Promoters lost $6 million on shows by Whitney Houston, David Lee Roth, Huey Lewis, Diana Ross, Steve Winwood, the Doobie Brothers, Amy Grant, Alabama and the multi-act Operation Rock and Roll and Club MTV tours this summer, the North American Concert Promoters Association says.
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It`s somewhat unusual for a figure like this to be thrown out-the promoters have never done it before-and, yes, it`s being done for a purpose.
”We felt it was time people knew the economic reality of producing certain acts in the `90s,” executive director Carl Freed told Performance magazine.
Freed did not detail figures for each act, but says Operation Rock and Roll with Judas Priest was the worst, followed by Houston and Roth. He says the promoters lost a total of $4 million on 47 summer acts, despite profits on shows by Paul Simon, Guns N` Roses, the Grateful Dead, Michael Bolton and the Lollapalooza tour.
Bob Grossweiner of Performance points out that by releasing the money-loser list, the promoters hope to apply pressure on the large guarantees paid to touring artists.
Some promoters say artists seek such large guarantees that a promoter makes minimal profit even from a sellout-while assuming all the risk for a big loss if the house is 70 percent or less, as many were this year.