Be-haired rocker Jon Bon Jovi's songs sell well on Apple's iTunes but that hasn't stopped him nipping the hand that's been feeding him with some harsh comments about digital music and Apple's Steve Jobs.
He reportedly told The Sunday Times Magazine that "Steve Jobs is personally responsible for killing the music business," lamenting the loss of the sacred connection music fans used to feel for albums and the physical artifacts - vinyl and CDs - once used to distribute his wares.
"Kids today have missed the whole experience of putting the headphones on, turning it up to 10, holding the jacket, closing their eyes and getting lost in an album, and the beauty of taking your allowance money and making a decision based on the jacket, not knowing what the record sounded like, and looking at a couple of still pictures and imagining it..," he reportedly said in the interview.
Bon Jovi doesn't explain why the coming of digital music was the fault of the Apple CEO beyond the view that his company's iTunes service has profited from it. As many commentators have pointed out, Apple didn't invent digital music because Apple rarely invents anything, preferring instead to perfect breakthroughs made by others such as Napster.
The comments are difficult to verify but appear to be genuine, assembled here from a multitude of sources. A journey behind the Times paywall uncovered a version of the article minus the contentious comments which could have appeared in paper copies.
"God, it was a magical, magical time...I hate to sound like an old man now, but I am, and you mark my words, in a generation from now people are going to say: 'What happened?," he reportedly wailed about the lost music industry peak of the 1980s.
The music snipers will no doubt suggest that he should turn up the volume on his own headphones, preferably to 11.
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Comments received
NeilFiertel said on Tue, 15 Mar 2011
Who cares what some rock musician thinks about technology. He is rich enough already. Itunes at least allows the young and upcoming artists of all genres INCLUDING classical music to have distribution world wide. That is a good thing so thanks, Mr. Jobs and Apple for doing this.
frere said on Thu, 17 Mar 2011
And?
I know that I now can get the TRACK I want instead of buying an album of Bon Jovi crap that HE and his recording agents want me to buy.
So, thanks Steve Jobs for 'killing the music business.
The music 'business' is what needed killing off, together with Bon Jovi and his super-rich minions.
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