C大调的创业交响曲

    埃利奥特•墨菲

    墨菲曾被称赞为“新一代迪伦”（他的朋友布鲁斯•斯普林斯汀也曾被人这样叫过），他可以说是自己给自己当老板录唱片的鼻祖。他公司设在巴黎，唱片销路很好，他喜欢当老板的感觉。

    “1979年，给唱片公司录完音后，我意识到我没有属于自己的唱片公司，”墨菲回忆说。“于是，我自己开了一家，全权负责从录音到发行的所有事情。一天，我给曼哈顿一家商店送续订的货。店长看到我，疑惑的问：‘你不是埃利奥特•墨菲么？’‘没错，’我说。‘你自己亲自送货？’‘没错，’我又说。‘为什么？’他追问道。‘为了完全掌控艺术！’我说。‘好样的艺术家！’他说。”

    “我妻子是我的员工，尽管这么说她会杀了我”。墨菲一年有100天的时间在演奏，除去演奏和卖CD，他现在还负责掌管儿子的乐队。“

    “我让他以我为榜样：参与和自己事业有关的所有决定，把长久发展当做自己的目标。”

    威利•尼罗

    威利•尼罗先前由Arista公司和Columbia公司发行的唱片广受好评，后来他又在自己的掌舵方面取得了成功，同样找到了乐趣。下面就是这位老板对做生意的看法。

    “我的感觉从来没像这样好。凭借我的河屋唱片公司（River House Records），我可以把我所有创造性想法付诸实践。没有人能妨碍我，也没有人能使唤我。”

    尼罗说当自己的老板的时候，他会精打细算，雇佣合适的人来把事情办好。

    “2011年，我雇佣了一个宣传员，他叫卡里•贝克。他帮忙让我的唱片《天真的人》（The Innocent ones）上了《今日美国》（USA Today）的版面。报社的人写了篇很精彩的报道。而且由于很多媒体转载，我开了好多场演唱会。”

    然而，事业难免会遇到挫折。

    “除了录唱片和巡演，我还要处理大大小小的所有事情。我要审核插图，接订单，还要送货。一切让人精疲力竭。但是为了我下一张专辑《美国旅行》（American Ride）的发行，我的粉丝只用4天时间就凑齐了发行的费用！这给了我走下去的动力。不能辜负粉丝的信任。”（财富中文网）

    译者：王小伟

    Elliott Murphy

    Once hailed as "The New Dylan" (just like his friend Bruce Springsteen), Murphy "invented" being his own CEO. Based in Paris, selling lots of records, he loves being boss.

    "In 1979, after recording for the majors, I found myself without a label," Murphy recalls. "I started my own, overseeing everything from recording to pressing. One day, I dropped off an album re-order to a Manhattan store. The manager looked at me, confused. 'You're Elliott Murphy?' he asked. 'Right,' I replied. 'You deliver the records yourself?' 'Right again,' I replied. 'Why?' he demanded. 'Total artistic control!' I said 'Smart artist!' he said."

    Aside from playing 100 dates a year and selling CDs -- "My wife is my staff, although she'd kill me for saying so" -- Murphy now manages his son's band.

    "I tell him to do what I do: Get involved in every decision that concerns your career, keep longevity in mind as your goal."

    Willie Nile

    After making acclaimed albums for Arista and Columbia, Willie Nile found success and happiness piloting his own ship. Here's what this CEO says about running things.

    "It's never been better. With my River House Records, I can realize all my creative decisions, unencumbered. I answer to no one."

    Nile says being his own boss, he spends his bucks wisely. Hiring the right employee turned things around.

    "In 2011, I got a publicist, Cary Baker. He got my record The Innocent Ones to USA Today. They wrote a great story about it. And because it hit the wire services, I got a ton of gigs out of it."

    Still, there are drawbacks to running one's own business.

    "Along with recording and touring, I'm always attending to details. There's artwork to approve, booking issues, shipping. It's exhausting. But for my upcoming album, American Ride, my fans raised my recording money in four days! That gives you the energy to go on. So you can justify your fans' faith in you."