Forget The Beatles--Garth Brooks still AWOL on iTunes
The Beatles were the most prominent band missing from Apple's online music empire until today. But they weren't the only big name act refusing to get on the iTunes bandwagon.
Apple pitched today's announcement that The Beatles' music can now be downloaded from iTunes as a "day you'll never forget." But in the wake of the news, many are responding that Apple overhyped the announcement and are reminding the company that many popular musical acts are still missing from iTunes.
Garth Brooks: The biggest selling U.S. solo artist of all time--and second in overall album sales to, guess who, The Beatles--is still at loggerheads with Apple on the practice of selling albums online. In the past, he's stated he believes iTunes is "killing" music, and says he won't give in until Apple offers variable pricing and will allow more album-only downloads. A search for his name on iTunes reveals merely karaoke versions of some of his most popular hits.
AC/DC: The Australian band has been vocal about its anti-iTunes stance for years. The band refuses to offer music through iTunes because it isn't interested in selling individual songs. In 2008, while promoting its album, Black Ice, which was sold only through Wal-Mart and the band's Web site, lead singer Brian Johnson took some swipes at Apple.
"Maybe I'm just being old-fashioned, but this iTunes, God bless 'em, it's going to kill music if they're not careful," Johnson told Reuters. "It's a...monster, this thing. It just worries me. And I'm sure they're just doing it all in the interest of making as much...cash as possible. Let's put it this way, it's certainly not for the...love, let's get that out of the way, right away."
Kid Rock: Another artist opposed to selling his music track by track, Kid Rock, embraces some digital music outlets--but not iTunes. You can download his full albums only from Amazon.com and the Rhapsody MP3 store.
Bob Seger: You can find one song from Seger in iTunes, "Roll Me Away." There's a catch though: the song is part of the original "Armageddon" movie soundtrack, and while most other songs on the soundtrack can be bought individually, the only way to nab Seger's is to purchase the whole album. He, like many of his fellow holdouts, objects to single-song sales.
Tool: Another group that doesn't want its songs sold off piecemeal, the L.A.-based prog rock band has kept its music from the clutches of Apple's online empire.
Def Leppard: You can find the English group's classic "Pour Some Sugar On Me" on iTunes--but not its original version. Only covers of Def Leppard's hit are currently available on iTunes. Some of its albums have been sold through Apple's store in the past, but have been pulled.
Those are the biggest names, but who else is missing? Are there any other acts you'd still like to see in iTunes? Let us know in the comments.