Surroundablog

EMI Music Chief Addresses Sinking CD; Extras Ahead

Editor's note: Once again; a label fails to understand the audience. One of the largest growth sectors continues to be dvd. More and more...the audience is purchasing home theater set-ups to take advantage of surround sound, widescreen etc. Value added content to cds?! Smirk....put all your cds onto dvd and put value added content on it. Oh wait...I think they stallingly sort of tried that by allowing Rhino to put out DVD-A's of a few of their poncy titles way before a tipping over point was established.

Value added cds are only of use if the additions include mp-3's, a surround layer (not a poxy "better stereo" claptrap) and moving pics or at least stills. BRING BACK DVD-AUDIO WITH A RESPECTABLE NUMBER OF TITLES FROM ARTISTS OTHER THAN QUEENSRYCHE BEFORE YOU TRY ANY MORE HALF-HEARTED ATTEMPTS AT MARKETING A DEAD FORMAT...(catches breath...)...oh, and don't nobody release any Weird Al dualdiscs ever again...

Sales of physical formats have been declining for years, though recent half-year figures from the RIAA could signal a steeper drop ahead. Whisper numbers from major label executives have also pointed to potentially dour year-end tallies, though the all-important fourth quarter is mostly unfinished. Regardless of the eventual result, executives are now being confronted with a growing concern. Recently, EMI Music chairman and chief executive Alain Levy noted that the CD in its current form is "dead," while pointing to a fresh class of physical releases. "The CD as it is now is dead, but a new version with added value will live on," Levy said during a recent discussion at the London Business School. "By the beginning of next year, none of our CDs will come without added value of some sort, to be accessed when you put the CD into your computer."

DVDs are renowned for their navigation menus and content add-ons, and that could dampen movie piracy in the coming years. But CDs are different, especially within listening environments like the automobile. Labels have been layering extras into CDs for years, and it remains unclear if beefed-up discs will successfully stem piracy and drive retail traffic. Meanwhile, Levy pointed to continued demand for physical formats. "There will always be a need for the physical product," Levy said. "You're not going to give your mother-in-law an iTunes download for Christmas...we are not seeing a downturn from the supermarkets, I think sales are actually going up." A transcript of the comments were supplied to Digital Music News by an EMI Music representative.

Neil Young Live at the Fillmore East

Editor's note: Its a little early to determine whether or not this release will be in surround or not...."Harvest" and "Greendale" were...."Stars and Bars" and others weren't...

The first release from Neil Young's long awaited Archive Performance series is here with Live at the Fillmore East.

In 1970, Young toured with Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young and released his platinum album Everybody Knows This is Nowhere, after which he performed a series of shows at New York City's then-new Fillmore East with his band Crazy Horse. That concert finally makes its official debut in the annals of rock history with Live at the Fillmore East, and the circle is unbroken for one of rock's greatest singer-songwriters.

This collection includes an extended Down by the River and a 16-minute Cowgirl in the Sand (which has previously appeared only on a '90s import). Country barnburner "Come on Baby Let's Go Downtown would later be heard on 1975's Tonight's the Night live album. 1977's Decade collection contained a studio take of the countrified folk-rocker "Winterlong". The DVD features all six songs in High-resolution audio with photo montages (no video).

Features:
• CD & DVD set
• High-resolution audio of entire album
• Photo montage
• Includes extended "Down by the River" & a 16 minute "Cowgirl in the Sand"

Musicians:
Neil Young, guitar, vocals
Danny Whitten, guitar, vocal
Jack Nitzsche, electric piano
Billy Talbot, bass
Ralph Molina, Drums, vocals

Selections:
CD:
1. Everybody Knows This is Nowhere
2. Winterlong
3. Down by the River
4. Wonderin'
5. Come On Baby Let's Go Downtown
6. Cowgirl in the Sand
DVD:
1-6. High Resolution audio of entire album
7. Photo montage

The Beatles' Love To Be Released in Stereo and 5.1 DVD-Audio

London, UK (October 23, 2006)--Apple Corps Ltd/EMI Music are to release the Beatles Love album in stereo and 5.1 on November 20. This will be the first Beatles album available in 5.1.

The stereo CD will contain 78 minutes of music. The DVD surround sound version on DVD disc album will be a slightly extended version with 81 minutes of music.

After being asked by the remaining Beatles, Ringo Starr and Paul McCartney, along with Yoko Ono Lennon and Olivia Harrison, to make experimental mixes from their master tapes for a collaboration with Cirque du Soleil, Sir George Martin, The Beatles' legendary producer, and his son Giles Martin, have been working with the entire archive of Beatles recordings to create Love. The result is an unprecedented approach to the music. Using the master tapes at Abbey Road Studios, Sir George and Giles have created a unique soundscape. The release of this album, which is also featured in the Cirque du Soleil/Beatles collaborative production of the same name at The Mirage in Las Vegas, has been much anticipated.

Tony Wadsworth, chairman and CEO of EMI Music UK and Ireland said, "George and Giles' highly original work in creating the Love album gives us a genuinely new Beatles album. It makes us respect even more, if that were possible, the creativity and brilliance of the band behind the greatest catalogue in the history of recorded music."

The 5.1 disc is a DVD-Audio/DVD-Video hybrid. The audio is presented in high-resolution 96/24 5.1 surround on the DVD-Audio part of the disc. The DVD-Video part carries 5.1 surround in DTS and Dolby Digital as well as a PCM stereo mix. This DVD album is designed to be played on DVD video equipment but will carry no video component.

Apple Corps Ltd.
www.beatles.com