12 Disappointing facts about pop music

[Spudman]

This is an eye opener.

http://www.buzzfeed.com/daves4/12-extremely-disappointing-facts-about-popular-mus

[poodlesrule]

Wow...is this true?
You got some big names there.

OTOH, sales of Beethoven's 9th have been slowing down recently.

[Retro Hound]

Good grief, I haven't even heard of some of these people. Flo Rida? Ke$ha? Barbara Streisand I believe, she was enormously popular. And I don't think Bob Marley has ever sold many albums though he is highly respected.

How much of this is due to Soundscan and the way we keep track now as opposed to the more sloppy rip-off-the-artist bookkeeping in the past?

[Eric]

Not that surprising when I stop to think about it. What I think is funny is how the line of grumpy old men now includes Pearl Jam. Seems like they used to be the ones people were whining about for being so popular.

[bcdon]

Nothing to be disappointed by, as the saying goes, there's no accounting for taste. And since when has commercial success had any correlation to talent, quality, etc?

[Bookkeeper's Son]

The list was pretty spot-on and funny until it got to Streisand, who is an enormous talent. She is in a class by herself and, IMO, cannot be lumped in with the likes of no-talents like Katy Perry. Even if you don't particularly care for her music, her talent and artistry is undeniable. That one just didn't make sense to me, because she earned and deserves her record sales, and doesn't belong on the left side of that list.

[Eric]

The list was pretty spot-on and funny until it got to Streisand, who is an enormous talent. She is in a class by herself and, IMO, cannot be lumped in with the likes of no-talents like Katy Perry. Even if you don't particularly care for her music, her talent and artistry is undeniable. That one just didn't make sense to me, because she earned and deserves her record sales, and doesn't belong on the left side of that list.
What can you say? Music is subjective. I imagine Flo Rida has his own brand of talent too, even if I've never heard his music.

[aeolian]

The list was pretty spot-on and funny until it got to Streisand, who is an enormous talent. She is in a class by herself and, IMO, cannot be lumped in with the likes of no-talents like Katy Perry. Even if you don't particularly care for her music, her talent and artistry is undeniable. That one just didn't make sense to me, because she earned and deserves her record sales, and doesn't belong on the left side of that list.

I can't agree with your conclusion. Streisand is a great talent with her voice and her interpretation of songs, but some of the current crop of female artists in pop write really good songs. To quote you, "Even if you don't particularly care for her (their) music" these young ladies are also very talented.

[Bookkeeper's Son]

But where would they be without Auto-Tune???:socool

[R_of_G]

And in 1969 The Archies sat atop the charts for four weeks and made massive amounts of money off of "Sugar Sugar."

There will always be pop music most of us find trite or unappealing and it will often outsell those artists we do find more, well... artistic.

Just remember though, in the 90s people had the same conversation about how the Spice Girls sold records and "real artists" weren't doing as well. Those real artists still sell plenty and endure while the Spice Girls are doing what now? Do you not think it will play out differently with Katy Perry and Ke$ha and the rest? At some point, Bieber's fans will age out just as happened to New Kids on the Block and Menudo and all down the line.

Real music endures. It always does.

[Spudman]

What I can't figure out is where those figures are coming from. Since many people are downloading music and often only downloading just a few songs that they like off albums, where do the numbers come from? In the past you HAD to buy the album. Today you can often get it free electronically. So where are the sales coming from?

Now days it's often said that if an artist sells 50,000 copies then they are doing very well. It's a mystery to me. I wonder if the numbers aren't fixed just so the companies don't look like they are going under.

[Bookkeeper's Son]

What I can't figure out is where those figures are coming from.
Considering the state of today's "news" business, it doesn't matter where it comes from, and it doesn't matter if it's accurate, or even true. The 24-hour news business, by it's very nature, needs to fill the media any way it can, whether it be hard news, fluff pieces, thinly-disguised advertising or out-and-out fiction.

[aeolian]

What I can't figure out is where those figures are coming from.

I agree with Bookkeeper's Son that the numbers are suspect. I assume there are hard numbers from sales of CDs plus download sales from Amazon and iTunes and such. Billboard supposedly track sales numbers somehow, I wonder what information it uses?

[guitartango]

If you think about it, there are more people buying/downloading music today than the 60/70's, of course the record sales will be high. As for Katy Perry and Dustin Beaver, they both have talent but nothing compared to Elvis/Beatles etc. Trouble is that all the great songwriters are now dead or soon will be, the question is, who will take their place? In twenty years time the Beavers of this world will be long forgotten where Lennon\Elvis will still be remembered.

[Bookkeeper's Son]

Well.....except for the fact that Elvis wasn't a songwriter. And if I attempt to consider it as objectively as I can, Elvis was really closer to the Bieber side of the equation, and I consider him more of a phenomenon than a musician. His staying power can't be argued, although I really don't get it.

Please, Elvis fans, don't throw stuff at me.

[aeolian]

Bookkeeper's Son, you're good!:dude

You are using my argument on your comment on Streisand against guitartango's comment on Elvis, which means.....

Now.. what was I saying?!:what

[Bookkeeper's Son]

It's all circular, ain't it? I even confuse myself. Scores, lists, statistics, etc. are OK for sports, but don't apply to music or musicians.

[Spudman]

There certainly are plenty of great new songwriters around today. Problem is that they don't get the exposure they might have gotten in the past when art was as important as money in the music industry.

It really goes to show that the average intelligence of the music buying public is not as high as it once was. The powers that be probably like it that way though. With sheep mentality they will inevitably purchase what they are sold despite the easy ability today to search out and find truly great and inspiring original music with substance and integrity from around the world.

In the spirit of the holidays I say "bah humbug" to the pop music drivel machine.

[Bookkeeper's Son]

I toast your "bah humbug", sir.

I am proud to say that I don't know anything about Bieber's or Perry's or any of the other "stars'" music, simply because I haven't listened to it. I don't need to; I already know it's dreck. Steely Dan FTW.

Ron

[guitartango]

I am no fan of Elvis, but he can still sell records by the bucketful, so he must be good. :D
I am no fan of Streisand but she can still sell records by the bucketful, so she must be good. :D
I am no fan of beaver but he can still sell records by the bucketful, so he must be good. :D

I am a fan of Pink Floyd, they still sell records and they are good :):):):)

lol

[Robert]

Yeah, when I saw Streisand, I reacted. She is (or at least used to be) a fantastic vocalist, miles ahead of many past and current pop voices.

Example:


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NS7TbVuHtRI&feature=related

[Bookkeeper's Son]

I think my original point was to say that I think Babs is one of those truly stratospheric artists, actually deserving the title of superstar. She is in a sparcely populated place in modern popular music. I am by no means a Streisand fan, I just know brilliance when I hear it.

[Robert]

I think my original point was to say that I think Babs is one of those truly stratospheric artists, actually deserving the title of superstar. She is in a sparcely populated place in modern popular music. I am by no means a Streisand fan, I just know brilliance when I hear it.

^ this. Agreed 100%.

[Tig]

I think my original point was to say that I think Babs is one of those truly stratospheric artists, actually deserving the title of superstar. She is in a sparcely populated place in modern popular music. I am by no means a Streisand fan, I just know brilliance when I hear it.

I must agree. While I don't listen to her often or watch her concert videos for more than 2 or 3 songs, I cannot deny her voice to be among the best ever recorded.

[Tig]

And in 1969 The Archies sat atop the charts for four weeks and made massive amounts of money off of "Sugar Sugar."

There will always be pop music most of us find trite or unappealing and it will often outsell those artists we do find more, well... artistic.

Just remember though, in the 90s people had the same conversation about how the Spice Girls sold records and "real artists" weren't doing as well. Those real artists still sell plenty and endure while the Spice Girls are doing what now? Do you not think it will play out differently with Katy Perry and Ke$ha and the rest? At some point, Bieber's fans will age out just as happened to New Kids on the Block and Menudo and all down the line.

Real music endures. It always does.

+1

[sunvalleylaw]

Hey, but I kinda liked "Sugar Sugart" by the Archies. I was in the demographic at the time. The Jackson Five kicked their a$$ though.


As for currently popular music, I have no idea who most of those people are and where people listen to them. The radio 'round here doesn't play them, nor do the stations I used to listen to back in Seattle, when I listen whilst visiting. Heck, I was even stumped somewhat on who some people were at the last grammys.

I do believe there are plenty of good writers out there, and some are even mildly popular, like Jeff Tweedy and Wilco. I have to pretty much just ignore the teeny bopper list. I am no longer in the demographic, and rarely run across that stuff.

[warren0728]

Tom Petty sums up the current music industry....


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aqm7wl4wmJE

[stingx]

I see plenty of good bands just going out for drinks on a Saturday night.