Comments on: Tom Hull reads my mind…sort of https://scratchmybrain.com/2007/09/10/tom-hull-reads-my-mindsort-of/ Jeff Albert's blog Wed, 12 Sep 2007 18:33:11 +0000 hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.5.7 By: Jeff Albert https://scratchmybrain.com/2007/09/10/tom-hull-reads-my-mindsort-of/comment-page-1/#comment-36314 Wed, 12 Sep 2007 18:33:11 +0000 http://scratchmybrain.com/?p=395#comment-36314 That’s interesting. I hadn’t thought about reviewer resale as a reason to send promo packaged versions. It makes a lot of sense.

I just received copies of the Trio M and Alan Pasqua discs (both of which are quite good from what I have listened to so far), and I thought the reviewer sleeve was pretty cool. It took me a moment (just a moment) to discern that it wasn’t the final packaging.

There is part of me that wants critics to have nothing more than the music and titles and musicians’ names. It makes the music speak for itself. Liner notes are cool, but listening before reading is always a good idea.

The way I see it they are called music reviews not music package reviews. I’d love to see the day when mainstream music (or even jazz) press will give the music on a handmade CDR the same musical consideration that they give highly and expensively packaged and publicized releases. I will know that I can download (legally) the homemade stuff, and that when I buy a Crypto release that I will get well thought out and very cool packaging.

]]> By: Jeff Gauthier https://scratchmybrain.com/2007/09/10/tom-hull-reads-my-mindsort-of/comment-page-1/#comment-36303 Wed, 12 Sep 2007 16:51:51 +0000 http://scratchmybrain.com/?p=395#comment-36303 This is a sensitive issue for all concerned. For 8 years Cryptogramophone dutifully sent full Digipaks to writers to show off our beautiful packages. However, 500 digipaks (which is about how many we used to send to radio and press) is about 1/4 of our average sales on a title these days, and most of these ended up on Amazon and the used bins before a title was even released. Since Amazon is now our biggest customer, we’re just shooting ourselves in the foot by giving away so many finished Digipaks. By now writers should know that we are committed to beautiful (and expensive) packaging as well as great music. They should also know that we will always send a finished copy to a writer if they ask for it. We understand the writer’s perspective on this issue, and we hope they understand ours. We will never deny a legitimate reviewer access to our Digipaks if they ask for it. It’s kind of like sex. We’ll even give it up on a first date if they ask nicely!

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