Home Music Lane

It's all about the music, dude! Sit down, relax and listen to some tunes.

[ Follow Ups ] [ Post Followup ] Thread: [ Display  All  Email ] [ Music Lane ]
[ Alert Moderator ]

You're not seeing the big picture. Jazz record labels became unprofitable/unsustainable in the '60s

Stop focusing on me personally or a tiny handful of jazz records and take a look at what really happened with regard to music commercially in the '60s. One view that matters more than individual records that were exceptions to the rule is to look at entire record labels. Blue Note was sold to Liberty Records in 1967 (or 1965 if you look on the Blue Note Wiki page, which I think is wrong). Liberty was commercially a failure and was absorbed by UAR in 1969. Blue Note was founded in 1939 and was one of the strongest brands in jazz. It is a logical litmus test. Do you think it's a random coincidence that a jazz label going strong from 1939 became unprofitable in the mid-60s?

The other jazz labels also became unprofitable and unsustainable in the '60s and followed a similar downward spiral. All this proves the point. If you want to focus on a few titles that were exceptions to the rule, you're not taking a realistic snapshot. The tiny handful of records that were in everyone's collection and then almost never played did practically nothing to make jazz more popular.

The fact is incontrovertible that other music left jazz commercially unviable as the '60s wore on. Huge stadiums were consistently filled with young rock stars playing the same 3 chords over and over again. Concert halls were sold out playing the same Mozart, Beethoven and Brahms symphonies over and over again. Meanwhile, jazz artists were left to deal with predatory club managers trying to get people to buy alcohol in tiny dives. Rock records were going gold and platinum while jazz records were collecting dust in the bins. It's surprising that the lack of jazz's commercial appeal relative to classical and rock is being cast as something new.


Edits: 05/04/15 05/04/15 05/04/15 05/04/15
This post is made possible by the generous support of people like you and our sponsors:
  Signature Sound   [ Signature Sound Lounge ]

Follow Ups Full Thread
Follow Ups
FAQ

Post a Message!

 Forgot Password?
Moniker (Username):
Password (Optional):
  Remember my Moniker & Password  (What's this?)    Eat Me
E-Mail (Optional):
Subject:
Message:   (Posts are subject to Content Rules)
Optional Link URL:
Optional Link Title:
Optional Image URL:
Upload Image:
E-mail Replies:  Automagically notify you when someone responds.

[ Top Top of Page ] [ Contact Us ] [ Support/Wish List ] [ Copyright © 2024, Audio Asylum, all rights reserved ]
[ General ] [ Speakers ] [ Tubes ] [ Vinyl ] [ Digital ] [ Hi-Rez ] [ Video Asylum ] [ Cables ] [ Tweaks/DIY ] [ Music ] [ Films ]