WalMart does the censoring? I don't think so. I know many of today's songs are censored for airplay and I would bet there are also censored releases out there.Originally Posted by spellbound
WalMart does the censoring? I don't think so. I know many of today's songs are censored for airplay and I would bet there are also censored releases out there.
"The White Zone is for loading and unloading only. If you got to load or unload go to the White Zone!"
No doubt.Both selections suck. First thing I always do is check The Beatles section. If there are only a few titles, which is usually the case at both places, I keep walking.
"The White Zone is for loading and unloading only. If you got to load or unload go to the White Zone!"
Too true. There was a time when I'd go to Walmart to look for CDs (mainstream rock of course) and sometimes I might see something. Usually it's not available so I've given up completely. But in the case of all those AC/DC remasters, I was able to get them at good prices because AC/DC had released Black Ice (2008) and had some "exclusive" deal with Walmart. Now, the stereotypical Wlamart customer probably likes AC/DC along with their country bumpkin music too. I took advantage of the "deal" and got about 5-6 CDs. I'll never waste my time in a Walmart electronics dept again (unless AC/DC releases another new album).
I can't imagine doing any CD shopping at a place like that. Around here I go to the indie shops to browse, but mostly spend at the online prog vendors, who get a lot of business from me! I also use Amazon and their marketplace sellers, who can be way overpriced or give considerable deals! I highly doubt I'd ever find anything I wanted at a place like Walmart (shudder)...
Interviewer of reprobate ne'er-do-well musicians of the long-haired rock n' roll persuasion at: www.velvetthunder.co.uk and former scribe at Classic Rock Society. Only vaguely aware of anything other than music.
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Toilet paper by the gross.
There have been numerous releases that Wally Mart would not stock, either due to cover art or some track on the disc. Labels who really wanted Wally Mart merchandizing were forced to create a "Wally Mart version".
If that's not censorship it's the nearest thing to it.
I'll chime in here because a) I'm a small retailer, b) because I know a few record industry people who have had first-hand experience with Wal-Mart and c) because I recently watched a great documentary called "Wal-Mart:The High Cost Of Low Prices".
So first point. Wal-Mart's business model is indeed to go into communities, see what stores there are, what they stock and at what prices and then totally obliterate those mom and pop stores. A friend of mine that owned a bookstore went through this with Wal-Mart people coming into his store with clipboards etc
Secondly, another friend who ran a music distribution company told me about the way they operate with labels etc. He would send an e-mail out about a new release that was coming out on his label to all retailers and distributors that he dealt with including stores like ours, HMV's and Wal-Mart etc. His cost to make the CD, packaged was about 9.00. His price that went out in the e-mail was 12.00. Wal-Mart would e-mail him and say "We'll take 5000 but we're paying you 10.00 a piece". They would then sell it for 10.99 while the other retailers would be at 14.99(a modest and fair mar-up). He said to me "What am I going to do? Say NO to Wal-Mart and pass on an instant $5000? No way".
It is also true that not only does Wal-Mart not stock certain CD's if the content is in any way offensive but yes, they do control artwork, so much so that before the artwork is submitted to manufacturers, some major labels get their artwork approved by Wal- Mart because they don't want to take the chance of them not stocking it.
Finally, from the documentary, many of Wal-Mart's business practices are completely unethical. Their work conditions in Asian sweatshops is deplorable at best but they are also very deceptive. One example is that their "charity" donations are largely based on a fund that comes from their employees and is a direct deduction off their paycheques. Wal-Mart then of course claims the tax deduction!! Brilliant! Another thing many people don't know is that Wal-Mart has life insurance for their employees but guess who the beneficiary is if the employees don't read and change their insurance policy? You got it--Wal-Mart themselves. So a poor sap who hasn't read his policy dies of a heart attack and Wal-Mart then picks up the million-dollar pay-out. What a convenient way of paying for the entire insurance expense. Brilliant.
So Banquo(and other doubters), give your head a shake and ask yourself is it ethical? Their is an empire based on greed and deceipt.
Eventually when all the other stores are gone, you'll be left with only these bastards.
Wait, are you saying that all our online shopping has made physical record stores disappear? Why did no one warn us this might happen?
Wait, are you saying that I'm saying that you......
Just in case anyone's interested:
http://youtu.be/Jazb24Q2s94
Does Walmart stock CDs by Queen Elephantine, The Red Masque, Wo Fat, Illusion of Safety, Bongripper, Ghoultown, or the Nematoads? I doubt it, but most of those artists are on my CDbaby or Bandcamp wishlists. If I want the latest Miley Cyrus or Beyonce CD, maybe I'll check Walmart. Actually, having read Birdy's 'Walmost' post, I'll continue not buying music from there.
Birdy, you've got it! I'll pass along another story about Wal-mart. My store, Nits Nats Music, is in Henderson, N.C. Henderson is, essentially, a boil on the buttocks of the earth, but that's another story for another day, and was the home for Roses Dept. Stores. Roses was huge through out the south east until the late 1980's. It was a family owned chain and the family lived in Henderson, the corporate headquarters was also here in Henderson. Walmart had trouble gaining a foothold in NC because of Roses. Eventually they worked there way into North Carolina and decided to go for Roses' throat by opening a Walmart in Henderson. The powers that be from Walmart walked into the office of Lucious Harvin, CEO for Roses, and told him they were coming and offered to buy the Roses chain, lock, stock and barrel. Harvin, who married into the Rose family, turned them down. The Walmart officials said that's fine, we will just put you out of business. And that is exactly what they did. The family closed hundreds of stores and had to sell off the remaining ones to a company called Variety Wholesalers. There are still a few Roses stores around, we have two in Henderson, but they have been relegated to selling cheaper goods when, at their peak, were on equal footing with Target and Kmart.
Nothing makes me madder than to walk into Walmart and see them selling CDs cheaper than what I pay for them wholesale.
I hope they keep selling the censored discs because anyone who listens to rap, r & b and certain rock CDs have to come to me or online so they can get the uncensored versions.
Bill
She'll be standing on the bar soon
With a fish head and a harpoon
and a fake beard plastered on her brow.
The result of what?
Walmart took out the little guys. Not all, mind you, some have struggled along but they can be blamed for many of the closings. To think they are not the cause is a bit off the mark.
Bill
She'll be standing on the bar soon
With a fish head and a harpoon
and a fake beard plastered on her brow.
WalMart also was accused, at one point, and I don't know if it's true or not, but supposedly they were taking manufacturer cutouts and pasting over the drill holes and selling them as new.
Remember when Walmart had Nirvana change the title of the song Rape Me to Take Me, or something like that? Can't remember if it was just on the sleeve, just on the Walmart sleeve, or what exactly. But it was definitely because Walmart objected.
"The China Price."
That's what they ask you to match. If you can't match that, WalMart is not your customer.
"The White Zone is for loading and unloading only. If you got to load or unload go to the White Zone!"
Maybe what he meant was that Amazon and Walmart were the result of brick & mortar retailers marking up the prices so high, or the result of real estate prices being so high that retailers had to do that. Just guessing, I'm not sure.
Pay the Iron Price!!!
Wal-Mart even made their own single disc version of parts of Use Your Illusion by putting all the unoffensive songs on one CD.
In the Northeast we have Newbury Comics. Not a bad store, but the one near me is pretty small. I have to drive an hour and a half to get to one about twice the size which would have a wide enough selection to keep me coming back as often as I'd like (once every one to two weeks).
So I'm left to buying more stuff online. For some reason the online experience just isn't as attractive to me. It's more calculated, targeted...and not at all serendipitous. For that reason it just seems like more of a hassle somehow and I avoid it!
(...says the guy who is just about to (finally!) pull the trigger on an online birthday CD order...)
<sig out of order>
I've given up shopping in store for the stuff I want. Since FYE did not have two of the box sets that I wanted(one being the Rush Atlantic studio albums box set), so I stopped shopping there so much. Surprising, they did have the recent reissues of Tommy and Benefit. I did order the upcoming Yes Atlantic albums box set for Christmas, because my dad sent me $100 for fear that FYE wouldn't have it, and also so it would arrive on Christmas. Come to think of it, Best Buy didn't have the Rush Atlantic box set either, nor the Jethro Tull Benefit reissue. I don't recall seeing the newest Tommy remaster there either.
What I mean is there's more of a demand for convenience and value than there is for deep bins of old prog and classic rock. Most business has been lost through attrition, and not because a Walmart opened up across the street. How many people in their 50's still hang out in record stores? How many kids even give a shit about physical media? Not to mention many other reasons why mom & pops fail that don't have a damn thing to do with competition.
That's a good point. I stopped record shopping when I got married, bought a house and had a kid, long before Amazon came along. Demographics could be more important than online competition.
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