The Exodus -- Rock Stars Leaving Their Labels October 26, 2007 -- The Eagles first studio album in 28 years, Long Road Out of Eden, will be available exclusively at Wal-Mart and Sam's Club stores. October 11, 2007 -- Madonna is believed to be nearing an agreement with Live Nation, the concert promoter, that would pay her more than $100 million in exchange for three albums and the exclusive rights to promote her concerts and to market her merchandise. Radiohead's Latest: No Label, Pay What You Want by George Ziemann -- Oct 1, 2007 Since 2002, I've been saying that most artists would be better paid if you downloaded their album and sent them a Post-It with $5 and a thank-you note -- as opposed to buying a CD, which might pay the band $2. Radiohead is testing that theory with their latest release, In Rainbows, which is priced at the low, low price of whatever you feel like paying for it. Saw this at BoingBoing and Fark before getting a more complete story at Time, which is probably why it's kind of tough to find Radiohead's site today. From the Time article: "Roughly 12,000 albums are released in an average year, so the announcement late Sunday night that the new Radiohead record, In Rainbows, will be out Oct. 10 is not itself big news. Sure, Radiohead is on a sustained run as the most interesting and innovative band in rock, but what makes In Rainbows important - easily the most important release in the recent history of the music business - are its record label and its retail price: there is none, and there is none. "In Rainbows will be released as a digital download available only via the band's web site, Radiohead.com." Up to and including their last album, Radiohead, they worked for an RIAA label. I simply don't buy RIAA products and, as a good citizen, I don't download RIAA music, either. As a result, I really haven't heard them or, if I did, I didn't know who it was. The "most interesting and innovative band in rock"? I'm skeptical, but now I might give them a listen. If I do and I like it, I'll send Thom Yorke $5 and a thank-you note. Why Prince's Free CD was Genius (and why praising him was a mistake) Paul McCartney's Indie Debut Simply Red Escapes 'Immoral' Contract March 25, 2003 -- (BBC) Simply Red singer Mick Hucknall has denounced his former record contract as "immoral". "Like many artists, my deal meant I paid for the cost of recording the music. I paid for the marketing. And I didn't get any royalties until those costs had been incurred. But despite this the contract stated that the master recordings still belonged to the record company. I don't know any other business where you pay for something and then someone else owns it." Hucknall's management says Warner made £192m profit from Hucknall, while he made about £20m in royalties.