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"How is it that you, Don, can rail against the consolidation of power in the radio industry, and amongst large record labels, and at the same time make a conscious decision to stop anyone except the biggest of the big guys from carrying your single/DVD?"

AN OPEN LETTER TO DON HENLEY AND THE EAGLES

Indie Retail Coalition Confronts Band
Over Best Buy Exclusive
The following open letter was forwarded by Don VanCleave of the Coalition of Independent Music Stores, but as you'll see, it's signed by dozens of indie retailers around the country.

We in the independent music retail community just heard the bad news that you guys are giving your new DVD/single exclusively to Best Buy for the all important first 30 days of its release.

While we understand the lure of working exclusively with huge corporations and the marketing clout this mega-venture affords your band, this seems like a serious compromise in principles. How is it that you, Don, can rail against the consolidation of power in the radio industry, and amongst large record labels, and at the same time make a conscious decision to stop anyone except the biggest of the big guys from carrying your single/DVD at the time when all of your fans will want it? We respectfully ask, where has your integrity and sense of fairness gone?

Put yourselves in our shoes. We’ve catered to, and helped to build, your fan base for the last 30 years. What do we tell our customers when they ask us for the new Eagles DVD/single? "Sorry, the band says that you can only buy it from very large corporations and we don’t happen to be one of them." And if you are successful with this mega-corporate venture, what does it mean for music as an art form? Will Wal-mart begin to throw their weight around and demand that only THEY be allowed to sell a super-star’s new singles, albums, and DVDs in the future? It appears you are creating that future with this action and the rest of us will suffer for it.

Please reconsider your actions. We implore you not to create a world where only the biggest corporations are allowed to participate in the creative marketplace.

You’ve seen yourself what has happened with radio. Why kill one of the last few remaining human voices in the music business: the voice of the independent music retailer. Please allow us to buy and sell the new Eagles DVD/single upon its release. It is the right thing to do.

Sincerely,

Scott Perkins & Bruce Carlock, Cats Music/Pop Tunes, Nashville, TN
Richard Ellis, Aron's Records, Los Angeles, CA
Ronn Jackson, Benway Records, Venice, CA
Mike White, Glenn Forbes, & Ed Taylor, Boo Boo Records, San Luis Obispo & Grover Beach, CA
Pat O'Connor, Boogie Records, Toledo, OH
Brett Wickard, Bull Moose Music, Portsmouth, ME
Quinn Bishop, Cactus Music & Video, Houston, TX
David Lang, CD World/Streetside Records, South Plainfield, NJ
Dilyn & John Radakovitz, Dimple Records, Sacramento, CA
Eric Levin, Criminal Records, Atlanta, GA
Bernie Hackett, DCCD, Washington, DC
Allan Miller, Disc Exchange, Knoxville, TN
John Timmons, ear X-tacy, Louisville, KY
Keith Covart, Electric Fetus, Minneapolis, MN
Karl Payne, Face the Music, Eugene, OR
Rand Foster, Fingerprints, Long Beach, CA
Joe Nardone, Jr., Gallery Of Sound, Wilkes-Barre, PA
John Huffman, Gem City Records, Dayton, OH
Erik Courson, Good Records, Dallas, TX
Steve Gray, Graywhale CD Exchange, Salt Lake City, UT
Rick Galusha, Homer's Music Stores, Bellevue, NE
Steve Wiley, Hoodlums Music, Tempe, AZ
Jim & Mike McGuinn, Hot Poop, Walla Walla, WA
Judy Negley, Independent Music, Colorado Springs, CO
Jon D. Harvey, Jackpot Records, Portland, OR
Steve Wilson, Kief's Audio and Video, Lawrence, KS
Karl Groeger Jr., Looney Tunes, West Babylon, NY
Lou Russell, Lou's Records, Encinitas, CA
Carl Singmaster, Manifest Disc And Tapes, Columbia, SC
Eric Howarth, M-Theory Music, San Diego, CA
Terry Currier, Music Millennium, Portland, OR
Adam Walker, My Generation, Westlake, OH
Mike Dreese, Newbury Comics, Boston, MA
Govindan Kartha, New World Record, Buffalo, NY
Sandy Bitman, Park Avenue CD, Winter Park, FL
Jim Bland, Plan 9, Richmond, VA
Kevin Stander, Record & Tape Traders, Owings Mills, MD
Alayna Hill-Alderman, Record Archive, Rochester, NY
Michael Bunnell, Record Exchange, Boise, ID
Don Rosenberg, The Record Exchange, Charlotte, NC
Phil Strang, Record Service, Champaigne, IL
Mike Himes, Record Time, Roseville, MI
Chuck Oken Jr., Rhino/Mad Platter, Claremont, CA
Bill O’Keefe, Rock-A-Billys, Detroit, MI
Nancy & Jim Salzer, Salzer's Records, Ventura, CA
Mike Phillips, Schoolkids, Cary, NC
Don Watson, Sounds Like..., Riverside, CA
Paul & Jill Epstein, Twist and Shout, Denver, CO
Lisa Teger-Zhen, Uncle Sam's, Miami Beach, FL
Lee Wolfson, Vinyl Fever, Tallahassee/Tampa, FL
Steve Pick, Vintage Vinyl, St. Louis, MO
Rob Roth, Vintage Vinyl, Fords, NJ
John T. Kunz, Waterloo Records & Tapes, Austin, TX
Michael Crandell, Pure Pop, Burlington, VT