Stephen Bishop had a lot of hits in the 70s and 80s, and has composed some famous movie music as well. Art Garfunkel recorded many of his songs, and Phoebe Snow named an album after his “Never Letting Go.”
Bishop’s biggest hit was “On and On,” a record that goes on and on for radio. You can hear it all the time on soft rock stations and on Sirius.
Apparently, “American Idol” didn’t get that message. Bishop’s very astute wife and manager, Liz Kamlet, revealed in a recent post how much she was offered by the competition show to use “On and On” for their singers this season.
The number is shocking. Just $500! And that’s for all rights. A more usual offer would start at $10,000. Kamlet’s humorously asks an off camera Bishop is his answer. It’s a definite “No!
“On and On” spent 2 weeks in the Hot 100 back in 1977 and was a gold single (500,000) copies sold. This was before SoundScan. Since 1993, “On and On” has been a best seller among downloads. More recently, it streams like crazy since being included as a touchstone of “Yacht Rock.”
Is this what “Idol” pays for all of its songs? Or do they just lowball for older songs? The whole disrespect for musicians and composers just goes on and on!
