4 SHOW PRE-SALE NOW - Neil Young Concert Tickets
4 SHOW PRE-SALE NOW @ NYA.
- Sep 26 & 27 @ The Capitol Theatre, Port Chester, NY (w/ Promise Of The Real)
- Sep 30 & Oct 1 @ Tower Theater, Upper Darby, PA (Solo)
UPDATE: See our update @
Expecting To See Neil Young: For The Turnstiles, Cough Up The Buck$, Watch Out For The Greedy Hand
A perennial topic -- just like the Swallows of Capistrano -- for those who just can't get enough of this topic.
Labels: concert, neil young, tickets
by thrasher@PermaLink: 9/14/2018 08:21:00 AM
39 comments
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39 Comments:
Yep, up 'n running since last night.
Be advised, in keeping with hi-tec Uncle Neil, it's a total mobile entry.
That means you need to bring your smart phone because your initial confirmation email is NOT your ticket for entry.
The confirm states at the top...
"This is not your ticket! Your ticket will be emailed to your mobile phone in a separate mobile-formatted email scheduled to be sent on (day prior by) 8:00 PM EDT . Present the emailed ticket on your mobile phone to be scanned at the venue."
So, you need to have a smartphone tied to your email.
I was able to snare tix for both dates at The Cap for Neil & POTR. So, go get 'em! See you there!
Please note...The Tower in Philly is Neil SOLO not with POTR.
CHEERS!
Thanks Stills. Very helpful and good to know.
Right now, for us, we're in for The Tower in Philly both nights. Would love to catch the POTR shows too. But we'll console ourselves to Farm Aid next weekend and consider ourselves to be humbly grateful to have the opp and privilege.
watch out for the greedy hand...
peace
Am I missing a code for the shows in Port Chester? Thanks
Code is the same for both venues: neilyoungarchives
Last time I saw Neil Solo at the Tower was in 1999 at the "shut up asshole" show (it was not me that he was talking to). Very lucky to be able to experience another solo show 20 years later. The available seat selections are awesome if you hurry!
I think I'm my own "greedy hand", but then again " Time Fades Away"
so...just grabbed pits for the two Tower SOLO shows.
Cheers!
Anyone know what time this went up last night? I'm sadly out of the country for the whole run, but went on this morning at about 5.30am ET and there were still a few front row PIT tickets available for Tower th.
I went on at about 12:50 AM and it was open...so maybe it kicked off at midnight. Just guessin!
what's with this must have a mobile phone stuff now? what if you don't have such a device then what? SOL.
Are these the four shows? Any idea whether Neil will play in Baltimore or Washington?
I was at the Shut Up asshole show - (my first NY show).
The guy was sitting next to me.
He was fairly drunk (by Neil crowd standards) and had his arm raised in a fist, saying things like 'you got it, brother' - I remember security coming over and removing him
Sidenote - I miss the theatre rules when you couldn't reenter in the middle of the song...
I got both Port Chester and night 2 Tower (plus driving up for saratoga springs from NYC)...
I was just talking to a friend about that tower show, how it was the first hundred dollar ticket, but that the price has been near the same ever since (Boston this year for example), and now he goes and raises the prices on the GA to $175! Man, that hurt.
As an update to earlier posts. The e-ticket is sent by text. From the text, you then log in to view the ticket using the same log-in you created to buy the ticket. Once you log in, then you can view the ticket. My advice is that you should take a screen shot of your ticket before you go into the venue. You'll also need it to find your seat. If you don't have cell coverage at the venue, then you won't be able to access your ticket unless you grabbed the screen shot in advance. And make sure you have a full charge on your phone. Kind of crazy to deal with, but I think it is meant to prevent the re-sale of tickets. In my mind, Neil is trying to offer his recent shows to his core fan base. I can't remember the last time it was this easy to land a quality seat. To this extent, I say thank you Neil.
At least we weren't forced to download the tickets onto a Pono.
Now, if only we could get the audience to be respectful between songs...
Neil has turned his back on his core audience. That's why his album sales are plummeting and going down. I think walking out on Pegi, Ben, and Amber really hurt him commercially. His audience was always blue collar working class democrats what's left of them Neil and the Democrats turned their back on them. That's why we have the orange hair do schmuck in the white house now.
It is sort of perplexing that after all these years -- and hundreds of comments later -- folks are still bitching and moaning about concert tickets. Even after Neil delivers exactly what fans have been requesting.
2007
An Open Letter To Neil Young On Ticket Prices For The Turnstiles
http://neilyoungnews.thrasherswheat.org/2007/09/open-letter-to-neil-young.html
Comment of the Moment: An Open Letter To Neil Young On Ticket Prices For The Turnstiles
http://neilyoungnews.thrasherswheat.org/2007/09/comment-of-moment-open-letter-to-neil.html
2008
For The Turnstiles Again
http://neilyoungnews.thrasherswheat.org/2008/09/for-turnstiles-again.html
2010
For The Turnstiles Yet Again
http://neilyoungnews.thrasherswheat.org/2010/03/for-turnstiles-yet-again.html
2011
Free Neil Young Warmup Concerts Cancelled
http://neilyoungnews.thrasherswheat.org/2011/04/free-neil-young-warmup-concerts.html
For the Turnstiles
"All the sailors with their seasick mamas
Hear the sirens on the shore,
Singin' songs for pimps with tailors
Who charge ten dollars at the door.
You can really learn a lot that way
It will change you in the middle of the day.
Though your confidence may be shattered,
It doesn't matter.
All the great explorers
Are now in Granite Lake
Under white sheets for the great unveiling
At the big parade.
You can really learn a lot that way
It will change you in the middle of the day.
Though your confidence may be shattered,
It doesn't matter.
All the bushleague batters
Are left to die on the diamond.
In the stands the home crowd scatters
For the turnstiles,
For the turnstiles,
For the turnstiles."
deja vu over and over again, our friends
Interesting, didn't know about any of those open letters.
I don't begrudge a musician charging whatever he wants. It's his business, both literally and figuratively. I was simply stating that it was funny/ironic that was praising him for keeping the prices relatively static so many years later and was then faced with an increase hours later. I know Port Chester is a small venue, half the size of the Wang Theater. Perhaps that's why he's charging more. And he's certainly not the only one doing so. And of course I get that record sales aren't paying the bills (although I don't know that Neil's records have paid the bills since...Harvest Moon? He hasn't been a big seller since Harvest, I suspect, which is purposeful, to some extent. He didn't want to be middle-of-the-road, so he veered into the ditch, to paraphrase the man himself. It does, however, make it difficult for younger fans, at the very least, to come up with the funds. Of course, they can grab a grass seat at an amphitheater, which is affordable. No one sells those for over $100. I was just feeling sticker shock, since it's the most expensive ticket I've ever purchased (and the seats were even more). I remember being a teen, bummed that the balcony seats were all gone and that I would be spending all of my money on the orchestra ticket. I don't regret it now, I didn't regret it then.
BUT I do believe there is more to it than what the market will allow. Just because you CAN charge a price doesn't mean you have to. I'm a firm believer that an artist gets to choose his/her audience. Neil, so individualistic and idiosyncratic, has nurtured a loyal fanbase that has followed him for decades. At the same time, by charging prices that only the most fervent and/or well-to-do can afford, you may not have the best audience mix. It's an art, not a science, but I've been to almost 1000 concerts in my young life (36) and I've seen what those gold circle front rows give back to the artist. Sometimes they're amazing, often times they aren't. That's why bands like Pearl Jam make ticket prices the same for the whole venue and allow the fan club to have prime access to those seats. They could raise the prices and I'm sure a lot of the fans would go along with it. I'm hopeful that instituting the mobile ticket system will discourage if not completely eliminate scalpers, thereby getting the tickets into the right people's hands. I was just at a Radiohead show where a bunch of banker types showed up late and talked throughout the show. These people can't get priced out, but the fans that contribute to a show's 'magical' quality can. I think that's at the heart of some people's gripes. Personally, it's Neil's call. The truth is, if he were a younger artist, I wouldn't have bought the tickets (Ween, Jason Isbell, etc). I just don't know how many more opportunities I'll have to see the man, so if it means driving 7 hours roundtrip to Saratoga Springs..or taking a bus on a work night to Philly...or a train to Port Chester, I'm going to do it. But I feel for people with kids and mortgages and other necessities whose 'fun money' jars isn't big enough to make it happen.
@ dd - thanks for all of the context and background.
wow, not bad 1000 concerts in 20 years or so. that's cool. and wasn't busting on you specifically, really and agree with a lot of what you're saying. Those links above echo much of what you and others are saying.
the point is that no matter what Neil does, folks always seem to think they know best what should have been done differently.
we'll also add that a couple of these shows will be live streamed which is extremely cool. The west coast streams recently were quite awesome.
Like with everything, there is no one magical solution to the problem.
We would argue that the cheaper GA upfront, more expensive reserved in the back is an innovation that we here @ TW championed for years. See:
The Price of Neil: When Art and Commerce Collide
http://neilyoungnews.thrasherswheat.org/2007/09/price-of-neil-when-art-and-commerce.html
Comment of the Moment: The High Price of Neil
http://neilyoungnews.thrasherswheat.org/2007/10/comment-of-moment-high-price-of-neil.html
It's Only Money
http://neilyoungnews.thrasherswheat.org/2008/09/its-only-money.html
New Neil Young Video: Cough Up The Buck$
http://neilyoungnews.thrasherswheat.org/2009/03/new-video-cough-up-buck.html
just might have to re-visit that "Cough Up The Buck$" video ...
I called the Cap, said they will e-mail tix by day of, and can be printed as paper tix. May go to both shows.
Thrasher said:
"We would argue that the cheaper GA upfront, more expensive reserved in the back is an innovation that we here @ TW championed for years. "
That "innovation" has been championed, and put into practice, by Bruce Springsteen for decades now. Glad Neil has ditched the wristband lottery though. "Small Venues Are Better" bumper sticks should be issued.
Neil's audience is wildly diverse. There are a surprisingly large number of pro-War flag waver types among us. Neil's love life is his own to address, not yours. Neil has been very dedicated to Ben, by all accounts I have heard. Why insult the man? We are lucky he still has something to say and is even willing to tour when people slander him with negative comments like yours.
Let the man have his personal life. You weren't there when certain circumstances played out. You really don't know who to blame, but Neil is in your cross hairs. Bugger off then, and don't try to bring down the rest of us with your negativity. I am still buying all the albums he puts out because I end up loving most of them, after 3 decades of being a dedicated fan. Yes, tickets to an intimate venue cost money. The most I have paid for myself to go to shows was for Neil Young. I have no regrets about that. I have had to bankroll seats costing twice that or more for other artists (sending wife & kids).
Honestly, if you are so hurt by Neil Young's personal life, go do something else. Find a new hobby, free of venom. You need it. "Missing: Anti War Democrat." Alan in Seattle
My comment is directed at Unknown, 9/14/18, 14:00 hours.
Cheers Alan!
For what it's worth, I'm not a big fan of the "Unknown" commentator status. Get a name, it's more fun!
In my 40 yrs of being an active Neil fan I am priced out by my Idol.
Tapped out, more like.
And so it is time to "Tap out".
Would've found a way to pay fer NY & CH (had GA tix fer the cancelled Cap show).
or NY & Nils.
Neil & The Real?
They were GR8 fer $50 in an Ampitheater.
OFW.....leftbehinds.
just my .02
Alan, so well said!! To add a thought or two ... people act like a show that they cannot afford or dont want to pay for is like Neil took something from them ... change your mind(set) ... even if you can't go/don't want to pay be happy for those that will go, and maybe Neil will stream it live for free which is always a huge treat ... I for one quit caffeine a year ago and don't drink ... thats a choice I make ... I bet most folks spend more than $200 a year on those things ... many people who are broke buy a starbucks everyday ... sometimes (but not always) "I can't afford it" really means I'm not willing to pay that much for it even if there are other things I will pay for ... in my world I see Neil playing deeply soulful shows in tiny theatres and giving fans the opportunity to claim primo seats ... for me that's worth $200+ ... I'll find a way to work over time, I'll save on something else, the bottom line is when you count the beans he's not making near what he could if he wanted to play MSG or some bigger venue ... he's decided for now he'll do it right in a small venue and charge a bit more for folks who want to be there, to me its a 50 year cannon and the ability to deliver at top form I'm paying for ... ok, end of rant ... sadly I can't make this run of shows which are in my backyard, I'll be traveling, but delighted for fans who can be there, see you all the next time!!
Short version:
I've kept almost all of my stubs over the years and when you lay them out, year after year, you can see this trend and it doesn't track average salaries, minimum wages, inflation, etc. You're not crazy if it costs more than it used to. It DOES cost more. Baby Boomers have more money to throw at it than their younger counterparts do. People will complain about the high prices of beer at shows/sports games and then spend $100 on concessions. No one is forcing you to drink. If you cant' enjoy a game or a show without beer, that's on you, not the venue or the artist/team. The merchandise is also a lot more expensive, again because of the buying power of the fans. t shirt too expensive? Buy a knockoff outside or nothing at all. You don't need the memento, you've got the memories (I used to always buy shirts, now I buy posters when they're cool/not too pricey). Concerts didn't use to be a hard thing to work towards. Now it takes considerably more hours to earn a ticket. Is there anything we can do? Probably not. Is it cool that bands like Pearl Jam have fan clubs with early access, reduced ticket fees, and no gold circle/VIP packages? For me, absolutely. Is it annoying that Neil doesn't sell his Archive tickets through the website and avoid the $25+ in ridiculous fees? Sure. Was it amazing when Kid Rock capped his tickets at $20? Yup. Same goes for Louis CK (I know, but he did ticketing right) when he sold all of his tickets, save a few exceptions, through his website and ate the fees himself...or when some jam band I can't remember went to the venue, bought all the tickets themselves and then sold them on their website because they couldnt' get around fees any other way? Hell yes. Or Jack White banning cell phones? Bravo to him! I wish more bands did more to make the experience more enjoyable, especially given the price tag. Who wants to pay through the nose and then have a lousy time?
Longer, rambly version :)
I will say that, when looking at things like inflation, minimum wage, average salaries, etc current prices are considerably higher than comparable shows were in the 60s, 70s, 80s. If a person made $1.50/hr, they only had to work 7 hours to buy an expensive ticket ($10) or 2-4 hours for a normal priced ticket ($3-$5). Elvis in 56 = $3.50; Elvis in 1977 - 12.50-$15...with inflation, that's $32-$67...no one was really charging the equivalent of today's prices. Dylan got lambasted for charging I think $10 in the 60s...in 1974, he charged $9.50, which is approximately $50 in today's dollars. Minimum wage was $2, so you could work 5 hours and see Dylan if you worked at Burger King. Today, minimum wage is $7.25 nationally, $13 in NYC. So if you work at Burger King today, you'd have to work 17 hours nationally or 9.5 hours in NYC to pay for a Pearl Jam ticket at their stadium show (not including fees...which would add 2-4 more hours to the totals. This isn't an opinion. These are facts. Certain goods and services have gone down in price over the years, some have not. Concert tickets, movie tickets, theater tickets are some of the more pronounced/frustrating ones because they are forms of entertainment that are historically thought of as non-luxury experiences.
Taking your kids to the movies used to be an easy decision. For many people, it's a lot pricier. Small bands and Off-Off Broadway shows are still a good value, though, with tickets going for $10-20, which fits in line with the minimum wage/inflation rates. What no one I see hear talk about (and excuse me if you have) is that concerts, especially for the Baby Boomer generation but also for Gen X, Y, and Millenials, have become more aggressively monetized. They are competing with vacation dollars, not nice dinner dollars. I don't drink coffee or alcohol, but those aren't the things people have to cut out to afford concerts at the pop level (Taylor Swift, Beyonce, Kanye, Elton, etc). Sure, if you want to go to just 1 concert a year, or one concert a month, then it's a manageable option to scrimp and save and budget. But the prices in the past were not high enough that you'd have to be so selective and careful. Florence and the Machine charges about a $100 for GA at arenas, which is shocking to me, but her fans are obviously spending the money. People didn't use to have to say...hmm, how many concerts do we need to cut out of the calendar to pay for that trip to Italy? It simply wasn't a big enough expense to make that much of a difference. If you really wanted to see Zeppelin, cost wasn't the issue, it was supply. U2's Zoo TV cost $50 at 2018 prices.
I will say, Neil did charge $100 for the Tower in 1999, which is about $150 in today's dollars, so he is at least consistent when it comes to theater shows. When he returned in 2007, I sadly didn't have a job and couldn't justify the expense. Not his fault, not mine, just the reality.
Perhaps the industry has just woken up to the reality of what they're offering - experiences, mementos, memories - and figure that with people streaming TV, movies, and music, they've got more disposable income to throw into things that can't be downloaded. As someone who loves going to live music, it's of course frustrating to see my hobby/passion be expensive enough that it takes up a fair amount of the money I have. Like I said above, music used to be much easier to work towards for people in lower-middle class jobs. It's of course true that people prioritize things differently. I for one would rather go on a vacation to Europe for 10 days than spend the same money on Front Row packages, but that's just me. I also don't have a $1000 phone or a home entertainment system for 5.1 Surround Sound or a car (I live in NYC). Different strokes, different folks.
Money is tighter fer me now than it has ever been. (MY prob)
Survival mode, really.
we used to go to shows @ least once a week.
Now it is once a year, And I already have our "Once a Year Tix" since Apr or May for Oct. was hoping via Archives prices would've been more reasonable. When the subscriptions come on line I WILL make that happen. I hope Neil does choose to stream @ least one sold out show of this run. I will be there in spirit.
Heard something interesting the other day, YES, economy IS doing better. MORE jobs than workers, which MAY push up Avg. hourly wage.....Prob is the jobs that are plentiful are low paying, part-time or seasonal.
To put it in perspective: Amazon just became the 2nd Trillion dollar company (behind Apple this year). Jeff Bezos makes more money in 10 or 15 min than the avg Amazon employee makes in a year. Many Amazon employees are on some sort of Gov't subsidy & working F/T. Economy, Prices, distribution of wealth is all upside down. And If you pay attention to Neil's own site/words it is & will get worse.
I take the Beer & Coffee suggestion personally. insulting & degrading. Have not bought a cup of coffee or a beer outside the house in years. Maybe a better suggestion would have been to do without Food. Or clothes. Or utilities. Or Shelter? ANYTHING to afford an over-priced ticket. surrounded by "clueless" concert going, so-called "FANS", who have NO respect for the artist or fellow fans anyway. You can even hear them chatting on the streams. See the Amateur film makers w/ their phones honing their skills. And entry is now via mobile ticketing? GR8.
Here are several different ramblings that summarize my perspective of tickets: How many of Neil's shows did you get to attend FOR FREE because he live streamed them? I had tickets for the the Tower show in 2009, and I had was very bummed when I had to give them up because of a conflict. Imagine my surprise when I find out that the show became the Trunk Show, and I was able to enjoy it after the fact. Recently, I tried to buy tickets for the 40th anniversary tour that Petty had. I had never seen Petty live, but I've been a big fan of his music for years. I could have gotten nose bleeds for $125 plus fees in a large stadium. I decided I simply could not afford it, and thought to myself that I'll catch him the next time around. Now I live with regret that I never got a chance to see him live. From what I can tell, a lot of fans on this site go to several shows a year, and yes it is a crazy expense if you expect to see him 6 times a year. For a fan like me that has only been to about 12 of his shows since I became a fan in 1981, I will periodically cough up the bucks to be able to see him in a small venue. Really, his prices are far better than many other acts - go try to buy an Elton John ticket and you'll pay $350 for nose bleeds for the pleasure of watching something the size of an ant in a spotlight.
ForeverYoung, regrets if my comments were hurtful to you. Perhaps I should have remained silent, but to be clear those comments were NOT meant for you ... for those folks who are judicious about their spending and truly cannot afford the cost my heart goes out to them, and I agree the economy has been good for a few and not so good for most ... If I were the artist I'd try to have a lottery for a portion of tickets at lower cost for folks who cannot afford the price ... I think Neil has a dilemma on his hands, he wants to play small theaters for his best fans, he deserves to earn a living, the market would probably bear much more (PIT tickets for July's Wang theatre shows were listed on Stub Hub for $1,000s) ... perhaps he should occasionally play for huge venues for $25 or $50 ... $175 is a lot of money, especially for an evening, however if there is no where else to cut expenses and no way to earn more to afford a ticket, then fortunately he often offers a stream which to me is pretty good option too! I just think for those who bash Neil (which I know is not you) and especially when its personal, is immature, and unfair. If someone is going through financial hardship my heart goes out to them, but its not Neil's fault and he doesn't deserve the scorn. I for one will stand up and rebut those criticisms of Neil ...
@ Dan & everyone - thanks for all of the thoughts on this topic.
It's perennial topic ... just like the Swallows of Capistrano.
And for those who just can't get enough of this topic, see our update @
Expecting To See Neil Young: For The Turnstiles, Cough Up The Buck$, Watch Out For The Greedy Hand
In case I wasn't clear, when I talked about going to multiple concerts, etc, I wasn't talking about going to see Neil multiple times necessarily. We all love music here and we all love going to see other bands too. Even if you forego seeing Neil more than once a tour or two, as I have had to do, there are plenty of other bands that have also raised prices to new heights. Pearl Jam fought to have tickets for fees to be less than $2 (and lost)...now they don't mind having $20+ in fees. It's also a bit of a vicious circle. When he played Carnegie Hall, I ran to the box office and bought a pair for 1 night. Upper balcony, 'cheap seats.' Didn't think about the resale value of them at all. If I had bought the max for all 4 nights, I could have easily resold the extras and gone to the other 3 for free. Bands see that and raise the prices, so more fans buy tickets to defray of the cost, on the back of other, wealthier/desperate fans. Who wins? The band, Stubhub, Ticketmaster. Who loses? A lot of the fans. Stubhub and others have allowed fans to become scalpers, international scalpers to have a presence everywhere, etc. Sometimes it helps (cheap last minute seats online; desperate fans dumping tickets) and often it hurts.
I will say streams are nice but not really a substitute for a live performance for me personally. Watching it on a screen at home isn't 'attending' a show. That's like saying that watching a football/basketball, etc game at home for 'free' is just like paying to sit in the stadium (sometimes it's better!). But it's certainly not comparable to me. Live records are not the same as being in the building. I don't think anyone would argue that, so as nice as it is to see/hear shows one cannot attend, it isn't much of a consolation (for me) if the only reason I'm not inside is cost. Schedules, logistics, locations - great compensation for sure. And I love Neil and have never complained about him, his work, prices, etc. And this isn't even about him specifically but about the general trend. All I know is that my wages aren't increasing at the rate that my expenses are, including rent for example. I think there's a way for the artist to get paid while not pricing out a significant percentage of the fan base. I can't tell a band/musician how much they 'should' make per show. That's not my business. But it's a tricky thing, for sure.
PS - Elton John tickets at MSG weren't that expensive when I saw him a few years back, and I was lower level. He has notched it up considerably for his farewell tour, which is what it is. I'll go if I can get a 'cheap' ticket outside from someone with an extra (which is often the only way I can go to some of these shows).
There has been huge inflation in ticket prices over the years. I saw NY on the 1983 solo trans tour in Baltimore Civic arena for the equivalent of $75 today. And no "service charges" or fees. The NY Trunk show tour passed through WDC a few years ago at a relatively cozy venue. Worst seats were $120, so I didn't go due to high cost.
Why do Neil, Bruce on Broadway, et al charge relatively more for their live shows? Why do dogs like themselves? Because they can.
It’s simple
Neil owes you nothing and you owe him nothing
If u wanna go and can, go
If u can’t , u can’t
STFU and move on...
and this is all why I stopped going to concerts after seeing Neil & Crazy Horse in 2012....just not worth the hassle anymore....I'd much rather stay home, drink beer, take a bong hit or two, and listen to whoever I want....but I sure can relate to everyone's perspectives here as I used to go to a LOT of concerts....I used to travel around in the 90's & early 2000's to see Pearl Jam as a fan club member...that ended when PJ became a parody of their former selves...sigh...
As Robert Frost once wrote: "Nothing gold can stay."
re: all the bitching about concert ticket prices:
does anyone begrudge the artist wanting to make some sort of living doing what they love to do?
does anyone not agree that the current climate of music product sales of lp's, cd's, dvd's, legit downloads is way below what it used to be before the advent of the internet + file sharing?
can someone tell me how does the artist in this day make a living if all they can now do to earn an income is perform live shows and charge what they need to do to try to make up for the lack of product sales that they used to get? not even talking about selling 1 million or 500k copies. how about 100k copies? how many artists even get to that level now? and lets not forget the expenses involved with touring are not like the old days. a lot of people get paid.
i suppose the artists could just do stadium tours. more tickets sold per show!
but then expenses increase rapidly. so the overall ticket price will not lower much anyway.
yes i remember the good old days of ticket prices being $3.50, $4.50, $5.50 back when i started going to shows in 1972. prices since then always went up.
re: Acid Frank
1. No one begrudges Neil or anyone else making a living
2. No disagrees about music product sales being down. That being said, the profits made from LPs to MP3s (and sheet music before that) represent a very small part of the profession's income sources, from a historical perspective. We got to witness how technology made it possible for a musician to make money (and a lot of it) without having to play gigs. When I say 'have to,' I am being quite literal, as the idea of 'studio band' obviously did not exist and for most of the last 100 years, was nearly impossible logistically. It grew and grew, with big contracts, bonuses, private planes, and all the other excesses of success. Bands took longer in the studio (for better and worse), made million dollar videos, and built Broadway-scale (and beyond) productions. The artists benefited both financially and creatively (although I hear money corrupts as assuredly as power). Artists paid the rent by playing live. And they had to do it a lot. 2 sets/night for not that much money. Sharing profits with other bands, managers, labels, and dozens of others.*
3. I don't know why more people are getting paid for a tour than they used to. What positions/roles have been invented since the internet was invented and Napster killed the radio star? I'm not being funny, I genuinely don't know the answer. I would say that, on Neil's solo tour, that it's probably a similar crew that he had 10, 20, 30 years ago. Roadies, drivers, road manager, sound guy, lighting guy, assistant. Mind you, some of those things are luxuries, not necessities, just as it's a luxury for Kanye West to tour with a dozen ballerinas or Jack White to have two full bands on pay roll, one all female and one all male. Should he charge double because he wants that? That's his business, as I said before, but it's not like the artists are responding to some request/desire/market need and then charging the necessary amount to cover it. They are artists following their muses, their instincts, and their wants. And so long as there are fans willing and able to fund those desires, they can and will. And that's fine. I personally don't believe that past performance should dictate future costs. We've all seen bands (I think) that were once at the top of the charts and could play arenas and stadiums and sell millions of dollars in merch and tickets and now have to settle into the realities that their fan bases have shrunk and the venues are smaller and the demand is lower. I don't personally think the answer to that reality is to take those who remain and raise prices on them to try and cover the gaps. If a restaurant's customer base goes down, the answer (in my humble opinion) isn't to simply raise prices on those that still patronize the establishment. Music is a funny thing.
In a traditional business, you work to get new customers. Some bands are good at this. Some bands have fans that become missionaries for them and get the next generation hooked. Some bands wake up to a song in a movie/TV show/singing competition and have 100k new fans ready to spotify them and buy their tickets. Journey is one example of this. Santana went a different route. He said, let's make an album with the popular musicians and connect to the new generation, get some new fans. If I were in a band, dealing with this situation, I'm not sure I would've chosen that route, but that's because I'm not a good businessman in that sense. I'd be too involved in the art and trying to maintain whatever I thought was integrity. I love the hell out of Neil, for example, and have bought the books and CDs and tickets since I was a teenager. He has been my number one since forever, and he has certainly kept his integrity. He's done what he wants, when he wants, record sales be damned (and anyone who lived in the 80s watched him really not give a shit who bought his records, which I love). I think it's a bit unfair to blame the internet and filesharing when the artist doesn't seem to care about making a hit record in the first place. And I think it's a little problematic for the extreme successes of the music industry heyday become the standard by which aging (as well as new) artists measure their own successes. Like that industry, where the majority of actors do not make a lot of money, the movies kept paying the stars more and more and raising prices to compensate for salaries and reduced attendance. Things like Moviepass were able to exist because of this issue. Napster was (partly) invented as a reaction to CDs going up to over $20 even as production costs (and sound quality went down). Neil tried to fix some of this with Pono, which unfortunately did not catch on.
At the end of the day, no one is putting a gun to anyone's head to buy a ticket. It's our choice and we live with it. The fact is, perhaps I should have taken that $500 I spent on 3 concerts and invested it into 20 $25/ticket concerts and support those bands. (Who am I kidding, I still will!). Perhaps if the big revolution in music hadn't occurred and bands didn't get accustomed to a certain level of financial wealth, then concert tickets would have stayed at a reasonable rate. We'll just have to wait and see what happens when the old guard/baby boomers move on and the next generation is met with the prices. As a 36 year-old, I can tell you that my generation doesn't seem poised to spend the kind of VIP gold circle money that older folks do...of course I could be wrong. People change.
*The internet has certainly taken the winds out of a lot of sales, but it has also streamlined a process that saves a lot of money and allows an artist freedom/power to communicate with the fans in a way that was near-impossible before. More and more artists make their own labels and record themselves, using FB, Twitter, fan clubs, etc to get the message out. they don't need to worry about distribution and CD/LP production if it's an MP3 and they're even getting the fans to foot the bill via crowdsourcing/presales, thus eliminating the upfront costs that made labels so attractive and powerful)
Any word on opener for Tower? He had an opener from Canada for the solo dates a few months back
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