SNAP! BUMFORD & BUNS GETS KICKED OUTTA THE CLUB

Here's an amusing addition to the "bootleg or not" "take pictures or not" live show debate.

If fans aren't allowed to secretly record shows, or take pictures of the performers...what about the performers?

The answer, at least in one club, is an emphatic NO!

Mumford and Sons got tossed out of a club when one member decided to take pictures and/or video of the band doing karaoke.

I'd throw Mumford and Sons out of any club...especially if they were performing.

My take on the "controversy" is simple. If you can be sneaky, go ahead. If you're not disturbing the performer or those around you, fine.

Distributing your item, selling your item...that's not a simple yes or no. A lot of great performances only exist via bootleg, and we're so happy to have 'em. But some artists resent having their less-than-perfect performances passed around for snickers or for profit. It's also a legitimate question to ask how many illegitimate bootlegs have ruined sales for a proposed live album or collection of rarities. Not every artist is a Bob Dylan, who can issue "Basement Tapes" and "Official Bootlegs" of material we already have, and still make a profit.

One thing I've detested is venue owners who charge a fee to anyone (artists included) who want to record at the club. As if these venue owners aren't making enough. It was totally capricious. If you were on assignment and had permission from the artist, you could stand in front of a pillar at the Bottom Line and snap away for a song or two. You weren't in anyone's way except maybe a clumsy waitress or a drunk. But Delsener? NO. He demanded a fee, even if the artist and label said it was ok. The fee didn't mean you could stand up and take pictures for a few minutes, or be assured of an unobstructed view, it just meant Delsener had more money in his pocket. Meanwhile, security might give you a hard time, the people around you might complain, you'd spend a lot of time explaining yourself and that your pictures would be important to fans all over the world. And you might end up thrown out of the place because nobody from Delsener's office was around to confirm your deal. They were too busy having a fine meal miles away from the venue.

Bottom line: we need to be more "in the moment," don't we? We're so used to owning, re-running, tweaking and messing around in Photoshop with movies, TV shows, music and photos that we've lost the art of being "in the moment." Which is to just enjoy the live experience of a play or a performance, and not fret that you can't keep it. "You can't take it with you" is, after all, one of the truths of life. And death. And how we try to deny this truth with a bootleg recorder or a cellphone!