Saturday, May 13, 2006

Is LWW Being Blacklisted?

So is Neil Young's newest album LIVING WITH WAR being blacklisted at some retail stores?

It would seem that we're seeing artistic censorship judging from recent letters published on MSNBC's Altercation. Here are a few letters:

Name: Withheld
Hometown: Albuquerque NM
Comments:

Just thought you'd like to know that Neil Young's album is not available at the local exchange (military BX) here. I had to buy it at the local CD store. I asked the manager and was told that the album wouldn't be carried. Apparently someone is afraid that we will get to hear what free speech is, even though they protect it. (I am an active duty AF officer and would prefer not to have my name used. Thanks)

Name: Marty
Hometown: Boulder
Comments:

Eric, I went out this afternoon to buy the new Neil Young album, LIVING WITH WAR. I thought you might be interested to know that the first two stores I visited, Target and Circuit City, did not have the album. Thinking that both stores might have been sold out of the copies they received yesterday, I asked at both stores if they had any left in stock. I was told at both stores that they did not receive the album.

Furthermore, workers at both stores told me that they do not expect to receive the album, as it is not on the release sheet listing new material being sent to the store. At first, I wondered if something delayed the album's release. After all, it is not uncommon for the release date of an album to be pushed back at the last minute. However, when I finally found (and bought) LIVING WITH WAR at Barnes & Nobles, I realized that the album had indeed, been released on schedule. I can't help but wonder if both Target and Circuit City have refused to stock LIVING WITH WAR due to the album's anti-war and anti-Bush message. I wonder if other people had trouble finding LIVING WITH WAR. If that is indeed the case, this is an outrageous example of corporate censorship!

Name: Lynn F
Hometown: Atlanta, Georgia
After reading your two letters today about the unavailability of Living with War, I searched the Internets to see of Circuit City or Best Buy carried the CD online. While Circuit City does sell it, I could not find the CD at BestBuy.com. I thought only the service in their stores was terrible, but now I have to add their censorship policies to the list of poor business practices.

Drop a comment below if you have had a similar experience (or not).

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9 Comments:

At 5/13/2006 09:22:00 AM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Didn't Neil write somewhere that the expedited distribution used could cause the album to reach certain shops earlier than others?

 
At 5/13/2006 09:39:00 AM, Anonymous Mike From Atlanta said...

Tuesday morning I went out to buy LWW, and I first looked in a Barnes & Noble since it opened earlier than the nearby Best Buy where I buy most cds. B & N had it, but it was $17, which I refuse to pay for a single cd. I went into Best Buy and couldn't find it so I asked a clerk, who had clearly never heard of NY. He looked it up on the computer and said they had 30 copies but they were still in the warehouse. I passed on his offer to try and find it. When I got home I called another Best Buy and was told that their computer showed the album release date had been changed to June 13th!! So I bought it from Amazon.

 
At 5/13/2006 01:27:00 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

I went to Best Buy today (5-13-06) and there were at least 50 copies of it in the racks. Calm down people.

 
At 5/13/2006 01:57:00 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Good to hear that this might be a non-story.

 
At 5/13/2006 09:29:00 PM, Anonymous Sybil said...

I'm thinking this is just distribution problems. I've been trying to get it from my favorite local independent record store, who is most emphatically NOT blacklisting it. They're just waiting for it to show up. Perhaps this is a sign of brisk sales?

 
At 5/15/2006 05:09:00 PM, Blogger Chicago said...

Borders was teaming with copies and had additionally displayed at checkout!

No sign at my local Target, however, it services a mostly Latino market.

 
At 5/17/2006 11:41:00 AM, Anonymous Terry David said...

I too have experienced difficulty in purchasing a "Living With War" CD. Living here in Jacksonville, where none of the FM rock stations will play any of Neil's music, I found no listing for "Living With War" in last Sunday's store ads for new releases. I went to a Best Buy and, after searching for it in all the logical places it should have been, asked a sales rep who asked someone else that finally retrieved the CD from an obscure location. What is corporate Amerika, and the best government money can buy, afraid of? The Truth?! Words of Wisdom: "The Constitution, Use it or Lose it." Also remember that most leaders won't see the light until they feel the heat. Keep on shining, Neil!

 
At 5/17/2006 06:54:00 PM, Blogger Brenda said...

Maybe we are just too eager to get it. Here in the Pacific Northwest I have looked at Fred Meyer, Target, and Costco with no luck. I came here to find out how to order it. I was just hoping to avoid shipping charges. Went to Farm Aid and can't wait for the Freedom of Speech tour!

 
At 5/17/2006 11:46:00 PM, Anonymous Lyle Plendl said...

I own most of Neil's albums on both
vinyl and cd's. I won't buy Living with War. What if George W. is 65%
75% 89% on target with his approach
to these ugly problems. Get back get
a regular job and remember your from
Canada.

 

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