The Works

[RICHB]

Has anyone seen the below link (apols if conversations are already going on about this but i couldnt find a thread). I thought the Works was going to be the missing tracks, demos etc etc CD however it appears to be some sort of compelation CD with the live album on the third cd.

http://www.play.com/Music/CD/4-/3436379 ... oduct.html

This collection, like previous Warners "generic" releases "The Very Best Of...", "The Ultimate", "the Trilogy" and so forth has nothing to do with us or our management and indeed I have a letter dated this week from our former product manager at Warners confirming that neither party was ever consulted, not because they forget, but because technically, they are not obliged to. It is considered some sort of lap of honour at companies to be "considered" for one of these series as an artist but the artist is not so easily fooled, not least because such compliation albums tend to get released with a massively reduced artsist royalty under a contract clause that is in almost EVERY record deal.

This is as good a time as any to tell you that work on the REAL box set for Warners (as broadly described by Rich above) is presently stalled because, while the good guys at Warners were working hard on this genuinely exciting project for the past few months, the bean counters were wasting time dredging up such super-rarities as "Streams Of Whiskey" so that Pogues fans could hear it all over again. As somebody said to me during the week, Warners are badly in need of a left hand at the moment so it can tell the right hand what it had said it was supposed to be doing.

All this faffing around now means that BOTH the New York concert DVD and the Box Set are stuck in Limbo until somebody up there gets a clue. They will get released, just not yet. But never mind, we all got ourselves a nice new 3CD compilation for Santa to bring us, huh? Or not. I say not.

Thanks for the reply Phil. What is it with these people. Next they'll be aproaching you with a really swell idea "Hey why dont we start the collection of with a really rare Christmas track called 'Fairytale of Newyork', then we'll knock out a few of the rare tracks and put in say Fiesta, Sally Mac, Irish Rover and say If I should fall. Then we will say maybe call it more of the best of the best of the pogues"

[philipchevron]

Has anyone seen the below link (apols if conversations are already going on about this but i couldnt find a thread). I thought the Works was going to be the missing tracks, demos etc etc CD however it appears to be some sort of compelation CD with the live album on the third cd.

http://www.play.com/Music/CD/4-/3436379 ... oduct.html

This collection, like previous Warners "generic" releases "The Very Best Of...", "The Ultimate", "the Trilogy" and so forth has nothing to do with us or our management and indeed I have a letter dated this week from our former product manager at Warners confirming that neither party was ever consulted, not because they forget, but because technically, they are not obliged to. It is considered some sort of lap of honour at companies to be "considered" for one of these series as an artist but the artist is not so easily fooled, not least because such compliation albums tend to get released with a massively reduced artsist royalty under a contract clause that is in almost EVERY record deal.

This is as good a time as any to tell you that work on the REAL box set for Warners (as broadly described by Rich above) is presently stalled because, while the good guys at Warners were working hard on this genuinely exciting project for the past few months, the bean counters were wasting time dredging up such super-rarities as "Streams Of Whiskey" so that Pogues fans could hear it all over again. As somebody said to me during the week, Warners are badly in need of a left hand at the moment so it can tell the right hand what it had said it was supposed to be doing.

All this faffing around now means that BOTH the New York concert DVD and the Box Set are stuck in Limbo until somebody up there gets a clue. They will get released, just not yet. But never mind, we all got ourselves a nice new 3CD compilation for Santa to bring us, huh? Or not. I say not.

Thanks for the reply Phil. What is it with these people. Next they'll be aproaching you with a really swell idea "Hey why dont we start the collection of with a really rare Christmas track called 'Fairytale of Newyork', then we'll knock out a few of the rare tracks and put in say Fiesta, Sally Mac, Irish Rover and say If I should fall. Then we will say maybe call it more of the best of the best of the pogues"

It is always true of bands "like The Pogues" that they have one or two massive hits and a handful of tracks to which the best response may well be "oh, they did that too, huh?" accompanied by mental message-to-self to buy a good comp at some stage. Hell, we've all fallen prey to it at some point or other which explains the disproportionate number of Beautiful South, Aztec Camera etc CDs in my own collection. It's a perfectly valid chunk of the market and I wish them joy discovering "The Broad Majestic Shannnon" for the first time.

So my only quibble to Mr Warner is stop always seeking the bottom line. Now and then an artiste has to take a broader view of the catalogue, illustrating its strength in depth and a curiosity value that points to a wider pop sensibility/creative itchiness than one might otherwise have suspected. By these means will the catalogue live to arrest attention another day.

Anyway, a new date has been mooted in April 2008 for the BOX. No, that's March 2008, lunks!

[Eckhard]

It is always true of bands "like The Pogues" that they have one or two massive hits and a handful of tracks to which the best response may well be "oh, they did that too, huh?" accompanied by mental message-to-self to buy a good comp at some stage. Hell, we've all fallen prey to it at some point or other which explains the disproportionate number of Beautiful South, Aztec Camera etc CDs in my own collection. It's a perfectly valid chunk of the market and I wish them joy discovering "The Broad Majestic Shannnon" for the first time.

Nonetheless I do not understand the logic behind "The Works". As far as I understand it, this is a 3CD set including a live CD. Wouldn't people that aren't real fans ( yet ) rather buy things like "Best of", "Rest of the Best", "Very Best of" or "Ultimate Collection" when looking around in their record stores instead of a massive and pricey 3CD-box?

If I would give a new band a try I would probably rather buy a cheapish compilation instead of a 3CD-collectors box ( especially one including a live cd ).

[TheKing]

Has everybody already seen this?

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Works-Pogues/dp ... -13#disc_1

[TheKing]

Oh yes, it has already been discussed! Many apologies!

[Maija]

Nonetheless I do not understand the logic behind "The Works". As far as I understand it, this is a 3CD set including a live CD. Wouldn't people that aren't real fans ( yet ) rather buy things like "Best of", "Rest of the Best", "Very Best of" or "Ultimate Collection" when looking around in their record stores instead of a massive and pricey 3CD-box?

Because old releases are stashed away, ideally somewhere around 'P' (if they have competent staff that know their way around the alphabet), whilst new releases can be displayed - perhaps even with a poster (eh, forget that, this is the Pogues) - and thus be Promoted, Seen and Sold. Then the old releases can be put on "mega offer" and some dork can write "A Must Have For Fans - Rare Tracks!!11" on a tiny sticker and all is well.

There are far fewer Real Fans than Potential Customers, especially around Christmas time, when most people just mill the stores, trying to rack their brains to find something to buy the nephew/uncle/brother they haven't seen since last Christmas, and chances are that they might think "Oh, he likes Whiskey in the jar and Guinness, this looks good!", buy the CD and move on to next family victim.

[Rich]

What is it the Smiths said? "Reissue, repackage, repackage! Reevaluate the songs; double pack with a photograph, extra track, and a tacky badge." The circumstances here -- fortunately -- aren't quite the same as in the song, but I always think about that lyric when I hear about a record company putting out the 83rd compilation of whatever artist.

Ah well, I still have faith that the box set will be great. Sometimes that happens -- I thought they did a terrific job with the Kirsty MacColl box set.

[Mark_Wafc]

Phil, do the Pogues operate (shall we say) in a different way to other bands in terms of decision making and dealing with the record company etc? As other bands seem to release DVD's of tours within a couple of months and always in time for the Christmas after.

[Doktor Avalanche]

What is it the Smiths said? "Reissue, repackage, repackage! Reevaluate the songs; double pack with a photograph, extra track, and a tacky badge."

It is ironic noting how many collections of Smiths material there are out there...

[philipchevron]

Phil, do the Pogues operate (shall we say) in a different way to other bands in terms of decision making and dealing with the record company etc? As other bands seem to release DVD's of tours within a couple of months and always in time for the Christmas after.

I discovered recently there is a category in record marketing called "Heritage". The Pogues are a "Heritage" band, which means that it is of no special interest to the record company whether we are dead or alive, really, as long as the master tape of "Streams Of Whiskey" never goes missing. Only "current" bands who may, if they perform dutifully, one day become a "Heritage" band themselves, have things coming out in time for next Christmas.

In mitigation, Warners did also spend 2007 trying to swim faster than the sharks who wanted to swallow them up into an Exciting Merger Deal.

[Christine]

I discovered recently there is a category in record marketing called "Heritage". The Pogues are a "Heritage" band

Oh fabulous, the theme park can't be far behind.
And ye olde Pogues tea shoppe with scones and whiskey (tea towels already there, after all). I can't wait.

[Mark_Wafc]

Phil, do the Pogues operate (shall we say) in a different way to other bands in terms of decision making and dealing with the record company etc? As other bands seem to release DVD's of tours within a couple of months and always in time for the Christmas after.

I discovered recently there is a category in record marketing called "Heritage". The Pogues are a "Heritage" band, which means that it is of no special interest to the record company whether we are dead or alive, really, as long as the master tape of "Streams Of Whiskey" never goes missing. Only "current" bands who may, if they perform dutifully, one day become a "Heritage" band themselves, have things coming out in time for next Christmas.

In mitigation, Warners did also spend 2007 trying to swim faster than the sharks who wanted to swallow them up into an Exciting Merger Deal.

Cheers for the informative reply as always Phil, it was something i'd been meaning to ask for a while knowing zero about how record compaines work!!