My expectations will melt, and then my wallet...

[John A Swartz]

Paul comments on my comments, and now I have more comments . . .

John A Swartz writes:

> As far as the SFG/SWU songs, it would have been nice for those to have
> been on WOTT, but Sony (based on what the blurb this summer in ICE
> magazine said) did not state that that stuff would be in WOTT - they
> hinted at doing more stuff later, including some live material and the
> SFG stuff -- and they are working with the band on this.  Again, I think
> that alot of that will hinge on the commercial success of WOTT.  Which
> means, the only way that we might see that follow-up happen is we all
> go buy a copy, and maybe a few for our friends a relatives (Christmas
> will be here before you know it).

I think this is a stupid marketing strategy.  Actually, it may not be
so much stupid as just plain unethical: hint at being able to buy some
good product in the future so long as you buy something crappy now (in
the hope they'll hold up their end of the bargain).



I think you've mis-interpreted.  I don't think that WOTT is meant to be
a "teaser" by Sony.  I believe that Sony does not right now know if BOC
is commercially viable (we've had LOTS of talk about that right here on
BOC-L), and therefore they do not want to take the financial risks to
release material that is currently not in their control (i.e. the SFG
stuff and various live recordings perhaps) - the blurb in ICE stated
that Sony was in the process of working with the band, and my guess is
that is still on-going.  Meanwhile, though, recognizing that there really
isn't a "definitive" BOC greatest hits collection, they decided to
release WOTT - which for them is relatively inexpensive as they have
the recording rights to all of the tracks.  Sony has not made statemenst
to the effect of "if you buy this, we'll give you more" -- that is my
(and others here) perception of what Sony will do:  if WOTT makes them
some money, they will explore releasing more BOC - if WOTT is not a
commercial success, then they won't extend themselves further in BOC's
direction.  But again, they have made no public statements (to my
knowledge) to that effect.  The statement in ICE hinted at more material
in the future, but it is our interpretation that WOTT needs to sell
first.

Also, I hardly think WOTT is "crappy" -- it is a very good "greatest hits"
package.  Yeah, I've got most of the stuff already, so maybe I don't
need this (or, as a collector, maybe I do), but there may be lots of
people that this package is right for.  How 'bout the folks who listened
to BOC in the 70's and early 80's that haven't bothered to get all of
their BOC albums on CD?  Perhaps there's alot of folks not real familiar
with BOC beyond the "Big 3" that would like to get a good "greatest hits"
package to get more into the band (rather than picking up select studio
albums).  The problem may be that WOTT doesn't completely address some of
us "hardcore" fans - the ones that already have all of BOCs albums
(including former compilations, and maybe even some "unofficial" releases)
on CD already, and the ones that are still holding on waiting for some
new stuff by the band.


>Does it make sense for Sony to sell a package of which 90% of the
material the buyer will likely already own?  Maybe Sony genuinely
*believes* there's a sucker born every minute, but personally I think
that a happy customer is a repeat customer, and that knowing you've
been conned doesn't sit well with most folks.


As I pointed out, perhaps Sony is counting on selling this to old fans
that don't necessarily have everything BOC has released (at least not on
CD).  I happen to know from correspondence with several BOC fans that the
internet connections to BOC (like BOC-L, the AOL boards, the web pages)
have helped many old fans "re-discover" BOC.  Perhaps this package will
help old fans also re-discover BOC.

As far as being "conned", I don't Sony has done that.  Look on the back
of WOTT -- the previously unreleased tracks are identified by asterisks.
The set claims to be a "greatest hits" package, along with some stuff
previously either unreleased or not ever on CD.  And WOTT is that.  If
you don't need that, well, then you shouldn't get it.  On the other hand,
if you do know someone who would either say "Blue Oyster Who?", or only
know the band 'cuz of "the big 3", then I would say to them - "Buy this
CD set and you will know who BOC is".

And as far as "there's a sucker born every minute", well I'm sure that
that attitude is fairly prevalent in the record industry.  And, when
it comes to BOC, I'd have to admit that I'm one of those suckers.  But
still, I don't feel conned -- the CD set is pretty close to what I was
led to believe it would be.

>I, for one, *won't* be buying _Workshop of the Telescopes_.  Why?  I
have the "bootleg EP" already on CD (as well as all the BOC regular
releases).  So it comes down to this: should I shell out over $18 for
the ONE TRACK I do not have (the studio version of "Born to be Wild")?
I think not.


I would not disagree with you.  This release is probably not for you.
I don't know if Sony expects someone such as yourself to buy it - and
they may not know how many people such as yourself (who have nearly
everything on CD already) there are.  But, again, consider buying it
for someone else who has not got such an extensive BOC collection.  It
is a great representation of the band, despite some of the omissions that
have been discussed here.  I mean, if someone came to you saying that
they want to here a BOC album - this would be a great one to give them.

John

PS:  Just in case anyone is wondering, I have absolutely NO affiliation
with Sony what-so-ever.  My encouragement for people to buy (perhaps
even multiple copies of) WOTT is that I feel:

1.  For the fan that doesn't have everything, or for the person who needs
to be indoctrinated into BOC, this is the best single package that's out
there.

2.  While I have no specific knowledge to back this up, my personal
feeling is that the only hope we have of Sony and BOC getting together
to see that other unreleased stuff (live material, SWU/SFG demos) is
ever released is to show them that there is still some commercial
viability for BOC, and the best way to do that is to see that WOTT
sells well.

These are my opinions, and I say in FAQ, they are too crazy to be
attributable to anyone but myself.