20 for something like this and would be quite prepared to do that again with this Dylan cd......
However, the price for this Dylan "Limited Edition" is £119!!!!!! For an extra cd and a Hard back book!!!! Is this the way Sony Music wants to combat Music Piracy!!? The standard 2cd edition is £16.99 RRP and in most online music stores you can pick it up from £12.99. The 3cd version on the online stores are selling from £89.99 upwards still a massive rip off, and in my opinion a rip off too far.
This kind of obscene pricing by Sony should leave everyone in no doubt that the Music industry itself is more to blame for the so-called music piracy epidemic than the general public ever was or ever will be.
Most Dylan fans (including me) will want the 3cd version and Sony knows that. So in their infinite greed they have decided that we, the "music buying public" will dig our hands into our ever-emptying pockets and fork-out the amount of money what would be more appropriate for a deposit on a car!
Fuck off Sony music this is one step too far!! I am not buying it!!!
I am now personally calling for ALL Special Editions and the like to be banned!!!! If it's not on the actual Cd then it isn't on the cd!!! If the music label that is releasing the cd has 12 extra tracks then make the only version the 3cd version with the "extra" 12 tracks at a reasonable price, or don't bother at all! I would suggest in this case around £15-£18 would be reasonable. This kind of fair pricing would go more towards combating online and other music piracy than the totally obscene pricing we are seeing here with this Dylan CD.
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