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Sir Paul McCartney is in a bind. He wants to release “Carnival of Light,” arguably one of the Beatles’ most experimental tracks, but he needs permission from the other living Beatle, Ringo Starr, and from the estates of George Harrison and John Lennon. The 14-minute “Carnival of Light” was recorded in early 1967 and McCartney recently told BBC Radio 4 that “the time has come for it to get its moment.” The recording has never been bootlegged and McCartney continued to cite his reasons for wanting the world to hear the song, saying “it would be great to put this on because it would show we were working with really avant-garde stuff.” “Carnival of Light” was only released for public play in early ’67 after being recorded for the electronic musical festival the Million Volt Light and Sound Rave. One Beatle who may not grant McCartney’s wish (alive or deceased) is George Harrison, who vetoed Paul’s request to include “Carnival of Light” on the Beatles’ Anthology in the late 1990s.

For those who stick to the pop anthems that made the Beatles famous and don’t deviate into the experimental realm of the Fab Four’s 1967 album Sgt. Pepper may be shocked by “Carnival of Light” should it ever be released. McCartney described the song more to the BBC: “I said all I want you to do is just wander around all the stuff, bang it, shout, play it, it doesn’t need to make any sense. Hit a drum then wander on to the piano, hit a few notes, just wander around. So that’s what we did and then put a bit of an echo on it. It’s very free.” Although a few lucky Beatles aficionados claim to have heard the song, McCartney supposedly owns the master tape. Author Mark Lewisohn, who is widely regarded as the globe’s leading authority on all things Beatles, described “Carnival of Light” as “distorted, a distorted lead guitar, the sound of a church organ, various effects (water gurgling was one), and perhaps the most intimidating of all, John Lennon and McCartney screaming dementedly and bawling aloud random phrases like ‘Are you alright?’ and ‘Barcelona!.’” Beatles biographer Barry Miles also weighed in on the unreleased track, describing it as similar to Frank Zappa’s “The Return of the Son of Monster Magnet.”

McCartney was most recently in the news when he played a historic performance in Tel Aviv on September 25. The concert came 43 years after the Israeli government banned the group from playing in fears that they would corrupt the youth population with their music. McCartney performed Beatles favorites like “Hello, Goodbye” and 31 other hits chronicling the Beatles career as well as John Lennon’s “Give Peace a Chance.” While you wait for McCartney to make another pop moment that will go down in the history books, don’t miss your chance to see him perform live. You can find Paul McCartney tickets at http://www.stubhub.com to see him perform live!

Author Bio: This article is sponsored by StubHub.com and was written by Kirby Brooks. StubHub.com is a leader in the business of selling Paul McCartney tickets, sports tickets, concert tickets, theater tickets and special events tickets.

Amazon.co.uk Review
17 years in the making and beholden of a level of hyperbole verging on mythology–one that couldn’t even be derailed by Axl Rose staffing his ever-changing troupe with people named Buckethead, Bumblefoot and Brain–Chinese Democracy would disappoint even if it arrived in a puff of smoke and nullified the impact of The Dark Side of the Moon, Revolver and Sabbath Bloody Sabbath (not to mention Appetite for Destruction). And it doesn’t do that, obviously. In fact, s (more…)

Before there was MySpace or any other form of an online music mecca readily available to the eyes and ears of millions of fans, there was vinyl, and Guns N’ Roses’ frontman Axl Rose has lived through it all, evolving with the changing times and taking complete advantage of the social network MySpace to promote GNR’s brand new release Chinese Democracy, an album 17 years in the making. Rose and his absurdly famous counterparts have been streaming their new album on MySpace gearing up for its anxiously-awaited November 25 release, and the rebellious rock icons have broken several records in the process.

Thanks to technology and stellar tracking devices, it’s been discovered that Guns N’ Roses’ Chinese Democracy has been receiving 25 listens per second on MySpace since its full-streaming release yesterday, garnering more than 826,000 plays for the title track while the total amount of plays on the album tracks have amounted to more than three million. These overwhelming statistics show a staggering number of Guns N’ Roses fans lining up to buy the band’s first completely new release since 1993; the album has been delayed for two days, just a short time for GNR fans who have been awaiting the album’s release for years. Chinese Democracy will be available exclusively in Best Buy stores starting November 25, and the band’s most dedicated fans couldn’t be happier.

GNR fans have been lining up to get Guns N’ Roses tickets to see Axl Rose and Co. perform live in concert for more than two decades, and with the band’s recent string of tour dates and a new album on the burner, hardcore Guns N’ Roses fans are both speechless and satisfied. When GNR first set out to rock the face off American music in the mid-1980s, their key to success was the ingeniously raw rock & roll music streaming out of longhaired band members’ electric guitars and raspy voices. The rebellious rockers burst onto the music scene in 1986 with the rousing “Sweet Child O’ Mine,” an instant rock anthem and MTV delight. “Welcome to the Jungle” and “Paradise City” established Guns N’ Roses as a delectable treat to the heavy metal industry, and as Axl Rose slipped further into a sinful life of bigotry, drug abuse and violence, Guns N’ Roses just kept inflating on the music scene.

The 1990s brought about changes in the band’s lineup, but Axl Rose stayed true to his signature band, proving his captain status by not jumping ship with many of his bandmates. Despite the changing music of the decades, Guns N’ Roses stayed afloat with the band’s signature rock & roll music, not giving into the grunge craze as groups like Nirvana started blowing up the airwaves. Rose fled from the public scene in the late ’90s, only resurfacing in 2001 with GNR’s first set of live performances in seven years. Slowly working their way back into rock music, Guns N’ Roses sparked rumors of a new album, yet the world saw nothing of a new release through the years. Chinese Democracy, Guns N’ Roses long-awaited album, seemed more like a dream than a reality for Axl Rose for several years, racking up a bill upwards of $13 million for production costs in the process. In 2006, Guns N’ Roses started playing live shows again, gearing up for the release of Chinese Democracy, fit to be released at the end of this month. If you’re ready to complete your Guns N’ Roses obsession by both listening to the band’s new album and seeing them in concert, get tickets to a live performance from http://www.stubhub.com/guns-n-roses-tickets.

Author Bio: This article is sponsored by StubHub.com and was written by Jenna Jay. StubHub is a leader in the business of selling Guns N’ Roses tickets, sports tickets, concert tickets, theater tickets and special events tickets.

CD Description
Scott Weiland hasn’t curried much favor with critics, either as the frontman for mainstream grunge outfit Stone Temple Pilots in the 1990s, or as a member of the hard-rock supergroup Velvet Revolver in the 2000s. Yet Weiland’s penchant forglam rock and dreamy psychedelia, and his more overlooked gift for pop hooks, are framed nicely on solo records like `98′s 12 BAR BLUES and–to even better effect–on `08′s HAPPY IN GALOSHES.Naturally, the stylistic imprint of Weilan (more…)

truth about diets

Who says rock and fashion can’t coexist? Stone Temple Pilots frontman Scott Weiland is currently pairing up with English Laundry to create a true rock star image with clothing designer Christopher Wick. The press release announcing the duo’s project deems the line “a lifestyle brand for the true rock rebel,” as Weiland’s style will be emulated through this new line of clothes. In a statement. Weiland says, “From early on I was inspired by rock icons like David Bowie and Keith Richard who helped in molding my personal sense of style. I am really looking forward to launching this line with Christopher Wick and English Laundry.” The line will include vests, t-shirts, pants, hats, ties and scarves all worth a pretty penny (price range is quoted from $40 – $120) and will begin rocking out in February. Inspired by the ’60s rock era, English Laundry is easily going to see a surge of purchased merchandise once alternative rock fans learn of Weiland’s involvement.

The collection will debut at Magic Las Vegas on February 17th thanks to Wicks, owner of English Laundry, Rock & Roll Religion, Fender: The Clothing Collection and The Jimi Hendrix Experience. Wicks said in a press statement, “I have the utmost respect for Scott Weiland, both as an artist and as a designer. He is truly one of the last great rock stars, and his impact on style and music is undeniable. I am proud to be joining forces with him for this collaboration.” Specialty stores plan on carrying the Kinks, Beatles and Rolling Stones inspired gear, which will be full of vibrant fabrics, patterns and colors.

One of the most despised frontmen of the early ’90s, Scott Weiland originally came to fame via the Stone Temple Pilots before his eccentric personality and heroin addiction led to a falling out. The Cleveland raised artist fell into the Orange County punk scene after a move back to the west coast during his teen years where he started to emulate the bands he grew up with. After a stint in rehab and a reunion with STP, Weiland set about making a solo career happen, and in 1998 he released 12 Bar Blues. It was only a year later that the old drug habits returned, as did Stone Temple Pilots for their album, No. 4, a commercially successful set thanks to the hit “Sour Girl.”

In 2003 after yet another battle in rehab, Weiland returned with the new group Velvet Revolver, featuring Guns N’ Roses members Slash, Duff McKagan and Matt Sorum. The group debuted with Contraband and fell into a nice arena with a Grammy for Best Hard Rock Performance in 2005. As tensions once again arose with his new group, Weiland left by 2008 after a second record, Libertad, and subsequent tours kept tension remaining high. The man returned with his sophomore solo album “Happy” in Galoshes in 2008, a decade after his first attempt in the solo world. Long time rock fans enjoyed the new music, and will seriously enjoy the new garbs.

Author Bio: This article is sponsored by StubHub and was written by Meaghan Clark. StubHub.com is a leader in the business of selling Scott Weiland tickets, as well as sports tickets, concert tickets, theater tickets and special events tickets.

It was 22 years ago (in 1987) that the Beatles albums first came out in the CD format. As vinyl and tape sales slowed significantly, CD became the standard way of listening to music and these versions of The Beatles albums have become those that people listen to. Unfortunately these versions of The Beatles albums aren’t actually the best they could be. The mastering job on that original CD release was less than perfect. And the packaging was pretty lame too!

On 9/9/9 all of that changes! Why? Because that’s the day that the newly remastered Beatles CDs become the new standard for The Beatles albums and from all reports these newly remastered Beatles albums sound amazing. There is new clarity and detail in the songs and nobody has reported any issues with over compression or a lack of warmth. On top of that, the packaging is a lot better too! Now the CDs will available in “vinyl replica” packaging which is a lot cooler than the old plastic cases that the CDs have been in.

The best way to buy all of these newly remastered Beatles CDs is with the new Beatles CD box sets. There’s a stereo box set which includes all 13 of The Beatles UK albums (yes, that includes Magical Mystery Tour even though it’s not really a real Beatles album) and the Past Masters set of non-album tracks so that it includes a newly remastered stereo version of every song The Beatles originally released from 1962 through 1970.

There’s also a mono box set which has the original mono mixes of The Beatles first 10 albums (along with the Mono Masters set which has mono mixes of all of their non-album songs) along with the original stereo mixes of Help! and Rubber Soul. This is the first time that these mixes have been available on CD.

Yellow Submarine, Abbey Road, & Let It Be are not included in this mono box set because they were never mixed in mono. By 1969 mono was dead and stereo was the standard.

But prior to the switchover to stereo, mono was the standard. Most people listened to mono versions of the Beatles albums through most of the ’60s. And because of that the band and their producers spent almost all of their time and energy on mixing the mono mixes. In comparison the stereo mixes were not given significant thought. Stereo was thought by some at the time to be a “fad” or just an “experimental” thing. I know that seems crazy to us now, but that’s what people thought back then.

What this means is that these original mono mixes were really how the band intended their music to be heard and that’s why it’s so significant from a historical standpoint that these mixes are finally easily available on CD. Prior to this new CD release the only way to legally listen to these mono mixes would be to track down an original Beatles mono vinyl LP. As you can imagine that could be difficult & expensive to do. Plus you’d need a record player and most people don’t have one of those anymore.

You may think that these mono mixes are something only “Beatles historians” should be interested in but there are many people who claim that the mono albums are more than just “the way the albums were meant to be hard” but also flat out better sounding. John Lennon was known to say that he thought the mono Sgt. Pepper was vastly superior to the stereo Sgt. Pepper.

In many cases the mono versions of The Beatles song are significantly different sounding. It should be very interesting to hear those differences for Beatles fans.

While the new stereo Beatles CDs are available as a part of the stereo box set and individually (they will be the new standard Beatles albums available everywhere) the new mono CDs are only available as a part of the mono box set.

Author Bio: Click Here to find out how you can hear the new remastered versions of The Beatles songs to decide if you want to buy them or not. Both the Beatles Remastered Stereo Box Set and the Beatles Mono CD Box Set are recommended for serious Beatles fans.

Views from newly discovered artist.

I am one of the new instrumental music artists with material signed to leading U.K. independent label AD Music during 2008. This was a year that saw a number of advancements for me in my musical aspirations and also where I am now heading on my particular musical journey that only really started in earnest some 2 years ago. I have been a music lover from an early age, I was fortunate enough to have private lessons and reach a fairly high standard before the age of 10 in both the practical and theoretical aspects of music, pushing things further in early teens before stopping everything to concentrate on exams and being a teenager. Electronic music was always my first passion, my first exposure to it in 1977 being Donna Summer’s iconic “I Feel Love” driven by Giorgio Moroder’s pumping Moog basslines. From there I discovered Tangerine Dream, Isao Tomita and The Human League. Then along came Jean Michel Jarre who turned everything upside down in the most positive way possible. Once away from the confines of school education and private music tutors, I allowed my wings to spread a little in the early to mid 1980′s playing in a succession of bands of all sorts of styles, including time in a country band!!! Whilst not my cup of tea musically, it was fun.

As a 20-something hopeful back in the 1980′s, I had a lot of very big dreams and aspirations with regard to my ambitions in the music business. I wanted to be on Top Of The Pops, The Old Grey Whistle Test (showing my age there!!!), The Tube (and again!!!) and Saturday Superstore (and yet again!!!)!!! I wanted a number one song that I had written, I wanted to play arenas, travel in a limo, have my very own recording studio and write my own column in music magazines of the time. Did I get there? Nope. What I did achieve however, was becoming something of a legend in my own bedroom, the greatest keyboard player ever to exist – in my mind. And so life moved on, the passion was dampened by the unexpected things in life as in jobs, losing jobs, getting married, having kids, you know what I’m saying, the same old excuses to cover every reason why I didn’t make it back then. So what changed? Well, quite a few things actually, if you want to consider the facts of no longer being married, kids growing up fast, new line of work, new relationship, new home in a new town etc etc etc. But the really big change was the determination to find a forward pathway in the music business. And the biggest change of all? I got older and wiser.

Okay, I’ve thrown a few bones into the arena here, let’s start putting some flesh on them.

My determination seems to be in the process of paying off, my first album was picked up by a reputable independent label, I’ve garnered genuine support and friendship of people within the business, I’ve played a live gig as support act to a well known electronic music artist and I have found myself being a part of the label who signed my first album. To carry this on, I have opportunities to potentially play live alongside some of the leading lights in modern electronic music, I have people contacting me asking for advice on equipment and my little album seems to have enjoyed a few sales and positive reviews as well. Not bad going for someone starting out in their 40′s!!!

How did this happen? Well, there have been a number of factors at play, not least the element of a little bit of good luck and a touch of positive judgment. When my marriage failed and I found myself living alone, seeing my two kids at the weekend and out of work through ill health, I took the step back to music which had been my first true love. I bought an old Yamaha keyboard, a MIDI interface and a cut down version of Cubase called Cubasis. I took the time to learn about the recording process and with the help of a friend from Germany, set about writing songs and pieces of music. I found the latter to be easier and having always loved electronic music in it’s different forms, the combination of the two seemed to work. So that was the first thing on my little road to proportional success – I learned how to use the tools of the trade at my disposal. Within a year or so, the first version of “The Garden” was complete, my German friend and I had a small collection of tunes ready to unleash on the world at large, which we duly did using on-line distribution. I also took a look at a couple of social networking websites, MySpace and Soundclick, up-loaded a few tracks and took it from there.

MySpace proved to be something of a gem. Within a short time I had contact with a few like-minded musos from around the world and then it started. I came across a small podcast radio show based in the West Midlands of the U.K. called Robo Cast Radio. The man behind Robo Cast Radio was Ian Price, an electronic musician himself and he was looking for new music to play and so I sent along a couple of tracks ? the response was quite something as it brought in new people who hadn’t heard my music before and new contacts who guided me in the direction of an independent local radio station in Leicestershire called Harborough FM, in particular a Saturday night program called “Hawke’s Chill-out Sessions” hosted by the venerable Terry Hawke, a long time fan of the electronic music genre. I sent along a copy of the first release of “The Garden” and a couple of tracks were played, more people found me out on MySpace and within a couple of weeks, I did a live interview on Terry’s show. From that interview, the pathway of the Geigertek project changed. I received an e-mail from Terry Hawke and also a chap called Steve Ruby who lives in the U.S., both of whom told me of a label called AD Music, run by the leading U.K. electronic music composer, David Wright. I knew of AD Music and David through my own love of electronic music ? I had several albums by David Wright, Robert Fox, Code Indigo and Bekki Williams.

I checked out the AD Music website, looked at the criteria of what they were looking for and how they operated, all of which sounded good to me, And so I prepared my Jiffy Bag with the CD and a covering letter that had a couple of photographs I had done of myself and when I came to put the address on the package, I got a surprise. What I didn’t realise was that AD Music was based in a small Suffolk town called Bungay which is only a 20 minute drive from where I live ? I had a good feeling about this, but being a “feet on the floor” type of person when it comes to the music business, I sent off my package thought no more of it. What happened next? Well it’s more than just a little surprising – find out more in part 2: “Expectations”.

Author Bio: Neil Fellows ‘Geigertek’, is based in Norwich and his debut album “The Garden” is available from AD Music Neil’s music is also available from Music Downloads for Free

Within a few days of sending my Demo to AD Music, I received an e-mail from David Wright expressing interest in my little album and inviting me to contact him, which I duly did. A longer than expected conversation ensued (an indicator of things to come!!!), and an appointment was made to visit David’s Planet Recording Studio in Bungay. The meeting was nothing like anything I expected, very informal, very relaxed and the time from 7.30pm to gone 3am flew by. We talked about a great many things, but David was very clear about the direction and approach of AD Music, how it worked, what it offered and what it would appreciate in return. And for me, the upshot was AD Music were happy to sign “The Garden”.

To me, this was success – my first instrumental music album signed to leading independent label. Why now and not 20 years ago? Apart from the obvious thing of the music being what the label was looking for, a lot of it has been to do with attitude and expectations. When you are coming into the music business, at whatever level, there are a number of things that you have to realise, learn and accept. The very first thing is that you absolutely have to know and accept that this is NOT a fast-track to fame and fortune, so many more fail than those who succeed. And this is also something that is very true when you are in a particular genre, such as electronic music, that does not have total global appeal. Artists within the electronic music genre do it for love, to satisfy a particular passion that pushes you out of the armchair and away from the hi-fi to make the music yourself. So rule number one – don’t expect to get rich quick.

To those who choose not to make music, people of our disposition can seem like “larger-than-life” characters, we are something out of the ordinary, something or someone who takes then away from their everyday lives to a place they may only dream of, even if only for a short time. If you make electronic music, or any style of music, then in my view, that makes you an artist as you are creating something conceived in your imagination, a fantasy coming to life if you like. As I see it, it’s perfectly natural, and quite logical, that if you want to take your art further, then that fantasy has to be extended to include you and how you want the world to perceive you, including a prospective music label. I come from a working background where image was vital and how our first impressions really do have a lasting effect, after all, this is a first introduction and it’s vital that you make the right impression. I decided upon a particular look that I liked, one that I felt suited me as a person and as an “artist” and so I followed that through. I took a few pictures with an ordinary digital camera and played around with the images in a standard image manipulation program to get the “look” I wanted. When preparing my covering letter, I emphasized what I was musically/artistically rather than what I was in everyday life. I created a persona and a look that was not the “normal” me ? I think the television advert created for Norwich Union’s pending change of name to Aviva perfectly sums up the point I am making. You have to ask yourself a couple of questions: would I be more appealing to the label using a bog-standard passport photo, or a quick snapshot taken in the garden that showed the real me? Or would I be better off presenting an image that showed what I wanted to be, giving a more professional look indicative of the music I made? I know what I chose because it showed that I was as interested in marketing me as the music, at the same time you and your music are separate, but you are also one and the same. There are many who believe that image takes a second place and that “it’s music that’s important” ? very true from a certain point of view, but I believe that to make any head way from the outset, you need to back up your product. From my limited experience thus far, it really does seem to be the case that a little effort in the early stages goes a long way.

I’ve looked at expectations and now I want to look at another important factor which I believe helped me a great deal ? attitude. You can take it as red that music labels don’t have time or resources for divas and this is something that can be discovered early in the process. Your demo won’t be perfect and there’s every likelihood that the label will make a few suggestions ? be open to these suggestions as what they are doing is not criticizing your work, but making constructive comments that will enhance your product. For example, AD Music felt that one of the tracks from “The Garden” was being let down by poor percussion and they suggested that I go back and re-do that part of the track. I completely re-recorded the percussion and it gave the piece a new lease of life. Another point raised was the production side of things was generally a little lacking in terms of frequency levels needing more attention paid to them through the use of EQ. I was also told that the album was a little short and could I do another couple of tracks ? I did this and came back with two new and, for me, quite exciting pieces of music using production principles explained to me in earlier conversations. In short, I was receptive to the minor re-recording suggestions because I knew my production limitations and I knew that these people had a lot more experience than me and, ultimately, it was for my benefit in the long term. Not only was I getting a product that sounded better, but I had learnt new techniques that I could take forward with me into new works. I also mentioned about luck and this was certainly the case as I built up a good rapport with David Wright and in the end we re-mastered the whole album having a barrel load of laughs along the way!!! But I also learnt a great deal from David about production skills and techniques. I am presently mid way through a second album, but a lot more confident of what I am doing on the production front because of everything that I learnt during the mastering of “The Garden”. Tune in for the final part of this article, part 3; “Effort and Continuity”.

Author Bio: Neil Fellows ‘Geigertek’, is based in Norwich and his debut album “The Garden” is available from AD Music Neil’s music is also available from Music Downloads for Free

Which brings me nicely onto the last part – effort and continuity. Effort pays off. End of story. But, there is the element of continuity, the need to keep that effort going. One of the things that attracted me to AD Music was that it is something of an artist run label, a lot of people do different bits and pieces and that appealed to me. It also made a lot of sense from the commercial point of view as well for both me and AD Music. And that’s where continuity comes into play. The album has been signed, but it still needs to be marketed and whilst to most that would seem to be a part of the role of the label, there are areas where you can help push things forward. Being active with your label will always help to promote you and your music, as I said at the beginning, it’s highly unlikely that you will find enormous wealth coming your way, but, every sale helps provide a little return for your artistic labours. On top of that, if you make an effort to help out then the label will be more willing to help you, so it’s very much a case of mutual back-scratching, but in a good way.

One of the main ways to promote you and your instrumental music (remember, you are one and the same from a certain point of view) is live performance. When I started the Geigertek project, it was going to be a studio only thing. I didn’t have the resources to set up a live rig with synthesizers and mixers etc etc etc. But it then dawned on me that it might be necessary at some point. One evening in early January 2008, David Wright was telling me of a concert he was doing in the following September in Bungay and out of the blue (for me) he asked me if I would be interested in playing as his support act – without thinking I said yes. Erm, when I started to think about it, I wondered what the hell I had let myself in for. I had a computer and a MIDI keyboard controller, a small mixer and that was it!!! But, I knew I needed to do a live performance and so I looked to ways of sourcing equipment – it was easy, a few choice purchases through eBay put me on track. The equipment was old, out of date and limited, but rather than give up on the idea, I sat back and looked at how I could get round the situation. Again, a bit of resourcefulness paid off ? I had a laptop that provided me with bags of power in the way of connecting two MIDI keyboard controllers and I had the benefit of having something of a classical training as a child, all of this coupled with continued effort paid off in terms of the time put in practicing and rehearsing – bringing everything together with the old equipment enabled me to deliver a performance that many didn’t believe was my first in over 20 years (and then that was only in bands). Another benefit playing this concert for me was that I was able to play alongside David Wright at the end of his set and meeting and playing alongside Robert Fox and the great Klaus Cosmic Hoffmann from Germany, a true character and master of the legendary Mellotron and another inspiration of my music.

So, it can be seen that live performance is quite an effective, and potentially fun way of marketing your product. Another way is through social networking. I’ve already talked about the impact MySpace has had on the Geigertek project, but also a website. It’s true to say that it won’t take off immediately, but within time and with a bit of effort, you can enjoy something of a web presence. And you don’t need to be an HTML genius to build a website, there are so many packages available that do the coding etc for you ? the only limits really are your imagination. But linking everything in together between MySpace, your own website and your label’s website can start a reasonably effective mechanism to kick-start you and your music, and ultimately, that can lead to sales.

Another area is festivals. Helping out a label by manning stalls is a great way to help promote your music and also for getting yourself known as you become accessible to those who would buy your CD. My partner Anne, and I enjoyed a fantastic weekend in October attending E-Live in Holland with David Wright and his wife, standing on the AD Music stall, talking with fans of the instrumental music genre, watching some great (and not so great) live performances and meeting some of the leading lights of the current electronic music scene, including Ron Boots, Mario Schonwalder, Thomas Fanger and Detlef Keller.

The music business has changed in a great many ways over the last few years and I hear it often from the people I have come into contact with since nailing my colours to the mast of the AD Music ship. There is no room for the prima donna or any excuse for substandard presentation. If you want to succeed, you can, but it is essential that you have to learn and accept the redefined measures of success within the music business. Music and its creation is a fun pursuit. It’s not about money, but everything about art, creativity and enjoying the journey. My music is heard on a global level, I have an album signed to and the support of a leading independent label, I have played as a support act to a prolific artist who has become a friend and I have met mingled with some of the best within the genre I chose to enter. To me, this is success and in my mind, I’m no longer a legend in my bedroom, I’ve achieved what I set out to do, therefore, I’ve made it

Author Bio: Neil Fellows ‘Geigertek’, is based in Norwich and his debut album “The Garden” is available from AD Music Neil’s music is also available from Music Downloads for Free

What happens when someone features guitar tabs on a Web site so musicians can learn to play their favorite songs? The posting is probably copyright infringement since publishers have licensed very few guitar tab sites. But publishers are facing even more pressing questions than whether they should sue the unauthorized sites: What is the best business model to compete with the free, unauthorized sites, and do current publishing contracts even cover the necessary rights to post tabs to the authorized sites?

The sale of print versions of guitar tabs is a multimillion-dollar business. Although publishers’ revenue is confidential, a source with a print publisher crunched some numbers for me based on information from a NAMM report, the company’s own revenue and the source’s estimate of competitors’ revenue.

According to a NAMM report, the North American print music market generated $539 million in retail sales in 2006. My source estimates that about 48% of that amount ($258.7 million) was related to songs in about 2.7 million songbooks. About 16% of the song portion of the revenue was likely attributable to guitar tabs, thereby generating roughly $41.4 million in retail revenue from about 40 million individual guitar tabs. With wholesale prices typically 45%-50% of the retail price, print publishers likely received $18.6 million-$20.7 million in 2006 from print guitar tabs, which they then shared with songwriters and their publishers.

Currently, only three commercial guitar tab sites appear to be authorized by a large number of publishers. Each sells tabs as digital sheet music: FreeHand Music (FreeHand Systems), Musicnotes and SheetMusicDirect (Hal Leonard and Music Sales U.K.). Meanwhile, sites that may contain unlicensed tabs keep growing. From July 2006 to July 2007, unique monthly visitors grew for ultimate-guitar.com from 1.4 million to 2.4 million, and for 911tabs.com from 473,000 to 1.1 million, according to comScore Media Metrix.

In an attempt to compete with the free sites, Musicnotes acquired a previously unlicensed site, MXTabs.net, with plans to license the site’s database of tabs and add others, offer them for free and share ad revenue with publishers. Among the publishers that licensed rights for the site were BMG Music Publishing, Famous Music, Bug Music and peermusic.

But when Musicnotes made a deal with the Harry Fox Agency in May so that publishers could opt in to the licensing deal for MXTabs, Hal Leonard reacted negatively. It e-mailed some publishers to urge them to think carefully before licensing the “free” business model, which may include amateur (i.e., not necessarily accurate) guitar transcriptions of songs. Musicnotes posted the letter and its reply on the MXTabs site, which has not yet launched its service.

It’s unclear whether the reaction to the dispute is holding up the site. But the debate is unlikely to be resolved soon. It boils down to two questions: In light of all the illegal sites, should tabs be offered for free on ad-supported sites even though “free” may feed into a consumer demand for more free music, thus devaluing music? Or should legal action shutting down unauthorized sites and educational efforts be the strategy for publishers while building per-download or per-use sites for tabs?

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