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?”
I miss the old Comiskey. It was a classic ballpark, and across the street was McCuddy's - the bar where legend says Babe Ruth went to have a beer between games of a double header. McCuddy's had a baseball bat on display that was one of Ruth's.
I read where Frank Zappa said he had more respect for older record industry executives. As long as they were making money, they didn’t care what it was their bands played. Younger execs, in their 20’s and 30’s who thought they had heard and knew it all, he hated. Because they all had groupthink and latched onto bands that all sounded the same as one another, ossifying popular music.
The seventies music lives on in TV commercials and Walmart stores.
Bwahahahahahahahahahahahaha. Getting older, third floor.... lingerie.
There are still small out let’s out there ..
But for the most part. Radio has become a homogeneous single corporate entity. Playing the exact play list on multiple stations.
In the Boston area. We now have 2 independents. Playing a really good mix. They seem to be pretty small. And relatively new.
Hopefully, they succeed . And that spreads. You know they are small, as all of their ads are local independent businesses.
Agree!
Rock and roll is definitely tied to the Baby Boomers. As you said, it won’t die in an absolute sense but it will become a niche music and it will also be created. Just not in the amount that it was 20 years ago.
Most of us don’t tap our toes to what our grandfathers did, so this is normal. It’s called the Great Forgetting.
Did you see him on the series, “Lilyhammer”?
Been to McCuddy’s as well, and I’m pretty sure the Babe Ruth story is true (it’s certainly been repeated enough). And there was another neighborhood bar next door - O’Brien’s, if I remember correctly.
My brother had season tickets in the left field bleachers, and thus was able to get seats for the last three home games at the old park - I got to see the very last game played there.
Missed Disco Demolition though - that’s about as South Side Sox as there ever was.
The “classic” stuff is SO overplayed and overstayed its welcome.
I’be found so many new artists on Spotify in a wide variety of genres that I really like. I don’t have to listen to what was popular when I was 16.
P.S. writing this from the top of Rhus Ridge under the spreading oaks, afternoon sun, and a cool breeze !
Not as long as I have my vinyl and CD collection...and Pandora.
Thanks! Brings back great memories.
Im extremely thankful for growing up in the 80’s. I grew up with a wide musical palette. I passed it onto my daughter and I hope she passes it onto her kids. Today’s music is nothing but trash.
I suggest, if you are looking for new music, to try new genres. There are probably a few songs that you’ll like, even if you don’t like the genre itself.
“When our generation goes, who’s going to know about this stuff?”
The better stuff will survive. The lightweight and mediocre stuff will generally be forgotten.
In classical music there were many many composers beside Bach, Beethoven, Mozart, Liszt, rachmaninoff, etc. If you dig you will find all sorts of generally forgotten stuff.
No I didn’t see that one.
Presuming he comes out of his coma.
Go into any guitar store and watch what the kids play…
Classic Rock will certainly outlive the original fan base by a few generations
However it will almost certainly continue to decline like all
Music genres
In truth, 'modern' classical music is now in the realm of movie soundtracks - the Lord of the Rings soundtrack was the biggest classical-style seller in the past 25 years. The work that Has Zimmer has done for many films is another great example.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.