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psychogroupie
- FB Fan -
United Kingdom
37 Posts |
 Posted - 05/31/2004 : 17:26:31
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I just read somewhere that SMYT only sold around 17,000 copies? Is this an accurate figure? If so I'm 
My cats breath smells of catfood |
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broken part
- FB Fan -
226 Posts |
Posted - 06/02/2004 : 12:35:36
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Interesting point.
I wonder where you can obtain sales figures for all of Frank's albums. Any websites or do you have to contact the record companies? |
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IceCream
= Quote Accumulator =
USA
1850 Posts |
Posted - 06/03/2004 : 23:55:14
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| I read that too...think it was in a GQ article |
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the thing
= Cult of Ray =
United Kingdom
313 Posts |
Posted - 06/04/2004 : 02:01:07
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Hey - that just means there are 17,000 people with exquisite taste, intelligence and wit, and we should be happy to be among their number
 Join the cult of mini-pixies and you'll be really tiny and pixellated |
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Jason
* Dog in the Sand *
1446 Posts |
Posted - 06/04/2004 : 02:24:07
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It's the Slate article that mentions the sales total. Not the one in GQ.
Having access to Soundscan numbers (sales totals) involves paying hundreds (maybe even thousands) of dollars for a subscription of some sort. You have to be in the bizness or know someone who is to be privvy to any of it. The information isn't officially published anywhere.
Whenever you do see Soundscan numbers quoted or stated, there are a few things you have to take into account:
1) Soundscan counts sales in the US only.
2) Many independent record stores don't report to Soundscan. For someone like Frank Black that's a good chunk of sales that will go untallied. |
Edited by - Jason on 06/04/2004 02:28:13 |
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Atheist4Catholics
= Cult of Ray =
USA
925 Posts |
Posted - 06/04/2004 : 06:29:10
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Good point.
Another consideration is that Frank probably gets a greater percentage of sales than someone on a major label. Usually indie's can give out $5 or so a disc instead of $1 for a major if you're lucky.
"Join the Cult of Blank / or I'll blank your blank" |
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PixieSteve
> Teenager of the Year <
Poland
4698 Posts |
Posted - 06/06/2004 : 16:30:06
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| what would the UK's equivelant be? |
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NimrodsSon
* Dog in the Sand *
USA
1938 Posts |
Posted - 06/06/2004 : 17:48:33
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I wouldn't be surprised if it only sold 17,000 copies. There are c.5000 people on this forum and not everyone of us has bought a copy I'm sure, and we on the forum probably make up around 60 per cent. or so of the people who have bought it. That's not to say that the album sucks or anything (it's one of my favorites), but more like what the thing said, most people have shitty taste in music.
ˇViva los Católicos! |
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Jason
* Dog in the Sand *
1446 Posts |
Posted - 06/06/2004 : 19:38:40
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I don't know who collects exact sales totals in the UK, PixieSteve. It's probably easily researchable, though. Relative to the rest of the world, I don't know how unique Soundscan in the US is. Here, Soundscan is a private company who earns their way via the music business (labels, maybe journalists and radio people) paying for the service. Some of the bigger independents report to Soundscan. I know Amoeba in San Fran does. Other Music in NYC might. It's likely that most don't.
I always assume that the internet-postin' segment of most anyone's fanbase is the tiny minority. At least I hope it is. If any of the forums I read make up 60% of the fanbase, then I'm suddenly a little embarrassed about being a fan of those artists! |
Edited by - Jason on 06/06/2004 19:41:29 |
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NimrodsSon
* Dog in the Sand *
USA
1938 Posts |
Posted - 06/06/2004 : 20:58:14
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yeah, I was exaggerating quite a bit, but 17,000 doesn't sound too far off either way.
ˇViva los Católicos! |
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mun chien andalusia
= Quote Accumulator =
Italy
2139 Posts |
Posted - 06/06/2004 : 22:47:45
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Judging from the availability of S.M.Y.T in italian record stores i would say that 1000 copies is a realistic number over here.
 join the cult of errol\and you can have a beer\without having to quit smoking
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Adnan_le_Terrible
* Dog in the Sand *
France
1973 Posts |
Posted - 06/07/2004 : 01:47:14
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I would say at least 5 000 here in France.
And though I can hide my cold gaze, and you can shake my hand and feel flesh gripping yours and maybe you can even sense our lifestyles are probably comparable... I simply am not there. |
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billgoodman
>> Denizen of the Citizens Band <<
Netherlands
6213 Posts |
Posted - 06/07/2004 : 01:55:41
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quote:
Originally posted by Atheist4Catholics
Good point.
Another consideration is that Frank probably gets a greater percentage of sales than someone on a major label. Usually indie's can give out $5 or so a disc instead of $1 for a major if you're lucky.
"Join the Cult of Blank / or I'll blank your blank"
I thought that artists only got a few cents for every disc
most of the money they earn is from touring
and the budget they get to make an album
or something
and copyright (like being played on the radio, in a movie, being covered).
maybe I'm way off though
 "I joined the Cult of Frank/Nobody wanted to join my Culf" |
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ivandivel
= Cult of Ray =
394 Posts |
Posted - 06/07/2004 : 04:03:52
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quote:
Originally posted by billgoodman
quote:
Originally posted by Atheist4Catholics
Good point.
Another consideration is that Frank probably gets a greater percentage of sales than someone on a major label. Usually indie's can give out $5 or so a disc instead of $1 for a major if you're lucky.
"Join the Cult of Blank / or I'll blank your blank"
I thought that artists only got a few cents for every disc
most of the money they earn is from touring
and the budget they get to make an album
or something
and copyright (like being played on the radio, in a movie, being covered).
maybe I'm way off though
"I joined the Cult of Frank/Nobody wanted to join my Culf"
It all depends. I can't imagine any artist on an indie label getting 5 dollars pr disc. Indie labels are no different than major labels. But, doesn't Frank license his albums though? He pays for his own recordings, he owns the rights. And he's got a name and a small following. So he definetely gets more than your average indie artist - I'd think. Touring is usually to support the album. Not many bands make money playing gigs - it is fucking expensive to tour.
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mun chien andalusia
= Quote Accumulator =
Italy
2139 Posts |
Posted - 06/07/2004 : 05:43:24
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Frank and the C's took 3000 euros for the Turin gig(at least that was what i was told by one of the guys that organized it). If this is their cache i don't think that they could live touring once a year.
join the cult of errol\and you can have a beer\without having to quit smoking
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frank_black_francis
= Cult of Ray =
Canada
895 Posts |
Posted - 06/07/2004 : 06:50:54
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| I bought two copies. Dunno why. |
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Domestiques
= Cult of Ray =
United Kingdom
503 Posts |
Posted - 06/07/2004 : 06:51:58
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soundscan figures are always flawed, in the wider world smaller artists sell a whole boatload direct through websites and at gigs that never get picked up.
------------------------
“I want to be a star!” I cried
They said, “You’re overqualified.
Why don’t you learn to tune your damn guitar?” |
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Jason
* Dog in the Sand *
1446 Posts |
Posted - 06/07/2004 : 10:59:29
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Yeah CDs sold at gigs is another good example of what won't show up in soundscan.
In the music business it can be rare for musicians to make much (or any) money from having performed on even a "succesful" record. And certainly no one is making $5 for every sale. There's a lot record label debt-settling that has to happen first before the drummer gets decent royalties. Songwriting royalties is about the only guaranteed money earned for a musician when you buy their record from a store. And even then, some musicians get screwed -- sometimes screwing themselves by selling off their publishing. A songwriting royalty is the only earning that the record label doesn't lay claim to (and that's what? 30 cents a song or something?).
The majority of Frank Black & the Catholics' earnings probably DID come from touring because they didn't just tour for two months when an album was out. They toured nearly all year every year, even the year when they didn't a have new release (2000). No time for a dayjob there. It was everyone's full-time gig and everyone clearly earned a living. Some gigs will be bigger than others, but add up all those 8-9 months of touring and it probably makes for decent money. |
Edited by - Jason on 06/07/2004 11:03:41 |
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mun chien andalusia
= Quote Accumulator =
Italy
2139 Posts |
Posted - 06/07/2004 : 12:08:27
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quote:
Originally posted by frank_black_francis
I bought two copies. Dunno why.
i bought 3. 1 vinyl and 2 cds.
join the cult of errol\and you can have a beer\without having to quit smoking
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billgoodman
>> Denizen of the Citizens Band <<
Netherlands
6213 Posts |
Posted - 06/07/2004 : 14:15:02
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Yes I mean
Norah Jones (who on Blue Note which is quite a big label)
sold 17 million copies of 'Come away with me'
so if only she got 1 dollar from the major label
she would have made 17 million dollars from record sales alone
I doubt that highly
No, I guess that the majority of the money comes from other sources
like copyrighted issues and touring.
"I joined the Cult of Frank/Nobody wanted to join my Culf" |
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broken part
- FB Fan -
226 Posts |
Posted - 06/08/2004 : 18:16:59
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Amazon.com (US) sales: 6137
Amazon.co.uk (UK) sales: 2990
Would these sale be picked up by soundscan?
It would not surprise me if SMYT sold worldwide more than 30,000 copies.
Just to point out that US has a population 5 times that of UK yet their sales are just over twice as many. Just shows that on a per capita basis we are much more ardous fans of Mr. Black. Shame on you yanks! |
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Jason
* Dog in the Sand *
1446 Posts |
Posted - 06/08/2004 : 22:21:42
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| Amazon is a major CD seller. Though I don't know it for an absolute documented fact, I'd bet whatever I've got that Amazon sales are counted by soundscan. |
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Record sales
