Posted on 08/01/2007 4:00:17 PM PDT by dangerdoc
POP legend Sir Elton John wants the internet CLOSED DOWN.
Never one to keep his opinions to himself, the Rocket Man has waded into cyberspace with all guns blazing.
He claims it is destroying good music, saying: “The internet has stopped people from going out and being with each other, creating stuff.
“Instead they sit at home and make their own records, which is sometimes OK but it doesn’t bode well for long-term artistic vision.
“It’s just a means to an end.
“We’re talking about things that are going to change the world and change the way people listen to music and that’s not going to happen with people blogging on the internet.
“I mean, get out there — communicate.
“Hopefully the next movement in music will tear down the internet.
“Let’s get out in the streets and march and protest instead of sitting at home and blogging.
“I do think it would be an incredible experiment to shut down the whole internet for five years and see what sort of art is produced over that span.
“There’s too much technology available.
(Excerpt) Read more at thesun.co.uk ...
Applying his current [ahem] reasoning, to the past, would strongly suggest all music radio stations, should have been shut down, as they played artist's works to mass audiences for mere pittances...
Without radio, the customer base wouldn't have been wide enough to support very many musicians, and of those who could actually make a living, very few could have become spectacularly wealthy doing it.
It is a fact that there are many who will electronically copy music. It does help build the fan base, regardless of whether or not artists and distribution companies are immediately compensated, or not. These same "fans", shell out significant sums of cash, per person, to attend live shows. The price for popular shows is nowadays, at the low end, about five times what it was 30 years ago. On the high end, it goes to TEN TIMES and even higher ticket fees, spread out over a much wider base, while also reaching a greater number and variety of directly targeted niche markets. These same folks who "rip" audio files off the internet, also BUY directly, at least at times.
Elton still gets enough to keep him filthy rich, yet he whines? And wants to shut down the internet? He'd better STFU before some aging goth/punk, midi-file madman, mentally disturbed anarchist whacks him upside the head with a pole longer and thicker and harder than even his pillow-biting faggoty self would "enjoy"!
And there you go - giving away the answer!
He said: “In the early Seventies there were at least ten albums released every week that were fantastic.
Elton John is officially an old codger.
Dear Rocket Man,
Shut up.
Sincerely,
Ben Dover
Can even Al Gore destroy what he has created?
Young people of the world, ignore any advice on technology you hear from Boomers. Most of us are dead wrong on the subject.
Beans and Elton John: both musical fruits.
How about, “ Lets ban perverts from TV for 5 years and see how that works out ?”
That goes from vast wasteland to dead air.
“Instead they sit at home and make their own records, which is sometimes OK but it doesn’t bode well for long-term artistic vision.”
It puts an end to the horrible concept of a “superstar”, something which has done far more to RUIN contemporary music through the 20th century (basically since recorded music began).
This is what Elton John and his kind are having a problem with. Many of the Internet radio stations are offering good amateur music virtually for free. The following (mp3 streams with .pls file extensions) does stream from some of those stations. Run searches to find the home pages of the individual sites (links also obscured by the following).
SHOUTcast Top 50
http://www.winamp.com/media/radio
BTW, there is or recently has been a bill in Congress to counter a governmental decision to raise royalties for Internet radio sites. Yes...a US government move to put them out of business in favor of big entertainment companies.
“And Elton John is a main culprit. I hope to never hear his poofy crap again.”
Oh I dunno, I kind of liked his music until he got into the Captain Fantastic era. At that point going to his concerts was like going to a Drag Queen fashion show. He was much better when he was a balladeer.
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Rusty and Elise are in Washington DC today and tomorrow, meeting with members of congress and their staff, and we're hearing a lot of positive support for internet radio from them, but we still need more support for HR.2060 and S.1353, so please this week, call your representatives. So we still need you to call your representatives. If they're not supporting the IREA, we need them to support it. If they are supporting it, thank them and tell them it is still important that the IREA is voted on. If you've already called them, call them again. There is no settlement with the RIAA/SoundExchange yet, there is only a stalemate. Make it clear you want congress to act on this. 30-Jul-07
While we thought we had progress last week on the royalty issues, it now is obvious the RIAA was using this "truce" to derail the passage of the Internet Radio Equality Act. By announcing that SoundExchange was very close to a deal with webcasters, the RIAA was successful at derailing the campaign by making the public believe that internet radio was not going to die on July 15th. Instead of a mass execution, they hope to quietly kill off net stations one by one, and hope that no one will notice. So we still need you to call your representatives. If they're not supporting the IREA, we need them to support it. If they are supporting it, thank them and tell them it is still important that the IREA is voted on. If you've already called them, call them again. Don't let them think the battle is over.
We are having an outage on most streams right now. A power outage affected our data center at 1:50pm pacific time, and power has now been restored, but some of our streaming servers did not come back up. Cliqhop, Drone Zone, Beat Blender, Doomed are currently down and may not be back up before 3:30pm. Some web page access might also be slow. UPDATE: all systems back in place now. Read the the gory details. 4:15pm pacific, 24-Jul-07
Tuner2 has a great resource on how to listen to net radio like SomaFM in your car, including lists of compatible phones and ways to interface to your car stereo. 18-Jul-07
Congressman Ed Markey jumps to webcasters defense! 17-Jul-07
Thanks to all your calls, a congressional roundtable (mini-hearing) occurred Thursday and one of the outcomes of that, SoundExchange stated that "For the people who want to comply with the law and are in bona fide negotiations with us, we don't want those people to be intimidated. And we don't want them to stop streaming." Simson qualified his statement by noting, "That's just so long as they're continuing to pay under the license they had." So effectively, we have some reprieve until the negotiations are concluded. 13-Jul-07
I need you to call SomaFM's congressional representative, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi at (202) 225-4965 and ask her to use her office's influence to demand that the RIAA come to a settlement with small webcasters. Identify yourself as a listener to SomaFM which is based in her district. It doesn't look like the IREA will get passed before the July 15th deadline with the RIAA's aggressive and false-pretense lobbying against it. Our only hope now is for a settlement, which ideally will be codified into law later. More...
Summer has started, and SomaFM has lots of bills to pay: our quarterly royalty payments are due; our streaming costs continue to increase; and we have to go back to Washington, DC to meet with more congressional representatives. If you haven't supported SomaFM lately, please support us now! With your $50 support, you'll get a SomaFM Tshirt, or at the $35 support level get our Indie Pop Rocks! compilation CD. Or get both for $75! And if that's more than you can budget right now, your support of any amount helps us!
Happy Independence Day to everyone in the US! Take a moment to appreciate your freedoms and indepence, and remember not to take it from granted. We still have lots of work to do, giant Corporations (and their representatives, such as the RIAA) are now the biggest threat to our personal freedoms. 4-Jul-07.
Thanks to the almost 300 people who showed up for the Save Net Radio benefit last night; we raised over $2000. Now don't forget to call your congressperson and ask them to co-sponsor the Internet Radio Equality Act.
SomaFM's Elise Nordling will be speaking at the BAVC Innovation Salon II: Rescuing The Music Industry on June 28th at 7pm at the San Francisco Apple Store.
Third Ear and Synapse 2007 presents: Steve Roach Live at Grace Cathedral: Mystic Chords and Deep Immersions in San Francisco on Friday, June 29th at 8pm (Doors at 7pm). We play a lot of Steve's music on Drone Zone and Space Station Soma. Perhaps we'll see you there?
Tags Trance Trip is back up. And we remind you that if you ever need a Comcast cable modem installed really, really fast... you should just forget about it and be prepared to wait 10 days.
SomaFM needs your help to save internet radio: we're faced with new royalties for the music we pay, which retroactively increased our royalties from about $20,000 for 2006 to over $600,000 for 2006. And they get worse over the next years, when we'll be forced to pay over $1 million a year to stay on the air. US Residents: please help us out by calling your Senators and Representatives and asking them to support the Internet Radio Equality Act, which makes the rates that internet radio pays the same as the satellite radio services pay. (Learn more...)
It costs a lot of money to run SomaFM, and since we don't run ads, we have to ask you to financially support us. We have several automatic monthly payment plans from $1 a month to $12.99 a month. We have T-shirts at the $50 support level. Show us some love and give us some green, we want to be around a long time for you!
The latest news on the new royalty legislation and the battle between small webcasters and the RIAA is in Rusty's blog.
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Groove Salad was off the air due to technical issues from Noon until 3pm pacific today, sorry about that. 23-May-07
We are entirely listener supported, and commercial free. Please help us keep it that way.
NEWSFLASH: Internet Radio Equality Act introduced in the Senate. Call or write your Senators and Represenative now to support the Internet Radio Equality Act! (Learn more about new royalty rates that will put SomaFM out of business if not changed.) 10-May-07
As of 1am pacific time (0800GMT) we are doing some work on our servers. We will be back by 0940GMT. 21-May-07
We are still in great danger of being forced off the air due to the recent royalty ruling. Please keep the calls and letters coming to your congressman. We still need more of them to sign up as co-sponsors of HS.2060. If you live in the US, call or write your congressman, and ask them to co-sponsor H.R. 2060, the "Internet Radio Equality Act". We already have over 42 co-sponsors so far, but we need over 100.
SomaFM at Mission Open Studios this Friday: Please join Soma FM (and our artist studiomates) for an open studios reception! This Friday May 11th, 7pm - 11pm (or a bit later), 1890 Bryant Street, Suite 303, San Francisco, CA 94110, between 17th and 18th in the northeast Mission. (Map)
Reminder: We need to raise at least $15,000 each month to meet our current minimum operating budget. (The newly announced royalty rates will substantially increase our costs!) With your $50 support, you'll get a SomaFM Tshirt, or at the $35 support level get our Indie Pop Rocks! compilation CD. Or get both for $75! And if that's more than you can budget right now, your support of any amount helps us!
The proposed "May 8th day of silence" for internet radio has been postponed due to the recent copyright office ruling that the new royalty rates would not be due until July 15th.
This morning's meeting with Nancy Pelosi's office went great. Thanks for all your calls into her office this morning, they really understand how important this issue is! 4-May-07
URGENT ACTION!!! A bill has been introduced that will save SomaFM and other independent net radio stations from the huge royalty payments that the copyright office recently imposed. Call your Representative right now and ask to cosponsor the "Internet Radio Equality Act", H.R. 2060, introduced by Representatives Jay Inslee (D-WA) and Donald Manzullo (R-IL). This bill will set royalty rates that internet radio pays to the same reasonable level that satellite radio pays.
US Citizens: Please call the House switchboard at (202) 224-3121 and ask to speak to your representative, and ask them to support H.R. 2060, the "Internet Radio Equality Act" today! (find you representative)
Rusty and Elise are in Washington, DC today, lobbying for passage of H.R.2060, the Internet Radio Equality Act. Read more about what's happening in the blog. 1-May-07
Rusty and Elise will be in Washington, DC next week going door to door on Capitol Hill, telling our story to congress. We still need "ground support" from you- we need to you call or write your representatives and ask them to support legislation that sets fair royalty rates for internet radio stations. New rulings force internet radio to pay much, much higher royalties than satellite or over-the-air radio. Independent net radio will have to pay royalties that are several times their gross revenues. All we're asking for is fair royalty rates, or else independent internet radio will be forced to shut down.
We could use your extra financial support right now to help fight the current royalty rulings. We even have automatic monthly payment plans that start from $1 a month. If you listen to SomaFM regularly, we'd really appreciate it if you supported us at the $2.99 a month level.
If you're in San Francisco, next Sunday, May 6th is the 8th annual How Weird Street Faire. Maybe we'll see you there? 25-Apr-07
The Copyright Royalty Board, a three judge panel responsible for the March 2nd ruling that set webcast royalties at their new increased rate, has denied all parties' motion for rehearing of the ruling on procedural grounds. This is a big setback, and means that it's even more important to contact your congressional representatives and alert them to this issue. 16-Apr-07
Happy Earth Day, and to all our special friends, happy 4/20! 20-Apr-07
Independent internet radio stations are in danger of being put out of business by newly announced royalty rates that are retroactive to 2006. SomaFM will have to pay $600,000 in royalties for 2006 and $1 million for 2007 under these new rates. (In the past, we've paid 12% of our revenues, but these new rates are three times our total revenues for 2006! Here's how you can help keep independent internet radio alive. 30-Mar-07
Windows Media Player users: our new 64k streams will install the Abacast streaming plug-in, but the 32k streams do not require a plug in and work like they always have. So if you are having probems with the new 64k streams, use the 32k streams.
PodTech's Eddie Codel interviews SomaFM's Rusty Hodge, about the history of SomaFM, royalty rate increases, and the future of internet radio. 30-Mar-07
If you are experiencing problems with our Windows Media streams (which are now through Abacast), please with the details of your problems, we're trying to fix any problems that you might be encountering. 32k Windows Media streams should work exactly as before. 30-Mar-07
Today in the Washington Post: SoundExchange Executive Director John Simson says small operators who play music and don't try to sell ads "will have a hard time paying the rates" and that he thinks there are too many internet radio stations now, so it's OK if a bunch of them go off the air. The heyday of advertising-free Internet radio might be coming to an end. SoundExchange is the royalty agency that was formed by the RIAA after they successfully got legislation passed in the US requiring high royalty fees for internet radio stations. Simson and SoundExchange are heavily driven by the major record labels. They don't want the competition from independent webcasters playing great music from independent and unsigned artists, because it's a threat to the major labels' business models.
Please contact your Senators and your Representative right away. If you've already done so, please contact them again to ask them what they have done to save independent internet radio broadcasters. If you can call them, that's even better. But it's easy to write to them. I've written up a sample message which you can just copy and paste, or use it as a guideline and add your own thoughts.
We need to raise at least $15,000 each month to meet our current minimum operating budget. (The newly announced royalty rates will substantially increase our costs!) With your $50 support, you'll get a SomaFM Tshirt, or at the $35 support level get our Indie Pop Rocks! compilation CD. Or get both for $75! And if that's more than you can budget right now, your support of any amount helps us!
The Copyright Royalty Board has announced new copyright licensing fees for internet radio stations. The new fees are a staggering increase over our previous annual royalty rate of about $22,000 to over $600,000 for 2006. And the fees are even higher in 2007, based on our current listenership, they'll be over $1 million dollars for 2007! (Which is 3-4 times what we hope to raise in 2007). If you think this is unfair to internet radio, and you are an American citizen, you can send a letter to your congressman showing your support for internet radio. We already have the attention of Congress, so now you have to let them know you support internet radio and that royalty rates shouldn't be structured in a way that will put small webcasters out of business.
If you're at SXSW in Austin, keep your eye out for SomaFM. We have lots of stickers and some Tshirts if you ask us nicely! 16-Mar-07
Demands for higher royalty payments by a US copyright body could shut down net radio stations, they warn (BBC) 8-Mar-2007
Fee ruling may imperil Internet radio: ``Some small stations say a panel's decision to hike music royalties may put them out of business.`` (Los Angeles Times) 7-Mar-2007
(More old news in the news archives.)
I think I missed his balladeer period. I just remember seeing him flounce around in a crocodile suit singing (naturally) “Crocodile Rock” on one of those late night rock concert shows that used to be on Saturday nights in the ‘70s. Even as a kid, it made me want to puke. That kind of namby-pamby stuff that made (American) punk such a breath of fresh air.
Did it “sing” the song “Don’t Worry Kyoko (Mummy’s looking for her handing in the snow)”.
the last time I heard this guy whining about his chosen profession, it was right after Linda Rhonstadt had a little tiff at a gig in Vegas.
As I recall, Linda blatantly insulted at least half of her audience. Fully half of the audience members had the self-respect to walk out on her. The Casino manager, because he is not stupid, fired her ... just like any employee who actively drives away 50% of the clientelle.
Sir Elton of Pillowbiter decried this as sure proof that there exists a horrible censorship state. I think he called it a "dark, dark day" or maybe it was a "sad, sad day".
I'm not sure if he meant it was censor ship for the audience to leave, or for Ronstadt to be dismissed, but we can proceed without that conclusion.
So then according to Elton, censorship is either:
> choosing not to sit still and be continually insulted by someone you've paid to amuse you
- or -
> dismissing an employee who insulted and chased away half the customers
- or maybe both of those...
... but calling for the internet to be Big-Brother-fied is NOT censorship.
To be fair, he doesn't say that his proposal isn't censorship but obviously he sees it a solution rather than a problem. A "problem" is when people are NOT forced by law to sit and listen to an Enlightened One insult them...
which BTW is actually torture ... isn't it? To be forced to sit and listen to someone talk who makes you uncomfortable? Oh, sorry ... I forgot ... that may or may not be torture - depeding on WHO is being insulted.
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