Posted on 05/23/2024 3:48:00 PM PDT by nickcarraway
Steven Van Zandt has a pessimistic outlook when he ponders the future of classic rock.
During an appearance on Club Random with Bill Maher, the E Street Band guitarist examined the way music consumption has changed.
“Right now, because the record industry is dead, there’s no more record sales other than Taylor Swift and Beyonce,” Van Zandt declared. Instead, he explained, films and television shows have become the best way for recording artists to make money. However, even that has become problematic because musicians have upped their licensing fees in order to survive.
“You got a bunch of whatever, 25 year-olds with a song list with a number next to it,” Van Zandt noted. “So if you want to make a movie or TV show, you ask for the song, they look at the number and they charge you that number, which is always high because there's no other income.”
Because classic rock offers material that’s recognizable to a wide swath of listeners, it's often the most-licensed genre of music. However, Van Zandt believes the filmmakers will pull away from classic rock in the face of soaring licensing costs, thus removing an important avenue for songs to be exposed to new listeners.
“This is a real problem. And I think 10 years from now, 20 years from now, it's going to be a problem because all this music is going to die if it's not promoted and heard,” Van Zandt insisted. “It's going to be like, Motown who? Rolling Stones who?”
Steven Van Zandt Hopes Laws Around Song Licensing Will Change
Van Zandt suggested law changes around licensing music as a compromise to keep filmmakers and musicians happy. He then noted how different the modern landscape is compared to when the E Street Band and Bruce Springsteen got started.
“When we started, music in movies was free. It was free,” he explained. “Martin Scorsese. He didn't even ask for permission to put [the Ronettes’] ‘Be My Baby’ in Mean Streets because it was free. And people thought of it as promoting the records. Nobody’s promoting the records anymore.”
Van Zandt pointed to the popular series Stranger Things as an example of how TV and film can bring new attention to classic tracks. The guitarist insisted such licensing is vital for classic rock's continuing survival.
“When our generation goes, who’s going to know about this stuff?”
It will become like Classical Music. People will still listen to it, but nobody will be interested in new stuff.
All the good rock music has already been made.
Who needs rock and roll when your audience listens to ghetto chanting?
I’d say classic rock is in danger largely because corporate radio stations hammering the same 20-40 songs and nothing else.from coast to coast.
Very few independent stations left to play the immense catalog of material. And bring interest.
Even the XM stations with niche audiences play far too little a selection.
The whole mega-corporation that was “Stoking the star-maker machinery / Behind the popular song” as Joni Mitchell put it, has likely reached its senescent form for exactly the reasons Van Zandt mentioned. But rock ‘n’ roll will never die, at least in the sense that we still have Tibetan nose-flute music after all these centuries. Springsteen would suck at that, too.
Disco lives forever.
It that is true for rock, it should be for any type of music.
Blame the Telecommunications Act of 1996.
There was a provision that allowed corporate consolidation of of radio markets around the country. All the program managers at these small stations were fired and programming decision went to corporate headquarters.
That eliminated any chance for unknown acts to get on the air.
It’s lasted pretty long as is
The Who already wrote a song for this
“Long live rock, be it dead or alive”
Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers - The Last DJ
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Knw_GxXPHg
Glad I grew up in the era of “garage bands” and the musicians they created.
Well, he should have stuck with the Sopranos.
There are no new groups. I think Dire Straits is the last Brit rock band. I don’t think any bands or groups here are doing new stuff. As someone pointed out even the classic stations play limited song lists. I have 104.3 on here in nyc at dinner and I swear I’ll hear the same songs at the same time every other day.
Country has new stuff though I’m not fond of it. The choices now seem to be, as was said, Taylor Swift or Beyonce, and Black or Mex hip hop.
Well, your crap ‘rock and roll’ work hasn’t helped, Steven.
AI will be creating music.
“Far-out Johnny well I heard him say, stretched out back on the waterbed...”Bluegrass music is a thing of the past and the SAME for Rockn’Roll”.. So I loaned him 2 or 3 dollars and gave me the LATEST news and left me here with a Rolling Stone and the Steamboat Whistle Blues!
I’ll tear off down the river some day before I’m through and come back here and pick it out with the Steamboat Whistle Blues...
John Hartford “The Steamboat Whistle Blues” 1971. What goes around comes around and the industry has NO clue except the dollars they rake in and royalties they shouldn’t be getting.
Great song about the constancy of REAL America, and real life and the bearers of REAL history:
With Kissimmee native Vassar Clements then genius legendary fiddle player who once worked at Kennedy Space Center!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1qNS_QB76WU
except at 35th and Shields
it’s gonna die, because the classic rockers are dying...
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