The NY Times visits with Blue Note artists and long-time president Bruce Lundvall on the occasion of the 70th birthday of the iconic jazz record label. I can't even count the artists who have meant something to me on Blue Note: John Coltrane, Freddie Hubbard, Wayne Shorter, Jimmy Smith, McCoy Tyner, Charlie Hunter, Medeski/Martin/Wood, John Scofield, Dianne Reeves, Herbie Hancock, Art Blakey and Soulive to name just a few. In the article, Lundvall offers a philosophy that used to be part of the major label mindset back when the majors had the audacity and the chops to market music to the masses and the niches at the same time.
“With the serious jazz artists, you look to break even or make a small profit. You keep the budgets in line, do the best marketing job that you can, and stay with the artists as they develop.”
And then what happens? You develop back catalog that sells robustly year after year and sometimes stumble on a phenomenon like Norah Jones. It means you go down in history and help great musicians realize their potential. Thank you Alfred Lion for showing the way and thank you EMI for keeping this only slightly profitable but epically important label open and thriving.
iTunes is selling classic Blue Note titles right now for $7.99, but more exciting is the celebratory tour by the Blue Note 7 featuring Bill Charlap, Nicholas Payton and Ravi Coltrane touring cities that don't often get top-flight jazz. They visit Vanderbilt's Langford Auditorium on Feb. 18. See you there?
Comments