Further evidence Live Music is in Trouble

[yellowgq]

Excerpted from todays San Francisco daily paper:

 

 

 

A teenager's first concert is a rite of passage of sorts, and in San Francisco, that rite often is undertaken at one of the city's inexpensive, small, all-ages music clubs - a type of business that owners warn might not survive much longer because of new enforcement efforts by state alcohol officials.

 

 

Those venues could be forced to close, owners say, if the state Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control, better known as ABC, continues to impose rules that club attorneys argue are legally questionable and often unrelated to booze or safety issues.

 

Some of the clubs say they only recently learned about the new rules, which are not written into state law and haven't been enforced in the past.

 

For example, ABC has decreed that at least half of the clubs' revenue must come from food sales. The agency also is taking issue with minor operating changes, such as one club's decision to open an hour later.

 

In almost every case, the San Francisco clubs who have been battling ABC have the support of neighbors and local leaders.........

 

 

....Yet the ABC rules have some in the industry worried about where local bands will get their first break and where young people will go to experience live music if the clubs cease to exist.

 

"Without these businesses, there's no local music scene - it's that simple," said Jordan Kurland, co-owner of San Francisco's Noise Pop music festival.

 

"It's such a special experience when you are young to see a band you love in an intimate place ... where they are able to charge a more reasonable ticket price.

 

These small-capacity venues are very generous about paying bands, and, like any club in the world, they predominantly make their money off the bar, not off ticket sales."

 

 

All of the clubs fighting the ABC - Bottom of the Hill, Slim's, Cafe Du Nord and Great American Music Hall - are licensed to operate as all-ages venues because they serve food.

 

Historically, however, they have made most of their income from alcohol and ticket sales.

 

According to state law, businesses with that type of license must regularly serve meals - but the code makes no mention of a minimum sales requirement.

 

Still, some clubs have conditions set on their license by the ABC, such as a requirement that food sales must exceed alcohol sales.

 

But that wasn't the case at the Great American Music Hall, a storied 38-year-old venue where the Grateful Dead recorded "One From the Vault." There were no conditions on the permit, which was last issued six years ago when the ownership changed, but the venue is being been targeted by the ABC anyway.

 

ABC spokesman John Carr said the scrutiny has come because the club has "had a substantial change to its operation from that represented in their license application."

 

He said the agency determined that the legendary venue is not operating as a "bona fide public eating place."

 

 

"Thirty or 35 percent of our sales come from food on our best days," said Tim Benetti, co-owner of Bottom of the Hill, which has been around for 18 years.

 

"If ABC gets what they want, we will go out of business. Can you imagine San Francisco without Slim's, Bottom of the Hill or Cafe Du Nord?"

 

"I can't..."

[richardmac]

California.

 

Figures.

[faileddrummer]

 

California. Figures.

 

 

Took the words out of my mouth.

[bruto]

Live music in the US is in trouble more from copyright lawyers than state liquor enforcement agencies. Tribute bands, and the venues that host them, are getting sued all over the US by ASCAP for failure to pay royalties.

 

ASCAP also sues typical cover bands and their hosting venues routinely. The umbrella license is around $5000 annually. And that's just ASCAP. What if the song is covered by BMI? - another $5000. (To be fair, I never heard of BMI suing over a cover as long as it's not recorded.)

 

What hurts is most bands come up playing covers: Van Halen did, Led Zeppelin did, and ACDC did. And all have sued venues for hosting bands that cover their songs.

 

In no other country do bars or bands get sued for playing covers - only the US.

[germs]

CA has such major money management issues at the State level that it comes as no surprise to me to see they're trying ANYTHING to raise money coming in.

 

I mean, seriously...what's the point.

 

And by the way, live music is flourishing at the local level in this "new economy" in just about every place I've been to. Seems people are a bit more open-minded about paying $5-10 at the door than $10+ for those discoteques in night club clothing...

[Dessalines]

Any of you other posters actually from California? I'm not but I have nothing against it as a State as some of you do. Silly isn't it? You live someplace else but you complain about California. Say what, lets do away with all the rules and laws and just kill each other, then maybe we'll all be happy and dead.

[daddymack]

Don't blame the state...blame the ABC...the same people who stuck us with 3.2 beer...

[Kramerguy]

It sounds like nothing to do with CA, and little to do with music. It's all about a local-level office of a state agency that's imposing stupid on bars serving food. Non-alcohol / non ABC venues (like fire-houses) are probably a good 50% of gigs in this area, so I fail to see how this ABC crap is killing the music scene.

[MartinC]

They are all pay to play clubs-sooner they close the better. It's a shame because the GAMH used to be a class venue. I saw Albert King, BB King, and Shankti there among others. I was stoked when I was offered a gig there until they told me the gig pay was based on ticket sales. Um, no thanks. Can I imagine SF without those clubs? Given their business models, I can only hope.