EMI / Guy Hands

where's those damn maracas?

Heaven needed a self important oh where's Dom when you needim?

"jazz hands" : http://music.guardian.co.uk/news/inthenews/0,,2241108,00.html

And she's not even signed to EMI!

From "ShowbizSpy..."

Singer Annie Lennox has been dropped by her record label — in what she’s called a shocking snub and a “kick in the teeth”.

The “No More I Love You’s” star, 53, was left shocked when her label, Sony BMG suddenly began ignoring her weeks before her contract was due to expire.

The former Eurythmics singer - one of the most successful female artists ever - has been hit hard by the shabby treatment. She said: “They totally ignored me. It was bizarre, a kick in the teeth.

“They didn’t even pick up phone calls or emails for three weeks. I’m trying to find out what’s behind it. Probably a good thing that I’m no longer with them - mild understatement. Unless it’s them trying to tell me something… Hello!”

Annie - whose last album reached number in the UK chart last October, added to Britain’s Daily Mirror newspaper: “It feels like I’m spent, as if I’ve completely run out of energy. I’m now out of contract with Sony BMG.

“I’m going to take my time over the coming months to figure out what to do with this freedom.”

One of her plans is a clear-out and charity sale of possessions on eBay. Annie said: “It’ll be a great big jumble sale.”

(I like how they left a gap for the album's chart position, to be filled in when they found out...)

123? 76?

Well, to be fair, it was number 7 in October 2007.

That'll teach her to rant about Radiohead-style downloading!

Perhaps it'll also teach Radio 2 to play music its listeners actually like.

Erm, reaching the end of your contract isn't exactly being dropped, is it?

The “No More I Love You’s” star

reads really strange, this sort of description.

"The 'Walking On Broken Glass' star" weirder/less weird?

"The "Why" star" seems about right.

There must be a tax bill playing with her heart.

Taxcrime

used to seeing 'the X star' for actors, not so much for recording artistes

At least they didn't call her the 'Diva' diva.

Bet she's kicking herself for turning down Dancing On Ice.

At least they didn't call her the 'Diva' diva.

-- Matt DC, Tuesday, January 15, 2008 3:25 PM (3 minutes ago) Bookmark Link

they shoulda, that's good! </ smash hits reader>

I don't remember the break-up of the UK's manufacturing base being covered in these terms.

OTMFM

In 1962 focus groups would have said no to scruffy long-haired Beatles and yes to more Black and White Minstrels and trad jazz.

OTM... so much so, that I quoted it to Boy George during this afternoon's Grumpy Old Man bitch-fest of an interview. (He agreed.)

OH NOES NOT THE VERVE ON STRIKE

Let's hope Blue Mink don't decide to withhold their next album too.

what will happen to Mute Records?

...that's actually a very good question.

And Warp?

KENNY LARKIN GOES ON STRIKE

what will happen to Mute Records?

don't they make scadloads of money? i'm sure they'll be fine...

BOYD RICE GOES ON STRIKE

Rolling Stones not leaving, but releasing their next album on another label (???)

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/17b24080-c487-11dc-a474-0000779fd2ac,dwp_uuid=e8477cc4-c820-11db-b0dc-000b5df10621.html

It's a soundtrack album, they often go outside the scope of Americal contracts particularly. Witness those Beatles albums on United Artists in the sixties, for "Help" and "A Hard Days Night".

Ah, ok. It's still going to be perceived as this "another blow to EMI" though, even if it technically shouldn't be...

http://blogs.guardian.co.uk/music/2008/01/guy_hands_and_emi.html

He also needs to take a carving knife to the roster. It's full of bands no one has ever heard of (the Sonic Hearts, The Redwalls, Connan and the Mockasins). Or bands everyone thinks are rubbish (Cherish, Fischerspooner, Thunder). Or bands that are simply on the wrong label for what they do (Morning Runner, the Sleepy Jackson). Why, for instance, has EMI got Prinzhorn Dance School, a band described by this hardly reactionary paper as "possibly the least commercially viable group ever signed to a major label"? They should be first out of the door, preferably without a cab fare, and be made to get on their bikes and look for work - in a dance school, making tea, if necessary.

how are mute and warp tied to EMI?

Mute's been taken over by EMI in 2002, but I don't know about Warp

Why, for instance, has EMI got Prinzhorn Dance School,

they do? what's DFA's place in this?

Yeah, that whole article is 99% OTM.

The 1%? Joss Stone. I don't like her that much, but hey she hasn't actually 'flopped' yet.

I'm amazed Fischerspooner are still on a major label.

I'm amazed Fischerspooner are still on a major label.

.. as are fischerspooner ..

have to say, i doubt EMI will be funding any more vanity projects via DFA a la PDS and the Shocking Pinks, i very much doubt both of those paid for the advertising that each album got.
EMI didn't pick up the Pylon reissue in the UK I noticed, so perhaps the changes have already begun to kick in.
The whole EMI/DFA concerns me, as no EMI => t'will be a bugger to pick up the DFA stuff, which is not good.

Pretty hateful, ill-informed comments there about the Bird and the Bee and Joss Stone - yes, Diva Simpson, why don't those Devon plebs get back behind the deli counter where they belong, so that EMI can spend the money saved on hiring even more failed music journalists as PR "consultants"?

Had Div Wimpson, in common with all Grauniad music "writers," actually got off his idle arse and done some basic research, he would know that Joss Stone is currently huge in the States, where her last album didn't tank as it did here, and that the excellent Bird and the Bee (who are signed to Blue Note rather than EMI direct) album has sold pretty well - furthermore, Greg Kurstin, who is one half of B & the B, has written and produced dozens of hits for other artists this past year, including Natasha Bedingfield and Kylie.

The Prinzhorn Dance School/Warp set-up has already been explained.

Really, is it too much to ask that the Grauniad's people actually stop and think about what they're going to write before they write it?

With all this talk about investing more in A&R networks, I presume they've bothered to think about how they'd actually offer any incentive for artists to sign to EMI rather an a n other major label?

I think the living wage is a perfectly decent incentive in itself but investing in A&R networks is the kind of mistake which led to a third of the workforce being made redundant in the first place and considerably more money could be saved by getting rid of all these hangers-on.

In the sixties the major record companies tended to have on average one A&R person on their books and they seemed to do pretty well.

But really the whole operation has to be split into two; one to deal with new artists (and new media), one to administer and maximise the worth of the back catalogue. And new acts should be given realistic help rather than being bestowed with even into half EMI's kingdom if they show even a smidgeon of promise.

"even UNTO half EMI's kingdom"

Isn't Simpson saying that EMI need MORE artists like Joss Stone and The Bird And The Bee - i.e. ones with proven sales or ones who experiment but with clear potential for crossover via licensing...OK that may be wishful thinking re TBATB but if he just threw them in because he thinks they should be bigger than they are than I agree.

i'm not sure why he's so invested in emi's share price really.

It would appear that Slave Blimpson believes that B&B and Joss would be better employed as tilers or plumbers. I'm not sure he's smart enough to get away with extended metaphor.

What's funny is that Dingbod has been posting for several days actually in agreement with the main thrust of the argument.

I do agree with it in principle but he's going for entirely the wrong targets, i.e. just another excuse to slag off a bunch of acts who have sold less than e.g. Daniel O'Donnell.

Ah so basically the same as what I said before.

The main bone of contention (back to Mr Hands now.. You know, if Jazz Summers hadn't got involved I could have continued calling him JazzHands but hey, anyway close bracks carry on) seems to be his lack of 'understanding' of music re his daughter's Lily Allen comment.

I remember a FZappa quote, I'll see if I can find it.