Eagles Ticket Prices

[MikeA]

This reply really has nothing to do with how much Eagles are charging to see them live on the LROE or any other tour. On second thought, it actually might have everything to do with it!

I'm wondering if the emphasis of this tour (LROE) is more to make their bundle off the concerts rather than making it off of music sales!

Consider:

What are they getting for the CD at WallyWorld? $14? Very much in line with the price of new double CD releases...maybe even lower in price. I don't know if the CD has broken any sales records.

Are they offering it anywhere on-line as a "download" (i.e., like through iTunes?) That is really where the market is for the "today generation".

Point is, WHO are they targeting? Their longtime Fans or are they seeking a new youngblood following? Evidence seems to be that they are targeting their loyal longtime Fans. People who might most likely be the ones who could afford the price of admission. Looking around at those in attendance at the concerts I've been to relatively recently, there is a vast majority of 40+ youngsters in attendance!

I would like to see a breakdown on the net to them between Concert income from the LROE tour and the net from CD sales. Not that that will ever happen...but I'm just curious.

I would think that if it was CD sales they were most interested in, they would have included far more than a 1:2 ratio of new material off of LROE on the concert set-lists. I know that in the Seventies when I was attending concerts, the majority of material played on tours was the latest release the band turned out.

But because they are weighting the tour set-lists far more to the "Oldies", it would surely seem that they are more interested it charging EVERYTHING the market will bear and then providing that Audience with what they want to hear.

Young People as a rule, are more interested in the "latest and greatest" rather than the "Oldies but Goldies". And since the Recording Industry has always depended on the younger folks to make up the majority of the Record Buying Public (okay, CD buying public) and these days, the Electronic Digitized Download iTune arena....the Eagles would seem to be relying on their long time and loyal Fans to pad their pockets.

Of course I emphasize that all of the above is conjucture and may be totally off the mark.

[sodascouts]

Well, I read a bit of music industry news, and I have read several industry analysts report that for acts like the Eagles whose most popular music was released years ago, concert revenue dwarfs that of album sales. It's true that LROOE went to No. 1 when it was released and the Eagles' inclusion of new songs gives them artistic credibility which I think they needed to maintain a sense of professional "legitimacy" and personal pride. However, it's not where the money's at and the album's promotion is not the main reason for their touring.

[MikeA]

So, are the Eagles now considered a "Nostalgia Act?" I've never considered them to be that. When I think of that nitch, I think of an act who cannot deliver like they once did. In that respect, the Eagles are as good as they ever have been.

Maybe what they need to do is have "Senior Rates" <LOL> for concert goers. Show a little appreciation for the Fans who not only put them in the position they are in because of OUR appreciation of their talent, but have kept them there all these years. It doesn't hurt that they have continued to produce great performances.

Hope you know I'm being facicious here!

[sodascouts]

P.S. Mike, BTW, Stevie Nicks once said that Fleetwood Mac never played more than a few new songs on their tours, even for the Rumours tour! I think maybe an average of five or six is what she said. A quick glance at the setlists on my old Eagles bootlegs shows that they played about that many new songs, too, on average.

[tbs fanatic]

Okay, let's play 'Beat This Ticket Price' -

John Mayer - Sprint Center, Kansas City Section 116 Row 30 $1,009.00!!! Who would pay that? I like John Mayer but I don't like him that much

Yep, beat that one!

[TimothyBFan]

tbsf-is that an actual face value? Are you kidding me? A lot of people, I dare say, don't even know his music. Or am I wrong?

Mike-those nostalgia acts aren't filling stadiums either, at best, they are filling small clubs or casino rooms.

[Prettymaid]

Maybe what they need to do is have "Senior Rates" <LOL> for concert goers.

That would give Glenn more fodder for newer jokes!

[sodascouts]

I always considered a "nostalgia act" one who had no new material, who toured solely working from their back catalog and included nothing original in the set that was less than ten years old. Indeed, many nostalgia acts don't play any original songs less than THIRTY years old! Thanks to LROOE, the Eagles are not that.

Regarding iTunes and revenue from downloads, here's a 2008 quote from the Wall Street Journal :

"Irving Azoff, the manager of numerous high-profile acts including the Eagles, says that a few years ago he presented the band with a financial analysis showing that their royalties to date from iTunes sales were far lower than anyone expected.

Guitarist Glenn Frey did some back-of-the-envelope math of his own. 'His comment was that it amounted to 39 minutes on stage in Kansas City,' Mr. Azoff recalls with a chuckle.

Though Mr. Azoff didn't disclose the royalty figure, Mr. Frey's off-the-cuff analysis implies the band had received less than $500,000 from its iTunes sales at that point. The band's iTunes income has increased since then, Mr. Azoff adds. Nonetheless, he says: 'I'm underwhelmed by the number of sales I see on iTunes for the classic bands.'

That sentiment was a factor in the Eagles' decision to sell their latest album, 'Long Road Out of Eden,' only through Wal-Mart."

[Ive always been a dreamer]

I have read several articles in the past few years that indicate that, unlike the ‘old’ days, touring is where the money is rather than record (or download) sales these days. But, either way, we fans have to pay for our commodity. I guess the music industry could lower ticket prices, but then, we’d probably see a significant increase in the cost of a CD or download.

Like everyone here, I don’t like the cost of Eagles tickets either, but I do think that they are proportionate to the band’s ‘status’ as one of the top bands in the world. The bottom line is that the price that we have to pay for any type of entertainment today is way out of control. I guess the argument here is that it is not a necessity so, by and large, the public chooses to pay these prices. Again – back to the supply/demand thing. I know many of you don’t agree with me, and I appreciate that, but I don’t blame anyone in the entertainment industry for charging the maximum price that the market will bear, especially since the commodity is a ‘want’ rather than a ‘need’. Most all of us do the exact same thing in our personal lives, albeit on a much smaller scale. If I want to purchase a home or a vehicle, I want to pay the lowest possible price. On the other hand, when I look for a job, I try to demand the highest possible salary.

Now, as soda mentioned earlier in this thread, what I do think is scandalous is the practice of selling tickets in the so-called ‘secondary’ markets. As far as I am concerned, this is scalping your own tickets and is beyond being unfair. I’ll just repeat what I said in another thread - Irving can claim as much as he wants that Ticketmaster does not "give brokers any preferential access to tickets", but how is it that the best tickets ALWAYS end up in their hands. When was the last time any fan brought up a 1st row ticket the moment the tickets went on sale? And don't hand us this crap about how 1st row seats are held and not put up for sale to the general pubic - if that's the case, how do they get in the hands of brokers who turn around and resell them (in some cases through TicketsNow) for thousands of dollars a piece???

And while I'm on my rant, I may as well bring up ILAA - Irving's other pet project. It turned my stomach to see those 5-star packages with the signed guitar and M&G with Joe being sold for + or - $5.000 last year. The only good news is that it apparently totally flopped. I’m betting that these 'Joe Walsh experiences' won't be offered in the future. The public put their foot down and said ‘no way’ – a small victory, but a victory nonetheless.

Free enterprise – you gotta love it!

[MikeA]

And that was exactly what the point was from the beginning for me ILBAD. When ticket prices exceeded a Quarter of a Grand, I decided that as much as I like the Eagles, it was not worth it to me to see them again...especially from binocular range in the seating (and that's all I could afford).

They are trying to sell their car for WAY more than it's worth to me. I wish it was a car...I might be able to sell it at some point and recoup some of the purchase price. But there will always be folks who can afford and do desire a Maserati. I might have a Maserati appetite but a Chevy budget.