EMI to offer instant concert recordings

Record label EMI this week announced that it will begin selling on-the-spot recordings of concerts.

The name of the initiative, Abbey Road Live, is a bit misleading--it doesn't have anything to do with the Beatles album or the recording studio after which it was named.

Rather, EMI is using its Abbey Road brand to indicate that these aren't low-quality bootlegs but professional multitrack recordings, mixed and mastered on the spot, and sold on CDs, DVDs, or flash drives to fans at the venue. EMI also said on Wednesday that it plans to make the recordings available as streams or downloads, so fans can access them from home.

Instant concert recording isn't new: EMI sub-label Mute Records has had a similar program in place since 2004--according to the press release, 10 percent of fans at a recent Blur concert downloaded the show afterward--and Willie Nelson has been selling flash drives with on-the-spot concert recordings for several years.

But having a large record label like EMI on board legitimizes the practice. It's a no-brainer way for live acts to earn some extra cash--and great for fans as well. I can think of many concerts I've attended, after which I would gladly have paid another $20 for a recording. This should become standard operating practice in the next couple of years.

[tekwiz4u]

Now thats a smart idea from a record company that I heard for the longest time! I wouldn't mind paying for a concert that i enjoyed.

[Tyranter]

Is the plan to make them available online at same time or just sold at he actual gigs?

[MattRosoff]

I believe it's both...but probably will depend on what the artist, promoter, etc. wants and allows.

[TinyIoda]

THIS IS AWESOME!!!

I agree with Tekwiz4u... best idea from a record company in a loooooong time!

[swiftmed]

Totally agree with this article. I hope this becomes standard practice.

[Twanzio]

I know Les Claypool did this sort of thing with both Primus and C2B3 a few years back. I've got the FLAC files still and love listening back. It is awesome to hear exactly what you heard at a great concert from the convenience of your handheld media player.

[td001]

Well maybe $10 not $20, we are talking impulse purchases here. But this is an actual product Id be willing to buy which is not freely available online. Its a big step for the majors.

[notgonnatellya]

They will definitely cost more than $10.00. I suspect that they'll shoot for $25.00. With that said, I'd be reticent to pay that much for a CDR.

[eva_ti]

Aren't they a little late to the game? Lots of bands are doing this, The Cult, The Pixies, Metallica, Tiesto, Black Crowes,even Lady Gaga...

[onthetapis]

The Allman Brothers Band have been doing this since 2003.

See http://www.hittinthenote.com/

[humdingers]

It will be interesting to see what kind of copy protection EMI will be using on the songs

[scott_horn]

Selling a recording of each performance should definitely be the norm. But what is the incentive for a band to have the record company do this for them? Right now the label owns the copyright on their studio recordings, but the band owns copyright on their concert recordings (assuming they haven't signed those away too). This is just EMI trying to muscle in on live concert recording sales, which the band has always been able to do themselves. Bands shouldn't sign away their live performance sale rights to their label!

[tdruth]

@scott-horn - that's not exactly true. Yes, labels own the masters delivered but every recording contract also has a "rerecord restriction," which prevents the band from going out and recording the same songs for a period of years after the contract; also, recording contracts are exclusive, so while the band is signed to the label, they cannot record for anyone else. Therefore, either the band releases the live shows with the label or they don't release them at all.

I started a company in 2003 that did exactly this, and partnered with a mobile studio to record. Apparently a little ahead of our time. This always seemed like common sense.

[ARLUSA]

Hey all! Just a few updates for this, and clarifications Abbey Road Live consists not just of Live Hear Now, but also includes members of the original DiscLive team from 2004 that pioneered the concept of recording live shows and distributing them immediately after the concert. We've assembled a team of the top guys and gals in this industry to record shows and produce quality immediate content. We are agnostic and will work with any label or artist, just as Abbey Road Studios does. I can assure you that this is not EMI trying to muscle anything at all. This is a concept that has been nurtured over the years and all of the people at ARL believe in providing a valuable service to artists, keeping the spirit alive that has always been a part of both DiscLive and Live Hear Now. To be clear, the artists and/or labels that ARL work with will retain their masters - and ARL only has the exclusive right to sell over a certain period of time. This is not some cumbersome label deal. As you can see from the website (www.abbeyroad.com/live), we typically do a net split after costs with the artist - and every bit of it is transparent. Also - there is no copy control technology employed. That doesn't mean that you can go out and rip off the artist's music. But it just means that hopefully by providing a high quality, wonderful recording, it's worth paying for rather than stealing it. The future of music is in the live space - and working together - to create new revenues and new opportunities to artists and labels alike.