Why aren't musicians striking?

[superheavyfunk]

The day for this passed for musicians sometime in the 1940s. That's the last time any AFM action had any effect - the famous recording bans - and in the end even that didn't really lead to any meaningful change.

It did have a meaningful effect but not one that’s related to what we’re taking about. Bebop and other “modern jazz” styles came out of it because the players who were striking weren’t allowed to make records. This made room for new and different styles to come about, as non-union players continue to make strides in their respective domains. There’s lots of stories and information about this time out there, and recently there was even a podcast talking about this. I think it was the show “Switched On Pop.” I’ll see if I can dig it up.

Generally speaking, there is no false presumptions about getting the big piece of chicken.

Wait, were we supposed to be getting fed all this time?!

 

[Wood and Wire]

My band had to join AFM to record for Capitol records back in the 90s. Part of the deal, house rules, all musicians had to be AFM to be on the label. So we went to the office of our local to sign up and it was one unforgettably hilarious experience. The president of the local, Byron, wore shades the whole time. He sat behind his desk chain smoking, trying to impress us with stories about storming weddings that had hired non-union bands, beating up a non-union DJ at a pipe fitters convention, shutting down jam sessions. Enter his secretary, who also wore shades, had a super tight perm, was about 5’8” and couldn’t have weighed more than 85lbs. She had a chronic deep wet smokers cough. She distributed warm Faygo red pop in 4oz Dixie cups to us from a tray, hacked up a lung and walked out shutting the door behind her. Byron paused looking at the door for a moment and said “she’s one fine piece of a**”, then turned to us and said “did I tell you boys that I walked with Hoffa”? “I walked with f-ing Hoffa, there’s the picture right there”. Pointing at an aerial picture of about a thousand tiny little people at a strike. I guess he was in there somewhere, and so was Jimmy Hoffa. Joining the union was useless for us. No benefit whatsoever, except for that story.

To answer your question, musicians do go on strike, but they play in symphonies not dive bars.

So the underlying message was "Welcome to the union. Would you like to pick your plot under the Nevada desert now, or shall we let the Family choose it for you, when you step out of line?"

 

[Topkat13]

Actually I think some of us are quite attractive.

 

[definenredefine]

Actually I think some of us are quite attractive.

Attractive doesn't necessarily mean striking, though...

Unless you're Zoolander.

 

[themickster]

I think it's a fair question, what with all the strikes these days. This article has a few reasons, and I thought it was an interesting read, so I'm sharing it here -

Why Musicians Aren't Striking

Not all of us are having to make a living. Some are making money from it refuse to play for high enough pay. In a way, they're striking all the time.

 

[LiptonJigglers]

There's a brilliant book titled 2 steps forward, 1 step back.
Recognising there is a problem is step 1. Wanting to do something about the problem is step 2.
now take a step back...
The struggle is real. However, the strugglers do not have to fight every battle that comes their way.
An accurate assessment of the forces at play needs to be made before entering into the arena.
Without the proper assessment of conditions and forces, as well as an idea of what it is you hope to achieve by entering into the arena, all one is doing is wasting valuable time and energy. You'll be crushed before you even venture out your front door.
This obviously presumes that there needs to be some form of organisational body or system to help find a set of demands, needs and requirements as well as an alternative to the given conditions as well as a plan to ensure these conditions never return (Something the French failed to do in the 1800s). A clear indication of who and what the opposing forces are and how much real pressure can you actually place on them needs to be formulated.
Ultimately, if the conditions aren't ripe enough to win the battle, then obviously preparation must be made in order to be successful when conditions ripen, and they will ripen.
Only fools hasten into battle unprepared. Spend this time preparing and organising and building an opposing force.
Who knows, even some of those who have shown a defeatist attitude towards struggle in this forum, may join your ranks.

 

[Boneless]

As usual, Seppos don't get the idea behind strikes, don't get the idea behind unions and believe unions have to be organised the way Seppos used to organise them. That said, the problem with getting musicians to strike is that they do something that is easily replaceable, not essential and that the standard of pop music is/can be relatively low (at least for cover bands and the sort) therefore it's not like in the film industry, where you need to be an accomplished professional just to be on the set because it is actually hard.

 

[Slevage]

Tough to strike if the impact will have little influence.

 

[Zooberwerx]

Or this...View attachment 5138103

As a union compliance agent, I have but one question: how do you break a bear's kneecaps?

Riis

 

[Michael Milner]

There is a passage in a book "Any Night of the Week" (a book written by Johnny Dovercourt about the music scene in Toronto, mostly focusing on punk and new wave), where he talks about how artists from the genre deliberately resisted following union rules in order to play at certain clubs. Basically, they didn't want to join; they wanted to do things their way, and weren't interested. The way I interpreted what he was saying was that he (and the other musicians) thought the union was for the "other guys" that they didn't like, who looked own on what they (the punkers, etc.) were doing and the younger generation wanted nothing to do with the union types. I think that mindset has been very prominent for a long time.

 

[40Hz]

27669800[/URL], member: 393529"]Only fools hasten into battle unprepared. Spend this time preparing and organising and building an opposing force.
Who knows, even some of those who have shown a defeatist attitude towards struggle in this forum, may join your ranks.

Organizing a force to yell at the clouds or tilt at windmills is delusional.

Not being willing to invest time and effort into a delusion is not being defeatist. It’s being realistic about a given situation and rational about one’s approach to it.

Any time a rational adult gets hit with an “or else” demand (which is what a strike is btw) they’ll ask two simple questions: “Says who?” and “Or else what?”

I don’t think musicians have any good responses for those questions.

 

[lark_z]

Invalid Link Removed

 

[Boneless]

Organizing a force to yell at the clouds or tilt at windmills is delusional.

Not being willing to invest time and effort into a delusion is not being defeatist. It’s being realistic about a given situation and rational about one’s approach to it.

Any time a rational adult gets hit with an “or else” demand (which is what a strike is btw) they’ll ask two simple questions: “Says who?” and “Or else what?”

I don’t think musicians have any good responses for those questions.

A good response would be to include also DJs and other forms of entertainment in the struggle. Of course, a bar or a club may be able to get by with the owner just playing a Spotify playlist, but that gets old fast and people actually like musical entertainment. Going into it with a defeatist attitude or actually working *against* your peers (like many "against the system" people like to do) is not going to do you any favours. In Italy, we call this "a war among the poor". On the other hand, there should be a shared culture of quality, which doesn't necessarily mean musicianship. Meanwhile, the actual establishment owners laugh away with the money.

 

[socialleper]

Because there isn't really a musician's union. There are so many around the world that play so many vastly different ways that organizing it would be impossible.

Not that I don't think it we have just cause. We are treated like garbage by an abusive industry and only exists to feed off of us. IT made the same mistake of not unionizing and now they are treated like garbage too. I totally get why the writers are striking. Our capitalist system is predicated on exploitation.

If musicians were serious about not playing shows, not recording, and not touring it would hurt the economy. People would notice.

 

[Zooberwerx]

Is there actually a professional licensing board for performing musicians? Yes, I know they exist for music educators (school systems), music therapy, etc.

Riis

 

[Boneless]

Also, the stories of coked-up, alcoholic, slobbish union reps are trying to prove what? Being in a union doesn't mean you have to be a good musician, or a good person even. It's about protecting your interests. Maybe an idiot (or a person who appears to be an idiot) is what works best.

 

[Boneless]

Is there actually a professional licensing board for performing musicians? Yes, I know they exist for music educators (school systems), music therapy, etc.

Riis

There probably should be. This way it gets easier to organise.

 

[Zooberwerx]

There probably should be. This way it gets easier to organise.

That's what I was thinking. I have a medical license and subject to all processes including credentialing, education background, minimal competency, standards of practice, continuing education, and review / disciplinary action. I screw up and I can be cited, fined, and / or lose my license and livelihood. Even the guy hacking on the loblolly pines next door is a certified arborist and his license is on file in Richmond.

Riis

 

[40Hz]

27669953[/URL], member: 147047"]If musicians were serious about not playing shows, not recording, and not touring it would hurt the economy. People would notice.

I think the proof would be in the pudding. And I don’t see any pudding in that statement. Just an assertion.

And yes, people would notice. Maybe. But how many would actually care enough to do anything of consequence assuming - and that’s a big assumption - they did more than casually notice at all?

How to prove otherwise?

Show me the money.

People only pay for (a) what they have to pay for; and (b) the things they truly enjoy and/or believe in. And there’s far from universal consensus as to what constitutes category B above.

I enjoy movies. Good movies, not the dross most studios are churning out these days. So where do I stand on the writer’s strike? The demands being made seem more about providing featherbed employment for the less talented and competent union members. And doing it at the expense of the writers who are truly good at their jobs who get the big bucks as a result.

The actor’s strike? Some very legitimate demands regarding residuals IMO. Hollywood’s “creative” accounting practices really need serious looking into by legal authorities and some clear rules need to be put in place for that industry. And enforced for once.

And AI? If a machine can reduce to a formula and then go on to produce a product as good as yours …then maybe your “talent” isn’t as unique as you imagine it to be. And there’s certainly a lot of formulaic music, scripts, and books being produced these days that continue to sell. So maybe the time has come to automate the industry after all.

Bottom line: a world without art would (IMO) be a sad place to live in. But it wouldn’t be the end of our world. Just the end of a world the studios, labels, and publishing houses created for themselves within it.

 

[socialleper]

I think the proof would be in the pudding. And I don’t see any pudding in that statement. Just an assertion.

And yes, people would notice. Maybe. But how many would actually care enough to do anything of consequence assuming - and that’s a big assumption - they did more than casually notice at all?

How to prove otherwise?

Show me the money.

People only pay for (a) what they have to pay for; and (b) the things they truly enjoy and/or believe in. And there’s far from universal consensus as to what constitutes category B above.

I enjoy movies. Good movies, not the dross most studios are churning out these days. So where do I stand on the writer’s strike? The demands being made seem more about providing featherbed employment for the less talented and competent union members. And doing it at the expense of the writers who are truly good at their jobs who get the big bucks as a result.

The actor’s strike? Some very legitimate demands regarding residuals IMO. Hollywood’s “creative” accounting practices really need serious looking into by legal authorities and some clear rules need to be put in place for that industry. And enforced for once.

And AI? If a machine can reduce to a formula and then go on to produce a product as good as yours …then maybe your “talent” isn’t as unique as you imagine it to be. And there’s certainly a lot of formulaic music, scripts, and books being produced these days that continues to sell. So maybe the time has come to automate?

Bottom line: a world without art would (IMO) be a sad place to live in. But it wouldn’t be the end of our world. Just the end of a world the studios, labels, and publishing houses created for themselves within it.

What a wonderful statement to make when you know there is absolutely no way for me to prove it because you skipped over the part where I said it will never happen.

However, since we are wildly speculating, what would happen to all the studios and producers if musicians stopped recording for a few months? What would happen to all these dumpy bars without bands bringing in customers. What would happen to theaters and arenas without musicians performing there. What would happen to Vegas venues with residencies if no one was playing there. Merch vendors, music shops, vinyl and cd replication houses.
Would it be the "end of the world"? No of course not, but the movie writer strike or even sports league strikes aren't the end of the world either. But all of the parasites they feed off of musicians would certainly notice, and that no small thing.