Excellent Newspaper Article

USA and Canada (April 1 - June 4, 2009). Special concert for fans in NYC (February 19). Concert reports, set lists, photos, media coverage, multimedia links, recollections...
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micropup2008
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Excellent Newspaper Article

Post by micropup2008 »

This article (see: http://www.contracostatimes.com/search/ ... atimes.com) was in the Contra Costa Times the morning. As a long time fan (should I say disciple) of LC's since the early 70s, I was intent on finding something/anything to criticize about this article, anything disparaging about LC at all, but was pleasantly surprised to find it an article with almost nothing to quibble about, except perhaps comparing Brian Wilson and Smokey Robinson to LC. Give me a break. However, please note the statement about how the promoters are still releasing some of the best seats due to the popularity of the concerts. What this obviously means is that we, LC's most ardent fans, who struggled to obtain decent seats right from the beginning and ended up being relegated to the back rows due to the difficulty of getting through the TicketMaster system, now find that the Johnny-come-latelys who are now just finding out about the concerts due to the recent publicity are getting better seats than we ever could. And with us being stuck with presale tickets that are non-transferable, its not like we can even buy the currently available seats and then sell our previous tickets. Oh well. Nobody ever said life is fair.
Ron
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mirka
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Re: Excellent Newspaper Article

Post by mirka »

(Some good news for fans originally shut out on purchasing tickets: Promoters say they will be releasing more prime seats, particularly for the Tuesday show, so keep checking with Ticketmaster for availability.)
I find this gouging disgusting and offensive both to LC and his fans, and seriously doubt if it increases the number of tickets sold. For sure it antagonizes the long time fans locked into mediocre tickets in the 'fans pre-sale'.
Sorry, cannot get over how I was taken for a ride by TM and AEG :( :(
It's especially ugly coming from AEG to LC's long time fans base, the people who kept LC's music alive when he was absent from the public eye :( :o :shock:
Last edited by mirka on Tue Apr 14, 2009 12:32 am, edited 2 times in total.
/Warsaw March 22 1985 / Halifax May 16 /Charlottetown May 18 / Dublin June 15 / Vienna Sept 24 2008/
Oakland April 13, 14, 15, San Jose Nov 13 2009/
Las Vegas Dec 11 2010/ Oakland March 2 2013/
enilorac
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Re: Excellent Newspaper Article

Post by enilorac »

Thanks for the link to a great article.

And sorry, but I gotta hit the dead horse just one more time. Then I'll shut up and listen to the music, I promise.
Jarkko wrote on another thread about tour management and TicketMaster:
Marie and I have spoken a number of times about what a great pleasure it is to see Leonard achieve a new and expanding level of popularity. Unfortunately, it also means many more fans are competing for a finite number of concert tickets.
I'm sad to say it appears undeniable now that, although the tour management and/or promoters (and/or artist, for that matter, though I'd hate to believe it) didn't conspire in the sort of TicketMaster manipulation originally alleged, they have conspired to manipulate the ticket sales in a manner which appears to many to be unethical at best. The "sold out" concerts, even in smaller venues such as the Academy of Music in Philadelphia, were clearly never near "sold-out." The demand for poor seats was generated artificially and duplicitously by denying access to good seats and saying they were "sold out." Once all the poor seats were gone, good seats were released and sold, often to the same people who had already bought the bad ones. Very clever, to make the most ardent fans handle the resale of the bad seats for them.

Jarkko and Marie, thank you very much for working so hard to get an answer to the TicketMaster allegations. I wonder, though, if the promoters would like to speak to this other issue. It's not illegal of course. Just unethical, ugly, and unworthy. I sincerely hope I never compelled to stoop to such a tactic to retire. I think I'd rather work till I drop - which, as a public librarian facing budget cuts and no pension, I find quite a likely scenario.

I'll still enjoy the concert - and so will all the people to whom I'm giving free tickets. I did choose to buy the tickets; no one forced me. The music is still great, and the poetry in the lyrics even better. I'll simply never again make the mistake of assuming the poet believes them.
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mirka
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Re: Excellent Newspaper Article

Post by mirka »

enilorac wrote: And sorry, but I gotta hit the dead horse just one more time. Then I'll shut up and listen to the music, I promise.

The demand for poor seats was generated artificially and duplicitously by denying access to good seats and saying they were "sold out." Once all the poor seats were gone, good seats were released and sold, often to the same people who had already bought the bad ones. Very clever, to make the most ardent fans handle the resale of the bad seats for them.
I believe it should be said loud and clear and on every occasion that the gouging was noticed, esp. by fans who overbought most expensive tickets.

I'd like to believe LC was not aware of this ugly manipulation :? :cry:
Regardless if he was or not, being the center of it he is losing his secret weapon: emotional honesty.
Last edited by mirka on Tue Apr 14, 2009 12:29 am, edited 1 time in total.
/Warsaw March 22 1985 / Halifax May 16 /Charlottetown May 18 / Dublin June 15 / Vienna Sept 24 2008/
Oakland April 13, 14, 15, San Jose Nov 13 2009/
Las Vegas Dec 11 2010/ Oakland March 2 2013/
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micropup2008
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Re: Excellent Newspaper Article

Post by micropup2008 »

Hi Mirka. Finally figured out what you meant by "gauging". I believe the word is "gouging" ;-)
mirka wrote:
enilorac wrote: And sorry, but I gotta hit the dead horse just one more time. Then I'll shut up and listen to the music, I promise.

The demand for poor seats was generated artificially and duplicitously by denying access to good seats and saying they were "sold out." Once all the poor seats were gone, good seats were released and sold, often to the same people who had already bought the bad ones. Very clever, to make the most ardent fans handle the resale of the bad seats for them.
I believe it should be said loud and clear and on every occasion that the gauging was noticed, esp. by fans who overbought most expensive tickets.

I'd like to believe LC was not aware of this ugly manipulation :? :cry:
Regardless if he was or not, being the center of it he is losing his secret appeal: emotional honesty.
Ron
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mirka
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Re: Excellent Newspaper Article

Post by mirka »

Hi Ron,

thanks for pointing this out, of course I meant 'gouging', I'm still learning new English words :) :)
I used the proper form first, and then somehow it got distorted into 'gauging'.
/Warsaw March 22 1985 / Halifax May 16 /Charlottetown May 18 / Dublin June 15 / Vienna Sept 24 2008/
Oakland April 13, 14, 15, San Jose Nov 13 2009/
Las Vegas Dec 11 2010/ Oakland March 2 2013/
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