Wembley 85 official release on DS YouTube channel

[Jules]

It IS supposed to be a niche but vinyl is back after being dead and is the format that is ruling as artists delay their releases just to have the vinyl format ready to release.

I don't think digital is going to put the physical format out at least when it comes to big artists, the ones that would remain remembered in the future. Most of the ones that only release on digital will be forgotten as more and more will come.

But I think there still a need to stablish what's an artist discography and what's not. Even Spotify is full of "releases" that are just random compilations.

[dustyvalentino]

No point thrashing over old ground but the world has moved on and the simple fact is that most people don't even have the means anymore to play physical media - most people have got rid of DVD players due to streaming (some people might be able to play a disc in a games console but even they are being fazed out), if you have a car that is a few years old you MIGHT be able to play a CD.

I think we are all going to have to get used to the new world. Julio, in asking what is in a discography, you are also going to have to ask what a discography is - the fact the word DISC is in it implies it is a list of physical releases on disc, and such releases are on the way out unfortunately.

[Jules]

Big artists (old and young) are still very attached to physical releases when it comes to his new music. If it was just old artists I would agree with the niche thing but the reality is that is still a thing for record companies.

Actually I see this as a fail from digital trying to substitute physical.

It is true most of the people doesn't have media to play all those physical formats, but it is also true that those people buy the physical format and hold them reading the lyrics while listening the music on streaming media!

Nowadays I rarely watch dvds but they are still a thing for me. Streaming is voluble and you can't count that everything would be online forever.

[dustyvalentino]

Big artists (old and young) are still very attached to physical releases when it comes to his new music. If it was just old artists I would agree with the niche thing but the reality is that is still a thing for record companies.

Actually I see this as a fail from digital trying to substitute physical.

It is true most of the people doesn't have media to play all those physical formats, but it is also true that those people buy the physical format and hold them reading the lyrics while listening the music on streaming media!

Nowadays I rarely watch dvds but they are still a thing for me. Streaming is voluble and you can't count that everything would be online forever.

I differentiate between get-a-lifers that spend time on a music forum and "normal" people.

Normal people (i guess 95% of people?) don't have a way to play physical media anymore. It's good in the short term for those of us who still do as the second hand shops are full of CDs/DVDs/blurays for next to nothing.

[ds1984]

Normal people (i guess 95% of people?) don't have a way to play physical media anymore. It's good in the short term for those of us who still do as the second hand shops are full of CDs/DVDs/blurays for next to nothing.

Regarding the music business your figure is completly unsourced, and as so, has no value.
Check the site of Ifpi instead, you can buy their very expensive but also detailled annual rapport and you will be able to start a valid opinion on the subject.

[dustyvalentino]

Normal people (i guess 95% of people?) don't have a way to play physical media anymore. It's good in the short term for those of us who still do as the second hand shops are full of CDs/DVDs/blurays for next to nothing.

Regarding the music business your figure is completly unsourced, and as so, has no value.
Check the site of Ifpi instead, you can buy their very expensive but also detailled annual rapport and you will be able to start a valid opinion on the subject.

Lol, OK, I’ll buy the report after you buy a dictionary so you can understand what I mean by the word “guess”.

[ds1984]

That is for free

[hunter]

That was a lot more physical sales than I expected, roughly 20%. But my guess is that people with CD players and turntables mostly are music lovers and audiophiles, who tend to buy much more music than the average, casual listener. Widening access to streaming services for the average person is where the potential growth in sales is (I guess    ). Heck, even seasoned audiophiles with high-end gear are gradually giving up physical formats (if not entirely) for streaming, something I know from frequenting audiophile forums.

[qjamesfloyd]

I will and do always buy CD, until they stop making them that is. You can always rip a CD to digital. I still have an amazing CD player and speakers too.

[herlock]

I'm very torn over this subject.
On the one hand, I am a "hyper connected" type of person. I find it very convenient to launch YouTube music on my smart TV and listen to music that way, without the need to switch discs.
On the other hand, I own all the music and movies that I love on physical media. I own a UHD (HD 4K blu Ray) player , and I'm sad to see that very few new releases come. Some new movies are released, but the back catalogue (older, valuable movies) can be counted with one hand. They did Back to the Future, but that's more and exception. Last week-end I was invited to a friend's house, I knew he was a movie lover, I came with "intouchable" on UHD as a gift, only to realize that he didn't even own a player any more, even if he has a giantic screen!

So, yes, a bluray release of Dortmund 80 and Wembley 85 would be very highly appreciated. Nonetheless, the YouTube releases are better than nothing - they give these legendary concert an official status and feel, and it makes me happy. I consider them official releases, despite that very regrettable lack of physical releases.

[dustyvalentino]

As a better songwriter than MK once wrote "You don't need a weatherman to know which way the wind blows".

I don't need a random, unreferenced chart to show what I can see with my own eyes.

I can see when I get into friend's cars that they don't have CDs in their cars, or even CD players.

I can see when I go into friend's homes that they don't have CD players, DVD players, or stereos. If they put music on they stream to a bluetooth speaker.

I do have friends who still use physical media, as do I , but at this point we are a niche within a niche.

With regards to the chart, what does it even mean? Is it revenues? If so, it doesn't really alter my guess, 20% of revenue could easily come from 5% of people buying physical media because physical media is expensive compared to streaming.

[Jules]

The fact is physical format has enough sales for the system to keep releasing them, not only that but also stopping CDs releases until the LP are ready to be released at the same time.

And as and old fashioned grumpy like me, those are what a official discography of a band is. Not YouTube or Spotify compilation or videos from concerts. As long as they don't have a cd/lp/dvd/Blu-ray release, they are not part of the official discography but just stuff that once was broadcasted by a TV or radio and ended on streaming services.

[hunter]

As long as they don't have a cd/lp/dvd/Blu-ray release, they are not part of the official discography but just stuff that once was broadcasted by a TV or radio and ended on streaming services.

How about things which are released as downloads and on streaming services only? I have purchased two such "albums": Bill Frisell – Further East / Further West, and Jon Batiste & Cory Wong – Meditations. These are indeed part of the artists' discography (check All Music for example).

[hunter]

I will and do always buy CD, until they stop making them that is. You can always rip a CD to digital. I still have an amazing CD player and speakers too.

Me too, but we are nonetheless a minority.

[dustyvalentino]

As long as they don't have a cd/lp/dvd/Blu-ray release, they are not part of the official discography but just stuff that once was broadcasted by a TV or radio and ended on streaming services.

How about things which are released as downloads and on streaming services only? I have purchased two such "albums": Bill Frisell – Further East / Further West, and Jon Batiste & Cory Wong – Meditations. These are indeed part of the artists' discography (check All Music for example).

Can something be part of a discography if it's never been on disc?

(This is a rhetorical question)