‘Nobody Is Scrutinizing This’: How Labels Pay to Get Songs on the Radio

[semente]

Just saw this in my feed.

I'd once read about large corporations taking control of cinemas, and how hard it was for indie/alternative films to be screened in the US. Now it's the radio...

 

This normalisation of taste and culture by the lowest common denominator is most troubling. Numb, uneducated societies are easy pray for populist politicians...

 

‘Nobody Is Scrutinizing This’: How Labels Pay to Get Songs on the Radio

 

https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-features/pay-for-play-how-labels-pay-songs-radio-871457/

[S Davidson]

‘Nobody Is Scrutinizing This’

Maybe the wrong forum?

Music Analysis - Objective & Subjective 

 

Thanks,

S.A.M. I am. (safe as a mother's milk...)

[AudioDoctor]

Fat, Dumb, and Lazy seems to be the way most Americans choose to go through life...

[Ralf11]

Hold my beer and watch this!

[S Davidson]

20 hours ago, AudioDoctor said:

Fat, Dumb, and Lazy seems to be the way most Americans choose to go through life...

despite Payola ...? Gotta be some exceptions. Even exceptional ones Lol! OTOH maybe is the right forum after all.

 

"Is it just me? Or does he really look that much better in Aluminum?"

I'm really reluctant to suggest anybody's attire, but when Randy Newman [whom I really like] and I guess later Joe Cocker whom everybody likes sang "You can leave your hat on," surely didn't mean "unless it's tin foil?" 

 

SAM

 

 

 

[S Davidson]

Almost forgot; earlier today I'd read "Seriously, this place is all about finding the best version of your favorite music."

That was in a forum subforum whatever "about [possible] bias [seriously] for/against a remaster."

I thought that was a crazy suggestion for opinions about opinions but then on 2nd thought what drives traffic around clicks & likes and all that stuff. I don't have a website at least I don't think I do so not much concern; thought about it and SEO and all that but "subjective" and "analysis" tend to be contravalent or some word like that I'd love to cook up some neologism. seriously.

Meaning I hadda chuckle when the one audiophile asked (another): what you listen to, components or music? Having heard (really just read) a buncha gobbledygook about loudness wars that got me thinking. Most of my CDs "are of the old" variety so luckily apparently I'd avoided most of that. Earbuds always caused me earwax pain was apparently good fortune. 

Audiophile wars. Or what's really at stake Lol!

I think (now I've finally once in my life) got 1/2way decent speakers might like "compare" so-called good/better/best digital renderings. To see sometimes if there is some extra-special mastery in them-there-hills. Kinda doubtful beings older music seems somewhat exempt loudness wars. I already found what might be some (rare?) exceptions.

[AudioDoctor]

2 hours ago, S Davidson said:

despite Payola ...? Gotta be some exceptions. Even exceptional ones Lol! OTOH maybe is the right forum after all.

 

"Is it just me? Or does he really look that much better in Aluminum?"

I'm really reluctant to suggest anybody's attire, but when Randy Newman [whom I really like] and I guess later Joe Cocker whom everybody likes sang "You can leave your hat on," surely didn't mean "unless it's tin foil?" 

 

SAM

 

 

 

 

There are ALWAYS exceptions inspite of Payola...

[S Davidson]

Hmm. That's kinda what I was thinking.

 

I did find out today there's a "Remaster" of John Cale's Paris 1919. 

 

I hardly know anything of the "more esoteric."

 

Years ago; after scanning the old red-colored RS Record Guide, I think, Paris 1919 came highly recommended so on a lark got the vinyl. Of course much later became familiar w/ his killer (my fave except maybe Alison Crowe's) "Hallelujah" and a few others. But "Hanky Panky Nohow" and tittle track really affected me moodily. The others maybe not-so-much. I can't really even go so far as say I'm a dedicated Cale fan, but could be because I'm dense. Still "Hanky Panky Nohow" floored me. Then I read today Lowell George plays the slide on the LP. Wow. Now Lowell George (pretty much always when he could stand straight) is pure American icon (in my living room or whatever) and I think signifies something similar to many others. Loss of Otis Redding, Duane Allman, and Lowell George (looking back) tends to shatter my mind but I'm overemotional. Living in the past, yes, here & now seems bland. Comparatively. 

One time, had the chance to attend the Julliard String Quartet's performance of JS Bach's Die Kunst Der Fuge [at the Music Hall].

That kinda changed everything. Nothing could have prepared me for it. 'Cept 'shrooms. No stereo system (since I bought said performance [in studio] on CD) renders anything remotely "like" that. Hard to get past baroque classical after that. Almost borderline fixation. 

Oh, one other thing; there's a Dutch or maybe Norwegian TV show, where they recorded (live TV audience) Sam & Dave doing "Hold On I'm Coming" and maybe 2 or 3 songs total -- extended versions. It's on Youtube. Anyhow was easily the most energizing "soul review" show I ever saw tho many have said James Brown was equally electrifying. Just couldn't ever find him burning it down on video was all. Otis doing "Satisfaction" on TV (I think) came a close 2nd. Last, for pure vocal spellbinder, bar none, was Jackie Wilson doing "Danny Boy" note-for-note all 5 octaves 'an all on Top of The Pops [or whatever (also Youtube)]. And Loretta (the one where she wears the green dress) "Coal Miner's Daughter" seemed the most effortless and natural singing. All before my time, but sometimes I like to try to expose "youngsters" even younger that-type-stuff and usually they're nearly (tho not quite) as dumbstruck. Something stirring in what's "organic." Or gives the illusion. Things THAT powerful it's almost no longer illusion; it's visceral. Ry Cooder did the gig w/ the Staples Singers "Jesus On The Mainline" never quite left me. Linda Ronstadt's Greatest Hits record may be lb/lb my number 1 favorite single LP simply BECAUSE everything's perfect Lol! Or something along the lines Sonny Boy II blowing harp "No hands!" comes to mind. He had his own Flour Hour [how's that for Flour Power?] on the radio, of course, and gotta wonder if he ever got any Payola before he'd decided to go back to Arkansas so he "Could die," as apparently his friend was told. There was a nationally syndicated King Biscuit radio show when I was a kid, 70's, seemed like a good program and only later could I know the provenance. I think they probably eschewed Payola. Daddy Bigbucks. He was the main character. Wore a tinfoil hat, drove a DeLorean. True Story.

[S Davidson]

Only RECENTLY did we FINALLY once-upon-a-time in life get some "hifi" (I'm assuming nomenclature = audiophile-styled) speakers ... so this seemed like 

a) the friendliest (or at least most cordial) generally meaning more candid while entertaining still willing to cut thru some beeswax

b) so one of the more blunt about what's REALLY subjective vs. objective 

forums around. 

It's hardly fair to harshly critique a lot of "gobbledygook elsewhere" but there's info, then there's informed, and sometimes laws of large numbers indicates truth by consensus gets murky.

 

By hifi I mean really really entry-level-hifi but we re-capped - or explicitly - put new electrolytic capacitors, measured [w/ ESR meter the "new" ones verifying close-to-spec uF as possible < 5% more like <1% L/R and I'll assume is called "cap matching"] crossovers while keeping the old (but good) bass drivers, bought new [OEM] tweeters and [somewhat slightly] upgraded the batting i.e., insulation on our 2002 JBL "ported" floor models $699/list/pr. ... sounded a lot better than before so we'd call them "mint" now although even the new tweeters are "cheap." ... And [FWIW] coupling them w/ a pair BA bookshelf CR-65 list $200/pr. whatever. Boston Acoustics came highly recommended, good-but-cheap, and the mid/high on the JBLs seem to BE "well-augmented in that combo." So technically speaking, we're "approaching" a $1,000 speaker system but "audiophiles" seem to disagree about whether-or-no "stacking" speakers this way is ... well ... actually cost-effective. Personally I THINK it is but opening a whole new thread and having a debate about it seems counter-intuitive, counter-productive ... Despite the fact the whole idea of "pairing random [or better various] pairs" of speakers and running 4X instead of 2X doesn't seem very well explored/explained/investigated bla bla bla. Explicated w/in the forums, I mean. Manufactures OF COURSE aren't going to recommend it. There's no job security or built-in obsolescence behind the concept. So there's bound to be some (or maybe plenty?) knee-jerk dismissiveness out-of-the-gate. So nobody like to open a can of worms Lol! Analysis/music/subjective/objective is moot unless/until "one HAS some gear" and all I can fathom is there's DRASTIC improvements in mine of late Lol! ... I've (maybe) got some questions about sub/obj analysis ... just not sure we've even crossed the threshold.

It's all good.