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Post by cough n splutter on Jun 24, 2005 12:13:53 GMT 10
hey there,
I was interested to hear which oz labels (either those that specialise in jazz or have a particuarly strong jazz portfollio) you think are the 'best' in this here fair country...
thoughts/responses/haiku's??! let the games begin
which labels consistently presents hgih quality australian jazzbo pedigree, also seems to promote and market well and has good distribution coverage...
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Post by God on Jun 24, 2005 14:01:43 GMT 10
O
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feellikebeingnaughty
Guest
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Post by feellikebeingnaughty on Jun 24, 2005 16:09:22 GMT 10
i wish there were one, i would take them to bed immediately...
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Post by Ganesh on Jun 24, 2005 16:09:37 GMT 10
0
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Post by cough n splutter on Jun 24, 2005 23:29:40 GMT 10
hmm...not the multitude of opinions/advice i was expecting....
come on, all youse out there...
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Post by Not Purple on Jun 25, 2005 0:25:50 GMT 10
Silence is assent
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Post by happy on Jun 25, 2005 11:40:25 GMT 10
alright, I'll enter this one, and preface my remarks by saying that this is my personal experience and may be totally different from anyone elses...
'high quality music'
well, personally I'd suggest Newmarket, Rufus and Birdland for quality, and probly Jazzhead too I guess. Honourable mention for ABC, although poersonally I often detest their mixes and production
'promote and market well'
well, that's a bit hypothetical really, isn't it. With the average Australian jazz release probably losing several grand in the end (usually funded by Ozco or other arts body) I'm not aware of any company that is reckless enough to actually put promotional funds behind any release. The market is just so small, especially with the grudging support that comes from the mainstream media (even the ABC who have a massive national setup!)
'good distribution'
now this is probably the best one of all. The major chains are obviously a write-off. The major independent shops will often stock a copy or two of a jazz release, but will then be happy to have sold it and not keen to restock. I imagine the ABC is probably the winner in this regard, but I don't know how many ABC shops carry the full range of releases!
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Post by unhappy on Jun 25, 2005 11:44:50 GMT 10
wow...
uninspiring info right there.
there could potentially be a larger market if the promo was there correctly..i know a hell of a lot of dormant jazzheads who would buy local stuff if they knew it was there...
contemporary jazz has to be taken out of the 'adult contemporary' and into 'contemporary jazz'...
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Post by bill on Jun 25, 2005 17:43:04 GMT 10
What's wrong with the ABC productions?
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Post by scatman on Jun 25, 2005 18:48:35 GMT 10
it seems as though a lot of oz acts move from newmarket to jazz head or abc...why is that?
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Post by vickihb2 on Jun 26, 2005 11:56:57 GMT 10
ABC don't sign people for more than one CD at a time (I am pretty sure), they don't have the human resources to do PR around the music - even their stores don't stock their own product i.e. Ultimo store doesn't carry all their current jazz stuff and neither do the stores in WA or Vic. I know this because I go in and look and ask why they don't have more jazz (pretending of course to be an outraged punter, which in fact, I am) Also even navigating to the ABC jazz CDS on the website is not easy.
Newmarket only take what they hope they can sell, but since Mr. K left they have a new approach to marketing which seems in line with some of the bigger distributors but doesn't seem to be working out so well, I would suggest they need to rethink their strategy.
What is needed here presently, is face to face marketing. The boutique book and CD stores are the places to distribute Aussie CDS but they need to be presented well and come with point of sale boxes and posters and they will take them if they can give back the ones they don't sell.
But again not for much longer - everything will be downloadable within the next few years and artists will all be selling on a track by track basis. Some are already doing that now.
Jazz artists who want to sell music to punters need to get E-savvy pronto. This is not hard. E-marketing is a HUGE opportunity for niche music.
Jazz artists need to invest in moving images too, to market the music. Again this is not hard or anywhere near as expensive an undertaking as it was several years ago. The images do not have to be just vision of the artists performing either.
Now is the time to grow and use some of that creativity in a new way to help yourself.
I think this is an exciting time for improvising musicians and the potential for marketing is better than it ever has been.
How many of you have Pay Mate on your websites? How many of you have downloadable ring tones that punters can pay 5$ for??
This is one way you will make more money, so get busy and learn about e-marketing. Use GOOGLE to search out e-marketing or e-commerce info and do some reading. You can do it. If you are still reading this, you are already on the road.
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Post by Mr Purple on Jun 26, 2005 14:42:41 GMT 10
Yeah I want an Australian Art Orchestra ring tone!
But seriously, what do you guys think about Rufus-- agree that Newmarket is now finished really.
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Post by scatman on Jun 26, 2005 19:10:49 GMT 10
wait, im not savy, what happened at Newmarket and why is it finished???
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jvmac
Junior Member
Posts: 83 
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Post by jvmac on Jun 26, 2005 22:19:15 GMT 10
Rufus, I love the label. Tim Dunn is doing a brilliant job of releasing home grown music. The label output has slowed down a little of late, profit margins can't be that great. The same down south I don't know how Newmarket does so well with all its releases over many years.
Some of my favourite Rufus records in no particular order are:
Clarion Fracture Zone - Canticle and Less Stable Elements
both Alister Spence Trio records - Three is a Circle and Flux
Bernie McGann - Kindred Spirits, the 1987 quartet and Bundeena (wish they would release Bernies 1983 trio album)
the catholics - Simple
Tim Stevens - Nine Open Questions
Bob Bertles Quintet - Cool Beans
The Java Quartet - passages
The World According to James - No Job Too Small
Wanderlust - the Full Bronte
Margie Evans with the Mighty Reapers - Drowning in the Sea of Love (Bernie McGann guests on 1 track)
Here's a quote from Tony Gorman in the liner notes to Clarion Fracture Zones' second Rufus release, the classic Zones on Parade :
Tim Dunn is, or ought to be certified, a maniac. A man of religious leanings: a modern jazz fan. At a certain stage in his life he decided it was either to be a round-the-world cruise or start a jazz record label. Thus was born RUFUS RECORDS. (Tim once had a cat named Rufus)......With his hard work, and most of all, love of the subject matter, he has dived head first into the exceedingly murky waters of record company business, and high-(ish) finance. And he still seems to like the music.
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Post by guest on Jun 27, 2005 4:01:28 GMT 10
(chuckling) ..dont know how newmarket does so well over so many years.. ?well..they dont take any financial risks as far as the jazz goes. The musicians took all the risks. Made the recording and produced the cd under their own financial puff. New Market takes a portion of cds to promote (at cost to the musician) and distributes it.
same as bennetts lane. it started with musicians taking all financial risk.. playing for the door. they still do - except for the nights where there wont be much risk at weekends.
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