REVOLVER:When Michael Jackson's medicine cabinet was opened up after his death, it revealed a cornucopia of such toxicity that even those familiar with Jackson's "vitamin pill" habit were shocked. This, coupled with the many Dr Feelgoods out there who routinely toss uppers/downers and all the in-betweeners at "troubled" rock stars, has led the music industry to seriously consider a legally binding new clause in contracts that will allow the labels to take action when their charges are "self-harming".
It would work on a kind of yellow card/red card basis: if you’re so out of it you can’t promote or publicise your work, the label could temporarily suspend your contract until you’re wheeled off to the health farm and/or put on the naughty step for a while. The red card, a full suspension of the contract, would come into effect when you’re beyond all hope. The industry has lifted this legal clause from the megabuck world of sports, where athletes have to sign documents giving guarantees about their physical wellbeing.
Island Records ex-boss Marc Marot, speaking at the recent In the City music conference in Manchester, spoke about a “duty of care” for record labels and called for a stronger support network throughout the industry for those who were “self- harming”.
All of this, of course, is complete nonsense. Rock and pop stars have behaved very badly for decades now, with barely a raised eyebrow from the industry. It is tacitly approved that an artist with a drink/drugs reputation is held up as “complex” and “interesting” and marketed as such. It’s a doublethink that sometimes badly backfires.
The idea of a record company being the arbiter of “togetherness” is absurd. Removing the rock’n’roll from rock’n’roll or installing some form of drink/drugs “safety net” runs contrary to the whole concept of artistic expression. You can’t plummet the depths of your soul – using various stimuli to deepen the journey – and then turn up on breakfast TV making inane small talk about your new release.
Only a fool, and a dangerous fool at that, would believe that drug use actually enhances the quality of music. But it’s also accepted that many genuine artists (The Stones, The Beatles, Bob Dylan, Elvis Presley, Bob Marley, David Bowie) have recorded enduring musical moments while in “an enhanced state”. Whether these works would have been better if they had all been clean and serene is unknowable – and irrelevant.
Fleetwood Mac's Rumours, one of the best-selling albums of the past 40 years, was reportedly recorded in such a snowstorm of cocaine that Mick Fleetwood wanted the band's dealer to be credited on the album. The record label only got off the hook when said dealer was shot dead before the album came out. But talk to Fleetwood Mac now about how their drug use led to some dark and grim health, financial and emotional problems and you'll hear a very different story.
Addiction and all that stems from addictive behaviour is a matter for professionals. It’s not something that can be resolved by a few legally worded sentences in a recording contract.
