I am part of the BMG “Jazz” Music club. I very rarely buy things from them as they charge you up the *#?@#^& in shipping, and it ends up being not all that cheap. I tend to get most of my stuff off Amazon.com used.
Today, I received the BMG Early Spring 2007 Catalog. Not a SINGLE mention of Michael Brecker on it. Nada. They do have, on page 18, Michael’s “Wide Angles” Album. No promo box about him. Nothing. Instead, they are peddling yet another Coltrane album called Gold on page 19. On page 3 they have a big box with Mindi Abair. On page 9 they have Richard Elliot. On page 13 they have Marion Meadows. No Brecker. Not even an insert about it. One would think they could, in addition to Checks Unlimited insert, the Build the Ultimate DVD Collection insert, and the BMG Music store insert, they could have put in a Michael Brecker special or something. I might have actually have bought something from them then. It makes one wonder what they will do when Sonny Rollins or some other titan dies. Are they going to ignore the event and feature the likes of Mindi Abair instead?
I am disgusted with BMG now. I am writing them a nasty letter and canceling my account with them.
Update: 05/04 16:11 GMT by E :I got another BMG thing in the mail. They are featuring KENNY G? What the Hell? Amazing. The “Jazz” club featuring Kenny F@#*$*% G……
In all acuallity, BMG is in the business for making money. Midi Abair, Richard Elliot, etc. are currently making “them” more money that Michael. You should know as well as I that Michael is a real find and when you find the cuts you want, at a resonable price, buy it! Don’t let their lowsey marketing department be a henderance from finding good music. As you can see, the person in charge of the Jazz Dept. isn’t a musician or perhaps even an avid listener. Money is the bottom line with all CD clubs or groups. I guess that when you want to find MB cuts you will go to another source, but “don’t throw away the baby with the bathwater”(as they say)
Sorry for any mispellings or type”o”s. This was done in haste.
Keith Holmes
Which is exactly why one should boycott them. They say they are the “Jazz club”. Not. Mindi is not jazz. Smooth Jazz yes. I see more Smooth Jazz artists being pushed in their mailers than real ones. It seems every other month they have a repackaged Coltrane album as well. Seriously, how many ways can they make Coltrane CDs?
Suggestion to BMG, start making your selections really jazz, and move Mindi and the others to a Smooth Jazz section. Push artists like Eric Alexander, Brecker, Rollins, Lovano, Potter, and others.
Also, they are not cheaper either. If you add up the price of the CD and the shipping, you can usually get the same CD from Amazon, used, for cheaper.