The Boss Works For Wal-Mart

I’m not normally one to complain about artists trying to maximize profit margins. Anyone who’s ever had a lot of money knows damn good and well there is a difference between two million dollars and three million dollars. Yachts, on average, cost a million bucks per foot; so, if you want ample sleeping room and an onboard Jacuzzi you need that extra scratch. But I’m not sure I can endorse this at the expense of the local CD vendor.

According to Billboard, Bruce Springsteen will release his upcoming greatest hits disc exclusively at the world’s most dominant retail store. This follows hot on the heels of bands like AC/DC and Nickleback signing Wal-Mart only deals with Sam Walton’s mega corporation.

The reason I love music is because of a local record shop. My buddy Carlson and I used to ditch sixth period our junior and senior years of high school in order to stop by S&J Stereo before tennis practice started. At least twice a month, we’d spend the extra hour browsing through the store looking for new music or old bands we’d never really given a chance. I bought Sgt. Peppers there, Pet Sounds too. Of course, I also blew six bucks on a Scorpians’ CD, but that’s not my favorite memory to reminisce.

I understand it’s hard out there right now for a pimp. With downloading, the sluggish economy and rival whores, bands have been forced to come up with new and interesting ways to procure the extra yacht square footage, but there is a downside to cutting out Mom and Pop’s. The average douche bag shopping at Wal-Mart isn’t buying Velvet Underground & Nico; he's looking for Beyonce’s new single. Maybe when Wal-Mart phases out the rest of the world they’ll expand their CD sections. But then again, maybe not.