[Dixielandjazz] Concord Records-- marketing philosopy --Mike Vax

[Norman Vickers]

To:  Musicians and Jazzfans; DJML

From: Norman Vickers, Jazz Society of Pensacola

 

Mike Vax, leader of the Kenton Alumni Band/ jazz educator, has these comments about the Concord Label. ( NYTimes 5-9-=10))

Thanks, Mike.

 

From: Mike Vax [mailto:vaxtrpts at aol.com] 
Sent: Monday, May 10, 2010 11:50 AM
To: nvickers1 at cox.net
Subject: Re: Concord Records-- marketing philosopy 

 

And Carl Jefferson is turning over in his grave!  It's nice for them that they are making money, but Carl founded a JAZZ label and believed in that more than anything.  He also had a commitment to help new jazz talent be heard - even recording some local jazz people in the Bay Area in California.
When Glen Barros took over everything changed.  Sort of like the Disney Company when Michael Eisner took over and bastardized everything that Walt had worked for.  I actually had a meeting with Barros once, when they were still in Concord.  Got nowhere!  And to top it off Nick Phillips - their top A @ R person was my student when I taught at University of the Pacific.
When Carl was alive, they had re-issued my TRPTS CD on a subsidiary label that they had (Jazz Alliance).  It did very well.  One of the first things I saw when Barros took over was that our CD was dropped from the catalogue, even though it was selling well.  We weren't "big enough" names for him.
Mike Vax

 

                                                                      --end--