August 23, 2011

To Whom It May Concern:

I have received some strong criticism about an interview quote from the May 19 Alligator Records story in The Reader. My words, as they have been construed, do not reflect either my beliefs or the history of my label. They have been taken out of context, and therefore they have been misunderstood and misinterpreted.

This is the context – my quoted comment was in response to a question about Alligator’s recent signings of certain non-traditional, blues-influenced white artists like JJ Grey and Anders Osborne, rather than signing black soul-blues artists. The interviewer, who is a nationally-known blues writer, of course knows my 40-year commitment to signing black artists and promoting their careers. That was clearly understood between us. I didn’t think it needed to be stated. I was asked a question specifically about what I was looking for in African-American artists I might sign, and I answered that specific question. Of course my answer applies to ALL artists that I would consider for Alligator. But that’s not what I was asked.

Apparently it sounded to some people like I was suggesting that I have different standards for African-American artists than for other artists. In fact, as the entire history of the label shows, it is my PREFERENCE to sign African-American artists. Blues, no matter who performs it, is ultimately and historically a creation of Black Americans. Alligator’s legacy is proudly a legacy of recording primarily African-American artists—over 160 albums by African-American artists and about half that many by Caucasian artists.

Of course I don’t want ANY artists who don’t behave professionally or lack charisma or aren’t good bandleaders or have substance abuse issues. That is what I meant and could have said more clearly. But I absolutely DID NOT SAY (or “suggest,” as my critics state) that Black artists were less professional, less charismatic, less good band leaders or more prone to substance abuse. Some people (who apparently don’t know the history of Alligator Records and the artists I have chosen for the label) took it that way. I’m sorry if they were offended by my choice of words.

To accuse me of “racial insensitivity,” based on a few poorly expressed words in one interview, is simply ridiculous, and I am deeply angered and saddened by it. For 40 years, Alligator Records has publicly and privately championed Black blues artists. Alligator has set the standard for labels for ethical, fair, professional and businesslike artist-label relations, honoring both the letter and spirit of its contracts with all the musicians we’ve signed.

In addition, through the Blues Community Foundation, which I founded and endowed in 1994, I have assisted blues musicians and their families in times of personal crisis. This includes helping with costs of health care, rent, and, sadly, funerals. Many of these musicians had no relationship with Alligator, and some I never even met. I have done this quietly, without publicizing it, to support and help the people who create the music I love.

If my decades of actions on behalf of the blues and its creators don’t speak loud and clear, then some people are choosing not to listen.

I regret that only five musicians have had the courtesy to reach out and communicate with me about this interview and ask for clarification. Those who wrote the “petition” that is being circulated were not among them. They have finally just responded to repeated outreach from me, more than a month after making this a public issue, and before directly contacting me to ask for any explanation or to engage in any dialogue.

The blues is a music that reaches a tiny percentage of listeners in the U.S. and worldwide, in spite of its enormous influences on all other American music. The last thing we who love the blues need to be doing is to be attacking one another. I regret that a few misunderstood words have stirred such controversy in the community of blues lovers. Only by uniting and working together can we bring this wonderful musical tradition to a larger audience and assure its healthy future.

Most sincerely

Bruce Iglauer

They teach you there's a boundary line to music. But, man, there's no boundary line to art.
Charlie Parker