Music News & Notes

Susan Boyle Cover Art for I Dreamed a Dream Released

Susan Boyle's cover art for her debut album I Dreamed a Dream has been released. It is taken from a photo shoot Susan Boyle did recently for Harper's Bazaar magazine. It is a very simple but effective photo framing her face with her wearing what appears to be a classic sequined dress. The recent release of the album's track list indicates she will be performing an eclectic collection of songs from Madonna to "Amazing Grace." The album will be released November 24, 2009.

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Creedence Clearwater Revival: The Singles Collection

Creedence Clearwater Revival's golden era of hit singles (fall of 1968 through spring of 1972) rivals that of any band in rock 'n' roll history. The Southern-flavored quartet from El Cerrito, Calif., turned out 17 hits in a 44-month stretch, nine of them in the Top 10, five of them in the Top 5.

On November 3, Fantasy Records will release The Singles Collection, a two-CD, one-DVD box with a slip case, containing all of the band's U.S. singles - 30 songs in all. Top 5 smashes like "Bad Moon Rising," "Green River," "Down On The Corner," "Travelin' Band," "Who'll Stop The Rain," "Run Through The Jungle," "Up Around The Bend," "Long As I Can See The Light" and "Lookin' Out My Back Door" are joined by seldom-heard singles that never charted ("Porterville" and "Call It Pretending" on Fantasy's Scorpio subsidiary, and later singles "Tearin' Up the Country" and "45 Revolutions Per Minute [Parts 1 & 2]").

The 30 songs, (which are presented in their original single mixes, many of them in mono - are making their CD debut), housed on two CDs, will be joined by a DVD containing four never-before-available, long-pre-MTV music videos: "I Heard It Through The Grapevine," "Bootleg," "I Put A Spell On You" and "Lookin' Out My Back Door." Also included in the package are a poster featuring the dozens of international single sleeves, and a 16-page booklet with liner notes by former Rolling Stone editor Ben Fong-Torres, who lived and wrote in the Bay Area during CCR's golden half-decade.

Fantasy will also manufacture a limited edition collectors' version of The Singles Collection featuring actual vinyl 45 rpm singles with reproductions of the original Fantasy label design and housed in their rare picture sleeves - the ultimate holiday gift for Creedence fans.

The members of Creedence Clearwater Revival, of course, hailed from the suburbs of Oakland the little town of El Cerrito, lappeding up music on the radio through the late '50s and '60s, and eventually signeding to a small, open-minded jazz label in Berkeley called Fantasy Records. Originally known as the Tommy Fogerty & the Blue Velvets and then The Golliwogs, the band's break came with its swampy 1968 cover of Dale Hawkins' "Suzie Q," which notched #11 on Billboard's pop singles chart. Starting on San Francisco's free-form rock radio stations, the song crossed over top Top 40, putting Creedence on the map. As Fong-Torres notes, "radio needed acts like CCR - reliable producers of solid tunes laden with hooks."

Even in the South, radio was taken with CCR. DJ Scott Shannon, then on Memphis' WMPS-AM, was a Dale Hawkins fan and thought Fogerty nailed it. "His voice and his mixes were perfect for Top 40," he said. "It just screamed out of the AM radios."

But it wasn't just the radio. CCR songs began popping up in movies and TV shows - several dozens of them, in fact. "Bad Moon Rising" has shown up the most often (including in An American Werewolf in London), and "Fortunate Son" has been heard in films ranging from The Manchurian Candidate (2004) to Live Free Or Die Hard (2007).

"I used to say in 1968 that I wanted to make records they would still play on the radio in ten years," John Fogerty said in early 1993, on the eve of Creedence Clearwater Revival's induction into the Rock 'n' Roll Hall of Fame.

Forty years later, the music sounds as fresh and vital as ever.



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Alice In Chains Announce Next Single

To coincide with the band's European tour, Alice In Chains will release a new single, "Your Decision", on November 16 in the U.K.

"Your Decision" is the second single to be lifted from band's first all-new album in 14 years, titled "Black Gives Way To Blue", which sold 126,000 copies in the United States in its first week of release to land at position No. 5 on The Billboard 200 chart (behind latest albums from Paramore, Mariah Carey, Barbra Streisand and Breaking Benjamin).

Alice In Chains took part in "Stripped", Clear Channel Music Group's exclusive in-studio performance series created for artists who thrive on performing without the typical studio and video embellishments. The three-song performance, which was taped on September 9 at the PC Richard & Son Theater in New York City, can be viewed here.



Acoustic versions of the following songs are available:

Check My Brain
Your Decision
No Excuses

Alice In Chains will perform on the October 30 edition of NBC's "The Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien".

Alice In Chains recruited pop legend Elton John to contribute piano to the CD's title track, which is written in tribute to Staley.

"Black Gives Way To Blue" was recorded with producer Nick Raskulinecz (Foo Fighters, Rush) at the Northridge, California studio of Foo Fighters frontman Dave Grohl.

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Blink-182's 'Enema of the State' to receive vinyl release


Blink-182's wildly popular 1999 full-length, Enema of the State, will be released on vinyl for the first time by independent punk/hardcore label Mightier Than Sword Records (O Pioneers!!!, Ris Paul Ric, Smartbomb). The news was initially mentioned late last night on Generic Insight Radio, but Punknews.org is ecstatic to now bring you exclusive details on the release.

The album will be the first in a 10 Year Anniversary series by the label, with each release involving a limited pressing of 500 on 180-gram vinyl. They will also feature a gold seal to commemorate the release. In addition to the 500 180-gram copies, Mightier Than Sword will also press 500 each on clear red, clear blue and clear colors.

The official release date is set for December 1, but the label will begin taking pre-orders this coming Monday, October 19th.

You can click Read More for some mock-up previews of the various colors.

Enema of the State was originally released in 1999 on MCA and featured some of Blink-182's biggest hits to date, including "All the Small Things," "What's My Age Again?" and "Adam's Song." It went on to sell 15 million copies worldwide.

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Zeppelin, Floyd Get UK Stamp Of Approval

Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd and Mike Oldfield are among 10 artists whose classic albums will be celebrated by the Royal Mail next year.

On January 7 a new set of stamps will go into circulation, each with the image of a classic album. Among the collection are:

Led Zeppelin – IV

Pink Floyd – The Division Bell

Mike Oldfield – Tubular Bells

Rolling Stones – Let It Bleed

David Bowie – The Rise And Fall Of Ziggy Stardust And The Spiders From Mars

The Clash – London Calling

Unfortunately the Royal Mail have blotted their copybook by also including Coldplay’s A Rush Of Blood To The Head in their list. Write and complain now! (Not that your letter will ever reach its destination…)

For further info, go to www.royalmail.com/portal/stamps

A side note, an organization called Vinyl Record Day (www.VinylRecordDay.org) is trying to do the same thing here in the states. Stop by the site and learn how you can support this project.

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Tubular Bells Producer Puts Out Album Of Unreleased Songs


Tom Newman (producer of Tubular Bells) and Peter Gibson (frontman of Brett Marvin And The Thunderbolts) have a new double album CD available, called Join Together. This features unreleased songs produced by Newman, at his Argonaut Studios in London, between 1977-1982.

Artists featured on these recordings include Mike Oldfield, David Gilmour, Snowy White and Jade Warrior.

For further info, go to: www.wellalright.co.uk

Turning directions: Many listeners find digital recordings too harsh, sterile

I would like to thank the people at Terra Haute Tribune Star for allowing me to reprint this interesting material.


By Reggie McConnell

Special to the Tribune-Star




TERRE HAUTE — In 1983, when Sony introduced the compact disc, it boasted that it was giving the public “prefect sound forever.” A quarter of a century later, audiophiles are still waiting for Sony to make good on its boast. Many listeners find digital recordings too harsh and sterile sounding. They complain that CDs and MP3s prevent them from becoming immersed in the “musical experience.” Whereas analog recordings allow them to connect with the music on an “emotional” level. “Listening fatigue” is a common complaint of critical listeners attempting to cope with today’s digital formats.

Michael Fremer, senior contributing editor to Stereophile, is certainly a critical listener. His turntable costs $150,000. (That’s not a typo.) A stereo system like Fremer’s will set you back $340,000. Though he’s quick to stress that one can assemble a “musically satisfying system” for $3,000. Fremer has devoted a large portion of his adult life to evaluating the sonic differences between analog and digital recordings. And he’s pretty dogmatic on the subject of analog’s sonic superiority.

Fremer: “A $400 turntable will sound more ‘musical’ and enjoyable than a $5,000 CD player. The problem is the lack of resolution. Sixteen bits [digital’s ceiling] is barely sufficient. All you have to do is hear a higher resolution version of the same recording to know that.”

Perhaps that’s one reason for vinyl’s resurgence. Last year, nearly 2 million vinyl albums were purchased, according to Nielson Soundscan, which began tracking LP sales in 1991. Actually, that number is conservative since Nielson fails to track sales at small indie shops where vinyl thrives. Moreover, early indications point to robust sales for 2009, despite the year-long recession.

These numbers aren’t surprising to those in the record business. Chad Kassem, owner of Acoustic Sounds, has been selling vinyl records for 25 years. His business is based in Salina, Kan., and has become a Mecca for vinyl lovers. International sales account for a third of his business. Kassem began his career by selling LPs out of his two-bedroom apartment. These days he needs a 50,000 square-foot warehouse to hold his burgeoning inventory. Though Kassem sells CDs as well, vinyl accounts for 80 percent of sales.

Kassem, Fremer and Michael Hobson are responsible for saving vinyl. Hobson founded Classic Records in 1992 and began reissuing vintage recordings (both classical and jazz) from the 1950s and early ’60s. Fremer says of Hobson, “In the darkest days he put his money where his mouth was and began licensing titles for vinyl reissue.”

The dark days were the early 1990s, when it appeared vinyl was going the way of the dinosaur. Thanks to Hobson’s efforts, new vinyl reissues from vintage labels such as Mercury Living Presence, RCA, Decca and Blue Note are available today.

The fact that people are spending serious money on vinyl was made manifest to me earlier this year, when my friend, Brian Reece, showed me his latest vinyl acquisition. Reece is a dedicated Pearl Jam fan. Recently, the band reissued its classic 1992 album “Ten.” Like many bands, they chose to release it on both CD and vinyl. The week it was released over 10,000 copies of the deluxe vinyl version were sold for $140 per pop. The standard version sells for $19.

Examining the album, I was struck by the quality of the pressings. Thick, flawless 180 gram vinyl; nothing like the thin, warped crap that Columbia Records used to foist upon the public.

The Pearl Jam record is also available at Best Buy. That’s right, a big-box chain is selling vinyl. The consumer-electronics giant picked up on the trend last year and has devoted merchandising space for vinyl in all its stores. And while vinyl represents less than 5 percent of Best Buy’s music business, the key point is that vinyl sales are growing while CD sales continue to shrink.

It’s instructive to note that there are more turntable manufacturers today than existed in 1983. Moreover, they are doing a brisk business with people under the age of 30. Young people have played a major role in vinyl’s resurgence. Perhaps it’s because they have grown up listening to low resolution audio formats and when they hear what they’ve been missing they are eager to upgrade.

Fremer: “When kids brought up on MP3 files, who’ve only heard MP3 files, hear vinyl they flip out! I’ve seen it myself … I had a young friend (25) bring over one of his friends who is a big Dylan fan. He’d only heard Dylan on MP3s! I played him an original pressing of “Tangled Up In Blue” and the kid started crying … he said he’d never really heard the song before and had never really ‘felt’ it.”

So much for the notion that MP3s constitute progress. I, too, prefer the warmer sound of vinyl. Vinyl manifests a euphonic sweetness, if you will, that can’t be duplicated via CD. I own several recordings on both formats. The biggest difference I notice (besides vinyl’s sweeter sonic signature) is that it throws a wider, deeper soundstage. This serves to create a holographic effect. Images seem to float in mid-air, directly in front of my listening chair. You can easily place the location of the performers on stage. Good luck trying to duplicate that 3-D imagery with CDs.

(I should put my remarks in context by noting that I listen in two-channel stereo and do not utilize any surround sound or ambience restoration devices.)

With analog recordings, the sound is picked up via a microphone and fed to tape. The magnetic particles on the tape are configured in patterns analogous to the audio wave-form. Whereas digital recorders convert the audio signal to a binary code of ones and zeroes. Each one and zero is called a “bit.” Space does not permit further explanation, but it’s the processing of this binary information (or lack thereof) that accounts for digital’s disappointing sound.

Perhaps the most frustrating thing for music critics and sound engineers is having an inferior format hailed as “a quantum leap forward” by industry types who have a vested interest in digital’s commercial success.

Those wishing to take the Pepsi Challenge might begin with Dylan’s “Blood on the Tracks.” Compare a CD (even a CD is superior to MP3s) to the record. If you prefer classical, then I suggest RCA’s “Saint-Saëns Symphony No. 3,” Charles Munch conducting. Headbangers should A/B the Red Hot Chili Peppers’ “Stadium Arcadium.”

A cautionary note: Many of today’s vinyl releases are sourced from digital. Eschew! When purchasing vinyl make sure your selections are pure analog.

“Sweet” “euphonic” “warm”: but these are merely descriptive terms and tell us nothing insofar as the technical reasons for vinyl’s sonic superiority. Enter Doug Sax. Sax is the most accomplished mastering engineer of my generation. He notes that “Analog tape is high resolution, which means two things. One, the extended bandwidth over a conventional CD, and, two, more low-level performance than a CD … Analog tape has a full octave above a CD, with ease. And you can hear detail way into the noise floor. We’re [analog enthusiasts] used to that resolution.

“One of the great lies of digital is that digital copies sound like the original. They do not. Analog playback is not like the original, either — believe me … but it changes it often in a very musical way. When digital changes, it’s always unmusical. It never sounds better.”

Will vinyl ever replace CD as the preferred listening format? Of course not. The compact disc player is perfect for today’s instant-gratification-culture. Just push a button and the room is bathed in “music.” And let’s face it, there’s nothing sexy about cleaning a record every time you play it. But if you value great sound over convenience, then chances are you will find yourself shopping for a turntable sometime soon.

SOURCE: http://www.tribstar.com

Music News & Notes

Sony: Michael Jackson Album Will Be Sold on iTunes, Contrary to Report

Michael Jackson’s posthumous album This Is It will be sold through iTunes, Sony told Wired.com, contradicting a Digital Music News report that Apple’s policy of insisting that songs be sold individually had cost it the chance to sell the album.

“I’m happy to report that [that] story is incorrect,” said Epic Records (Sony) senior vice president of publicity Lois Najarian. “Michael Jackson’s This It It album will indeed be for sale on iTunes Oct. 27. I don’t have much more information to impart other than that right now, but suffice [it] to say fans will be able to purchase it there.”

If Sony is right, either Michael Jackson’s people have agreed to let iTunes sell songs from the album individually, or Apple has reversed its longstanding policy of insisting that songs on albums also be sold individually in iTunes. We’ve asked Sony and Apple about this and hope to have an answer shortly.

“I know that’s the question of the day and they are working on that now,” said Najarian, when asked about the bundling issue.

This widely anticipated album includes only one new track, also called “This Is It” (listen), which was co-written by Michael Jackson and Paul Anka in 1983, although four demos and a poem are also included. By making this only available as a complete album, Sony and Jackson’s estate would be able to force fans who want to buy the new track and the four demos to purchase 14 tracks they probably already own.

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Rare outtakes from The White Stripes' first ever record to be released

Jack White's label Third Man to release rare tracks via online service The Vault

Outtakes from The White Stripes' first ever recording session are set to be released from the first time.

Alternative takes from the duo's 1998 seven-inch single 'Let's Shake Hands' – and its B-side 'Look Me Over Closely' – will be available via The Vault, the online service of Jack White's label Third Man.

The rarities will be available to The Vault's platinum subscribers, who will also receive an exclusive vinyl album 'The Raconteurs, Live In London' and a screen print poster for The Dead Weather.

The latest release is part of a regular giveaway organised by Third Man for Vault subscribers. Registration for the service is available until October 22, and also includes audio and video previews, pre-sales and more.

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Elvis to release '100-song box set' to celebrate his 75th birthdayCollection to be released on December 8.


A "career spanning" Elvis Presley collection is being released to mark what would have been his 75th birthday.

A 100-song box set called 'Elvis 75: Good Rockin' Tonight' will be released on December 8.

The collection will include many fan favourites but also lesser know tracks like 'My Happiness' the song Presley paid four dollars to record at the Memphis Recording Service in July 1953, a year before signing with Sun Records.

The collection will also feature an 80-page booklet featuring rare photos and a new essay by journalist Billy Altman.

A single-disc edition of 'Elvis 75: Good Rockin' Tonight.' will be released January 5, three days before what would have been Presley's 75th birthday.

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The Tragically Hip announce UK tour and album details

Canadian band head to the UK this autumn

Tragically Hip have announced details of a UK tour to support their forthcoming new album.

The album, called 'We Are The Same', is due out on November 17, and the band will call at four venues in the UK and Ireland this November and December.

The band have posted a new video featuring material from the album on their YouTube page.

This Date In Music History-October 15

Birthdays:

Mickey Baker of Mickey & Sylvia ("Love Is Strange") turns 84.
Barry McGuire - "Eve Of Destruction" (1935)
Don Stevenson - Moby Grape (1942)
Richard Carpenter - The Carpenters (1946)
English balladeer Chris DeBurgh (1948)
Tito Jackson - Jackson Five (1953)
Dave Stead - Beautiful South (1966)
Ginuwine (1970)


They Are Missed:

Born on this day in 1938, Marv Johnson, who's recording of Berry Gordy's song "Come To Me" became Motown Records first ever-single release in May 1959. Johnson died on May 16, 1993.

The late Barry Sadler ("Ballad Of The Green Berets") was born in 1943.

Freddy Fender ("Before The Next Teardrop Falls") died of lung cancer in 2006.

Terry Gilkyson ("Marianne") died from complications of an aneurism in 1999.

The great songwriter Cole Porter died in 1964.

Founding member of the Moonglows vocalist Bobby Lester died in 1980 (age 50).


History:

In 1955, Buddy & Bob (Buddy Holly) opened for Elvis Presley at the “Big D Jamboree”, held at Lubbock’s Cotton Club, Texas. Nashville talent scout Eddie Crandall was in audience and arranged for Holly to audition and record demos for the Decca US label.

Little Richard recorded "Good Golly Miss Molly" in 1956.

Jackie Wilson recorded "Lonely Teardrops" in 1958.

In 1960, the Beatles (minus Pete Best) and two members of Rory Storm's Hurricanes (Ringo Starr and Lou Walters) recorded a version of George Gershwin's ‘Summertime’ in a Hamburg recording studio. The track which was cut onto a 78-rpm disc marked the first session that included John, Paul, George, and Ringo together.

Elvis Presley recorded "Good Luck Charm" in 1961.

Jimi Hendrix signed his first recording contract in 1965, he received $1 and a 1% Royalty on all of his recordings.

The Four Tops started a two week run at #1 in 1966 with "Reach Out And I'll Be There."

The Monkees cut "I'm A Believer" in 1966.

Led Zeppelin played their first gig under that name at Surrey University in England in 1968. The band was formerly known as the New Yardbirds before the Who's Keith Moon suggested the band would "go down like a lead zeppelin."

'Hot Rats,' a largely instrumental solo album by Frank Zappa, was released in 1969. It contains one of his signature compositions, "Peaches En Regalia."

In 1971, fifties teen idol Rick Nelson was booed when he performed new material at an oldies show at Madison Square Garden. As a result of the experience, he wrote "Garden Party" which makes it to #6 in October 1972.



In 1973, the Supreme Court decides by a 7-2 vote to refuse to review a 1971 Federal Communications directive that broadcasters, in effect, censor from the airwaves songs with drug-oriented lyrics. The two dissenting votes are cast by Justices William J. Brennan and William O. Douglas, who say, "The government cannot, consistant with the First Admendment, require a broadcaster to censor its music."

Ike & Tina Turner dissolved their 19 year-old business partnership in 1976. Their divorce was finalized several months later. Ike’s drug problems eventually landed him in prison. Tina has a successful solo career.

Paul Simon's "Slip Slidin' Away" was released in 1977.

Fleetwood Mac released their album, "Rumours" in 1977.

Today in 1977, the song "You Light Up My Life" by Debbie Boone topped the charts and stayed there for an amazing 10 weeks.

In 1988, Bon Jovi started a four-week run at #1 on the album chart with "New Jersey."

Also in 1988, UB40 went to #1 on the US singles chart with their version of the Neil Diamond song "Red Red Wine," also a #1 hit in the UK.

In 1994, R.E.M. entered the US album chart at #1 with "Monster," the bands 11th #1.

Mariah Carey started a four week run at #1 on the US album chart in 1995 with "Daydream," the singers sixth album release.

Radiohead went to #1 on the US album chart in 2000 with "Kid A," the group's fourth album which was also a UK #1.

In 2006, the legendary New York Punk Rock club CBGB (Ramones, etc.) has its final show after an incredible 33 year run. Patti Smith, who played her first show at CBGB in February ‘75, performs. The Red Hot Chili Peppers, bassist, Flea, and Television guitarist Richard Lloyd also appear. CBGB closes some 14 months after a dispute with its landlord, the Bowery Residents' Committee, left the club without a new lease.

The Beatles To Bowie: The '60s Exposed, an exhibition of never-before-seen images of The Beatles, David Bowie, the Rolling Stones, Jimi Hendrix and the Kinks, opened at the National Portrait Gallery in London in 2009. The collection has150 photographs and runs for three months. The opening also commemorated the 40th anniversary of David Bowie's "Space Oddity."

Ask Mr. Music with Jerry Osborne

I am continuing our feature: Ask "Mr. Music." Now in its 23rd year of syndication (1986-2008), Jerry Osborne's weekly Q&A feature will be a regular post every Wednesday from now on. Be sure to stop by Jerry's site (www.jerryosborne.com) for more Mr. Music archives, record price guides, anything Elvis, buy & sell collectibles, record appraisals and much more. I thank Jerry for allowing the reprints.


FOR THE WEEK OF OCTOBER 12, 2009


DEAR JERRY: I recently picked up a box of 78s at an estate sale, most of which appear to be old-time blues.

Even though I recognize very few of the recording artists and do not own a 78 rpm player, I say this because so many have titles ending in the word “blues.”

One of these is “Muskadine Blues” (Regal 3296), by Little Walter Trio, which I'm hoping you can tell me a bit about.

For starters, what or where is Muskadine? I've not heard this word before. Even my huge dictionary jumps from musk to muskeg. No entry begins with m-u-s-k-a.

It would also be nice to know when this record came out, and a value estimate.
—Mel Otis, Port Washington, Wisc.


DEAR MEL: Record labels are a legendary source of spelling and grammatical errors, and your Regal disc is an example.

The title should be “Muscadine Blues,” just as nearly all other recordings of muscadine-related songs.

Your dictionary should include muscadine, and define it as a grape or berry, native to a climate found mostly in the southeastern states.

Recorded in 1950, Little Walter's tune is about drinking wine made from muscadine grapes.

Besides harmonica wizard Little Walter, his Chicago-based trio includes Muddy Waters and Leroy Foster, both of whom are very well known.

In early 1953, when Little Walter's records became regulars in the Top 10, Herald reissued “Muskadine Blues,” hoping to jump on the bandwagon. As such, their single came out credited only to him (no “Trio”), and with a very different title: “Take a Walk with Me” (Herald 403). As a result, recent albums on compact disc combine both titles into one: “Take a Walk with Me (Muskadine Blues).”

Either the Regal or the Herald 78 can now sell in the $750 to $1,000 range.

Inspired by Little Walter's Regal original, and its unusual spelling, a record label named Muskadine came along in 1971 and began a fine series of various artists compilations honoring Chicago blues history. Their first LP, “On the Road Again (Anthology of Chicago Blues 1947-1954),” includes their namesake Little Walter Trio track, along with cuts by these other windy city blues legends: Baby Face Leroy (Foster); John Brim Trio; Othum Brown; Delta Joe; J.B. (Hutto) and His Hawks; Floyd Jones and His Trio; Johnny Shines; and Snooky & Moody (Muskadine LP-100).

As for other recordings with this tasty theme, here are some interesting variations: “Muscadine Wine” (Ken Will Morton and the Wholly Ghosts); “Muscadine Wine” (Keith Sewell); “Muscadine Wine” (Sam Hunt); “Muscadine Wine” (James Day and Fish Fry); “My Muscadine Wine” (Little Jimmy King and the Memphis Soul Survivors); “Yesterday's Muscadine Wine” (Syrup); “Muscadine” (John Balch & Jack Pearson); “Muscadine” (Langer & Raabenstein); and my personal favorite, a solid blues instrumental titled “Muscadine Blues,” by Skeebo Knight.

For the perfect companion piece to today's Chicago-blues-harmonica theme, read on:


DEAR JERRY: During the last week of September, one of the celebrity guests on the Bonnie Hunt Show was Elisabeth Moss, a star in the award-winning Mad Men TV series.

Of course they talked about Mad Men, as well as Moss' first Emmy nomination for her portrayal of Peggy Olson.

Then, almost as an aside, Elisabeth commented about growing up in Chicago (as did Bonnie Hunt) with both parents being musicians. Without mentioning their names, she stated her mother was one of the world's most famous female blues harmonica players. Then they went on to another topic.

Who is this famous harmonica player whose identity remains a mystery?
—Sheri Nordland, St. Louis.


DEAR SHERI: It does seem odd to have such a renown blues legend for a mother, yet keep her name a secret.

With apologies to Elisabeth, her folks are now officially outed. Her parents are Ron and Linda Moss.

And to say mom is “one of” the world's most famous female blues harmonica players is an understatement. She is the most famous!

Linda has been playing harmonica professionally since age 15, backing many big name blues bands and singers from the Chicago area and beyond.

Just a few of those whose recordings include Linda are: Muddy Waters; Junior Wells; Son Seals; James Cotton; John Lee Hooker, Chick Corea, Isaac Hayes, Melissa Ethridge, Phil Upchurch, and the Edgar Winter Group.

More recently, Linda's harmonica artistry is featured with Kelly's Lot, a California-based blues-rock band.


IZ ZAT SO? The name Kelly's Lot comes from Kelly's Lot, a used car business (motto: "If you want a good deal, go to Kelly's Lot"), operated by Kelly Zirbes in Marina Del Rey, California.

Kelly's passion for singing and entertaining, coupled with a struggling market for car sales, motivated her to drive Kelly's Lot in an entirely different direction.

Five successful albums later, and a few years, have proven Kelly's decision to be exactly the right one. On any given night, Kelly and Perry Robertson, with their band, are likely performing somewhere in California, though this month (October) they are on their second European tour.


Copyright 2009 Osbourne Enterprises- Reprinted By Permission

Grammy-Award Winning Wyclef Jean To Release Explosive New 13 Song EP

DJ Drama Presents Wyclef Jean AKA Toussaint St Jean 'From The Hut To The Projects To The Mansion' on November 10th

FEATURING DJ DRAMA, EVE, CYNDI LAUPER, TIMBALAND, LIL KIM, AND OTHERS

NEW YORK, Oct. 13 /PRNewswire/ -- Wyclef Jean returns to his hip-hop roots with the gritty release of "DJ Drama Presents Wyclef Jean AKA Toussaint St Jean From The Hut To The Projects To The Mansion," a collaboration with DJ Drama to be released November 10, 2009 on Carnival House via Megaforce/RED. The EP also features Eve, Timbaland, Maino, Cyndi Lauper, Lil Kim, among others.

Toussaint St. Jean, the title character of Wyclef's new EP, is a persona suggested to Wyclef by his friend and collaborator T.I. The character Toussaint is loosely based on the 18th-century Haitian revolutionary hero, Toussaint L'Ouverture, a figure who brought Haiti to significance on the international stage. Wyclef, who is originally from Haiti, inhabits the role of Toussaint and recreates himself in the spirit of a noble fighter, a man who says exactly what is on his mind. Toussaint's rhymes hit hard, in a "militant style," and make his words felt -- and remembered.

And so what's the difference between Wyclef and Toussaint? "Toussaint is more direct," Wyclef says. "He ain't going to sugarcoat nothing. Whatever he's thinking, he's going to tell you. It's like, I've still got this machete -- my tongue is sharper than it's ever been." To help create suitable musical settings for the grisly tales Toussaint has to tell, Wyclef turned to DJ Drama, who has worked extensively with T.I. "I asked myself, 'Who's the toughest guy out there?'" Wyclef says. "Then I said, well, DJ Drama is pretty badass. So I called him and asked if he'd be interested in doing a mixtape. He heard what I was up to and he said, 'We gotta do a book -- this is a novel!'" He got excited, and it became more like an EP than a mixtape.

The track that best captures the feelings that motivate "Toussaint St. Jean" is the intensely dramatic "The Streets Pronounce Me Dead," a chronicle of Wyclef witnessing his own metaphoric funeral. It's a commentary on Wyclef's sense of himself as a forgotten man on the hip-hop scene, despite the groundbreaking impact of his former group, the Fugees, whose 1996 album "The Score" is the best-selling hip-hop album of all time, with sales of nearly twenty million copies worldwide. The song cites the flood of younger rappers -- Akon, Lil Jon, Kanye West, among them -- who have risen up as Wyclef has gone onto prominence as a solo artist and producer for the likes of Shakira, Mick Jagger, Bono and John Legend.

Tracks like "Warriorz," "Letter From the Penn" and "Toussaint vs. Bishop" paint riveting pictures, "hood stories," as Wyclef describes them, of street life and its consequences. The gripping storytelling in those songs recalls the raw environments in Haiti and Brooklyn from which Wyclef emerged -- "from the hut to the projects to the mansion," as he memorably puts it in "Slumdog Millionaire." It's a story arc that these songs make compelling.

Wyclef views the message of "Toussaint St. Jean" as "not everything that appears bad is really bad, because the real bad men move in silence. So be careful what you emulate, because it's could get you six feet deep. If you don't see me with a gun, it doesn't mean that the guy with the gun is badder than me. I've been in those communities, but you've got to rise past that world." And, as always with Wyclef, there's more to the story than meets the eye. "Toussaint St. Jean" represents just the first step on the road to another album he intends to release in 2010 titled simply "wyclefjean." The album will reflect a three-dimensional portrait of an artist for whom the gritty sagas of Toussaint St. Jean are just one part.

Wyclef, who is also known as one of the hottest music producers today has worked with every major artist from Bono to Shakira to Santana. His 2007 written and produced "Hips Don't Lie" featuring Shakira was a #1 hit around the world, further expanding his utopian multi-cultural appeal. His extensive humanitarian work with his Yele Haiti organization which he founded in 2005 has brought much needed worldwide attention to his native Haiti. His inextricable relationship with fans is unprecedented. In a matter of a few months, Wyclef's Twitter following was over 1 million -- in a sense, his fans are considered an extension of him.

Wyclef Jean is set to release his self titled LP "Wyclef Jean" in March 2010 through Columbia Records.

DJ Drama Presents WYCLEF JEAN AKA Toussaint St Jean "FROM THE HUT TO THE PROJECTS TO THE MANSION" Track Listing:

1.Interlude - From The Hut, To The Projects, To The Mansion
2.Warrior's Anthem
3.The Streets Pronounce Me Dead
4.Slumdog Millionaire feat. Cyndi Lauper aka Luscious Loo
5.Interlude - Every Now & Then
6.Walk Away
7.More Bottles feat. Timbaland
8.You Don't Wanna Go Outside
9.Toussaint vs. Bishop
10.Interlude - The Struggle
11.We Made It
12.Suicide Love feat. Eve
13.Letter From The Penn
14.Robotic Love
15.Gangsta Girl feat. Lil Kim
16.Interlude - Tell The Kids The Truth
17.The Shottas


SOURCE Megaforce/RED

Music News & Notes

The Faces Reunion: More Than A One-Off

The Faces reunion in London on October 25 might not be just one show, as the band explains below:

The band are playing a charity event at the Royal Albert Hall, in aid of the PRS For Music Members Benevolent Fund and, says drummer Kenney Jones, more shows might happen.

“Don’t rule that out. We got together before Christmas last year to have a laugh and rehearse. And the intention then was do some special shows in 2009. But then our schedules got in the way. However, when the PRS [Performing Rights Society] asked if we’d pay at their 75th anniversary gig, we jumped at the chance, Especially, because the charity attached to this has done so much to help Ronnie’s family [this being late bassist Ronnie Lane, who died in 1997].”

Jones says he is proud of the way that The Faces have become such an enduring influence.

“It’s down to the great songs, I think. That’s what survived. And we always knew how to have fun as well. We enjoyed rock’n'roll!”

Apart form Lane, also missing at the Royal Albert Hall is frontman Rod Stewart. But he simply cannot get over to London.

“Rod was desperate to do it, but he’s got a lot of promotion for his new album in America, and has had to pass. But this is being done with his blessing.”

Joining Jones, guitarist Ronnie Wood and keyboard player Ian McLagan is former Rolling Stones bassist Bill Wyman, who’s played with the band before ["He's virtually become a regular member now"]. But who’ll be on vocals?

“That would be telling! We’ll have a few different ones. A mixture of our contemporaries and younger vocalists.”

Also billed to appear at the Royal Albert Hall gig are Simply Red’s Mick Hucknall, Spice Girl Mel C and Kiki Dee. Does this mean one or more of them will also step up to sing with The Faces? Who knows?

For further info, go to www.the-faces.com

=============================

Tom Waits New Music

This 2-CD set chronicles Waits' Glitter and Doom tour of the U.S. and Europe, drawing performances from the 17 tracks from ten different cities. The first CD carries the music tracks while the second CD is Tom's Tales, a 35-minute compilation of Waits' between song banter on a variety of subjects from the ritual of insects to the last dying breath of Henry Ford.

The music covers all eras of Waits' career and reinvents many of the songs with new rhythms and arrangements.

Record Collecting - North of the Border

Exhibitors say today's young music fans are rediscovering the sounds of the '60s and '70s on vinyl

BY ALAN COCHRANE


In the late 1980s, the big record companies declared that vinyl was a dead format and compact discs were the way of the future.

Collectors, however, continue to buck the trend and prefer to listen and seek out their favourite music on the big 12-inch discs.

"A lot of people still prefer the sound and the large format artwork," says David Eisener, who runs Select Sounds, a record emporium in Bedford, N.S. "They like the format and want it on vinyl, especially the classic rock albums, because that's the way it was intended to be listened to."

Eisener is one of many exhibitors bringing loads of vinyl records to Moncton for this Saturday's Fall Record Expo. The expo, now in its seventh year, will bring together dozens of exhibitors from all over Atlantic Canada with thousands of albums and 45-rpm singles for collectors to pore over.

There will also be lots of audio gear and music-related collectibles.

The expo will run from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Saturday at the Crowne Plaza Hotel on Main Street in Moncton. Admission is $32, or free for children under 12.

For many music collectors, the 12-inch vinyl album represents the golden age of music production when bands and record companies released elaborate fold-out covers complete with photo booklets, lyric sheets and artwork.

When record players were replaced by compact disc players, many collectors replaced their albums with CDs and their collections were scattered to the winds. The prized albums usually ended up in cardboard boxes at flea markets and yard sales for 50 cents or $1 each.

Eisener started his store in 1994, a time he says was the low end of interest in buying vinyl. But he saw business pick up after four or five years and, today, collectors of all ages are still seeking out prized copies of classic albums by such timeless performers as The Beatles, Elvis Presley, Fleetwood Mac, Pink Floyd, The Eagles and U2.

The collectors are also looking for more recent vinyl copies of newer albums by bands like the Rolling Stones and Bob Dylan, along with the collectible rarities, limited editions and bootlegs that put vinyl into the realm of obsessive hobbies like hockey cards and comic books.

Eisener says collectors come from all ages and demographics. Surprisingly, many of the collectors are in the 15-25 age group, people who are seeking out albums that are older than they are. One of the reasons for this is that album collecting can help music lovers trace and understand the history and evolution of pop and rock music.

For example, many of today's bands say they were influenced by such '70s supergroups as Led Zeppelin. But when you dig back a bit deeper, you will find that the Zeppelin musicians drew their inspiration from many sources of blues, reggae, folk and rockabilly. Indeed, the story of rock music's evolution shifts like the tide from one side of the Atlantic to the other over time with each generation adding its own ingredients to the recipe.

Many of the collectors are people who grew up with vinyl and got rid of most of their collections years ago, but recently decided to dust off their turntable and get started again.

Eisener says collecting vinyl is reasonably cheap with most records selling in the $5 to $20 range, allowing collectors to gather together a portfolio without spending too much money. And while there are some big-money collectibles floating around, they rarely land on the counters at record stores in Atlantic Canada.

Marty LeBlanc, who runs the Live Wire record shop on Mountain Road and has been organizing the Record Expo for seven years, says some exhibitors travel to Japan and bring back imports and collectibles from around the world.

LeBlanc says record shop owners and appraisers rely on several "bibles" to determine a fair price for a true rarity or collectible.

Collectors have quite a few resources and numbers to check, to find out whether an album is actually worth a lot of money or simply a counterfeit or reissue of something more famous.

One of the most sought-after collectibles is the infamous "butcher cover" of The Beatles' Yesterday and Today album. Released in June of 1966, the album included such big hits as Yesterday, Drive My Car and Day Tripper. The cover photograph showed The Beatles dressed in white butcher smocks covered in fresh-cut meat and cradling decapitated dolls. The photo was so shocking to the industry that all copies of the album were recalled after the first day of release. The record company made up stickers with a much tamer photo of The Beatles posing in a travel trunk, and had them pasted over the offensive cover. A few of the original "butcher cover" albums survived and have been appraised at over $10,000.

LeBlanc says old Beatles, Elvis Presley and other classic rock bands are among the most popular, and people also love to collect the lunch boxes, jigsaw puzzles, toys and other marketing memorabilia that go along with the hobby.

People can also find turntables, speakers, amplifiers and needles to keep their stereo sets humming so they can enjoy their collectible albums.

"The real collectibles are like a fine wine. You have to crack it open once in a while and enjoy it," he says.

LeBlanc says all tables for the expo are sold out but people can bring parts of their own collection to sell to the exhibitors.

"Sometimes you have a gem and sometimes you don't."

SOURCE: http://timestranscript.canadaeast.com

'NCIS' Soundtrack Features New Songs From Bob Dylan, John Mellencamp and More

The second soundtrack from one of nation's highest rated TV shows will feature exclusive music by Bob Dylan, Norah Jones, Joss Stone and John Mellencamp, CBS Records announced Monday. 'NCIS: The Official Soundtrack -- Vol. 2' will highlight the songs used in this season of the CBS show, which stars Mark Harmon as a Naval detective.

"People really pay attention to music that's good on television shows," Larry Jenkins, the head of CBS Records, tells Spinner. "In a lot of ways it serves the purpose that radio used to serve."

The blend of music and drama is expected to help both 'NCIS,' which features music from top acts as a major component of the show, and the performers, who gain exposure to a wide audience -- an estimated 20 million viewers per week.

"You have the sort of unveiling going on week after week on the show," Jenkins says. "Before the season even begins, CBS Records trolls its artists to see who has new music they can offer "NCIS. We send the tracks as we get them."

Here is the tracklist for the compilation, which is scheduled for release on Nov. 3.

1. Bob Dylan, 'California'
2. Norah Jones, 'That's What I Said'
3. Joss Stone, 'Every Time I Turn Around'
4. Sick Puppies, 'That Time of Year'
5. Sharon Little, 'Genie in My Dreams'
6. John Mellencamp, 'Someday the Rains Will Fall'
7. Sheryl Crow, 'Murder In My Heart'
8. Keaton Simons, 'Grim Reaper'
9. Otis Redding, 'I've Got Dreams to Remember'
10. Michael Weatherly, 'Bitter and Blue'
11. Saosin, 'Move Slow'
12. Tom Lehrer, 'The Elements'

Pop Singer Al Martino Passes Away at 82

Pop singer Al Martino passed away on Tuesday afternoon at his childhood home in Springfield, Pennsylvania. He was 82.

Martino had seven top twenty hits and six top 20 albums, but he may be best known for playing the part of Johnny Fontaine in the movie The Godfather.

Martino was born October 7, 1927 as Alfred Cini to Italian immigrants. He spent his early life working in the family masonry business but had an ongoing love for music. When his childhood friend, Alfredo Cocozza became an international superstar under the name of Mario Lanza, Cini decided to make a go of the business.

Changing his name to Al Matino, he moved to New York in 1948 where he eventually won first place on Arthur Godfrey's Talent Scouts. Soon after, he signed to a small independent label, BBS, recording Here in My Heart which went on to become an international hit, going to number one in both the U.S. and the U.K.

Capitol Records took notice and signed Martino who had a few more hits in the early-50's before his career suddenly took a detour. According to legend, his contract was forcibly taken over by a mafia based management team who demanded $75,000 in protection money. Unable to make the payment, Martino and his family fled to England where his career continued to flourish.

By the time he was able to return to the U.S. in 1958, the public had mostly forgotten him and rock and roll was the music of the day. He signed with 20th Century Fox Records where he recorded a couple of albums but sales were slow and the label dropped him. Martino decided to finance his next record himself and The Exciting Voice of Al Martino got him resigned as an artist at Capitol.

Martino worked relentlessly to reestablish his career, playing many tour dates and appearing as often as possible on TV. The hard work payed off in 1963 when I Love You Because made it up to number 3 on the Pop and number 1 on the Adult Contemporary charts. From that point on, he became a standard part of the AC chart, scoring twenty more top ten hits.

In 1966, Martino released his signature song. Spanish Eyes, based on an instrumental hit by Bert Kaempfert, made it to number 15 on the Pop charts and spent a month at the top in Adult Comtemporary.

In the early 70's, Martino's friend Phyllis McGuire brought him to the attention of Francis Ford Coppola who was making a film version of the book The Godfather by Mario Puzo. Specifically, she thought the part of Johnny Fontaine fit Martino perfectly. Fontaine was based on Frank Sinatra and his fight to be cast in From Here to Eternity, but much of the fictional singer's story also was familiar from Martino's 50's connections. He was cast in the film and the exposure allowed him to continue recording through the rest of the decade.

Martino and Capitol parted ways in the early-80's and the singer continued to tour behind his large catalog. He returned to recording in 2000 with the album Style.

SOURCE: http://winkscollectibles.blogspot.com

New Music Releases – October 13, 2009

Buy Vinyl Here

Ah Holly Fam'ly - Reservoir (vinyl)
Andrew Bird - Anonanimal (vinyl)
Andrew Jackson Jihad - Can't Maintain (vinyl)
Anti-Pop Consortium - Fluorescent Black
Aretha Franklin - This Christmas
Bad Lieutenant - Never Cry Another Tear
Baroness - Blue Record
Barzin - Notes To An Absent Lover
Bear in Heaven - Beast Rest Forth Mouth
Beaten Awake - Thunder$troke
Bell Horses: This Loves Last Time
Black Feelings - Black Feelings
BOAT - Setting the Paces
Bob Dylan - Christmas In The Heart
Bowling For Soup - Sorry For Partyin'
Brian Setzer Orchestra - Songs from Lonely Avenue (vinyl)
Broadcast & the Focus Group - Investigate Witch Cults of the Radio Age
Buddy Wakefield - Live at the Typer Cannon Grand
Built To Spill - There Is No Enemy (2-LP vinyl & CD)
Can - Inner Space (vinyl reissue)
CANT/Arthur Russell split 7″
Carolyn Mark - Let's Just Stay Here (vinyl)
Chinese Stars - Heaven on Speed Dial
Chita Rivera - And Now I Sing
Coma - Crystal 12″
Connie Talbot - Holiday Magic
David Archuleta - Christmas From The Heart
Dead By Sunrise - Out Of Ashes
Del Tha Funkee Homosapien - Parallel Uni-Verses
Devendra Banhart - Baby (vinyl)
Digital Leather - Warm Brother
Echo and the Bunnymen - The Fountain
Editors - Papillon
Ellen Allien - Lover (vinyl)
Engineers - Three Fact Fader
Erin McKeown - Hundreds of Lions
Fanfarlo - Reservoir
Five For Fighting - Slice
Flaming Lips - Embryonic
Forro in the Dark - Light a Candle
Ghostface Killah - Ghostdini, The Wizard of Poetry (green vinyl)
Godflesh - Pure/Cold World [3xCD reissue]
Grant Lee Phillips - Little Moon (vinyl)
Grooms - Rejoicer
Hall & Oates - Do What You Want, Be What You Are/The Music of Daryl Hall & John Oates (4-CD box set)
Har Mar Superstar v- Dark Touches
Harper Simon - Harper Simon
Heavy Trash - Midnight Soul Serenade
Hi Red Center - Assemble
Holly Golightly & the Brokeoffs - Devil Do
Hudson Mohawke - Butter

Buy Vinyl Here

Imaad Wasif - The Voidist (vinyl)
J Dilla - Dillanthology 3 [Rapster]
Jack Bruce & Robin Trower - Seven Moons Live
Jackson 5 - Ultimate Christmas Collection
James McMurtry - Live in Europe (vinyl)
Jay-Z - The Blueprint 3 (vinyl)
Jerry Garcia - Hooteroll?
Joan Baez - How Sweet The Sound (DVD) (CD & DVD)
Jodis - Secret House
Joe Gideon & the Shark - Harum Scarum (vinyl)
Kaito - Trust
Lackthereof - A Retrospective 1998-2008 or I Was a Christian
Lady Gaga - Paparazzi: The Remixes (vinyl)
Leaves Eyes, "Njord" (Napalm)
Lightning Bolt - Earthly Delights
Linda Eder – Soundtrack
Little Girls - Concepts (vinyl)
Little Wings - Wonder City (Knw-Yr-Own)(reissue)
Los Lonely Boys - 1969 [EP]
Lostprophets - It's Not the End of the World-But I Can See It From Here
Luciano - Tribute to the Sun
Majority Rule - Interviews with David (CD/LP reissue)
Mario - D.N.A.
Michael Buble - Crazy Love
Modeselektor - Body Language, Vol. 8 (vinyl)
Monsters Of Folk - Monsters Of Folk (vinyl & digital download)
Mum - Prophecies and Reversed Memories (vinyl)
MV&EE - Barn Nova
Neil Diamond - A Cherry Cherry Christmas
Nellie McKay - Normal as Blueberry Pie, A Tribute to Doris Day (vinyl)
Nels Cline & G.E. Stinson - Elevating Device
Neon Indian - Psychic Charms
Nick Cave - Nick Cave's Jukebox
Nihill - Grond
Olafur Arnalds - Found Sounds
Peanut Butter Wolf - 45 Live 7″ Box Set
Piano Magic - Ovations (vinyl)
Raincoats - The Raincoats (vinyl reissue)
Rick Wakeman - The Six Wives Of Henry VIII: Live At Hampton Court Palace
Roots - How I Got Over
Roxette - Crash! Boom! Bang! (remastered with bonus track)
Roxette - Have A Nice Day (remastered with bonus track)
Roxette - Joyride (remastered with bonus track)
Roxette - Look Sharp! (remastered with bonus track)
Roxette - Pearls Of Passion (remastered with bonus track)
Roxette - Room Service (remastered with bonus track)
Roxette - Tourism (remastered with bonus track)
Say Anything - Say Anything
Shakira - She Wolf
Shelley Short - Cave a Canoo
Small Black: Small Black
Snoop Dogg - The Lost Sessions, Vol. 1
Sole and the Skyrider Band - Plastique
Spider Bags - Teenage Eyes” 7″
Sugarland - Gold and Green
Summer Set - Love Like This
Temper Trap - Conditions
Thao With the Get Down Stay Down - Know Better Learn Faster (vinyl)
The Fauns -The Fauns
The Flaming Lips - Embryonic
The Heavy - The House That Dirt Built
The Paper Chase - Someday This Could All Be Yours, Vol. 1 (vinyl)
The Units - History of the Units: The Early Years: 1977-1983
Think About Life - Family
Thomas Function - In the Valley of Sickness (vinyl)
Those Who Lie Beneath - An Awakening
Tinariwen - Imidiwan: Companions
Various Artists - Putumayo Presents: A Family Christmas
Various Artists - Soundtrack 90210
Various Artists - The Ultimate Motown Christmas Collection
Various Artists - Tumbele: Biguine, Afro and Latin Sounds from the French Caribbean, 1963-1974
Vijay Iyer Trio - Historicity
Viva Voce - Rose City (vinyl)
W.A.S.P. - Babylon
Warpaint - Exquisite Corpse EP
Widespread Panic - Montreal '97
Yoga - Megafauna

Buy Vinyl Here

Music News & Notes

Uriah Heep Offer Limited Edition Celebration Artwork

Uriah Heep are offering fans the opportunity to buy one of just 300 prints of the artwork for new album Celebration.

These have been created by the artist, Ioannis, and measure 18 inches x 24 inches. Unframed, each is numbered and signed by Ioannis and all of the band. In addition, there are also 60 prints available of the alternative cover for the album, which is now part of the CD artwork. These have been numbered and signed by the artist.

The first 25 people to order one of the album prints will also get one of the alternative cover prints, plus a pencil drawing done as preparation for the final artwork, again signed by Ioannis. The next 35 fans will get the two prints.

====================

Uncle Tupelo's 'Anodyne' sees vinyl release in November

Finding Uncle Tupelo albums on vinyl is no easy task, and it's anyone's guess why Sony Legacy didn't include the LP format when it reissued the band's first three records in 2003.

Uncle Tupelo's last album, 1993's "Anodyne," was never released on vinyl in the first place, and Warner Bros. also skipped a wax pressing in 2003 when it reissued the album many fans regard as the band's best work.

They're rectifying that oversight.

In conjunction with Rhino, Warner Bros. releases "Anodyne" on 180-gram vinyl Nov. 24, according to ordering information on the label's press B2B. (Note to Warner marketing copywriters: the original drummer was Mike Heidorn, not "Heldorn." The other core members, of course, were Jay Farrar and Jeff Tweedy.)

====================

Jawbox reunites for late-night TV appearance, album reissue

Jawbox will mark the reissue of their album "For Your Own Special Sweetheart" with a Dec. 8 appearance on "Late Night With Jimmy Fallon," according to a press release. The performance will be the DC post-punk icons' first of any kind in 12 years.

Originally released by Atlantic Records in 1994, "For Your Own Special Sweetheart" has been remastered and will be re-released Nov. 24 on CD and vinyl. The new version will include three additional tracks that appeared on a 1994 EP.

Jawbox, which played its first show opening for Fugazi in 1989, released two albums for the Dischord label before signing with Atlantic. "For Your Own Special Sweetheart" is widely considered to showcase the band at its peak.

There has been no word as to possible tour plans following the album reissue and the Jimmy Fallon appearance.

====================

R.I.P. Blue Cheer's Dickie Peterson

Dickie Peterson, frontman for the hugely influential San Francisco power trio Blue Cheer, died at home in Germany this morning, as Blabbermouth reports and Blue Cheer's publicist confirms. No cause of death has been reported yet, though Blabbermouth believes he suffered from cancer. Peterson was 61.

On late-60s albums like Vincebus Eruptum and Outsideinside, Blue Cheer perfected a form of thudding, riff-heavy psychedelic rock rooted in a primordial blues lurch. The band landed on the top 40 with a scraggly cover of Eddie Cochran's "Summertime Blues", but their real impact wouldn't be felt for years. In the decades that followed, echoes of the band's stoned, simplistic roar would resonate in metal, punk, and grunge. Peterson's bored snarl and murky bass crunch, in particular, served as a stylistic bridge between mid-60s garage rock and early metal bands like Blue Cheer contemporaries Black Sabbath.

Blue Cheer broke up in the early 70s, but the band reformed to tour and record at various points over the years.



====================

Pulp Reissues to Hit U.S.

American Pulp fans looking to fill out their Britpop collection while avoiding import CD prices can rejoice. Three Pulp classics-- 1994's His 'n' Hers, 1995's Different Class, and 1998's This Is Hardcore-- are being re-released in the U.S. November 17 via Universal, according to a Billboard report. The deluxe editions-- featuring B-sides, demos and notes by Jarvis Cocker-- have been available in the UK since 2006.

====================

Paul McCartney Unveils Tracklisting For New Live Album Recorded at Citi Field

Paul McCartney has unveiled the tracklisting for his new live album and DVD, 'Good Evening New York City'.

The album, released on November 23, was recorded during the former Beatle's three-night residency at Citi Field, Queens in July.

The 33 tracks include hits from Sir Paul's solo career, as well as his Beatles and Wings back catalogues.

The DVD footage was filmed using 15 high-definition cameras, while 75 audience members were also given Flip Cams.

Sir Paul's concerts in July marked the official opening of Citi Field, home of the New York Mets.

They were also a return of sorts for the singer, who played at the baseball team's former home, the Shea Stadium, with the Beatles in 1965.

The tracklisting for 'Good Evening New York City' is as follows:

Disc 1 -

'Drive My Car'
'Jet'
'Only Mama Knows'
'Flaming Pie'
'Got To Get You Into My Life'
'Let Me Roll It'
'Highway'
'The Long And Winding Road'
'My Love'
'Blackbird'
'Here Today'
'Dance Tonight'
'Calico Skies'
'Mrs Vandebilt'
'Eleanor Rigby'
'Sing The Changes'
'Band On The Run'

Disc 2 -

'Back In The USSR'
'I’m Down'
'Something'
'I’ve Got A Feeling'
'Paperback Writer'
'A Day In The Life'/'Give Peace A Chance'
'Let It Be'
'Live And Let Die'
'Hey Jude'
'Day Tripper'
'Lady Madonna'
'I Saw Her Standing There'
'Yesterday'
'Helter Skelter'
'Get Back'
'Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band'/'The End'

This Date In Music History-October 13

Birthdays:

Paul Simon (1942)

Robert Lamm - Chicago (1944)

Sammy Hagar - Montrose/Van Halen (1947)

John Ford Coley - England Dan & John Ford Coley (1948)

Simon Nicol - Fairport Convention (1950)

Marie Osmond (1959) .

Zak Starkey (1965)

Carlos Marín - Il Divo (1968)

Ashanti Douglas (1980)


They Are Missed:

Shirley Brickley, a founding member of the Orlons, died of gunshot wounds in 1977. She was 32. The Philadelphia-based R&B group had a number of top 40 hits in the early 1960s.

TV host Ed Sullivan died in 1974. Leader of the Ed Sullivan Singers and Orchestra. Introduced The Beatles and other UK acts to America via his Ed Sullivan TV show, from New York City, which ran from June 20, 1948 to June 6, 1971, on CBS every Sunday night at 8pm. The Beatles appearance on February 9th 1964 is considered a milestone in American pop culture and the beginning of the British Invasion in music. The broadcast drew an estimated 73 million viewers.

B-52’s guitarist Ricky Wilson died in 1985 at age 32 of complications resulting from AIDS.

In 2001, Australian singer songwriter Peter Doyle died of throat cancer aged 52. Solo artist and a member of The New Seekers. Scored the hits, ‘What Have They Done To My Song Ma’, ‘Never Ending Song of Love’ and ‘I'd Like to Teach the World to Sing’ with The New Seekers.


History:

The Four Preps, Rosemary Clooney, Frank Sinatra and Bing Crosby all appeared on a CBS television special in 1957 to introduce the brand new Edsel automobile.

Frank Sinatra started a five-week run at #1 on the US album chart in 1958 with 'Frank Sinatra Sings For Only The Lonely'.

In 1958, a Billboard featurette on the Teddy Bears notes "18 year old Phil Spector, who wrote and arranged their hit 'To Know Him is to Love Him,' is studying to be a court reporter."

In 1963, the Beatles appeared on BBC's "Sunday Night at the Palladium." Thousand of fans jammed the streets adjacent to the theater. It's the first demonstration of Beatlemania as many of the fans battle with police to get into the theater. The group's television appearance was witnesses by 15 million British viewers.

The Who recorded "My Generation," at Pye studios, London in 1965.



In 1965, recording at Abbey Road studios for the album Rubber Soul, The Beatles begin and complete "Drive My Car" in four takes plus overdubs.

Janis Joplin's ashes were scattered off the coast of California in 1970.

Don McLean's "American Pie" album was released in 1971.

The Rolling Stones started a four week run at #1 on the US album chart with "Goats Head Soup," the group's fourth US #1.

In 1975, Neil Young undergoes surgery in Los Angeles. An "object" is scraped from his vocal chords, which had been bothering him. Although he's back in the studio rather quickly, Young is hampered by the setback and bows out midway during his 1976 tour with Stephen Stills because of the strain on his voice. I guess they never fixed it.

In 1979, The Guinness Book of Records claimed Paul McCartney (with and without John Lennon) was the most successful composer of all time.

AC/DC position themselves as the heirs to Led Zeppelin with Back in Black, which turns platinum on this date in 1980. The albums makes it up to #4.

Stevie Wonder started a three week run at #1 in 1984 with 'I Just Called To Say I Love You', his 7th US #1, also #1 in the UK.

In 1992, the San Francisco board of supervisors votes to rename the San Francisco Civic Auditorium after rock promoter Bill Graham, who'd been killed a year earlier in a helicopter crash.

Also in 1992, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the families of two teenage suicide victims could not sue Ozzy Osbourne for allegedly inspiring their sons to kill themselves through the song "Suicide Solution."

The Crossroads Center in Antigua, a $6.5 million addiction recovery center underwritten by Eric Clapton, opened in 1998. The center offers an intensive 29-day recovery program for $9,000. Those who can't pay are expected to work off the debt after treatment. Clapton says he'll offer his experience and will work directly with patients from time to time.

In 2004, the US Internal Revenue Service charged 63-year-old Ronald Isley, lead singer of the Isley Brothers, with tax evasion for failing to report income from royalties and performances by the band between 1997 and 2002. He was later found guilty and sentenced to three years in prison.

The Flaming Lips issue “Embryonic,” their 12th album - 8th on the Warner Bros. imprint in 2009.

Record albums have staying power

Vinyls are coming back in style

By Amanda Dovel


Walking down the stairs of “Albums on the Hill,” the store is a cluttered mess of fliers, CD’s, posters and of course an entire room full of LPs. The new Built to Spill album “Good Ol’ Boredom” was playing in the background of the store, unleashing a new part of the music world few are familiar with. This is the underground world of vinyl records.

Andy Schneidkraut has owned Albums on the Hill for 22 years. He sees a lot of young people buying and collecting vinyls and believes it’s about the sound quality and actually understanding the music.

“It’s about the experience, its more relational and intimate,” Schneidkraut said. “The music is not intended to be background noise, it’s about wanting to listen and having to actively get up and turn it over to listen to the other side.”

Recently, the top album sold at Albums is the limited edition 12” vinyl single from Thom Yorke of Radiohead. The record features “FeelingPulledApartbyHorses” and “The Hollow Earth.”

Classic rock albums such as The Beatles, Pink Floyd, Led Zeppelin, the Grateful Dead and many more from the 60s and 70s are still topping the charts in record sales. Records were born in a time where rock and roll ruled the music scene and the young adults that listened to it.

The cultural influence of these albums is obvious as the demand for classic records continues to increase. Many students expressed their love for vinyl records that have been passed down to them from their parents who collected many albums.

Taylor Iverson, a 20-year-old double majoring in film and journalism, said he found a vintage Beatles album in his parent’s collection and has collected over fifty records since. Iverson said he believes the best sound quality is in LPs.

“With vinyl, you hear the music exactly the way the artists want you to hear it,” Iverson said. “It’s the most pristine sound possible.”

Sam Sacher, a 21-year-old junior ethnic studies major, said she too became interested in record collecting because of her family.

“My dad listened to a lot of bad music but also some cool jazz, funk and soul,” Sacher said.

Sacher said was hooked on “The Blues Brothers” when she was younger, and she believes records are a different, more involved way of listening that has been lost over time.

She said that if she knows she likes the whole album, she’ll buy the record. If she only wants one song she’ll just buy the MP3, although she agrees the sound quality of a record is much better than anything else. Her most recent purchase is Betty Davis’ “Nasty Gal” LP.

“The album is raunchy, sexually charged funk,” Sacher said.

Vinyl sales have helped encourage people to continue buying music, rather than getting it for free off the Internet. Modern LP releases often come in a package that enables the purchaser to walk away with tangible album art, a high quality sound recording and often a code to download the MP3 version of the album for free.

LP purchases always support that band, but also the artist who designed the album art.

Iverson said he just bought the vintage “Grand Funk Railroad,” double LP, and that it came with “an awesome poster.”

Sacher said that she hopes the increase in record sales will encourage bands to wait on releasing their album until it’s perfect. That way, people will want to purchase the entire album to listen to it all the way through and really appreciate it’s crackling sound on the record player.

Adam Ladwig is the director of Radio 1190 on campus and a 21-year-old broadcast news major. He said he collects records because he likes the feel of a record; by holding a record the collector is much more involved in the music, when compared to the impersonal action of Internet downloading.

“It’s much more fun to drop a needle on a record than it is to play a CD,” Ladwig said. “There is a more earthy sound coming off a record player.”

While portability is sacrificed with the use of a record player, an iPod or mp3 player will never get sound that “pops” and “hisses” like that of a record player.

John Martinez has been employed at Bart’s CD cellar for 12 years now and he works upstairs in the vinyl section. He describes how his love of music has connected him with vinyl records.

“I like being around records,” Martinez said. “I’ve had the vinyl bug since I was little and I have been at it so long I just cant imagine doing anything else.”

He believes vinyl records are an “all encompassing medium” with has visual, audio and sensual qualities about it. Martinez also said he believes records create the best sound possible and you can hear the entire audio spectrum.

“Music is a really good escape from reality, it’s a distraction,” Martinez explains. “Music takes you out of yourself, a good concert invigorates you for days. It allows you to tap into feelings you have trouble expressing whether they’re happy or sad.”


SOURCE: http://cuindependent.com/

Vinyl Collective Top 10 Sales of the past week

Stop By www.vinylcollective.com for some great muisc and awesome collectible vinyl!

1 Vinyl Collective Raffle Ticket 123 copies
2 MICAH SCHNABEL (of Two Cow Garage) “When the Stage Light Goes Dim” CD 108 copies
3 Suburban Home Chad Price Fall,Winter Sampler DIGITAL ALBUM (mp3) 68 copies
4 LAWRENCE ARMS “Buttsweat And Tears” 7″ 50 copies
5 COBRA SKULLS “American Rubicon” LP red w/ white marble vinyl 36 copies
6 WHATEVER 30 copies
7 THE SWELLERS “Welcome Back Riders” 7″ pink/blue half and half vinyl 21 copies
8 LUCERO “1372 Overton Park” LP 20 copies
9 THE SWELLERS “Welcome Back Riders” 7″ pink w/ blue haze vinyl 19 copies
10 CONVERGE “Axe To Fall” LP colored vinyl 16 copies
10 CHUCK RAGAN/ BRIAN FALLON “Gospel Songs” 7″ brown vinyl VC exclusive color 16 copies
10 Suburban Home SHOTGUNATOR black 16 copies

A few interesting numbers. The Raffle got off to a great start. 221 more tickets and we will be picking some winners. Micah Schnabel’s CD got off to a good start and should be sold out by next week as we are only getting 200 copies. The Lawrence Arms 7″ is again sold out, just asked if we can get more. The Cobra Skulls “American Rubicon” got off to a solid start, but seriously, everyone should own this album. And the Swellers are keeping strong. ~ Virgil