basement tapes
Pink Floyd, the Beatles, Led Zeppelin and Queen have all revisited their old material to make new recordings in recent years. Some of the material they have used was languishing on tapes in some dusty studio cellar, discarded decades ago as unsuitable, maybe not good enough or just bad; hidden away never to be seen again.
Fast forward to the 21st century and these artists have opportunities that none of them could have foreseen back in the heyday of their youthful recording sessions. The old tapes of sessions long abandoned are of course highly valuable assets that can be re-visited, digitised and re-worked, improved or re-purposed to create new assets that are highly valuable, not only in a crass, consumerist way, but in a way that exposes true fans of the artist to previously unheard music and events; adding new layers of complexity and intrigue for aficionados to devour with gusto.
In some cases, the previously impossible has been achieved due to the progress made with technology in the intervening years. Who ever thought we’d hear Freddie sing a new song, or perform a duet with Michael Jackson?
Who wouldn’t want to hear the magic back-line of Entwhistle and Moon again on new tracks previously unheard of?
The two advantages these artists have is a deep understanding of their audience and a deep understanding of the costs involved in making their art; both the emotional and the financial investment.
Sometimes it’s easy to be dismissive of something you create at the kitchen table as not good enough or even useless. Maybe it’s hard to assign value or even a cost of production to it, but are you making that judgement from the best viewpoint? Would a few years in the basement maybe change that view? Can you re-visit previously discarded and possibly unfinished art or work that can now be rejuvenated, restored, finished or re-purposed to make something of high value and quality for your audience or even just for yourself?
Similarly, if you’re at a crossroads and can’t decide what to do next. If you feel like your idea stream has dried up. Why not make what you already have; what you’ve already sweated over, better first? Before assuming that you need to do more in order to get a result. Make what you have of the highest quality first, trust your gut feelings. If you thought they’d fly, and they haven’t (yet) then re-visit their design, prominence, features and promotion first before dumping them and starting again. Many old crazy ideas can be revamped and re invigorated and made successful for you now.
Save the planet…Recycle!
Photo Credit: http://nos.twnsnd.co/
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