Curb’s Bogus “Topical” Charge Against Tim McGraw
***UPDATE***UPDATE***UPDATE***
On Wednesday (11-30), Tim McGraw won his initial country battle with Curb Records according to The Tennessean. Tim is still under contract with Curb, and his album Emotional Traffic still does not have a release date, but McGraw is now free to record new music with another label, or independently. McGraw’s attorney says he’s “very happy.”
The full trial will take place in July, where the fate of McGraw’s album and contract will be decided. — ***UPDATE***UPDATE***UPDATE***
On Wednesday, Tim McGraw will be in a Tennessee courtroom as part of the opening salvo in his bid to leave his contract with Curb Records, get his album Emotional Traffic released, and be able to record new music with a new label. Like with so many Curb artists before, the label is holding the album up, asserting that Emotional Traffic‘s content is not “topical” because it was recorded too soon after McGraw’s previous album, and that he owes them another album beyond the contract he signed with them now some 20 years ago. McGraw is countersuing, saying that by Curb refusing to release the last album on his contract, they are keeping him in a state of “involuntary servitude.”
The irony that Curb Records would be opposed to releasing music because it is too old is so thick you could cut it with a knife. Curb Records on many occasions has made artists wait up to 5 years between album releases, much longer than the 1 to 2 year turnaround most labels subscribe to, causing recorded material regularly to sit on the Curb shelves for years before it is released. They also have a long and storied history of taking old material from artists, and presenting it as new. And to even further the irony, the content of Emotional Traffic only gets older the longer they hold the album back with litigation. And make no mistake, though Curb may be criticizing the tracks of Emotional Traffic right now, at some point, Curb will release Emotional Traffic, either in original form, or with the songs presented in a different context.
I’m no Perry Mason, but I thought I would offer the Tim McGraw defense team a little pro bono research work on how Curb Records itself has set a legal precedence that disproves it’s own case. Over the years, by not only regularly releasing older music, but many times releasing music many years after it was recorded as a purposeful practice, proves that Curb is not worried about the “topical” nature of material, but rather trying to stretch another album out of Tim’s record deal.
Hank Williams III – Hillbilly Joker aka This Ain’t Country
In the early 2000’s Hank Williams III turned in what was supposed to be his second album on his Curb deal called This Ain’t Country, a rock or “hellbilly” album. Curb refused to released the album, saying the content was not “topical,” and shelved it, not allowing Hank3 to release it independently, on another label, or even in bootleg form. After Hank3 left Curb at the beginning of 2011, Curb released the nearly 10-year-old album under the name Hillbilly Joker, and not only released it, but presented it as new material, with a marketing push that included end caps in stores that inferred it was a country album instead of rock. The album made the Billboard Country Top 10, and left many customers angry, thinking they were buying a new album of country material, not a 10-year-old rock album.
The release of Hillbilly Joker after Curb played the “not topical” card meant they squeezed an additional album out of Hank3’s contract; the same exact tactic they are trying with Tim McGraw now. It also helped trump Hank3’s actual release of new post-Curb music a couple of months later.
Hank Williams III – Straight to Hell
After a two year court battle and a “Fuck Curb” T-Shirt campaign to get his double-album opus Straight To Hell released, a judge finally ruled in favor of Hank3 against Curb Records, saying they had no right to indefinitely hold his album without a release date. Straight to Hell was originally entitled “Thrown Out of the Bar” until Hank3 added a massive hidden track on a second disc in an attempt to circumvent Curb and get more content out to his hungry fans.
Hank3’s “David slays Goliath” court win for Straight to Hell might be the best legal precedence for Tim McGraw’s case, and can give hope to McGraw fans that the courts could rule in McGraw’s favor.
Steve Holy – Love Don’t Run
This album not only proves that Curb is willing to release old music, but that it’s their modus operandi. The album was finally released on Sep. 13th 2011, but this was after a 5-year gap from his last album in 2006, and another 5 year gap from his first album in 2001. When speaking to The Boot, Steve explained this is how Curb purposefully operates.
I know that songs last longer on the charts now than they used to, so you’re naturally going to have a larger gap between albums, but I don’t think that every five years was the plan…I understand why Curb operates the way they do. They used to get laughed at. People would ask me, ‘Why are they doing it this way?’ But, I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but everyone else is starting to do that.
Other labels have been attempting to stretch the album cycle, from 12 months, to 18 months to 2 years, but the 5 year cycle that Curb seems to be forcing on its artists is not the Nashville norm.
Clay Walker – She Won’t Be Lonely Long
Clay Walker was a little less political when his album met with continuous delays, and She Won’t Be Lonely Long is another example of Curb not only releasing old material, but trying to pass it off as new.
Curb released the album in June of 2010 after years of delay, but only after releasing another album with the same exact name in February of 2010. In a move that still has Clay Walker fans scratching their heads, 4 months before the full-length She Won’t Be Lonely Long was released, and EP called She Won’t Be Lonely Long was released, that included three songs from Walker’s previous album Fall. So yes, there were two She Won’t Be Lonely Long‘s, one with tracks it would be hard to call “topical” because they appeared on another album from years earlier. Clay told CMT:
That’s a pretty sore subject with me. I just try to avoid talking about it. The only thing that strikes me is that we need to get more music out quicker to the fans. There can only be one boss, and we know who that is.
Hank Williams Jr. – 127 Rose Ave.
When Hank Williams III was born, there were two men in the room: Hank Jr. and Mike Curb. Hank Jr. and Mike were close personal friends for many years, and Jr. has made Curb Records millions of dollars over his career. Hank Jr. decided to leave Curb Records in July of 2009 for a laundry list of reasons, including the label constantly vetoing song ideas and delaying albums. But one of the biggest contentions Hank Jr. made is Curb wanted to use a picture of him that was 7-years-old for the album cover of his album 127 Rose Ave. Using a 7-year-old picture doesn’t sound very “topical”. Jr. told CMT:
“We’re going to get off this old, dead sinking ship. . . They were going to [use] a picture of me from seven years ago when I was 25 pounds heavier. That was going to be the cover. It was ‘Ho hum,’ basically. Well, we didn’t ho-hum this one.”
LeAnn Rimes – I Need You
In another perfect example of Curb’s willingness to publish old music and call it new, in 2001 they swept together a pile of Leann Rimes songs left on the cutting house floor, as well as a few remixed tracks from the Coyote Ugly movie soundtrack and called it I Need You. LeAnn had no knowledge or input on the album whatsoever. In a far cry from Curb’s current policy, at that time Leann was expected to release an album every year. Since LeAnn had been working on the movie and soundtrack for Coyote Ugly (she also played herself in the film), Curb decided to fabricate an album for her instead of paying for new material.
Upon its release Curb booked her on a tour to promote the album, but LeAnn instead used the opportunity to publicly distance from it, telling people it was not her idea and to not buy it. It still charted #1 in country from LeAnn’s built in popularity, though critics panned it, and some cite I Need You where LeAnne’s career began to dwindle.
November 28, 2011 @ 10:32 am
In this day and age, is there an UP side to a major label deal? What even keeps Curb afloat? If they’re trying so desparately to stretch the album cycle, even their major artists must only be marginally profitable. Looking at their online store, they must be living on the residuals of their extensive back catalog.
If you’re in to the limo ride, red carpet, award show performance kina thing, the majors have that market cornered. With the effort and resources it must take to maintain that kind of image (and ego) I just can’t see how there would be much left to actually make any music. And then of course, there are the court costs that these bound up artists are paying for on both ends. Moving forward, anyone who gets caught up in the major label rat race deserves to be in court and should stay out of the studio.
November 28, 2011 @ 1:45 pm
I don’t know how many newcomers Curb is signing, my guess is not many, and the ones they do sign, are doing it out of desperation. They want to be a country star, and they see it as the only way to live their dream.
Curb has always been a sinister label, but I think when it got really bad, and when it got out in the public eye is with LeAnn Rimes in early 2001. By that time, Hank3, Tim McGraw, and many other artists had already signed to their contracts. In 2001, Curb seemed to demand an album a year from its artists, but right after that they seemed to switch to the 1 every 5 years formula.
What I don’t doubt is the shrewdness of Mike Curb. Like Steve Holy said, he might be on the cutting edge of the new school way to release music, we’ll see. I do think Mike Curb has a plan. Time will tell if he guessed right. My guess is either he will be the last label on Music Row standing, or he will be the first big one to fall.
November 28, 2011 @ 2:13 pm
Mike Curb is a business man and I have a feeling that he’s gonna be the last one standing. I hate what he did to Hank3 and am no fan of pop country, but the man knows what he is doing. Period. The 5 year concept is genius since albums don’t sell so much anymore.
November 30, 2011 @ 4:02 pm
I know they recently signed a young female, Rachel Holder. She’s managed by Wilbur Rimes, so I’m sure it was pretty much destined.
November 28, 2011 @ 2:34 pm
Shrewd indeed, Curb’s actions don’t seem like that of a visionary. He’s hoarding artist’s like some might hoard supplies in a bomb shelter. Ironically, this could mean he would be the last one standing. If Curb holds on to some star power for a few years and other labels fold, that would set up a nice little nest-egg.
November 28, 2011 @ 3:05 pm
Curb has been shelving my album for years now. Bastards. You might never get to hear. “She’s My Asian.. I Paid for Her”
November 30, 2011 @ 3:03 pm
Given the latest development, what would be Curb’s incentive to hold up the release of Emotional Traffic now? Can they still hold him up from releasing new music?
November 30, 2011 @ 3:44 pm
I’m not exactly sure, and none of us may know at this point. I disagree with Country Aircheck, whose now saying his contract is dissolved and he can go with another label. I think he can record new music that potentially can be released on another label, but from what I understand the court has not yet said that he’s done with Curb. They still have to determine if he was in violation of his contract, and if he was, what the penalty is for that. Curb thinks the penalty should be having to record and release another album with them. That may be far fetched, but I doubt the courts will allow Tim to release new music until this is all resolved in the main trial in July. However Music Row projects usually take months and months to make, so now Tim can start that process.
They’re saying the judge will release his full decision in about a week. We’ll know a little bit more then.
November 30, 2011 @ 3:58 pm
I’ve read a couple of articles (Fox, CMT, Music Row, and Billboard) that say Tim’s free to sign elsewhere, but they all might be using the same source.
Interesting side note…the ruling came down around 2:30 today. At 4:25 I got an email notifying me Tim’s new single, “Better Than I Used to Be” is available to radio.
Coincidence????
November 30, 2011 @ 4:28 pm
I think they’re all using Country Aircheck as their source. He may be able to sign another contract, but Curb sued Tim, that is how all of this started, and their stance is McGraw still owes them another album, which the court could grant in July, or the court could determine another penalty for breaching the contract, or they could say he wasn’t in breach at all. I just see it as highly unlikely we’ll see any major new music from McGraw before July unless it is Emotional Traffic. No label is going to sign and pay for an album, just to have another label (Curb) potentially be the one to release it.
Don’t get me wrong, I would love for this to be the end of the road for Tim with Curb, but I think this was a moderate victory dealing with the right to pursue the creation of intellectual property without that property being the immediate property of Curb, or under the jurisdiction of his Curb contract. I think some folks are jumping the gun. The meat and potatoes for the case is still to come in July.
However, as you point out, the release of his single is probably a good indication Curb can see the writing on the wall. If I were Curb, I would rush to put Emotional Traffic out immediately, before it becomes worthless because McGraw distances from it, and puts out another album on a different label.
November 30, 2011 @ 5:02 pm
yep…i’d say there is definitely a pattern going on…..fuck curb pigs.
November 30, 2011 @ 6:42 pm
Here is an interview with Curb that I think explains his methods.
http://www.vanderbilt.edu/curbcenter/2005/09/mike-curb/
November 30, 2011 @ 6:44 pm
And, Mcgraw said fairly recently that he planned to have new music out in March. I think it’s more likely Curb is releasing this single, and then maybe another, to screw him up.
Curb Shows Its Ass By Releasing Single After Court Loss « Saving Country Music
November 30, 2011 @ 7:51 pm
[…] for not releasing Emotional Traffic is that the content is not “topical” enough, though Curb has proven over the years, this has never stopped them before. They also asserted that there weren’t any good singles on Emotional Traffic, however their […]
December 1, 2011 @ 8:09 pm
Don’t forget about Jo Dee Messina! She has her “Unmistakable” album ready for years and they finally released it as three separate EP’s. So sad. They have artists held hostage!