I am continuing our 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 (http://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 DECEMBER 7, 2009
DEAR JERRY: I'm a long-haul trucker and one of my 2002 trips took me across Wyoming.
A radio station there played a song that I have been unable to identify, mainly because I lack the details. There was no announcer, and the station seemed automated.
As a Marty Robbins fan, I have the “El Paso” trilogy, but I nearly drove off the road when I heard this fascinating song.
By a woman with guitar accompaniment, using Marty's original “El Paso” melody, the lyrics tell the story from Feelena's point of view. It has nothing to do with Marty's “El Paso” prequel, “Feelena (From El Paso).”
Sorry I have no other clues for you.
—Rick Whittaker, York, Pa.
DEAR RICK: Just don't jackknife the rig!
No other clue is necessary, as I know of only one female response recording to “El Paso.”
Plus, you hearing it in 2002 confirms it to be “Red Velvet Slippers,” an award-winning 1999 release with a title seemingly unconnected to “El Paso.” More on that later.
Written and recorded by Juni Fisher, “Red Velvet Slippers” is the lead track on her debut album “Tumbleweed Letters,” and it tells a slightly different story than Marty's familiar saga.
For example, killed at Rosa's Cantina in place of the “dashing and daring” cowboy shot in 1960, is Feelena's brother, Roberto.
It seems her love interest (Marty's character) mistakenly thought Roberto was wooing Feelena, thus the shootout.
An angry Feelena then picks up Roberto's gun intending to shoot his killer, but reconsiders when realizing his death won't bring Roberto back.
A Marty Robbins fan myself, I became curious as to Fisher's inspiration to write this song. And, thanks to cell phones, I caught up with Juni just after her November western tour, along with an appearance at the Western Music Association Awards in Albuquerque.
We talked while Juni drove, on her way home to Tennessee for Thanksgiving.
She recalls: “My father loved Marty's music, and it definitely rubbed off on me. In fact, “El Paso” is the first 45 I owned.
“Then in the early '90s, while I was in El Paso, I saw the building that was the real Rosa's Cantina. All those images in the song started running through my head, which led to my writing the story as told by a much older Feelena (i.e., “when I was a young girl I lived in El Paso, I danced at Rosa's Cantina at night”).
“I substituted my brother for the “handsome young stranger,” to better justify my anger and desire for revenge.
“Regarding the title, I wrote “As I headed back to Rosa's that night, I let the pistol slip out of my hand. I stopped and took off my red velvet slippers, and left them to fade in the El Paso sand.”
“Feelena discarding the slippers she wore when dancing at Rosa's is a metaphor for her leaving the life of the foolish young dance hall girl, whose flirting caused her brother's death.”
Juni didn't mention it, but at the aforementioned Western Music Association Award Showcase, she won in two key categories: Female Performer of the Year, and Traditional Album of the Year, “Gone for Colorado.” This brings to six her total of WMA awards since 2005.
Congratulations Juni!
DEAR JERRY: I have Phil Spector's “A Christmas Gift for You,” but there is one song, “Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree,” that must have been cut from the final album. I've only heard it online but it sure sounds like a 1963 recording.
This is a duet by two of the stars on the original LP, Ronnie Spector (of the Ronettes), and Darlene Love.
I was surprised to see neither Ronnie's nor Darlene's web site mentions this record at all.
—Mindy Olsen, Orem, Utah
DEAR MINDY: Though made many years after “A Christmas Gift for You,” Ronnie and Darlene truly capture the distinctive Spector sound on their revival of Brenda Lee's “Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree.”
My source for this 1992 gem is the CD, “A Very Special Christmas 2” (A&M 731454000321), a 19-track various artists compilation.
Issued in A&M's series to benefit Special Olympics, this disc can usually be found online for less than five bucks.
IZ ZAT SO? “A Christmas Gift for You” is not only the title of one of the most important albums ever, it is also the name of an exciting new stage show, starring Ronnie Spector and Darlene Love.
This event, a benefit for the Boys and Girls Clubs of Monmouth County, is set for Thursday, December 17, at the Count Basie Theatre, 99 Monmouth Street, Red Bank, N.J.
Ronnie routinely performs at clubs in the tri-state area, but this Christmas Gift promises to be something special. They'll do the pop hits of the Ronettes, Crystals, and Darlene Love, as well as those on “A Christmas Gift for You,” plus “Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree.”
For more information, visit CountBasieTheatre.org.
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: http://www.jerryosborne.com/.
All values quoted in this column are for near-mint condition.
Copyright 2009 Osbourne Enterprises- Reprinted By Permission
Wednesday, December 9, 2009
Reprise Records to Release Original Soundtrack to Feature Film Book of Eli on January 12th, 2010
BURBANK, Calif. - (Business Wire) Reprise Records will release the original motion picture soundtrack to the Hughes Brothers-directed feature film Book Of Eli on January 12th, 2010 — three days before the film hits theaters nationwide on January 15th, 2010.
The Book of Eli Original Motion Picture Soundtrack features an original score by composer/musician/producer Atticus Ross, marking his third collaboration with the Hughes Brothers and his first feature film score. Ross’ music is a unique hybrid score of electronic and organic elements; writing with his wife (Claudia Sarne) and brother (Leopold Ross), the basic tracks were recorded at his studio in Los Angeles before departing to London where it was finished in Abbey Road Studios with a full 80 piece orchestra.
Ross’ other film credits include co-writing and producing “Go All the Way (Into the Twilight),” the Perry Ferrell single for the hit film Twilight, the score for the Allen Hughes’ vignette for the film New York, I Love You, as well as the music to the Hughes Brothers TV show 'Touching Evil." Ross has also incorporated his musical style into collaborations and productions of such major artists as NIN (the albums With Teeth, Year Zero, The Slip, and the Grammy-nominated Ghosts), Jane's Addiction, and Korn.
The Book of Eli stars Denzel Washington, Mila Kunis, and Gary Oldman in a post-apocalyptic tale in which a lone man, Eli (Washington), fights his way across America in order to protect a sacred book that holds the secrets to saving humankind.
The soundtrack will be released in four configurations: standard CD, a digital version available through all digital service providers, and a special exclusive iTunes edition that will feature a remixed track by Dave Sitek (TV on the Radio). A vinyl version will be released in February.
Book of Eli is being distributed domestically by Warner Bros. Pictures.
The track-listing for The Book of Eli Original Motion Picture Soundtrack is as follows:
Panoramic
Outland
The Journey
Amen
The Convoy
Solara Violated
Safe
Human
Meant to be Shared
The Passenger
Den of Vice
Gattling
Blind Faith
Convoy Destruct
Movement
Carnegie's Demise
The Purpose
http://thebookofeli.warnerbros.com/
www.repriserecords.com
The Book of Eli Original Motion Picture Soundtrack features an original score by composer/musician/producer Atticus Ross, marking his third collaboration with the Hughes Brothers and his first feature film score. Ross’ music is a unique hybrid score of electronic and organic elements; writing with his wife (Claudia Sarne) and brother (Leopold Ross), the basic tracks were recorded at his studio in Los Angeles before departing to London where it was finished in Abbey Road Studios with a full 80 piece orchestra.
Ross’ other film credits include co-writing and producing “Go All the Way (Into the Twilight),” the Perry Ferrell single for the hit film Twilight, the score for the Allen Hughes’ vignette for the film New York, I Love You, as well as the music to the Hughes Brothers TV show 'Touching Evil." Ross has also incorporated his musical style into collaborations and productions of such major artists as NIN (the albums With Teeth, Year Zero, The Slip, and the Grammy-nominated Ghosts), Jane's Addiction, and Korn.
The Book of Eli stars Denzel Washington, Mila Kunis, and Gary Oldman in a post-apocalyptic tale in which a lone man, Eli (Washington), fights his way across America in order to protect a sacred book that holds the secrets to saving humankind.
The soundtrack will be released in four configurations: standard CD, a digital version available through all digital service providers, and a special exclusive iTunes edition that will feature a remixed track by Dave Sitek (TV on the Radio). A vinyl version will be released in February.
Book of Eli is being distributed domestically by Warner Bros. Pictures.
The track-listing for The Book of Eli Original Motion Picture Soundtrack is as follows:
Panoramic
Outland
The Journey
Amen
The Convoy
Solara Violated
Safe
Human
Meant to be Shared
The Passenger
Den of Vice
Gattling
Blind Faith
Convoy Destruct
Movement
Carnegie's Demise
The Purpose
http://thebookofeli.warnerbros.com/
www.repriserecords.com
Music News & Notes
Bachman, Turner shifting into overdrive
Aging rockers working on new album, planning to head out on world tour
You ain't seen nothing yet from Randy Bachman and Fred Turner.
The former members of Bachman-Turner Overdrive are teaming up for the first time since 1991, but the reunion isn't just a trip down memory lane: the duo are working on a new album and planning a 2010 world tour.
"The great part about it is we've got new songs. That's the kicker. That's what brought me back," Turner said yesterday at a press conference, confirming the reunion three months after it was first reported in the Winnipeg Free Press.
"I was retired for five years and I thought, 'It's over. This is done, just enjoy yourself (and) go fishing.' I'm surprised to be back. It's like being reborn. It feels really good."
Because of legal issues surrounding the old name, the pair will tour as Bachman & Turner. They are in the process of recording about 16 songs for a new album, which will be released by E1 Records (formerly Koch) on vinyl, CD and MP3. They hope to have the album finished in January before heading out on the highway for tours of North America, South America and Europe. They will be backed by Bachman's regular band.
=========================
U2 Could Gross $750 Million From Tour
Paul McGuinness, manager for U2, has told the Financial Times that he expects the 360 Degree tour to gross around $750 million by the time it ends later next year. To date, the band has played 44 sold out dates for 3.2 million people and grossed $320 million.
The Vertigo tour brought in $389 million, so 360 Degree will almost double the amount grossed. Much of this is due to the "claw" which allows most venues to seat 20% more people. Unfortunately, tour costs, mainly because of the staging, runs around $750,000 per day (EVERY day), so the amount the tour will profit is still way up in the air.
=========================
McCartney Writes Song for DeNiro Movie
Paul McCartney has written and recorded a song for the new Robert DeNiro film Everybody's Fine. McCartney felt compelled to write the song after seeing a preview screening of the movie. "The De Niro character inspired me. I can very much relate to a guy who's got older children, who happens to have lost his wife, the mother of those children, and is trying to get them all together at Christmas. I understand that."
=========================
Bruce Springsteen Pledges Support For Gay Marriage Bill
In home state of New Jersey...
Bruce Springsteen has pledged his support to a gay marriage bill in his home state of New Jersey. Politicians are due to vote on the bill on Thursday, but Democrats fear it could fall short of the 21 votes needed to pass the Senate.
In a message on his website, Springsteen said he agreed with Governor Jon Corzine that the marriage-equality issue should be recognized as a civil rights issue.
“I've long believed in and have always spoken out for the rights of same sex couples,” Springsteen said.
He called on “those who support equal treatment for our gay and lesbian brothers and sisters to let their voices be heard”.
Aging rockers working on new album, planning to head out on world tour
You ain't seen nothing yet from Randy Bachman and Fred Turner.
The former members of Bachman-Turner Overdrive are teaming up for the first time since 1991, but the reunion isn't just a trip down memory lane: the duo are working on a new album and planning a 2010 world tour.
"The great part about it is we've got new songs. That's the kicker. That's what brought me back," Turner said yesterday at a press conference, confirming the reunion three months after it was first reported in the Winnipeg Free Press.
"I was retired for five years and I thought, 'It's over. This is done, just enjoy yourself (and) go fishing.' I'm surprised to be back. It's like being reborn. It feels really good."
Because of legal issues surrounding the old name, the pair will tour as Bachman & Turner. They are in the process of recording about 16 songs for a new album, which will be released by E1 Records (formerly Koch) on vinyl, CD and MP3. They hope to have the album finished in January before heading out on the highway for tours of North America, South America and Europe. They will be backed by Bachman's regular band.
=========================
U2 Could Gross $750 Million From Tour
Paul McGuinness, manager for U2, has told the Financial Times that he expects the 360 Degree tour to gross around $750 million by the time it ends later next year. To date, the band has played 44 sold out dates for 3.2 million people and grossed $320 million.
The Vertigo tour brought in $389 million, so 360 Degree will almost double the amount grossed. Much of this is due to the "claw" which allows most venues to seat 20% more people. Unfortunately, tour costs, mainly because of the staging, runs around $750,000 per day (EVERY day), so the amount the tour will profit is still way up in the air.
=========================
McCartney Writes Song for DeNiro Movie
Paul McCartney has written and recorded a song for the new Robert DeNiro film Everybody's Fine. McCartney felt compelled to write the song after seeing a preview screening of the movie. "The De Niro character inspired me. I can very much relate to a guy who's got older children, who happens to have lost his wife, the mother of those children, and is trying to get them all together at Christmas. I understand that."
=========================
Bruce Springsteen Pledges Support For Gay Marriage Bill
In home state of New Jersey...
Bruce Springsteen has pledged his support to a gay marriage bill in his home state of New Jersey. Politicians are due to vote on the bill on Thursday, but Democrats fear it could fall short of the 21 votes needed to pass the Senate.
In a message on his website, Springsteen said he agreed with Governor Jon Corzine that the marriage-equality issue should be recognized as a civil rights issue.
“I've long believed in and have always spoken out for the rights of same sex couples,” Springsteen said.
He called on “those who support equal treatment for our gay and lesbian brothers and sisters to let their voices be heard”.
Tuesday, December 8, 2009
New Music Releases – December 8, 2009
The holiday season is upon us and that means plenty of great music to choose from. The Beatles continue their assault on the charts with a USB box set and there is lots of vinyl to choose from. Records from Arctic Monkeys, Bauhaus, Dinosaur Jr, Jeff Beck, three from Joni Mitchell, two from underrated musician Kim Fowley, Okkervil River, a 10-disc vinyl box set of 7” records from Morrissey, a live Tom Waits LP (along with his 7-LP vinyl box set, Orphans) along with vinyl from NOFX, Sun Ra, Sebastien Tellier, Sea Wolf and Phil Spector, among others. Look for a 20-CD box set from Django Reinhardt, a four CD set from Elvis Presley, a three CD set from Erasure, a two CD set from John Mayall with the Bluesbreakers and Eric Clapton, three remastered 2-CD deluxe editions from Pulp as well as a Robert Wyatt - Box Set (9-CD box set). Lots of vinyl reissues including records from Bill Cosby, John Vanderslice, George Carlin, Dwight Yoakam, Bob Newhart, Kraftwerk and Trans Am, among many others.
Buy New Vinyl Here: http://vinyluniverse.com?a=CollectingVinyl
30 Seconds to Mars - This is War
A Place to Bury Strangers - Keep Slipping Away (vinyl)
Abbo Abbas - Abbo Abbas
Animal Collective - Fall Be Kind
Arctic Monkeys - Cornerstone (vinyl)
As Tall As Lions - Circles (vinyl)
Ash - E (vinyl)
Autograph - That's The Stuff
Avi Buffalo - What's In It For? (vinyl)
Babys - Alive in America
Bauhaus - This Is For When Live...1981 (Deluxe Edition) (2 LPs) (vinyl)
Beatles - The Beatles (USB box set)
Beekeepers - Bee Funk (vinyl)
Bette Midler - The Best Bette Deluxe Edition (CD/PAL DVD)
Bette Midler - The Rose
BG - Too Hood 2 Be Hollywood
Bill Cosby - 200 M.P.H. (reissue)
Bill Cosby - I Started Out as a Child (reissue)
Bill Cosby - Revenge (reissue)
Bill Cosby - To Russell, My Brother, Whom I Slept With (reissue)
Bill Frisell - Good Dog, Happy Man (2-LP vinyl & CD)
Billy Joe Royal - Hard Rock To Roll
Blue Roses - Does Anyone Love Me Now? (vinyl)
Bob Newhart - Button-Down Mind of Bob Newhart (reissue)
Box Tops - Neon Rainbow The Best of
Cal Smith - Best of
Camera Obscura - My Maudlin Career (2-CD holiday edition)
Camera Obscura - The Blizard (vinyl)
Carolyn Mas - Modern Dream
Chris Brown - Graffiti
Chuck Ragan - Live from Rock Island The Daytrotter Series (vinyl)
Clipse - Til the Casket Drops
Cloud Cult - They Live on the Sun / Aurora Borealis (remastered)
Depeche Mode - Fragile Tension / Hole To Feed (8-track Mixes EP)
Dinosaur Jr. - Pieces b/w Houses (vinyl)
Dionne Warwick - Greatest Hits
Django Reinhardt - Djangologie (20-CD box set)
Donnie & Marie Osmond - Donnie & Marie
Dwight Yoakam - Dwight Live (reissue)
Elvis Presley - Elvis 75 (4 CDs)
Erasure - The Innocents (3 CDs)
Europe - Out of This World / Prisoners in Paradise
George Carlin - A Place for My Stuff! (reissue)
Gerald & Eddie Levert - Father & Son
Glen Campbell - Hey, Little One / A New Place in the Sun
Graham Parker & the Rumour - Live in San Francisco 1979
Gucci Mane - The State vs. Radric Davis
Harmonia - 76 Remixes (vinyl)
Heartsrevolution - Hearts Japan EP
James Pants - Seven Seals
Janis Ian - The Secret Life of J. Eddy Fink / Who Really Cares
Jawbox - For Your Own Special Sweetheart (remastered with bonus tracks)
Jeff Beck - Blow by Blow (vinyl)
Jim Reeves - Welcome To My World the Best of
Jimmy Buffett - Buffett Hotel
Joe Walsh - The Smoker You Drink, The Player You Get (Audio Fidelity)
John Martyn - Grace & Danger (Deluxe Edition) (2 CDs)
John Mayall - Bluesbreakers with Eric Clapton (2-CD edition)
John Vanderslice - Cellar Door (vinyl reissue)
John Vanderslice - Life and Death of an American Fourtracker (vinyl reissue)
John Vanderslice - Pixel Revolt (vinyl reissue)
John Vanderslice - Time Travel Is Lonely (vinyl reissue)
Johnny Hallyday - 1967-1969 EP Box Set (10 CDs)
Jon Dee Graham & The Fighting Cocks - It's Not As Bad As It Looks
Joni Mitchell - Court & Spark (vinyl)
Joni Mitchell - Ladies of the Canyon (vinyl)
Joni Mitchell - The Hissing of Summer Lawns (vinyl)
Keb' Mo' - Live and Mo'
Kim Fowley - Another Man's Gold (vinyl)
Kim Fowley - One Man's Garbage (vinyl)
King Crimson - In the Court of the Crimson King (Remastered)
King Midas Sound - Waiting for You
Klaxons - Sweetheart/Speedway/Super Subway Comedian (vinyl)
Kraftwerk - Autobahn (vinyl remastered)
Kraftwerk - Radio-Activity (vinyl remastered)
Kraftwerk - The Man-Machine (vinyl remastered)
Kraftwerk - Tour de France (vinyl remastered)
Kraftwerk - Trans-Europe Express (vinyl remastered)
Linda Ronstadt - Don't Cry Now
LL Cool J - All World 2
Lloyd Cole and the Commotions - Rattlesnakes (remastered 2-CD deluxe edition)
Lowell Brams - Music For Insomnia
Mandrill - New Worlds / Getting in the Mood
Marillion - Less Is More
Mark Matos - Words of the Knife (vinyl)
Maze - Back to Basics
MF Doom - Gazzillion Ear EP (vinyl)
Mi Ami - Cut Men (vinyl)
Mighty Mighty Bosstones - Pin Points & Gin Joints
Morrissey - 7-Inch Singles 88-91 (10-disc vinyl box set)
Mumford & Sons - Winter Winds (vinyl)
Neil Young - Dreamin' Man Live '92
NOFX - Cokie the Clown (vinyl)
NOFX - My Orphan Year (vinyl)
Notwist - Come in/Boneless (Grizzly Bear Remix) (vinyl)
Nurse with Wound - Chance Meeting on a Dissecting Table Machine and An Umbrella (2-LP vinyl reissue)
Okkervil River - Black Sheep Boy (Definitive Edition) (vinyl)
Otis Redding - The Dock of the Bay (Budget Release)
Patrice Rushen - Shout It Out
Patrick Watson - Wooden Arms (vinyl)
Patrick Wolf - Damaris (vinyl)
Pet Shop Boys - Party
Peter Tosh - Black Dignity Early Works of the Steppin' Razor
Phil Spector - A Christmas Gift for You (vinyl reissue)
Puddle of Mudd - Volume 4 Songs in the Key of Love & Hate
Pulp - Different Class (remastered 2-CD deluxe edition)
Pulp - His 'n' Hers (remastered 2-CD deluxe edition)
Pulp - This Is Hardcore (remastered 2-CD deluxe edition)
Redman - Reggie Noble 9 1/2
Riot - Thunder Steel / The Privelege of Power
Robert Wyatt - Box Set (9-CD box set)
Sea Wolf - Leaves in the River (vinyl)
Sebastien Tellier - L'amour Et La Violence/Fingers of Steel (vinyl)
Sigur Ros - Gobbledigook
Silkie - You've Got to Hide Your Love Away
Snopp Dogg - Malice N Wonderland
Sonny Burgess & the Legendary Pacers - Gijon Stomp!
STS9 - Ad Explorata
Sun Ra - Interplanetary Melodies (vinyl)
Sun Ra - Rocket Ship Rock (vinyl)
Sun Ra - Second Stop Is Jupiter
The Dexateens - Singlewide (vinyl)
The Game - The R.E.D. Album
Timbaland - Shock Value 2
Tom Waits - Glitter and Doom Live (vinyl)
Tom Waits - Orphans (7-LP vinyl box set)
Trans Am - What Day Is It Tonight? (Trans Am Live 1993-2008) (3-LP vinyl)
Twisted Sister - Big Hits and Nasty Cuts The Best of (Budget Release)
Unicorn - Blue Pine Trees
Unicorn - Too Many Crooks
Various Artists - Christmas Inspired By Lord of the Rings
Various Artists - Glee The Music, Volume 2
Various Artists - Hot Women Women Singers From the Torrid Regions (curated by R. Crumb)
Various Artists - Invictus Original Motion Picture Soundtrack
Various Artists - Motown 50 Love (3 CDs)
Various Artists - New York City Christmas - A Benefit Album for ASTEP
Various Artists - Rare Blues & Soul From Nashville 1960s
Various Artists - The People Speak (soundtrack)
Various Artists - Tru Thoughts 10th Anniversary (2-LP vinyl)
Vicki Lawrence - The Night the Lights Went out in Georgia
We the Kings - Smile Kid
Buy New Vinyl Here: http://vinyluniverse.com?a=CollectingVinyl
30 Seconds to Mars - This is War
A Place to Bury Strangers - Keep Slipping Away (vinyl)
Abbo Abbas - Abbo Abbas
Animal Collective - Fall Be Kind
Arctic Monkeys - Cornerstone (vinyl)
As Tall As Lions - Circles (vinyl)
Ash - E (vinyl)
Autograph - That's The Stuff
Avi Buffalo - What's In It For? (vinyl)
Babys - Alive in America
Bauhaus - This Is For When Live...1981 (Deluxe Edition) (2 LPs) (vinyl)
Beatles - The Beatles (USB box set)
Beekeepers - Bee Funk (vinyl)
Bette Midler - The Best Bette Deluxe Edition (CD/PAL DVD)
Bette Midler - The Rose
BG - Too Hood 2 Be Hollywood
Bill Cosby - 200 M.P.H. (reissue)
Bill Cosby - I Started Out as a Child (reissue)
Bill Cosby - Revenge (reissue)
Bill Cosby - To Russell, My Brother, Whom I Slept With (reissue)
Bill Frisell - Good Dog, Happy Man (2-LP vinyl & CD)
Billy Joe Royal - Hard Rock To Roll
Blue Roses - Does Anyone Love Me Now? (vinyl)
Bob Newhart - Button-Down Mind of Bob Newhart (reissue)
Box Tops - Neon Rainbow The Best of
Cal Smith - Best of
Camera Obscura - My Maudlin Career (2-CD holiday edition)
Camera Obscura - The Blizard (vinyl)
Carolyn Mas - Modern Dream
Chris Brown - Graffiti
Chuck Ragan - Live from Rock Island The Daytrotter Series (vinyl)
Clipse - Til the Casket Drops
Cloud Cult - They Live on the Sun / Aurora Borealis (remastered)
Depeche Mode - Fragile Tension / Hole To Feed (8-track Mixes EP)
Dinosaur Jr. - Pieces b/w Houses (vinyl)
Dionne Warwick - Greatest Hits
Django Reinhardt - Djangologie (20-CD box set)
Donnie & Marie Osmond - Donnie & Marie
Dwight Yoakam - Dwight Live (reissue)
Elvis Presley - Elvis 75 (4 CDs)
Erasure - The Innocents (3 CDs)
Europe - Out of This World / Prisoners in Paradise
George Carlin - A Place for My Stuff! (reissue)
Gerald & Eddie Levert - Father & Son
Glen Campbell - Hey, Little One / A New Place in the Sun
Graham Parker & the Rumour - Live in San Francisco 1979
Gucci Mane - The State vs. Radric Davis
Harmonia - 76 Remixes (vinyl)
Heartsrevolution - Hearts Japan EP
James Pants - Seven Seals
Janis Ian - The Secret Life of J. Eddy Fink / Who Really Cares
Jawbox - For Your Own Special Sweetheart (remastered with bonus tracks)
Jeff Beck - Blow by Blow (vinyl)
Jim Reeves - Welcome To My World the Best of
Jimmy Buffett - Buffett Hotel
Joe Walsh - The Smoker You Drink, The Player You Get (Audio Fidelity)
John Martyn - Grace & Danger (Deluxe Edition) (2 CDs)
John Mayall - Bluesbreakers with Eric Clapton (2-CD edition)
John Vanderslice - Cellar Door (vinyl reissue)
John Vanderslice - Life and Death of an American Fourtracker (vinyl reissue)
John Vanderslice - Pixel Revolt (vinyl reissue)
John Vanderslice - Time Travel Is Lonely (vinyl reissue)
Johnny Hallyday - 1967-1969 EP Box Set (10 CDs)
Jon Dee Graham & The Fighting Cocks - It's Not As Bad As It Looks
Joni Mitchell - Court & Spark (vinyl)
Joni Mitchell - Ladies of the Canyon (vinyl)
Joni Mitchell - The Hissing of Summer Lawns (vinyl)
Keb' Mo' - Live and Mo'
Kim Fowley - Another Man's Gold (vinyl)
Kim Fowley - One Man's Garbage (vinyl)
King Crimson - In the Court of the Crimson King (Remastered)
King Midas Sound - Waiting for You
Klaxons - Sweetheart/Speedway/Super Subway Comedian (vinyl)
Kraftwerk - Autobahn (vinyl remastered)
Kraftwerk - Radio-Activity (vinyl remastered)
Kraftwerk - The Man-Machine (vinyl remastered)
Kraftwerk - Tour de France (vinyl remastered)
Kraftwerk - Trans-Europe Express (vinyl remastered)
Linda Ronstadt - Don't Cry Now
LL Cool J - All World 2
Lloyd Cole and the Commotions - Rattlesnakes (remastered 2-CD deluxe edition)
Lowell Brams - Music For Insomnia
Mandrill - New Worlds / Getting in the Mood
Marillion - Less Is More
Mark Matos - Words of the Knife (vinyl)
Maze - Back to Basics
MF Doom - Gazzillion Ear EP (vinyl)
Mi Ami - Cut Men (vinyl)
Mighty Mighty Bosstones - Pin Points & Gin Joints
Morrissey - 7-Inch Singles 88-91 (10-disc vinyl box set)
Mumford & Sons - Winter Winds (vinyl)
Neil Young - Dreamin' Man Live '92
NOFX - Cokie the Clown (vinyl)
NOFX - My Orphan Year (vinyl)
Notwist - Come in/Boneless (Grizzly Bear Remix) (vinyl)
Nurse with Wound - Chance Meeting on a Dissecting Table Machine and An Umbrella (2-LP vinyl reissue)
Okkervil River - Black Sheep Boy (Definitive Edition) (vinyl)
Otis Redding - The Dock of the Bay (Budget Release)
Patrice Rushen - Shout It Out
Patrick Watson - Wooden Arms (vinyl)
Patrick Wolf - Damaris (vinyl)
Pet Shop Boys - Party
Peter Tosh - Black Dignity Early Works of the Steppin' Razor
Phil Spector - A Christmas Gift for You (vinyl reissue)
Puddle of Mudd - Volume 4 Songs in the Key of Love & Hate
Pulp - Different Class (remastered 2-CD deluxe edition)
Pulp - His 'n' Hers (remastered 2-CD deluxe edition)
Pulp - This Is Hardcore (remastered 2-CD deluxe edition)
Redman - Reggie Noble 9 1/2
Riot - Thunder Steel / The Privelege of Power
Robert Wyatt - Box Set (9-CD box set)
Sea Wolf - Leaves in the River (vinyl)
Sebastien Tellier - L'amour Et La Violence/Fingers of Steel (vinyl)
Sigur Ros - Gobbledigook
Silkie - You've Got to Hide Your Love Away
Snopp Dogg - Malice N Wonderland
Sonny Burgess & the Legendary Pacers - Gijon Stomp!
STS9 - Ad Explorata
Sun Ra - Interplanetary Melodies (vinyl)
Sun Ra - Rocket Ship Rock (vinyl)
Sun Ra - Second Stop Is Jupiter
The Dexateens - Singlewide (vinyl)
The Game - The R.E.D. Album
Timbaland - Shock Value 2
Tom Waits - Glitter and Doom Live (vinyl)
Tom Waits - Orphans (7-LP vinyl box set)
Trans Am - What Day Is It Tonight? (Trans Am Live 1993-2008) (3-LP vinyl)
Twisted Sister - Big Hits and Nasty Cuts The Best of (Budget Release)
Unicorn - Blue Pine Trees
Unicorn - Too Many Crooks
Various Artists - Christmas Inspired By Lord of the Rings
Various Artists - Glee The Music, Volume 2
Various Artists - Hot Women Women Singers From the Torrid Regions (curated by R. Crumb)
Various Artists - Invictus Original Motion Picture Soundtrack
Various Artists - Motown 50 Love (3 CDs)
Various Artists - New York City Christmas - A Benefit Album for ASTEP
Various Artists - Rare Blues & Soul From Nashville 1960s
Various Artists - The People Speak (soundtrack)
Various Artists - Tru Thoughts 10th Anniversary (2-LP vinyl)
Vicki Lawrence - The Night the Lights Went out in Georgia
We the Kings - Smile Kid
This Date In Music History-December 8
Birthdays:
Jerry Butler - Impressions (1939)
Robert Elliott - Hollies (1942)
Mike Botts - Bread (1944)
Gregg Allman - Allman Brothers Band (1947)
Geoff Daking - Blue Magoos (1947)
Ray Shulman - Gentle Giant (1949)
Phil Collen - Def Leppard (1957)
Warren Cuccurullo - Duran Duran (1957)
Paul Rutherford - Frankie Goes To Hollywood (1959)
Marty Friedman - Megadeth (1962)
Sinead O'Connor (1966)
Ryan Newell - Sister Hazel (1972)
Nick Zinner - Yeah Yeah Yeahs (1974)
Chrisette Michele (1982)
They Are Missed:
One of the most legendary and influential figures in rock & roll history, Jim Morrison, singer for the Doors, was born in Melbourne, FL. in 1943. Morrison died of heart failure in a bathtub in a Paris hotel room on July 3, 1971.
Gary Thain bass player with Uriah Heep died of a drug overdose in 1975 (age 28).
The dream is over. John Lennon was fatally shot in New York in 1980. The world is in shock. John Lennon was assassinated by Mark David Chapman. Lennon was returning to his apartment building with Yoko Ono from a recording session. Lennon was shot in his chest, back and left arm and was pronounced dead thirty minutes later. Earlier in the day, Lennon had autographed an album for Chapman.
Country singer, songwriter Marty Robbins died in 1982 (age 57) of complications following cardiac surgery. Famous for his #1 hit of the 60's, "El Paso" (winning him a Grammy Award). Robbins later portrayed a musician in the 1982 Clint Eastwood film Honkytonk Man.
Drummer Nicholas Dingley of Hanoi Rocks was killed in a head-on collision in 1984. He was 24. Dingley was a passenger in a car driven by Motley Crue's Vince Neil. Neil was jailed for 20 days and paid $2.6 million in compensation.
Recognized throughout much of his career as "the world's greatest living entertainer," Sammy Davis Jr. was born in New York, NY in 1925. Davis died of throat cancer on 16th May 1990.
In 2004, former Pantera guitarist Dimebag Darrell was one of five people killed after a man stormed the stage during a Damageplan show at the Alrosa Villa Club in Columbus. Nathan Gale, aged 25, began firing at the band and crowd, was then shot and killed by a police officer who arrived shortly after the first shots were fired.
History:
Billboard reported in 1956 that Elvis Presley was setting new sales records in Canada. Usually a hit record makes 100,000 sales, however "Hound Dog" and "Don't Be Cruel" have sold over 225,000 copies with "Love Me Tender" selling 135,000 in sixteen weeks.
"Surfin'," the Beach Boys first recording, was released by Candis Records, a small LA based company in 1961. The song was written by Brian Wilson and his cousin Mike Love and recorded with Brian's brothers, Carl and Dennis and their friend Alan Jardine — Carl playing acoustic guitar, Al on double bass and Brian keeping time on a garbage can.
Alan Freed leaves Miami's WQAM to appear at his payola trial in New York in 1962. He testified to receiving $2,000 in 1958 from Cognat Distributors for a promise to play their records on his New York radio show. He also worked a similar deal with Superior Records for $700. He pled guilty to payola and was fined $300 and given six months probation.
In 1963, Frank Sinatra Jr was kidnapped at gunpoint from a hotel in Lake Tahoe. He was released two days later after his father paid out the $240,000 ransom demanded by the kidnappers, who were later captured, and sentenced to long prison terms. In order to communicate with the kidnappers via a payphone the senior Sinatra carried a roll of dimes with him throughout this ordeal, which became a lifetime habit, he is said to have been buried with a roll of dimes.
Traffic's Mr. Fantasty LP was released in 1967.
Singer and guitarist Graham Nash left The Hollies in 1968 and started work with David Crosby and Stephen Stills who went on to form Crosby Stills and Nash.
The hour-long special Elvis, sponsored by Singer Sewing Machines, aired on NBC-TV in 1968. Clad in black leather, Elvis successfully pulls off the greatest comeback in rock and roll history. After his decade-long stint as a movie star, he re-established himself as a musical performer and cultural totem on this electrifying, widely viewed special.
Testifying at his trial for possesion of hashish and heroin in the Toronto Supreme Court in 1969, Jimi Hendrix claimed that he has smoked pot four times and hashish five times, taken LSD five times and sniffed cocaine twice and that he had now "outgrown" drugs. After eight hours of deliberation, the jury finds him not guilty. Eight hours of deliberation, what, didn't they believe him?
Jim Morrison recorded a collection of original poetry on his 27th and last birthday in 1970. The tapes are later set to music by the surviving Doors as "An American Prayer."
This weeks Top Selling 8-Track cartridges chart in 1971: #5, Frank Sinatra's Greatest Hits Vol 2, #4, Carole King, Tapestry, #3, Simon and Garfunkel, Bridge Over Troubled Water, #2, Motown Chartbusters Vol 6 and #1, John Lennon, Imagine.
Elton John hits #2 in 1973 with "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road," the title track from a double album that would itself reach #1 and remain on the album charts for two years.
"A Night of the Hurricane" benefit show at Madison Square Garden brings the Rolling Thunder Revue to a climax in 1975. In addition to Bob Dylan and company, Muhammad Ali, Roberta Flack and others show-up. The highlight was when a phone call from "Hurricane" Carter reaches the Garden stage. The show raises $100,000 for legal fees for Carter and alleged accomplice John Artis.
The Eagles released their classic, “Hotel California” in 1976.
Styx went to #1 on the US singles chart in 1979 with "Babe," the group's only US #1. Yes, even bigger than "Mr. Roboto."
A letter carrying this post date was printed on the last page of Rolling Stone's January 21, 1982 issue. The date was, of course, the first anniversary of the murder of John Lennon. The letter begins: "I think of John's death as a war casualty — it is the war between the sane and the insane." It's signed "Love, Yoko."
In 1984, one-time Coasters manager Patrick Cavanaugh was convicted in the murder of group member Buster Wilson, whose dismembered body was found near Modesto, CA.
Hall and Oates started a two week run at #1 on the US singles chart in 1984 with "Out Of Touch," the duo's 6th US #1.
In 1995, Courtney Love appeared on the ABC TV show '10 Most Fascinating People', telling the presenter that she wished she had done 'eight thousand million things differently' to have prevented the death of her husband Kurt Cobain.
The FBI opened its files on Frank Sinatra to the public in 1998. The file contained over 1,300 pages.
In 1998, it was announced that Bruce Springsteen would tour again with the E Street Band for the first time in nearly a decade.
In 1999, Carlos Santana tells a press conference in Mexico City that while he was praying in church, the Virgin of Guadalupe spoke to him. He adds, "Marijuana is not a drug and if factories are set up here to make clothes, tofu cheese, medicine and paper from marijuana, we won't have to chop down so many trees." Just marijuana plants....
On his Web site in 2000, Julian Lennon does his best to remember the father who was never there for him on the 20th anniversary of John Lennon's murder. "I had a great deal of anger towards Dad because of his negligence and his attitude to peace and love," he posts. "That peace and love never came home to me." In Cuba, Fidel Castro unveiled a statue in honor of Lennon at Havana's El Vedado Park.
In 2003, BPI figures showed that the UK sales of seven-inch singles had increased by 84% on the previous year. The report claimed that bands such as The Darkness, The Strokes and The White Stripes had boosted sales by releasing special limited edition seven-inch records.
Also in 2003, The U.S. Supreme Court supports a ruling saying that activist Rosa Parks can sue OutKast for using her name as the title of a song. Parks alleges the use of her name constituted false advertising and infringed on her right to publicity.
Usher wins 11 awards at the Billboard Awards in Las Vegas in 2004, including Artist of the Year and Hot 100 Single of the Year for "Yeah!" His "My Boo" singing partner Alicia Keys wins seven. Stevie Wonder was given the Century Award.
Green Day, Foo Fighters, Velvet Revolver, Rancid and U2 are on "CBGB Forever," a compilation available exclusively at Best Buy. This was the first album released by Little Steven Van Zandt's Wicked Cool Records in 2006.
In 2008, L.A. eatery Barney's Beanery unveiled a plaque honoring The Doors' Jim Morrison on what would have been the late singer's 65th birthday. The marker commemorates the spot where Morrison infamously urinated on the bar. How sweet. Fellow Doors, Ray Manzarek and Robby Krieger, attended.
Still Miss You John......Make today a day of his music
Jerry Butler - Impressions (1939)
Robert Elliott - Hollies (1942)
Mike Botts - Bread (1944)
Gregg Allman - Allman Brothers Band (1947)
Geoff Daking - Blue Magoos (1947)
Ray Shulman - Gentle Giant (1949)
Phil Collen - Def Leppard (1957)
Warren Cuccurullo - Duran Duran (1957)
Paul Rutherford - Frankie Goes To Hollywood (1959)
Marty Friedman - Megadeth (1962)
Sinead O'Connor (1966)
Ryan Newell - Sister Hazel (1972)
Nick Zinner - Yeah Yeah Yeahs (1974)
Chrisette Michele (1982)
They Are Missed:
One of the most legendary and influential figures in rock & roll history, Jim Morrison, singer for the Doors, was born in Melbourne, FL. in 1943. Morrison died of heart failure in a bathtub in a Paris hotel room on July 3, 1971.
Gary Thain bass player with Uriah Heep died of a drug overdose in 1975 (age 28).
The dream is over. John Lennon was fatally shot in New York in 1980. The world is in shock. John Lennon was assassinated by Mark David Chapman. Lennon was returning to his apartment building with Yoko Ono from a recording session. Lennon was shot in his chest, back and left arm and was pronounced dead thirty minutes later. Earlier in the day, Lennon had autographed an album for Chapman.
Country singer, songwriter Marty Robbins died in 1982 (age 57) of complications following cardiac surgery. Famous for his #1 hit of the 60's, "El Paso" (winning him a Grammy Award). Robbins later portrayed a musician in the 1982 Clint Eastwood film Honkytonk Man.
Drummer Nicholas Dingley of Hanoi Rocks was killed in a head-on collision in 1984. He was 24. Dingley was a passenger in a car driven by Motley Crue's Vince Neil. Neil was jailed for 20 days and paid $2.6 million in compensation.
Recognized throughout much of his career as "the world's greatest living entertainer," Sammy Davis Jr. was born in New York, NY in 1925. Davis died of throat cancer on 16th May 1990.
In 2004, former Pantera guitarist Dimebag Darrell was one of five people killed after a man stormed the stage during a Damageplan show at the Alrosa Villa Club in Columbus. Nathan Gale, aged 25, began firing at the band and crowd, was then shot and killed by a police officer who arrived shortly after the first shots were fired.
History:
Billboard reported in 1956 that Elvis Presley was setting new sales records in Canada. Usually a hit record makes 100,000 sales, however "Hound Dog" and "Don't Be Cruel" have sold over 225,000 copies with "Love Me Tender" selling 135,000 in sixteen weeks.
"Surfin'," the Beach Boys first recording, was released by Candis Records, a small LA based company in 1961. The song was written by Brian Wilson and his cousin Mike Love and recorded with Brian's brothers, Carl and Dennis and their friend Alan Jardine — Carl playing acoustic guitar, Al on double bass and Brian keeping time on a garbage can.
Alan Freed leaves Miami's WQAM to appear at his payola trial in New York in 1962. He testified to receiving $2,000 in 1958 from Cognat Distributors for a promise to play their records on his New York radio show. He also worked a similar deal with Superior Records for $700. He pled guilty to payola and was fined $300 and given six months probation.
In 1963, Frank Sinatra Jr was kidnapped at gunpoint from a hotel in Lake Tahoe. He was released two days later after his father paid out the $240,000 ransom demanded by the kidnappers, who were later captured, and sentenced to long prison terms. In order to communicate with the kidnappers via a payphone the senior Sinatra carried a roll of dimes with him throughout this ordeal, which became a lifetime habit, he is said to have been buried with a roll of dimes.
Traffic's Mr. Fantasty LP was released in 1967.
Singer and guitarist Graham Nash left The Hollies in 1968 and started work with David Crosby and Stephen Stills who went on to form Crosby Stills and Nash.
The hour-long special Elvis, sponsored by Singer Sewing Machines, aired on NBC-TV in 1968. Clad in black leather, Elvis successfully pulls off the greatest comeback in rock and roll history. After his decade-long stint as a movie star, he re-established himself as a musical performer and cultural totem on this electrifying, widely viewed special.
Testifying at his trial for possesion of hashish and heroin in the Toronto Supreme Court in 1969, Jimi Hendrix claimed that he has smoked pot four times and hashish five times, taken LSD five times and sniffed cocaine twice and that he had now "outgrown" drugs. After eight hours of deliberation, the jury finds him not guilty. Eight hours of deliberation, what, didn't they believe him?
Jim Morrison recorded a collection of original poetry on his 27th and last birthday in 1970. The tapes are later set to music by the surviving Doors as "An American Prayer."
This weeks Top Selling 8-Track cartridges chart in 1971: #5, Frank Sinatra's Greatest Hits Vol 2, #4, Carole King, Tapestry, #3, Simon and Garfunkel, Bridge Over Troubled Water, #2, Motown Chartbusters Vol 6 and #1, John Lennon, Imagine.
Elton John hits #2 in 1973 with "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road," the title track from a double album that would itself reach #1 and remain on the album charts for two years.
"A Night of the Hurricane" benefit show at Madison Square Garden brings the Rolling Thunder Revue to a climax in 1975. In addition to Bob Dylan and company, Muhammad Ali, Roberta Flack and others show-up. The highlight was when a phone call from "Hurricane" Carter reaches the Garden stage. The show raises $100,000 for legal fees for Carter and alleged accomplice John Artis.
The Eagles released their classic, “Hotel California” in 1976.
Styx went to #1 on the US singles chart in 1979 with "Babe," the group's only US #1. Yes, even bigger than "Mr. Roboto."
A letter carrying this post date was printed on the last page of Rolling Stone's January 21, 1982 issue. The date was, of course, the first anniversary of the murder of John Lennon. The letter begins: "I think of John's death as a war casualty — it is the war between the sane and the insane." It's signed "Love, Yoko."
In 1984, one-time Coasters manager Patrick Cavanaugh was convicted in the murder of group member Buster Wilson, whose dismembered body was found near Modesto, CA.
Hall and Oates started a two week run at #1 on the US singles chart in 1984 with "Out Of Touch," the duo's 6th US #1.
In 1995, Courtney Love appeared on the ABC TV show '10 Most Fascinating People', telling the presenter that she wished she had done 'eight thousand million things differently' to have prevented the death of her husband Kurt Cobain.
The FBI opened its files on Frank Sinatra to the public in 1998. The file contained over 1,300 pages.
In 1998, it was announced that Bruce Springsteen would tour again with the E Street Band for the first time in nearly a decade.
In 1999, Carlos Santana tells a press conference in Mexico City that while he was praying in church, the Virgin of Guadalupe spoke to him. He adds, "Marijuana is not a drug and if factories are set up here to make clothes, tofu cheese, medicine and paper from marijuana, we won't have to chop down so many trees." Just marijuana plants....
On his Web site in 2000, Julian Lennon does his best to remember the father who was never there for him on the 20th anniversary of John Lennon's murder. "I had a great deal of anger towards Dad because of his negligence and his attitude to peace and love," he posts. "That peace and love never came home to me." In Cuba, Fidel Castro unveiled a statue in honor of Lennon at Havana's El Vedado Park.
In 2003, BPI figures showed that the UK sales of seven-inch singles had increased by 84% on the previous year. The report claimed that bands such as The Darkness, The Strokes and The White Stripes had boosted sales by releasing special limited edition seven-inch records.
Also in 2003, The U.S. Supreme Court supports a ruling saying that activist Rosa Parks can sue OutKast for using her name as the title of a song. Parks alleges the use of her name constituted false advertising and infringed on her right to publicity.
Usher wins 11 awards at the Billboard Awards in Las Vegas in 2004, including Artist of the Year and Hot 100 Single of the Year for "Yeah!" His "My Boo" singing partner Alicia Keys wins seven. Stevie Wonder was given the Century Award.
Green Day, Foo Fighters, Velvet Revolver, Rancid and U2 are on "CBGB Forever," a compilation available exclusively at Best Buy. This was the first album released by Little Steven Van Zandt's Wicked Cool Records in 2006.
In 2008, L.A. eatery Barney's Beanery unveiled a plaque honoring The Doors' Jim Morrison on what would have been the late singer's 65th birthday. The marker commemorates the spot where Morrison infamously urinated on the bar. How sweet. Fellow Doors, Ray Manzarek and Robby Krieger, attended.
Still Miss You John......Make today a day of his music
Monday, December 7, 2009
Music News & Notes
Peter Gabriel to Release Indie-centric Covers Album
The latest news is that Peter Gabriel will be releasing an album of covers entitled ‘Scratch My Back’ on February 15th 2010.
Gabriel describes this as “a very personal record” with the twelve songs performed only with orchestral instruments and voice. To help craft the recording he enlisted John Metcalfe as composer/arranger, the expertise of producer Bob Ezrin (Pink Floyd’s ‘The Wall’, Lou Reed’s ‘Berlin’) and the engineer, mixer and producer Tchad Blake (Suzanne Vega, Sheryl Crow, Tom Waits).
It’s chock full of indie goodness!
Heroes (David Bowie)
The Boy in the Bubble (Paul Simon)
Mirrorball (Elbow)
Flume (Bon Iver)
Listening Wind (Talking Heads)
The Power of the Heart (Lou Reed)
My Body is a Cage (Arcade Fire)
The Book of Love (The Magnetic Fields)
I Think it’s Going to Rain Today (Randy Newman)
Après Moi (Regina Spektor)
Philadelphia (Neil Young)
Street Spirit (Fade Out) (Radiohead)
=====================
Judas Priest To Reissue Classics On Vinyl
Back on Black, a company specializing in vinyl re-issues of classic metal albums, has announced that they will be re-releasing a number of classic Judas Priest albums beginning next year.
The reissues begin February 22 with Sin After Sin, followed by British Steel, which will be reissued April 19 to coincide with its 30th anniversary.
Other release dates include the seminal live disc Unleashed in the East on March 22, Screaming for Vengeance on May 24 and both Painkiller and Angel of Retribution on July 19.
All records will be 180 gram heavyweight vinyl and will come packaged in deluxe gatefold sleeves. The first 1,000 pressed will be limited-edition colored collectible vinyl. All of the records will contain bonus tracks.
=====================
Paul McCartney: 'It Would Have Been Interesting To Work With John Lennon Again'
Sir Paul McCartney has admitted it would have been “pretty interesting” to work again with former Beatles bandmate John Lennon. In an interview with The Times, Sir Paul said the pair had resolved their tumultuous relationship before Lennon was murdered in 1980.
But the singer said they were still cautious about re-igniting their creative relationship.
“Yeah, we were mates. God, that was so cool. It was the saving grace. Because it got a bit sticky after the Beatles,” he said. “No, we were really good mates again — it was lovely, actually.”
When asked if they had considered working together again, Sir Paul replied: “I dunno. We were always a bit nervous of that.
"Had he lived it might have happened, there was a mellowing. It could have been pretty interesting.”
How freaking sad, with the anniversary of his death tomorrow, December 8.
=====================
Nickelback Donates $500K to the Obakki Foundation
Founder and Obakki Designs Inc. owner Treana Peake launched the first awareness building and fundraising campaign for the newly created Obakki Foundation this week. The creative and moving campaign began with Peake, a philanthropist, entrepreneur and wife of Nickelback guitarist Ryan Peake, who gave 150 children at three orphanages in Cameroon, Africa a piece of paper and a pen and asked: What Makes You Happy? What Makes You Afraid? What Makes You Sad? Their answers can now be found on a series of fashion items that will be available for purchase at www.obakki.com in early 2010.
“I have always been involved in charitable causes, even when I could only afford to donate my time, ” said Treana. “I am so grateful to now have a platform for people to come together and, through small actions, create big results. We are excited about the impact that the Obakki Foundation will have on these children in Africa.”
The Obakki Foundation partners with organizations around the world that seek to empower individuals, groups and communities, at a grassroots level, to make a positive change. 100% of all donations made go directly back to the projects being supported by the Obakki Foundation. International superstars Nickelback recently became one of the first major contributors to the Obakki Foundation donating $1 of every ticket sale from their sold out summer tour, resulting in a total contribution of $500K.
“Through the ongoing support of our incredible fans, Nickelback has the opportunity to step up, contribute and make a difference,” said Ryan. “I will personally be making the trip to Africa this weekend and I’m really looking forward to visiting the villages and communities to see where we can make the largest impact.
With an active role, Treana personally visits all project locations supported by the Obakki Foundation. All travel and accommodation costs are paid out of pocket to ensure that 100% of the funds raised go to helping others. From December 5 - 15, the Peakes will visit the children from all three orphanages to share the impact of their stories and words and show what it brings to their world. They will assist in the construction of a new child-care center as well as conduct surveys for water sites and other potential projects related to education and health.
=====================
Technics 1200 & 1210 turntables not facing axe
Panasonic has issued a clarification to its statement on the future of its Technics SL-1200 and SL-1210 turntables. There has been speculation about the industry standard decks since the announcement from antipodean retailers that they would be discontinued.
However, the company has now confirmed the invaldity of the rumour, telling Pocket-lint: "As a major global business, Panasonic keeps all of its operations under constant review. However, there are no current plans to discontinue the Technics brand and the production of Technics turntables".
Previously, the company had issued a similar denial, however it only covered the Technics brand, which contains many products. The news that the SL-1200 and SL-1210 will be continued for now should keep vinyl DJs and other fans of the turntable happy.
The latest news is that Peter Gabriel will be releasing an album of covers entitled ‘Scratch My Back’ on February 15th 2010.
Gabriel describes this as “a very personal record” with the twelve songs performed only with orchestral instruments and voice. To help craft the recording he enlisted John Metcalfe as composer/arranger, the expertise of producer Bob Ezrin (Pink Floyd’s ‘The Wall’, Lou Reed’s ‘Berlin’) and the engineer, mixer and producer Tchad Blake (Suzanne Vega, Sheryl Crow, Tom Waits).
It’s chock full of indie goodness!
Heroes (David Bowie)
The Boy in the Bubble (Paul Simon)
Mirrorball (Elbow)
Flume (Bon Iver)
Listening Wind (Talking Heads)
The Power of the Heart (Lou Reed)
My Body is a Cage (Arcade Fire)
The Book of Love (The Magnetic Fields)
I Think it’s Going to Rain Today (Randy Newman)
Après Moi (Regina Spektor)
Philadelphia (Neil Young)
Street Spirit (Fade Out) (Radiohead)
=====================
Judas Priest To Reissue Classics On Vinyl
Back on Black, a company specializing in vinyl re-issues of classic metal albums, has announced that they will be re-releasing a number of classic Judas Priest albums beginning next year.
The reissues begin February 22 with Sin After Sin, followed by British Steel, which will be reissued April 19 to coincide with its 30th anniversary.
Other release dates include the seminal live disc Unleashed in the East on March 22, Screaming for Vengeance on May 24 and both Painkiller and Angel of Retribution on July 19.
All records will be 180 gram heavyweight vinyl and will come packaged in deluxe gatefold sleeves. The first 1,000 pressed will be limited-edition colored collectible vinyl. All of the records will contain bonus tracks.
=====================
Paul McCartney: 'It Would Have Been Interesting To Work With John Lennon Again'
Sir Paul McCartney has admitted it would have been “pretty interesting” to work again with former Beatles bandmate John Lennon. In an interview with The Times, Sir Paul said the pair had resolved their tumultuous relationship before Lennon was murdered in 1980.
But the singer said they were still cautious about re-igniting their creative relationship.
“Yeah, we were mates. God, that was so cool. It was the saving grace. Because it got a bit sticky after the Beatles,” he said. “No, we were really good mates again — it was lovely, actually.”
When asked if they had considered working together again, Sir Paul replied: “I dunno. We were always a bit nervous of that.
"Had he lived it might have happened, there was a mellowing. It could have been pretty interesting.”
How freaking sad, with the anniversary of his death tomorrow, December 8.
=====================
Nickelback Donates $500K to the Obakki Foundation
Founder and Obakki Designs Inc. owner Treana Peake launched the first awareness building and fundraising campaign for the newly created Obakki Foundation this week. The creative and moving campaign began with Peake, a philanthropist, entrepreneur and wife of Nickelback guitarist Ryan Peake, who gave 150 children at three orphanages in Cameroon, Africa a piece of paper and a pen and asked: What Makes You Happy? What Makes You Afraid? What Makes You Sad? Their answers can now be found on a series of fashion items that will be available for purchase at www.obakki.com in early 2010.
“I have always been involved in charitable causes, even when I could only afford to donate my time, ” said Treana. “I am so grateful to now have a platform for people to come together and, through small actions, create big results. We are excited about the impact that the Obakki Foundation will have on these children in Africa.”
The Obakki Foundation partners with organizations around the world that seek to empower individuals, groups and communities, at a grassroots level, to make a positive change. 100% of all donations made go directly back to the projects being supported by the Obakki Foundation. International superstars Nickelback recently became one of the first major contributors to the Obakki Foundation donating $1 of every ticket sale from their sold out summer tour, resulting in a total contribution of $500K.
“Through the ongoing support of our incredible fans, Nickelback has the opportunity to step up, contribute and make a difference,” said Ryan. “I will personally be making the trip to Africa this weekend and I’m really looking forward to visiting the villages and communities to see where we can make the largest impact.
With an active role, Treana personally visits all project locations supported by the Obakki Foundation. All travel and accommodation costs are paid out of pocket to ensure that 100% of the funds raised go to helping others. From December 5 - 15, the Peakes will visit the children from all three orphanages to share the impact of their stories and words and show what it brings to their world. They will assist in the construction of a new child-care center as well as conduct surveys for water sites and other potential projects related to education and health.
=====================
Technics 1200 & 1210 turntables not facing axe
However, the company has now confirmed the invaldity of the rumour, telling Pocket-lint: "As a major global business, Panasonic keeps all of its operations under constant review. However, there are no current plans to discontinue the Technics brand and the production of Technics turntables".
Previously, the company had issued a similar denial, however it only covered the Technics brand, which contains many products. The news that the SL-1200 and SL-1210 will be continued for now should keep vinyl DJs and other fans of the turntable happy.
Sunday, December 6, 2009
This Date In Music History-December 6
Birthdays:
Dave Brubeck - jazz pianist (1920)
Miroslav Vitous - Weather Report (1947)
Kim Simmonds - Savoy Brown (1947)
Chris Stamey - dB's (1954)
Rick Buckler - The Jam (1955)
Peter Buck - R.E.M. (1956)
David Lovering - Pixies (1961)
Ben Watt - Everything But The Girl (1962)
Steven Drozd - Flaming Lips (1969)
Ulf Ekberg - Ace Of Base (1970)
They Are Missed:
American blues artist, Leadbelly died in 1949. Huddie William Ledbetter wrote many songs including "Goodnight Irene," "Cotton Fields," "The Rock Island Line" and "The Midnight Special." Leadbelly was jailed several times for fights and knife related incidents, he was once jailed for shooting a man dead during an argument over a woman.
The late Randy Rhodes was born in 1956 (played with Quiet Riot and Ozzy Osbourne). He died in plane crash March 19, 1982.
Born today in 1916, Hugo Peretti, songwriter, producer. Wrote many classic hits including, "Twistin' The Night Away," "Shout," "You Make Me Feel Brand New." Died on 1st May 1986.
Singer songwriter Roy Orbison died of a heart attack in 1988 (age 52). Scored the 1964 US & UK #1 single "Pretty Woman," plus over 20 US & 30 UK Top 40 singles including "Only the Lonely" and "Crying." Formed his first band The Wink Westerners in 1949, was a member of The Traveling Wilburys (known as Lefty Wilbury) with Bob Dylan, George Harrison, Jeff Lynne and Tom Petty Orbison endured a great deal of tragedy in his life. His first wife, Claudette died in a motorcycle accident in 1966 and two of his three sons, died in a house fire.
The late Mike Smith (lead singer of the Dave Clark Five-- "Bits And Pieces") is born in 1943. (Died February 28, 2008)
History:
In 1957, Mercury Records released the Diamonds' cover of the Chuck Willis dance tune "The Stroll." It peaked at #8 on the pop chart and sparked a fad for the dance of the same name.
In 1961, John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, and Pete Best met with Brian Epstein for further discussions about his proposal to manage them. Epstein wanted 25% of their gross fees each week. He promised that their bookings will be better organized, more prestigious, and will expand beyond the Liverpool area. He also promised that they will never again play for less than £15, except for Cavern lunchtime sessions, for which he will get their fee doubled to ten pounds. Lennon, as leader of The Beatles, accepts on their behalf.
The movie "Ferry Cross The Mersey," with Gerry & the Pacemakers and Cilla Black, debuts in London in 1964.
The Beatles release their "Rubber Soul" album in 1965 and their "Day Tripper" single (which, strangely enough, isn't from that album).
The Rolling Stones recorded "19th Nervous Breakdown" and "Mother's Little Helper" at RCA's Hollywood Studios in Los Angeles in 1965.
In 1966, the Beatles recorded Christmas and New Year's greetings for pirate radio stations Radio Caroline and Radio London. Both stations were broadcasting from ships anchored off the British coastline.
The Beatles recorded "When I’m Sixty-Four" in 1966 which became the first song included on "Sgt. Peppers." They’d been working on "Strawberry Fields Forever" but that song landed on "Magical Mystery Tour."
James Taylor's self-titled album was released in Britain on Apple in 1968. Most attention focused on the contributions of Paul McCartney and George Harrison. Taylor was the first non-Beatle signed to Apple.
In 1969, The Rolling Stones play a free "thank you" concert for 300,000 fans at the Altamont Speedway in Livermore, California. Among the performing guests are Jefferson Airplane, Santana and Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young. The hastily organized event rapidly falls into a disaster when four people die, including one who was stabbed by a Hell's Angel who was hired to act as a security guard. The murder is filmed and included in the film "Gimme Shelter" which premiers exactly one year later.
Led Zeppelin made their debut on the US singles chart in 1969 with "Whole Lotta Love." It went on to make #4 on the chart and was the first of six Top 40 singles for the group in the US. During the bands career, Zeppelin never released any singles in the UK.
1969, One hit wonders Steam started a two week run at #1 on the US singles chart in 1969 with "Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Goodbye," one of the many 'B-sides' to make it big in the music industry.
"Tears of a Clown" by Smokey Robinson & the Miracles was a hit in 1970.
Steve Miller got a gold record for "The Joker," in 1973, his most sucessful LP to date. The title track becomes Miller's first chart-topping hit and gives cameo roles to some of his previous in-song personas, like "Maurice" and "The Gangster of Love."
Paul Simon went to #1 on the US album chart in 1975 with "Still Crazy After All These Years," his first US #1 solo album.
In 1975, Rev Charles Boykin of Tallahassee, Florida organised the burning of Elton John and Rolling Stones records, claiming they were sinful. Boykin was reacting to the results from a survey that said, 984 of the 1,000 local unmarried mothers had sex when listening to rock music. For the record, he din't stamp out rock and roll we are are all still sinning.
AC/DC's big breakthrough comes with his fifth US album, "Highway to Hell," which was released in 1979. It turns gold and happens to be the last album recorded with original vocalist Bon Scott, who dies two months later.
In the studio in 1980, John Lennon mixed "Walking on Thin Ice." He's also interviewed by British DJ Andy Peebles. Mark David Chapman arrived in New York after flying there from Honolulu. He checked into a YMCA nine blocks from John Lennon's apartment.
The sound system breaks down during a John Mellencamp concert at Madison Square Garden in New York in 1985. Mellencamp waits until the problem is fixed, resumes the show and offers anyone in the audience their money back if they’re not satisfied. That's how a professional acts!
Peter Cetera and Amy Grant went to #1 on the US singles chart in 1986 with "The Next Time I Fall."
Pearl Jam’s “Vitalogy” was released in 1994.
Four months after the death of guitarist Jerry Garcia, the Grateful Dead declare their long strange trip is over. They disbanded in 1995.
Green Day nails a total of six trophies, including Rock Artist of the Year and Pop Group of the Year, at the 2005 Billboard Music Awards in Las Vegas. The group opens the show with "Holiday" from "American Idiot."
KoRn unleash their 7th album, "See You On The Other Side" in 2005.
In 2008, Beyoncé went to #1 on the US album chart with "I Am… Sasha Fierce," the singers third studio album. It debuted at #1, making Knowles the third female artist this decade after Britney Spears and Alicia Keys to have her first three albums debut in the top spot.
Dave Brubeck - jazz pianist (1920)
Miroslav Vitous - Weather Report (1947)
Kim Simmonds - Savoy Brown (1947)
Chris Stamey - dB's (1954)
Rick Buckler - The Jam (1955)
Peter Buck - R.E.M. (1956)
David Lovering - Pixies (1961)
Ben Watt - Everything But The Girl (1962)
Steven Drozd - Flaming Lips (1969)
Ulf Ekberg - Ace Of Base (1970)
They Are Missed:
American blues artist, Leadbelly died in 1949. Huddie William Ledbetter wrote many songs including "Goodnight Irene," "Cotton Fields," "The Rock Island Line" and "The Midnight Special." Leadbelly was jailed several times for fights and knife related incidents, he was once jailed for shooting a man dead during an argument over a woman.
The late Randy Rhodes was born in 1956 (played with Quiet Riot and Ozzy Osbourne). He died in plane crash March 19, 1982.
Born today in 1916, Hugo Peretti, songwriter, producer. Wrote many classic hits including, "Twistin' The Night Away," "Shout," "You Make Me Feel Brand New." Died on 1st May 1986.
Singer songwriter Roy Orbison died of a heart attack in 1988 (age 52). Scored the 1964 US & UK #1 single "Pretty Woman," plus over 20 US & 30 UK Top 40 singles including "Only the Lonely" and "Crying." Formed his first band The Wink Westerners in 1949, was a member of The Traveling Wilburys (known as Lefty Wilbury) with Bob Dylan, George Harrison, Jeff Lynne and Tom Petty Orbison endured a great deal of tragedy in his life. His first wife, Claudette died in a motorcycle accident in 1966 and two of his three sons, died in a house fire.
The late Mike Smith (lead singer of the Dave Clark Five-- "Bits And Pieces") is born in 1943. (Died February 28, 2008)
History:
In 1957, Mercury Records released the Diamonds' cover of the Chuck Willis dance tune "The Stroll." It peaked at #8 on the pop chart and sparked a fad for the dance of the same name.
In 1961, John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, and Pete Best met with Brian Epstein for further discussions about his proposal to manage them. Epstein wanted 25% of their gross fees each week. He promised that their bookings will be better organized, more prestigious, and will expand beyond the Liverpool area. He also promised that they will never again play for less than £15, except for Cavern lunchtime sessions, for which he will get their fee doubled to ten pounds. Lennon, as leader of The Beatles, accepts on their behalf.
The movie "Ferry Cross The Mersey," with Gerry & the Pacemakers and Cilla Black, debuts in London in 1964.
The Beatles release their "Rubber Soul" album in 1965 and their "Day Tripper" single (which, strangely enough, isn't from that album).
The Rolling Stones recorded "19th Nervous Breakdown" and "Mother's Little Helper" at RCA's Hollywood Studios in Los Angeles in 1965.
In 1966, the Beatles recorded Christmas and New Year's greetings for pirate radio stations Radio Caroline and Radio London. Both stations were broadcasting from ships anchored off the British coastline.
The Beatles recorded "When I’m Sixty-Four" in 1966 which became the first song included on "Sgt. Peppers." They’d been working on "Strawberry Fields Forever" but that song landed on "Magical Mystery Tour."
James Taylor's self-titled album was released in Britain on Apple in 1968. Most attention focused on the contributions of Paul McCartney and George Harrison. Taylor was the first non-Beatle signed to Apple.
In 1969, The Rolling Stones play a free "thank you" concert for 300,000 fans at the Altamont Speedway in Livermore, California. Among the performing guests are Jefferson Airplane, Santana and Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young. The hastily organized event rapidly falls into a disaster when four people die, including one who was stabbed by a Hell's Angel who was hired to act as a security guard. The murder is filmed and included in the film "Gimme Shelter" which premiers exactly one year later.
Led Zeppelin made their debut on the US singles chart in 1969 with "Whole Lotta Love." It went on to make #4 on the chart and was the first of six Top 40 singles for the group in the US. During the bands career, Zeppelin never released any singles in the UK.
1969, One hit wonders Steam started a two week run at #1 on the US singles chart in 1969 with "Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Goodbye," one of the many 'B-sides' to make it big in the music industry.
"Tears of a Clown" by Smokey Robinson & the Miracles was a hit in 1970.
Steve Miller got a gold record for "The Joker," in 1973, his most sucessful LP to date. The title track becomes Miller's first chart-topping hit and gives cameo roles to some of his previous in-song personas, like "Maurice" and "The Gangster of Love."
Paul Simon went to #1 on the US album chart in 1975 with "Still Crazy After All These Years," his first US #1 solo album.
In 1975, Rev Charles Boykin of Tallahassee, Florida organised the burning of Elton John and Rolling Stones records, claiming they were sinful. Boykin was reacting to the results from a survey that said, 984 of the 1,000 local unmarried mothers had sex when listening to rock music. For the record, he din't stamp out rock and roll we are are all still sinning.
AC/DC's big breakthrough comes with his fifth US album, "Highway to Hell," which was released in 1979. It turns gold and happens to be the last album recorded with original vocalist Bon Scott, who dies two months later.
In the studio in 1980, John Lennon mixed "Walking on Thin Ice." He's also interviewed by British DJ Andy Peebles. Mark David Chapman arrived in New York after flying there from Honolulu. He checked into a YMCA nine blocks from John Lennon's apartment.
The sound system breaks down during a John Mellencamp concert at Madison Square Garden in New York in 1985. Mellencamp waits until the problem is fixed, resumes the show and offers anyone in the audience their money back if they’re not satisfied. That's how a professional acts!
Peter Cetera and Amy Grant went to #1 on the US singles chart in 1986 with "The Next Time I Fall."
Pearl Jam’s “Vitalogy” was released in 1994.
Four months after the death of guitarist Jerry Garcia, the Grateful Dead declare their long strange trip is over. They disbanded in 1995.
Green Day nails a total of six trophies, including Rock Artist of the Year and Pop Group of the Year, at the 2005 Billboard Music Awards in Las Vegas. The group opens the show with "Holiday" from "American Idiot."
KoRn unleash their 7th album, "See You On The Other Side" in 2005.
In 2008, Beyoncé went to #1 on the US album chart with "I Am… Sasha Fierce," the singers third studio album. It debuted at #1, making Knowles the third female artist this decade after Britney Spears and Alicia Keys to have her first three albums debut in the top spot.
Saturday, December 5, 2009
Music Legends (gone but not forgotten)
Here's another great article from my friend from 'down under':
By Donald J.Kay
Planes, trains, and automobiles. All modes of transport. But, one in particular has robbed the music world of some of our biggest stars, the plane. Great names like Patsy Cline, Buddy Holly, The Big Bopper, Ritchie Valens, John Denver and more recently Aaliyah, have all sadly been taken from us in plane crashes, many have been caused by inclement weather.
The earliest reported case was that of American band leader, Glenn Miller, killed in December 15, 1944. Miller was on a plane going from England to Paris, when his aircraft was bombed in midair by the allies. Other theories exist, but haven’t been proven. Miller left us with great music memories such as” Tuxedo Junction” and “In the Mood, “ to name just two from his enormous catalogue.
Just three years later, January 26, 1947, American singer, Grace Moore would lose her life when the plane she was on, climbed to an altitude of 150 feet, and then stalled, crashing to the ground. On October 1, 1949, Buddy Clark died when his plane crashed on to the street in Los Angeles. Memorable hits were “I’ll Dance at Your Wedding “and “A Dreamer’s Holiday”
February 3, 1959 would go on to be a memorable day in music history. It was the day that three big icons in the music world would sadly leave us. Buddy Holly, The Big Bopper, and finally Richie Valens. Legends in their own right, they left us with great tracks like “Peggy Sue,” “Everyday” “Chantilly Lace,” “La Bamba” and “Donna.” Their music is still played and loved today.
In March 5 1963, Country music star with the golden voice, Patsy Cline was tragically killed when her plane went down in Tennesee, due to weather conditions. Memorable hits were” Crazy” and” Walking after Midnight” to name just two. On the same day, Cowboy Copas, lost his life in a plane wreck. His posthumous country hit was” Goodbye Kisses.” Also on March 5,1963, Hawkshaw Hawkins (41), perished in the same plane wreck that claimed the lives of Patsy Cline and Cowboy Copas. His best known track is the Ernest Tubb song” Lonesome 7-7203.”
In 1964, July 31, 1964, to be precise, “Gentleman” Jim Reeves would perish while piloting his own craft in Tennessee during a thunderstorm. Memorable hits include “He’ll Have To Go” and “I Love You Because.” Tragedy struck again on October 23,1964 with the death of David Box, who replaced Buddy Holly and sang lead vocal on the Crickets' track” Peggy Sue Got Married.”
The music world settled down for the next three years, until the untimely death of Soul man Otis Redding and four members of the Barkays, who were killed in Madison, Wisconsin on December 10, 1967. Weather conditions were the main factor involved. His hits included a riveting version of the Stones, “Satisfaction” and his biggest is “Sitting on the Dock of the Bay.”
September 20, 1973 would see the demise of one Jim Croce, famous for the songs “Bad, Bad, Leroy Brown,” “You Don’t Mess Around with Jim,” among others. He died when the plane he was on failed to gain enough altitude on takeoff from Louisiana Airport. He was only 30 years old.
In October 20, 1977, three members of rock band Lynyrd Skynyrd were lost to the music world. Their plane encountered mechanical and fuel problems. Members Ronnie Van Zant, Steve Gaines, and Cassie Gaines, all lost their lives. At the time of their deaths, their new album “Street Survivors” got withdrawn because the cover depicted the band surrounded by flames. The group’s most memorable track “Sweet Home Alabama” is still played on radio today and is an all time favourite.
March 19, 1982 saw Ozzy Osbourne guitarist Randy Rhodes plane crash into a house after a wing clipped Ozzy’s Tour bus. He was 25. The last album he played on was “Diary of a Madman” released in 1981. Canadian, Stan Rogers (33) lost his life in June 2, 1983, when fire broke out in the restroom onboard the Air Canada flight in Cincinnati. He along with 23 other people died of smoke inhalation.
Next in this list of music greats, is the late Rick Nelson who died December 31, 1985. Rick and his fiancée were both killed after fire broke out on board a DC-3, while enroute to a New Years Eve performance in Dallas. The son of Ozzie and Harriet, from the 50’s TV show had heaps of hits. Most notably were ”Travelin’Man” and “Garden Party.” He also made numerous TV and movie appearances.
October 22, 1986 saw singer, actress and radio personality, Jane Dornacker (39) die, riding in a helicopter, doing a live traffic report, while flying over the Hudson River. Jane was best known as the sultry voice on The Tubes hit “Don’t Touch Me There.” Another famous son was Dean Paul (Dino) Martin, son of Dean Martin, who died on March 21, 1987. He was a one time member of Dino, Desi, And Billy, who charted with “Not the Loving Kind.”
Bluesman, Stevie Ray Vaughan, who was touted as being the ‘new’ Hendrix, was killed in a helicopter crash August 27, 1990 in Wisconsin. Heavy fog causing bad visibility, plus the fact that the pilot couldn’t gain proper altitude contributed to his untimely death. He was 35 and best remembered for albums such as “Texas Flood” and “Couldn’t Stand the Weather.”
On March 16, 1991, seven members of Reba McEntires’ band and her manager all lost their lives near San Diego when their plane crashed in mountainous terrain, killing all passengers. Top albums by Reba include, “My Kinda Country” and the album recorded, as a result of the accident,” For My Broken Heart.”
Walter Hyatt, of Uncle Watt’s Band, died when the ValuJet he was on crashed into the Everglades on May 11, 1996. He was 46. His last known album was “Music Town”, recorded for Sugar Hill Records. Country singer John Denver succumbed to an early death, in October 12, 1997, when his single engine plane crashed near Monterey, California. Modifications to the planes controls were the contributing factor, leading to his death. Some of his biggest selling albums are “Rocky Mountain High” and “Back Home Again,” among others.
September 25, 1999 saw the loss of Ozark Mountain Daredevils member Stephen Canaday, killed when the vintage plane he was on crashed into a house in Nashville. He was 55. One of the biggest hits for the Ozarks was “Jackie Blue,” a top 10 hit globally. January 8, 2000 saw the death of Grinderswitch guitarist, Joe Dan Petty (52), killed when the plane he was on reported fuel line problems in Macon, Georgia. Grinderswitch recorded several albums for Capricorn and Atlantic labels.
August 25, 2001 would mark the demise of R&B star, Aaliyah, killed, when her plane, while leaving the Bahamas, crashed during takeoff. Tests showed that the pilot had traces of drugs and alcohol in his body, plus the plane was overloaded, contributing to the accident. Best remembered for her debut album “Age Ain’t Nothing But a Number” and her last self-titled album. She was 22 years old. Graham (Shirley) Strachan, from the Australian band, Skyhooks, was killed in a helicopter accident in August 29, 2001. The crash occurred at Mount Alexander at 4pm in the afternoon. He is best remembered for classic hits such as “All My Friends Are Getting Married” and “Blue Jeans. He was 49. Melanie Thornton (34), died in Zurich, aboard a plane carrying 33 passengers on November 24, 2001. She was lead singer with the group La Bouche, who had success with a track called “Sweet Dreams.”
On February 12, 2009, two members of Chuck Mangione’s band were killed in Buffalo, New York. Killed were Gerry Niewood, and Coleman Mellet. Mangione’s best remembered track is “Feels So Good.” In closing, it’s safe to say that whilst these great artists will be sadly missed by all music lovers, there’s one thing that can be positively stated - their music will live on and on and on.
By Donald J.Kay
Planes, trains, and automobiles. All modes of transport. But, one in particular has robbed the music world of some of our biggest stars, the plane. Great names like Patsy Cline, Buddy Holly, The Big Bopper, Ritchie Valens, John Denver and more recently Aaliyah, have all sadly been taken from us in plane crashes, many have been caused by inclement weather.
The earliest reported case was that of American band leader, Glenn Miller, killed in December 15, 1944. Miller was on a plane going from England to Paris, when his aircraft was bombed in midair by the allies. Other theories exist, but haven’t been proven. Miller left us with great music memories such as” Tuxedo Junction” and “In the Mood, “ to name just two from his enormous catalogue.
Just three years later, January 26, 1947, American singer, Grace Moore would lose her life when the plane she was on, climbed to an altitude of 150 feet, and then stalled, crashing to the ground. On October 1, 1949, Buddy Clark died when his plane crashed on to the street in Los Angeles. Memorable hits were “I’ll Dance at Your Wedding “and “A Dreamer’s Holiday”
February 3, 1959 would go on to be a memorable day in music history. It was the day that three big icons in the music world would sadly leave us. Buddy Holly, The Big Bopper, and finally Richie Valens. Legends in their own right, they left us with great tracks like “Peggy Sue,” “Everyday” “Chantilly Lace,” “La Bamba” and “Donna.” Their music is still played and loved today.
In March 5 1963, Country music star with the golden voice, Patsy Cline was tragically killed when her plane went down in Tennesee, due to weather conditions. Memorable hits were” Crazy” and” Walking after Midnight” to name just two. On the same day, Cowboy Copas, lost his life in a plane wreck. His posthumous country hit was” Goodbye Kisses.” Also on March 5,1963, Hawkshaw Hawkins (41), perished in the same plane wreck that claimed the lives of Patsy Cline and Cowboy Copas. His best known track is the Ernest Tubb song” Lonesome 7-7203.”
In 1964, July 31, 1964, to be precise, “Gentleman” Jim Reeves would perish while piloting his own craft in Tennessee during a thunderstorm. Memorable hits include “He’ll Have To Go” and “I Love You Because.” Tragedy struck again on October 23,1964 with the death of David Box, who replaced Buddy Holly and sang lead vocal on the Crickets' track” Peggy Sue Got Married.”
The music world settled down for the next three years, until the untimely death of Soul man Otis Redding and four members of the Barkays, who were killed in Madison, Wisconsin on December 10, 1967. Weather conditions were the main factor involved. His hits included a riveting version of the Stones, “Satisfaction” and his biggest is “Sitting on the Dock of the Bay.”
September 20, 1973 would see the demise of one Jim Croce, famous for the songs “Bad, Bad, Leroy Brown,” “You Don’t Mess Around with Jim,” among others. He died when the plane he was on failed to gain enough altitude on takeoff from Louisiana Airport. He was only 30 years old.
In October 20, 1977, three members of rock band Lynyrd Skynyrd were lost to the music world. Their plane encountered mechanical and fuel problems. Members Ronnie Van Zant, Steve Gaines, and Cassie Gaines, all lost their lives. At the time of their deaths, their new album “Street Survivors” got withdrawn because the cover depicted the band surrounded by flames. The group’s most memorable track “Sweet Home Alabama” is still played on radio today and is an all time favourite.
March 19, 1982 saw Ozzy Osbourne guitarist Randy Rhodes plane crash into a house after a wing clipped Ozzy’s Tour bus. He was 25. The last album he played on was “Diary of a Madman” released in 1981. Canadian, Stan Rogers (33) lost his life in June 2, 1983, when fire broke out in the restroom onboard the Air Canada flight in Cincinnati. He along with 23 other people died of smoke inhalation.
Next in this list of music greats, is the late Rick Nelson who died December 31, 1985. Rick and his fiancée were both killed after fire broke out on board a DC-3, while enroute to a New Years Eve performance in Dallas. The son of Ozzie and Harriet, from the 50’s TV show had heaps of hits. Most notably were ”Travelin’Man” and “Garden Party.” He also made numerous TV and movie appearances.
October 22, 1986 saw singer, actress and radio personality, Jane Dornacker (39) die, riding in a helicopter, doing a live traffic report, while flying over the Hudson River. Jane was best known as the sultry voice on The Tubes hit “Don’t Touch Me There.” Another famous son was Dean Paul (Dino) Martin, son of Dean Martin, who died on March 21, 1987. He was a one time member of Dino, Desi, And Billy, who charted with “Not the Loving Kind.”
Bluesman, Stevie Ray Vaughan, who was touted as being the ‘new’ Hendrix, was killed in a helicopter crash August 27, 1990 in Wisconsin. Heavy fog causing bad visibility, plus the fact that the pilot couldn’t gain proper altitude contributed to his untimely death. He was 35 and best remembered for albums such as “Texas Flood” and “Couldn’t Stand the Weather.”
On March 16, 1991, seven members of Reba McEntires’ band and her manager all lost their lives near San Diego when their plane crashed in mountainous terrain, killing all passengers. Top albums by Reba include, “My Kinda Country” and the album recorded, as a result of the accident,” For My Broken Heart.”
Walter Hyatt, of Uncle Watt’s Band, died when the ValuJet he was on crashed into the Everglades on May 11, 1996. He was 46. His last known album was “Music Town”, recorded for Sugar Hill Records. Country singer John Denver succumbed to an early death, in October 12, 1997, when his single engine plane crashed near Monterey, California. Modifications to the planes controls were the contributing factor, leading to his death. Some of his biggest selling albums are “Rocky Mountain High” and “Back Home Again,” among others.
September 25, 1999 saw the loss of Ozark Mountain Daredevils member Stephen Canaday, killed when the vintage plane he was on crashed into a house in Nashville. He was 55. One of the biggest hits for the Ozarks was “Jackie Blue,” a top 10 hit globally. January 8, 2000 saw the death of Grinderswitch guitarist, Joe Dan Petty (52), killed when the plane he was on reported fuel line problems in Macon, Georgia. Grinderswitch recorded several albums for Capricorn and Atlantic labels.
August 25, 2001 would mark the demise of R&B star, Aaliyah, killed, when her plane, while leaving the Bahamas, crashed during takeoff. Tests showed that the pilot had traces of drugs and alcohol in his body, plus the plane was overloaded, contributing to the accident. Best remembered for her debut album “Age Ain’t Nothing But a Number” and her last self-titled album. She was 22 years old. Graham (Shirley) Strachan, from the Australian band, Skyhooks, was killed in a helicopter accident in August 29, 2001. The crash occurred at Mount Alexander at 4pm in the afternoon. He is best remembered for classic hits such as “All My Friends Are Getting Married” and “Blue Jeans. He was 49. Melanie Thornton (34), died in Zurich, aboard a plane carrying 33 passengers on November 24, 2001. She was lead singer with the group La Bouche, who had success with a track called “Sweet Dreams.”
On February 12, 2009, two members of Chuck Mangione’s band were killed in Buffalo, New York. Killed were Gerry Niewood, and Coleman Mellet. Mangione’s best remembered track is “Feels So Good.” In closing, it’s safe to say that whilst these great artists will be sadly missed by all music lovers, there’s one thing that can be positively stated - their music will live on and on and on.
Back in rotation: vinyl sales set for record year
Ian Munroe, CTV.ca News Staff
Carlin Nicholson is itching to get his hands on the test pressing, or vinyl prototype, of his band's debut album. It's currently being mastered in Los Angeles and should arrive next week, he said.
In a few months, the 12-track LP by Zeus, Nicholson's Toronto-based rock band, will be released in North America, Japan and Europe through indie music label Arts & Crafts.
In keeping with the band's preferred medium, the vinyl LP will hit store shelves two weeks ahead of the compact disc. And the downloadable version of the album will be recorded from vinyl master, making the tracks sound more like a good old fashioned record.
"Really, we've been looking forward to vinyl the whole time," Nicholson said by phone from a recording studio in the city's east end. "If it's about listening to music, then it's got to be about music that sounds as good as it can."
Thanks to devoted fans of vinyl LPs in the indie music scene, and to DJs who have been spinning electronic music or hip hop on their turntables, the record has survived on the fringes of the music industry for years.
But that may be changing as artists, listeners, technology companies and record labels come back around to the music format that dominated the 20th century.
Yearly vinyl sales are on course to surpass 2008's total by 37 per cent, according to Nielsen Soundscan, which tracks music sales at 14,000 vendors across Canada and the U.S.
Last month, Soundscan announced that vinyl LP sales broke the two million mark for the first time since the company started keeping tabs in 1991.
The market may be significantly larger, however, because Soundscan excludes many independently owned retailers that stock vinyl, as well as second-hand sales.
'Obsessive' listeners
Brian Zirk has been listening to records for decades. About three years ago he decided to beef up his collection, now 3,000 strong, by searching his Vancouver Island community, and the Internet, for anyone selling used rock, jazz and blues records.
"It's quite obsessive. Always looking for that perfect sound I guess," Zirk said in a phone interview from Campbell River, B.C., where he runs an audio-video equipment store. The 50-year-old owns several turntables and eschews the MP3 format, describing it as "the scourge of the world" because it offers inferior sound.
"There's more colourations to the vinyl," he added. "It's a better way of listening, it's more personal."
Catering to the small but growing base of consumers with Zirk's tastes, manufacturers are bringing new turntables to market.
"Certainly in recent years there's been an upswing in sales," said
Simon Wilson, the manager at Audio Ark, an Edmonton store that sells audio and video systems. "Quite possibly we stock a greater variety of turntables than we did back in vinyl's heyday."
To stand out from the competition, some newer models come with USB ports, allowing vinyl fans to connect the turntable to their computer and digitize their collection.
"There seems to be a growing number of younger people who are getting interested in the format," Wilson wrote in an email. "It's almost as if they're content with the iPod for digital but, at least presently, make a stronger connection with the whole ritual of playing a record."
Turning the tables
When the compact disc was introduced in 1982, it seemed like the writing on the beginning of the end for vinyl LPs. And as recently as 2006, vinyl sales were dropping steadily.
Canada lost its only remaining commercial record press two years later, when the long-time operator of a plant in Pickering, Ont., retired.
"We were having trouble finding someone to take over physically running the operation," said Lindsay Gillespie, president of Music Manufacturing Service, which owned the factory.
Then vinyl sales started to rebound, and a new vinyl press called Rip-V opened in the Montreal suburb of St. Lambert, Que. It's currently pressing a new live album by Tom Waits.
Meanwhile, CD sales dropped more than 20 per cent in Canada last year, according to the Canadian Recording Industry Association.
Even though vinyl still makes up a tiny fraction of the overall market for music, devotees are asking whether their beloved analog medium will outlive, or even help bring down the CD.
Staff at Rotate This, a music store in downtown Toronto that arguably has the largest vinyl selection in the city, estimates they now move at least 10 records for every compact disc.
Vinyl sales at Vancouver's Zulu records are up at least 30 per cent compared to a few years ago, and are now on par with CD sales, the store's general manager, Nicholas Bragg, told CTV.
"A lot of record labels are thinking, 'well, we've got to make up these losses that we're incurring with CD sales,' and I think that they've looked to the niche market of records," Bragg said.
"In some ways (records) are going to become the most vital part of the market, because it's analog and because it represents something different than the MP3 format," he added. "I've got to be frank -- it's cool, too."
SOURCE: http://www.ctv.ca/
Carlin Nicholson is itching to get his hands on the test pressing, or vinyl prototype, of his band's debut album. It's currently being mastered in Los Angeles and should arrive next week, he said.
In a few months, the 12-track LP by Zeus, Nicholson's Toronto-based rock band, will be released in North America, Japan and Europe through indie music label Arts & Crafts.
In keeping with the band's preferred medium, the vinyl LP will hit store shelves two weeks ahead of the compact disc. And the downloadable version of the album will be recorded from vinyl master, making the tracks sound more like a good old fashioned record.
"Really, we've been looking forward to vinyl the whole time," Nicholson said by phone from a recording studio in the city's east end. "If it's about listening to music, then it's got to be about music that sounds as good as it can."
Thanks to devoted fans of vinyl LPs in the indie music scene, and to DJs who have been spinning electronic music or hip hop on their turntables, the record has survived on the fringes of the music industry for years.
But that may be changing as artists, listeners, technology companies and record labels come back around to the music format that dominated the 20th century.
Yearly vinyl sales are on course to surpass 2008's total by 37 per cent, according to Nielsen Soundscan, which tracks music sales at 14,000 vendors across Canada and the U.S.
Last month, Soundscan announced that vinyl LP sales broke the two million mark for the first time since the company started keeping tabs in 1991.
The market may be significantly larger, however, because Soundscan excludes many independently owned retailers that stock vinyl, as well as second-hand sales.
'Obsessive' listeners
Brian Zirk has been listening to records for decades. About three years ago he decided to beef up his collection, now 3,000 strong, by searching his Vancouver Island community, and the Internet, for anyone selling used rock, jazz and blues records.
"It's quite obsessive. Always looking for that perfect sound I guess," Zirk said in a phone interview from Campbell River, B.C., where he runs an audio-video equipment store. The 50-year-old owns several turntables and eschews the MP3 format, describing it as "the scourge of the world" because it offers inferior sound.
"There's more colourations to the vinyl," he added. "It's a better way of listening, it's more personal."
Catering to the small but growing base of consumers with Zirk's tastes, manufacturers are bringing new turntables to market.
"Certainly in recent years there's been an upswing in sales," said
Simon Wilson, the manager at Audio Ark, an Edmonton store that sells audio and video systems. "Quite possibly we stock a greater variety of turntables than we did back in vinyl's heyday."
To stand out from the competition, some newer models come with USB ports, allowing vinyl fans to connect the turntable to their computer and digitize their collection.
"There seems to be a growing number of younger people who are getting interested in the format," Wilson wrote in an email. "It's almost as if they're content with the iPod for digital but, at least presently, make a stronger connection with the whole ritual of playing a record."
Turning the tables
When the compact disc was introduced in 1982, it seemed like the writing on the beginning of the end for vinyl LPs. And as recently as 2006, vinyl sales were dropping steadily.
Canada lost its only remaining commercial record press two years later, when the long-time operator of a plant in Pickering, Ont., retired.
"We were having trouble finding someone to take over physically running the operation," said Lindsay Gillespie, president of Music Manufacturing Service, which owned the factory.
Then vinyl sales started to rebound, and a new vinyl press called Rip-V opened in the Montreal suburb of St. Lambert, Que. It's currently pressing a new live album by Tom Waits.
Meanwhile, CD sales dropped more than 20 per cent in Canada last year, according to the Canadian Recording Industry Association.
Even though vinyl still makes up a tiny fraction of the overall market for music, devotees are asking whether their beloved analog medium will outlive, or even help bring down the CD.
Staff at Rotate This, a music store in downtown Toronto that arguably has the largest vinyl selection in the city, estimates they now move at least 10 records for every compact disc.
Vinyl sales at Vancouver's Zulu records are up at least 30 per cent compared to a few years ago, and are now on par with CD sales, the store's general manager, Nicholas Bragg, told CTV.
"A lot of record labels are thinking, 'well, we've got to make up these losses that we're incurring with CD sales,' and I think that they've looked to the niche market of records," Bragg said.
"In some ways (records) are going to become the most vital part of the market, because it's analog and because it represents something different than the MP3 format," he added. "I've got to be frank -- it's cool, too."
SOURCE: http://www.ctv.ca/
Friday, December 4, 2009
Michael Fremer Review
We thank Michael Fremer (look for this every Friday),senior contributing editor of Stereophile magazine- for this great review. 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.
Make sure to stop by his site, http://www.musicangle.com and bookmark it for further exploration. I certainly want to thank Michael for the exclusive rights to reprint his fantastic material.
ALBUM REVIEW:
Art Pepper (reissue) The Way It Was
Contemporary/Mobile Fidelity 180g LP
Produced by: Lester Koenig
Engineered by: Roy Du Nann
Mixed by: Roy Du Nann
Mastered by: Rob M. LoVerde
Review by: Michael Fremer
2009-12-01
For the most part, the best Art Pepper could do in 1972 when this set was issued was listen to and talk about old performances and old tapes. He recorded only one album during an extended period of inactivity stretching from 1968 to 1975.
In 1969, during a stay at Synanon he met Laurie Miller with whom he wrote the liner notes for this album that consists of unreleased sessions and outtakes from some that were. It’s an unusual choice for a Mobile Fidelity reissue since it’s hardly a classic album. It’s hardly an “album” at all, for that matter and all of the tunes are covers of standards.
However, it is significant in that all of side one, recorded in 1956, had been previously unreleased because there wasn’t enough material for an entire album and side two consists of outtakes from significant Pepper albums.
Side one is also significant because Pepper plays with not often recorded cool Los Angeles-based tenor sax player Warne Marsh who died onstage in 1987 at the age of 60 while playing “Out of Nowhere” at an L.A. nightspot. Backed by the the rhythm section of Ben Tucker on bass, Gary Frommer on drums and Ronnie Ball on piano, the group tears through “I Can’t Believe That You’re In Love With Me,” “All the Things You Are,” “What’s New,” and “Tickle Toe.”
Pepper and Marsh trade lines and intertwine in a serpentine and intricate manor reminiscent of what Paul Desmond and Gerry Mulligan pull off seven years later so pleasingly on the 1962 RCA Living Stereo release Two of a Mind (RCA LSP-2624), though Mulligan was on baritone sax and the quartets were piano-less.
Side two includes two unreleased tunes featuring collaborations with two of Miles Davis’ rhythm sections, one, “The Man I Love,” from Art Pepper Meets the Rhythm Section (Contemporary S7532) recorded in 1957 and the other “The Way You Look Tonight,” from Art Pepper: Getting’ Together (Contemporary S7573), recorded in 1960, the former with Red Garland, Paul Chambers and Philly Joe Jones, the latter with Wynton Kelly, Jimmie Cobb and Chambers. In between is “Autumn Leaves,” an unreleased track from Art Pepper: Intensity (Contemporary S7607) also from 1960, with Dolo Coker on piano, Jimmy Bond on bass and Frank Butler on drums.
By today’s jazz standards, these tunes are straight ahead and nothing special compositionally. The magic is in the playing and the vibe. Pepper’s playing throughout is deft and his tone cotton candy light and bracingly cool compared to what his friends on the other coast were doing.
Sonically, side one shows its age though nothing Roy DuNann recorded sounded anything but convincingly natural and as dry as the martini to which Paul Desmond’s playing used to be compared. The rhythm section is all right channel, the saxes left with minimal fill in between but it’s so well done, it doesn’t really matter.
Side two sounds much more modern, with the Pepper taking center stage and the other instruments divided left and right. Compared to two originals I have on hand, this reissue is really better in every way: quieter, richer-sounding (meaning mastering engineer LoVerde knew that DuNann used to purposely boost high frequencies and master to lacquer dropping them by an equal amount as sort of a pre-Dolby noise reduction system) and the result is a very transparent, warm, full sound.
Again, if your collection is short on jazz, I can’t say this is an essential place to start filling in, but otherwise it’s an excellent reissue and well worth owning and enjoying.
Make sure to stop by his site, http://www.musicangle.com and bookmark it for further exploration. I certainly want to thank Michael for the exclusive rights to reprint his fantastic material.
Art Pepper (reissue) The Way It Was
Contemporary/Mobile Fidelity 180g LP
Produced by: Lester Koenig
Engineered by: Roy Du Nann
Mixed by: Roy Du Nann
Mastered by: Rob M. LoVerde
Review by: Michael Fremer
2009-12-01
For the most part, the best Art Pepper could do in 1972 when this set was issued was listen to and talk about old performances and old tapes. He recorded only one album during an extended period of inactivity stretching from 1968 to 1975.
In 1969, during a stay at Synanon he met Laurie Miller with whom he wrote the liner notes for this album that consists of unreleased sessions and outtakes from some that were. It’s an unusual choice for a Mobile Fidelity reissue since it’s hardly a classic album. It’s hardly an “album” at all, for that matter and all of the tunes are covers of standards.
However, it is significant in that all of side one, recorded in 1956, had been previously unreleased because there wasn’t enough material for an entire album and side two consists of outtakes from significant Pepper albums.
Side one is also significant because Pepper plays with not often recorded cool Los Angeles-based tenor sax player Warne Marsh who died onstage in 1987 at the age of 60 while playing “Out of Nowhere” at an L.A. nightspot. Backed by the the rhythm section of Ben Tucker on bass, Gary Frommer on drums and Ronnie Ball on piano, the group tears through “I Can’t Believe That You’re In Love With Me,” “All the Things You Are,” “What’s New,” and “Tickle Toe.”
Pepper and Marsh trade lines and intertwine in a serpentine and intricate manor reminiscent of what Paul Desmond and Gerry Mulligan pull off seven years later so pleasingly on the 1962 RCA Living Stereo release Two of a Mind (RCA LSP-2624), though Mulligan was on baritone sax and the quartets were piano-less.
Side two includes two unreleased tunes featuring collaborations with two of Miles Davis’ rhythm sections, one, “The Man I Love,” from Art Pepper Meets the Rhythm Section (Contemporary S7532) recorded in 1957 and the other “The Way You Look Tonight,” from Art Pepper: Getting’ Together (Contemporary S7573), recorded in 1960, the former with Red Garland, Paul Chambers and Philly Joe Jones, the latter with Wynton Kelly, Jimmie Cobb and Chambers. In between is “Autumn Leaves,” an unreleased track from Art Pepper: Intensity (Contemporary S7607) also from 1960, with Dolo Coker on piano, Jimmy Bond on bass and Frank Butler on drums.
By today’s jazz standards, these tunes are straight ahead and nothing special compositionally. The magic is in the playing and the vibe. Pepper’s playing throughout is deft and his tone cotton candy light and bracingly cool compared to what his friends on the other coast were doing.
Sonically, side one shows its age though nothing Roy DuNann recorded sounded anything but convincingly natural and as dry as the martini to which Paul Desmond’s playing used to be compared. The rhythm section is all right channel, the saxes left with minimal fill in between but it’s so well done, it doesn’t really matter.
Side two sounds much more modern, with the Pepper taking center stage and the other instruments divided left and right. Compared to two originals I have on hand, this reissue is really better in every way: quieter, richer-sounding (meaning mastering engineer LoVerde knew that DuNann used to purposely boost high frequencies and master to lacquer dropping them by an equal amount as sort of a pre-Dolby noise reduction system) and the result is a very transparent, warm, full sound.
Again, if your collection is short on jazz, I can’t say this is an essential place to start filling in, but otherwise it’s an excellent reissue and well worth owning and enjoying.
This Date In Music History-December 4
Birthdays:
Freddy "Boom Boom" Cannon (1940)
Bob Mosley - Moby Grape (1942)
Chris Hillman - Byrds (1942)
Terry Woods - Pogues (1947)
Southside Johnny - Southside Johnny and The Asbury Jukes (1948)
Gary Rossington - Lynyrd Skynyrd (1951)
Brian Prout - Diamond Rio (1955)
Bob Griffin - BoDeans (1959)
Jay-Z (Shawn Carter) (1969)
Justin Welch - Elastica (1972)
They Are Missed:
On this day in 1976, guitarist Tommy Bolin died from a heroin overdose (age 25). Member of Zephyr (1969 to 1971), The James Gang (1973 to 1974) and Deep Purple (1975 to 1976).
Born today in 1944, Dennis Wilson, drums, vocals, The Beach Boys. Wilson drowned while swimming from his boat moored in Marina Del Rey, California on December 28, 1983 after a heavy day's drinking.
Founding Gin Blossoms guitarist, Doug Hopkins, was found dead from a self-inflicted gunshot wound in his Tempe home in 1993. He wrote the group’s first two hits, "Hey Jealousy" and "Found Out About You."
Multi-instrumentalist, producer and one of the most accomplished composers of the rock era, Frank Zappa died of prostrate cancer in 1993. He was 52. Zappa recorded many albums with The Mothers Of Invention and solo including the 1969 album 'Hot Rats' and 1974 album 'Apostrophe.' Zappa recorded one of the first concept albums, 'Freak Out'. He married Adelaide Gail Sloatman, in 1967, they had four children: Moon Unit, Dweezil, Ahmet Emuukha Rodan and Diva Thin Muffin Pigeen.
History:
In 1956, four Sun Records stars — Elvis Presley, Carl Perkins, Jerry Lee Lewis and Johnny Cash — recorded what will later be known as the Million Dollar Quartet. Recordings from the impromptu session won't be released for 25 years.
Lloyd Price recorded the "Bandstand version" (with non-violent lyrics, as requested by Dick Clark) of "Stagger Lee" in 1958.
Gene Chandler's "Duke of Earl" was released on Vee Jay Records in 1961. It became his biggest hit reaching #1 and selling over one million copies worldwide.
The Beatles made their London-area debut on television in 1962 when they appeared in a live broadcast from Wembley on ‘Tuesday Rendezvous’, on ITV station Rediffusion. The Beatles performed live, doing lip-sync performances of "Love Me Do" and 45 seconds of "P.S. I Love You."
The Beatles released their fourth album 'Beatles For Sale' in 1964. The album featured: "No Reply," "I'm a Loser," "Rock and Roll Music," "I'll Follow the Sun," "Eight Days a Week," "I Don't Want to Spoil the Party" and "Everybody's Trying to Be My Baby," among others.
Also in 1964, the Beatles fan club in England announced its current membership now totaled 65,000.
The Kinks entered the Hot 100 in 1965 with a song that sets them apart from every other contemporary British band, "A Well Respected Man," a tune which marks the beginning of band leader Ray Davies' look of the British way of life. The song peaked at #13 in its 14 weeks on the charts.
In 1965, Rolling Stones guitarist Keith Richards was knocked out by an unground microphone during a concert in Sacramento, California. He recovered in seven minutes and the concert continued.
In 1965, Ken Kesey and his Merry Pranksters held the second Acid Test — a psychedelic multimedia happening fueled by liberal ingestion of the hallucinogenic drug LSD — at a home in San Jose. The Grateful Dead, having recently changed their name from the Warlocks, provided the music.
The Byrds started a three week run at #1 on the US singles chart in 1965 with 'Turn! Turn! Turn!' the group's second #1.
In 1969, President Richard Nixon, Vice-President Spiro T. Agnew and forty U.S. governors embark on a magical mystery fact-finding mission to discover the causes of the generation gap. They viewed films of "simulated acid trips" and listen to hours of "anti-establishment rock music."
Don McLean's ‘American Pie’ entered the US Hot 100 in 1971. The eight and a half minute song would eventually sell over 3 million copies.
Tragedy struck Deep Purple in Jakarta, Indonesia in 1975, after their bodyguard Patsy Collins falls six floors down an elevator shaft in their hotel. Rumors persist that Collins had gotten into a fight with local promoters who owed the heavy-metal band money. Collins was still conscious after his fall and got into a taxi demanding to be taken to the hospital, but he died en route. Mysteriously, his body was never recovered.
In 1976, workers at EMI records went on strike, refusing to package the Sex Pistols single 'Anarchy In The UK.'
In 1980, Led Zeppelin declared that they will not re-form following the death of drummer John Bonham, although Jimmy Page and Robert Plant later tour together in the '90s. Their statement read: "We wish it to be known that the loss of our dear friend, and the deep respect we have for his family, together with the sense of undivided harmony felt by ourselves and our manager, have led us to decide that we could not continue as we were."
Roy Orbison gives his final concert in Akron, Ohio in 1988. He will die 2 days later.
In 1990, Madonna appeared on "Nightline" to defend her "Justify My Love" video. She denied the video's explicit contents were intended to stir up controversy and get her publicity. The video was banned by MTV. She knew exactly what she was doing, she is one shrewd businesswoman.
In 2006, Yahoo revealed that Britney Spears was the most searched for term of 2006 with more online searches done about Spears than any other topic or person. No wonder it all went to her head....
Also in 2006, a page of Paul McCartney's working lyrics for the Beatles tune "Maxwell's Silver Hammer" " (from the Beatles’ "Abbey Road" album) nets $192,000 at Christie’s memorabilia auction in New York. A ‘68 Fender Stratocaster guitar once owned by Jimi Hendrix goes for $168,000. A handwritten poem by late Doors singer Jim Morrison sold for $50,400.
Pink Floyd’s 16-CD collection, "Oh, By The Way," was issued as an import-only release in 2007. It held 14 studio albums packaged in miniature reproductions of the original vinyl sleeves and was limited to an initial run of 10,000 copies.
Freddy "Boom Boom" Cannon (1940)
Bob Mosley - Moby Grape (1942)
Chris Hillman - Byrds (1942)
Terry Woods - Pogues (1947)
Southside Johnny - Southside Johnny and The Asbury Jukes (1948)
Gary Rossington - Lynyrd Skynyrd (1951)
Brian Prout - Diamond Rio (1955)
Bob Griffin - BoDeans (1959)
Jay-Z (Shawn Carter) (1969)
Justin Welch - Elastica (1972)
They Are Missed:
On this day in 1976, guitarist Tommy Bolin died from a heroin overdose (age 25). Member of Zephyr (1969 to 1971), The James Gang (1973 to 1974) and Deep Purple (1975 to 1976).
Born today in 1944, Dennis Wilson, drums, vocals, The Beach Boys. Wilson drowned while swimming from his boat moored in Marina Del Rey, California on December 28, 1983 after a heavy day's drinking.
Founding Gin Blossoms guitarist, Doug Hopkins, was found dead from a self-inflicted gunshot wound in his Tempe home in 1993. He wrote the group’s first two hits, "Hey Jealousy" and "Found Out About You."
Multi-instrumentalist, producer and one of the most accomplished composers of the rock era, Frank Zappa died of prostrate cancer in 1993. He was 52. Zappa recorded many albums with The Mothers Of Invention and solo including the 1969 album 'Hot Rats' and 1974 album 'Apostrophe.' Zappa recorded one of the first concept albums, 'Freak Out'. He married Adelaide Gail Sloatman, in 1967, they had four children: Moon Unit, Dweezil, Ahmet Emuukha Rodan and Diva Thin Muffin Pigeen.
History:
In 1956, four Sun Records stars — Elvis Presley, Carl Perkins, Jerry Lee Lewis and Johnny Cash — recorded what will later be known as the Million Dollar Quartet. Recordings from the impromptu session won't be released for 25 years.
Lloyd Price recorded the "Bandstand version" (with non-violent lyrics, as requested by Dick Clark) of "Stagger Lee" in 1958.
Gene Chandler's "Duke of Earl" was released on Vee Jay Records in 1961. It became his biggest hit reaching #1 and selling over one million copies worldwide.
The Beatles made their London-area debut on television in 1962 when they appeared in a live broadcast from Wembley on ‘Tuesday Rendezvous’, on ITV station Rediffusion. The Beatles performed live, doing lip-sync performances of "Love Me Do" and 45 seconds of "P.S. I Love You."
The Beatles released their fourth album 'Beatles For Sale' in 1964. The album featured: "No Reply," "I'm a Loser," "Rock and Roll Music," "I'll Follow the Sun," "Eight Days a Week," "I Don't Want to Spoil the Party" and "Everybody's Trying to Be My Baby," among others.
Also in 1964, the Beatles fan club in England announced its current membership now totaled 65,000.
The Kinks entered the Hot 100 in 1965 with a song that sets them apart from every other contemporary British band, "A Well Respected Man," a tune which marks the beginning of band leader Ray Davies' look of the British way of life. The song peaked at #13 in its 14 weeks on the charts.
In 1965, Rolling Stones guitarist Keith Richards was knocked out by an unground microphone during a concert in Sacramento, California. He recovered in seven minutes and the concert continued.
In 1965, Ken Kesey and his Merry Pranksters held the second Acid Test — a psychedelic multimedia happening fueled by liberal ingestion of the hallucinogenic drug LSD — at a home in San Jose. The Grateful Dead, having recently changed their name from the Warlocks, provided the music.
The Byrds started a three week run at #1 on the US singles chart in 1965 with 'Turn! Turn! Turn!' the group's second #1.
In 1969, President Richard Nixon, Vice-President Spiro T. Agnew and forty U.S. governors embark on a magical mystery fact-finding mission to discover the causes of the generation gap. They viewed films of "simulated acid trips" and listen to hours of "anti-establishment rock music."
Don McLean's ‘American Pie’ entered the US Hot 100 in 1971. The eight and a half minute song would eventually sell over 3 million copies.
Tragedy struck Deep Purple in Jakarta, Indonesia in 1975, after their bodyguard Patsy Collins falls six floors down an elevator shaft in their hotel. Rumors persist that Collins had gotten into a fight with local promoters who owed the heavy-metal band money. Collins was still conscious after his fall and got into a taxi demanding to be taken to the hospital, but he died en route. Mysteriously, his body was never recovered.
In 1976, workers at EMI records went on strike, refusing to package the Sex Pistols single 'Anarchy In The UK.'
In 1980, Led Zeppelin declared that they will not re-form following the death of drummer John Bonham, although Jimmy Page and Robert Plant later tour together in the '90s. Their statement read: "We wish it to be known that the loss of our dear friend, and the deep respect we have for his family, together with the sense of undivided harmony felt by ourselves and our manager, have led us to decide that we could not continue as we were."
Roy Orbison gives his final concert in Akron, Ohio in 1988. He will die 2 days later.
In 1990, Madonna appeared on "Nightline" to defend her "Justify My Love" video. She denied the video's explicit contents were intended to stir up controversy and get her publicity. The video was banned by MTV. She knew exactly what she was doing, she is one shrewd businesswoman.
In 2006, Yahoo revealed that Britney Spears was the most searched for term of 2006 with more online searches done about Spears than any other topic or person. No wonder it all went to her head....
Also in 2006, a page of Paul McCartney's working lyrics for the Beatles tune "Maxwell's Silver Hammer" " (from the Beatles’ "Abbey Road" album) nets $192,000 at Christie’s memorabilia auction in New York. A ‘68 Fender Stratocaster guitar once owned by Jimi Hendrix goes for $168,000. A handwritten poem by late Doors singer Jim Morrison sold for $50,400.
Pink Floyd’s 16-CD collection, "Oh, By The Way," was issued as an import-only release in 2007. It held 14 studio albums packaged in miniature reproductions of the original vinyl sleeves and was limited to an initial run of 10,000 copies.
Music News & Notes
Boyle's LP At The Top
As predicted my many, I Dreamed a Dream by Susan Boyle sold an amazing 701,000 copies its first week, the biggest sales week of 2009, in another chapter to the Scottish singer's fairy-tale rise to stardom.
In fact, the release had the best-selling first week since AC/DC's Black Ice entered Billboard with 784,000 in October 2008. It's also the biggest debut by a woman since SoundScan began tabulating sales in 1991. Pop singer Ashanti had held the record, her 2002 debut, had sold 503,000 copies.Amazingly, only one other debut has outsold Boyle's - Snoop Dogg's Doggystyle, which moved 803,000 in 1993.
Boyle also got a generous boost from the Thanksgiving week sales, even though she faced stiff competition. Andrea Bocelli's My Christmas (218,000) came in second place with 218,000 units sold and American Idol star Adam Lambert's album, For Your Entertainment sold 198,000 to enter at #3. Rihanna's Rated R was fourth with 181,000, and Lady Gaga's eight-song The Fame Monster came in fifth with 174,000, trailed by her debut and its reissue, The Fame, with 151,000.
=========================
Clash’s London Calling: 30th Anniversary Legacy Edition Coming Dec 14th
A classic in every punk-rock sense of the word, The Clash’s London Calling is turning 30 this month. What better time to re-release one of the greatest, most influential albums of all-time!
London Calling: 30th Anniversary Legacy Edition will hit shelves Dec 14th; the package features a remastered version of the 1979 album, a DVD that includes Don Letts’ documentary The Last Testament: The Making of London Calling, three music videos and home movies of the band recording the album in London’s Wessex Studios.
Also, beginning January 7, 2010, U.K. Royal Mail will be issuing a new series of stamps featuring classic album covers from various British artists. The cover of The Clash’s London Calling made the cut, so if you’re a U.K. resident or in correspondence with somebody who is, get ready to start mailing some very cool looking letters and cards.
=========================
No More Supertramp
Roger Hodgson has revealed that he doesn't see a Supertramp reunion ever happening but there is always a chance something will come together sometime in the future. He told Australia's Undercover that
"We’ve looked at it and talked it over. I have looked at it many times. It is hard to reinvent us. I would never say never but Rick has pretty much retired right now and I’m in the prime of my life. The reaction I am getting from fans is “please don’t reunite."
=========================
Kings Of Leon In 'Detox Mode' Ahead Of New Album
Kings of Leon drummer Nathan Followill has revealed the band are still in “detox mode” in between albums. Followill said the the group were winding down following an 18-month tour in support of their 2008 album 'Only By The Night'. But the drummer admitted he and his bandmates had one eye on recording the follow-up to their fourth LP.
"We're taking it easy now," Followill told Billboard, adding: “We might be in the studio tomorrow. We get bored pretty easy."
Followill, who married fiancée singer Jessie Baylin last month, has previously revealed that the band were writing new songs.
He said they had “eight or ten ideas kicking around” for the album, which is expected in 2010.
=========================
Was (Not Was) To Release 3-Decade Retrospective Set "Pick Of The Litter (1980-2010)"
Was (Not Was), dubbed "the funkier art-funk band" by The New York Times, have spanned three decades with their mutant mix of jazz, rock, R&B and funk. On February 23, 2010, Micro Werks will release "Pick of the Litter (1980-2010)," a 19-song disc that opens with the ZE/Antilles 12" single "Wheel Me Out" and closes with a trio of tracks from later years which featured Mel Tormé, Leonard Cohen, Kim Basinger and Ozzy Osbourne. The compilation contains the band's hits and cult hits, among them "Knocked Down, Made Small," "Tell Me That I'm Dreaming," "Walk the Dinosaur," "Spy in the House of Love" and "I Feel Better Than James Brown."
Spearheaded by producer/bassist Don Was (Fagenson) and lyricist/vocalist/multi-instrumentalist David Was (Weiss), the collective was rooted in the Motor City of Motown, the MC5, the Stooges and George Clinton. According to Brian J. Bowe, the Michigan writer who annotated the "Pick of the Litter (1980-2010)" collection, "the Motor City was burning, baby, and these two had creativity to burn."
"Don and I started recording in the Pleistocene Era, with Fred Flintstone producing, which in those days meant the guy who pushed the vulture's beak down on the hardened wooly mammoth pucky," says David Was. "Fidelity was crap, but at least we were able to record our earliest rantings for posterity."
Track List:
1."Wheel Me Out" (1980)
2."Out Come the Freaks" (7" Version) (1981)
3."Tell Me What I'm Dreaming" (1981)
4."The Sky's Ablaze" (1981)
5."Should I Wait") - Sweet Pea Atkinson (1982)
6."Knocked Down, Made Small (Treated Like a Rubber Ball)" (1983)
7."Walk the Dinosaur" (1988)
8."Spy in the House of Love" (7" version) (1988)
9."Dad I'm in Jail" (1988)
10."Somewhere in America There's a Street Named After My Dad" (1988)
11."Papa Was a Rollin' Stone" (Promo Edit Single) (1990)
12."I Feel Better Than James Brown" (1990)
13."I Blew Up the United States" (1990)
14."Semi-Interesting Week" (2008)
15."From the Head to the Heart" (2008)
16."Hello Operator . . . I Mean Dad . . .I Can't Even Remember Who I Am" (Rehearsal Version) (1989)
17."Shake Your Head" (Steve "Silk" Hurley Remix) featuring Kim Basinger and Ozzy Osbourne (1992)
18."Elvis' Rolls Royce" featuring Leonard Cohen (1990)
19."Zaz Turned Blue" featuring Mel Tormé (1983)
As predicted my many, I Dreamed a Dream by Susan Boyle sold an amazing 701,000 copies its first week, the biggest sales week of 2009, in another chapter to the Scottish singer's fairy-tale rise to stardom.
In fact, the release had the best-selling first week since AC/DC's Black Ice entered Billboard with 784,000 in October 2008. It's also the biggest debut by a woman since SoundScan began tabulating sales in 1991. Pop singer Ashanti had held the record, her 2002 debut, had sold 503,000 copies.Amazingly, only one other debut has outsold Boyle's - Snoop Dogg's Doggystyle, which moved 803,000 in 1993.
Boyle also got a generous boost from the Thanksgiving week sales, even though she faced stiff competition. Andrea Bocelli's My Christmas (218,000) came in second place with 218,000 units sold and American Idol star Adam Lambert's album, For Your Entertainment sold 198,000 to enter at #3. Rihanna's Rated R was fourth with 181,000, and Lady Gaga's eight-song The Fame Monster came in fifth with 174,000, trailed by her debut and its reissue, The Fame, with 151,000.
=========================
Clash’s London Calling: 30th Anniversary Legacy Edition Coming Dec 14th
A classic in every punk-rock sense of the word, The Clash’s London Calling is turning 30 this month. What better time to re-release one of the greatest, most influential albums of all-time!
London Calling: 30th Anniversary Legacy Edition will hit shelves Dec 14th; the package features a remastered version of the 1979 album, a DVD that includes Don Letts’ documentary The Last Testament: The Making of London Calling, three music videos and home movies of the band recording the album in London’s Wessex Studios.
Also, beginning January 7, 2010, U.K. Royal Mail will be issuing a new series of stamps featuring classic album covers from various British artists. The cover of The Clash’s London Calling made the cut, so if you’re a U.K. resident or in correspondence with somebody who is, get ready to start mailing some very cool looking letters and cards.
=========================
No More Supertramp
Roger Hodgson has revealed that he doesn't see a Supertramp reunion ever happening but there is always a chance something will come together sometime in the future. He told Australia's Undercover that
"We’ve looked at it and talked it over. I have looked at it many times. It is hard to reinvent us. I would never say never but Rick has pretty much retired right now and I’m in the prime of my life. The reaction I am getting from fans is “please don’t reunite."
=========================
Kings Of Leon In 'Detox Mode' Ahead Of New Album
Kings of Leon drummer Nathan Followill has revealed the band are still in “detox mode” in between albums. Followill said the the group were winding down following an 18-month tour in support of their 2008 album 'Only By The Night'. But the drummer admitted he and his bandmates had one eye on recording the follow-up to their fourth LP.
"We're taking it easy now," Followill told Billboard, adding: “We might be in the studio tomorrow. We get bored pretty easy."
Followill, who married fiancée singer Jessie Baylin last month, has previously revealed that the band were writing new songs.
He said they had “eight or ten ideas kicking around” for the album, which is expected in 2010.
=========================
Was (Not Was) To Release 3-Decade Retrospective Set "Pick Of The Litter (1980-2010)"
Was (Not Was), dubbed "the funkier art-funk band" by The New York Times, have spanned three decades with their mutant mix of jazz, rock, R&B and funk. On February 23, 2010, Micro Werks will release "Pick of the Litter (1980-2010)," a 19-song disc that opens with the ZE/Antilles 12" single "Wheel Me Out" and closes with a trio of tracks from later years which featured Mel Tormé, Leonard Cohen, Kim Basinger and Ozzy Osbourne. The compilation contains the band's hits and cult hits, among them "Knocked Down, Made Small," "Tell Me That I'm Dreaming," "Walk the Dinosaur," "Spy in the House of Love" and "I Feel Better Than James Brown."
Spearheaded by producer/bassist Don Was (Fagenson) and lyricist/vocalist/multi-instrumentalist David Was (Weiss), the collective was rooted in the Motor City of Motown, the MC5, the Stooges and George Clinton. According to Brian J. Bowe, the Michigan writer who annotated the "Pick of the Litter (1980-2010)" collection, "the Motor City was burning, baby, and these two had creativity to burn."
"Don and I started recording in the Pleistocene Era, with Fred Flintstone producing, which in those days meant the guy who pushed the vulture's beak down on the hardened wooly mammoth pucky," says David Was. "Fidelity was crap, but at least we were able to record our earliest rantings for posterity."
Track List:
1."Wheel Me Out" (1980)
2."Out Come the Freaks" (7" Version) (1981)
3."Tell Me What I'm Dreaming" (1981)
4."The Sky's Ablaze" (1981)
5."Should I Wait") - Sweet Pea Atkinson (1982)
6."Knocked Down, Made Small (Treated Like a Rubber Ball)" (1983)
7."Walk the Dinosaur" (1988)
8."Spy in the House of Love" (7" version) (1988)
9."Dad I'm in Jail" (1988)
10."Somewhere in America There's a Street Named After My Dad" (1988)
11."Papa Was a Rollin' Stone" (Promo Edit Single) (1990)
12."I Feel Better Than James Brown" (1990)
13."I Blew Up the United States" (1990)
14."Semi-Interesting Week" (2008)
15."From the Head to the Heart" (2008)
16."Hello Operator . . . I Mean Dad . . .I Can't Even Remember Who I Am" (Rehearsal Version) (1989)
17."Shake Your Head" (Steve "Silk" Hurley Remix) featuring Kim Basinger and Ozzy Osbourne (1992)
18."Elvis' Rolls Royce" featuring Leonard Cohen (1990)
19."Zaz Turned Blue" featuring Mel Tormé (1983)
Thursday, December 3, 2009
Vinyl Frontier
Gotta Groove Records puts a new spin on the local music scene
by Jeff Niesel
You wouldn't guess from the black Beachland Ballroom T-shirt, featuring an illustration by Cleveland cartoonist Derf, but Vince Slusarz was a corporate bigwig not so long ago. For almost 25 years, Slusarz worked for Newbury-based Kinetico Incorporated, a plastics-manufacturing company. He liked his job as chief operations officer. But after the company was sold in 2006, a new CEO came in, eventually eliminating his position. Unemployed at 51, Slusarz suddenly had lots of time for soul-searching.
"I had to ask myself, 'What do I want to do with my life,'" he says. "I could go work for someone else, but that didn't appeal to me. I'd always wanted to start a business. I did go through the whole 'What do you like?' thing. I like beer, but there are too many people making beer. I looked at restaurants, but that seemed like a tough business."
A muse appeared in the form of a new turntable. He bought one for himself and gave his old one to his 19-year-old daughter, who told him that all her friends were buying turntables with USB ports so that they could download music onto their computers. That got him thinking. Pressing records, he figured, wouldn't be a huge departure from his plastics-manufacturing experience.
When his friends Mark Leddy and Cindy Barber, co-owners of the Beachland Ballroom, heard about his interest in starting a record-pressing operation, they were enthusiastic and encouraging. Exit Stencil, a studio and record label just down the block from the Collinwood club, was looking to start pressing titles on vinyl, and Music Saves, an indie record shop next door, regularly stocked new vinyl. (A used-record shop, Blue Arrow, is also located near the club).
In July 2008, Slusarz visited Musicol Recording in Columbus. He liked what he saw, but the owners weren't interested in selling their equipment. Next, he sent e-mails to four other plants. One said no and two didn't respond. But the owners of Dynamic Assets in New Jersey replied and said they were thinking about selling.
"It was pure serendipity," says Slusarz. "If it had been a month earlier or later, I would have missed the opportunity."
He flew to New Jersey and checked out the plant. He then put together a business plan, made an offer and closed the deal. Then came the hard part — moving the business here, to an old warehouse near Superior.
"I wanted to do it in Cleveland," he says. "I was born in Cleveland, and I think it's important to do things in the city." The relocation required six flatbed semis and a veritable fleet of lifts and tools designed for moving big machinery. The whole operation took about three months to get up and running.
Slusarz recruited his friend Dan Greathouse, who had worked in molding at Kinetico, to help get the heavy equipment working. "He loves machinery and is turned on by the whole thing," says Slusarz. "If he hadn't been on board, I probably wouldn't have done it."
Gotta Grove Records pressed its first album in late August: a Freedom/Deathers split 12-inch for the local bands' CD-release party.
SLUSARZ VISITED six different plants to see how other operations run. He's also learned that it's "a small, close-knit business."
Perhaps that's because pressing vinyl is an art form. The process requires precision: Raw vinyl goes into a hopper, where it's melted down to the size of a hockey puck. The labels are baked on and a press makes the record, slides it back and trims it. The machines Slusarz bought will produce 700 to 800 albums a day. The two seven-inch vinyl machines are rusted and corroded and haven't run in years, but Slusarz plans to convert a 12-inch machine to cut seven-inches, something he hopes to have sorted out before the year's end.
His timing couldn't be better. Unlike CD sales, vinyl has steadily risen over the past decade. According to Nielsen SoundScan figures, year-to-date vinyl sales for 2009 stand at 2 million — a 37 percent increase over last year's. While CD sales continue to plummet, vinyl sales might just save what's left of the music business.
"Vinyl has come a long way from the period in the '90s when it was a format that was almost exclusively used by underground rock bands and DJ-oriented genres," says Billboard's Glenn Peoples. "Many years passed when most artists — especially mainstream artists — did not have vinyl releases. Though it gained momentum toward the end of the decade, it wasn't until the mid-2000s, when new releases of all stripes were being released on vinyl, when it was seen as a purer way to experience music in an era of near-ubiquitous digital music. Labels started offering MP3 downloads with vinyl purchases, thus creating a great digital-physical combination. Today, consumers can find vinyl in both mass merchants and the usual independent stores."
Matt Earley, a music-industry veteran based in Columbus, agrees. He was looking to buy a pressing plant at the same time as Slusarz. But after learning he'd been beaten to the punch, he tracked Slusarz down. Earley is handling Gotta Groove's graphics and artwork. He thinks that CDs were doomed from the start.
"The jewel case was never a sexy package," he says. "Records are like a piece of art. In particular, there's a younger generation that's rediscovering them. When I go in the store on my street, the owner is always telling me that it's the younger customers who are buying the vinyl and the older ones who are buying the CDs, which is completely ass-backwards. Albums have a sense of value that CDs don't."
Earley says there's always been "a select group" that goes for the sound quality. But he doesn't think they're the ones fueling the resurgence.
"In the past two years, we've really noticed tremendous growth, and part of that is because the labels are doing less licensing and now putting their own vinyl out," he says. "A few years ago, they didn't even put out everything on vinyl. Now, the vinyl sometimes comes out before the CD. Animal Collective put their last record out first on vinyl and then put it out on CD."
At indie record shops like My Mind's Eye in Lakewood, you'll find more vinyl releases than CDs. In fact, some indie bands are releasing their albums on vinyl only and including download cards so you can get digital copies for your computer and portable players. For independent bands, pressing on vinyl is essential, even if it is more costly than CDs.
"When I see bands touring with CDs, I just want to ask what they're doing," says Ken Janssen, who plays in the local rock act the Hot Rails and handles some of the Beachland's booking. "Nobody cares about [CDs]. They're coasters. There was a local band that played the Beachland and was charging $12 for their CD. Even FYE knows that's a bad idea. Vinyl is the way to go. You got the download codes on there, and people just want something to hold. Vinyl is way better. I think Gotta Groove is going to do really well from the beginning."
So far, local bands have gravitated to the plant. Drummer, the band featuring the Black Keys' Patrick Carney, enlisted Gotta Groove to print the vinyl version of its debut album. Local singer-songwriter Sloth did a limited, 100-copy pressing of his experimental Messages in Samsara through Gotta Groove, packaging it in a hand-painted cover as well.
Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum president Terry Stewart is hoping the museum can collaborate with Gotta Groove too.
"I think it's exciting for a city that has such a long musical legacy," says Stewart, who estimates his vinyl collection is "about a half million" and includes the first album he ever bought in 1948. "The fact that we now have one of the few vinyl pressing plants in America and it's right across the street from Ante Up Audio, a state-of-the- art recording studio, gives a certain cache to Cleveland. The museum is hoping to do something and start a Rock Hall label. A lot of our inductees and legacy artists don't have labels anymore, and it'd be great if, while they were in town, they could cut two sides, because I'd really want to do 45s. I have to put together a business plan. It's all pie in the sky stuff at this point."
THERE HAVE BEEN OBSTACLES,of course. Recently, Slusarz and Greathouse had to contend with a burst water pipe that nearly wiped out all their progress. In the boiler room, you can still see the gaping hole in the floor where the burst pipe shot up a geyser. "We heard someone say water was coming off the roof," says Slusarz. "The water main broke and lifted concrete and the boiler up; the amount of pressure was huge. Water shot up through the roof and while it's been repaired, it set us back about a week."
Another challenge was much more specific to the industry.
While Slusarz has had to farm some jobs out of the shop, he hopes eventually to do everything in-house and has signed a contract with Clint Holley, a local singer-songwriter and soundman, to do his vinyl mastering. For this process, the audio is cut onto a lacquer plate using a specialized machine called a mastering lathe. The lathe takes the electrical energy of the digital or analog recording and turns it back into mechanical energy as a needle cuts a groove into a record, which is then sent to a stamper.
Because only 700 lathes were ever made, the last in 1984, Holley had to do some research before he found a guy who would make him one — 82-year-old Albert Grundy, who lives on Long Island. Holley put up $30,000 to have the tool made.
"This is something you can't do in your basement," says Holley. "I think it's cool that we can look beyond Cleveland and bring attention to the city in terms of the music. I think [Gotta Groove] lets Cleveland be on the map, especially since there are only 11 plants in the country still doing this. Vinyl is coming back because of the uncertainty of what the next format will be. I tell people that when you buy an MP3 online, it has zero value. There will never be a used MP3 store. Kids are finding out the artwork has an aesthetic to it and there's a certain quality about playing a record."
Slusarz is hoping that's the case.
"As I looked at this business, I thought it's a lot of capital and risk, but right now, it's still a growing segment of the market," he says. "And it's survived all these formats and all these years. If you think about it, you go, 'OK. I want something physical that represents music.' What are you going to turn to?"
"It will be interesting to see how it all unfolds," he admits. "We've gotten some interest from major labels simply because things are so busy. [Other vinyl plants are] backed up by two months. So if you order something today, you'll be lucky to get it two months from now. We're not in that situation. What we're hoping to do with our manufacturing background — and I'm sure it won't be easy — is put a process into place that gets records out quicker than that and still satisfies customers. Our goal is to be a quality shop. Not just in terms of the record itself but in terms of the service that customers get."
That much, at least, is the same as it was in his former gig as a plastics executive. This new venture is just a lot cooler.
"I have some gas left in the tank," he says. "If I don't do it now, I might never do it. It's a unique opportunity. It's something I love. It's worth a shot. Let's see what happens."
SOURCE: http://www.clevescene.com/
© 2009 Cleveland Scene: 1468 West Ninth Street, Suite 805, Cleveland, OH 44113, (216) 241-7550
You wouldn't guess from the black Beachland Ballroom T-shirt, featuring an illustration by Cleveland cartoonist Derf, but Vince Slusarz was a corporate bigwig not so long ago. For almost 25 years, Slusarz worked for Newbury-based Kinetico Incorporated, a plastics-manufacturing company. He liked his job as chief operations officer. But after the company was sold in 2006, a new CEO came in, eventually eliminating his position. Unemployed at 51, Slusarz suddenly had lots of time for soul-searching.
"I had to ask myself, 'What do I want to do with my life,'" he says. "I could go work for someone else, but that didn't appeal to me. I'd always wanted to start a business. I did go through the whole 'What do you like?' thing. I like beer, but there are too many people making beer. I looked at restaurants, but that seemed like a tough business."
A muse appeared in the form of a new turntable. He bought one for himself and gave his old one to his 19-year-old daughter, who told him that all her friends were buying turntables with USB ports so that they could download music onto their computers. That got him thinking. Pressing records, he figured, wouldn't be a huge departure from his plastics-manufacturing experience.
When his friends Mark Leddy and Cindy Barber, co-owners of the Beachland Ballroom, heard about his interest in starting a record-pressing operation, they were enthusiastic and encouraging. Exit Stencil, a studio and record label just down the block from the Collinwood club, was looking to start pressing titles on vinyl, and Music Saves, an indie record shop next door, regularly stocked new vinyl. (A used-record shop, Blue Arrow, is also located near the club).
In July 2008, Slusarz visited Musicol Recording in Columbus. He liked what he saw, but the owners weren't interested in selling their equipment. Next, he sent e-mails to four other plants. One said no and two didn't respond. But the owners of Dynamic Assets in New Jersey replied and said they were thinking about selling.
"It was pure serendipity," says Slusarz. "If it had been a month earlier or later, I would have missed the opportunity."
He flew to New Jersey and checked out the plant. He then put together a business plan, made an offer and closed the deal. Then came the hard part — moving the business here, to an old warehouse near Superior.
"I wanted to do it in Cleveland," he says. "I was born in Cleveland, and I think it's important to do things in the city." The relocation required six flatbed semis and a veritable fleet of lifts and tools designed for moving big machinery. The whole operation took about three months to get up and running.
Slusarz recruited his friend Dan Greathouse, who had worked in molding at Kinetico, to help get the heavy equipment working. "He loves machinery and is turned on by the whole thing," says Slusarz. "If he hadn't been on board, I probably wouldn't have done it."
Gotta Grove Records pressed its first album in late August: a Freedom/Deathers split 12-inch for the local bands' CD-release party.
SLUSARZ VISITED six different plants to see how other operations run. He's also learned that it's "a small, close-knit business."
His timing couldn't be better. Unlike CD sales, vinyl has steadily risen over the past decade. According to Nielsen SoundScan figures, year-to-date vinyl sales for 2009 stand at 2 million — a 37 percent increase over last year's. While CD sales continue to plummet, vinyl sales might just save what's left of the music business.
"Vinyl has come a long way from the period in the '90s when it was a format that was almost exclusively used by underground rock bands and DJ-oriented genres," says Billboard's Glenn Peoples. "Many years passed when most artists — especially mainstream artists — did not have vinyl releases. Though it gained momentum toward the end of the decade, it wasn't until the mid-2000s, when new releases of all stripes were being released on vinyl, when it was seen as a purer way to experience music in an era of near-ubiquitous digital music. Labels started offering MP3 downloads with vinyl purchases, thus creating a great digital-physical combination. Today, consumers can find vinyl in both mass merchants and the usual independent stores."
Matt Earley, a music-industry veteran based in Columbus, agrees. He was looking to buy a pressing plant at the same time as Slusarz. But after learning he'd been beaten to the punch, he tracked Slusarz down. Earley is handling Gotta Groove's graphics and artwork. He thinks that CDs were doomed from the start.
"The jewel case was never a sexy package," he says. "Records are like a piece of art. In particular, there's a younger generation that's rediscovering them. When I go in the store on my street, the owner is always telling me that it's the younger customers who are buying the vinyl and the older ones who are buying the CDs, which is completely ass-backwards. Albums have a sense of value that CDs don't."
Earley says there's always been "a select group" that goes for the sound quality. But he doesn't think they're the ones fueling the resurgence.
"In the past two years, we've really noticed tremendous growth, and part of that is because the labels are doing less licensing and now putting their own vinyl out," he says. "A few years ago, they didn't even put out everything on vinyl. Now, the vinyl sometimes comes out before the CD. Animal Collective put their last record out first on vinyl and then put it out on CD."
At indie record shops like My Mind's Eye in Lakewood, you'll find more vinyl releases than CDs. In fact, some indie bands are releasing their albums on vinyl only and including download cards so you can get digital copies for your computer and portable players. For independent bands, pressing on vinyl is essential, even if it is more costly than CDs.
"When I see bands touring with CDs, I just want to ask what they're doing," says Ken Janssen, who plays in the local rock act the Hot Rails and handles some of the Beachland's booking. "Nobody cares about [CDs]. They're coasters. There was a local band that played the Beachland and was charging $12 for their CD. Even FYE knows that's a bad idea. Vinyl is the way to go. You got the download codes on there, and people just want something to hold. Vinyl is way better. I think Gotta Groove is going to do really well from the beginning."
So far, local bands have gravitated to the plant. Drummer, the band featuring the Black Keys' Patrick Carney, enlisted Gotta Groove to print the vinyl version of its debut album. Local singer-songwriter Sloth did a limited, 100-copy pressing of his experimental Messages in Samsara through Gotta Groove, packaging it in a hand-painted cover as well.
Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum president Terry Stewart is hoping the museum can collaborate with Gotta Groove too.
"I think it's exciting for a city that has such a long musical legacy," says Stewart, who estimates his vinyl collection is "about a half million" and includes the first album he ever bought in 1948. "The fact that we now have one of the few vinyl pressing plants in America and it's right across the street from Ante Up Audio, a state-of-the- art recording studio, gives a certain cache to Cleveland. The museum is hoping to do something and start a Rock Hall label. A lot of our inductees and legacy artists don't have labels anymore, and it'd be great if, while they were in town, they could cut two sides, because I'd really want to do 45s. I have to put together a business plan. It's all pie in the sky stuff at this point."
THERE HAVE BEEN OBSTACLES,of course. Recently, Slusarz and Greathouse had to contend with a burst water pipe that nearly wiped out all their progress. In the boiler room, you can still see the gaping hole in the floor where the burst pipe shot up a geyser. "We heard someone say water was coming off the roof," says Slusarz. "The water main broke and lifted concrete and the boiler up; the amount of pressure was huge. Water shot up through the roof and while it's been repaired, it set us back about a week."
Another challenge was much more specific to the industry.
While Slusarz has had to farm some jobs out of the shop, he hopes eventually to do everything in-house and has signed a contract with Clint Holley, a local singer-songwriter and soundman, to do his vinyl mastering. For this process, the audio is cut onto a lacquer plate using a specialized machine called a mastering lathe. The lathe takes the electrical energy of the digital or analog recording and turns it back into mechanical energy as a needle cuts a groove into a record, which is then sent to a stamper.
Because only 700 lathes were ever made, the last in 1984, Holley had to do some research before he found a guy who would make him one — 82-year-old Albert Grundy, who lives on Long Island. Holley put up $30,000 to have the tool made.
"This is something you can't do in your basement," says Holley. "I think it's cool that we can look beyond Cleveland and bring attention to the city in terms of the music. I think [Gotta Groove] lets Cleveland be on the map, especially since there are only 11 plants in the country still doing this. Vinyl is coming back because of the uncertainty of what the next format will be. I tell people that when you buy an MP3 online, it has zero value. There will never be a used MP3 store. Kids are finding out the artwork has an aesthetic to it and there's a certain quality about playing a record."
Slusarz is hoping that's the case.
"As I looked at this business, I thought it's a lot of capital and risk, but right now, it's still a growing segment of the market," he says. "And it's survived all these formats and all these years. If you think about it, you go, 'OK. I want something physical that represents music.' What are you going to turn to?"
"It will be interesting to see how it all unfolds," he admits. "We've gotten some interest from major labels simply because things are so busy. [Other vinyl plants are] backed up by two months. So if you order something today, you'll be lucky to get it two months from now. We're not in that situation. What we're hoping to do with our manufacturing background — and I'm sure it won't be easy — is put a process into place that gets records out quicker than that and still satisfies customers. Our goal is to be a quality shop. Not just in terms of the record itself but in terms of the service that customers get."
That much, at least, is the same as it was in his former gig as a plastics executive. This new venture is just a lot cooler.
"I have some gas left in the tank," he says. "If I don't do it now, I might never do it. It's a unique opportunity. It's something I love. It's worth a shot. Let's see what happens."
SOURCE: http://www.clevescene.com/
© 2009 Cleveland Scene: 1468 West Ninth Street, Suite 805, Cleveland, OH 44113, (216) 241-7550
Article Reprinted By Permission
Music News & Notes
Arcade Fire Release Set For May 2010
According to Billboard, Arcade Fire’s follow-up to Neon Bible is on schedule for a May 2010 release. Markus Dravs, who served as an engineer on Neon, will produce the band’s third full-length LP. The Canadian rockers have also reportedly been offered headlining spots on a few North American festivals.
===============================
Grammy Nominees Named
Last night, the nominees for the 52nd Annual Grammy Awards were announced.
The Nominees are:
Song of the Year
Poker Face – Lady Gaga
Pretty Wings – Maxwell
Single Ladies (Put A Ring On It) – Beyoncé
Use Somebody – Kings of Leon
You Belong With Me – Taylor Swift
Pop Duo or Group With Vocals
Black Eyed Peas – “I Gotta Feeling”
Bon Jovi – “We Weren’t Born to Follow”
The Fray – “Never Say Never”
Daryl Hall and John Oates – “Sara Smile”
MGMT – “Kids”
Best Rock Album
AC/DC – Black Ice
Eric Clapton and Steve Winwood – Live from Madison Square Garden
Green Day – 21st Century Breakdown
Dave Matthews Band – Big Whiskey and the GrooGrux King
U2 – No Line on the Horizon
Best Rap Solo Performance
Drake – “Best I Ever Had”
Eminem – “Beautiful”
Jay-Z – “D.O.A (Death of Auto-Tune)”
Kid Cudi – “Day ‘N’ Nite”
Mos Def – “Casa Bey”
Country Duo or Group With Vocals
Brooks and Dunn – “Cowgirls Don’t Cry”
Zac Brown Band – “Chicken Fried”
Lady Antebellum – “I Run to You”
Rascal Flatts – “Here Comes Goodbye”
Sugarland – “It Happens”
Record of the Year
Beyoncé – “Halo”
Black Eyed Peas – “I Gotta Feeling”
Kings of Leon – “Use Somebody”
Lady Gaga – “Poker Face”
Taylor Swift – “You Belong With Me”
Album of the Year
Beyoncé – I Am…Sasha Fierce
Black Eyed Peas – The E.N.D.
Lady Gaga – The Fame
Dave Matthews Band – Big Whiskey and the GrooGrux King
Taylor Swift – Fearless
Best New Artist
Zac Brown Band
Keri Hilson
MGMT
Silversun Pickups
The Ting Tings
===============================
Eric Woolfson of the Alan Parsons Project Passes Away
Eric Woolfson, the man who wrote many of the hits of the Alan Parsons Project along with singing lead on many tracks, passed away on Tuesday night in London. He had been battling cancer.
The announcement came on Woolfson's Facebook profile:
We are very sad to have to tell you that Eric Woolfson passed away in the early hours of this morning after a long and brave battle with cancer. He very much enjoyed seeing all your kind comments and posts on this Facebook page and his family wanted to thank you for your appreciation of his work.
Woolfson was born in Scotland and grew up in Glasgow where he started composing in his early teens. At 18, he moved to London where he became a session pianist and wrote songs for artists like Marianne Faithfull, Peter Noone, the Tremeloes and Marmalade.
Eric started working with the an early incarnation of 10cc (Eric Stewart, Kevin Godley, Lol Creme and Graham Gouldman) in 1971, producing early group and solo records. He also became more active in the management side of the music business, signing both Carl Douglas (Kung Fu Fighting) and Alan Parsons.
By the middle of the decade, Woolfson and Parsons joined forces in the Alan Parsons Project. Parsons already had experience producing albums for Paul McCartney and Pink Floyd (he produced Dark Side of the Moon) and partnered with Woolfson for his singing and songwriting prowess. The two made ten albums between 1976 and 1987 and, while a number of vocalists were used over the years, it is Woolfson's voice that can be heard on such hits as Time and Eye in the Sky.
After parting ways with Parsons, Woolfson moved into writing for the theater. His first show, Freudiana, was originally meant to be a Project album but ended up being transitioned to the stage, opening in Vienna in 1990. He returned often to musical biographies, also writing shows about Spanish architect Antonio Gaudi (1995's Gaudi) and Edgar Alan Poe (2003's Poe: More Tales of Mystery and Imagination). Other shows included Gambler (1996) and Dancing in the Shadows (2007).
===============================
Erasure "The Innocents" Remastered, Out December 8
Legendary pop heroes Erasure release the 21st Anniversary remaster of their classic pop album, "The Innocents" on December 8th, 2009. Available on CD, download and as a deluxe two CD/DVD package, the deluxe release will feature the original album remastered, a second disc of remastered B-Sides, remixes and rarities plus DVD with Erasure, live at the NEC Birmingham on 15th November 1988. Extras on the DVD include live unreleased versions of "Witch In The Ditch" and "Gimme! Gimme! Gimme!," recordings from the BBC around the original release which includes "Ship Of Fools" on Going Live! and "A Little Respect" from Top Of The Pops plus the original promotional videos for "Ship Of Fools," "Chains Of Love" and "A Little Respect."
"The Innocents," originally released on 18th April 1988, was the first Erasure album to hit the UK #1 spot (first on 30th April 1988 and again in January 1989), a chart-topping position they revisited with each of their next four album releases.
Featuring the singles "A Little Respect," "Ship Of Fools" and "Chains Of Love," "The Innocents" was Erasure's third album release, following "Wonderland" and "The Circus," and the album that secured their position as one of Britain's most beloved and enduring songwriting duos.
In over two decades together, Andy Bell and Vince Clarke (a founding member of Depeche Mode and Yazoo) have sold more than 20 million albums around the globe, proving themselves masters of every kind of song from disco symphonies to unplugged ballads.
===============================
Happy birthday to Ozzy, the "Prince of Darkness" and the "Godfather of Heavy Metal"
According to Billboard, Arcade Fire’s follow-up to Neon Bible is on schedule for a May 2010 release. Markus Dravs, who served as an engineer on Neon, will produce the band’s third full-length LP. The Canadian rockers have also reportedly been offered headlining spots on a few North American festivals.
===============================
Grammy Nominees Named
Last night, the nominees for the 52nd Annual Grammy Awards were announced.
The Nominees are:
Song of the Year
Poker Face – Lady Gaga
Pretty Wings – Maxwell
Single Ladies (Put A Ring On It) – Beyoncé
Use Somebody – Kings of Leon
You Belong With Me – Taylor Swift
Pop Duo or Group With Vocals
Black Eyed Peas – “I Gotta Feeling”
Bon Jovi – “We Weren’t Born to Follow”
The Fray – “Never Say Never”
Daryl Hall and John Oates – “Sara Smile”
MGMT – “Kids”
Best Rock Album
AC/DC – Black Ice
Eric Clapton and Steve Winwood – Live from Madison Square Garden
Green Day – 21st Century Breakdown
Dave Matthews Band – Big Whiskey and the GrooGrux King
U2 – No Line on the Horizon
Best Rap Solo Performance
Drake – “Best I Ever Had”
Eminem – “Beautiful”
Jay-Z – “D.O.A (Death of Auto-Tune)”
Kid Cudi – “Day ‘N’ Nite”
Mos Def – “Casa Bey”
Country Duo or Group With Vocals
Brooks and Dunn – “Cowgirls Don’t Cry”
Zac Brown Band – “Chicken Fried”
Lady Antebellum – “I Run to You”
Rascal Flatts – “Here Comes Goodbye”
Sugarland – “It Happens”
Record of the Year
Beyoncé – “Halo”
Black Eyed Peas – “I Gotta Feeling”
Kings of Leon – “Use Somebody”
Lady Gaga – “Poker Face”
Taylor Swift – “You Belong With Me”
Album of the Year
Beyoncé – I Am…Sasha Fierce
Black Eyed Peas – The E.N.D.
Lady Gaga – The Fame
Dave Matthews Band – Big Whiskey and the GrooGrux King
Taylor Swift – Fearless
Best New Artist
Zac Brown Band
Keri Hilson
MGMT
Silversun Pickups
The Ting Tings
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Eric Woolfson of the Alan Parsons Project Passes Away
The announcement came on Woolfson's Facebook profile:
We are very sad to have to tell you that Eric Woolfson passed away in the early hours of this morning after a long and brave battle with cancer. He very much enjoyed seeing all your kind comments and posts on this Facebook page and his family wanted to thank you for your appreciation of his work.
Woolfson was born in Scotland and grew up in Glasgow where he started composing in his early teens. At 18, he moved to London where he became a session pianist and wrote songs for artists like Marianne Faithfull, Peter Noone, the Tremeloes and Marmalade.
Eric started working with the an early incarnation of 10cc (Eric Stewart, Kevin Godley, Lol Creme and Graham Gouldman) in 1971, producing early group and solo records. He also became more active in the management side of the music business, signing both Carl Douglas (Kung Fu Fighting) and Alan Parsons.
By the middle of the decade, Woolfson and Parsons joined forces in the Alan Parsons Project. Parsons already had experience producing albums for Paul McCartney and Pink Floyd (he produced Dark Side of the Moon) and partnered with Woolfson for his singing and songwriting prowess. The two made ten albums between 1976 and 1987 and, while a number of vocalists were used over the years, it is Woolfson's voice that can be heard on such hits as Time and Eye in the Sky.
After parting ways with Parsons, Woolfson moved into writing for the theater. His first show, Freudiana, was originally meant to be a Project album but ended up being transitioned to the stage, opening in Vienna in 1990. He returned often to musical biographies, also writing shows about Spanish architect Antonio Gaudi (1995's Gaudi) and Edgar Alan Poe (2003's Poe: More Tales of Mystery and Imagination). Other shows included Gambler (1996) and Dancing in the Shadows (2007).
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Erasure "The Innocents" Remastered, Out December 8
"The Innocents," originally released on 18th April 1988, was the first Erasure album to hit the UK #1 spot (first on 30th April 1988 and again in January 1989), a chart-topping position they revisited with each of their next four album releases.
Featuring the singles "A Little Respect," "Ship Of Fools" and "Chains Of Love," "The Innocents" was Erasure's third album release, following "Wonderland" and "The Circus," and the album that secured their position as one of Britain's most beloved and enduring songwriting duos.
In over two decades together, Andy Bell and Vince Clarke (a founding member of Depeche Mode and Yazoo) have sold more than 20 million albums around the globe, proving themselves masters of every kind of song from disco symphonies to unplugged ballads.
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Happy birthday to Ozzy, the "Prince of Darkness" and the "Godfather of Heavy Metal"
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