by Greg » Wed Jul 23, 2008 12:10 am
I was thinking about this debate last night and I suppose in some respects, I might have misspoke. I do, for the record, think a band's success largely falls on who the lead singer is and how well he/she performs. However, if you look at this in regards to marketing, it has more to do with how you are going to get the music out to the general public and how to get them to buy it. Back in the day, these bands sold albums because of their talent. Obviously they are still extremely talented, but are not selling albums like they did in the 80's. In this day and age of the music business, it's all about marketing and not so much about the music itself. If that wasn't true, you'd still have these bands being played on the radio every hour on the hour. Not to put down any of the new artists popular today, but there are some that leave me scratching my head wondering how they got a record deal.
For these classic rock bands, it's mostly about nostalgia. Actually, look at the entertainment business in general. It is all about nostalgia. Look at the movies that are being made. Batman, Fantastic Four, Get Smart? We're bringing back ideas of the old to entertain a new generation. Same thing is happening with the music business now. Like the movie business, to bring back an old idea (ie Journey, Heart, The Eagles) you have to market it with a bit more of a flashy wrapper. Get Journey music out to the masses, but in a way where they can't refuse the deal. Voila - the package deal. Voila - the Zune deal. It's worked for the Eagles, REO Speedwagon, Journey, and will probably work for AC/DC when they release their new album. What is selling is the band's name and the package. Yes, the music still has to be good to sell, but Journey's music has always been good. In this music business, it's about how the music is being marketed and of course sex appeal. Well, like it or not, these guys probably won't have sex appeal that applies to the majority of music buyers (young people.) So, let's not worry about sex appeal. Let's worry about how to market the music so that people can't resist buying it. Sorry, but the music alone is not merit enough for these bands. That's why you're seeing these marketing strategies to get the initial push out to the audience.
Of course, now, once the large amount of the audience has the new CD, whether if they bought it to get the Zune player or to get the other package, it comes down to see if the audience likes the new stuff and the new line up. If they do, then Journey and the other classic rock bands who are following the same formula should have more success pushing out their new albums (the next album) based on their own merit and not because of a package deal. You can only go to that well so many times unless there are other outlandish ideas that keep things interesting.
I know Journey had the video game in the 80's, but as far as I know, it was never sold in a package deal with Escape (was it?) Actually, I don't remember any weird package deals with any of Journey's albums. I just remember going to the record store and seeing the album on the shelf. If people bought it, they bought it. If they didn't, then it didn't sell. I'm not talking about TV shows or live concerts. I'm talking about POS (point of sales.) When it got to that point, you bought the album by itself - NOT packaged up with something else that would make it a worthwhile purchase if the album "stunk it up". That is really all I'm saying. Journey, like the rest of the classic acts, needs genius marketing strategies to get their music out. While this day and age is going through a bit of nostalgia craze, these bands still cannot sell their albums on those albums' merits alone. They need a bit of help. Doesn't mean they are not putting out a good product (good music,) just means they need some help to get the general public to notice it again.
In regards to Steve Perry, I think he has enough of a recognizable name where his name on the product would've pushed sales a bit more. I realize people here and especially on the official boards get very sensitive when people like me talk about why we think the album is selling well. But most of us fans loved Journey with Steve Augeri and were quite upset when the albums didn't do well. The music was very good and definitely good enough to have done just as well as what Revelation is doing now. I also realize people will get very upset that I am not giving Arnel Pineda all the credit, especially the new Filipino fans. But, sorry, it really isn't all about him joining the band. He's a complete unknown. It isn't completely NOT about him. Pineda sings quite well and again, you do still have to put out good music. However, my biggest point is, it's all about marketing for these older acts, and they have finally found something that is going to work for them. At least initially.
