Rolling Stones, Paul McCartney, Clapton... Les ventes...

Old stars suffering some slipped disks



The Stones have rolled off the Billboard charts.

"What a drag it is getting old," the Rolling Stones sang 39 years ago.
But never did those words seem more piercingly relevant than now.

While their new CD, "A Bigger Bang," earned the band their most rapturous album reviews in more than 20 years - and even as they pack arenas at prices that rival airline tickets - the Stones' disk hasn't been giving satisfaction to great numbers of fans.

Ditto for another long-in-the-tooth star, Paul McCartney. His Grammy-nominated "Chaos and Creation in the Backyard," garnered more critical kudos than any McCartney solo effort since the Ford administration. Likewise, the ex-Beatle has had no trouble draining his fans' bank accounts for his pricey sold-out shows.

But his disk just isn't keeping pace.
Things look even bleaker for two other big boomers: Eric Clapton and Bonnie Raitt.

First, let's detail the Stones' decline: This week, "Bang" fell to No. 125 on Billboard's Top 200 after moving just over 390,000 copies. That means, unless something drastic happens, the album won't come near the sales level of the Stones' last two studio CDs - 1997's "Bridges to Babylon" (1.16 million), and 1994's "Voodoo Lounge" (1.8 million). Though "Bang" wipes the floor with those disks creatively, it's been selling more like one of those rote live albums the band churns out after every tour.

McCartney has a lower bar to measure himself against. He hasn't broken the gold (or 500,000) sales mark since 1997's "Flaming Pie," which sold 674,000 platters. His last two CDs - 1999's "Run Devil Run" and 2001's "Driving Rain" - moved 232,000 and 400,0000, respectively. The new one has sold 357,000 disks in 12 weeks. With the new Grammy nod, it should nudge up to gold. But given its glowing notices, that's still a muted response.

Clapton has suffered a more severe fall. He started to slip with "Riding With the King," the CD he did with B.B. King in 2000, which moved 2.1 million copies. Its followup, 2001's "Reptile," sold only 620,000, and 2004's "Me & Mr. Johnson" dipped to 560,000.

The last figure was still strong, considering that "Johnson" was an all-blues affair. But Clapton's latest, "Back Home," has no such excuse. The pop CD has sold just over 223,000 copies in the last three months, and now gasps at No. 151 on Billboard's Top 200.

Raitt's last work to go platinum was 1994's "Longing in Their Hearts" (1.6 million); 1998's "Fundamental," moved 553,000 platters, while her 2002 disk, "Silver Lining," pushed a paltry 140,000. This week, the new "Souls Alike," falls to No. 174 after sales of just 193,000.

Raitt's and Clapton's albums can't claim the artistic resurgence of the Stones or the McCartney CDs. They're tepid works that largely deserve their fate. But all these stars are likely suffering from something that's hard for any vet to avoid: Namely, the fans' mistrust of any new product from stars who've slogged away for so long.

Mouais, les ventes sont pas forcément excellente, mais c'est pas la cata non plus
De quand date ta photo ? Je ne l'avais jamais vue 8)

Pourtant il est déjà certifié gold ( 500.000 copies ) depuis déjà quelques semaines non?

maccasteph a écrit:Pourtant il est déjà certifié gold ( 500.000 copies ) depuis déjà quelques semaines non?

Ouais, mais c'est pas le chiffre des ventes qui l'a certifié gold, je crois, mais le fait qu'on ait envoyé aux states 500 000 copies aux boutiques. Cependant ces copies ne sont pas toutes vendues

Moi les ventes je m'en fous. Quand il s'agit d'un jeune groupe prometteur qui debute, ok c'est importe. Avec McCartney c'est la qualité de la musique qui compte pour moi.

357 000 exemplaires aux USA ?

Je comprends mieux pourquoi il a enchainé concert sur concert depuis 2002 ... ( 60 millions de dollars de recettes en moins de 40 concerts pour le US tour 2005, seul le groupe U2 a fait mieux )

( je suis pas mauvaise langue je suis juste réaliste ... )

Vous avez raison
Les concerts rapportent plus que les ventes de disques et Paul est sans doute moins sensible au nombre de disques vendus q'un jeune chanteur ou un nouveau groupe
Ceci dit, l'agent n'est pas sa seule motivation, malgré sa réputation de commercial.
D'abord, question promo en France, c'est pas le top
Il est quasiment impossible de rouver certains de ses disques (singles) et autres oeuvre
Enfin, il fait souvent des disques...loin de son univers voire déconcertants y compris pour les fans les plus fidèles ( Liverpool sound college...)