Indy CD Stores Hurting From Rootkit Controversy & Sales Downturn
In this week’s newsletter Coalition of Independant Music Stores head Dan VanCleave states that, 
"stores are staying that it is sucking out there right now. It seems a little while ago everything was rocking then somebody flipped the big switch and it started getting tough to do any business. Most everyone is feeling that a good holiday selling period will get them at least even with last year but right now it is depressing. I guess if you turn on the news there ain’t much irrational exuberance going on these days. That has to have a spillover effect."
"So, to add insult to injury, we are having to reassure customers that all of our CDs are safe. Good lord could this copy protection mess be any more in everyone’s face? Store owners are telling me it is THE national business story that all of the local papers are running…"
"…right here before the "make or break" time of the year the customer base is given a huge reason to be paranoid and choose another gift for their cousin. I mean lets sue them all and then spy on them with software that we put on their hard drives. Or better yet, lets just destroy all of the hard drives and our problems will disappear like magic. Good God."
Click below to read the entire letter and the CIMS Top 200 Indy Chart.
THE LETTER IS FOLLOWED BY THE TOP 200 INDY CHART:
Howdy all,
Sorry I have been so quiet. I have been traveling like a mad man and it is just damn hard to keep on top of everything from a blackberry. I is double hard to try and wax poetic from a hotel room. Especially with Spectravision so handy.
Anyway, here we are 5 or so weeks from December 25th. My stores are staying that it is sucking out there right now. It seems a little while ago everything was rocking then somebody flipped the big switch and it started getting tough to do any business. Most everyone is feeling that a good holiday selling period will get them at least even with last year but right now it is depressing. I guess if you turn on the news there ain’t much irrational exuberance going on these days. That has to have a spillover effect.
So, to add insult to injury, we are having to reassure customers that all of our CDs are safe. Good lord could this copy protection mess be any more in everyone’s face? Store owners are telling me it is THE national business story that all of the local papers are running. I have counted at least four stories in the past week in the Birmingham News alone. At least the articles today are telling customers to bring them back for a refund or a replacement. Good for that. But, the bigger issue is that right here before the "make or break" time of the year the customer base is given a huge reason to be paranoid and choose another gift for their cousin. I mean lets sue them all and then spy on them with software that we put on their hard drives. Or better yet, lets just destroy all of the hard drives and our problems will disappear like magic. Good God.
Coalition of Independent Music Stores’ Top 200 for Week Ending 11-13-05
Label Pos. Artist|Title
COL 1 BUSH*KATE|AERIAL
INT 2 VARIOUS|MUSIC FRM & INSPRD BY
ATO 3 MY MORNING JACK|Z
UNIV 4 MARS VOLTA|SCAB DATES
EPIC 5 APPLE*FIONA|EXTRAORDINARY MACH
ATLG 6 DEATH CAB FOR C|PLANS
WAR 7 YOUNG*NEIL|PRAIRIE WIND
COL 8 DIAMOND*NEIL|12 SONGS
ARI 9 SANTANA|ALL THAT I AM
WAR 10 DEPECHE MODE|PLAYING THE ANGEL
DRMW 11 FLOETRY|FLO’ OLOGY
BNTE 12 MONK/COLTRANE|THELONIOUS MONK
EPIT 13 DANGER DOOM|MOUSE & THE MASK
EPIC 14 MATISYAHU|LIVE AT STUBBS-AUSTI
VRGN 14 GORILLAZ|DEMON DAYS
DEF 16 WEST*KANYE|LATE REGISTRATION
CIDV 17 SUN KIL MOON|TINY CITIES
COL 17 ANASTASIO*TREY|SHINE
BNA 19 CHESNEY*KENNY|ROAD & THE RADIO
EPIC 20 FRANZ FERDINAND|YOU COULD HAVE
AAM 21 BLACK EYED PEAS|MONKEY BUSINES
RCAV 22 HEAP*IMOGEN|SPEAK FOR YOURSELF
ALTD 23 MATT POND PA|SEVERAL ARROWS LA
UNIV 23 MARLEY*DAMIAN|WELCOME TO JAMRO
ROAD 23 NICKELBACK|ALL THE RIGHT REASO
OVCT 26 IRON & WINE/CAL|IN THE REINS
KOCH 27 SHEEK LOUCH|AFTER TAXES
AMNA 28 THIS IS AMERICA|VOL. 2-THIS IS
VFOR 28 TEDESCHI*SUSAN|HOPE & DESIRE
COL 30 GO! TEAM|THUNDER LIGHTNING STR
SUG 31 NICKEL CREEK|WHY SHOULD THE FI
MOT 32 WONDER*STEVIE|TIME TO LOVE
AANC 33 BROKEN SOCIAL S|BROKEN SOCIAL
DEF 33 CASH*JOHNNY|LEGEND OF JOHNNY C
WRPR 35 BOARDS OF CANAD|CAMPFIRE HEADP
GEFN 36 SIGUR ROS|TAKK
WAR 36 GREEN DAY|AMERICAN IDIOT
VRGN 38 ROLLING STONES|BIGGER BANG
RCA 39 GRAY*DAVID|LIFE IN SLOW MOTION
LHWY 40 ADAMS*RYAN|JACKSONVILLE CITY N
VERV 41 CULLUM*JAMIE|CATCHING TALES
CAP 42 RAITT*BONNIE|SOULS ALIKE
SUBP 43 WOLF PARADE|APOLOGIES TO THE Q
CAP 43 COLDPLAY|X&Y
RHMS 45 ATMOSPHERE|YOU CANT IMAGINE HO
WAR 45 DISTURBED|TEN THOUSAND FISTS
ISL 47 FALL OUT BOY|FROM UNDER THE CO
BARS 48 NADA SURF|WEIGHT IS A GIFT
FTCT 49 ANIMAL COLLECTI|FEELS
UNJJ 49 JOHNSON*JACK|IN BETWEEN DREAMS
RCA 49 LAMONTAGNE*RAY|TROUBLE
GEFN 49 BLINK-182|GREATEST HITS
COL 53 DYLAN*BOB|NO DIRECTION HOME: T
ISL 53 KILLERS|HOT FUSS
ANIT 53 BLACKALICIOUS|CRAFT
ROAD 53 SLIPKNOT|9.0: LIVE
COL 53 THREE 6 MAFIA|MOST KNOWN UNKNO
CPDR 58 MCMURTRY*JAMES|CHILDISH THINGS
ISL 59 THRICE|VHEISSU
MERG 60 ARCADE FIRE|FUNERAL
RYKO 60 LADYTRON|WITCHING HOUR
FAN 62 FOGERTY*JOHN|LONG ROAD HOME: U
CAP 62 BEASTIE BOYS|SOLID GOLD HITS
GEFN 62 NIRVANA|SLIVER-BEST OF THE BOX
IDER 65 BROWNE*JACKSON|VOL. 1-SOLO ACO
ATLG 66 BLUNT*JAMES|BACK TO BEDLAM
RAPA 66 BUN-B|TRILL
WAR 66 AVENGED SEVENFO|CITY OF EVIL
V2 69 WHITE STRIPES|GET BEHIND ME SA
WAR 69 HIM|DARK LIGHT
DEF 69 YOUNG JEEZY|LET’S GET IT
STMH 72 HELLOWEEN|KEEPER OF THE SEVEN
OLE 72 NEW PORNOGRAPHE|TWIN CINEMA
SUBP 74 ROGUE WAVE|DESCENDED LIKE VULT
V2 75 GANG OF FOUR|RETURN THE GIFT
CYSY 76 CLAP YOUR HANDS|CLAP YOUR HAND
FUER 76 PANIC! AT THE D|FEVER YOU CAN’
IMEN 78 BISHOP*BONNIE|SOFT TO THE TOUC
ASK 78 STEVENS*SUFJAN|ILLINOIS
FONT 80 TRAGICALLY HIP|HIPPEPONYMOUS
J 80 KEYS*ALICIA|UNPLUGGED
AAM 82 CROW*SHERYL|WILDFLOWER
COL 83 CROWELL*RODNEY|OUTSIDER
RHR 83 GILKYSON*ELIZA|PARADISE HOTEL
VRCS 85 BLOC PARTY|SILENT ALARM
ROT 85 FIERY FURNACES|REHEARSING MY C
UMIF 85 CHILDREN OF BOD|ARE YOU DEAD Y
LSGA 88 METRIC|LIVE IT OUT
WAR 88 CREAM|ROYAL ALBERT HALL LONDON
MERG 88 SPOON|GIMME FICTION
GEFN 88 LIMP BIZKIT|GREATEST HITZ
GEFN 88 BLOODHOUND GANG|HEFTY FINE
SYL 93 WALL*PAUL|PEOPLE’S CHAMP
RCA 93 ELIZABETHTOWN|SOUNDTRACK
INT 93 STEFANI*GWEN|LOVE.ANGEL.MUSIC.
BLRB 96 NONPOINT|TO THE PAIN
ANGR 97 DJ MUGGS VS. GZ|GRANDMASTERS
VERV 97 KRALL*DIANA|CHRISTMAS SONGS
NWWT 97 MCCLINTON*DELBE|COST OF LIVING
RDIK 100 BLACK REBEL MOT|HOWL
MASA 100 YOUNG BUCK|T.I.P.
COL 100 AQUALUNG|STRANGE & BEAUTIFUL
ASMG 103 SMITH*PATTI|HORSES (30TH ANNIV
UNJJ 103 JOHNSON*JACK|ON & ON
INT 103 BECK|GUERO
FATR 103 LAGWAGON|RESOLVE
SVTN 103 GUY*BUDDY|BRING ‘EM IN
KOCH 108 DOUGLAS*JERRY|BEST KEPT SECRET
BARS 108 DEATH CAB FOR C|TRANSATLANTICI
CAP 108 MCCARTNEY*PAUL|CHAOS & CREATIO
AMNA 111 VARIOUS ARTISTS|THIS IS AMERIC
ANIT 111 LAVETTE*BETTYE|I’VE GOT MY OWN
NWWT 111 HIATT*JOHN|LIVE FROM AUSTIN TE
UME 114 VARIOUS|NOW 20
EPIC 114 LAUPER*CYNDI|BODY ACOUSTIC
RHI 114 GRATEFUL DEAD|FILLMORE WEST 19
INT 114 NINE INCH NAILS|WITH TEETH
RYKO 114 HICKS*BILL|OXFORD NOVEMBER 11
ISL 119 MARLEY*BOB & TH|AFRICA UNITE-S
ISL 119 CAREY*MARIAH|EMANCIPATION OF M
SUBP 119 POSTAL SERVICE|GIVE UP
RAZ 119 WILLIAMS*DAR|MY BETTER SELF
RCA 119 FOO FIGHTERS|IN YOUR HONOR
GEFN 124 COMMON|BE
COL 124 COHEED & CAMBRI|GOOD APOLLO,I’
EPIC 126 JAMIROQUAI|DYNAMITE
LLOA 126 LIGHTNING BOLT|HYPERMAGIG MOUN
V2 126 GRANDADDY|EXCERPTS FROM THE DI
NWWT 126 YOAKAM*DWIGHT|LIVE FROM AUSTIN
ATLG 126 TRINA|GLAMOREST LIFE
DRGC 126 SILVER JEWS|TANGLEWOOD NUMBERS
XLXL 132 BANHART*DEVENDR|CRIPPLE CROW
INT 132 50 CENT|MASSACRE
ROUN 132 COWBOY JUNKIES|EARLY 21ST CENT
WAR 132 MY CHEMICAL ROM|THREE CHEERS F
INEP 136 AUDIOSLAVE|OUT OF EXILE
ATOR 136 NORTH MISSISSIP|ELECTRIC BLUE
J 136 STEWART*ROD|VOL. 4-GREAT AMERI
EPHT 136 EMPHATIC|EMPHATIC
BPR 136 SEXTON*CHARLIE|CRUEL & GENTLE
EPIC 136 GARDEN STATE|SOUNDTRACK
ARI 136 EURYTHMICS|ULTIMATE COLLECTION
CAP 136 HARRISON*GEORGE|CONCERT FOR BA
CAP 136 RELIENT K|APATHETIC EP
ATLG 136 STAIND|CHAPTER V
SUG 136 PARTON*DOLLY|THOSE WERE THE DA
WAR 147 HANCOCK*HERBIE|POSSIBILITIES
DEF 147 CASH*JOHNNY|MAN COMES AROUND
OCCR 147 COOK*DANE|RETALIATION
TWCV 147 O’CONNOR*SINEAD|THROW DOWN YOU
KILL 147 DECEMBERISTS|PICARESQUE
CAP 147 RADIOHEAD|O.K. COMPUTER
AGVP 147 PAUL*SEAN|TRINITY
NNSC 154 VEIRS*LAURA|YEAR OF METEORS
ATLG 154 SHINEDOWN|US & THEM
CAP 156 MAGIC NUMBERS|MAGIC NUMBERS
WNDK 156 SEVENDUST|NEXT
SUBP 156 SHINS|OH INVERTED WORLD
NWWT 156 TEXAS TORNADOS|LIVE FROM AUSTI
ASDM 156 D4L|DOWN 4 LIFE
MERG 156 CLIENTELE|STRANGE GEOMETRY
AANC 162 STARS|SET YOURSELF ON FIRE
RHI 162 GARCIA*JERRY|LADDER TO THE STA
COL 162 MIDLER*BETTE|SINGS THE PEGGY L
INT 162 FEIST|LET IT DIE
DDDC 166 BUNYAN*VASHTI|LOOKAFTERING
RCA 166 CITIZEN COPE|CLARENCE GREENWOO
GEFN 166 KING*B.B.|80′
ATLG 166 TWISTA|DAY AFTER
LHWY 170 NELSON*WILLIE|COUNTRYMAN
LAVA 170 O.A.R.|STORIES OF A STRANGER
BBG 170 THINK DIFFERENT|WU-TANG MEETS
HRTC 170 TAYLOR*WILL & S|COLLABORATIONS
EULO 170 CALICO SYSTEM|THEY LIVE
CAP 170 PHAIR*LIZ|SOMEBODY’S MIRACLE
ATLG 170 CHAPMAN*TRACY|WHERE YOU LIVE
COL 170 CASH*JOHNNY|16 BIGGEST HITS
MRGE 170 NEUTRAL MILK HO|IN THE AEROPLA
DLTN 179 BARE*BOBBY|MOON WAS BLUE
HEIN 179 PINK MARTINI|HANG ON LITTLE TO
SSCR 179 ANTONY & THE JO|I’M A BIRD NOW
BARS 179 VANDERSLICE*JOH|PIXEL REVOLT
T&N 179 AUGUST BURNS RE|THRILL SEEKER
DEF 179 WEST*KANYE|COLLEGE DROP OUT
ROAD 179 ROADRUNNER UNIT|ALL STAR SESSI
RAZ 179 THIS BIRD HAS F|THIS BIRD HAS
RCA 179 CLARKSON*KELLY|BREAKAWAY
NWWT 179 OLD 97’S|ALIVE & WIRED
COL 179 SYSTEM OF A DOW|MEZMERIZE
SCRS 190 BRIGHT EYES|I’M WIDE AWAKE IT’
HOL 190 DUNGEN|TA DET LUGNT
RCAV 190 KOTTKE/GORDON|SIXTY SIX STEPS
NWWT 190 JOHNSON*ERIC|LIVE FROM AUSTIN
WAR 190 JAMES*LEELA|CHANGE IS GONNA CO
FATR 190 AGAINST ME!|SEARCHING FOR A FO
OHB 190 PRINE*JOHN|FAIR & SQUARE
ATOR 197 DOUGHTY*MIKE|HAUGHTY MELODIC
CDBY 197 SARAH BENCK & T|SUICIDE DOUBLE
EPIC 197 OSBOURNE*OZZY|UNDER COVER
FATR 197 PROPAGANDHI|POTEMKIN CITY LIMI
c) 2005 by SoundScan, Inc. All rights reserved
Don VanCleave
Coalition of Independent Music Stores
Suite 101
1776 Independence Ct
Birmingham, AL 35216
205-879-9023 x201
205-879-2889 (fax)
