bootleg/counterfeit

DFrost8547 at AOL.COM DFrost8547 at AOL.COM
Thu Feb 8 14:49:18 EST 1996


Actually, the inference that the artist who performs in public should expect
to be taped, that they've lost control over their performance already,
doesn't really hold ground.... Many venues have clearly posted signs warning
that taping is not permitted.  Some places ya can't take photos, either. Of
course, people bring their little instamatics, and they bring their walkmen,
too. But they usually don't try to reproduce their snapshots... On the other
hand, personal tapes are a tradition in rock and roll (where would the
Grateful Dead be without 'em?) and some bands sanction their trading more
than others... on the other hand, as an artist, I don't dig having my more
embarrassing moments circulated... and hey, even the Rolling Stones, with the
incredible technology at their disposal, don't have control over the
acoustics of the different football stadiums they lug their gear to
nightly... but that's the thing about live performance...obviously, if there
wasn't something special and unique about it, you'd just beam yourself out
via satellite or sit at home saving your money for a video rather than
haulin' yourself around in the van.... obviously, when the "bootleg" is just
another extension of a dedicated fan's considerable investment-- emotional as
well as monetary--they've already got the CD or whatever, they just want as
much as they can get  and it's for their personal use and for sharing their
enthusiasm, turning other people on-- that's very different from the guy
who's simply copying the material and selling it for profit. Because that's
not about sharing anything, that's just about ripping people off.
DF



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