Glenn Hughes in UK Music Stores

[HWright]

I just took a vacation in the UK and I was curious while over there to see how available Glenn's various releases are, especially compared to what one can or can't get in the US.

In Salisbury I could not find any Glenn CDs at all. Not suprising since it's a pretty small city. (Note: Washington, DC where I live does not have any Glenn Hughes CDs either, as far as I know. Everything I have I bought on-line).

However, I am happy to report that in London, at the HMV on Oxford Street, I saw the following titles:

- "F.U.N.K." (the new album)
-"Live in Australia" (two editions: UK edition with just music, German edition with music and DVD)
- "This Time Around" (two disc best of)
- Two-fer of "Building the Machine" and "The Way It is."

As for Trapeze, they had "Trapeze" (the album by the larger version of the group) and "Medusa," as I recall.

It should also be noted that the Deep Purple section in the same store was quite substantial and they had several copies of the new edition of "Stormbringer" with the Glenn remixes.

[Keith Thompson]

Interesting post H. It's probabaly more the state of the industry than anything else. But just a general question. Do you think that people will return to discs? Not in a big way but you know I cannot get my head round downloads as a way of appreciating music. My own view is that we have hit the bottom of a curve for CD/disc sales but we could see a revival. Even if the indy high srtreet shops don't come back, if I'm ordering something, I want the packaging, the cover design, the disc in my paws.

Think books for a sec. Booming sales. Whereas Sales of Sony Reader, the digital content screen, are only steady. People want the tactile feature of a book. A book is a book is a book. It's not a mobile phone with words on it. Who will be ordering Glenn's biography by Joel McIvor as a digital download?

Now where's my cocoa?

[galleyfan]

Hey Keith,
I am only 46 & miss real albums. Cd's are ok but not too fond of digital
downloads. I remember the excitement of bringing home an album
checking out all the cool pics & art work & lyrics Bands like Yes
always had awesome covers & artwork. As far as books go, I will never
download one. It's paper or nothing until they only offer digital or if
1984 comes to pass! I have to Glenn's book in paper for all the great pics!

Galleyfan

[HWright]

Keith,

It's true that what one sees in London is in many respects typical of the state of the industry at large.

As for Glenn, in commenting on what was available in London I am aware of how hard it is for an artist to promote himself/herself and keep his/her head above water in such a climate where space is so limited. So Kudos to Glenn for having that many CDs in the London HMV. I wish I lived in a city where you could just go into a store and buy Glenn's latest releases off the shelf.

In Washington, DC where I live, many of the music stores have closed down and the big retailers that remain have reduced their stock and floor space dedicated to CDs (and I have observed a similar trend in NYC). Does this spell the end? To a certain extent, since these trends have a tendency of become self-fufilling prophecies (if there is no where to buy something, no one buys it, then the companies stop making it/marketing it/selling it since they think no one wants it, etc).

But maybe things will turn around. I sure hope so. In a way it depends on what younger people do. I'm about forty myself and don't really have my finger on the pulse or anything, but one hears about a revival of vinyl among some in the under 25 set (especially among college students), but I don't know how significant that demographic is. One also reads that many younger people mostly have MP3 files, don't like to have anything other than the files and often don't even want to pay for them at all. Probably a certain percent still have CDs and don't even have computers, much less MP3 players or smart phones.

As for me, I would hope that CDs, LPs, etc, don't disappear since I too prefer to have the physical object, see the art-work and so forth (not to mention a back-up for filing purposes). Your book analogy is relevant, although there are some disturbing trends in that area of late too, I believe...

[purplemusic]

I know of at least one music store that you can still walk into and physically pick up every cd that is available, including the solo, Purple, Trapeze, Iommi, Gary Moore, and Moonstone. I think that about covers what I can think of having. Also, I was thinking the other day as I had Glenn on random play from my ipod in the store ( I have cheated on my ipod and renamed G. as the "artist" on the HTP, Iommi, Moonstone, and Voodoo Hill so you can inagine that i can let it play from open until close with plenty of songs left over), that I bet that Purple Music gives Glenn Hughes more face time and overall exposure than ANY other music store in our country and if posts like the previous one is indicative of the rest of the world, then Purple Music may be the most Glenn Hughes friendly music store left anywhere. And now I've turned it up even more that I'm wearing my Alive Drive on my wrist and telling people how cool it is. ( new down load tomorrow )
Yes, I know



and I like it, like it, yes I do

peace,

[FCinnella]

Keep it up Bart. Maybe Charleston will become Glenn's East Coast home away from home.