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Tuesday, September 25, 2012

Nightclub of the Day


Southeast corner of the Brill Building at the corner of 49th and Broadway in New York City, 1944-1949. Rent for this location has just jumped to $5 million per month. Inconceivable. From the Wikipedia article:
The building has been described as "the most important generator of popular songs in the Western world."...The Brill Building approach ... was one way that professionals in the music business took control of things in the time after rock and roll's first wave. In the Brill building practice, there were no more unpredictable or rebellious singers; in fact, a specific singer in most cases could be easily replaced with another. These songs were written to order by pros who could custom fit the music and lyrics to the targeted teen audience. In a number of important ways, the Brill Building approach was a return to the way business had been done in the years before rock and roll, since it returned power to the publishers and record labels and made the performing artists themselves much less central to the music's production.
Via Scott.

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