<< There really isn't any other way to explain this other than the fact that nothing new is even coming close to the Classics. Documentation? I got it from good authority, (Major Label marketing people that wished it weren't true...and Internet information that also wishes the numbers didn't skew toward the "Dinosaurs". >> Well, since all we're relying on is anecdotal evidence, and my word is therefore as good as anyone's, I say that Elvis, The Beatles, Rolling Stones, Led Zep blah blah blah don't sell at all and in fact Sponge is the best selling band of the new millennium, or something like that. I think this argument is a little flimsy. All of these acts have sold a lot of records, but I have a hard time believing that they've managed to outsell, say, Eminem, who has sold practically 10 million records a year, each year, this millennium. I don't doubt your general argument, though--that catalog acts are "propping" up the industry, and that new bands are not really adding much to the catalog--but I think this may take it a bit far. I did read an article in the Providence Journal about a month ago where an industry exec was complaining that, apart from bands like Pearl Jam and Nirvana, few acts from the past 15 years have created big catalog sellers... but I think this is a cyclical thing, due as much (if not more) to the label's marketing practices as the music itself. > More proof is on the way...witness, for starters, the astounding Eagles > single that they Independently relaeased, to be followed by an album they've > been working on for nearly 5 years. If you haven't heard "Hole In The > World", download it now from KaaZa...it is their best work in 20 years... > I wouldn't say this is truly an independent job, given their unholy allegiance with Best Buy. I should also add that the store where I work jacked up the prices of the entire Eagles catalog as revenge; they're now the highest-priced single-disc domestic items in the entire store, selling for $20 each. And bar "Hell Freezes Over"--which doesn't count--isn't this the ONLY work the Eagles have produced in 20 years? It's hard not to be the best with so little competition... --Jason