Pitching song - send 1 song or whole CD?

Subject: Pitching song - send 1 song or whole CD?
From: GUEST,Marion
Date: 10 Mar 08 - 06:48 PM

Hi folks. I'm planning on making a demo CD sometime this spring, by renting a digital multitracker and producing/burning it at home.

One of my goals in making this demo is to be able to pitch specific songs to artists or radio stations that I think they would be a good fit for.

To do so, should I plan on making "targetted" CDs with only the one or two songs that I want to focus attention on? Or is it fine to send a complete "standardized" CD with instructions to listen to tracks 2 and 10? The second way would be simpler, and would allow the person to browse and maybe find something else they like, but I'm also thinking that a CD with just the 1 or 2 songs is more likely to get listened to.

Any thoughts?

Thanks, Marion

Subject: RE: Pitching song - send 1 song or whole CD?
From: Peace
Date: 10 Mar 08 - 07:26 PM

I do not know how much the business has changed in the past three decades. The 'rule of thumb' in the old days was three songs. That's it. If you hadn't done the sales job by then, it likely wasn't gonna happen.

Subject: RE: Pitching song - send 1 song or whole CD?
From: Darowyn
Date: 11 Mar 08 - 04:30 PM

No more than three songs,with the one you are pitching first.
And that one needs get to a sensationally good, and memorable, bit within the first ten seconds.
Make sure you have contact details on the CD itself, on the card sleeve (recommended) and on the accompanying press release- which should be no more than one side of A4 with a picture. No CDRs with handwritten titles!
If you are hoping to be played on a CD review programme, it might be a good idea to include a royalty release form, or for mainstream broadcast, PRS details.
Apart from that it just has to look and sound wonderful, and different from the other hundred that the producer has received that day.
Easy, isn't it?
Cheers
Dave

Subject: RE: Pitching song - send 1 song or whole CD?
From: Marion
Date: 11 Mar 08 - 08:18 PM

Thanks, gentlemen. At this point I'm leaning towards only recording the one most likely song anyway, and making the recording/presentation as professional as possible.

Marion