Concert Sales Slump Worst Since the '70s

G. Brown Denver Post Popular Music Writer
The Denver Post, July 25, 2002 Section: SCN Page: F-01

Every day this summer, promoter Chuck Morris feels like he's riding a rollercoaster. Too bad he's not at an amusement park. Instead he's on the wild ride of summer 2002: the rock concert business.

Morris - local head of Clear Channel Entertainment, the nation's biggest concert promoter - is suffering through what is shaping up as one of the worst summers for rock shows ever.

Touring concerts in the first six months of 2002 generated $613 million, down more than 14 percent and $100 million from the same time period last year, according to the trade publication Billboard Boxscore.

Concert attendance also has dropped, with high ticket prices, a glut of touring acts and even some post-9/11 paranoia teaming up to keep people away from what is usually the best of times for rock 'n' roll.

Pollstar, another industry journal, reports that about 10.6 million tickets were sold for the top 50 concert tours in North America this year, compared with 12.9 million tickets sold in 2000.

Last weekend, CCE promoted the KBCO World Class Rock festival at Winter Park ski resort and drew 20,000 people, a huge success compared to recent years. But then, on Monday night, the original lineup of Yes performed at the company's new 5,000-seat CityLights Pavilion, a surefire sellout any other year. But the classic progressive-rock band played to a half-full house.

Wednesday night, Morris watched southern-rock act Lynyrd Skynyrd return to Red Rocks Amphitheatre, a venue the group packed last summer, and draw only about half its 9,000-seat capacity.

"People seem to be picking and choosing a little bit more than they were two or three years ago," Morris said with a sigh.

At House Of Blues Concerts, CCE's main rival, promoter Barry Fey has fared no better.

"However bad the competition is doing doesn't help you," Fey said. "Touring business is not slightly off. It's exponentially off.

"I thought David Lee Roth and Sammy Hagar at (17,000-capacity) Fiddler's Green Amphitheatre would hit 8,000. I was willing to pay up an extra $50,000 to get it. We did 3,500 people. I thought the Fourth Of July show with (singing New York City police officer) Daniel Rodriguez would do well. We did 4,000."
This is not the first time the rock business has been in the doldrums.

"I've seen worse times in the business," said Fey, who has been in the business since the 1960s. "In 1974, with the oil embargo, there were no acts. We didn't book anything. But I've never seen a time when this many shows are on sale and they're just not selling."

The cause of the slump, Fey believes, is the music business itself.

"It's just the fall of what music means to people. It's dug its own grave with high ticket prices and people booking venues that they shouldn't. ... It used to be bad concerts did thousands (of people). Now bad concerts do hundreds."

Prices average $51

Almost everyone in the business points to ticket prices as part of the problem. They have risen about $4 this year, averaging nearly $51 for the top 50 U.S. tours.

"I couldn't believe that in the light of the economy's continuing downturn," Pollstar editor Gary Bongiovanni said. "Ticket prices have everybody concerned, but nobody has their finger on the button to change anything."
Paul McCartney, who sold out the Pepsi Center May 7, is at the top of the midyear list of highest-grossing tours (more than $53 million), with a steep average ticket price around $130. The Green Day/Blink-182 joint tour (stopping May 4 at Fiddler's Green) was a big draw, but it had a ticket price that young fans could handle, averaging under $32.

"And that was probably the biggest crowd ever at Fiddler's Green," Fey said. "(The hip-hop festival) Summer Jam sold out in one day, and the Smokin' Grooves (rap) tour did well. The (upcoming) rap stuff like Bow Wow is selling. Eminem is at 13,000, and it's not until Aug. 22."

Denver concertgoers have had their superstars this year, including McCartney, Crosby Stills Nash & Young (who grossed $35 million through the first six months of their tour) and Dave Matthews Band ($24 million). But the heavyweights are depriving the B-level acts any room to develop, insiders say. The touring business is boom or bust now.

"Somebody's paying $350 now for a ticket when the Rolling Stones come in February," Fey said. "How many other tickets do you think they're going to buy this summer?"

Bongiovanni agreed that it appears the big fish are killing off the little ones.

"The fans will pay for the really big acts. What that does to their ability to buy tickets to other shows in another question.

"The industry has fully embraced the idea of ... premium-tiered seating, selling their best seats for a much higher amount. Tom Petty has come out against that. Bruce Springsteen has elected to price all of his tickets at one price on his upcoming tour, roughly $75 everywhere and anywhere, which is the way business used to be, but in 2002, it's the unique model that goes completely counter to the industry."

Too many acts

Morris thinks one problem is the number of acts on the road. "There are more acts on the road than I've seen in years, a glut," Morris said. "Promoters don't like to say no, and there's a lot of acts out there, and we said yes to most of them."

But music business consultant Mark Bliesener cautioned that there are no easy answers.

"Everybody has tried to pin why business is down this summer on any one factor," he said. "You can't. First off, a lot of the mass-consumed music is not exciting people. There's certainly good music being made in little tribes and neighborhoods, but 80 percent of the stuff that's on the road is pretty much the same.

"Secondly, radio is in a state of flux. It's very limited, and it's dominance isn't as solid as it was a few years ago. "Then you have the hottest summer on record. And the continued slide of the economy isn't helping. You have the post-9/11 mentality of people being a little tentative about any purchases, much less an unnecessary night out."

Some industry pundits are hopeful for a rebound heading into the second half of 2002. Some other top-flight tours are set to play Denver, including Rush, Ozzfest and Cher. The Eagles will visit Colorado Springs.

Fire and drought

Fire and drought have not helped in Colorado, Morris said.

"That has trickled down to our business, the extra dollars spent on shows," he said, adding that CityLights Pavilion hasn't hosted a sellout show since opening night with Barry Manilow.

"But always being an optimist, I think the fall's going to be strong. We've hit the same place as the stock market where it's not going to get any softer, it's going to bounce back."

Fey thinks such talk is "whistling in the graveyard."

"I hope it's not the beginning of the end," he said.

Consultant Bliesener thinks "the fallout is going to be interesting. You have all these outdoor venues that were built up over the years, and they have fairly substantial expenses. All the corporate sponsorships have been written for a good number of years - there's not new ones coming in. The booking phase of those "sheds' for the summer of 2003 is going to come along pretty quickly - it'll be heated up by February. And coming on the heels of the summer of 2002, what's going to happen?

"It could be a good thing, a way to thin the forest a little bit. Look at the volume of what comes through Denver now in the summertime. The music is good, but there's way too many acts out there."

Mountain West Music 2002