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…and Spiro, and Youssou N’Dour and Peter Gabriel. Right: founders Thomas Brooman and Amanda Jones in 1991
drive Virgin mad. If they wanted stickers to make certain details obvious, he insisted that these were clear and removable. He would refuse to obscure or compromise the artwork in any way.”
The look of Real World releases has become synonymous with the quality of the music on the label. The label has earned the trust of its record-buying pub- lic and musicians alike through building up an extraordinary and eclectic catalogue of artists over almost 30 years. Since setting out its stall in 1989 with five releases (Pas- sion by Peter Gabriel, Passion Sources by Various Artists, Shahen-Shah by Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, La Explosion Del Momento by Orquesta Revé, and Babeti Soukous by Tabu Ley Rochereau), Real World Records has created and maintained a unique iden- tity and independence that has withstood the flattening hegemony of the globalis- ing music business juggernaut.
As Jones says, “The musical landscape has undergone many changes since we began the label. We’ve had to adapt to the commercial realities. We work with music that can be challenging and is never going to achieve a broader commercial audience.” She admits that at the heart of the decision to work with an artist is her passion for the music, though says she couldn’t do without the input and ‘keen ears’ of the studio engineers and the con- tinuing support of Gabriel and his manager Mike Large. But other factors such as whether the artist can tour, if there is a fan-base, management (even if this is by the artist) or an online presence all have to be taken into account.
Negotiating the changing terrain of the business has meant Jones guiding the development of their own team working in design, photography and film to bring in house what their previous deal with Vir- gin took care of. Now Real World Records is self-sufficient in marketing and promo- tion generally and in digital marketing and social media promotion in particular. “Like every other label,” she says, “we need to work actively with Spotify and Apple Music – and any other digital plat- form that can introduce our music to a wider audience.” Her ear for music and the understanding gained from almost three decades’ experience in the job give her confidence in knowing what’s likely to achieve enough sales to justify a release.
It must be difficult to maintain their independence given the current state of
the music business. “We keep our budgets closely under control – it’s essential that artists and the label have some hope of earning future royalties on sales of music.” This possibility has been enhanced by the setting up of Real World Publishing, a music publishing company that benefits from Gabriel’s connections with the film industry to garner ‘syncs’ (licensing music for use in other media) for their artists. Jones believes that the benefits to their artists of being properly represented outweigh the poten- tial conflict between them being signed to Real World for both records and publishing and points out it’s not mandatory, the choice lies with the artist.
It’s a far cry from the appropriation of world music by Western stars that used to be the most likely way audiences here would first be introduced to any ‘local music from out there’. Real World also opens up potential audiences for local music from here too, as they work with artists like the wonderful Spiro and 9Bach, Iarla Ó Lionáird and the late Martyn Ben- nett who’d never get a look in in the main- stream music business – blinded by its nar- row, blinkered pursuit of short term ‘com- mercial’ success that allows for bugger-all understanding of music.
rom the outset the intention at Real World Studios was musical and all-embracing, inspired as it was by Gabriel’s experience and passion. He aimed to create an environment where musicians could per- form live, perhaps as they might at home but with access to the finest recording technology available. The releases have production values that our ears are used to, easing our way into music even if the sounds are entirely new. In itself this facil- itates a fundamental aim of the record label which was (and is) to give artists from across the world a Western platform in their own right, to widen their audi- ence beyond their usual domestic reach and that of Womad.
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Jones points out that the prevailing aesthetic of cultural sensitivity at Real World is not just confined to the technical recording process. “The context,” she says, “is really important. We might turn the recording into a party or bring an audi- ence in. We’re concerned that we provide the right food, tea, and ambience.We’ll light the studio with candles if that helps people feel at home. We always work with fantastic engineers and producers who are totally committed to the success of the
musicians. We want to provide an environ- ment where the musicians are free to just express their creativity.”
Jones, responsible for organising recordings for upcoming releases would say to the studio manager. “I can only afford two days.” But this would not be practicable in a system where bands typi- cally booked six-week sessions. “So we arranged for a week after Womad where all the artists we were going to record would come to the studios. Everyday we’d record a live album in the big room and all the studios would have a producer who’d lure in the Womad artists. Phil Ramone would be in one room, Peter or Hol Bran- non from Clannad in another and all the artists could play with whomever they wanted. At its core there was sensible recording of a live album each day and then experimental freedom outside that.”
It was at a recording week in 1995 that sean-nós singer Iarla Ó Lionáird joined AfroCelts. Iarla had come to Jones’s atten- tion when, after hearing a Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan release on Real World, he sent Jones a demo tape. “The sound quality was awful, but his voice was transcendent.”
I tell her one of my all-time favourite collaborations is the Massive Attack remix of Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan’s Mustt Mustt. Jones can’t remember who came up with this particular pairing but it will have been informed by the mid-’80s Bristol musical milieu that she and Brooman were very much part of. They were ahead of the curve here as this piece of musical bril- liance came out before Massive Attack’s debut Blue Lines in 1991.
Jones won’t be drawn on her own favourite album. “Oh God, I can’t do that! It’s like choosing your favourite child. I love all the music we release! It’s the music that inspires you to do the work. It’s just such a privilege to meet these extraordi- nary people, to build relationships with them. It continues to make you question what music is, how it should be created, what an artistic vision is and to be inspired by the challenges and the extraordinary music they produce.”
Thanks to Amanda Jones this extraor- dinary music, all the glittering gems illumi- nated by the Real World colour bar, can inspire us too. And before she says any- thing, thanks too, to the rest of the Real World team.
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