The Beatles released 12 lps and a couple of eps in roughly eight years. In the same time, Oasis made five, most of which were shit.
Obviously much of that was because people couldn´t get enough of the Beatles, and they started out in an era when pop hadn´t crossed over to rock and AOR. They must have signed contracts guaranteeing a certain rate of product as well.
But it seems that in the 70s an album a year was pretty standard, even for artier groups such as Soft Machine, whereas over the last couple of decades artists seem to get given much longer to hone and polish their artistic statements.
Do creative artists work better under the whip, with deadlines and contractual penalties, or are they better off left to their own devices? I´m beginning to suspect the former is the case.
Obviously much of that was because people couldn´t get enough of the Beatles, and they started out in an era when pop hadn´t crossed over to rock and AOR. They must have signed contracts guaranteeing a certain rate of product as well.
But it seems that in the 70s an album a year was pretty standard, even for artier groups such as Soft Machine, whereas over the last couple of decades artists seem to get given much longer to hone and polish their artistic statements.
Do creative artists work better under the whip, with deadlines and contractual penalties, or are they better off left to their own devices? I´m beginning to suspect the former is the case.
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