Consume this link: Follow it, relax as the movie loads, listen through it and take it to heart. Based on six seconds of 40 years old sound, the maker of this movie will deliver the most important message about copyright and the future of the media industry you will ever hear. All in plain and simple English that anyone, especially the music and movie industry executives should understand.
This is seriously off topic, but upon the realisation of how big part in my life those six seconds of drumbeats have played I felt I had to expand a bit on and post a text I sent to the acquaintance who sent me the link to this fantastic mini documentary about The Amen Break as sampled from a song by The Winstons made in 1969.
Having been into electronic and dance oriented music since the mid 80s I have heard about The Amen Break before. That particular break was what got me into old school hip hop, and why I to this day keep going back to that original record by NWA. Never before did I realise though that almost all music made after 1990 that I really like, that strikes a chord in me, actually is based on these six seconds from 1969... Six seconds that over time grew to a number of genres and sub genres and inspired musicians all over the world.
Nor have I ever thought about that drum beat in the context of copyright, that those today in some genres ubiquitous beats are an amazing example of how a flexibility in copyright law and the possibility to build upon the creative work of others not only is a driving force behind creativity and artistic expression but also over time is what to a large extent allows the capitalist machine that is the media industry continue to thrive by creating new genres and markets.
At some point in the movie the speaker asks what it is that makes The Amen Break so appealing. What is the allure of those six seconds exactly? To me the answer is simple. Something in that specific rhythm makes me feel alive, makes me remember the joy of life and all the mysteries we are faced with every day but so rarely pause to think about. Those six short seconds, looped over and over again, could play in my ears days on end and I would never grow tired of it. They supply me with energy, make me happy, and to me it feels like they build on something that has existed since man for the first time thought of banging two pieces of wood together to fill the silence with something other than noise.
The Winstons somehow got that rhythm down on a music sheet and recorded it on vinyl for the first time, for others to reuse and build upon in order to multiply and spread their own version of the beat for us all to enjoy.
So go watch the movie, it is well invested time.
Well. Yeah. Artists should be allowed to borrow from other artists. I am not saying artists shouldn't be paid, this has nothing to do with piracy, but they should be allowed to borrow from the work of others. Yes, that means you too Disney, not exactly fair that you build on the stories of loved and treasured fairytales to create a multi billion dollar company and then sit on that pile of media gold like Smaug. Standing on the shoulders of giants is how we see what's behind the next wall. That's how we make sure there will be new and intriguing media to sell and consume and profit from during the next decade.
That said, I just have to finish with a link to an image that was posted on Boing Boing today. Face it, the media industry is to a large extent bringing piracy upon themselves. Shooting yourself in the foot is a bad idea, what is so hard to realise about that?
By the way, the recording and video was made by Nate Harrison. You can find more of his work over at his web site.
