stupid attitudes

[henrik@atria.com (Larry DeLuca)]

From:	bperegoy@slint.East.Sun.COM (Bill Peregoy - Hardware)
Newsgroups: rec.music.gaffa
Subject: Re: ***Tickets now on sale!!!****

> Happy Rhodes Tix info deleted ...

> Why so expensive? Nothing turns me off more than a new artist (or any artist
> actually) charging so much for a show in a small vanue.  In addition to pissing
> off fans, you completely eliminate the possibility of picking up any new fans
> who stop in because they're curious.

> I regularly pay $5-7 to see much more established acts ...
> and would never pay this to see Happy ...  
> That's too bad because I like what I read here about her
> and would gladly pay a reasonable amount to see her live if she played in this
> area.
> 
> Bill

You are obviously rather out-of-touch with just how much it costs to put such
a little jaunt together, and the fact that the artist is probably losing money
anyway.

I put together a small show featuring my music to play some of the smaller
clubs in boston about 2 years ago - I begged and pleaded and wangled and
promised favors and called in favors and everything I could possibly do -
I got *ALL* my design work done for free, my run crew worked for free, I
personally supplied about $10k of musical instruments, all my musicians worked
for free, we rehearsed in my house, and it still cost us over $1500 just 
in raw materials (we built a projection screen out of an white bedsheet and
PVC pipe since it cost LOTS less).

We raked in a whopping $50 on one performance - typically our share of the 
door (and many nights we dragged in the most people) was about $35.  But hey,
that's show biz.

Producing a full-scale show of any quality (even small) is very expensive.
If you're not fortunate enough to be able to beg, borrow, and steal just
about EVERYTHING it's more so.  Add travel and you're into five and six
figures faster than you can say "OverBudget".

Why don't you consider your $15 an investment in the future of some artist?
I was grateful for everyone in the audience - the fun, the emotional support,
and the money.  I'm lucky enough to have a high-paying job that allows me
to flush thousands down the toilet into my musical career every year, but a
lot of people aren't.  Griping about the extra money and refusing to see them
because they're not established enough to be "worth it" just makes it harder
for them to establish themselves in the first place.

Besides, when it comes right down to it, why should someone "established" be
worth so much more money?  I wouldn't pay $18 to see Paula Abdul, and she's
the darling of the record industry at the moment...

					larry...