because he was a recording artist that wrote his own songs, but the most famous song he is associated

with, is one that he wrote and then stepped aside.

Thomas Edens

This approach, of using a professional writing team is sometimes referred to as the Tin Pan Alley approach to music making, was the traditional method at the time.

R-E-S-P-E-C-T.
This is perhaps the most iconic phrasing, found in an iconic song, and performed by the most iconic of the recording divas of the late 1960s. Almost everyone in America over the age of 20 has heard it and can identify it as Aretha Franklins signature hit. Almost no one knows that its a cover. Respect was written and released as a single by Stax recording artist Otis Redding several years before the famous version was heard by the public.

From the start of the 20th century through the early 60s, very few recording artists were allowed to write and record original songs and even fewer had any say in the production of the music. Even iconic stars such as Elvis Pressley were told what to record and when to record it.

Almost all the most popular music was composed by the same three or four writing teams. The result is that a small group of people controlled almost all the

As was customary at the time, Otis Redding, author and artist behind the hit single, Sittin On the Dock of the Bay, wrote Respect for the record company and

musical art that was available to the public. Many of the best songs in our history were produced during this time, so its not fair to be completely critical of the system, as it did produce some fantastic results, but if you look back on those songs, few had anything significant to say about our culture. Few said anything at all.

recorded his version. Most hit songs were not written by the artists that made them famous, but by professional song writers or writing teams that churned out hundreds if not thousands of finished pieces. Only the best songs were given to producers who then found an artist to perform it. In most cases, several artists under the same record label recorded a given song and the company released what they liked, in the region they thought it would do well.

It is because of this, that I contend the system was a form of censorship, maybe not intentional censorship, but when the artist are muted, their message is lost. When a few people control any medium of art, the culture suffers.

When

Redding heard

Aretha

Franklins

version In the 60s, singers and bands began to win the freedom to make their own music. What they produced was an eclectic masterpiece of social commentary. The focus moved away from producing singles written by a team of professionals, and moved toward artists who

of Respect, he was blown away and commented that she owned the tune, even though he had written and recorded it earlier2. Atlantic records released the

Franklin version, and that is the version that gets radio airplay to this day. Otis Redding was a bit of a pioneer,

APR 2012

wrote complex and compelling albums that were centered on a creative concept. For the first time in years, the artists controlled the art, and the results were every bit as staggering as one could imagine.

immerse themselves into the artists mind, ceding control like never before, and enjoying the journey to wherever it would take you. Imagine an hour long tour of the Louvre led by Da Vinci or the Sistine Chapel with Michelangelo as your guide. That is comparable to the

The Beatles, who had mostly released singles and short albums, released Sgt.

concept album for a fan.

Throughout the 70s, 80s and 90s, artists continued to churn out concept albums and

Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band. Sgt. Pepper is largely credited with being the first of the concept albums and featured a maturation of the artists. For the first time, given freedom in the studio, the Beatles experimented

Americans enjoyed what they produced. By the turn of the century, albums sales were peaking and many Americans were buying their second copy of their favorites, this time on compact disk to replace their old vinyl records. In 2000, there were 785 million albums sold worldwide (2). Sales began to decline in the decade that followed. The internet simply changed the way we get to our music and the industry changed the way they make music as a result.

with different instruments and sounds. The art came pouring out of the artist as it had never been allowed to do in this medium. Other artists followed suit. Brian Wilson wrote and

produced Pet Sounds, the first concept album by the Beach Boys. Marvin Gaye produced Whats Going On, an important concept album that broke Motown Records tradition of only releasing singles. Stevie Wonder, Elton John, Peter Frampton, and Fleetwood Mac released albums that were meant to be listened to from the first track to the last.

Individual songs became available from online servers and services. Most albums became available for download for a fee, and some became available for free, technically speaking (they could be shared and stolen). Single tracks proved to be significantly more popular

Finally, the artists had taken control of the medium and were making their voices heard. This was an important trend is this country because so many young adults looked to music as an avenue to express their ideas about societal issues. Previously, the only music available, while catchy and well written, did not include any social elements. For the first time, a listener could

than entire albums. By 2006, there were more single song downloads over the internet than album

downloads and retail purchases combined. By 2011, there were four times as many single song downloads as total album sales and ten times as many digital sales1. People simply stopped buying albums, not even concept albums, choosing instead to purchase singles.

APR 2012

given back creative control of this medium to a small The internet has created many advantages in terms of music acquisition. It is faster, cheaper, and far more convenient today than heading to the local record store once was. And it is clear that people are still buying the songs they like, in record Consider also that the very best artists of the day, every bit as creative and spectacular as the artists that have come before, have no chance to showcase their complete work. At best, a small percentage of their creation will find an audience and There has been a not-so-subtle and definite shift in the music industry. This trend is troubling, because we now rely more than ever on radio and advertising to help us decide what music to purchase. Once again, we have returned control of our musical art to a very select group of people. They decide what is played on radio, they decide what music is promoted, and they decide what music they think you should hear and buy. They test songs with focus groups and feed you whatever gets the best scores. It has nothing to do with artistic expression and everything to do with sales and marketing. I recently came to the realization that at 34 years old, I belong to the last generation of Americans that will hear the Abbey Road medley in its entirety. John We follow along, downloading just the catchy song we liked when we heard it on the radio and we rarely listen to the other songs on the album, which often turn out to be more artistically significant than the song with the radio hook. Under this system, the concept albums are completely irrelevant as the numbers show that only 10% of the people spend the time and money to vet an artists entire work1. To think that we have voluntarily
1.

group of suits is disappointing.

numbers, so is there even a problem?

we are gambling, and probably losing, that what finds us will be their best. By sheer numerical odds, this ensures that no

generation of artists will ever produce and chronicle as much socially significant material as the artists of the four decades that proceeded the 21st century. The songs will still be made, but you and I will never hear them. They will drown in a sea of noise, indistinguishable to fanatics alike.

Lennon will never take my kids on a Magic Mystery Tour. They will never visit the Darkside of the Moon with David Gilmour as their guide. They will have Come Togetherand Money on their IPODs, along with singles from hundreds of artists, but they will never experience Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars like we did. This is one cultural shift I cannot support.

"12 Years of Album Sales: 2011 Year-End Soundscan Data."Glorious Noise. Web. 16 Apr. 2012. <http://gloriousnoise.com/2012/12-years-of-album-sales-2011-year-end-soundscan-data>.

2.

Covach, John Rudolph. What's That Sound?: An Introduction to Rock and Its History. New York, NY: W.W. Norton, 2009. Print.

APR 2012