Bad Record Contracts

Subject: Bad Record Contracts
From: Bo Vandenberg
Date: 23 Jan 04 - 03:09 AM

I'm not a particular fan of Courtney Love but I think everyone who's ever considered a record contract should read her piece at salon.com

Courtney Does The Math

http://dir.salon.com/tech/feature/2000/06/14/love/index.html?pn=1


I know the piece not new but I think its still sobering. Some record companies must treat performers better than this, but I'd sure want to be sure before I signed anything.

I apologise if this is a repeat for some but I think its eloquent, powerful and really important to read when you hear the next RIAA rant about stolen music.


s

Subject: RE: Bad Record Contracts
From: Steve Parkes
Date: 23 Jan 04 - 06:19 AM

Hmm ... the band gets a $2m advance; they spend it; they earn another $2m which they then use to repay the advance. Sounds to me like they spent $2m!

(Which is not to say that they are not being ripped off left right and centre ...)

Steve

Subject: RE: Bad Record Contracts
From: mack/misophist
Date: 23 Jan 04 - 12:45 PM

That's what agents and managers are supposed to prevent.

Subject: RE: Bad Record Contracts
From: Uncle_DaveO
Date: 23 Jan 04 - 01:22 PM

But the $2 million isn't $2 million into their pockets; it's against costs to produce, and whatever little bit is left over is theirs. In her instance, $45,000 per band member out of the $2 million. The company, sounds like to me, lays out just about nothing against their profits, because the expenses are essentially paid by the band.

Am I misunderstanding what she says?

Dave Oesterreich

Subject: RE: Bad Record Contracts
From: M.Ted
Date: 23 Jan 04 - 04:46 PM

Nope--not at all. The trick to getting any money at all out of a record deal has often been to keep the cost of producing the album down--hard when the record company is in control of the recording session.

The most audacious thing of all is that the record companies are so sanctimonious about "protecting the rights of the artist to profit from their music" when it comes to music downloading--

Subject: RE: Bad Record Contracts
From: Bo Vandenberg
Date: 23 Jan 04 - 08:10 PM

This can't be true of all record contracts.

Are there any names reading this who have good things (or bad things) to say about particular labels???

s

Subject: RE: Bad Record Contracts
From: Kudzuman
Date: 23 Jan 04 - 08:52 PM

Indie labels or your own are a good bet. I understand that major labels sell your product to record "clubs" (Those buy 1 get 11 deals we all know)at prices that are a loss to the artist and then sell to large retailers like Amazon at a price where they can sell at below retail and where does that leave the artist when they are trying to sell their product at gigs. It sucks and is another example of the big corporations ruling the world and the economy. Here in the U.S. ol' Dubyah has been doing his best to help promote that.

Kudzuman

Subject: RE: Bad Record Contracts
From: cobber
Date: 24 Jan 04 - 03:10 AM

We had a good deal in Australia when Festival records was around, though to be fair, it was originally negotiated with WEA. In our experience though, the record companies do little to promote folk type music as they don't know how and are usually not in the right markets anyway. Most of what we achieved was done by producing our own masters and licencing the distribution. That way we got to control the costs and the way thye music was presented and were able to get a 16% of 95% deal. We still made most of our money, such as it was, by selling at gigs and if I had it over, I wouldn't bother with the big companies at all.

Subject: RE: Bad Record Contracts
From: GUEST,obnig hrobdog
Date: 24 Jan 04 - 04:33 PM

All deals should be of 100%.

Watch out for non-sales income being omitted and foreign omitted or downrated.

Beware of interest on advances, and the absence of interest on money held during accounting periods.

Millions of other points too. Record companies employ little grey men in basement rooms who spend all day every day thinking up dirty tricks to put in artist contracts.