From: owner-oppositeview-digest@smoe.org (oppositeview-digest) To: oppositeview-digest@smoe.org Subject: oppositeview-digest V4 #252 Reply-To: oppositeview@smoe.org Sender: owner-oppositeview-digest@smoe.org Errors-To: owner-oppositeview-digest@smoe.org Precedence: bulk oppositeview-digest Sunday, October 6 2002 Volume 04 : Number 252 Today's Subjects: ----------------- OV: OT We've Beaten the Music Industry Big Boys at their own game!!! ["Ja] OV: Re: OT We've Beaten the Music Industry Big Boys at their own game!!! ["Joe Brady" ] ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Sat, 5 Oct 2002 14:49:54 +0100 From: "Jane Armstrong" Subject: OV: OT We've Beaten the Music Industry Big Boys at their own game!!! As some of you know, I've been a big fan of eccentric British music act John Otway for over 25 years. He had a No 27 hit back in 1977 with erstwhile crony Wild Willy Barrett called "Cor Baby, That's Really Free". Since then, a hit desert. But he's continued to play over 150 live gigs a year up and down the country. Well it was his 50th birthday on Wednesday. Every year a group of fans, who have come together via an email list just like this, buy him a present - a theremin, a set of bagpipes, a micro scooter - but when we asked him 18 months ago what he wanted for the Big Five-O he said "another hit". OK, we said. And set about it. We got together a War Cabinet, of which I was one, and raised money by selling "Otway Hit Squad" t-shirts. We've worked our little socks off since then - phoning, emailing, mail-shotting - trying desperately to get the media people on our side and as much publicity as possible. Otway booked Abbey Road Studios - yes, THE Abbey Road, and 1000 of us went up there in March to record backing vocals for the B Side - a unique version of "House of The Rising Sun", using heckles evolved over the past 15 years or so during Otway's live act. He then sent us a CD of 11 songs and we all voted for the one we thought would make the best Hit. They votes were counted by the British Electoral Reform Society and the results were announced during a concert at the London Astoria. "Bunsen Burner" won. Two long-time fans set up a record label especially to press and distribute the single. Barry Upton, another big fan and they guy who "manufactured" the band Steps and who wrote for Sonia and Brotherhood of Man amongst others (I know - but he's actually very good), offered to produce it and also co-wrote some B sides with Otway. Comedian Stephen Frost directed the B Side video, and people like Dawn French, Paul Bradley (Nigel from Eastenders) and Squeeze's Chris Difford appeared on a video sent out with the promo copies saying what a great bloke Otway is. By putting a lot of pressure on the media and the radio stations we have managed to get him playlisted on BBC Radio 1 & 2. DJ Johnnie Walker has played it almost daily for the past month. Local radio has also picked up on it. We've also got loads of TV appearances, and now the national press has taken it up. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/music/2300563.stm http://www.guardian.co.uk/arts/features/story/0,11710,803341,00.html http://www.thesun.co.uk/article/0,,5-2002452013,00.html The single was released on Monday and let me tell you, it's been very hard work to get anyone to take us seriously. We've run up against a lot of opposition - the stores refused to stock it at first until we bombarded them with thousands of pre-orders. Some of them still haven't fulfilled our pre-orders (my local HMV - the only singles store in Bracknell - haven't fulfilled my pre-order of over a month ago and have had no stock at all - despite me telling them Eddie and I are on the record and our friends all want copies). HMV have even said they're taking the stock off the shelves, because we are stopping some of the singles they are paid to promote from getting into the charts!! Virgin has been quite supportive - they've had Otway for a number of personal appearances and signings up and down the country - but they refused to stock it at first until us fans, in our hundreds, went in and placed pre-orders. They all said it couldn't be done - but in the midweek charts we were No 8 !!!!! CD-UK just played a bit on their show and announced it at No 8 in their charts too. The industry bods all laughed at us at first, but they ain't laughing now. They tried to thwart us by refusing to stock it - so we drove to the next town to buy it. They are running scared. Tomorrow we are going to a big gig at the London Palladium to celebrate Otway's return to the charts and his 50th birthday. There will be lots of famous guests there to celebrate with us. (Unfortunately, I doubt his first producer will make it, the one and only Pete Townshend!) We don't know if he'll still be in the Top Ten after the teenagers have gone out with their Saturday pocket money and bought Will and Gareth or Holly Valence's manufactured poptrash - but we're trying our darndest!! Even if we just scrape in outside the Top Ten our achievement will be massive and a big kick in the teeth for the Industry Bigwigs. Finally a bunch of fans, most of whom haven't bought a single in 25 years, have fought back and are playing the industry at their own game. For too long they have dictated what we can listen to. Now we are able to, in the immortal words of John Otway, "say 'Yah Boo Sucks' and wave our willies in the air" I am so proud of what we have done all by ourselves and against the odds (and I never thought I would have a single in the charts :-) !!!) So if the Dels ever want to go independent - maybe they could ask the Otway Yahoo Group for tips.... Jane ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ OUT NOW!!! John Otway - His next Hit Single BUNSEN BURNER featuring Eddie and myself on backing vocals on the B Side (along with 998 others!) Buy it at your local Virgin or HMV - or on-line at http://www.hmv.co.uk TODAY !!! Find out more at http://www.hithithit.com or http://www.otnews.net ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 5 Oct 2002 20:22:34 +0100 From: "Joe Brady" Subject: OV: Re: OT We've Beaten the Music Industry Big Boys at their own game!!! The word obsession springs to mind. - ----- Original Message ----- From: "Jane Armstrong" To: "Dels" Sent: Saturday, October 05, 2002 2:49 PM Subject: OV: OT We've Beaten the Music Industry Big Boys at their own game!!! > As some of you know, I've been a big fan of eccentric British music act John > Otway for over 25 years. He had a No 27 hit back in 1977 with erstwhile > crony Wild Willy Barrett called "Cor Baby, That's Really Free". Since then, > a hit desert. But he's continued to play over 150 live gigs a year up and > down the country. > > Well it was his 50th birthday on Wednesday. Every year a group of fans, who > have come together via an email list just like this, buy him a present - a > theremin, a set of bagpipes, a micro scooter - but when we asked him 18 > months ago what he wanted for the Big Five-O he said "another hit". > > OK, we said. And set about it. We got together a War Cabinet, of which I > was one, and raised money by selling "Otway Hit Squad" t-shirts. We've > worked our little socks off since then - phoning, emailing, ail-shotting - > trying desperately to get the media people on our side and as much publicity > as possible. > > Otway booked Abbey Road Studios - yes, THE Abbey Road, and 1000 of us went > up there in March to record backing vocals for the B Side - a unique version > of "House of The Rising Sun", using heckles evolved over the past 15 years > or so during Otway's live act. He then sent us a CD of 11 songs and we all > voted for the one we thought would make the best Hit. They votes were > counted by the British Electoral Reform Society and the results were > announced during a concert at the London Astoria. "Bunsen Burner" won. > > Two long-time fans set up a record label especially to press and distribute > the single. Barry Upton, another big fan and they guy who "manufactured" > the band Steps and who wrote for Sonia and Brotherhood of Man amongst others > (I know - but he's actually very good), offered to produce it and also > co-wrote some B sides with Otway. Comedian Stephen Frost directed the B > Side video, and people like Dawn French, Paul Bradley (Nigel from > Eastenders) and Squeeze's Chris Difford appeared on a video sent out with > the promo copies saying what a great bloke Otway is. > > By putting a lot of pressure on the media and the radio stations we have > managed to get him playlisted on BBC Radio 1 & 2. DJ Johnnie Walker has > played it almost daily for the past month. Local radio has also picked up > on it. We've also got loads of TV appearances, and now the national press > has taken it up. > > http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/music/2300563.stm > http://www.guardian.co.uk/arts/features/story/0,11710,803341,00.html > http://www.thesun.co.uk/article/0,,5-2002452013,00.html > > The single was released on Monday and let me tell you, it's been very hard > work to get anyone to take us seriously. We've run up against a lot of > opposition - the stores refused to stock it at first until we bombarded them > with thousands of pre-orders. Some of them still haven't fulfilled our > pre-orders (my local HMV - the only singles store in Bracknell - haven't > fulfilled my pre-order of over a month ago and have had no stock at all - > despite me telling them Eddie and I are on the record and our friends all > want copies). HMV have even said they're taking the stock off the shelves, > because we are stopping some of the singles they are paid to promote from > getting into the charts!! > > Virgin has been quite supportive - they've had Otway for a number of > personal appearances and signings up and down the country - but they refused > to stock it at first until us fans, in our hundreds, went in and placed > pre-orders. > > They all said it couldn't be done - but in the midweek charts we were No 8 > !!!!! CD-UK just played a bit on their show and announced it at No 8 in > their charts too. The industry bods all laughed at us at first, but they > ain't laughing now. They tried to thwart us by refusing to stock it - so we > drove to the next town to buy it. They are running scared. > > Tomorrow we are going to a big gig at the London Palladium to celebrate > Otway's return to the charts and his 50th birthday. There will be lots of > famous guests there to celebrate with us. (Unfortunately, I doubt his first > producer will make it, the one and only Pete Townshend!) We don't know if > he'll still be in the Top Ten after the teenagers have gone out with their > Saturday pocket money and bought Will and Gareth or Holly Valence's > manufactured poptrash - but we're trying our darndest!! Even if we just > scrape in outside the Top Ten our achievement will be massive and a big kick > in the teeth for the Industry Bigwigs. > > Finally a bunch of fans, most of whom haven't bought a single in 25 years, > have fought back and are playing the industry at their own game. For too > long they have dictated what we can listen to. Now we are able to, in the > immortal words of John Otway, "say 'Yah Boo Sucks' and wave our willies in > the air" > > I am so proud of what we have done all by ourselves and against the odds > (and I never thought I would have a single in the charts :-) !!!) > > So if the Dels ever want to go independent - maybe they could ask the Otway > Yahoo Group for tips.... > > Jane > ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ > OUT NOW!!! > John Otway - His next Hit Single BUNSEN BURNER > featuring Eddie and myself on backing vocals on the B Side (along with 998 > others!) > Buy it at your local Virgin or HMV - or on-line at http://www.hmv.co.uk > TODAY !!! > Find out more at http://www.hithithit.com or http://www.otnews.net > ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 5 Oct 2002 16:20:25 -0700 (PDT) From: Claire Subject: OV: Re: oppositeview-digest V4 #251 The Wonder Stuff's Will The Circle Be Unbroken was on Welcome to the Cheap Seats, I believe. If not, I at least know for a fact it was released (since I have it in storage somewhere). :) Claire ===== - - Just give me the coffee and nobody gets hurt. Faith Hill - Exclusive Performances, Videos & More http://faith.yahoo.com ------------------------------ End of oppositeview-digest V4 #252 **********************************