NEW  ZEALAND
FOLK * SONG		 USEFUL ADVICE
Promoting your home-made CD
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May I make some suggestions to those of you wonderful people who have made or are making a CD, video or DVD of your own music, or are helping your talented musician friends to make one.

A. Put essential information on the CD etc label or cover insert.

  1. Playing time and songwriter/composer of each song eg, 4. Desert Road Road-kill (2.43) Archer/Finn This is a great help to radio programme producers, and those who make APRA performance payments to you.
  2. The full name and postal and/or e-mail address of the real company or person selling the record. Having nothing more on the label than “Back Road Records” or “John and his drinking buddies” may look great, but is frustrating for anyone wishing to contact you. But Kiwi Pacific Records, Wellington, NZ or Archer, 10 Pearce Pl, Waiouru, NZ can be located from anywhere in the world on http://www.whitepages.co.nz within thirty seconds, and then phoned or written to for purchasing more albums, or for organising gigs, (or for arranging copyright payments!!!)
  3. The year it was made. Undated publications cause great problems for archivists, for librarians, for shops, for buyers, for album collectors and for organisers of voting polls alike.

B. Put full information somewhere, on the insert in the CD case, or on a webpage

  1. Express thanks to all involved; those who inspired you to write each song, edited your lyrics, played each backing instrument, coached you to pronounce your words clearly, recorded, provided the meals at rehearsal/recording sessions, mixed, produced the CD, took the photos, made the label and cover, promoted its sale, made the webpage.

  2. The lyrics of each song, and the guitar chord sequences used, if you want others to also sing your creations accurately and thus publicise your CD (eg. “I’m now going to sing ‘Kaimanawa kai’ from John Archer’s new CD, Waiouru Daze.”). A dreary version of Gin And Raspberry with mangled chords was recorded and imitated for years, much to Martin Curtis’s chagrin.

  3. Background info briefly telling why why each song is significant to you. (5. Roadside Barbie � Another one I first sang at that great feed of meat we had after our truck collided with those Kaimanawa ponies when we were bringing in firewood. Thanks for the booze, Bazza!)

  4. Some atmosphere photos, eg of the band, or of the war memorial that inspired your Anzac Day song (like the brilliant photos on ‘Promises to Keep’)

C. Send a copy of your CD to the Turnbull and to the National Libraries

  1. All your album’s details will go into their Te Puna on-line database. Then when someone hears your song, they can find what album it is on, and what other albums you have made. Check these CDs, The Tinkerman’s Daughter, Promises to Keep, and No Gypsies Allowed, (your Fields of the Gum also, Kathy !!) and see what you can find about them, at http://nlnzcat.natlib.govt.nz/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?DB=local&PAGE=First

  2. They will also keep your CD archived for future musicologists.

  3. Is it also useful to send a copy to someone at National Radio? If so, to whom? Can you tell us Kevin, Sue?

D. Make a webpage about the CD.

  1. Put at least the essential details as above, also full purchasing details, price, postage costs, etc.

  2. Then ask Google.com to spider your webpage, http://www.google.co.nz/addurl.html

  3. What can you find about these recent NZ Folk CDs on Google? The Tinkerman’s Daughter, Promises to Keep, and No Gypsies Allowed.

  4. Putting only the URL of the CD’s webpage on the CD cover, and the full details about the CD on a webpage, is a cost-saving technique.
    Find all about Julian’s “Song for Eddie” by going here. http://julianward.exorsus.net/music.html

  5. Also write some background details about yourself.

  6. Add MP3 sound-clips from about 3 of your tracks, (each about 40 to 60 seconds long, 24 kbps compression) to help people to decide if they want to buy. I definitely want to buy Bob’s Lovell’s “No Gypsies Allowed” after listening here. http://artists.mp3s.com/artists/539/bob_lovell.html

  7. Bob also sent me background info about his CD as an MS Word document. It is real easy to turn such a Word document into a webpage.

E. Register your songs with APRA

  1. You get money if your songs are played on the radio, or recorded by others.
  2. Joining APRA (Australasian Performing Rights Association) is free. http://www.apra.co.nz

  3. Try to get names for your songs that are different from songs by others. Check here. http://www.apra.com.au/site/public/searchworks.stm

John A

Added to website 20 June 2003