Vote

I've never bought a bootleg record. This is mainly due to the fact that I'm cheap, and don't generally pop for a tape that costs much above standard retail. I've found that most of that sort of material is quite crudely recorded, and that only compounds my misgivings at the steep prices often asked for. Having said that, I will 'fess up to making my own bootleg tapes of concerts and the like, especially of songs that appear only on concert videos. As examples, Pink Floyd's "Live at Pompeii" and Ministry's "In Case You Didn't Feel Like Showing Up" both have live versions that are, to my knowledge, not found elsewhere. I stress, though, that these were strictly for my own use, and that I did not profit from these actions in any way. (Just in case The Man happens to be reading!)

NO. These are recordings, not water in a desert.

I did once get a bootleg LP of a King Crimson concert. (Of course, I had already purchased all of their legitimate LPs, so I don't feel any guilt.) Other than that, nada. I don't want junk, and I do think musicians deserve to be paid.

Never. I did have a couple of Grateful Dead tapes, but they were recorded with the Dead's blessings!

I think Bootlegs are ok, they help promote the band. There are alot of places where you can "trade" people music wich in my opinion is fine, if its music that you cant buy from any official source. But as for pirated music, thats a different story. I think this should be dealt with harshly.

I don't because I would be worried about the quality. The quality means more to me than a couple or bucks, especially something I plan to keep and enjoy for many years. R. Peck

Never. I believe in supporting the musicans who give us tunes for that jump-jiving party, that much-needed therapy after a long day's work, or self-loathing pity after bad breakup. Music invokes and massages the entire range of emotion, which in my opinon is priceless. The musicans who provide this deserve a little in return. Computer software, on the other hand . . .

I like to make compilations from my CDs, but am willing to pay artists for their music.

I've never bought pirated music. Up till now, my CD dealers' network is more than adequate to bring me even the rarest issues. We live in a global village, you know. Every competent CD dealer should participate in an online US-Euro-Japan network, if there is one. I suppose that the criteria for keeping a good relationship with your audio dealer also apply to your software supplier.

No, I haven't. And anyone that has bought pirated music might want to consider pleading The Fifth before answering.

Unfortunately, in my younger days, before I realized how evil they were, I did purchase a few. I was wrongly under the impression that it was the only way to get what I wanted. NOW I realize that anything circulating in the bootleg world was previously circulating in the TRADING world---usually in better quality. That's where the RIAA goes sooooo wrong. Bootleggers don't give a toss about quality. Get a DAT recorder and you can find any of the Coltrane, Miles, or Mingus that you want in much better shape!

I have bought many boots. The majority of these are either live recordings, or unreleased songs/out takes. I would ALWAYS buy an offical version if it was availble.

Yes! I found a copy of Katy Moffatt's "The Greatest Show on Earth" at the flea market. This Philo disc had been recalled after lawyers from Ringling Brothers Barnum & Bailey Circus raised a stink about trademark infringement. It's illegal to own one, but I do. Come and get me.

I'll buy a bootleg if it's of music I want but the artist or record company won't release. I won't buy pirates of stuff I could buy in a shop. Now that's fair.

Why would anyone purchase pirated music? Pirating it yourself is much cheaper.

I never have.

I have never had the chance. I guess I don't "hang out" with the "right" people.

I am not so poor.

As far as I know, I have never bought any "pirated" tapes. That's because in the 1980's (the last I even purchased cassettes), I was against the idea of purchasing "pirated" cassettes. The reason being that at that time, I have invested $700.00 into a tape deck (a Nakamichi BX-300), and then at that point, if I were to use "pirated" tapes, then they would've messed up the mechanism in my expensive deck. But now, if I could find a "pirated" CD that is exactly like the original recording of the master CD, then I would buy it in a second. I wouldn't mind buying new, but I feel that record companies rip off the consumer all of time. Can you say "MiniDisc"? How about recording your own CD's on a CD Recorder? Just a thought......

I would not ever consider this.

I know that Robert Fripp has repeatedly voiced his opinion against bootlegs. I have purchased every one I could get my hands on since the early '70s. If the need for Crimson live takes is so bad, why did RF make us wait until '92 for "The Great Deceiver"?

The quality of pirated music is usually very poor in what I have seen, so I never bought it.

I WAS AT A "BEATLES" GATHERING, THERE WAS ALL KINDS OF NEAT STUFF I HAVE NEVER SEEN OR HEARD BEFORE. MUCH OF IT WAS BY RESPECTED ENGINEERS AND SOUND TECHS.

That was more than 8 years ago when copyright laws were not fully in placed.

Only a few times, and never recordings that were commercially available. I have a fairly early copy of "Great White Wonder" by Dylan, a live Stones boot & some Yardbird's stuff that had not been released in the US as far as I know. These are all from before 1985.

I have been given a couple of bootleg albums a number of years ago. Terrible quality. . .and not worth the effort or money.

Honestly, I don't know what all the hype is about pirated music. I mean, the industry already charges a minimum of around 10 bucks just for one lousy CD! And these things cost what, a few cents to press and produce? Perhaps if the recording industry would stop gouging the public with severely overinflated prices we'd stop copying other people's recordings.

Of course I have, and will again, should an attractive possibility present itself again. I do not agree with the music industry's near-fascist stance regarding copyright protection, etc. The vast (and by vast I would say at least 90%) of all pirated and bootleg music is produced and sold in Asian countries, yet we have to deal with SCMS, Divx, and countless other idiotic attempts to curtail "pirating." They are ignoring the big offenders while punishing the little guy. I have over 500 CDs and 1000 LPs, only a handful of which are bootlegs, so in my opinion, I have already done my share in supporting the music industry. Not only will I continue to buy them, but I will also continue to smuggle my DAT recorder into jazz and classical concerts.

I've never knowingly bought pirated music, BUT I can tell you this: If anybody ever finds out how much I've taped from the radio, especially National Public Radio (with little to no cash donations, I might add), Janet Reno and the ATF will be over here shooting at my wife.

You listen to them play their hearts out, then you stiff them . . . order lobster and curse the waitress . . . NO, of couse not---I have borrowed a tape from a friend, and in many cases I've purchased the entire output of the artist. Try before you buy, but buy you must if you enjoy the music. Artists are people too.