David Crosby on music and the music business
On the effects of MTV
“But what happened? It changed it from being about the music to being about what you look like. And that was a terrible blow to music, because now you’ve got all these people who look great and can’t write, sing, or play.
I think one of the most glaring examples of what <record companies> do wrong is they cheat as a matter of policy on paying … and it’s totally dishonest. And they all do it. And they do it as a matter of policy. They know they’re going to cheat, going in.”
Let me ask you this question. Would you have made it, now?
“No. Absolutely not. ‘Sorry, these guys are too weird, and that’s too inflammatory, too political.’ That’s the truth. We wouldn’t get a contract. We would not get out.”
So, when people say it’s a “perfect storm” moment for the music business — consolidation of radio, consolidation of ownership, downloading piracy — you know, all of it, do you care?
“Yes, I care. Do I think they deserve to go in the tank, the big companies? Absolutely. They deserve what’s going to happen to them completely. It’s their own stupidity that’s brought them to this point. And their own greed, and their own lack of taste.
I see plenty of future for music. Music is magic. It’s been mankind’s magic since the first caveman danced around his fire going ‘Ugga bugga, hugga bugga!’ That was music, and he was happy. And we’re still doing it, and it makes us happy. It will transcend; it will go on.”