The Great White Wonder that is bootlegging: Part I
by James Ketchell
A look at the history and impact of bootlegging on the music industry.
Not to be confused with piracy (the illegal sale of material under copyright or existing releases), bootlegging (the distribution of non-released material) has a colourful and crucial impact on modern popular music and the record industry. Without bootlegging, bands such as the Grateful Dead would not have a rightful place in musical history. Without bootlegging, the post-death careers of artists such as Jeff Buckley, Nick Drake and Jimi Hendrix would not have been as extensive or as interesting. Most importantly to the record industry, without bootlegging, they wouldn't have the opportunity to find new material to flog to devoted fans.
The first bootleg of note in the rock world was A Great White Wonder, a release of Bob Dylan tunes that he had been working on with the Band in semi-retirement in Woodstock, after his legendary (and some would say mythical) motorcycle accident in 1966. These tracks were later released by his record company in 1975 as The Basement Tapes. At the time there was an insatiable appetite for new material from Dylan who had disappeared into the ether. Many of his fans who followed each and every utterance from Dylan in the mid 1960s were in despair! This release came at an opportune time and many were probably unawares that this was a bootleg record. Great White Wonder was so named because it came in a white sleeve, with a white label and cover (later reproductions of GWW added useful information such as the name of the record to the cover).
Around the same period as GWW other important bootlegs came about, such as Brian Wilson's Smile. This recording survived and became a much talked about record by those in the know. It kept people talking about the famous ‘lost-album' and a few years ago, Wilson was able to release it (and finish it) in all it's full-glory. It is fair to say that its commercial and critical success would not have been as important, had the album not remained in the background for Beach Boys/Wilson fans. It is entirely plausible, that the recording may only have been known to a few hard-core fans and Wilson himself, without the illicit sale of tapes.
In the 1970s, the coming of the super-gig at Stadiums across America saw the bootleg gain importance to the average music fan. Mega-concerts by Led Zeppelin, the Rolling Stones and Pink Floyd allowed for tapers (those actually recording the concert for release on record) to smuggle their equipment in easily, while the huge amounts of people that these bands were playing to provided a huge customer base. Gigging was going mainstream as an activity and many wanted their souvenir of their one show a year. In 1970, the Who even paid tribute to bootleggers, by releasing their The Who Live at Leeds album with a fake home-made style sleeve.
Another development increased the popularity of bootlegs - tapes. This meant that for the first time fans were able to copy and share music. This proved to be the kick-start to a community that still exists today, albeit in a different form, the trading community. Making contact through classifieds in music magazines and fanzines, collectors would swap music with each other by post. Fans of bands such as Grateful Dead came together to become the largest trading community. The Dead even helped them by creating dedicated taping sections within their shows which allowed for the recording of shows away from the LSD addled crowds who could unfortunately say weird things without a moment's notice. This has in fact vindicated the band who were always better as a live act than their studio records suggested. Today the surviving members and legacy of the band are reaping the financial rewards of bootlegging with the release of many of these shows on a commercial basis (known as Dick's Picks).
In the 1980's, some artists were becoming even more astute and were using bootlegs to their legal advantage. Prince's The Black Album was pulled almost immediately after it was released by a label due to Prince's problems with his record company. It is said that it went on to sell over 500,000 illicit copies.
The arrival of CDR and the internet has kicked-started the interest in bootlegs and field recordings (recordings of shows). A number of specialist websites and download services have even been created to cater for this demand. Now hundreds of bootlegs from the 1960's to the present day are all available for download at the click of a button. Many also include artwork and older recordings have been remastered at home by wanna-be Tony Viscontis. All in all an industry for fans made by the fans has been created. While there are still some collectors buying silver-disc bootleg releases, these have dwindled as people realise that they can get unreleased music for free over the internet.
Indeed, there are many bands who are now following the example of the Grateful Dead and being more accommodating to their fans. Perhaps they have realised the importance in keeping their fan-base happy. A list of bands on Wikipedia shows that The Cure, Bjork, Dave Matthews Band, Iron Maiden, Manu Chao, REM, U2 and Wilco, all allow for the taping and distribution of shows on a not-for-profit basis. Meanwhile, blogs are posting ever increasing numbers of rarities, outtakes, radio sessions and live concerts.
But why is this becoming an ever popular way to consume music? What attractions do bootleg's and live recordings offer? Well, they offer a souvenir of a show. They also offer the chance to catch those classic live moments that cannot be captured in a studio. Additionally they allow for new fans to catch a glimpse of an older artist in their prime. I for one am too young to have been around when Dylan went electric or when Bruce Springsteen and the Stones was first making their name in the music world, and will never see those artists at such peaks again. However, the bootleg allows me to catch a glimpse of artists such as these in their prime. For newer bands, it allows one to keep track of their musical direction and for bands who rarely tour in certain areas, keeps interest alive without the need for constantly jet-setting across the world.
But where for the future of bootlegging? It seems that the idea of trading has long-since given way to downloading. Many bands are realising that not much can deter hard-core fans who will obtain whatever material is available on the net. With this in mind many are now trying to make some money out of this situation. The Raconteurs recent tour of the UK featured the sale of a recording of the show just ten minutes after the end. This service has also been used by Keane, the Magic Numbers and others. Columbia and Bob Dylan have released bonus live tracks on albums and via Dylan's website which have been sourced from bootlegs.
In other moves that show that bootlegging is going legit, the estates of former musical icons will continue to try to cash in on their existing and new fan-bases with the release of archival material and live recordings. Bob Dylan has recently released his seventh album in his Bootleg series, while Neil Young has only just started releasing material from his vaults that was only previously available as illicit bootleg recordings. With the post-mortem careers of artists such as Jeff Buckley being sustained by rarities and bootleg recordings, the record industry should actually be thanking bootleggers.
Part two of the feature looking at some of the best bootlegs out there and how to get them is here. The author would like to thank the Wikipedia contributors who provided much of the background information in this article.
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