The Long Tail was a myth. In a world where everything is available, people will gravitate to the top, the superstar, the one and only. It can be Google or Tiger Woods or U2.  Most people only have time for that which is universal, anointed by the media and their circle of friends. This is […]

Dear Bob, A short note of thanks as this year comes to a close for recognizing Bettye LaVette back in your June 1 column. You wrote everything that I know to be true of Bettye and the album, just as if you’d been walking in my shoes for the previous 18 months  — from the […]

1. Spotify In The States Spotify kills piracy dead.  Isn’t this what the rightsholders want? As for it being free on the computer…  I hate to tell you, music is already free on the computer, ever heard of YouTube? Yes, we’re moving to streaming, and we’re moving to a mobile world.  You’ve got to pay […]

How did Apple become one of the most valuable companies in America? By doubling down in a recession. Remember the dot com crash?  Everybody in tech pulled back.  Not Apple.  The Cupertino computer company invested.  And then released a product that was supposedly overpriced and undesirable.  That product?  The iPod. Remember when Apple was a […]