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typicalgirls - Re: [TypicalGirls] Delta 5 Peel session tracks

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Subject: Typical Girls: Women in Punk/Post-Punk/Underground Music (Circa 1975-1980s)

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  • From: Douglas Wolk <dbcloud AT panix.com>
  • To: "George Romansic" <romansic AT serv.net>, typicalgirls AT lists.ibiblio.org
  • Subject: Re: [TypicalGirls] Delta 5 Peel session tracks
  • Date: Thu, 29 Sep 2005 20:39:44 -0700


One thing I've been doing with the occasional MP3 posts on my site (lacunae.com) is tracking down the original artists and asking them if it'd be okay to put up a song or two. The advantage of this is that I get to make contact with a whole lot of musicians I admire (some of whom haven't thought about their old recordings in years), they almost always say yes, and nobody feels bad or furtive about downloading them. The disadvantage is that it's sometimes amazingly hard to get in touch with people... who'd have thought that the members of Father would be so difficult to track down? (Stewart from 555, who put out their single, says he's not even sure who was in the band...)

Psst, potential Inflatable Boy Clams fans: http://www.inflatableboyclams.com !

Douglas

How many of us have a clear idea as to when it's okay to post tracks and when it's not? It's a judgment call, finding the balance between helping to promote a record and cutting into potential sales.
In this instance I believe the posted tracks mostly serve to whet the appetite for the KRS release. We're all going to buy it anyway, so I don't see a real need for an apology. The tracks are out there and we'd find them if we wanted them badly enough.

It gets messier, I think, when you post Inflatable Boy Clams or Pink Section or something long out of print and very difficult to find. On the one hand you're sharing something great that most people aren't going to hear otherwise. On the other, I know there's been talk about issuing some of these things on CD, and posting the tracks now might actually have the potential to undermine such a deal. (They're probably there already, but I have the vinyl so I haven't looked). Those of you who run labels know that these projects are for love and not money, but every sale made increases the likelihood of being able to do more good work. (Which is why I'm extra glad I bought the Liliput/Kleenex and Essential Logic CD's, because now I get the Delta 5 CD I've been waiting for all these years. Thank you, Slim and KRS).
I doubt this message accomplishes anything more than throwing further fog on this already murky situation, but I remain hopeful that somebody will some day explain it in a way that will help me to be clear and consistent about it. I think the thing hinges upon the economic details more than anything else...but I welcome possible enlightenment.

-GR




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