The Marble Park Journals http://marbleparkmusic.com/blog.cfm Tue, 28 Dec 2010 04:09:24 GMT http://bandzoogle.com What happened to the music business! http://marbleparkmusic.com/blog.cfm?feature=1812307&postid=663481 Tony was recently watching a interview with the band Train.  In it they complained about what has happened to the music business and how hard it is these days.  That got Tony thinking about what has caused such a change.  Was it the fact that now people could download music for free?  That is the easy answer except when you stop to think how these "free" downloads are riddled with viruses and such.  So what is the reason?  Tony was flipping channels over the holidays and caught Larry King Live.  It was a rerun of an interview with Garth Brooks.  In that interview he said that he would not allow iTunes to carry his music until they allowed him to turn off the ability for someone to download a single track.  In other words, a buyer would have to buy the entire album! You see, there was yet another interview with Huey Lewis years ago at the top of his fame where he came out and said that it was his goal to put out albums with a "few" hits on them.  He estimated that with 3-4 hits songs it would be enouigh to get someone to buy the album.  That was the old model!  Today, instead of a $12.99 "whole album" sale, he would have a group of people buying and downloading the 3 or 4 songs and not the rest!  What's the difference between a $3.99 sale and $12.99 sale?  Huge!!! In fact, if you look at the biggest album sales artists over the last couple of years, they greatly fall into one of two categories; 1) artists with so many hit songs you almost got sick of their presence everywhere (eg. Black Eyed Peas, Lady Gaga, Beyonce) or 2) artists with a target market that gravitates towards CDs because of late adoption of technology (quick! name 3 Susan Boyle hits) or because they just like his picture (quick! name 3 Justin Bieber hits) No longer can a mainstream acts rely on filler product with a few hits sprinkled throughout!     Marble Park welcomes this challenge! Next time, we will share what some music groups are doing in light of this new paradigm and what you can expect from Marble Park in 2011 and beyond! Making our Mark..... Tony was recently watching a interview with the band Train.  In it they complained about what has happened to the music business and how hard it is these days.  That got Tony thinking about what has caused such a change.  Was it the fact that now people could download music for free?  That is the easy answer except when you stop to think how these "free" downloads are riddled with viruses and such.  So what is the reason? 

Tony was flipping channels over the holidays and caught Larry King Live.  It was a rerun of an interview with Garth Brooks.  In that interview he said that he would not allow iTunes to carry his music until they allowed him to turn off the ability for someone to download a single track.  In other words, a buyer would have to buy the entire album!

You see, there was yet another interview with Huey Lewis years ago at the top of his fame where he came out and said that it was his goal to put out albums with a "few" hits on them.  He estimated that with 3-4 hits songs it would be enouigh to get someone to buy the album.  That was the old model!  Today, instead of a $12.99 "whole album" sale, he would have a group of people buying and downloading the 3 or 4 songs and not the rest!  What's the difference between a $3.99 sale and $12.99 sale?  Huge!!!

In fact, if you look at the biggest album sales artists over the last couple of years, they greatly fall into one of two categories;

1) artists with so many hit songs you almost got sick of their presence everywhere (eg. Black Eyed Peas, Lady Gaga, Beyonce) or
2) artists with a target market that gravitates towards CDs because of late adoption of technology (quick! name 3 Susan Boyle hits) or because they just like his picture (quick! name 3 Justin Bieber hits)

No longer can a mainstream acts rely on filler product with a few hits sprinkled throughout!     Marble Park welcomes this challenge!

Next time, we will share what some music groups are doing in light of this new paradigm and what you can expect from Marble Park in 2011 and beyond!

Making our Mark.....

]]> Tue, 28 Dec 2010 04:09:24 GMT 7E8D618973BF55602C0068DD26BB41DC The Pendulum Swings! http://marbleparkmusic.com/blog.cfm?feature=1812307&postid=552811 Tony was listening to an 80's radio station last week.  It brought back special memories of growing up although the music was full of electronic beats and the like. Groups like Thomas Dolby and A-ha ruled the charts!  He then listened to a 90's station where you could almost hear the force of the backlash with grunge artists such as Nirvana and rock groups such as Guns and Roses dominating the charts! See the pendulum swing? For years now we have seen artists Brittany, Christina, and Gaga swing the pendulum back with hits, that a DJ recently said sounded like someone hitting their head on a door! How interchangeable is the music?  A producer took the same music from one song by Keisha, Tik-Tok and changed the words and had Katy Perry record it as California Girls - both songs sitting on the charts at the same time!  So in this day when you can make your own auto-tune song with an I-phone app,  what happens next? Well you guessed it - a return to music played from the hearts of musicians full of passion! We stand on the shoulders of those that have come before us.  Musicians making music from the heart with imperfections (much like life). Welcome to 21st Century Rock and Soul!  We are glad to have you with us! Note:  No drum machines were harmed (or used) in the making of this posting.
 He then listened to a 90's station where you could almost hear the force of the backlash with grunge artists such as Nirvana and rock groups such as Guns and Roses dominating the charts!

See the pendulum swing?

For years now we have seen artists Brittany, Christina, and Gaga swing the pendulum back with hits, that a DJ recently said sounded like someone hitting their head on a door! How interchangeable is the music?  A producer took the same music from one song by Keisha, Tik-Tok and changed the words and had Katy Perry record it as California Girls - both songs sitting on the charts at the same time!  So in this day when you can make your own auto-tune song with an I-phone app,  what happens next?

Well you guessed it - a return to music played from the hearts of musicians full of passion!

We stand on the shoulders of those that have come before us.  Musicians making music from the heart with imperfections (much like life).

Welcome to 21st Century Rock and Soul! 

We are glad to have you with us!

Note:  No drum machines were harmed (or used) in the making of this posting.]]> Thu, 04 Nov 2010 18:25:00 GMT E9352F57F24B903B3B4D1B9B9DDED03B What is 21st Century Rock and Soul? http://marbleparkmusic.com/blog.cfm?feature=1812307&postid=542754 What is 21st century Rock and Soul?   When people hear our music, we get a lot of compliments on how it seems new while classic, hard while soft, rocky while smooth...   Where does it come from?  Well, let us tell you a part of the story:   Charles is our resident romantic and his lyrics truly reflect it. With songs like "I'd follow you anywhere" and "Dance for Me" you will see it too!   Pat's speciality is crafting songs that come from his own life experiences. There is a story behind future hits such as "I didn't feel a thing" and "That's my story"   Tony reads a positive motivational book per week and songs like ""Freedom", and "Be Alive" reflect this.   Simo is all about the power of friendship which songs like "Try" detail.   And you know the good part?  These songs only reflect the tip of the iceberg from these guys. There are many more to Come!   And you know the better part?  These 4 guys only reflect half of the songwriters in this group. Wait until you hear what the rest are bringing to the table!   Stay tuned! What is 21st century Rock and Soul?
 
When people hear our music, we get a lot of compliments on how it seems new while classic, hard while soft, rocky while smooth...
 
Where does it come from?  Well, let us tell you a part of the story:
 
Charles is our resident romantic and his lyrics truly reflect it. With songs like "I'd follow you anywhere" and "Dance for Me" you will see it too!
 
Pat's speciality is crafting songs that come from his own life experiences. There is a story behind future hits such as "I didn't feel a thing" and "That's my story"
 
Tony reads a positive motivational book per week and songs like ""Freedom", and "Be Alive" reflect this.
 
Simo is all about the power of friendship which songs like "Try" detail.
 
And you know the good part?  These songs only reflect the tip of the iceberg from these guys. There are many more to Come!
 
And you know the better part?  These 4 guys only reflect half of the songwriters in this group. Wait until you hear what the rest are bringing to the table!
 
Stay tuned!
]]> Sun, 31 Oct 2010 19:05:00 GMT 6AC6EB9E74D4D235D8BBA37BA04AB5FF Transitions and their impact on our identity http://marbleparkmusic.com/blog.cfm?feature=1812307&postid=512832 When we look at the journey of Marble Park it is amazing to see how far we have come in a relatively short period of time.  I once heard a pastor say that "a church is made up of the people that come and the people that leave" and that has certainly been true of this band.  We have morphed from a cover band doing old Motown songs (not that there's anything wrong with that)  to a dynamic all original band reflecting influences as diverse as Prince to Chris Tomlin, Christopher Cross to Maroon 5, Beatles to Devo! Now as we solidify our lineup and look toward a bright future, we are excited about bringing what we have been cooking to the public!  We have been entasked with coming up with a statement of identity for the band.  As you can see from above, it won't be easy but it is necessary.  Stay tuned for the results and have a great day!
Now as we solidify our lineup and look toward a bright future, we are excited about bringing what we have been cooking to the public!  We have been entasked with coming up with a statement of identity for the band.  As you can see from above, it won't be easy but it is necessary.  Stay tuned for the results and have a great day!]]> Wed, 20 Oct 2010 01:29:20 GMT F653D29A7F465A25372F5CEA31A2C62D Music Success in Nine Weeks! http://marbleparkmusic.com/blog.cfm?feature=1812307&postid=512800 We are proud to announce that Marble Park is one of the artists participating in the Music Success in Nine Weeks competition being sponsored by Ariel Publicity.  As part of this competition, we are launching our new blog!  Please come back often for updates from the ambassadors of 21st Century Rock and Soul! Wed, 20 Oct 2010 01:17:06 GMT C8F8CA32B58F48674DEE34D1759D18E0