JPF Home Page Forums General Messages General Message Forum Album length

Hello all,

Something I saw Kevin Emmrich comment on on another post was his feeling that an album should be about 12 songs long and about 40 minutes in length.

I'm currently putting an album together with my band. We have 18 songs to choose from and I was tempted to push the 15 song mark for the album as I want to give potential buyers a bit more for their buck.

Is there a reason most albums are around the 12 song mark?
Do others here care how long an album is?
If they are good songs wouldn't 15-18 songs be a lovely surprise?

I'm keen to see what you think

Cheers

JD

12, I think, is a band's personal limitation.
There's one band I know that is amazing, and two of their albums are at least 80 minutes long.

These days, most CDs are quite a bit longer. But I personally prefer the old 40-odd minute standard, which came to being because of 33rpm vinyl, which could fit that approximate length nicely on two sides.

The trouble with longer albums, to me, is that we rarely have enough truly compelling music to fill that sort of length and sustain interest. But then again, a lot of CDs these days don't really have a sense of cohesion...they often feel more like an assortment of singles, and people cherrypick what they like and shuffle it all on an iPod.

Everyone has an opinion, but it's really up to you, the artist. I get really tired of trying to please all the opinions out there. At some point you just have to tell people how it's gonna be when they step into your world.

Hi James:

I've tried everything from eight songs to twelve on albums. There is no magic formula... just whatever works best for you. The most important element is the quality of songs and how you arrange them in a sequence to break up the tempo from ballads to uptempo songs to keep the listener's attention. (Not that I have alot of success in that department... LOL!)

There are those who say the album is a thing of the past but I don't think so. I know most MP3 player owners do actually "cherrypick" songs and play them all jumbled up with other artists and genres to suit their personal tastes.

You might consider a "Digital Only" album to keep from going to the expense of printing hundreds of CD's and all the attendant work (and cost) that goes into peddling music that way. CDBaby has provided this avenue for quite some time... as do others.

Best of luck with your album.

My formative years were in the 60's and 70's so I really love albums.

A great album is like a great show - but even the best shows should end just before the audience wants them to.

Have you ever been to a concert that you just loved but by the time the band comes out for their third 3-song encore you're starting to think, "OK, that's enough"? If so, I think an album that's too long can have the same effect.

Hard to come up with a general rule though - I'd say a 35-40 minute album is about right. But that might just be my conditioning.

Scott

P.S. I don't think "a bit more for your buck" is an issue. Folks that go to Disney insisting on getting their money's worth invariable have grumpy looks on their face at the end of the day.

It doesn't matter the length of an album or how many songs there are on it that counts...it is the quality of each one of the songs.
Put as many GOOD songs on an album as you can fit.....just do not pad it out with crap...if you have 18 worthwhile songs and enough space on the cd then go for it.
We should make our own rules not blindly follow others.
Music should be about art not following the rules some suit thinks up so he can exploit more money.

I like the mix of advice. Thanks all.

If they are good, then yes it would be a lovely surprise

We have considered this extensively for Justice's two cd's. We decided on 12 songs. It seems to be the standard - and going with the standard for a new artist seems like a pretty good idea. I think 15 is too much ---- starts to look like they just threw a bunch of songs in there. I know Taylor Swift has done 15, but she can...........

Tom

BTW, I a a big un-supporter of 6 or 8 song cd's ---- I think that the main purpose of a cd for a new artist is to establish credibility. A 6 or 8 song cd does not do that. And .... a full cd costs no more to manufacture.

Tom

For me it depends on whether you can keep me interested for that length of time. If you can, great! I got my money's worth. I remember being very disappointed with a 30 minute CD that I liked. And very disappointed with a longer one that I didn't like. $13.99, $14.99, $18.99. Give me my money's worth.