Starbucks pulls the plug on Springsteen promotion over "Reno" lyrics

Submitted by admin on May 5, 2005 - 23:16.

The song "Reno" from "Devils & Dust" has drawn a lot of attention in reviews. Apparently the spotlight got a little too hot for the brand handlers at Starbucks, who, according to a Newsweek report, are pulling out of a promotion that would have made the CD available at Starbucks stores nationwide.

Oddly, Wal-Mart hasn't backed away from the CD. On Wal-Mart's website, not only is the album available, but the actual verse with the explicit language is the site's "Reno" sample.

The song, “Reno,” is in part about an encounter with a prostitute. Springsteen includes a description of anal sex, including the price she charges for the act. Critics generally are hailing the CD, which was released last week on Co­lumbia Records, a Sony Music label. It is the only Springsteen album to carry a parental warning (Adult Imagery) due, ap­parently, to "Reno."
The episode appears to be the first time Starbucks has declined to stock an album by a major act because of concern over lyrics, notwithstanding the warning sticker. The java juggernaut, with almost 6,400 outlets in the U.S., has be­come an influential link in music distribu­tion in just a few short years, especially in 2004. Starbucks boldly demonstrated its power in music last year when its outlets accounted for at least a third of sales of the million-selling album of Ray Charles duets, “Genius Loves Company.” Record labels increasingly view Starbucks as an attractive outlet for reach­ing fans of adult contemporary music, in­cluding baby boomers flush with disposable income but who’ve long since stopped browsing record-store aisles.

Full story: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/7738014/site/newsweek/