A Barking Dog

I’ve been busy gigging the last couple of weeks so I missed the Friday announcement that Clear Channel was divesting the entertainment division. I can only imagine the collective sigh of relief and subsequent cheer from production offices, managers and agents all over the country. I posted a bit about this in the LAB Lounge where I first read Grampa Lee’s (aka well respected industry vet Lee Brenkman) post on the subject. I keep seeing references to the slumping concert industry in each of the articles about about the divestiture but that misrepresents the situation. In 2004 overall gross in the concert industry was a record US$2.8 billion. With a B kids, billion. An increase of 12% over the previous year. I commented on this a couple of months ago. It’s pretty obvious to many of us that the combination of ticket prices and poorly booked shows are a couple of reasons, if not the primary reasons for the state of the concert industry these days.

Clear Channel, trying to resurect the feeling of the good old days started again using the names of the companies in the local regions prior to the purchase of SFX. It was no longer Clear Channel, but once again Belkin Presents in the Northeast/Great Lakes area. The Bay Area has remained BGP in name and I’d imagine poor Bill is turning over in his grave. I’m surprised he hasn’t returned to this world to kick some serious ass. The consolidation of the industry then by SFX, later by Clear Channel (and to a lesser degree by MCA/Universal/HOB/whatevertheyarethisyear) minimized the thing that allowed those regional promoters to suceed. Knowing the market and the personal touch. during the early part of my career I had the pleasure of dealing with many of them in my tour manager/sound guy days. The problem is that Clear Channel isn’t really Belkin, isn’t really Electric Factory, isn’t really BGP, it isn’t really Don Law, it isn’t really Pace, it isn’t really Ron Delsner. Clear Channel is a company that knew little about the industry only to buy it’s way in and attempt to exert leverage using the euphemisim of “synergy” to try to control the US concert and live event industry. This poor business plan has not only cost CCE shareholders millions in decreased stock prices, but has held the industry back for several years. You can’t apply many of the same principles used in selling widgets or advertising to selling concert tickets or running venues. Especially if people don’t like you.

I can only see this as a long term positive for the industry. There will probably be a few venues or other pieces that don’t survive the change. I doubt they will find a single buyer for the whole and I think they will largely split into separate entities that will be more able to compete in the current market and offer some opportunities not available while under dictatorial control. I know several hard working people at CCE venues and promoters. Some of these people may lose their gigs and I wouldn’t wish that on them. OTOH, many of these same people are in a much better position to manage a venue or concert promotion business while not being bound to the whimiscal deamon called stock price. These people won’t book the same bands every year in different package tours in the sheds that should really be in the local casinos or clubs. These people won’t book the artists they know shouldn’t be in the shed in that market, and either put them in a room more appropriate or pass on it altogether.

To Mark Mays, all I can say is “don’t let the door hit you in the ass on way out”…