[email protected]
Sun, 30 Aug 1998 17:51:29 EDT
Well for 1 Patty used to work for Polygram so she would understand why a
Polygram rep wouldnt be able to talk to Paul or the band unless they met them
like anyone else..waiting for them at their hotel or at the venue.
For 2 I can tell U that Island and Polygram both know how huge of a fan I
surely am of U2 and I get teased about it all of the time. Everytime I go to
these meetings and I dont have a U2 shirt on they give me hell for it and then
they give me hell when I do have one on. I can also say with Island knowing
that I am a HUGE fan do U think they would of tried to get me a pass or
something or into an aftershow party with the band to meet them? No...do U
think I got any free tickets to any of the 20 shows I went to?? No...except
for Vegas and they put me in the very back while the rest of Island and
Polygram sat in the first 7 rows..meanwhile I was by myself in row 40
something. Then in Miami I was robbed and my tickets were stolen and I called
Island and they got me a ticket to the Miami show but other than that
everytime I tried to get tickets they said no. Do U think they send me any
promos? such as cd pros or promo vinyl or posters or stickers or videos or
anything? NO...they dont..its like pulling teeth to get anything from them so
I can tell U right now that before the tour started Island said "there will be
no meet and greets with the band" and I said okay but I called anyway and said
is there ANYTHING U guys can do so I can meet them? I will fly wherever to
meet them and they said no. Now everything I have said pertains to Polygram
US. Polygram in canada is different as we dont talk to anyone in canada and
that is the same for Polygram UK. They are completely different companies in
that sense but still the same. Its hard to explain....and yes I have done meet
and greets with several Island artists, Tricky, Melissa Etheridge, Longpigs,
The Orb, Jimmies Chicken Shack and several others but when it comes to U2 meet
and greets dont exist and even when I attended the aftershow party in Vegas
the band didnt show up but yes Paul McGuinness did but there were so many
celebrities there that to talk to Paul was almost impossible and so I couldnt.
His job at these parties is to entertain the guests and I was just plain LUCKY
to even get into this event at the hardrock.
<<The one thing that I will take back is that the Polygram Rep I guess didn't
say Mercury. It was an mistake on my part. She did however mention two
different labels and I am positive that one was Sony. I dunno, maybe the
other was Warner and I got it confused. That however was not the point of
my statement. She was hinting towards U2 having worries that their label
was unstable because of its recent purchase by Seagrams. Enough said.
>>
i never mentioned any labels ...that was another person on WIRE who mentioned
Sony and Mercury but not me. Yes Mercury is part of Polygram and yes I did
hint towards U2 having worries about their label. All of the labels are
worried right now and they have every right to be. We are all a bit worried
because we dont really know what is going to happen with the Seagrams buyout
and we know that Polygram is doing everything in their power to do what is
best for us and the company but there is always a bit of worry with any buyout
or merger taking place anywhere.
I am hearing alot of talk about this "Greatest Hits" album and though I am not
one to necessarily want to see one come out at this time I will support the
band in whatever decisions they are making and U need to also take into
consideration that there are alot of politics going on. The way Im looking at
this is U2 is not doing this to make more money, they are not doing this to
"sellout", they are not doing this to say "our careers are over", they, I
believe from what I am hearing, are doing it to SAVE Island records so to
speak. Like I said all of the labels are worried at this point as to what
will happen to them in the future and ALL of the labels under Polygram are
trying to look really good and by that I mean show that their label has great
potential and will stay strong and continue to bring new artists and releases
that will benefit the merger. All of them want to stay on top and we all know
that U2 is Islands biggest artist and if U2 putting out a "Greatest Hits"
record will help Island to survive this merger and stand strong and look good
they are going to do it. They, in my opinion, are giving back to Island what
Island gave them .... a chance.
and yes theres alot of rumors and talk about U2 wanting out of their contract
with Polygram but nothing is official yet and no one knows for sure U2's
motives but I can tell U that I agree with Patty...U2 wont go to Sony...shes
right its not their artistic climate. Im not even going to go into my
thoughts about this but I truely believe that this "greatest hits" album they
are putting out for political reasons and not necessarily for the fans because
U2 knows very well that their fans have pretty much everything if not
everything already.
Just believe in them and trust that their choices are for the best. I honestly
would bow to them at this moment for what they are doing..they are not only
giving Island a chance but they are also giving Island great opportunities to
sign new talented artists, continue to put out releases from their already
successful artists, and show the ones who are making the decisions in this
merger that Island Records is a strong and successful label and will be for
years to come.
okay..i think im done for a while..
Nico
"One mile high, if not higher, we're goin deaf and we're never comin down"
-Bono 3/17/85 Denver, Colorado
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