|
| Headline | Clive Davis |
|
Page:
[1] |
| Author | Comment |
Jeanette
Mar-22-2007, 23:46 GMT
IP:
USA - United Staates America
 | Clive Davis wrote a book in the seventies...INSIDE THE RECORD BUSINESS. There was a quote on the jacket from Paul Simon who said something about the book being the best account of the recording business that he ever read. I asked him about the book when I met him in ´75. I wondered whether his quote was sincere. He told me that he gave that quote to help Davis out of a bad time. |
| | |
Klausi
Mar-23-2007, 08:57 GMT
IP:
Germany
 | The book contains some pages about Paul Simon.
Davis was (and still is) somebody who knows a lot about music besides business. The relationship between him and Simon was good. Simon was at least (at this time) one of the most important acts for Columbia, if not Nr. 1.
His follower Walter Yetnikoff, whose character is described as the record boss in One-trick pony, was only interested in market value in a time, where record sales exploded and Bridge Over Troubled Water was not the best selling album anylonger, but albums like Rumours, Saturday night fever etc.
So Simon left Columbia after a law-suit.
Warner`s guaranteed him about 3 Million Dollars per album and financed the movie OTP. So until Graceland, it was a very bad deal for them.
The million-selling S&G Central park album in 1982 was released by Warner`s in the US and by another company to which both companies had agreed in the rest of the world (I think Geffen), since Garfunkel was still at Columbia. |
| | |
Simon Dooker
Mar-23-2007, 16:01 GMT
IP:
United Kingdom
 | I think Davis knew more about business than he did music. He wanted to put "The Graduate" soundtrack album out against Paul and Arties sternest wishes, they felt it a cheat on the fans with little new original material,Davis had only eyes for the commercial cash in. He also told Paul he would never be as popular solo, as he had been with Artie, and tried to disuade him from leaving CBS.The quote on the book jacket was probably Paul being polite and generous.
Yetnikoff was probably the worst enemy PS has probably had.When Paul said te was leaving Columbia, Yetnikooff made it his personal policy to try to ruin his career: hehad earlier threatened to throw Paul out of the CBS buuilding, for insisting of his right to sit on committees, and have his say. The slapdash title of Pauls last CBS release, Greatest Hits Etc, proves how hurriedly he wanted away, and fulfill his remaining contract. |
| | |
Klausi
Mar-24-2007, 08:55 GMT
IP:
Germany
| That`s true, Simon.
But Davis was right to put out the horrible Graduate-LP. It went No. 1 and Bookends too. All the three Old S&G-albums returned into the top 100 in 1968 and even Wednesday morning went Gold.
Bookends is regarded as best S&G-LP by many critics though it contains some B-side singles already released and Voices of old people also is not what I am looking for...
(Paul) Simon said in 1972 that he "hit a dry patch" in 1966/1967 and the songs from that period "don`t seem so great to me now".
In 1973 Simon wanted American Tune as first single, Davis convinced him to choose Kodachrome. |
| | |
Bodo
Mar-24-2007, 11:14 GMT
IP:
Austria
 | These are very interesting details you both know. We should put that somehow into the ´Biography´. |
| | |
Simon Dooker
Mar-24-2007, 17:45 GMT
IP:
United Kingdom
| You are definitely the man for the statistics Klausi,yes indeed "The Graduate" sold great, but Paul ( and Artie) were indifferent to its success. Davis had great commercial acumen,but fof S+G Art always came before commerce
Relations with Davis were always cordial however, but Paul had his revenge on Yetnikoff,with the satirical character Walter Fox, in the OTP movie. |
| | |
scaaty
Mar-25-2007, 01:35 GMT
IP:
Ireland
 | And Yetnikoff had his in his book "howl at the moon" where he describes Paul as a little lord fonteroy |
| | |
Ian
Mar-25-2007, 05:08 GMT
IP:
Australia
 | Yeah,that Walter Fox character was a complete sleaze. ´Jonah...Jonah,You wouldn´t by any chance be(expletive removed)my wife?,because that would not be conducive to a good artist/record company relationship´.Classic! |
| | |
Klausi
Mar-25-2007, 07:04 GMT
IP:
Germany
| Well Simon, you wrote something interesting!
"For S+G Art always came before commerce"
I hope you agree with that great sentence, I think from Kuno in Switzerland:
"Paul is more art without Art."
(Only for fun, not wanting to start this debate again...) |
| | |
Simon Dooker
Mar-26-2007, 14:46 GMT
IP:
United Kingdom
| LOL Klausi,well maybe quality rather than quantity is a better way of putting it. Paul is indeed far more artful without his former partner.Its Arthur from here on in.
|
| | |
Simon Dooker
Mar-26-2007, 16:01 GMT
IP:
United Kingdom
| Davis was right about Kodachrome as the catchier single, but neither foresaw the problems in getting airplay in the UK.The BBCs stict advertising copyright rules, meant, here it was relegated to the B- side, behind Mardi Gras. |
| | |
|
Page:
[1]
|