Jim Aikin

[Dave Bryce]

I have heard that Jim Aikin was laid off from Keyboard Magazine today.

 

I am terribly sorry to hear this...

 

Jim has been with the mag for as long as I can remember, and knows his stuff like very few other people that I've met. He was pretty much the last of the old guard at the magazine, and I am greatly saddened to hear of his departure.

 

My best wishes go out to Jim - I am sure that someone with as much talent as he has will land on his feet.

 

dB

[Tusker]

Dave:

 

I am so sorry to hear that. It's a big loss for Keyboard. So much of what I learned I learned form Jim's articles.... I still read them regularly.

 

Jim, if you read this, you'll be missed. Your legacy in the writing still remains. I look forward to your future contributions.

 

Regards,

 

Jerry

[progfusion74]

Originally posted by Dave Bryce:

I have heard that Jim Aikin was laid off from Keyboard Magazine today.

 

I am terribly sorry to hear this...

 

Jim has been with the mag for as long as I can remember, and knows his stuff like very few other people that I've met. He was pretty much the last of the old guard at the magazine, and I am greatly saddened to hear of his departure.

 

My best wishes go out to Jim - I am sure that someone with as much talent as he has will land on his feet.

 

dB

This is indeed sad news. I really respect Jim's views. Maybe I have not been following things, but is Keyboard in some kind of financial trouble?

[Dan South]

Well that takes the cake!

 

Keyboard needs to have an internal revolt and leave UEM before all hope is lost. Maybe the whole editorial staff can bug out and start a new rag.

[soapbox]

I keep hearing that our economy is in recovery, but then it's always followed by news like this. I would have thought that Jim Aikin, of all people, would be immune to this sort of thing.

 

It's as if The Rolling Stones lost their record deal. Okay, they own their own label, but my point is that Jim Aikin is one of the all-time greats. I just don't get it!

 

Originally posted by progfusion74:

Maybe I have not been following things, but is Keyboard in some kind of financial trouble?

progfusion74, IMO this post gives us a clue to what's going on:

 

Originally posted by Anderton:

(snip)

 

...I should add that the only reason we've lasted this long is because there have been some vocal advocates at higher levels of management. But right now, The Force is not with web-based ventures (or magazines) in general. Just to give you an idea, for many magazines in ALL categories, ad revenues are off 30% to 60% compared to last year. That's a huge hit that few companies can survive...

 

(snip)

[Ed A.]

I think I'll cancel my Keyboard subscription as a protest. I started reading Keyboard in 1979 and I've enjoyed Jim's articles ever since then. The magazine won't be the same without him.

[eric]

Major bummer that Jim is no longer on the staff. I've watched a number of the regulars leave and it was nice to have a veteran still around there. Hopefully he will retain a regular column, much like Mark Vail has done with the Vintage Synths.

 

It is worrisome to think that magazines such as this may be having troubles but with the amount of content available on the web, it is not surprising. I have noticed that magazine subscriptions across the board seem to be dropping in price. There are some that used to be like $20-30 per year and fliers will come advertising them for $9.99 per year or whatever.

 

I will pay whatever it takes to keep my Keyboard subscription coming to my mailbox. My last one came a little bit earlier so I am already jonesing for the next issue.

 

Regards,

Eric

[Ed A.]

Originally posted by progfusion74:

Originally posted by Dave Bryce:

I have heard that Jim Aikin was laid off from Keyboard Magazine today.

 

I am terribly sorry to hear this...

 

Jim has been with the mag for as long as I can remember, and knows his stuff like very few other people that I've met. He was pretty much the last of the old guard at the magazine, and I am greatly saddened to hear of his departure.

 

My best wishes go out to Jim - I am sure that someone with as much talent as he has will land on his feet.

 

dB

is Keyboard in some kind of financial trouble?

I would guess that is the case. The Internet forums and newsgroups are mostly responsible for the tech/music magazine's troubles. You can get information about products or get an answer to a music or technical question almost immediately on line. The information in magazines is two months out of date by the time the magazines hit the newsstands, so most people don't feel it's worth the price. Kind of like the trouble Penthouse Magazine is having with their rapidly dwindling subscriber base, since porn is accessible online for free.

[Gus Lozada]

Without a doubt, if I learned a word from that magazine, was because I've been reading for 15 years Jim's Columns, reviews and articles.

 

My best wishes goes for the world's most capable keyboards oriented columnist. I'm sure he will be fine and will have lots of people following him up wherever he starts a new project.

 

I'm not in a rant. I'm worried because it's hard to imagine KEYBOARD without Jim's contributions.

 

The newest generations of KEYBOARD contributors are very capable men, no doubts about it and I enjoy a lot reading from them too. They have a big responsibility while covering the space Jim has left.

 

Decisions, decisions...

[Stephen Fortner]

First Mark Vail, and now this?

 

Gus, I'm with you, from what I know of Greg, Ken, Ernie, John K, and the other guys there. They know their shit, and are tireless.

 

But ... JIM AIKIN? GONE? I can't think of anything else to say.

[Gulliver]

No... that's just too much of bad news lately...

I always enjoyed Jim's reviews and articles.

This is unfair!

[K.C.]

Although I just read Keyboard for a few years, Jim is always my favourite!! I think I would have to miss him much.

[Bucktunes]

Originally posted by Dave Bryce:

Jim has been with the mag for as long as I can remember, and knows his stuff like very few other people that I've met. He was pretty much the last of the old guard at the magazine..

IIRC, he and Dominic Milano were the co-founders of the magazine back in `75. Now neither of them are with Keyboard.

 

In one of Jim's most recent posts here, (It's probably been 6-8 months ago now) he sort of implied that he was less than happy with the direction Keyboard has taken. Hopefully it was a mutual parting, otherwise I can't imagine how UEM can justify this.

 

A few weeks ago I got a re-subscription notice in the mail. I've been a pretty faithful subscriber to Keyboard for decades now, but I think I'll wait until I've heard both sides of this story before I send that card back!

 

Peace all,

Steve

[Mark Zeger]

What a complete BS move.

 

Will someone, PLEASE, get together all the good music industry writers and offer something well written and insightful. Resurrect Musician magazine? Hell, do it as a subscription e-zine since paper costs have skyrocketed over the past several years.

[Steve Frederick]

What the hell was the problem...his hair wasn't bleached? Pants weren't saggy enough? Didn't end an article with "outtie!"? Whenever I read a Jim Aiken piece, I always came away from it knowing I had quite a bit to learn, a greater appreciation for my gear, and a respect of keyboards as art, not a f***ing fad. Such a wellspring of knowledge will be scooped up by a more appreciative publication, no doubt, should he seek such a thing.

[D_dup3]

As we've all noted, this is very, very, very disappointing and, contrary to the generally expressed idea, does not make economic sense.

It may be economics-driven but it makes no sense to lose your best assets when fighting for survival (if such is, indeed, the case )!.

JA was one of (if not the) best wriers the magazine had, throughout its history---informative, clear, witty and interested in a wide variety of styles and subjects.

Hey, KEYBOARD publishers, are you listening ?

 

(DB, can you pass these responses on...without bringing backlash to yourself ?)

[Bobro]

What I find ironic is that the pendulum of hipness is swinging right into Jim Aikin's territories of expertise. What's going to be mainstream tomorrow (and spell a lot of gear and magazine sales BTW) is a reaction to and evolution beyond the first flush of street-level computer music fun. Wanna bet?

 

Jim Aikin has been the consistently best overall MI and music writer for the last quarter century, IMO. I dig Gordon Reid of SOS and Craig Anderton has done incredibly timely and appropriate articles, there are some fine German writers as well, but I'd have to give the grand prize to Jim Aikin.

 

I just looked through past issues of Keyboard and notice that most of their value to me is due to Aikin's articles, so I won't be buying the magazine again unless there's a very specific article that addresses some pertinent issue.

 

-Cameron Bobro

[Rod S]

What the fuck?

 

He's the one guy that I've always enjoyed reading the articles from.

 

Originally posted by SteveFortner:

First Mark Vail, and now this?

You mean Mark's gone too?

[Anderton]

Jim was the guy who edited by articles for Keyboard, and caught any little weirdnesses that needed fixes. He asked hard questions where info needed to be added, and when he had to cut for space, always managed to do so without gutting the article. A more knowledgeable guy would be hard to find.

 

I am involved with Keyboard as a writer, as opposed to EQ, where I am Executive Editor and am more involved in the decision-making process. So I would have to leave any comments to the folks from Keyboard. All I can say is that these are VERY tough times for magazines in general. At least Keyboard is still around; a lot of magazines are not.

 

There's one other lesson to be learned from this: if you like someone's work, WRITE TO THE MAGAZINE and let them know. Had the sentiments in this thread been made clear to Keyboard over the years, the situation today might be different.

 

It's easy to write a letter complaining about something. But I have made a conscious attempt over the past decade to write letters when I have compliments. Like the time someone at the Delta ticket counter saved my butt when a flight was canceled, and got me to Europe in time to make a gig. Damn straight I wrote to Delta! I ran into her about a year later and she had been promoted to supervisor. Did my letter have anything to do with it? Probably not, but I'm sure it didn't hurt.

[DC]

Wow, Jim's one of my all time favorite writers. This is unbelieveable, like throwing out the baby with the bath water. Just what is Keyboard mag gonna sell when there's no more content?!

 

Mr. Aikin if you're out there, here's sending you positive thoughts and prayers.

 

This is just daft...

[Jim Aikin]

Thanks for all your kind words and good wishes. For the formal version of what's going on, please see "The Official Word," which I've just posted.

 

I wish I had time to respond to each and every message in this thread individually, but you'd get real bored reading the same sappy stuff over and over. I have to say, I've never been compared to Mick Jagger before. With respect to my hair not being bleached, it's a lot lighter now than it was 25 years ago, and the color is all natural, too -- it didn't come from a bottle.

 

With respect to what's going on at the company, all I'll say is that our new head, Tony Keefe, was handed some very difficult challenges, and had to make some tough choices. It's easy for any of us (myself included) to sit back and indulge in armchair critiquing of the choices he has made -- but honestly, nobody but Tony knows the exact nature or extent of the challenges, or is equipped to say whether he would have been better advised to make some other choices.

 

Moving forward, my goal is to keep on writing about music -- not just technology but technique, theory, the music business, the artistic process, whatever seems most useful. It's too soon to say where my work will appear. I'm definitely hoping to start a new column in Keyboard in September or October, and I may be doing some other work for the magazine as well, but Greg Rule and I have yet to hammer out the details.

 

As other messages in this thread have noted, the Internet has changed the rules of the game with respect to how information is disseminated, and this fact has forced more than one magazine to rethink its strategies. My hope is that Keyboard will emerge from this difficult transition period with a revitalized and effective publication, but I'd be lying if I said the transition will be smooth, or the results guaranteed.

 

Whatever anybody says or does, ultimately it's all about the music. Keep on playin' -- I'm going to!

 

--JA

[D_dup3]

Originally posted by Anderton:

There's one other lesson to be learned from this: if you like someone's work, WRITE TO THE MAGAZINE and let them know. Had the sentiments in this thread been made clear to Keyboard over the years, the situation today might be different.

 

It's easy to write a letter complaining about something. But I have made a conscious attempt over the past decade to write letters when I have compliments.

Good advice !

[realtrance]

There's been less and less to "savor" -- and I use that word precisely -- in the content of Keyboard even over the past 2 years (i.e. a dramatic fall-off in useful, in-depth, thought-provoking content). Sorry to the rest of the staff there, but this and the recent 35-word Novation K-Station review (a new low) leave me inclined to drop my subscription.

 

The internet is the medium of bite-sized, USA Today-style semi-information. Give me a good mag for in-depth analysis and clear, professional, well-written, closely-edited and informed reporting any day.

 

Unfortunately -- and I've seen and gone through this elsewhere, in another time and on a distant planet -- the audience that appreciates such intelligent, thoughtful, in-depth and informed discussion is, shall we say euphemistically, quite "niche" at this point.

 

This leaves magazines in the pretty untenable position of trying to compete with the internet for flashy, attention-getting "content," which is 90% flash and 10% content. Once you're there, the only advantage of a magazine page over an internet page is (depending on paper and printing quality and resolution) a little less aliasing in the imagery (and maybe not even that, if you've got a GEForce 4 with quincunx anti-aliasing turned on ).

 

We've seen a proliferation of niche publications, that provide the illusion -- like the metastasizing of a cancer -- that the publishing industry is "alive and growing." But I think it's evidence of the exact opposite; magazines strive desperately to try to fill a niche, become ever narrower in focus to survive, find out the target's constantly moving, succeed for a short time and then dissolve when the niche changes.

 

The general level of public discourse -- informed by a rapid degradation in our public educational system, motivated primarily by the sucking dry of economic resources available for public education by a political process designed to channel it all into private schooling for the rich -- is quite low, and descending rapidly.

 

I expect us all to be attempting to communicate via large, colorful, blocky symbols (kind of like the new MSN browser interface) right before that last big nuclear flash puts the whole story to rest.

 

Too bad.

 

Best of luck, Jim; enjoy the time you have, your minutes are more precious to you, and to the many of us who have deep respect for your talent, than they are to the company that just lost you.

 

Talent will out, and survive... though it's getting harder.

 

Very Best,

 

Steve

[steinwaym]

What a shame, he is such an incredible writer, and always has been. He has such a nack for explaining the deep technological concepts in real world musical ways.

[nitecrawler47]

Jim: Good Luck with your future endevours! You should be fine, though I'm not so sure about Keyboard Magazine! From a 20 year reader and subscriber for at least fifteen years.

-nitecrawler

[Squids]

Good luck Jim.

 

Beautiful words from Craig as well.

 

See? I don' t think there is any reason to stop buying the magazine "in protest". They have to do what they have to do to survive. Who knows, maybe Jim will have more freedom to write some articles you'll appreciate even more...especially if he's going to get back into playing technique which is something I used to love in the old Keyboard magazines. Remember???? Not, button pressing techniques!!!

 

You have to love this magazine for better or worse IMHO. We wouldn't want it to go away. The whole staff there is great. A cancelled subscription will only put some of you through withdrawals! Don't give up on Keyboard. But, like many of you I have appreciated Jim Aikin over the years. Have I really been reading this magazine for over 20 years???? That's great. Good luck to Jim and good luck to Keyboard I say. These are tough times. Support what you like. I like Keyboards. Would you rather have only Better Homes and Gardens to read at the bookstore?

[steadyb]

Is it true his name is really "Jim"???

 

I heard a story that years ago he was playing in a reggae band, touring the west coast, including some dates in San Jose and San Francisco. He enjoyed his trip to Northern Cal so much that 6 months later, after his band broke up he decided to move there and look for a job. One of the first places he applied to was Keyboard magazine. Anyway, he recognized the guy who was interviewing him as a particularly enthusiastic audience member from the reggae concert, who was wearing a Bob Marley t-shirt. When he sat down to be interviewed the interviewer commented to him that he looked familiar, to which he replied, "I'm Jamaican". Well needless to say, he got the job, and the rest is history.

 

Great job!!!

[Mark Zeger]

Jim,

 

Please keep us informed here of your future articles in any publication. Obviously, you have many appreciative readers (me, too).

 

All the best!

Mark

[Dave Bryce]

Originally posted by steadyb:

When he sat down to be interviewed the interviewer commented to him that he looked familiar, to which he replied, "I'm Jamaican".

 

You may wanna think about firing your writers...

 

dB

[soapbox]

Actually, yesterday, when I told my wife that Jim Aikin was laid off, she did at first think that I was telling her about a Jamaican.

 

Then again, there's a difference between a humorous misunderstanding and a drawn out pun.

 

Regardless, it helps sometimes to get a little humor break from disturbing events.

 

Then again, after re-reading steadyb's post, I'm not so sure...