Word: musicalization
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Dates: during 1970-1979
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Reactions to Boney M's flashy feathered costumes and funky music ranged from disgust among the elderly to hand-clapping enthusiasm among the younger set. But one song Muscovites did not get to hear was the group's latest hit, Rasputin. Its lyrics run: "Ra Ra Raspu-teen, lover of the Russian Queen/ Here was a cat that was really gone/ Ra Ra Raspu-teen, Russia's greatest love machine." Soviet officials had cautioned Boney M's producer well in advance of the engagement that the tune might not be appropriate for Moscow audiences...
...slot on the charts. During one of those weeks, the RSO logo?a benign, bright red castrated bull?graced the labels on three of the top five albums. During two of those weeks, across the way on the singles charts, RSO claimed four of the top five. Music biz stats like this burn the giant tails of such outfits as Columbia and Warner Bros.-Elektra/Asylum-Atlantic. Such a fact was not lost on anyone in the record business, least of all Robert Stigwood. "I knew Al was dedicated to music," Stigwood said. "I just didn't know he was that dedicated...
...Coury is given his head ("Robert's always on a boat somewhere. He says the L.A. smog affects his breathing"). Coury plunges into all areas of the biz. He engineers marketing strategy, designs ad campaigns, even pitches in on planning those mammoth Sunset Strip billboards, which are for the music indus try what heraldry was to Camelot. He also brainstorms with the talent, helping art ists choose material. Singer Yvonne Elliman calls him "the man with the golden ears -the best in the business at picking singles." Coury says, "I don't tell big artists like the Bee Gees...
...create a theme song from the new RSO movie Moment by Moment that seems just right for slow dancing in elevators. Consequently, Coury is often on the aesthetic defensive, making heated claims for such slick popsicles as the Bee Gees by stating, "They're having a greater impact on music today than ten Bruce Springsteens! Rita Coolidge sings their songs and so does Frank Sinatra...
...average of 150 new records every week, of which maybe three will be hits. But the rewards can be as big as the risks. "We've shaken off our dependence on the whims of twelve-year-olds," says Elektra/Asylum Chairman Joe Smith. "No longer is the Establishment above pop music." Adds Coury, "What we've done is put the industry on notice that there are no longer limits to album sales. Now the audience ranges in age from 15 to 50, and we're only seeing the beginning...