Birthdays:
Sonny Geraci of the Outsiders ("Time Won't Let Me") and Climax ("Precious And Few") is 62
Jesse Colin Young - Youngbloods (1941)
Floyd Sneed - Three Dog Night (1943)
Aston Barrett - Bob Marley and the Wailers (1946)
Steven Van Zandt (Little Steven or Miami Steve) (Silvio Dante in the 'The Sopranos') - Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band (1949)
Tina Weymouth - Talking Heads (1950)
Jason Ringenberg - Jason & the Scorchers (1959)
Neil Fraser - Tindersticks (1962)
Rasa Don - Arrested Development (1968)
Karen O - Yeah Yeah Yeahs (1978)
They Are Missed:
The late Terry Stafford ("Suspicion") is born in 1941.
Epic Soundtracks (real name Kevin Paul Godfrey) was discovered dead in his flat in 1997, presumably the victim of suicide.
In 1997, INXS lead singer Michael Hutchence was found dead in his hotel room in the Ritz Carlton in Double Bay, Australia, a suburb of Sydney. The death was ruled suicide by hanging, although evidence points to auto-erotic asphixiation as the cause. Hutchence was in Sydney preparing for INXS' 20th anniversary tour which was scheduled to begin in three days. Hutchence was 37.
Born today in 1936, Opal Courtney Jr, singer with 50's doo-wop group The Spaniels. Their 1954 hit "Goodnight, Sweetheart, Goodnight" was featured in such films as Three Men and a Baby, Diner and American Graffiti. Died on Sept 18, 2008.
History:
In 1955, RCA Victor made its best investment ever: A&R man Steve Sholes signed Elvis Presley to the label. The deal was made at New York's Warwick Hotel and involves $40,000. $25,000 goes to Sun Records, $1,500 goes to Hi-Lo Music for Presley's song publishing and the rest is Elvis'.
In 1955, George Clinton formed the Parliaments with fellow classmates at Clinton Place Junior High School in Plainfield, New Jersey.
The Miles Davis Quintet debuted with a jazz concert at Carnegie Hall in New York City in 1957.
Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel appeared as Tom and Jerry on ABC-TV's American Bandstand in 1957.
Elvis Presley's largest-grossing movie, "Blue Hawaii" premiered in 1961.
The Beatles released their second album "With The Beatles" in 1963.
Arlo Guthrie's classic Alice's Restaurant was released in 1967.
Elivis Presley's "Clambake" film was released in 1967.
The Beatles released their long-awaited double album in 1968, simply called The Beatles but better known as The White Album. Among the set's 29 songs is Ringo Starr's first songwriting contribution to the group's repertoire, "Don't Pass Me By," which as a single, makes it to #1 in Scandinavia.
KC and the Sunshine Band started a two week run at #1 on the US singles chart in 1975 with "That's The Way (I Like It)."
In 1976, Jerry Lee Lewis was arrested for drunk driving in Memphis. Later, at 3:00 AM, he appeared at Graceland, Elvis Presley’s residence, brandishing a pistol and demanding to see Elvis. He was handcuffed and taken to jail.
Rolling Stones Mick Jagger, Keith Richards and Ron Wood jammed with blues giant Muddy Water in 1981 (whose "Rollin' Stone" gave the Stones their name) and Buddy Guy at Chicago's Checker Board Lounge.
The Human League went to #1 on the US singles chart in 1986 with "Human," making them the 8th UK act to score a US #1 single in 1986.
In 1991, Alice Cooper came to the rescue of two fans; Patrick and Dee Ann Kelly, whose California home was about to be re-possessed. Patrick had painted Coopers face on the house to help sell the property. Mr Cooper signed autographs to help raise money for the couple.
"The Black Album" was released by Prince in 1994.
Alanis Morissette was at #1 on the US album chart in 1998 with "Supposed Former Infatuation Junkie."
In 2002, the surviving members of The Doors, Ray Manzarek and Robby Krieger, announced they would record and tour again with a new line up including ex- Cult singer Ian Astbury and former Police drummer Stewart Copeland. Original drummer John Densmore was not able to take part because he was suffering from severe tinnitus.
In 2004, Ozzy Osbourne struggled with a burglar who escaped with jewellery worth about £2m from his Buckinghamshire mansion. Osbourne told reporters that he had the masked raider in a headlock as he tried to stop him. The burglar broke free and jumped 30 ft from a first floor window. A large amount of jewellery was stolen in the raid in which two burglars were involved.
U2 shot the video for "All Because Of You" from a moving flat bed truck on the streets of Brooklyn in New York City in 2004. Later in the day, they performed a brief concert under the Brooklyn Bridge, which was taped by MTV for a later showing.
Poems written by Bob Dylan in his college days sold for $78,000 at a New York City auction in 2005. The 16 pages of poems were the first known time Robert Zimmerman used the Dylan name and came from his studies at the University of Minnesota during 1959-60.
Sunday, November 22, 2009
Music News & Notes
Blur to Release Live CD With UK Paper
A special prize will come to readers of the today's Sunday UK newspaper the Sunday Times.
Following in the steps of everybody from Prince to Sigur Rós, Blur is set to release a free CD with a UK newspaper. The November 22 edition of the Sunday Times will come bundled with a 10-track disc featuring songs recorded live during Blur's summer reunion tour.
According to the Times, you'll be able to download five additional free songs on iTunes on November 29, too.
Tracklist for the CD is below:
Blur Live 2009:
01 She's So High
02 Girls & Boys
03 Badhead
04 Beetlebum
05 Parklife
06 Out of Time
07 Song 2
08 Pop Scene
09 Tender
10 The Universal
Interesting comcpet, heck, can we get 'special' Sunday newspapers here in the US?
--------------------------------------------
SUSAN Boyle's debut album is set to top the charts next week.
Singing sensation Susan Boyle, who is releasing her first record entitled I Dream A Dream, was yesterday celebrating after it became the largest global CD pre-order in the history of internet website Amazon.
Tens of thousands of copies have been sold – even though it is not being released until November 23.
The cover features the 48-year-old Scottish star smiling in a sparkly sequin jacket.
Susan became an overnight reality TV and internet star after her appearance on ITV show Britain's Got Talent on April 11. She was initially dubbed the Hairy Angel because of her unkempt looks, but has since had a full makeover.
“Eight months ago, no one was aware of the talents of Susan Boyle,” said Julian Monaghan, head of music buying at Amazon.co.uk. “Now, she has generated more Amazon pre-order CD sales globally than any other artist. That is an incredible achievement and is testament to the fact that she has captured the hearts of people all over the world.”
Susan, from West Lothian, stunned audiences with her rendition of I Dreamed A Dream, from Les Miserables.
She came second in the show, behind dance troupe Diversity, but won fans worldwide including actress Demi Moore, 47, and singer Elaine Paige, 61.
At first Susan struggled with fame and checked into The Priory for exhaustion. But she has made a recovery and recently told fans: “What I’ve enjoyed the most about my new career is the ability to travel and meet new people.”
Steve Barnett, chairman of Susan’s Columbia Records label, said: “One of the things that is so unique about Susan is her ability to touch people around the world.”
--------------------------------------------
Jackson moonwalk glove sells for $350K
The shimmering, white glove Michael Jackson wore when he premiered his trademark moonwalk dance in 1983 was auctioned off for $350,000 on Saturday.
Winning bidder Hoffman Ma of Hong Kong will pay $420,000, including taxes and fees, for the rhinestone-studded, modified golf glove Jackson wore on his left hand for his moonwalk on Motown's 25th anniversary TV special.
The glove was the top item in a collection of Jackson memorabilia on the block at the Hard Rock Cafe in Times Square.
Saturday, November 21, 2009
Warner Bros. Records and DEVO Announce the Release of THE ULTRA DEVO-LUX Edition Limited Package
The Ultimate Two CD/Two DVD Re-Mastered Edition of Seminal Recordings from Ohio Art-Rock Pioneers Available Exclusively Online
BURBANK, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Electro-art-rock iconoclasts DEVO celebrate their early recorded works from the Warner Bros. Records vaults with an expanded Ultra Devo-lux, Limited Edition four-disc set of their first and third groundbreaking albums: Q: ARE WE NOT MEN? A: WE ARE DEVO! and FREEDOM OF CHOICE, available online only through www.clubdevo.com this holiday season.
Both albums have been re-mastered from the original analog recordings and housed in DEVO-luxish packages with a plethora of audio and video bonus material including the Live at the Forum, London 2009 concert video. The package also includes an original 7-inch colored vinyl single of “Jocko Homo”/”Mongoloid,” plus an original 18” x 30” foldout poster and 16-page booklet. The DEVO-LUX package will be sold for $49.99. Each order will include a digital audio download delivered upon order. A limited number of orders will also include autographed B/W 8x10 vintage DEVO promo photos from the Warner Bros. Records vaults. These are the definitive versions of the band’s classic works, supremely packaged and loaded with previously unreleased rarities made available for the first time ever.
Just how DEVO-LUX are we talking here? This special collector’s edition contains the complete audio CD of Q: ARE WE NOT MEN? A: WE ARE DEVO! — the Brian Eno-produced album re-mastered from the original analog recordings, plus three previously unreleased demos from the DEVO archives. These ultra-rare recordings were committed to tape by the band between 1975 and 1977, including one track produced by Joe Walsh (Ex-James Gang and future Eagle). Believe it! These early recordings provide a unique view into the primitive early world of DEVO.
The second audio disc is comprised of the complete Devo-produced third album, FREEDOM OF CHOICE, also re-mastered from the original tapes. Bonus tracks include the rare six-track DEV-O LIVE EP, recorded live at the Warfield in San Francisco circa 1980. The package also includes three more previously unreleased demos from the DEVO vaults that were recorded at Modern Music Rehearsal Studio in Hollywood, CA, and the Record Plant in Los Angeles in 1979, and are available now for the first time ever and exclusive to this release only.
The first DVD disc contains the debut album performed live in its entirety from The HMV Forum in London 2009, and includes behind-the-scenes footage and more, exclusive to this release only. The second DVD disc is comprised of four classic DEVO video clips. Little did anyone know what kind of global impact these unique short promotional films would have upon the music world for years to come.
THE ULTRA DEVO-LUX LTD. EDITION PACKAGE will sell out quickly so don’t delay. Act now and achieve total audio and video bliss before it’s too late because as we now truly know, Devolution Is Real!
THE ULTRA DEVO-LUX LTD. EDITION Track listings:
Disc 1 (Audio):
Q: ARE WE NOT MEN? A: WE ARE DEVO
1. Uncontrollable Urge 3:11
2. (I Can't Get No) Satisfaction 2:41
3. Praying Hands 2:48
4. Space Junk 2:15
5. Mongoloid 3:44
6. Jocko Homo 3:39
7. Too Much Paranoias 1:58
8. Gut Feeling/(Slap Your Mammy) 4:58
9. Come Back Jonee 3:49
10. Sloppy (I Saw My Baby Gettin') 2:40
11. Shrivel-Up 3:04
Bonus Demos:
1. Uncontrollable Urge (demo) 3:08 (Produced by Joe Walsh at The Record Plant LA, CA., 1977)
2. Social Fools (demo) 3:42 (Recorded at Audio Recording Studio Cleveland, OH., 1975)
3. Sloppy (demo) 2:21 (Recorded at Manray Studio, Akron, OH, 1976)
Disc 2 (DVD-Video):
Q: ARE WE NOT MEN? A: WE ARE DEVO
Performed Live at the HMV Forum, London 2009:
1. Uncontrollable Urge 3:26
2. (I Can't Get No) Satisfaction 3:07
3. Praying Hands 2:48
4. Space Junk 2:17
5. Mongoloid 3:38
6. Jocko Homo 4:32
7. Too Much Paranoias 2:26
8. Gut Feeling/(Slap Your Mammy) 4:19
9. Come Back Jonee 4:21
10. Sloppy (I Saw My Baby Gettin') 2:25
11. Shrivel-Up 3:05
Disc 3 (Audio):
FREEDOM OF CHOICE
1. Girl U Want 2:55
2. It's Not Right 2:20
3. Whip It 2:37
4. Snowball 2:28
5. Ton O' Luv 2:29
6. Freedom of Choice 3:28
7. Gates of Steel 3:26
8. Cold War 2:30
9. Don't You Know 2:14
10. That's Pep! 2:17
11. Mr. B's Ballroom 2:45
12. Planet Earth 2:45
DEV-O LIVE EP: DEVO Live at the Warfield, San Francisco, CA. 1980:
1. Freedom of Choice Theme Song 2:46
2. Whip It 2:41
3. Girl U Want 2:56
4. Gates of Steel 3:17
5. Be Stiff 2:50
6. Planet Earth 2:32
Bonus Demos:
1. Snowball (demo) 2:49 (Modern Music Rehearsal Studio, Hollywood to 4-track 1979 )
2. Gates of Steel (demo) 3:28 (Modern Music Rehearsal Studio, Hollywood to 4-track 1979)
3. Time Bomb (demo) 2:54 (Recorded at the Record Plant, LA 1979)
Disc 4 (DVD-Video):
Bonus Videos:
1. Satisfaction 2:38
2. Whip It 2:47
3. Freedom of Choice 3:25
4. Girl You Want 2:58
All product details can be found at…
www.clubdevo.com
Keep an eye on the site for additional DEVO 2010 details coming soon. Until then contact: Warner Bros. Records Publicity:
National Spudboy: Rick Gershon 818-953-3473 / rick.gershon@wbr.com
Regional Spudgirl: Amanda Van Goethen 818-953-3211
Amanda.vangoethen@wbr.com
###
BURBANK, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Electro-art-rock iconoclasts DEVO celebrate their early recorded works from the Warner Bros. Records vaults with an expanded Ultra Devo-lux, Limited Edition four-disc set of their first and third groundbreaking albums: Q: ARE WE NOT MEN? A: WE ARE DEVO! and FREEDOM OF CHOICE, available online only through www.clubdevo.com this holiday season.
Both albums have been re-mastered from the original analog recordings and housed in DEVO-luxish packages with a plethora of audio and video bonus material including the Live at the Forum, London 2009 concert video. The package also includes an original 7-inch colored vinyl single of “Jocko Homo”/”Mongoloid,” plus an original 18” x 30” foldout poster and 16-page booklet. The DEVO-LUX package will be sold for $49.99. Each order will include a digital audio download delivered upon order. A limited number of orders will also include autographed B/W 8x10 vintage DEVO promo photos from the Warner Bros. Records vaults. These are the definitive versions of the band’s classic works, supremely packaged and loaded with previously unreleased rarities made available for the first time ever.
Just how DEVO-LUX are we talking here? This special collector’s edition contains the complete audio CD of Q: ARE WE NOT MEN? A: WE ARE DEVO! — the Brian Eno-produced album re-mastered from the original analog recordings, plus three previously unreleased demos from the DEVO archives. These ultra-rare recordings were committed to tape by the band between 1975 and 1977, including one track produced by Joe Walsh (Ex-James Gang and future Eagle). Believe it! These early recordings provide a unique view into the primitive early world of DEVO.
The second audio disc is comprised of the complete Devo-produced third album, FREEDOM OF CHOICE, also re-mastered from the original tapes. Bonus tracks include the rare six-track DEV-O LIVE EP, recorded live at the Warfield in San Francisco circa 1980. The package also includes three more previously unreleased demos from the DEVO vaults that were recorded at Modern Music Rehearsal Studio in Hollywood, CA, and the Record Plant in Los Angeles in 1979, and are available now for the first time ever and exclusive to this release only.
The first DVD disc contains the debut album performed live in its entirety from The HMV Forum in London 2009, and includes behind-the-scenes footage and more, exclusive to this release only. The second DVD disc is comprised of four classic DEVO video clips. Little did anyone know what kind of global impact these unique short promotional films would have upon the music world for years to come.
THE ULTRA DEVO-LUX LTD. EDITION PACKAGE will sell out quickly so don’t delay. Act now and achieve total audio and video bliss before it’s too late because as we now truly know, Devolution Is Real!
THE ULTRA DEVO-LUX LTD. EDITION Track listings:
Disc 1 (Audio):
Q: ARE WE NOT MEN? A: WE ARE DEVO
1. Uncontrollable Urge 3:11
2. (I Can't Get No) Satisfaction 2:41
3. Praying Hands 2:48
4. Space Junk 2:15
5. Mongoloid 3:44
6. Jocko Homo 3:39
7. Too Much Paranoias 1:58
8. Gut Feeling/(Slap Your Mammy) 4:58
9. Come Back Jonee 3:49
10. Sloppy (I Saw My Baby Gettin') 2:40
11. Shrivel-Up 3:04
Bonus Demos:
1. Uncontrollable Urge (demo) 3:08 (Produced by Joe Walsh at The Record Plant LA, CA., 1977)
2. Social Fools (demo) 3:42 (Recorded at Audio Recording Studio Cleveland, OH., 1975)
3. Sloppy (demo) 2:21 (Recorded at Manray Studio, Akron, OH, 1976)
Disc 2 (DVD-Video):
Q: ARE WE NOT MEN? A: WE ARE DEVO
Performed Live at the HMV Forum, London 2009:
1. Uncontrollable Urge 3:26
2. (I Can't Get No) Satisfaction 3:07
3. Praying Hands 2:48
4. Space Junk 2:17
5. Mongoloid 3:38
6. Jocko Homo 4:32
7. Too Much Paranoias 2:26
8. Gut Feeling/(Slap Your Mammy) 4:19
9. Come Back Jonee 4:21
10. Sloppy (I Saw My Baby Gettin') 2:25
11. Shrivel-Up 3:05
Disc 3 (Audio):
FREEDOM OF CHOICE
1. Girl U Want 2:55
2. It's Not Right 2:20
3. Whip It 2:37
4. Snowball 2:28
5. Ton O' Luv 2:29
6. Freedom of Choice 3:28
7. Gates of Steel 3:26
8. Cold War 2:30
9. Don't You Know 2:14
10. That's Pep! 2:17
11. Mr. B's Ballroom 2:45
12. Planet Earth 2:45
DEV-O LIVE EP: DEVO Live at the Warfield, San Francisco, CA. 1980:
1. Freedom of Choice Theme Song 2:46
2. Whip It 2:41
3. Girl U Want 2:56
4. Gates of Steel 3:17
5. Be Stiff 2:50
6. Planet Earth 2:32
Bonus Demos:
1. Snowball (demo) 2:49 (Modern Music Rehearsal Studio, Hollywood to 4-track 1979 )
2. Gates of Steel (demo) 3:28 (Modern Music Rehearsal Studio, Hollywood to 4-track 1979)
3. Time Bomb (demo) 2:54 (Recorded at the Record Plant, LA 1979)
Disc 4 (DVD-Video):
Bonus Videos:
1. Satisfaction 2:38
2. Whip It 2:47
3. Freedom of Choice 3:25
4. Girl You Want 2:58
All product details can be found at…
www.clubdevo.com
Keep an eye on the site for additional DEVO 2010 details coming soon. Until then contact: Warner Bros. Records Publicity:
National Spudboy: Rick Gershon 818-953-3473 / rick.gershon@wbr.com
Regional Spudgirl: Amanda Van Goethen 818-953-3211
Amanda.vangoethen@wbr.com
###
Producer's new program could be more sweet music for PBS
By Rob Owen, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
"My Music Presents: Ed Sullivan - The Sixties," which will be shown on WQED on Nov. 28, will include archival footage from The Beatles' appearance on the "The Ed Sullivan Show."T.J. Lubinsky, the former WQED producer who created the doo-wop-themed pledge specials that proved enormously popular for PBS stations nationwide, has continued to create several PBS programs each year since leaving WQED in 2003 and striking out on his own with TJL Productions.
The producer, who works out of a home office in Gibsonia, ignited the doo wop craze 10 years ago and his programs have raised millions for PBS stations over the past decade.
For his latest program, he moves into a slightly more recent era with "My Music Presents: Ed Sullivan -- The Sixties" (9 p.m. Nov. 28, WQED-TV).
It's not Lubinsky's first experience working with the video image of Sullivan: In 2001, Lubinsky repackaged "The Ed Sullivan Show" for PBS stations. For the new all-archival-footage program, Lubinsky edited together the music acts -- The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, The Animals, Herman's Hermits, The Doors, Petula Clark -- and left Sullivan's plate-spinners on the cutting room floor.
Sullivan actually isn't seen much, except to introduce the acts, with narrator Jay Thomas setting the cultural scene and narrating brief interludes between classic performances.
But this latest pledge special was not an easy sell.
"There was a lot of resistance to this show," Lubinsky said. "I don't know if it's because certain management at PBS felt it maybe was too old, but it was a real challenge to get people to focus on the fact that this is The Beatles, The Doors, the Stones.
"It's a great relationship [with PBS] but people are generally unfamiliar with new, untested areas. There's risk and such pressure for funding. ... Thankfully, nine times out of 10, the shows still work."
Lubinsky said although some may think of "The Ed Sullivan Show" as old news, the music featured on the program remains popular with many viewers.
"My Music Presents: Ed Sullivan -- The Sixties" was tested earlier this year on PBS stations in Detroit, San Francisco and Iowa and it did well. It was the biggest fundraiser for a single-play special in three years at the Detroit station, according to a producer there.
Of course, they can't all be hits.
"The one we did on movie songs was a big bomb," Lubinsky acknowledged. "I learned when you try to be master of all, you're master of none. It was too broad with music from the '50s, '60s and '70s and too many people and [viewers] couldn't connect to any one person."
The two-hour Sullivan show -- about 80 minutes without the pledge breaks that were taped earlier this year in San Francisco -- will air in about 85 percent of the country, Lubinsky said, which is pretty standard for his pledge specials.
Although his programs are produced and edited locally, Lubinsky hasn't taped a show in Pittsburgh in many years -- costs for some labor unions proved prohibitive -- but he's hoping to end that drought next year.
His next big project: Developing a "Hullabaloo" special, using footage from the 1965-66 NBC prime-time variety series. He'll continue to provide pledge shows to PBS through 2013 and possibly beyond, according to a PBS spokesman.
PBS senior vice president and chief TV programming executive John Wilson said Lubinsky's shows have been "among the consistent top-performing programs we've offered our stations, so they look forward to them and know their audiences like them and are willing to support them."
Unlike some pledge programs, Lubinsky's shows do not deviate wildly from part of PBS's mission to provide cultural programming.
"One of the things we want, whenever possible, is to make sure the pledge schedule is connected to the regular schedule so the audience that's watching for 'Great Performances' and 'Austin City Limits' and 'Soundstage' find something appealing to them in pledge drive where they can express their support," Wilson said. "It's connecting the dots between our pop music performance programs and pledge specials."
For Lubinsky, the goal with his shows is to connect music and viewers' memories.
"We try to bring the audience back to the point that they're in their living room again," he said. "Music is the vehicle but the real goal is connecting that crowd and audience.
"Anybody who grew up in the late '40s, '50s, '60s and '70s, this is how we all got together," he said of Sullivan's show. "This was 'American Idol' before there was 'American Idol.'
SOURCE: http://www.post-gazette.com
"My Music Presents: Ed Sullivan - The Sixties," which will be shown on WQED on Nov. 28, will include archival footage from The Beatles' appearance on the "The Ed Sullivan Show."T.J. Lubinsky, the former WQED producer who created the doo-wop-themed pledge specials that proved enormously popular for PBS stations nationwide, has continued to create several PBS programs each year since leaving WQED in 2003 and striking out on his own with TJL Productions.
The producer, who works out of a home office in Gibsonia, ignited the doo wop craze 10 years ago and his programs have raised millions for PBS stations over the past decade.
For his latest program, he moves into a slightly more recent era with "My Music Presents: Ed Sullivan -- The Sixties" (9 p.m. Nov. 28, WQED-TV).
It's not Lubinsky's first experience working with the video image of Sullivan: In 2001, Lubinsky repackaged "The Ed Sullivan Show" for PBS stations. For the new all-archival-footage program, Lubinsky edited together the music acts -- The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, The Animals, Herman's Hermits, The Doors, Petula Clark -- and left Sullivan's plate-spinners on the cutting room floor.
Sullivan actually isn't seen much, except to introduce the acts, with narrator Jay Thomas setting the cultural scene and narrating brief interludes between classic performances.
But this latest pledge special was not an easy sell.
"There was a lot of resistance to this show," Lubinsky said. "I don't know if it's because certain management at PBS felt it maybe was too old, but it was a real challenge to get people to focus on the fact that this is The Beatles, The Doors, the Stones.
"It's a great relationship [with PBS] but people are generally unfamiliar with new, untested areas. There's risk and such pressure for funding. ... Thankfully, nine times out of 10, the shows still work."
Lubinsky said although some may think of "The Ed Sullivan Show" as old news, the music featured on the program remains popular with many viewers.
"My Music Presents: Ed Sullivan -- The Sixties" was tested earlier this year on PBS stations in Detroit, San Francisco and Iowa and it did well. It was the biggest fundraiser for a single-play special in three years at the Detroit station, according to a producer there.
Of course, they can't all be hits.
"The one we did on movie songs was a big bomb," Lubinsky acknowledged. "I learned when you try to be master of all, you're master of none. It was too broad with music from the '50s, '60s and '70s and too many people and [viewers] couldn't connect to any one person."
The two-hour Sullivan show -- about 80 minutes without the pledge breaks that were taped earlier this year in San Francisco -- will air in about 85 percent of the country, Lubinsky said, which is pretty standard for his pledge specials.
Although his programs are produced and edited locally, Lubinsky hasn't taped a show in Pittsburgh in many years -- costs for some labor unions proved prohibitive -- but he's hoping to end that drought next year.
His next big project: Developing a "Hullabaloo" special, using footage from the 1965-66 NBC prime-time variety series. He'll continue to provide pledge shows to PBS through 2013 and possibly beyond, according to a PBS spokesman.
PBS senior vice president and chief TV programming executive John Wilson said Lubinsky's shows have been "among the consistent top-performing programs we've offered our stations, so they look forward to them and know their audiences like them and are willing to support them."
Unlike some pledge programs, Lubinsky's shows do not deviate wildly from part of PBS's mission to provide cultural programming.
"One of the things we want, whenever possible, is to make sure the pledge schedule is connected to the regular schedule so the audience that's watching for 'Great Performances' and 'Austin City Limits' and 'Soundstage' find something appealing to them in pledge drive where they can express their support," Wilson said. "It's connecting the dots between our pop music performance programs and pledge specials."
For Lubinsky, the goal with his shows is to connect music and viewers' memories.
"We try to bring the audience back to the point that they're in their living room again," he said. "Music is the vehicle but the real goal is connecting that crowd and audience.
"Anybody who grew up in the late '40s, '50s, '60s and '70s, this is how we all got together," he said of Sullivan's show. "This was 'American Idol' before there was 'American Idol.'
SOURCE: http://www.post-gazette.com
Music News & Notes
Gibson Guitars Raided Over Alleged Use Of Rare Madagascan Timber
Their Tennessee HQ is stormed...
Gibson Guitars is under investigation in the US for allegedly using illegal wood to make their instruments. Federal agents stormed Gibson's headquarters in Nashville, Tennessee on suspicion of the company using threatened Madagascan rosewood smuggled in via Germany.
The search took place under the Lacey Act which seeks to hinder trafficking of illegal wildlife, plants and fish. The US Fish and Wildlife Service seized a variety of items including wood, computers, files and guitars from Gibson HQ.
A statement from Gibson Guitars reads: "(We are) fully cooperating with agents of the United States Fish and Wildlife Service as it pertains to an issue with harvested wood".
==============================
Arctic Monkeys Planning New Album
Arctic Monkeys drummer Matt Helders has revealed the band have already begun working on ideas for a follow-up to this year’s album ‘Humbug‘.
Speaking to BBC6 Music, Helders said: “We’re already talking about when we can record again, but I still enjoy being on tour as well. It’s good to have time to work stuff out, then at least you can start doing the quality control before and actually record what you think is decent, rather than recording hundreds of songs to then find out you only like 10 of them.”
It remains to be seen as to whether the new tracks will continue the harder sound that dominated their third album, which was produced in part by Queens Of The Stone Age frontman Josh Homme.
The Sheffield band are currently on a large UK arena tour and recently completed two sold-out shows at London’s Wembley Arena, playing a set which relied heavily on songs from their new album.
==============================
Spoon Reveal First Transference Dates
Spoon's next album, Transference, is due January 25 in Europe via Anti- and January 26 in North America via Merge. And in the coming months, lucky folks in the U.S. and Europe will get a chance to hear Spoon play some of these songs live. Spoon's catalog of spiky new wave jams is already pretty huge, and they've always been totally smooth and on-point onstage, so you're pretty much guaranteed a good night out if you hit up one of these shows.
Spoon:
12-03 Kansas City, MO - Midland Theatre
12-04 Boston, MA - Orpheum Theatre #
12-11 Portland, OR - Crystal Ballroom *
12-12 La Jolla, CA - RIMAC Arena
12-31 Milwaukee, WI - Riverside Theatre !
02-14 Glasgow, Scotland - King Tut's
02-15 Manchester, England - Academy 3
02-16 London, England - Electric Ballroom
02-18 Amsterdam, Netherlands - Paradiso
02-19 Cologne, Germany - Luxor
02-20 Berlin, Germany - Frannz Club
# with Phoenix, Passion Pit
* with Black Joe Lewis
! with Jay Reatard
Friday, November 20, 2009
Michael Fremer Review
I am very proud to continue our new feature (look for this every Friday), music reviews that are written by the senior contributing editor of Stereophile magazine- Michael Fremer. It has been a pleasure to speak with Michael and learn more about audio sound and equipment. In fact, his new DVD, "It's A Vinyl World, After All" has hit the shelves and is selling out very quickly. This is a must have for anybody who loves vinyl, it is a true masterpiece.
ALBUM REVIEW:
The Beatles (new reissue)
The Beatles Boxes: Stereo and Mono
Parlophone/Apple stereo and mono box sets
Produced by: George Martin
Engineered by: Norman Smith, Geoff Emerick
Mixed by: various mixers
Mastered by: various mastering engineers
Reissue produced by: various producers
Review by: Michael Fremer
2009-11-01
The Beatles Remasters: A Splendid Time Is Guaranteed For Most
How bad were the original Beatles CDs issued back in 1987? So bad that even the clueless conditioned to believe that CDs represented an automatic sonic step up from vinyl noticed something was terribly wrong.
Amusing to some observers was the nature of the complaints: “they sound tinny,” “they sound flat,” “they sound thin and bright,” “they’re harsh and edgy,” “where’s the warmth?” etc.
Why did it take The Beatles for these folks to notice how bad almost every attempt at re-mastering great analog recordings to CD sounded?
I can’t name a single CD reissue back then that sounded as good as the original LP version, never mind any that sounded better, yet the same folks who chucked their LPs and were happily munching on their crispy CDs somehow heard all of the problems with the 1987 Beatles CDs they might have heard with all of their CDs had they paid more attention.
Leave it to the mythical Beatles to pull down the CD format’s digital pants and expose its, er, shortcomings. Not surprising since the group has held a special place in the hearts, minds and souls of generations and not surprising considering how well recorded the albums were—even the “primitive” early ones, thanks to the EMI studios, engineers Norman Smith and Geoff Emerick and of course producer George Martin.
Add low rent, almost dismissive packaging for such hallowed musical ground and the curious decision to issue the first four in mono only, when both mono and stereo versions would have fit on a single disc and you have a truly shitty reissue program, one that thumbed EMI’s corporate nose at both the surviving Beatles and especially the group’s fans.
The New Remasters
As reported elsewhere on this site and all over the media, this time EMI was determined to do a much better job and by any standard they have, both in terms of the sonics and especially the packaging.
The stereo box is deluxe in every way, with gatefolded digi-pak style jackets, original label artwork, previously unseen photos and Quick-Time mini-documentaries accompanying each disc. An additional disc holds all of the documentaries so you can watch all of them without having to go through the individual discs. In addition to the original releases, the set includes a double CD of singles and EPs not appearing on the original UK sets, which usually omitted the singles.
One curious move was the decision to use George Martin’s 1987 re-mixes of Rubber Soul and Help! instead of the original stereo mixes. These were digitized at 16 bit/44.1K resolution using what today would be considered stone aged A/D converters.
So if anyone tells you that the “new” Rubber Soul and Help! reissues sound so much better than the 1987 issues, ask them what they weren’t smoking. Surely, mood enhanced they’d notice they were listening to the same mixes, only perhaps a bit louder and punchier due to the touch of compression applied to all of these stereo reissues.
Ironically, if you want to hear the original stereo mixes of Rubber Soul and Help! transferred without compression you’ll need to buy the mono box! Yes, the producers chose to tack the original stereo mixes onto the mono CDs of these two albums. More about that later.
The compression applied is so minor it’s not worth worrying about. Yes, these reissues do sound a bit “punchier” and “louder,” but overall the reissue producers have not messed around much with what was on the tapes that they transferred at 192K/24 bit resolution, with one notable exception: clearly they’ve boosted the bass on every one of these stereo masters and I don’t write that simply because I’m used to the LPs and perhaps the LPs had their bass slightly rolled off. I’ve heard the master tape of Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band and there’s more bass on these reissues than I remember hearing on that tape.
On a full range playback system, one that’s reasonably flat to 20Hz, the added bass, though tastefully done, can become oppressive after a while, but for most listeners both the added bottom and the “pop” provided by the compression will sound like pleasing “fresheners” instead of deal breakers. Don’t worry: these reissue do not sound like the “modernized” abomination that was 1.
What excites most listeners about the new reissues is the return of the tactile, warm sound, or some of it at least, found on the original LPs. These CDs do sound really good, with some expression of instrumental textures, depth and inner detail resolution. For folks who grew up on the ’87 CDs and who haven’t touched base with the original vinyl (or any vinyl since 1987), these CDs are a revelation.
They are as good as one can expect from CDs but surely the process of reducing 192k/24 transfers to 44.1k/16 has taken a toll on various aspects of the sound because the original UK vinyl still beats these CDs in most ways, by a narrow margin in some and by a much wider one in others.
For instance, on the cover of Buddy Holly’s “Words of Love,” there’s a particular ring to the high pitched electric guitar lines that one hears live and on the original LPs that just doesn’t register on the CD. The ring should jump out at you as it does live and on the LP. On the CD it remains boxed in physically and is tonally truncated. And yes, you can be an aging boomer whose hearing may not be what it once was, and yet still hear it.
The handclaps sound very good but they just don’t sound fleshy-real as they do on the LP, nor do they inhabit the separate space they do on the LP. Nor do the vocals project into 3D space. The harmonies, so easily split into separate voices on the LP fuse into one on the CD. John Lennon’s voice has a chilling quality that cuts through you on LP throughout the Beatles catalog. It’s lacking on the CD. You can feel Lennon alive on the other side of the mic on the LPs, you don’t derive the sensation on the CDs good as they are.
The CDs are genuinely pleasing to listen to physically and intellectually, the LPs sound even better and they take you for an emotional roller coaster ride the CDs just don’t. That’s not just my reaction: it’s what everyone who’s listened here heard, including people who don’t have an analog axe to grind.
On the other hand, the closer the digital comes to the analog—and these CDs come closer than most—the more the differences between the two formats assert themselves, for better or worse. Listening to these excellent sounding CDs with their jet black backdrops and ultra-cleanliness means that when you put the records on, while they do sound better, you just wish you could have the superior sound of one and the pristine perfection and black backdrops of the other! Previously, what was there on the CDs was so bad sounding, the black backdrops were hardly compensatory. BTW: Magical Mystery Tour is in real stereo like the German original.
So, will a Blu-ray set mastered at full 192K/24 bit resolution (maybe with the bass turned down a bit too?) produce near perfection and sound superior to clean original LPs? I don’t know, nor are we likely to find out as such a release has not been announced.
LPs are supposedly coming next year and since Sean Magee and Steve Rooke, two of the engineers who worked on the project also are expert lathe operators (they’ve cut for Pure Pleasure, Warner Brothers, Steve Albini and others) and since Abbey Road has a very good sounding DMM lathe and since the full resolution files are right there, why wouldn’t they use the 192K/24 bit masters to produce the LPs? As The Doors box proved, once you’re at that resolution, it’s almost analog.
In the case of The Doors, the deteriorated tapes made a one pass digital transfer a necessity. The Beatles tapes are in excellent condition and the original tapes could be used to cut from analog but at this point in time you can be the powers that be prefer consistently across format lines to religious purity, so don’t expect AAA, though we can hope, as we can hope for fold-over laminated cover art as well done as the fold-over, laminated mini-LP CD sleeves complete with facsimiles of the original inner sleeves found in the mono box.
The Mono Masters
Given a choice of one box or the other, I’d opt for the mono box. For one thing, the transfers were apparently done without compression or augmented equalization. They are what’s on the tape, though again, the 192k/24 bit masters have been squeezed through the redbook CD sausage machine. The mono packaging is more authentic as well. The Beatles for instance, features a miniature duplicate of the laminated, double gatefold “top loader” fold-over jacket complete with black inner sleeves, individual color portraits and fold-open poster.
The “stereo’ mixes of the first two albums, with vocals on one side and instruments on the other, produced that way to allow for vocal/instrumental balance to be adjusted later, sound interesting on the stereo box, but they sound fuller and whole in mono.
A Hard Day’s Night sound better in stereo than mono in my opinion but the mono mix is fine too. I prefer Help in stereo too (the original mix found on the mono box for sure!) but not everyone agrees with that. For Sale is preferable in stereo too, but again, the mono mix offers its own pleasures.
As for Rubber Soul and Revolver the complexities of the arrangements required track bouncing. Track bouncing made a true stereo mix difficult so you a lot hard/left right stuff as on the first few albums, so overall the original mono mixes really are preferable but nostalgiacs whose genes are now encoded with the stereo mixes will probably stick with those, though the original stereo mix of Rubber Soul found on the mono box is preferable.
The mono mixes are strikingly different from the stereo ones, particularly on the later, more complex productions as anyone who has them on vinyl knows. More than just mix differences, are differing takes and parts that are highlighted in the accompanying booklet, though most of those are on the earlier albums. Some people revel in hearing and exposing these difference, like where John fluffs a lyric on one version and not the other, but that kind of thing has never excited me so you’ll have to look elsewhere for a catalogue of those.
Not many Beatles fans have heard Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band or The Beatles in mono. These are the mixes upon which the band members lavished their full attention and that will be obvious when you hear them—not that there’s anything whatsoever wrong with the stereo mixes. When I compared the original stereo Parlophone LP with the new stereo CD, it wasn’t even close: the record is richer, fuller and far more tonally pleasing. Ditto the mono LP vs the new CD.
Oh, and you also get the original stereo mixes of Rubber Soul and Help! transferred from analog at 192k/24 bit, which you don’t get in the stereo box. Needless to say those two sound much better than the remixes found on the stereo box.
The Verdict
Both the packaging and sound of these two sets (the stereo albums are available separately) are digitized editions finally worthy of The Beatles. The packaging is superb, great care went into the mastering, which attempted to bump up the sound for modern ears without ruining the ride for those used to the original sound. In that the team has mostly succeeded.
The packaging of both boxes is truly deluxe and any Beatle fan, even those who own all of the original UK vinyl, will want to have these sets for the packaging enhancements alone.
Hopefully higher resolution digital and/or analog will follow. Sure, I’d prefer new vinyl cut from the analog originals and we can all lobby for it, but I doubt it will happen.
SOURCE: http://www.musicangle.com Reprinted By Permission
ALBUM REVIEW: The Beatles (new reissue)
The Beatles Boxes: Stereo and Mono
Parlophone/Apple stereo and mono box sets
Produced by: George Martin
Engineered by: Norman Smith, Geoff Emerick
Mixed by: various mixers
Mastered by: various mastering engineers
Reissue produced by: various producers
Review by: Michael Fremer
2009-11-01
The Beatles Remasters: A Splendid Time Is Guaranteed For Most
How bad were the original Beatles CDs issued back in 1987? So bad that even the clueless conditioned to believe that CDs represented an automatic sonic step up from vinyl noticed something was terribly wrong.
Amusing to some observers was the nature of the complaints: “they sound tinny,” “they sound flat,” “they sound thin and bright,” “they’re harsh and edgy,” “where’s the warmth?” etc.
Why did it take The Beatles for these folks to notice how bad almost every attempt at re-mastering great analog recordings to CD sounded?
I can’t name a single CD reissue back then that sounded as good as the original LP version, never mind any that sounded better, yet the same folks who chucked their LPs and were happily munching on their crispy CDs somehow heard all of the problems with the 1987 Beatles CDs they might have heard with all of their CDs had they paid more attention.
Leave it to the mythical Beatles to pull down the CD format’s digital pants and expose its, er, shortcomings. Not surprising since the group has held a special place in the hearts, minds and souls of generations and not surprising considering how well recorded the albums were—even the “primitive” early ones, thanks to the EMI studios, engineers Norman Smith and Geoff Emerick and of course producer George Martin.
Add low rent, almost dismissive packaging for such hallowed musical ground and the curious decision to issue the first four in mono only, when both mono and stereo versions would have fit on a single disc and you have a truly shitty reissue program, one that thumbed EMI’s corporate nose at both the surviving Beatles and especially the group’s fans.
The New Remasters
As reported elsewhere on this site and all over the media, this time EMI was determined to do a much better job and by any standard they have, both in terms of the sonics and especially the packaging.
The stereo box is deluxe in every way, with gatefolded digi-pak style jackets, original label artwork, previously unseen photos and Quick-Time mini-documentaries accompanying each disc. An additional disc holds all of the documentaries so you can watch all of them without having to go through the individual discs. In addition to the original releases, the set includes a double CD of singles and EPs not appearing on the original UK sets, which usually omitted the singles.
One curious move was the decision to use George Martin’s 1987 re-mixes of Rubber Soul and Help! instead of the original stereo mixes. These were digitized at 16 bit/44.1K resolution using what today would be considered stone aged A/D converters.
So if anyone tells you that the “new” Rubber Soul and Help! reissues sound so much better than the 1987 issues, ask them what they weren’t smoking. Surely, mood enhanced they’d notice they were listening to the same mixes, only perhaps a bit louder and punchier due to the touch of compression applied to all of these stereo reissues.
Ironically, if you want to hear the original stereo mixes of Rubber Soul and Help! transferred without compression you’ll need to buy the mono box! Yes, the producers chose to tack the original stereo mixes onto the mono CDs of these two albums. More about that later.
The compression applied is so minor it’s not worth worrying about. Yes, these reissues do sound a bit “punchier” and “louder,” but overall the reissue producers have not messed around much with what was on the tapes that they transferred at 192K/24 bit resolution, with one notable exception: clearly they’ve boosted the bass on every one of these stereo masters and I don’t write that simply because I’m used to the LPs and perhaps the LPs had their bass slightly rolled off. I’ve heard the master tape of Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band and there’s more bass on these reissues than I remember hearing on that tape.
On a full range playback system, one that’s reasonably flat to 20Hz, the added bass, though tastefully done, can become oppressive after a while, but for most listeners both the added bottom and the “pop” provided by the compression will sound like pleasing “fresheners” instead of deal breakers. Don’t worry: these reissue do not sound like the “modernized” abomination that was 1.
What excites most listeners about the new reissues is the return of the tactile, warm sound, or some of it at least, found on the original LPs. These CDs do sound really good, with some expression of instrumental textures, depth and inner detail resolution. For folks who grew up on the ’87 CDs and who haven’t touched base with the original vinyl (or any vinyl since 1987), these CDs are a revelation.
They are as good as one can expect from CDs but surely the process of reducing 192k/24 transfers to 44.1k/16 has taken a toll on various aspects of the sound because the original UK vinyl still beats these CDs in most ways, by a narrow margin in some and by a much wider one in others.
For instance, on the cover of Buddy Holly’s “Words of Love,” there’s a particular ring to the high pitched electric guitar lines that one hears live and on the original LPs that just doesn’t register on the CD. The ring should jump out at you as it does live and on the LP. On the CD it remains boxed in physically and is tonally truncated. And yes, you can be an aging boomer whose hearing may not be what it once was, and yet still hear it.
The handclaps sound very good but they just don’t sound fleshy-real as they do on the LP, nor do they inhabit the separate space they do on the LP. Nor do the vocals project into 3D space. The harmonies, so easily split into separate voices on the LP fuse into one on the CD. John Lennon’s voice has a chilling quality that cuts through you on LP throughout the Beatles catalog. It’s lacking on the CD. You can feel Lennon alive on the other side of the mic on the LPs, you don’t derive the sensation on the CDs good as they are.
The CDs are genuinely pleasing to listen to physically and intellectually, the LPs sound even better and they take you for an emotional roller coaster ride the CDs just don’t. That’s not just my reaction: it’s what everyone who’s listened here heard, including people who don’t have an analog axe to grind.
On the other hand, the closer the digital comes to the analog—and these CDs come closer than most—the more the differences between the two formats assert themselves, for better or worse. Listening to these excellent sounding CDs with their jet black backdrops and ultra-cleanliness means that when you put the records on, while they do sound better, you just wish you could have the superior sound of one and the pristine perfection and black backdrops of the other! Previously, what was there on the CDs was so bad sounding, the black backdrops were hardly compensatory. BTW: Magical Mystery Tour is in real stereo like the German original.
So, will a Blu-ray set mastered at full 192K/24 bit resolution (maybe with the bass turned down a bit too?) produce near perfection and sound superior to clean original LPs? I don’t know, nor are we likely to find out as such a release has not been announced.
LPs are supposedly coming next year and since Sean Magee and Steve Rooke, two of the engineers who worked on the project also are expert lathe operators (they’ve cut for Pure Pleasure, Warner Brothers, Steve Albini and others) and since Abbey Road has a very good sounding DMM lathe and since the full resolution files are right there, why wouldn’t they use the 192K/24 bit masters to produce the LPs? As The Doors box proved, once you’re at that resolution, it’s almost analog.
In the case of The Doors, the deteriorated tapes made a one pass digital transfer a necessity. The Beatles tapes are in excellent condition and the original tapes could be used to cut from analog but at this point in time you can be the powers that be prefer consistently across format lines to religious purity, so don’t expect AAA, though we can hope, as we can hope for fold-over laminated cover art as well done as the fold-over, laminated mini-LP CD sleeves complete with facsimiles of the original inner sleeves found in the mono box.
The Mono Masters
Given a choice of one box or the other, I’d opt for the mono box. For one thing, the transfers were apparently done without compression or augmented equalization. They are what’s on the tape, though again, the 192k/24 bit masters have been squeezed through the redbook CD sausage machine. The mono packaging is more authentic as well. The Beatles for instance, features a miniature duplicate of the laminated, double gatefold “top loader” fold-over jacket complete with black inner sleeves, individual color portraits and fold-open poster.
The “stereo’ mixes of the first two albums, with vocals on one side and instruments on the other, produced that way to allow for vocal/instrumental balance to be adjusted later, sound interesting on the stereo box, but they sound fuller and whole in mono.
A Hard Day’s Night sound better in stereo than mono in my opinion but the mono mix is fine too. I prefer Help in stereo too (the original mix found on the mono box for sure!) but not everyone agrees with that. For Sale is preferable in stereo too, but again, the mono mix offers its own pleasures.
As for Rubber Soul and Revolver the complexities of the arrangements required track bouncing. Track bouncing made a true stereo mix difficult so you a lot hard/left right stuff as on the first few albums, so overall the original mono mixes really are preferable but nostalgiacs whose genes are now encoded with the stereo mixes will probably stick with those, though the original stereo mix of Rubber Soul found on the mono box is preferable.
The mono mixes are strikingly different from the stereo ones, particularly on the later, more complex productions as anyone who has them on vinyl knows. More than just mix differences, are differing takes and parts that are highlighted in the accompanying booklet, though most of those are on the earlier albums. Some people revel in hearing and exposing these difference, like where John fluffs a lyric on one version and not the other, but that kind of thing has never excited me so you’ll have to look elsewhere for a catalogue of those.
Not many Beatles fans have heard Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band or The Beatles in mono. These are the mixes upon which the band members lavished their full attention and that will be obvious when you hear them—not that there’s anything whatsoever wrong with the stereo mixes. When I compared the original stereo Parlophone LP with the new stereo CD, it wasn’t even close: the record is richer, fuller and far more tonally pleasing. Ditto the mono LP vs the new CD.
Oh, and you also get the original stereo mixes of Rubber Soul and Help! transferred from analog at 192k/24 bit, which you don’t get in the stereo box. Needless to say those two sound much better than the remixes found on the stereo box.
The Verdict
Both the packaging and sound of these two sets (the stereo albums are available separately) are digitized editions finally worthy of The Beatles. The packaging is superb, great care went into the mastering, which attempted to bump up the sound for modern ears without ruining the ride for those used to the original sound. In that the team has mostly succeeded.
The packaging of both boxes is truly deluxe and any Beatle fan, even those who own all of the original UK vinyl, will want to have these sets for the packaging enhancements alone.
Hopefully higher resolution digital and/or analog will follow. Sure, I’d prefer new vinyl cut from the analog originals and we can all lobby for it, but I doubt it will happen.
SOURCE: http://www.musicangle.com Reprinted By Permission
Music News & Notes
Mastodon Release Another Box Set Atlanta metal monsters Mastodon have already released their crust-prog opus Crack the Skye as one badass special edition, but next month, they'll turn it into another big box. Crack the Skye's "Royal Edition" is available only from Mastodon's website, and it'll ship on December 15. And it's pretty fancy.
The Royal Edition will include both the full-length Crack the Skye album on CD and the Crack the Skye score on a second CD. You'll also get an exclusive lithograph (the first few of which will be signed by the band) and instant downloads of live versions of "Divinations" and "Colony of Birchmen". It'll all come in a gold-stamped foiled digi-book with new art from longtime Mastodon cover artist Paul Romano.
Order it here: www.mastodonrocks.com
=========================
New Interpol Album Coming Next Year
Interpol haven't released a new album since 2007's middling Our Love to Admire. Since then, the members of the band have been pretty busy with extracurricular activities: singer Paul Banks' solo project Julian Plenti, bassist Carlos D's short film, drummer Sam Fogarino's band with Swervedriver's Adam Franklin, Magnetic Morning.
Now, Fogarino tells Paste that the snappily dressed NYC brooders spent spring 2009 recording a new album, which is due for release via Capitol early next year
=========================
JORN, WINGER, DANGER DANGER Limited-Edition Picture Discs Due In January
Inner Wound Recordings has announced the first releases on the label. JORN's "Spirit Black", DANGER DANGER's "Revolve" and WINGER's "Karma" will all be made available as limited 12" picture-disc editions, strictly limited to 250 copies. A deal was inked with the Italian label Frontiers Records and the release date is set for January 21 for the three releases. The discs are available for pre-order here: www.innerwound.com
=========================
Eminem Releasing “Relapse: The Refill” Instead of “Relapse 2 ” in December
Eminem will release Relapse: The Refill — and not Relapse 2 — on December 21st, the rapper announced on his official website yesterday. The Refill will include the entire Relapse, plus seven songs that didn’t make the album. The DJ Hero exclusive “Taking My Ball” and the Drake/Lil Wayne/Kanye/Eminem collaboration “Forever” will be included on Refill, Rap-Radar reports, with the other five songs being previously unreleased.
=========================
Starr and McCartney Duet on New Ringo Album
The new Ringo Starr album is a star-studded affair, with a visit from the only surviving Beatle as well as other famous musicians.
McCartney shares the lead on the albums first single, "Walk With You," which was composed by Starr and Van Dyke Parks and plays bass on the cut "Peace Dream."
Starr told the story of the McCartney collaboration on "Walk With You" in a press release:
"Paul was doing the Grammys, so he came over to the house and was playing bass on ‘Peace Dream.’ So I played him this other track and Paul said, ‘Give me the headphones. Give me a pair of cans.’ And he went to the mike and he just invented that part where he follows on my vocal. That was all Paul McCartney, and there could be nothing better."
Also included on the album, either performing and/or as a songwriter:
•Joe Walsh who co-wrote "Fill in the Blanks," the album's opener, and performs the song with Starr.
•Joss Stone
•Richard Marx
•Ben Harper
•Benmont Tench of Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers
•Dave Stewart
•Glen Ballard
The album is produced by Ringo who said in his statement
"I was the least involved in the production of the Beatle records and then with my solo records, I worked with some other great producers like Richard Perry, Arif Mardin, and Don Was. So it just seemed like that's the way that it goes. Then suddenly, it's another point in your life, and you say, 'I'm going do this now.' So I'll be producing anything I make from now on."
This Date In Music History-November 20
Birthdays:
Norman Greenbaum (1970 hit "Spirit in the Sky") - (1942)
Mike Vernon - leading producer of the British blues boom in the late '60s (Vernon produced discs by John Mayall, Fleetwood Mac, Chicken Shack, Duster Bennett, Savoy Brown, and Ten Years After) (1944)
Roy Stiles - Mud (1946)
George Grantham - Poco (1947)
Joe Walsh - James Gang and the Eagles (1947)
Gary Green - Gentle Giant (1950)
Robert Poss - Band of Susans (1956)
Jim Brown - UB40 (1957)
Gail Ann Dorsey - bass guitarist and vocalist. Worked with David Bowie from 1993-96, recorded and toured with Tears for Fears and has also worked with Bryan Ferry, Boy George, Gwen Stefani and Seal (1962)
Todd Nance - Widespread Panic (1962)
Mike D (real name Michael Diamond) Beastie Boy - (1965)
Sen Dog - Cypress Hill (1965)
Rapper Q- Tip (1970)
David Marchand (Davey Havok) - AFI (1975)
Jared Followill - Kings Of Leon (1986)
They Are Missed:
Born today in 1946, Duane Allman, guitar, Allman Brothers Band. Killed in a motorcycle accident on 29th October 1971.
Allan Sherman, the great comedian/songwriter whose album "My Son, the Folksinger," sold well over a million copies in the early sixties, died of respiratory ailments in 1973. He was 48.
Born on this day in 1966, Kevin Gilbert, multi instrumentalist, songwriter, Member of Giraffe, worked with Sheryl Crow, co- wrote "All I Want To Do." (died on May 17, 1996)
History:
In 1954, the bartenders' union in Hammond, IN, asked a local radio station, WJOB-AM, to stop playing the song "The Drunken Driver" by Ferlin Husky — about a drunken driver who kills two children — because it was hurting business. Amazing.....
The song that changed popular music history 'Rock Around The Clock' by Bill Haley & His Comets went to #1 on the UK singles chart in 1955. The song was used under the opening credits of the film Blackboard Jungle. The song entered the charts a further six times until 1974.
Also in 1955, Bo Diddley appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show television show. The show had requested that he sing his version of "Sixteen Tons," but, when he appeared on stage, he sang his own song "Bo Diddley," resulting in him being banned from further appearances on the show.
Alan Freed, refusing to say he never accepted payola, was fired from WABC television in New York in 1959.
In 1961, Billboard reported on the global Twist Craze: WOR-TV, New York, has shot a series of one and five minute "Twist Lessons" with Chubby Checker to be shown hourly every day. Checker has also been inked for a British-American film production; Joey Dee & the Starlighters, whose album, "Doin' the Twist at the Peppermint Lounge" was released this week, have signed for the Paramount film, "Hey, Let's Twist"; Dion has signed to star in Columbia's "Twist Around the Clock"; and in France there are 45 different "Twist" records on the the market. Let's all twist!
Bob Dylan began recording his self-titled debut album in 1961.
The Four Seasons' "Big Girls Don't Cry" was released on Vee Jay Records in 1962. It goes up to #1, as does their first hit, "Sherry." Both songs feature lead singer Frankie Valli's falsetto.
Simon and Garfunkel's "Sound of Silence" was released in 1965.
In 1967, the Beach Boys "Smiley Smile" album featuring the song "Vegetables," produced by Paul McCartney and the Beach Boys, was released in the UK on Capitol Records and in the US on the band's own Brothers label. Unfortunately, the album doesn't make it to the top 40 in either country and the single would not chart at all, demonstrating the Beach Boys dwindling popularity and sending leader Brian Wilson further into reclusiveness.
Also in 1967, Time Magazine, reviewing the Doors second album, "Strange Days," reported that the group's music "takes its listeners not only past such familiar landmarks of the youth odyssey as alienation and sex but, into symbolic realms of the unconscious — eerie night worlds filled with throbbing rhythms, shivery metallic tones, unsettling images." Umm, OK, smoke some more of whatever you are smoking.....The album will soon hit #3 on the national chart.
Strawberry Alarm Clock were at #1 on the US singles chart in 1967 with "Incense And Peppermints." What's he smoking?
The Monkees film 'Head' opened in six US cities in 1968. Reviews were harsh and the picture was a box office disaster.
For the second time in 1970, Kinks singer Ray Davies flew to London to re-record one word in a new Kinks' single. Back in June it was to change "Coca-Cola" to "Cherry Cola" in the song "Lola." This time, Ray has to change a line from "Apeman," "The air pollution is a-foggin' up" which sounds too much like "a-fuckin."
In 1971, "Inner City Blues" became the third R&B #1 single from Marvin Gaye's, "What's Goin' On" album. The others are the title track and "Mercy, Mercy Me." The LP represents the first time a major Motown artist has taken a public stand on controversial social issues.
"Theme from Shaft" by Isaac Hayes became his only U.S. chart-topping single in 1971
Also in 1971: Led Zeppelin played the first of two "Electric Magic" shows at London's Wembley Empire Pool. The shows incorporated trapeze artists, performing pigs, and vaudeville performers with Bronco, Stone the Crows, and the headliners. Tickets for the shows sold out in four minutes. Why not? It's a circus!
In 1975, drummer Keith Moon collapsed twice during the first date of the Who's US tour, in San Francisco. First, he falls over his set during "Won't Get Fooled Again." Then after being tended to backstage, Moon plays for another ten minutes before he's carried off again, allegedly due to 'jet lag.' So, Pete Townsend asks for a volunteer from the crowd to replace him. The volunteer is Scot Halpin, then 19, who takes a shot of brandy and sits down at his idol Moon's drum kit. Halpin lasts for 3 songs, "Smokestack Lightning," "Naked Eye" and the anthem "My Generation."
George Harrison performed on Saturday Night Live (hosted by Paul Simon) in 1976. During the show, producer Lorne Michaels makes an appeal for the Beatles to re-form, saying he will pay them the union minimum to play on his show. Paul McCartney is currently staying with John Lennon at the Dakota and both see Michaels' plea, but they don't take him up on the jesting offer.
Manfred Mann's Earth Band's "Blinded by the Light" was released in 1976.
Barbra Streisand and Donna Summer were at #1 on the US singles chart in 1979 with "No More Tears, Enough Is Enough."
Prince's third movie, "Sign 'O' The Times" opened in 1987.
The Rolling Stones signed a $45 million deal with Virgin Records in 1991, making them rock's highest paid group thus far.
A new Beatles recording, "Free As a Bird," began airing on radio stations in 1995. The song had debuted on ABC-TV the night before.
In 1998 - Alanis Morissette did an in store performance for the opening of a Tower records store in Buenos Aires. The proceeds from the sale of her album for the day were donated to a local children's hospital.
The Kiss Deluxe Edition 5 disc box set was released in 2001. The set included 92 tracks.
Madonna's childhood home in Oakland County Michigan, sold at an auction in 2001, in just 12 minutes. The house, along with a few items of Rock memorabilia was purchased for $331,000.
In 2005, Robbie Williams smashed a Guinness World Record by selling more than 1.6 million tickets for his 2006 World Tour in one day.
U2 were profiled on CBS' 60 Minutes in 2005.
Also in 2005, the Foo Fighters released a six-track EP that's only available at Best Buy retailers. There's a live rendition of "Best of You," a demo version of "D.O.A." and a cover of Cream's "I Feel Free."
In 2007, Radiohead frontman Thom Yorke admitted he was among the thousands of people who paid nothing to download the band's latest album In Rainbows. Speaking to BBC 6 Music's Steve Lamacq, Yorke said: "There wasn't any point. I just move some money from one pocket to the other." According to one survey, three in five people paid nothing at all for it. Yorke added that no one was allowed to have copies of the master recording in case it was leaked beforehand.
Norman Greenbaum (1970 hit "Spirit in the Sky") - (1942)
Mike Vernon - leading producer of the British blues boom in the late '60s (Vernon produced discs by John Mayall, Fleetwood Mac, Chicken Shack, Duster Bennett, Savoy Brown, and Ten Years After) (1944)
Roy Stiles - Mud (1946)
George Grantham - Poco (1947)
Joe Walsh - James Gang and the Eagles (1947)
Gary Green - Gentle Giant (1950)
Robert Poss - Band of Susans (1956)
Jim Brown - UB40 (1957)
Gail Ann Dorsey - bass guitarist and vocalist. Worked with David Bowie from 1993-96, recorded and toured with Tears for Fears and has also worked with Bryan Ferry, Boy George, Gwen Stefani and Seal (1962)
Todd Nance - Widespread Panic (1962)
Mike D (real name Michael Diamond) Beastie Boy - (1965)
Sen Dog - Cypress Hill (1965)
Rapper Q- Tip (1970)
David Marchand (Davey Havok) - AFI (1975)
Jared Followill - Kings Of Leon (1986)
They Are Missed:
Born today in 1946, Duane Allman, guitar, Allman Brothers Band. Killed in a motorcycle accident on 29th October 1971.
Allan Sherman, the great comedian/songwriter whose album "My Son, the Folksinger," sold well over a million copies in the early sixties, died of respiratory ailments in 1973. He was 48.
Born on this day in 1966, Kevin Gilbert, multi instrumentalist, songwriter, Member of Giraffe, worked with Sheryl Crow, co- wrote "All I Want To Do." (died on May 17, 1996)
History:
In 1954, the bartenders' union in Hammond, IN, asked a local radio station, WJOB-AM, to stop playing the song "The Drunken Driver" by Ferlin Husky — about a drunken driver who kills two children — because it was hurting business. Amazing.....
The song that changed popular music history 'Rock Around The Clock' by Bill Haley & His Comets went to #1 on the UK singles chart in 1955. The song was used under the opening credits of the film Blackboard Jungle. The song entered the charts a further six times until 1974.
Also in 1955, Bo Diddley appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show television show. The show had requested that he sing his version of "Sixteen Tons," but, when he appeared on stage, he sang his own song "Bo Diddley," resulting in him being banned from further appearances on the show.
Alan Freed, refusing to say he never accepted payola, was fired from WABC television in New York in 1959.
In 1961, Billboard reported on the global Twist Craze: WOR-TV, New York, has shot a series of one and five minute "Twist Lessons" with Chubby Checker to be shown hourly every day. Checker has also been inked for a British-American film production; Joey Dee & the Starlighters, whose album, "Doin' the Twist at the Peppermint Lounge" was released this week, have signed for the Paramount film, "Hey, Let's Twist"; Dion has signed to star in Columbia's "Twist Around the Clock"; and in France there are 45 different "Twist" records on the the market. Let's all twist!
Bob Dylan began recording his self-titled debut album in 1961.
The Four Seasons' "Big Girls Don't Cry" was released on Vee Jay Records in 1962. It goes up to #1, as does their first hit, "Sherry." Both songs feature lead singer Frankie Valli's falsetto.
Simon and Garfunkel's "Sound of Silence" was released in 1965.
In 1967, the Beach Boys "Smiley Smile" album featuring the song "Vegetables," produced by Paul McCartney and the Beach Boys, was released in the UK on Capitol Records and in the US on the band's own Brothers label. Unfortunately, the album doesn't make it to the top 40 in either country and the single would not chart at all, demonstrating the Beach Boys dwindling popularity and sending leader Brian Wilson further into reclusiveness.
Also in 1967, Time Magazine, reviewing the Doors second album, "Strange Days," reported that the group's music "takes its listeners not only past such familiar landmarks of the youth odyssey as alienation and sex but, into symbolic realms of the unconscious — eerie night worlds filled with throbbing rhythms, shivery metallic tones, unsettling images." Umm, OK, smoke some more of whatever you are smoking.....The album will soon hit #3 on the national chart.
Strawberry Alarm Clock were at #1 on the US singles chart in 1967 with "Incense And Peppermints." What's he smoking?
The Monkees film 'Head' opened in six US cities in 1968. Reviews were harsh and the picture was a box office disaster.
For the second time in 1970, Kinks singer Ray Davies flew to London to re-record one word in a new Kinks' single. Back in June it was to change "Coca-Cola" to "Cherry Cola" in the song "Lola." This time, Ray has to change a line from "Apeman," "The air pollution is a-foggin' up" which sounds too much like "a-fuckin."
In 1971, "Inner City Blues" became the third R&B #1 single from Marvin Gaye's, "What's Goin' On" album. The others are the title track and "Mercy, Mercy Me." The LP represents the first time a major Motown artist has taken a public stand on controversial social issues.
"Theme from Shaft" by Isaac Hayes became his only U.S. chart-topping single in 1971
Also in 1971: Led Zeppelin played the first of two "Electric Magic" shows at London's Wembley Empire Pool. The shows incorporated trapeze artists, performing pigs, and vaudeville performers with Bronco, Stone the Crows, and the headliners. Tickets for the shows sold out in four minutes. Why not? It's a circus!
In 1975, drummer Keith Moon collapsed twice during the first date of the Who's US tour, in San Francisco. First, he falls over his set during "Won't Get Fooled Again." Then after being tended to backstage, Moon plays for another ten minutes before he's carried off again, allegedly due to 'jet lag.' So, Pete Townsend asks for a volunteer from the crowd to replace him. The volunteer is Scot Halpin, then 19, who takes a shot of brandy and sits down at his idol Moon's drum kit. Halpin lasts for 3 songs, "Smokestack Lightning," "Naked Eye" and the anthem "My Generation."
George Harrison performed on Saturday Night Live (hosted by Paul Simon) in 1976. During the show, producer Lorne Michaels makes an appeal for the Beatles to re-form, saying he will pay them the union minimum to play on his show. Paul McCartney is currently staying with John Lennon at the Dakota and both see Michaels' plea, but they don't take him up on the jesting offer.
Manfred Mann's Earth Band's "Blinded by the Light" was released in 1976.
Barbra Streisand and Donna Summer were at #1 on the US singles chart in 1979 with "No More Tears, Enough Is Enough."
Prince's third movie, "Sign 'O' The Times" opened in 1987.
The Rolling Stones signed a $45 million deal with Virgin Records in 1991, making them rock's highest paid group thus far.
A new Beatles recording, "Free As a Bird," began airing on radio stations in 1995. The song had debuted on ABC-TV the night before.
In 1998 - Alanis Morissette did an in store performance for the opening of a Tower records store in Buenos Aires. The proceeds from the sale of her album for the day were donated to a local children's hospital.
The Kiss Deluxe Edition 5 disc box set was released in 2001. The set included 92 tracks.
Madonna's childhood home in Oakland County Michigan, sold at an auction in 2001, in just 12 minutes. The house, along with a few items of Rock memorabilia was purchased for $331,000.
In 2005, Robbie Williams smashed a Guinness World Record by selling more than 1.6 million tickets for his 2006 World Tour in one day.
U2 were profiled on CBS' 60 Minutes in 2005.
Also in 2005, the Foo Fighters released a six-track EP that's only available at Best Buy retailers. There's a live rendition of "Best of You," a demo version of "D.O.A." and a cover of Cream's "I Feel Free."
In 2007, Radiohead frontman Thom Yorke admitted he was among the thousands of people who paid nothing to download the band's latest album In Rainbows. Speaking to BBC 6 Music's Steve Lamacq, Yorke said: "There wasn't any point. I just move some money from one pocket to the other." According to one survey, three in five people paid nothing at all for it. Yorke added that no one was allowed to have copies of the master recording in case it was leaked beforehand.
Thursday, November 19, 2009
Music Review John Mayall
Mayall's 50+ year career has resulted in nearly 60 albums and a constantly rotating group that has been a who's who of blues and rock practitioners.
John Mayall - Tough - Eagle ***
(John Mayall - vocals, piano, organ, harmonica, 12- & 6-string guitar; Rocky Athas - guitar; Greg Rzab - bass; Tom Canning - piano, organ, backing vocals; Jay Davenport - drums; Maggie Mayall - backing vocals)
British blues legend John Mayall is familiar - or certainly should be - to anyone who has listened to blues music. Mayall's 50+ year career has resulted in nearly 60 albums (which does not include numerous compilations and collections) and a constantly rotating group that has been a who's who of blues and rock practitioners. Artists who have moved through the Bluesbreakers and later Mayall bands include Eric Clapton, Clapton's fellow Cream compatriot Jack Bruce, former Rolling Stones guitarist Mick Taylor, Fleetwood Mac founders Mick Fleetwood, John McVie and Peter Green, Free's Andy Fraser and guitarists Coco Montoya and Walter Trout.
Mayall is now in his mid-70s but on listening to his latest sojourn, Tough, its evident that a few things have stayed consistent throughout Mayall's multi-decade musical journey. One: Mayall believes the blues is a vital form of expression and a living experience. Two: Mayall continues his long history of working with and/or developing notable blues musicians. Three: his brand of blues, while not progressive, does give the people what they want.
On this 11-track outing, Mayall has formed a sharp-edged quintet. Texas guitar icon Rocky Athas has been a big draw on the blues circuit since the '70s and worked alongside Queen's Brian May, Stevie Ray Vaughan and has been a member of southern boogie aces Black Oak Arkansas. Chicago-based bassist Greg Rzab has previously played with Mayall, has backed Buddy Guy and appeared with or recorded with The Black Crowes and others. Rzab, in turn, recommended fellow Windy City drummer Jay Davenport, who has gigged with various northern blues colleagues. Keyboardist Tom Canning is a long-time Bluesbreakers alum and has done sessions with too many artists to list here. Together, this is one convincing blues-rock assemblage.
Mayall and his newest gathering galvanize through songs that look at fate, regret, the struggle of life and love, and finally redemption. Thematically its typical blues fare, from pain to hope, and Mayall manages to bring out the best on what could have been a set of cliched blues tropes.
While Mayall only wrote 3 compositions, they are top notch pieces. His autobiographical "Slow Train to Nowhere" is a heartfelt examination of the futility of hard partying and drinking at every bar in town, highlighted by Athas' piercing guitar lines and a keyboard duet between Mayall and Canning. The out-and-out rocker "That Good Old Rockin' Blues" unapologetically praises upbeat electric blues and old-fashioned rock and roll as it discards rap, modern rock and other contemporary genres, with strong contributions coming from Mayall's Southside Chicago-styled harmonica, Athas' riffing six-string and a bouncing groove provided by Davenport and Rzab. Mayall's most effective conception, though, is the album's lengthiest cut, the low-down slow blues stimulator "Tough Times Ahead," a commentary on the debilitated economy, and the loss of jobs and homes, but which is nevertheless cloaked with an underlying optimism. Athas again supplies unadorned but potent guitar solos.
Mayall gets funky on "Just What You're Looking For," a Peter Harper mediation on how drugs, money and other temptations can lead toward self-deception and misguided dependence. While the others keep a loose groove, Canning and Mayall wield dueling Hammond B-3 organs. Another winner is Curtis Salgado's closer, "The Sum of Something," an easy-loping, 12-bar shuffle that has a life-affirming naturalness brought alive via Athas' guitar, rollicking drums, jazzy organ and a trace of juke joint piano.
The weakest portion of Mayall's releases is his voice, which often cannot carry the emotive weight of the lyrics and rarely match his and other players' instrumental prowess. Mayall sings satisfactorily throughout Tough, but his vocals lack a prominent bite or a passionate pulse. As others have noted, Mayall is no Robert Johnson or Otis Rush. On Tough, Mayall does not re-invent the music that has influenced him, but ultimately this approximately hour-long effort showcases an excellent band that furnishes just the sort of accustomed electric blues-rock that fans can enjoy.
TrackList:
1. Nothing to Do with Love
2. Just What You're Looking For
3. Playing with a Losing Hand
4. An Eye for an Eye
5. How Far Down
6. Train to my Heart
7. Slow Train to Nowhere
8. Numbers Down
9. That Good Old Rockin' Blues
10. Tough Times Ahead
11. The Sum of Something
Review By -- Doug Simpson
I want to thank John over at http://www.audaud.com/index.php for the exclusive rights to reprint this great review!
Music News & Notes
The Bouncing Souls Release Fourth and Final 20 Year Anniversary 7-Inch
2009 has been an important and busy year for New Jersey natives, THE BOUNCING SOULS. They've celebrated 20 years of vibrant, heartfelt punk rock, with plenty of special treats for fans old and new.
It was almost 16 years ago that THE BOUNCING SOULS put out their first album on their very own Chunksaah Records, and in a true return to the DIY spirit in which they began, THE BOUNCING SOULS have self-released a new 7” every third month of 2009 on Chunksaah, now handing us their fourth and final of the year.
The Bouncing Souls' latest 7-inch release was produced by Ted Hutt (Gaslight Anthem, Flogging Molly, Street Dogs) with cover artwork collaboration between Bouncing Souls bassist, Bryan Kienlen, and Arturo Vega, artistic director for The Ramones. Pressing Info: Mailorder: 800 pcs - black and white vinyl / Tour: 1000 pcs - black and red splatter / Retail: 1000 pcs - white vinyl
TRACK LISTING:
1. Like the Sun
2. Big Eyes
3. When You're Young / Never Say Die
4. Ghosts On The Boardwalk (acoustic)
============================
AEROSMITH Bandmates Fear STEVEN TYLER Is 'Struggling Very Badly'
The Pulse of Radio reports: The AEROSMITH drama continues as the rest of the band considers potentially moving forward without frontman Steven Tyler, amid rumors that the singer has gone back to the bad habits that nearly derailed him and the band in their early days. AEROSMITH guitarist Brad Whitford doesn't count out the possibility that Tyler has lapsed back into using drugs, as he told The Pulse of Radio. "This guy has a tremendous history of drug abuse, and you have to be suspicious that this is something that is probably going on with him," he said. "I think that that's got to be a part of this irrational behavior, you know. You're supposed to — people in recovery and stuff, if you're really doing it, it takes a lot of work. Historically or statistically, the majority of people in that situation don't make it. I have a feeling we might be looking at, you know, someone who's just really struggling very badly with this."
Tyler has been estranged from the band since August, when he fell from a stage in South Dakota and forced the group to cancel the rest of its summer tour.
The other members have revealed that Tyler has his own management, and that none of them have had any contact with him in months.
The singer told Classic Rock magazine several weeks ago that he wants to take two years off to work on "Brand Tyler."
Drummer Joey Kramer admits that the rest of the band aren't sure how to proceed, but says they all want to keep playing together: "You know, getting someone else is one of the questions. We all know that there's really no way to replace Steven, but we want to continue touring together. We even have a 40-year anniversary coming up and it's a milestone. We want to be able to celebrate it together and there's millions of fans out there that are dedicated to us."
Tyler joined guitarist Joe Perry onstage in New York last week while the latter was touring with his JOE PERRY PROJECT solo band, telling the crowd that he wasn't quitting AEROSMITH. Perry, however, said after the show that the band's problems were far from over.
Both Perry and Kramer specifically declined to discuss the rumors about Tyler's drug use, although Kramer told The Pulse of Radio he hopes his bandmate "gets some help."
For Aerosmith's sake, I hope he does too.
============================
Bon Jovi Claims Second Consecutive Number One Album
Bon Jovi has jumped to the top of the Billboard album charts with their new album, The Circle. The followup to 2007's Lost Highway is the second consecutive album for the group that has debuted at the top. Overall, the group has had four number one albums with their other two coming from the 80's (Slippery When Wet (1986) and New Jersey (1988)).
The Circle sold 163,000 copies in its first week of release, quite a bit lower than the 292,000 Lost Highway moved upon its debut.
============================
Stone Temple Pilots Postpone Tour Dates to Finish New Album
Stone Temple Pilots will spend the rest of 2009 in the studio. Scott Weiland and Co. have postponed the remaining U.S. dates on their tour to get to work on “their highly anticipated record, which will be coming out in the early spring of next year,” the reunited band announced on their official Website.
============================
Ringo's new CD Y Not available on January 12
The new Ringo Starr album/CD will be entitled "Y Not". It will be released on Jan 12, 2010 on Hip-O/Universal Records.
This will be Ringo's 7th release for the Universal label. His first release was Scouse The Mouse Soundtrack (Polydor/Universal), followed by Vertical Man (Mercury/Universal), VH1 Storytellers (Mercury/Universal) and I Wanna be Santa Claus (Mercury/Universal). Rotogravure and Ringo The 4th were released on Polydor/Universal in the UK.
Reportedly, Gary Wright has commented that Paul McCartney plays bass on at least one track, and the album features some members of the last All-Starr Band, including Gary, Colin Hay and maybe Billy Squier.
Wednesday, November 18, 2009
Ask Mr. Music by Jerry Osborne
I am continuing our new feature: Ask "Mr. Music." Now in its 23rd year of syndication (1986-2009), Jerry Osborne's weekly Q&A feature will be a regular post every Wednesday from now on. Be sure to stop by Jerry's site (www.jerryosborne.com) for more Mr. Music archives, record price guides, anything Elvis, buy & sell collectibles, record appraisals and much more. I thank Jerry for allowing the reprints.
FOR THE WEEK OF NOVEMBER 16, 2009
DEAR JERRY: I bought “Come Softly to Me,” by the Fleetwoods, the first time I heard it, and it was on the Dolphin label.
The next time I visited the record store, they had the same Fleetwoods record, but on a label that looked almost identical to my Dolphin copy; however, the name was changed to Dolton.
What is the story behind this sudden change? As a result, is one version more valuable than the other?
—Barry Duchan, Chapel Hill, N.C.
DEAR BARRY: Besides being the Fleetwoods founder, and co-writer of “Come Softly to Me,” gracious Gretchen Christopher is also a long-time friend who is always willing to discuss the Fleetwoods.
As to the origin of Dolphin, Gretchen explains:
“When Bob Reisdorff, the Seattle-based record promoter first heard my home recording of “Come Softly,” he said it would sell a million copies. I didn't know if he was joking or not, but it eventually did just that.”
But first they needed a record label, so Bob came up with Dolphin. He based his choice on nothing other than a love for dolphins. There was no lengthy thought or deliberation involved.
Not wanting even a hint of double entendre in the title, they expanded “Come Softly” to “Come Softly to Me.”
Continues Gretchen: “In February 1959 “Come Softly to Me,” the first release on the new label, became Dolphin No. 1. Ultimately, it would also be the last Dolphin record.
“Reisdorff began by having just a few hundred records made, some of which went to dee jays in western Washington, especially Bob's friends in the Seattle area.
“A wise move, since “Come Softly to Me” quickly soared in the Seattle-Tacoma market. In just a few weeks, it held the No. 1 spot locally.
“With the increased demand for the single came the necessity for national distribution, so Bob arranged for that with Liberty Records in L.A.
“Second Dolphin pressings of “Come Softly to Me” reflect this arrangement by stating “Distributed by Liberty Record Sales Corp” on the labels.
“Our sudden success resulted in a great deal of mail from fans, along with one unanticipated letter from Doubleday book publishers in New York. Turns out they, since 1955, owned a record company named Dolphin, which we didn't know about at the time. Doubleday asked Reisdorff to change the name of his label.”
If that weren't motivation enough, there were rumblings that Dolphin's record store in Los Angeles may try to stop the Fleetwoods' use of the name.
Rather than devote time, energy and finances to this mess, Bob kept the D-O-L and the N, added a TO, and their new name became Dolton — a unique word with no meaning or significance whatsoever.
Other than the name change, nothing else about the printed label changed. Even the three-fish Dolphin logo remained unchanged.
Meanwhile, Liberty responded to the brouhaha by issuing “Come Softly to Me” on the parent label (Liberty 55188).
Beginning with the group's second record, “Graduation's Here” (Dolton 3), their next 20 singles (Nos. 3 through 315) came out on Dolton. All but five made the national charts between 1959 and '65.
“Come Softly to Me,” issued on Dolphin and Liberty, does not exist on Dolton. It remains the only record ever released on Reisdorff's Dolphin label.
I can't think of another nationwide No. 1 hit on a label that made only that one record.
Copies of the first Dolphin pressing, with no mention of distribution by Liberty, are in the $30 to $50 range. They are mostly found in Washington.
Since a million or more sold with “Distributed by Liberty Record Sales Corp.,” they can easily be had for around $10.
The Liberty single comes in both mono ($15 to $25), and a rare stereo single ($50 to $75).
Rarest of the bunch is the first Canadian pressing (London 17056) on 78 rpm, which came out with the original title “Come Softly” ($150 to $250) — a variation not found on any U.S. issues.
IZ ZAT SO? While speaking with Gretchen, I asked about the different addresses shown at the bottom of the Dolphin and Dolton labels. Here's what we now know:
Dolphin No. 1, and Dolton 2 through 13, show the address as “708-6th Ave. No., Seattle 9, Washington.”
Since Dolton did not yet have an office, they used the location of Northwest Record Distributors. This gave customers a source where orders could be placed.
On Dolton 14 through 30, the address changes to “422 Union St., Seattle 1, Washington U.S.A.”
Dolton finally got their own office, conveniently in the same building as Northwest Recording Studio, where the Dolton artists recorded.
Jerry Osborne answers as many questions as possible through this column. Write Jerry at Box 255, Port Townsend, WA 98368, e-mail: jpo@olympus.net, or visit his Web site: www.jerryosborne.com. All values quoted in this column are for near-mint condition.
Copyright 2009 Osbourne Enterprises- Reprinted By Permission
FOR THE WEEK OF NOVEMBER 16, 2009
DEAR JERRY: I bought “Come Softly to Me,” by the Fleetwoods, the first time I heard it, and it was on the Dolphin label.
The next time I visited the record store, they had the same Fleetwoods record, but on a label that looked almost identical to my Dolphin copy; however, the name was changed to Dolton.
What is the story behind this sudden change? As a result, is one version more valuable than the other?
—Barry Duchan, Chapel Hill, N.C.
DEAR BARRY: Besides being the Fleetwoods founder, and co-writer of “Come Softly to Me,” gracious Gretchen Christopher is also a long-time friend who is always willing to discuss the Fleetwoods.
As to the origin of Dolphin, Gretchen explains:
“When Bob Reisdorff, the Seattle-based record promoter first heard my home recording of “Come Softly,” he said it would sell a million copies. I didn't know if he was joking or not, but it eventually did just that.”
But first they needed a record label, so Bob came up with Dolphin. He based his choice on nothing other than a love for dolphins. There was no lengthy thought or deliberation involved.
Not wanting even a hint of double entendre in the title, they expanded “Come Softly” to “Come Softly to Me.”
Continues Gretchen: “In February 1959 “Come Softly to Me,” the first release on the new label, became Dolphin No. 1. Ultimately, it would also be the last Dolphin record.
“Reisdorff began by having just a few hundred records made, some of which went to dee jays in western Washington, especially Bob's friends in the Seattle area.
“A wise move, since “Come Softly to Me” quickly soared in the Seattle-Tacoma market. In just a few weeks, it held the No. 1 spot locally.
“With the increased demand for the single came the necessity for national distribution, so Bob arranged for that with Liberty Records in L.A.
“Second Dolphin pressings of “Come Softly to Me” reflect this arrangement by stating “Distributed by Liberty Record Sales Corp” on the labels.
“Our sudden success resulted in a great deal of mail from fans, along with one unanticipated letter from Doubleday book publishers in New York. Turns out they, since 1955, owned a record company named Dolphin, which we didn't know about at the time. Doubleday asked Reisdorff to change the name of his label.”
If that weren't motivation enough, there were rumblings that Dolphin's record store in Los Angeles may try to stop the Fleetwoods' use of the name.
Rather than devote time, energy and finances to this mess, Bob kept the D-O-L and the N, added a TO, and their new name became Dolton — a unique word with no meaning or significance whatsoever.
Other than the name change, nothing else about the printed label changed. Even the three-fish Dolphin logo remained unchanged.
Meanwhile, Liberty responded to the brouhaha by issuing “Come Softly to Me” on the parent label (Liberty 55188).
Beginning with the group's second record, “Graduation's Here” (Dolton 3), their next 20 singles (Nos. 3 through 315) came out on Dolton. All but five made the national charts between 1959 and '65.
“Come Softly to Me,” issued on Dolphin and Liberty, does not exist on Dolton. It remains the only record ever released on Reisdorff's Dolphin label.
I can't think of another nationwide No. 1 hit on a label that made only that one record.
Copies of the first Dolphin pressing, with no mention of distribution by Liberty, are in the $30 to $50 range. They are mostly found in Washington.
Since a million or more sold with “Distributed by Liberty Record Sales Corp.,” they can easily be had for around $10.
The Liberty single comes in both mono ($15 to $25), and a rare stereo single ($50 to $75).
Rarest of the bunch is the first Canadian pressing (London 17056) on 78 rpm, which came out with the original title “Come Softly” ($150 to $250) — a variation not found on any U.S. issues.
IZ ZAT SO? While speaking with Gretchen, I asked about the different addresses shown at the bottom of the Dolphin and Dolton labels. Here's what we now know:
Dolphin No. 1, and Dolton 2 through 13, show the address as “708-6th Ave. No., Seattle 9, Washington.”
Since Dolton did not yet have an office, they used the location of Northwest Record Distributors. This gave customers a source where orders could be placed.
On Dolton 14 through 30, the address changes to “422 Union St., Seattle 1, Washington U.S.A.”
Dolton finally got their own office, conveniently in the same building as Northwest Recording Studio, where the Dolton artists recorded.
Jerry Osborne answers as many questions as possible through this column. Write Jerry at Box 255, Port Townsend, WA 98368, e-mail: jpo@olympus.net, or visit his Web site: www.jerryosborne.com. All values quoted in this column are for near-mint condition.
Copyright 2009 Osbourne Enterprises- Reprinted By Permission
Music News & Notes
Tom Waits Delivers Orphans To Vinyl
Glide Magazine.com reports that Tom Waits' gold-certified triple-disc masterpiece ORPHANS: BRAWLERS, BAWLERS & BASTARDS (Anti-) will be reinvented on December 8 as a limited edition vinyl set, complete with a deluxe 12" booklet and six new bonus cuts. The collection totals 62 tracks over seven full length LPs, all pressed on 180 gram vinyl. (In the original CD collection, the package contained 30 new recordings which have now been upped to 32 with two newly recorded tracks as part of the bonus 6 on the vinyl set.)
An assemblage of rare, new and mostly unheard tracks, ORPHANS includes irreverent--or, rather, remarkably relevant-covers of songs by artists as disparate as the Ramones and Leadbelly, along with WAITS compositions originally recorded by other artists. Waits' selections dazzle as sonic experiments and twisted tales.
WAITS says, "Orphans are rough and tender tunes. Rhumbas about mermaids, shuffles about train wrecks, tarantellas about insects, madrigrals about drowning. Scared, mean, orphaned songs of rapture and melancholy. Songs that grew up hard. Songs of dubious origin rescued from cruel fate and now left wanting only to be cared for. Show that you are not afraid and take them home. They don't bite, they just need attention."
================================
Faces Going On the Road Without Rod
Billboard has revealed that the Faces are going on the road but without lead Rod Stewart.
Keyboardist Ian McLagan talked to the magazine about the band's plans, saying they are looking at a spring tour, but Stewart won't be coming along. "If we don't do it very soon, one of us is gonna check out. I'm 64, for chrissakes! We've been waiting and waiting for Rod to say yes; now he's finally said no. He's busy doing other shit. So we're gonna do it."
That other stuff Rod is doing is a 2010 tour to promote his new album Soulbook.
As far as who will join McLagan, guitarist Ron Wood and drummer Kenney Jones is still up-in-the-air. Bill Wyman played with the group at their recent reunion in London, but most likely won't be going on the road as he is not a fan of flying. The top of the list at the moment, per McLagan, is former Sex Pistol Glenn Matlock.
Glide Magazine.com reports that Tom Waits' gold-certified triple-disc masterpiece ORPHANS: BRAWLERS, BAWLERS & BASTARDS (Anti-) will be reinvented on December 8 as a limited edition vinyl set, complete with a deluxe 12" booklet and six new bonus cuts. The collection totals 62 tracks over seven full length LPs, all pressed on 180 gram vinyl. (In the original CD collection, the package contained 30 new recordings which have now been upped to 32 with two newly recorded tracks as part of the bonus 6 on the vinyl set.)
An assemblage of rare, new and mostly unheard tracks, ORPHANS includes irreverent--or, rather, remarkably relevant-covers of songs by artists as disparate as the Ramones and Leadbelly, along with WAITS compositions originally recorded by other artists. Waits' selections dazzle as sonic experiments and twisted tales.
WAITS says, "Orphans are rough and tender tunes. Rhumbas about mermaids, shuffles about train wrecks, tarantellas about insects, madrigrals about drowning. Scared, mean, orphaned songs of rapture and melancholy. Songs that grew up hard. Songs of dubious origin rescued from cruel fate and now left wanting only to be cared for. Show that you are not afraid and take them home. They don't bite, they just need attention."
================================
Faces Going On the Road Without Rod
Billboard has revealed that the Faces are going on the road but without lead Rod Stewart.
Keyboardist Ian McLagan talked to the magazine about the band's plans, saying they are looking at a spring tour, but Stewart won't be coming along. "If we don't do it very soon, one of us is gonna check out. I'm 64, for chrissakes! We've been waiting and waiting for Rod to say yes; now he's finally said no. He's busy doing other shit. So we're gonna do it."
That other stuff Rod is doing is a 2010 tour to promote his new album Soulbook.
As far as who will join McLagan, guitarist Ron Wood and drummer Kenney Jones is still up-in-the-air. Bill Wyman played with the group at their recent reunion in London, but most likely won't be going on the road as he is not a fan of flying. The top of the list at the moment, per McLagan, is former Sex Pistol Glenn Matlock.
This Date In Music History-November 18
Birthdays:
Herman Rarebell - Scorpions (1949)
Graham Parker - The Rumour (1950)
Rudy Sarzo - Whitesnake (1950)
John McFee - Doobie Brothers (1953)
John Parr - (1985 #1 single "St Elmo's Fire") (1954)
Charles Williams - KC and the Sunshine Band (1954)
Kim Wilde (1960)
Kirk Hammett - Metallica (1962)
Tim DeLaughter - Tripping Daisy (1965)
Duncan Sheik (1969)
Rapper Fabolous (1977)
They Are Missed:
Memphis blues singer and musician Herman 'Junior' Parker died in 1971 (age 39) during surgery for a brain tumor. Parker was discovered in 1952 by Ike Turner, who signed him to Modern Records. Parker then signed to Sun Records in 1953.
Danny Whitten died of a drug overdose in 1972 (age 29). Member of Neil Young's Crazy Horse and writer of "I Don't Wanna Talk About It," covered by Rod Stewart, Rita Coolidge and Everything But The Girl. Whitten was later memorialized in Neil Young's anti-drug album, Tonight's the Night, released in 1975.
Songwriter Johnny Mercer, whose more than 1,500 songs included such classics as "One for My Baby" and "Blues in the Night," was born in Savannah, Georgia in 1909 (died June 25, 1976)
Hi-de-hi-de-hi-de-hi bandleader Cab Calloway died in 1994. The "Minnie the Moocher" singer was 86. (born December 25, 1907)
Born today in 1936, Don Cherry, jazz musician, stepdaughter & father of Neneh and Eagle Eye Cherry (died October 19, 1995).
Texas music legend Doug Sahm was discovered dead in a hotel room in Taos, N.M. in 1999. His biggest hit was "She's About a Mover" with the Sir Douglas Quintet (born November 6, 1941).
Born on this day in 1936, Hank Ballard, singer/songwriter, wrote 1960 #1 hit for Chubby Checker "The Twist" (died March 2, 2003)
Composer and orchestral arranger Michael Kamen died of a heart attack in London in 2003 (age 55). Worked with Pink Floyd, Queen, Eric Clapton, Roger Daltrey, Aerosmith, Tom Petty, David Bowie, Rush, Metallica and many others. Kamen also co-wrote Bryan Adams' ballad "(Everything I Do) I Do It for You."
Celebrity publicist Paul Wasserman died in 2007 of respiratory failure (age 73). His clients included the Rolling Stones, The Who, Bob Dylan, Neil Diamond, Paul Simon, Tom Petty and James Taylor. His career ended in 2000, when he was jailed for six months for swindling some of his friends by falsely claiming to be selling shares in investment schemes that he said were backed by stars like U2.
History:
Fats Domino appeared on the Ed Sullivan show in 1956 singing his hit "Blueberry Hill."
In 1963, the Beatles received silver LP discs for "Please Please Me" and "With the Beatles" at a ceremony held at EMI House in London. They also received a silver EP for "Twist and Shout" and a silver single for "She Loves You." The band then attend a cocktail party and a formal lunch in the EMI boardroom with company executives and invited guests.
Also in 1963, according to today's English newspapers, a priest requested the Beatles record a Christmas song. Manager Brian Epstein also issued a press release requesting fans not throw anything at the stage during the Beatles' concerts.
Pink Floyd released their third single, "Apples and Oranges," in 1967.
In 1968, Glen Campbell, a former session musician for Frank Sinatra, Nat "King" Cole and the Beach Boys, received two gold records - one for "By The Time I Get To Phoenix" and one for "Gentle On My Mind."
Jerry Lee Lewis and wife Myra Brown were divorced in Memphis in 1970. Brown claims her marriage "has turned into a nightmare." The marriage started with controversy: she is his cousin and was just fourteen when they married.
Cat Stevens started a three-week run at #1 on the US album chart in 1972 with the LP "Catch Bull At Four."
Bruce Springsteen made his live debut in the UK at London's Hammersmith Odeon in 1975.
Seminal punk rockers Richard Hell and the Voidoids made their debut at CBGB's New York in 1976.
Billy Joel’s “52nd Street,” containing “My Life” and “Big Shot,” began an eight week run at #1 on the US album chart in 1978.
The B-52's self-titled debut went gold in 1980. The group was indirectly responsible for John Lennon's return to music later in the year: when Lennon heard the B-52's, he realized the time was right to get back into music.
In 1983, R.E.M. made their first appearance outside the US when they appeared on Channel 4 UK TV show "The Tube." The following night they made their live UK debut when the played at Dingwalls, London.
U2 opened for itself in 1987— pretending to be a country-rock group called the Dalton Brothers — during a concert in Los Angeles.
Songwriter Diane Warren had the #1 and #2 singles on the US chart in 1989 with "When I See You Smile" by Bad English followed by "Blame It On the Rain," by Milli Vanilli.
Paul McCartney's birth certificate sold for $18,000 at an auction in 1990.
Nirvana recorded their MTV unplugged special at Sony Studios, New York in 1993.
The first live rock concert was streamed on the Internet in 1995 (twenty minutes of the Rolling Stones from Dallas, Texas).
John Denver's last recording, "The Unplugged Collection," was released in the US in 1997.
The AC/DC five-CD boxed set, "Bonfire" was released in the US in 1997.
Britney Spears scored her second #1 album in 2001 with "Britney."
"Let It Be ... Naked," a version of the Beatles final album with Phil Spector's overdubs removed and an altered track-listing lands in stores in 2003.
John Lennon's handwritten lyrics to the Beatles' "Nowhere Man" sold for over $300,000 at a New York auction in 2003.
Blink 182’s self-titled album "Feeling This" was released in 2003.
Following allegations of sexual abuse of a 12-year old boy, police raided Michael Jackson's Neverland ranch in 2003. Jackson denied the allegations, the search came on the day that his latest greatest hits album, 'Number Ones' was released in the US.
The Johnny Cash biographical movie "Walk The Line" opened in 2005.
In 2005, AC/DC's Angus Young topped Maxium Magazine's list of the "25 greatest short dudes of all time." The 5-foot, 2-inch guitarist beat out the two inch taller Napoleon Bonaparte and former NBA guard Spud Webb, who is a majestic 5-foot, 7-inches.
Nickelback’s sixth studio effort, "Dark Horse" was released in 2008.
Herman Rarebell - Scorpions (1949)
Graham Parker - The Rumour (1950)
Rudy Sarzo - Whitesnake (1950)
John McFee - Doobie Brothers (1953)
John Parr - (1985 #1 single "St Elmo's Fire") (1954)
Charles Williams - KC and the Sunshine Band (1954)
Kim Wilde (1960)
Kirk Hammett - Metallica (1962)
Tim DeLaughter - Tripping Daisy (1965)
Duncan Sheik (1969)
Rapper Fabolous (1977)
They Are Missed:
Memphis blues singer and musician Herman 'Junior' Parker died in 1971 (age 39) during surgery for a brain tumor. Parker was discovered in 1952 by Ike Turner, who signed him to Modern Records. Parker then signed to Sun Records in 1953.
Danny Whitten died of a drug overdose in 1972 (age 29). Member of Neil Young's Crazy Horse and writer of "I Don't Wanna Talk About It," covered by Rod Stewart, Rita Coolidge and Everything But The Girl. Whitten was later memorialized in Neil Young's anti-drug album, Tonight's the Night, released in 1975.
Songwriter Johnny Mercer, whose more than 1,500 songs included such classics as "One for My Baby" and "Blues in the Night," was born in Savannah, Georgia in 1909 (died June 25, 1976)
Hi-de-hi-de-hi-de-hi bandleader Cab Calloway died in 1994. The "Minnie the Moocher" singer was 86. (born December 25, 1907)
Born today in 1936, Don Cherry, jazz musician, stepdaughter & father of Neneh and Eagle Eye Cherry (died October 19, 1995).
Texas music legend Doug Sahm was discovered dead in a hotel room in Taos, N.M. in 1999. His biggest hit was "She's About a Mover" with the Sir Douglas Quintet (born November 6, 1941).
Born on this day in 1936, Hank Ballard, singer/songwriter, wrote 1960 #1 hit for Chubby Checker "The Twist" (died March 2, 2003)
Composer and orchestral arranger Michael Kamen died of a heart attack in London in 2003 (age 55). Worked with Pink Floyd, Queen, Eric Clapton, Roger Daltrey, Aerosmith, Tom Petty, David Bowie, Rush, Metallica and many others. Kamen also co-wrote Bryan Adams' ballad "(Everything I Do) I Do It for You."
Celebrity publicist Paul Wasserman died in 2007 of respiratory failure (age 73). His clients included the Rolling Stones, The Who, Bob Dylan, Neil Diamond, Paul Simon, Tom Petty and James Taylor. His career ended in 2000, when he was jailed for six months for swindling some of his friends by falsely claiming to be selling shares in investment schemes that he said were backed by stars like U2.
History:
Fats Domino appeared on the Ed Sullivan show in 1956 singing his hit "Blueberry Hill."
In 1963, the Beatles received silver LP discs for "Please Please Me" and "With the Beatles" at a ceremony held at EMI House in London. They also received a silver EP for "Twist and Shout" and a silver single for "She Loves You." The band then attend a cocktail party and a formal lunch in the EMI boardroom with company executives and invited guests.
Also in 1963, according to today's English newspapers, a priest requested the Beatles record a Christmas song. Manager Brian Epstein also issued a press release requesting fans not throw anything at the stage during the Beatles' concerts.
Pink Floyd released their third single, "Apples and Oranges," in 1967.
In 1968, Glen Campbell, a former session musician for Frank Sinatra, Nat "King" Cole and the Beach Boys, received two gold records - one for "By The Time I Get To Phoenix" and one for "Gentle On My Mind."
Jerry Lee Lewis and wife Myra Brown were divorced in Memphis in 1970. Brown claims her marriage "has turned into a nightmare." The marriage started with controversy: she is his cousin and was just fourteen when they married.
Cat Stevens started a three-week run at #1 on the US album chart in 1972 with the LP "Catch Bull At Four."
Bruce Springsteen made his live debut in the UK at London's Hammersmith Odeon in 1975.
Seminal punk rockers Richard Hell and the Voidoids made their debut at CBGB's New York in 1976.
Billy Joel’s “52nd Street,” containing “My Life” and “Big Shot,” began an eight week run at #1 on the US album chart in 1978.
The B-52's self-titled debut went gold in 1980. The group was indirectly responsible for John Lennon's return to music later in the year: when Lennon heard the B-52's, he realized the time was right to get back into music.
In 1983, R.E.M. made their first appearance outside the US when they appeared on Channel 4 UK TV show "The Tube." The following night they made their live UK debut when the played at Dingwalls, London.
U2 opened for itself in 1987— pretending to be a country-rock group called the Dalton Brothers — during a concert in Los Angeles.
Songwriter Diane Warren had the #1 and #2 singles on the US chart in 1989 with "When I See You Smile" by Bad English followed by "Blame It On the Rain," by Milli Vanilli.
Paul McCartney's birth certificate sold for $18,000 at an auction in 1990.
Nirvana recorded their MTV unplugged special at Sony Studios, New York in 1993.
The first live rock concert was streamed on the Internet in 1995 (twenty minutes of the Rolling Stones from Dallas, Texas).
John Denver's last recording, "The Unplugged Collection," was released in the US in 1997.
The AC/DC five-CD boxed set, "Bonfire" was released in the US in 1997.
Britney Spears scored her second #1 album in 2001 with "Britney."
"Let It Be ... Naked," a version of the Beatles final album with Phil Spector's overdubs removed and an altered track-listing lands in stores in 2003.
John Lennon's handwritten lyrics to the Beatles' "Nowhere Man" sold for over $300,000 at a New York auction in 2003.
Blink 182’s self-titled album "Feeling This" was released in 2003.
Following allegations of sexual abuse of a 12-year old boy, police raided Michael Jackson's Neverland ranch in 2003. Jackson denied the allegations, the search came on the day that his latest greatest hits album, 'Number Ones' was released in the US.
The Johnny Cash biographical movie "Walk The Line" opened in 2005.
In 2005, AC/DC's Angus Young topped Maxium Magazine's list of the "25 greatest short dudes of all time." The 5-foot, 2-inch guitarist beat out the two inch taller Napoleon Bonaparte and former NBA guard Spud Webb, who is a majestic 5-foot, 7-inches.
Nickelback’s sixth studio effort, "Dark Horse" was released in 2008.
Tuesday, November 17, 2009
The Vinyl Revival
By Natasha Aftandilians
Vinyl records have long been considered a dinosaur in the modern music world, an ancient relic of our parents and grandparents’ memories. In this day and age where even CDs are slowly being phased out and forgotten, it would seem there would be little hope for vinyl in a culture that values portability and ease when it comes to technology.
But the world of vinyl is undergoing a revival that is saving the format from total extinction. Nielsen Soundscan data shows that vinyl record sales topped two million units last week alone, a roughly 37 percent improvement from 2008 sales. Sales are on target to reach their highest mark since 1991, with genres like alternative and classic rock selling the most. The medium has gained some considerable momentum from the mid-to-late 90s when it was a format mostly utilized by underground musicians and DJs. Now many popular mainstream artists release their music on vinyl that comes with digital downloads of the tracks, giving fans a bigger bang for their buck.
Vinyl records and record players are no longer a thing of the past, and they have grown increasingly popular amongst the college crowd and those with a real passion for hearing music in its truest analog form. Retro-chic hipsters are flocking to independent record stores like Amoeba Records or Rasputin Music to browse the aisles overflowing with records from every genre and artist imaginable.
But it’s not clear if this vinyl comeback is being caused by those who see records as simply something kitschy and nostalgic much like Polaroid cameras, another technological treasure revived by the hipster set. Just go down to your local Urban Outfitters and you can see classic portable record players on sale, along with records by artists like MGMT, Sonic Youth and Fleet Foxes.
Undoubtedly, a large part of the appeal of vinyl records is their nostalgic value; it’s hard to put on a record and not instantly feel transported to a time of Mods, hippies and disco dancers. The vinyl revival is a way for Generation Y-ers to reconnect with the glamorous decades of the 50s, 60s and 70s, years that we try to relive through our fashion sense and music taste.
I was initially ambivalent about this trend when I first noticed it gaining popularity. I had not yet been “converted” to the way of the record player, and was quick to dismiss it as a fad that was being propagated by those trendy hipsters who embrace all things vintage. As I did some research online, I felt myself being drawn in. Images of sitting on my bed on a rainy day, reading a good book while listening to an old Bob Dylan record dreamily played out in my head.
Deciding to try it out for myself, I acquired a Crosley portable record player. Reminiscent of old leather suitcases from the 1950s, it truly had a vintage feel to it that was irresistible. I couldn’t wait to pop in a record and hear for myself what all the fuss was about. A classic album like “Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band” seemed like the most logical place for a vinyl newbie for me to start.
Once the needle dropped on the thick black plastic, the faint baselines and drum-beats emerged. From that first rocking guitar riff of “Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band” to the sultry, sitar-drenched “Within You, Without You”, and to the cacophonous orchestral explosion ending of “A Day in the Life,” I was completely absorbed in the music. There was something hypnotic about watching the record spin, as the grooves in the plastic slowly blur and fade. The subtle scratches, static and crackling sounds only added to the listening experience.
This is where vinyl truly trumps digital music. The rich and nuanced sound quality of analog recording is something that can’t be replicated by CD recording or MP3s. Vinyl records have grooves carved into them that mirror the original sound’s waveform, which means that no information from the original sound is lost. The science behind it gets even more technical but it basically proves that analog, vinyl recordings are the truest way of listening to music.
The most glaring disadvantage of vinyl record players, and one of the main reasons for their downfall, is their size and inconvenience. You can’t exactly take your turntable with you when you walk to class or go to the gym, and you can’t purchase individual songs with records, or listen to as wide a variety of songs as easily as you can with MP3 players. These obvious factors have kept people away from vinyl for so long. For people our age who have been exposed to the ease of iPods since our early teens, it’s hard to imagine any other way of listening to music.
But nothing tops vinyl when it comes to quality. It’s not just the sound quality either. Listening to vinyl is an experience that enraptures all your senses; running your fingers along the delicate grooves of the plastic, studying the album artwork and watching the record endlessly spin are all parts of the experience that make vinyl records so fun.
It only took one album for me to see the light and realize that the newfound attention that vinyl is receiving is well-deserved and not merely a fad. I suggest that if you really love your music, treat yourself to the joy of vinyl and let yourself get lost in the music.
A special thank you to the author, Natasha Aftandilians for allowing me to reprint her wonderful article!
SOURCE: www.newuniversity.org
New Music Releases – November 17
Some amazing music this week including the Paul McCartney, Good Evening New York City (2-CDs & DVD)release, Fall Out Boy’s Believers Never Die, Greatest Hits (CD & DVD), Morrissey , with Swords (2-CD deluxe edition) Rod Stewart ‘s Storyteller (4-CD box set), Rush, Working Men, the band’s first "best-of" live performance compilation, the Doors - Live in New York (6-CD box set), and Sheryl Crow’s Tuesday Night Music Club (remastered 2-CD & DVD edition). Also look for new albums by Norah Jones (The Fall), John Mayer (Battle Studies), American Idol’s Kris Allen debut, new music from Leona Lewis (ECHO), Vic Chesnutt (Skitter on Take Off), Alexandre Desplat - The Twilight Saga New Moon - The Score and the debut self-titled album by Them Crooked Vultures.
Alejandro Escovedo checks in with a double LP reissue of A Man Under The Influence, 70’s rockers Yes reissues their LP Relayer on vinyl, Janet Jackson releases Number Ones (Greatest Hits), look for David Bowie’s Space Oddity on vinyl (remastered with bonus CD), four reissues by the Blood Brothers, Sun Ra - New Steps (remastered), some early Spandau Ballet - Heart Like A Sky/Through The Barricades as well as Atlantic Records-The Time Capsule (11-disc box set), Charisma Records Anthology 1969-1978 (3-CDs) and Score 20 Years of Merge Records - The Remixes. Look for lots of Christmas music next week and the weeks to come!
Buy New Music Here
13th Chime - The Lost Album
A Fine Frenzy - Oh Blue Christmas
A Grave With No Name - Mountain Debris
Alejandro Escovedo - A Man Under The Influence- Deluxe Bourbonitis Edition (2-LP vinyl reissue with bonus tracks)
Alexandre Desplat - The Twilight Saga New Moon - The Score
Anberlin - Anberlin - The Anthology
Annie - Don’t Stop
Anthony Narvaez - Light Show & Audio
Bad Lieutenant - Never Cry Another Tear (vinyl)
Baroness - Blue Record (vinyl)
Beak> - Beak>
Bell Orchestre - As Seen Through Windows (vinyl)
Bellflur - Last Quarter Of The 20th Century Blues
Blood Brothers - Burn, Piano Island, Burn (reissue with bonus CD)
Blood Brothers - Crimes (reissue with bonus CD)
Blood Brothers - March on Electric Children (reissue)
Blood Brothers - Young Machetes (reissue with bonus CD)
Boyz II Men - Love
Casting Crowns - Until the Whole World Hears
Chairs - Nine Ways
Chief - Mighty Proud
Corey Smith - Keeping Up With The Jones
Dan Zanes - 76 Trombones
Dave Rawlings Machine - A Friend of a Friend
David Bowie - Space Oddity (remastered with bonus CD) (vinyl)
Devin Townsend - Addicted
Doors - Live in New York (6-CD box set)
Fall Out Boy - Believers Never Die - Greatest Hits (CD & DVD)
Felt - Felt 3 A Tribute to Rosie Perez
Forever the Sickest Kids - The Weekend Friday
Hawksley Workman - For Him And The Girl
Horrors - Whole New Way (vinyl)
Janet Jackson - Number Ones (Greatest Hits)
John Entwistle - Rigor Mortis Sets In (reissue with bonus tracks)
John Mayer - Battle Studies
Justin Bieber - My World
Keane - Hopes and Fears (with bonus CD)
Buy New Vinyl Here
Kid Harpoon - Once
Kid Sister - Ultraviolet
Kris Allen - Kris Allen
Leona Lewis - ECHO
Les Claypool Frog Brigade - Purple Onion (vinyl reissue)
Lissie - Why You Runnin' EP (vinyl)
Lovely Feathers - Fantasy Of The Lot (vinyl)
Lovvers - Think EP
Matt and Kim - Matt and Kim (vinyl reissue)
Miles Benjamin Anthony Robinson - Summer of Fear (vinyl)
Miles Davis - Live In Vienna 1973
Morrissey - Swords (2-CD deluxe edition)
Mumford & Sons - Sigh No More
Norah Jones - The Fall
Nurse With Wound - Space Music (vinyl)
OneRepublic - Waking Up
Patrick Watson - Just Another Ordinary Day (reissue)
Paul McCartney - Good Evening New York City (2-CDs & DVD)
Rakim - The Seventh Seal
Real Estate - Real Estate
Robin Guthrie - Songs to Help My Children Sleep EP
Rod Stewart - Storyteller (4-CD box set)
Rush - Working Men (first "best-of" live performance compilation)
Ryan Trevor - Introducing Ryan Trevor (vinyl)
Sheryl Crow - Tuesday Night Music Club (remastered 2-CD & DVD edition)
Spandau Ballet - Heart Like A Sky/Through The Barricades
Spiritualized - Ladies and Gentlemen We Are Floating in Space (reissue)
Steve Martin - The Crow New Songs for the Five-String Banjo (vinyl)
Sun Ra - New Steps (remastered)
Tape Deck Mountain - Ghost
Buy New Vinyl Here
The Company Band - The Company Band
The Fall - Hex Enduction Hour (remastered with bonus CD)
Them Crooked Vultures - Them Crooked Vultures
tUnE-yArDs - BiRd-BrAiNs
Various Artists - Atlantic Records-The Time Capsule (11-disc box set)
Various Artists - Forge Your Own Chains, Vol. 1 Psychedelic Ballads And Dirges 1968-1974
Various Artists - Hoodwinked Original Motion Picture Soundtrack
Various Artists - Psychedelic States - Mississippi In The 60's
Various Artists - Refugees Charisma Records Anthology 1969-1978 (3-CDs)
Various Artists - Score 20 Years of Merge Records - The Remixes
Various Artists - Trapped in a Scene UK Hardcore 1985-89
Vermillion Sands - Miss My Gun EP
Vic Chesnutt - Skitter on Take Off (vinyl)
We Shot the Moon - A Silver Lining
Wingdale Community Singers - Spirit Duplicator
Yello - Touch Yello
Yes - Relayer (vinyl reissue)
Buy New Vinyl Here
Alejandro Escovedo checks in with a double LP reissue of A Man Under The Influence, 70’s rockers Yes reissues their LP Relayer on vinyl, Janet Jackson releases Number Ones (Greatest Hits), look for David Bowie’s Space Oddity on vinyl (remastered with bonus CD), four reissues by the Blood Brothers, Sun Ra - New Steps (remastered), some early Spandau Ballet - Heart Like A Sky/Through The Barricades as well as Atlantic Records-The Time Capsule (11-disc box set), Charisma Records Anthology 1969-1978 (3-CDs) and Score 20 Years of Merge Records - The Remixes. Look for lots of Christmas music next week and the weeks to come!
Buy New Music Here
13th Chime - The Lost Album
A Fine Frenzy - Oh Blue Christmas
A Grave With No Name - Mountain Debris
Alejandro Escovedo - A Man Under The Influence- Deluxe Bourbonitis Edition (2-LP vinyl reissue with bonus tracks)
Alexandre Desplat - The Twilight Saga New Moon - The Score
Anberlin - Anberlin - The Anthology
Annie - Don’t Stop
Anthony Narvaez - Light Show & Audio
Bad Lieutenant - Never Cry Another Tear (vinyl)
Baroness - Blue Record (vinyl)
Beak> - Beak>
Bell Orchestre - As Seen Through Windows (vinyl)
Bellflur - Last Quarter Of The 20th Century Blues
Blood Brothers - Burn, Piano Island, Burn (reissue with bonus CD)
Blood Brothers - Crimes (reissue with bonus CD)
Blood Brothers - March on Electric Children (reissue)
Blood Brothers - Young Machetes (reissue with bonus CD)
Boyz II Men - Love
Casting Crowns - Until the Whole World Hears
Chairs - Nine Ways
Chief - Mighty Proud
Corey Smith - Keeping Up With The Jones
Dan Zanes - 76 Trombones
Dave Rawlings Machine - A Friend of a Friend
David Bowie - Space Oddity (remastered with bonus CD) (vinyl)
Devin Townsend - Addicted
Doors - Live in New York (6-CD box set)
Fall Out Boy - Believers Never Die - Greatest Hits (CD & DVD)
Felt - Felt 3 A Tribute to Rosie Perez
Forever the Sickest Kids - The Weekend Friday
Hawksley Workman - For Him And The Girl
Horrors - Whole New Way (vinyl)
Janet Jackson - Number Ones (Greatest Hits)
John Entwistle - Rigor Mortis Sets In (reissue with bonus tracks)
John Mayer - Battle Studies
Justin Bieber - My World
Keane - Hopes and Fears (with bonus CD)
Buy New Vinyl Here
Kid Harpoon - Once
Kid Sister - Ultraviolet
Kris Allen - Kris Allen
Leona Lewis - ECHO
Les Claypool Frog Brigade - Purple Onion (vinyl reissue)
Lissie - Why You Runnin' EP (vinyl)
Lovely Feathers - Fantasy Of The Lot (vinyl)
Lovvers - Think EP
Matt and Kim - Matt and Kim (vinyl reissue)
Miles Benjamin Anthony Robinson - Summer of Fear (vinyl)
Miles Davis - Live In Vienna 1973
Morrissey - Swords (2-CD deluxe edition)
Mumford & Sons - Sigh No More
Norah Jones - The Fall
Nurse With Wound - Space Music (vinyl)
OneRepublic - Waking Up
Patrick Watson - Just Another Ordinary Day (reissue)
Paul McCartney - Good Evening New York City (2-CDs & DVD)
Rakim - The Seventh Seal
Real Estate - Real Estate
Robin Guthrie - Songs to Help My Children Sleep EP
Rod Stewart - Storyteller (4-CD box set)
Rush - Working Men (first "best-of" live performance compilation)
Ryan Trevor - Introducing Ryan Trevor (vinyl)
Sheryl Crow - Tuesday Night Music Club (remastered 2-CD & DVD edition)
Spandau Ballet - Heart Like A Sky/Through The Barricades
Spiritualized - Ladies and Gentlemen We Are Floating in Space (reissue)
Steve Martin - The Crow New Songs for the Five-String Banjo (vinyl)
Sun Ra - New Steps (remastered)
Tape Deck Mountain - Ghost
Buy New Vinyl Here
The Company Band - The Company Band
The Fall - Hex Enduction Hour (remastered with bonus CD)
Them Crooked Vultures - Them Crooked Vultures
tUnE-yArDs - BiRd-BrAiNs
Various Artists - Atlantic Records-The Time Capsule (11-disc box set)
Various Artists - Forge Your Own Chains, Vol. 1 Psychedelic Ballads And Dirges 1968-1974
Various Artists - Hoodwinked Original Motion Picture Soundtrack
Various Artists - Psychedelic States - Mississippi In The 60's
Various Artists - Refugees Charisma Records Anthology 1969-1978 (3-CDs)
Various Artists - Score 20 Years of Merge Records - The Remixes
Various Artists - Trapped in a Scene UK Hardcore 1985-89
Vermillion Sands - Miss My Gun EP
Vic Chesnutt - Skitter on Take Off (vinyl)
We Shot the Moon - A Silver Lining
Wingdale Community Singers - Spirit Duplicator
Yello - Touch Yello
Yes - Relayer (vinyl reissue)
Buy New Vinyl Here
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