I have NEVER met someone who purchased a bootleg recording because it was cheaper than buying the authorized version-this is because there WAS NO AUTHORIZED VERSION. For people like myself who love live music, bootlegs have long been the only way to hear the energy and experience the nuances of a live version of a song otherwise dull and produced (often over produced) on a studio album. Many bands like the Allman Brothers, Grateful Dead, Phish, etc have got in the habit of releasing recordings of their recent shows commercially and I prefer those to flea market bootlegs-but most bands simply dont provide me the product I want to buy. There are many reasons for bootlegs--often times the quality isnt the best so the artists dont want it out there. Other times the artists dont want mistakes, gaffs, and goofs out there....in fact many "authorized" live recordings are in fact a collection of perfect or near perfect performances from many concerts vs a "I was there" collection with all the great momenets and not so great moments. The Doors recently put out a number of actual performance recordings where indeed not every song was perfect--but I paid the $25 for a 3 CD set of those concerts despite the disclaimers on the back warning of the sound not being perfect and of the fact that Jim Morrisom was a little drunk or stoned or both...it was the way it was-a moment in time. Live music is the ultimate expression of an artist and of the time the artist was in. The fan reactions are as key as the notes as is the stage banter. Life doesnt have multiple takes like a studio recording does.....you take what you get and roll with it..... If artists believe they are being robbed by the bootleggers than compete with them instead of complaining. Let the public who buys bootlegs pay the artist instead of the bootlegger-pretty easy to do. Otherwise-stop complaining. The bootlegger may well be the guy that gets your albums sold when radio airplay didnt......

Caveat here... I have participated in bootlegging and in copying distributing bootlegged recordings of concerts for a couple artists/bands. With the full knowledge of those artists/bands. But never for any money, as was asked of us (by said artists) in this. Some of the most high energy and cherished recordings I have are from these concerts.

Most of the fans I know who pursue attaining such bootlegs already have every official recording these bands have released, often (as I do ) down to hard to find single releases. These are an addendum to the official stuff, not in place of them. I've even found that playing a bootleg of a concert has turned on someone to these bands, and towards interest in attending future concerts.

And while a discussion of 'to bootleg or not to bootleg' or 'finding who's to blame' for them is not really in the scope of the article, I had to type.

I should note, one of the bands, from Canada, even had what they called an 'official bootlegger' who showed up to many concerts equipment in hand, and the band made sure the venue let him tape. This band was an independent one who toured frequently, and knew full well that it was a type of advertisement (Also, this band, who went on indefinite haitus in 2001 also gave permission, in writing, to let their bootleg concerts be uploaded to the Internet Audio Archives. )

Interest in bootlegs are usually limited to people who are die hard fans of a band. That they wouldn't have the official releases, is an unfounded speculation. It's the heavy fans that put up with the often shoddy recordings, live slips and mistakes and 'oops!' and 'turn off your f#ing phone' (blush) and all the artifacts and blurrs you get in such things.