Julie and Julia: A Movie About Parallel Lives

Julie and Julia is a touching and entertaining movie about parallel lives. One life inspired the other. Amy Adams is charming as the soon-to-be 30 year old Julie. She’s in a happy marriage, stuck in a run down apartment in Long Island City (it is 900 sq ft-as her husband reminds her why they are living there. If you’re a New Yorker, you know that is a detail not to be overlooked.). She’s in a dead end job listening to and trying to improve the lives of those affected by 9/11 and lamenting that she hasn’t used her writing skills to become a published writer. In a duel story, Julia Child, played so well by Meryl Streep (her facial expressions and nuances make the movie), is madly in love with her husband, has moved to Paris, which she fully embraces and is also searching for something to give her fulfillment in her life. They both come to the conclusion that food makes them happy. Julia loves eating it and Julie loves cooking it.

Meryl plays Julia as a bon vivant with just the right touch of sarcasm. She loves life, people and experiences, but is no saint. The scenes of Julia as the only female student at the Le Cordon Bleu will put a smile on your face. Julia became a trailblazer by following her heart and not letting stereotypes stand in her way. She was a very formidable woman at 6’ 2”, so I’m sure a lot couldn’t stand in her way and she probably dealt with her share of prejudices, not only as a woman (the woman who ran Le Cordon Bleu hated her), but as a very tall woman. Julie not only becomes a devout fan of Julia, she converses with her while she’s cooking and dresses as her for her 30th birthday party. Pearls are mandatory.

It’s not easy to depict parallel stories that never intersect on screen, but the pacing and layout of this movie are flawless. Never once did I look at my watch. (Before the movie started I did make note of the 30 minutes of previews and commercials we had to sit thorough before the movie began). It’s a great movie about finding something you like and letting it kill you (to paraphrase Kinky Friedman). There’s a mix of emotions played out over the course of the film: heartbreak, frustration, getting over yourself and sheer joy. It’s life as we know it. Julie Powell blogs about the following incident, so I’m not giving anything away, but there is a dose of reality that grounds the film. As much as I hated the part when Julie got the call that Julie Child is disinterested in her blog, it threw the movie deeper into the real world. Julia was never a shrinking violet, so why would she not be honest in her opinion of Julie’s blog? Of course you want Julie to meet Julia and have a great relationship with her, but how many of you have met your hero and been disappointed? How many of you have been pleasantly surprised? Sometimes the myth is greater than the reality. Whether Meryl’s portrayal of Julia is more myth than reality, it doesn’t matter. She’s thoroughly endearing.

Live Brandi Shearer Free on Amazon

As a pre-album release gift, Brandi Shearer has made available for a limited time on Amazon a free download of her EP Live At The Soiled Dove. The EP includes the always powerful I Want You Out from Close To Dark, To LA, which is no longer available on CD and When You Wake Up, which is on the new record (Love Don't Make You Juliet -out Sept 1).

RCRDLBL.com had this to say about When You Wake Up: "But sweet as she sounds (and looks), below the surface sheʼs kinda just cruising for a fight—check out the can't-stop-me vengefulness she sketches out over some Tom Waitsian clatter on this tune from her new Craig Street–produced album."

Road Tweets From the Heat

Los Lobos have been playing a lot of outdoor shows in very hot weather.
Check out Louie Perez tweets for the day. I wonder if this will make it's way into a song....


Roadrash- being on tour too long
2:00 PM Aug 15th from txt

Roadhash- backstage catering
2:02 PM Aug 15th from txt

Roadcash- the 6 bucks your wife gives you when you leave town
2:05 PM Aug 15th from txt

Roadstash- contraband stuck under the back plate on a gold top les paul
2:20 PM Aug 15th from txt

Roadlash- what happens to your neck when riding in a 15 passenger van
2:23 PM Aug 15th from txt

Roadbash- when its your turn to be the object of inane humor
2:41 PM Aug 15th from txt

Roadcrash- don't even think about it!
2:48 PM Aug 15th from txt

A Woodstock Memory From One Who Was There

It’s the 40th Anniversary of three days of peace and music and there have been numerous articles, TV pieces, etc to remind you. Being one to jump on the bandwagon, I spoke with my friend Laura Giantonio. Laura has worn many hats in the music business: DJ (in clubs such as the Fast Lane, Hitsville and The Ritz), photographer, band member (The Fabulous Perms) and as a travel agent working solely with musicians and production companies. She attended Woodstock. What strikes me the most about Laura’s recollection and that of others I’ve seen in documentaries is that no one talks about the music as being a front and center part of the experience.

Laura verbalized the feeling and vibe of being there. “It was a party. We all went away to have a party. I was a teenager going to a big festival with a bunch of friends. It was absolutely amazing. It was a love-fest. Everyone was very dirty. You were laying in mud. It was too good to be true. Everyone loved each other. Everyone was smoking pot. Everyone was in La La land. Everybody looked like they had a lobotomy. Everyone smiled at each other. Your parents weren’t around, you were surrounded by weirdos and having fun.”

it was all about a party. Advance tickets for all three days cost $18. Laura still has her ticket some where in her apartment. There is a reprint at Woodstock69.com of piece that appeared in 1994 in The Times Herald-Record. It’s a blow-by-blow account of how the festival finally got off the ground and then follows through the show to it’s financial aftermath.. This piece explains that the ticket booths were suppose to be delivered to the site, but never make it there due to the backup of traffic on the Thruway. The ticket takers showed up with nothing to do. The gate that was protecting the site finally gave way and the crowd poured in. Some tickets were actually refunded for those who were unable to gain access to the grounds. Not sure how they could verify that as everyone still had their physical tickets in tact, but the promoters refunded 4, 062 tickets.

As I’m sure was the case for most people under 18, Laura’s parents were skeptical about letting their only daughter travel upstate for a three day rock concert. “My father didn’t want me to go, but my mother said all the kids were going. Some kids in the neighborhood were 20, such as Ralph and my parents knew them and to them it was like having a chaperone there.” The TV reports probably made her parents second-guess their decision. “My mother was worried sick. They were showing the helicopters and masses of people on TV.”

Laura grew up in Riverdale. “There were about 20 people from the neighborhood that went. We took an old Voklswagen van that Ralph drove. Others drove too.”
She spent a lot of time at the festival with her friend Lynn Zorman. Laura was there on Friday afternoon before the music started, but wound up with the same fate as all other motorists. “We had to stop the car on the Thruway and walk several miles.” She said they had no idea what to expect. “We didn’t bring a tent. We didn’t bring much”. There were concessions but “you couldn't find anything.” No one really thought about eating. “We were all taking diet pills. We actually stole Larry’s mom’s ups. Nobody cared about food. I was hungry when I got home.”

“The thing I remember most is that there were no toilets. You’d have to pee in the woods, but there were no woods. It was problematic. I had to discard my pants after I peed in them. I rolled my pants up to dry them out by a makeshift campfire. Some guy tripping on the BROWN ACID (she laughs) came wandering over to us, laid down and plopped his head on my pants. He picked his head up briefly and said phewww. I had no idea when he was going leave. I was way too embarrassed to admit they were mine after that, so i left them there. I ended up wearing Ralph’s construction raincoat.”


The bad weather has been well documented and I think it played a big part in the memorializing of the event. “Everyone was very dirty. You were lying in mud. People were jumping off tires and into mud. I ran and slid into mud.”

There were no specific memories of the music. “I remember dancing. I could have been dancing to my own beat. I remember hearing the Who, probably Sha-Na-Na (They performed on Sunday, making it impossible as she left on Sunday morning).

“One of the guys had a car and was going back early so we went back early on Sunday morning. At that point we were soaking wet and covered with mud. Lynn had a blanket throw over her. It was a breeze driving back.. My mom was so happy when I came home early. She threw me in the shower. Lynn ran home to take a shower and let her mom know she was back.” The weekend continued. I had a big crush on Al Cooper. His album I Stand Alone was out then. I loved that song (the title track). .Lynn and I went to see Al Cooper in Central Park that night. I wore a skirt and heels to the show.”

“It was all about a party, having fun and listening to music. This would never happen again. Look at the last one. This was different. There was no racial tension. Everybody was one. It was really cool. Everyone loved each other. It was too good to be true.”

Les Paul

It seemed like Les Paul would live forever. He died today at the age of 94. In the mid-80's I was working at Modern Travel. We were travel coordinators for The Firm's US tour. Jimmy Page was in town with the band and Laura Giantonio and I were invited to see him sit in with Les Paul at Fat Tuesday's. Les had a Monday night residency at the club. I remember big smiles on both Les and Jimmy. It was like two kids jamming in their living room. When I got my first electric guitar I was pretty sure I wanted a Les Paul. They sounded so good. My guitar teacher convinced me to get the Gibson SG. I don't regret my choice as I think the Les Paul would have been too much of a guitar for me. The SG came out of retirement last year after being kept in pristine condition in it's case for too many years. I hadn't played since college. I remembered one chord. I took piano lessons from ages 5-7. I guess it's true when they say take up an instrument when you're really young, you'll never forget it. Les Paul was always young.

TechDirt challenged the artists whose files Joel Tenenbaum had shared over the Internet to comment on the case. Joel was sued by the RIAA, who won the first round. A Boston federal jury ordered Joel Tenenbaum to pay $675,000—$22,500 per song—to the major record labels for willfully infringing 30 songs by downloading and distributing them over the KaZaA.

The TechDirt challenge would have no legal ramifications, but it would be interesting. The comments that stood out the most were those that thought so little of the musicians and their work. The tones were dismissive. Some forget that without the musicians, there are no files to download and there are no record companies and there is no RIAA.

Among the songs Joel downloaded were Nirvana's Come As You Are and Nine Inch Nails' The Perfect Drug. I haven't been able to find comments from Trent.

iPhone Streaming Live Concerts

According to a post in Cynopsis Digital:

Apple and AT&T pulled off the first live streamed event on the iPhone on Friday - a live concert in from UK techno band Underworld at the Fox Theatre in Oakland, CA. (Click on the "live broadcasts" link to listen to an archived video of the event.) The concert, which AT&T more or less kept under its hat to avoid traffic problems, utilized Apple's new HTTP streaming protocol using adaptive bitrates technology to deliver a steady broadcast under varying network conditions, per NewTeeVee. Akamai and Inlet Technologies helped power the event.

John Hughes Music Quiz

John Hughes is being remembered for his intimate and accurate portrayal of teenagers in his films. He didn't pander to them, he put them in real life situations (ok, not sure if anyone has a Ferris Bueller day). His films are definitely time capsules of the 80's. John died of a heart attack this week while walking on the streets of NY. He retired from directing in 1991, but continued to write and produce (Flubber, Dennis the Menace, 101 Dalmatians, Reach the Rock).

John reshaped the idea of the movie soundtrack and music in movies. He made indie music an integral part of his films. His film Pretty In Pink was inspired by the Psychedelic Furs songs the same name. The Furs re-recorded the song for his film. The original is better.

Below are the titles of films that John either directed, wrote, produced or did all three. I bet you can name at least one song from each film and you probably sang it over and over again.

1. Sixteen Candles
2. The Breakfast Club
3. Weird Science
4. Ferris Bueller's Day Off
5. Pretty In Pink
6. She's Having a Baby

1. The Sixteen Candles soundtrack was a who’s who of one hit 80’s wonder artists. They didn’t necessarily have a hit with the song on this soundtrack, but it probably opened a few ears. This soundtrack is all over the dial musically, but more than half the music was by relatively obscure artists.

Altered Images- Happy Birthday
Kajagoogoo- Sixteen Candles (remember them Too Shy?)
Paul Young – Love of the Common People
Spandau Ballet – True
Oingo Boingo –Wild Sex In the Working Class (They were massively popular in LA would wind up in other John Hughes Films. See #3. Danny Elfman from the band would become one of the leading film scorers in Hollywood)
Nick Heyward – Whistle Down the Wind (Nick fronted the band Haircut 100)
The Divinyls – Ring Me Up (Later on they had a big hit with I Touch Myself)
The Vapors – Turning Japanese
There was also music from David Bowie, Billy Idol, Darlene Love and the Thompson Twins to name a few.

2. Don’t You (Forget About Me), put Simple Minds on the map in the US. It may have been their greatest moment and their albatross as it’s probably all they are remembered for. My first introduction to them was probably the song Promised You A Miracle. Don’t You was written by Keith Forsey, who also produced the track. Rumor has it that Forsey originally offered the song to Bryan Ferry and Billy Idol. I would love to hear their takes on the song. They did have two other semi-hits in the States after that, Alive & Kicking and Sanctify Yourself. The only other known musicians from this soundtrack are Wang Chung. Oddly enough for a soundtrack with only one hit on it, it spent 104 weeks on the Billboard Top 200 and reach a chart position of 17.

3. Weird Science. The title track was performed by Oingo Boingo. See #1. Once again, this 1985 album featured the more obscure musicians of that time, although they would have hits other than on this soundtrack: Kim Wilde, OMD (Tesla Girls), The Del Fuegos, and General Public (Tenderness) to name a few. This album surprisingly did not chart.

4. There was no official soundtrack to Ferris Bueller,but once again, music was prominent. There was the return of General Public (Taking the Day Off) as well as an English Beat remix, The March of the Swivelheads (both bands shared members Dave Wakeling and Ranking Roger). Also heard in the movie were Danke Schoen by Wayne Newton, The Dream Academy covering The Smiths Please, Please, Please Let Me Get What I Want, Big Audio Dynamite and the Beatles Twist and Shout.

5. Pretty In Pink was the granddaddy of John Hughes soundtracks. It had the most charted songs including the Psychedelic Furs re-record of the title track, which was the inspiration for the movie. If You Leave by OMD went as high at #4 on the singles chart and Shell Shocked by New Order made the dance charts.

6. She’s Having A Baby had no hits, did chart at #92, but once again another configuration of the English Beat appears. It’s Dave Wakeling soloing on the title track. Another Smith’s song is covered, this time by Kristy MacColl. XTC and Gene Love Jezebel also contributed.

John Hughes films have a place in my heart and ears.

Mariah Carey and Def Jam Put Ads in Albums

Bob Lefsetz said he thought he was reading the Onion rather than Billboard. The headline reads:
The Monetization of Mimi: Mariah CD To Have Ads

The first deal, created for the Mariah Carey release Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel on Sept. 15, is a 34-page co-production with Elle magazine that includes lifestyle ads from Elizabeth Arden, Angel Champagne, Carmen Steffens, Le Métier de Beauté and the Bahamas Board of Tourism.

Is this grasping for income straws?

Premier Folk Festival Turns 50

It's all about Pete Seeger, Joan Baez and co. I caught a few songs from the Pete Seeger birthday celebration on PBS last night. I've never seen Pete live, but he exudes happiness. Here is a guy who has held on to his convictions and it hasn't made life easy for him, but it's obvious he's happy with himself. Like Paul McCartney, he seems to find so much joy in the music and it can't help but be infectious.

Pete and Joan will be part of this years George Wein's Folk Festival 50 (legal issues prevent him from using the Newport Folk Festival name), which is celebrating it's 50th year and starts tomorrow. Joan talks about being a shy 18 year old and walking on stage in front of more people than she had ever seen. George Wein who created the Newport Jazz Festival as well as the Newport Folk Festival is still at the helm. (Vanity Fair has a Q&A with George.) Each performer, no matter who they were, received $50 for their performance in that first festival. This year's festival is rounded out with newer artists such as the Decemberists, Tift Merritt, Deer Tick, Neko Case and Iron & Wine. For more info, check out the festival's offical site.

Oh Crap! My Parents Joined Facebook

myparentsjoinedfacebook.com was started by my friend Jack Leitenberg's entrepreneurial daughter Jeanne Leitenberg and her friend Erika Brooks Adickman. The site's byline fills you in on it's content: CONGRATULATIONS! YOUR PARENTS JUST JOINED FACEBOOK. YOUR LIFE IS OFFICIALLY OVER. It also states in a smaller font that they love their parents.

Jack is a longtime artist manager who works with the wonderfully witty and talented musician Jim Boggia. Jim does use Facebook to stay in touch with his fans. Jack's wife/Jeanne's Mom is Marion Orr. She is the longtime manager of the jazz great Bob James. They also work with jazzmen Richard Bona (he's got a new record coming out this fall) and Lionel Loueke (he's performing at the Litchfield Jazz Festival on 8/2). They do not use Facebook.

Jack was curious about Facebook and his kids jumped in and hooked him up. Jack rarely posts, he's "more of a voyeur". Facebook has it's family benefits as Jack says "I can see and read about all that she does as she posts, pix, etc." The impetus for the site came about when Jack merely altered one thing on his profile which unleashed a flurry of comments. "I changed my status to married and received so many mazel tovs and congratulations for getting married (Jack's been married to Marion for years-that hasn't changed). I did not realize that when I changed the status it went out to all my friends." Thus the website was born and kids and parents are both figuring out the meeting of the generations on Facebook.

Time Magazine has a nice piece on the site.

Apple Seving Up Cocktails

Much is being said about the Financial Times article on Cocktail, the code word for a new offering from Apple's iTunes. Rumored to be launching at Christmastime, it's said that this digital package would be bring consumers back to the days of album liner notes, lyrics and photos, which would all be included with an album download as well as others goodies such as videos. Deals are allegedly in place with the four major labels.

This may appeal to those over 35. I'm not sure that it has the allure to jump start a whole sector of people to start paying for music. There are a number of articles and polls that state younger people have no attachment to physical things.

Spotify is getting reach to launch in the US. It's been successful in the UK. It allows users free streaming of millions of songs and the ability to create playlists. The Spotify team has an app that is awaiting approval from Apple. It will be interesting to see if Apple approves it. Spotify would compete with iTunes and is free, although Spotify offers a paid subscription service without the ads.

The tech generation has never seen liner notes, so why would there be a need to have them now? Owning a video probably has no value as it can be viewed somewhere on the net. In the 80's kids wanted their MTV, in the 00's will they want their Cocktail?

Losers and Freaks -Brandi Shearer

It's been a long time coming, but Brandi Shearer has a new record Love Don't Make You Juliet. It comes out on Sept 1. For those in SF, she'll be at Cafe du Nord that night to celebrate the release. The first single is Losers and Freaks and Entertainment Weekly has an exclusive stream up now. The album was produced by Craig Street. Enjoy it.

Gordon of Peter and Gordon Dies



Last week, Gordon Waller, half of the sixties singing duo, Peter and Gordon died in CT from cardiac arrest. Best known for the Paul McCartney penned hit, "World Without Love", the duo had reunited for a few days last year including a free show at the Santa Monica Pier. I remember seeing them on every TV show in the mid-60's. Music on TV was a lot more prevalent then. Between variety shows, music-centric shows like Where The Action Is and even half our serials like Batman, (they had an appearance from the other British duo Chad & Jeremy), there was always music to be seen and heard. Peter Asher continued his successful career as a record producer and manager. RIP.

McCartney at Citi Field

I can't comment on the show. I wasn't there, but the people that were, told me it was a fun show. Paul McCartney has managed to do something a lot of rockers (both old and young) haven't, enjoy the music, play it like it was just released yesterday and celebrate the audience. There is always a smile on that guy's face. Seeing him on Letterman, it was evident how much pleasure he gets in performing. Sure it's great to earn all that money on the road, but I believe he loves what he does.

One Small Step For Man

If there is doubt in anybody's mind of the significance of 1969, take a look at the timeline in the NY Times. There was something for everyone. In the arts Led Zeppelin releases their debut record, thousands attend Woodstock, the first Godfather film is in theaters, The Brady Bunch begins a 5 year run on ABC and Monty Python's Flying Circus hits the BBC. Politically Golda Meir becomes Prime Minister of Isreal, Nixon is sworn in, the Chicago 8 go on trial and Ted Kennedy drives off the bridge at Chappaquidick. It was a banner year in sports especially for New Yorkers: The Mets, Jets and Knicks were all champions. Check out Art Shamsky's book, The Magnificent Seasons, which recalls the year through the words of the players who were part of it. Space exploration was at it's peak. The Apollo series continued with 9 and 10 and most famous of the launches, Appollo 11. It's 40 years ago that Neil Armstrong was the first person to land on the moon. I remember watching it on our black and white Zenith TV. Mort Roghanchi recently recalled his experience of viewing that landing as a teen in Tehran, Iran.

July is the 40th anniversary of Apollo 11 Landing on Moon. I was a 12 year old boy living in one of the poorest parts of Tehran/Iran. I can still smell the raw sewage flowing in the alleyway where we lived. We were the only people in the neighborhood with a TV. A black and white, German made TV called Grundig!!! It was around 3am. The whole town was lit and everyone in the neighborhood was at my house. We were all waiting to see the live pictures of the landing! The adults, I remember started praying for the safe landing and thank god for us Muslims praying, it did land safely!!! My uncle in the room said "This is all lies fabricated by the Americans and it says in the holy book (Koran) that it takes 30 years to go to the moon with a flying horse!!" Where in Koran it says that I am not sure, but they made to moon in less than two days!! I so vividly remember Mr. Armstrong climbing down the ladder with his left foot still on the ladder, bringing his right foot down to test the ground on the Moon to make sure he wasn’t going to sink!! Six weeks later I met the astronauts in Baharestan Square when they toured the world. They all were riding in a convertible with a police escort. I shook Mr. Armstrong's hand and followed the convoy before I was warned by the police to stay away! By that time Edwin Buzz Aldrin realized I was following the convoy, and he reached out and pat my head!! I will never forget this!!!!

U2 from Apples to Blackberrys

U2 has just switched fruits. From a band that so clearly aligned themselves with Apple (ads, a personalized iPod), they are now part of the Blackberry machine. The first teaser ad has appeared. Don't expect it to look like an Apple ad. Maybe they should change the name of the song to I Will Follow Wherever the Money Is.

What Is Warner Bros Records Thinking?

In an effort to either plug a hole in a sinking ship or just sink the ship and put it out of it's misery, Warner Bros Records has given gossip man, Perez Hilton his own label. To qualify his qualifications for running a label, Perez states in EW, "I have an ear, which is really important in the music world -- to be able to hear a hit and to be able to know who has a good song or not… I'm more than just an A&R person. I'm also a marketing person. I'm also a manager."

Maybe he does have his finger on the pulse, but my first impression is this demeans all those talented music industry people who are out of work or changed careers because they couldn't do the job they were suppose to do. So many of them have an "ear". I know these people didn't have a website with thousands of hits a day to promote an artist, but that is not what it takes to have a hit. If it was, Paris Hilton would be a huge recording star.

Another head scratching move coming out of music land.

Sheryl Crow is Ubiquitous

She does a lot of charity work. I'm starting with that. Why is Sheryl Crow ubiquitous? She is at everything. Today I got an email from MLB.com announcing the All Star Charity Concert. Before I clicked on the link to see who was performing, I said to myself I bet it's Sheryl Crow. The recipient of the concert is Stand Up To Cancer. Sheryl is a cancer survivor, so this makes sense. Sheryl sang on an airplane to launch a new airline. She's performed at the 4th of the July Fireworks show on NBC. She appeared in a Revlon ad. The list goes on. I've heard it said that Sheryl Crow will go to the opening of an envelope. I think she's a great songwriter but it might overshadowed by her omnipresence.

I Cancelled My Sirius Subscription

After months of contemplating canceling Sirius, I finally did it.
Reasons for doing so:

• Reception has not improved since I've had the service, which was close to 4 years. In a one hour time frame, I would have a minimum of 3 reception interruptions.
• My two favorite channels: Disorder and Jazz were axed. They kept the XM jazz channel which leans middle of the road jazz.
• I was solely listening to Howard Stern and he's into the second week of his vacation. I will miss Howard, but for the 3 hours a week I got to listen, it wasn't worth it. At least they got over focusing non-stop on Artie's addiction problem.

Sirius raised their rates this month and took away Internet access. There is an additional fee for that service now. I've read that people who tried to cancel had their subscription had it extended for a few month gratis. I was not offered that, but was asked why I was canceling.

It was a great idea when it launched, but like most things music industry, it lost its focus or became too focused, rendering it useless.

Allen Klein Dies

Business manager, accountant and music executive Allen Klein died in Manhattan yesterday. He was encouraged by Don Kirshner to get into the music business. He worked with The Rolling Stones, Sam Cooke and the Beatles. Combining tough New Jersey street smarts and tenacity, he was able to negotiate better than average royalty deals for his clients. John Belushi famously and fictionally portrayed Allen as Ron Decline in the The Rutles, All You Need Is Cash.

Michael Jackson and the Zombieconomy

This is the title of Umair Haque's post yesterday. He points out the Jackson would have earned about $12 million a year over 25 years from record royalties. How much did the label make? At this rate why would anyone record for a record label he asks. Be a hedge fund manager they make millions of dollars each year. Why aren't we rewarding creativity?

Michael Jackson

You've probably heard that Michael Jackson died this afternoon at the age of 50. I was an intern at MTV when the Billie Jean video was delivered. Gale Sparrow was my boss. She gathered everyone around a TV to watch the 3/4" tape, which was fresh from Epic Records up the street. I think we watched it a few times. It was ground breaking: the music, the choreography, the production. We were all sucked in. Needless to say, that launched the Thriller album, which is the second or third biggest selling album of all time. It was a magical moment being one of the first to experience that video.

Bobbleheads at a baseball game makes sense, but when the bobblehead is Barack Obama, there is an absurdity to it. That was the beauty of Baracklyn night at the Brooklyn Cyclones game last night. The New York Mets A baseball team wound up victorious in a game that had sideline festivities that included the already mentioned bobblehead, which you received upon entering the stadium and a Barack impersonator who threw out one of the "1st pitches". I heard that Obama girl threw another "1st pitch", but I wasn't paying attention. The team donned red, white and blue uniforms and the PA system played an interesting lineup of songs including Born In The USA and I Fought The Law. Minor league teams always have interesting promotions, this one is at the top of the list.

Perfect Songs For Trying Times

I was thinking about a few songs that I haven't heard in the past year. Even though most of them are about 25 to 30 years old, their sentiment resonates with what is going on now. I've also come to believe that the British seem to have a stronghold in socioeconomic related songs.

Here's a list with choice lyrics cited:

#1 To Hell With Poverty - The Gang of Four
To hell with poverty. We'll get drunk on cheap wine.
Great live, no one moves like Jon King, Andy Gill's guitar is mesmerizing.

#2 World Destruction - Time Zone
This is a world destruction, your life ain't nothing.
The human race is becoming a disgrace.

The Democratic-Communist Relationship,
won't stand in the way of the Islamic force.

I still have the 12" of this record, a pulsating collaboration between Johnny Rotten and Afrika Bambaataa. Video begins with a Ronald Regan speech.


#3 Low Budget - The Kinks
Circumstance has forced my hand
To be a cut price person in a low budget land
Times are hard but well all survive
I just got to learn to economize

I'm shopping at Woolworth and low discount stores
I'm dropping my standards so that I can buy more

Ray Davies play on words and cheerful almost drinking song-like chorus, almost makes you forget you have no money.

#4 Career Opportunities - The Clash
Career opportunities are the ones that never knock
Every job they offer you is to keep out the dock

From the album The Clash. Bleak song that drives home the point that unemployment needs to be dealt with.

Dave Stewart on Tranparency in Accouting

In Billboard Magazine, Dave Stewart makes a point that managers and artists have been pondering for years. When you buy a shirt with a credit card, you and retailer can see the transaction in 1.6 seconds. Why is it when you sell a record, the record labels do not give the artist access to the accounting (unless you audit them) and there is no transparency? It's a digital world and the labels are still living by that 50 year old structure. It also helps their bottom line, just ask Cher and the estate of Sonny Bono. They are suing for back royalties on Sonny and Cher records due to what they claim is illegal/creative accounting.

Mobile Website Creation For Bands

There is a new company called gigdoggy which allows bands to create mobile websites for there gigs in minutes. The platform is called Fanternaction, which is in beta form. The platform was developed by Greg Whiteside, a singer/songwriter. It's free.

Popkomm Cancelled

Sign of the times: The German music festival Popkomm has been canceled this year due to an anticipated 50% drop in attendance reports Billboard.biz.

Trent Reznor Bows Out of Social Networking

The first musician to successfully utilize the Internet, Trent Reznor has had it with social networking sites. From the NIN forum:

I will be tuning out of the social networking sites because at the end of the day it's now doing more harm than good in the bigger picture and the experiment seems to have yielded a result. Idiots rule.

The few people who ruin it for the rest, made it just too much of a burden for him to continue to use Twitter, etc. Trent did point out that he is in love and doesn't mind letting us know.

Nanomedia: Can It Create Viable Stars

In Fred Wilson's blog, avc.com, he talks about his Internet radio station, fredwilson.fm. Each day he adds one song that means something to him at that moment. Today it's What Is The Life by George Harrison, which reminds me that I still need to get All Things Must Pass. He figures he has about 60 listeners per day, which amounts to 1300 visitors per month. This is nanomedia. He points out that HypeMachine put all these nano sites, including music blogs, together and what you have is one big, huge hunk of media and lots of listeners/readers.

The numbers don't lie, but what we don't have is a filter for finding the site that works best for you. This is something that I've argued the record labels were good for. Finding new music now isn't hard. There is just so much of it available that you want to find the good stuff. If you find a blogger who has the same taste as you, you're in luck. All of this media is a great thing for diversity, but it's probably not going to let us discover the next U2, Dave Matthews Band or even the next Weezer. How can you capitalize on all this media for one act? Whoever answers that will have written the next chapter in the music business.

Buying Your Own Music On ITunes with a Stolen Credit Card

Well it's definitely a different approach to garnering a large royalty check. In my favorite story of the week, TechDirt, reports that a group of DJs in the UK were arrested after it was found out they used stolen credit cards to purchase their own tracks on iTunes. They received $330,00 in royalties after spending about $750,000.

For those of you missing The Shield

Shawn Ryan, the creator of the unmatched TV series, The Shield is back with FX. I'm not sure how they will match the magic and perfection of The Shield, but I will watch Terriers when it airs.
The following was a post on today's Cynopsis.

FX approved a dramedy pilot called Terriers from writer Ted Griffin and Shawn Ryan. The plot is set in the world of private eyes about an ex-cop who teams with a younger hot-shot. Griffin and Ryan will also executive produce; Fox 21 will produce.

Back From The Dead

SPINAL TAP

The New Rock Stars are from the Tech World

Diggnation took it's show to Webster Hall in NY. According to a blog on the WSJ, the hosts, Chris Rose and Alex Albrecht presented a show that "was more raucous than its usual format, with frequent audience participation".

According to the WSJ, the majority of “Diggnation” consists of the hosts chatting about top stories on Digg, the social-bookmarking site Mr. Rose founded (his day job is as its chief architect), and as its most popular links have broadened from technology to other topics, so too has the scope of the show.

When typical music venues are now the sites of sold out "tech" shows, you have to think they are encroaching on the live entertainment audience, which used to consist of music and theater. Rose and Albrecht claim their audience at the core is geeks, but a lot more mainstream than it used to be. Could it be that the bulk of today's live music shows do not offer enough entertainment and an event like Diggnation does?

Cupcakes and Concerts

Cupcakes and Concerts should be an album title. Is it a new trend in live music? Washington DC's 9:30 Club is selling a cupcake that was custom made for the club, reports Celebrity Access. Club owner Seth Hurwitz said they have been working with chef Josh Short for over a year to get it just right adding, "We expect this will create a secondary cupcake market for scalpers. So come early and buy them in advance."

Cupcakes are not new to live shows. Brandi Shearer treated her fans to after show treats from the Sugar Sweet Sunshine Bakery. Brandi fell in love with the tasty morsels and had then on hand to show her appreciation to the fans after the last show in her residency at the Living Room.

Photo Credit: Gabriel Trujillo

McCartney Another NY First

Paul McCartney is set to be the first concert at Citi Field according to today's NY Daily news. The Beatles were the first to play Shea. McCartney was one of the last to sing there with Billy Joel and now he'll be the first to grace the new stadium. Said McCartney "So, to be the first to play this stadium is incredible. I am really looking forward to a buzzing show."

The shows are set for July 17 & 18, with rumors swirling that a third show might be added for July 21st. Tickets go on sale Monday, June 15 at 10:00 A.M. EST online exclusively at www.507TIXX.com and by phone at 718-507-TIXX.

DRM Contributing Factor to Illegal Downloadin

According to a posting in TechDirt a Cambridge law professor found that restrictions put on audio files by record labels, promotes illegal downloading. ... the study found that users get frustrated by the restrictions put on legally purchased content by DRM and copy-protection technologies. Instead of rolling over and accepting this, they often change their behavior -- choosing to download unrestricted, illegal content in the future.

It states that users become frustrated with the limitations and illegally download the file, which has no restrictions. I would agree. Most purchased audio files are now DRM free. I curtailed my iTunes purchases because of the restrictions. If I upgraded my OS, or changes an external hard drive or made any changes to the iTunes library, there was problems with the tracks I did download. Once again, it seems like the artist suffers for the mistakes of their label. Audio cassettes did not kill recorded music, as it was thought. Illegally downloading has not killed recorded music. I've mentioned ad nauseum the reasons the major labels are bleeding money, so I'll spare you the list here. The album is now the promotional tool for the tour. Bands, sink your money into touring and getting yourself on the road. Make fans one by one, which will then grow to two by two and before you know it, you're playing in front of 100+ people. Record your live shows, release singles, enjoy playing.

All Things D interview with Irving Azoff

The WSJ's D7 Conference covered a lot of ground. Kara Swisher interviewed artist manager, Ticketmaster CEO and soon to be head of Ticketmaster/Live Nation's new endeavor, Irving Azoff. Irving stated what seems obvious to most, except those at the major record labels: Labels have always lagged in embracing new technology, in fact they fear it. Rather than use it for their best interests, they'd rather sue consumers. Irving, as it is with any manager, believes in the live experience. That is where a manager's bread and butter has always been. He also stated that branding will be a big factor for musicians and that Madison Avenue has been a even better source of revenue for recording artists now.

Jill Sobule performed. She recently asked fans to donate money via her website so she could record her new record. She received over $80,000 in donations and the album came out three weeks ago. She wrote and performed a song inspired by attending last year's conference. She was never a fan of Rupert Murdoch. He came up to her at the D6 conference and said he liked her song, gave her a hug and she said he was nice. Inspiration comes from many places.

After watching several of the interviews from the conference, I'd love to know who chose the red chairs. They don't look comfortable. They give the impression that it's a matter of minutes before the dentist will enter the room to do a root canal.

Goodfinger

Mike Williams' band Goodfinger has a new album out: Killing With Kindness. Along with Michael LaMorte, they are the songwriting duo who wrote and performed the music for the upcoming children's animation/music project, The Rattles.

Goodfinger is fronted by Scrappy Calloway, who's sultry vocals breezy through the album. Scappy's vocals work their way around a song much in the same way Terri Nunn of Berlin did. Listen to Another Night On My Own. This song would be perfect on the radio or remixed for the dance floor.




Outside could have been recorded in the late 70's/early 80's. It's infused with all the stuff that made the early CBGB's bands so exciting. Goodfinger would have been a perfect opener for Blondie or Television. Since I mentioned the 70's/80's, I have to point out that Goodfinger do a sinister cover of Squeeze's Take Me I'm Yours.

Green Day

On Friday mornings, I'll check to see what music is on Good Morning America. Today was a winner: Green Day. The band gets the crowd involved, uses the whole stage and plays their hearts out. The Ramones references have been around since the beginning of the band, it especially rings true with the economic length of their songs.

Wal-Mart is not selling their latest record, 21st Century Breakdown. They wanted a "clean version". Green Day refused to alter their art for the sake of a retail chain. Kudos to them. As lead singer Billie Joe Armstrong said, "They want artists to censor their records in order to be carried in there," he said. "We just said no. We've never done it before. You feel like you're in 1953 or something."

Young Girls Crown A New American Idol

The NY Times takes an analytical look at American Idol, discussing the well run machine that it is. The author states that America voting Kris Allen as the winner, reflects the mood of the country in selecting the more down home choice. I think he won because the young girls love him and with the exception of Howard Stern, they are probably the ones who voted and voted more than once. With close to 100 million votes cast, American Idol is the one place in the media that can draw the same numbers that a show like The Ed Sullivan Show used to.

MySpace Left Out

A posting on today's Cynopsis had a list of the top ten video streaming sites. MySpace is not among them. Just a short year ago, people were still turning to MySpace to hear music. YouTube seems to be the destination for both video and audio. Thousands of songs have user made videos which are essentially stills edited together with the music and uploaded as a video. It's an easier way to hear a song. The MySpace player still takes time to load, which could be sending users to YouTube. YouTube is easily accessible from computers to iPhones.

Top Online Video Brands Ranked by Total Streams - April 2009
Including Month-over-Month and Year-over-Year Growth

Video Brand Apr-09 Streams (000) M/M % Change Y/Y % Change Share of Streams
Online Video Usage 9,452,996 -2.3% 24.2% 100.0%
YouTube 5,490,204 0.2% 35.5% 58.1%
Hulu 373,290 7.1% 490.4% 3.9%
Yahoo! 203,628 -12.2% -8.1% 2.2%
Fox Interactive Media 201,362 -3.0% -38.8% 2.1%
Nick Kids and Family 175,917 -10.3% 15.9% 1.9%
MSN/Windows Live 164,422 -2.7% 9.8% 1.7%
ABC.COM 148,830 -15.9% 144.8% 1.6%
MTV Networks Music 143,356 15.7% 359.6% 1.5%
Turner Digital Network 130,559 -5.1% 60.0% 1.4%
CNN Digital Network 112,469 8.7% 32.7% 1.2%
Source: Nielsen VideoCensus

The audio is not the best, but if you want a quick reference, it's a great resource.

Amiercan Idol: The Only Game in Town

Major record labels did listeners a service: they narrowed the playing field. Before the Internet, the labels would be the place for an artist wanting a career in music. They had the time, money and people power for a finite number of acts to promote each year. Acts needed producers and studios to make the records. Radio was king for turning people on to your music. Hearing your favorite band live was (and still is) the ultimate experience. Now anyone can make a record and they do. Most bands write, record and produce their own records. Radio is so narrowly programmed that there isn't much room for a new artist to be heard. American Idol is the only game in town now for massive exposure. I think Ryan Seacrest said that 88 million people voted for the top two spots left in this season. I realize many people vote multiple times, but that is an insane number.

Danny was voted off the show. This is probably the best thing to happen to him. Besides going out on the Idol Tour, he doesn't have to play by their rules and for a rock singer, this is a plus. He got the exposure. People know his name. He'll have no problem getting a record deal. What he does with his career and how he handles it, will determine how successful he is. Daughtry hit the jackpot when America chose Katherine over him. It seemed crazy at the time, but the word Idol is in the shows title. Of the two that are left, either Adam or Kris would make a great Idol. Adam has the androgynous, pop voice and Chris has the adoration of the little girls. The stage is set for a night of massive exposure that used to come only to those who slogged it out on the road, put in their 10,000 hours and had a producer to helm their latest record. Can't see Adam or Kris trashing a hotel room.

Mosaic Music Video

Editing YouTube clips and make a music video. Very clever.

Here are the creators notes:

The video's official release date was April 21, 2009. It took our team over 1 month to privately annotate the videos before publishing it publicly!

The YouTube Mosaic Music Video is a digital piece of art that was made from 1.4 million tiles, and thousands of unique YouTube video stills. It is an original, interactive video of it's kind, and maxs out YouTube's annotation editor.

Miss Vicky

1968 and 1969, were among other things, boom years for American Pop Culture. So many memorable moments, both good and not so good, happened in that two year time period. My 1969 memories include the Mets being crowned the Amazin's, Neil Armstrong landing on the moon and the marriage of Tiny Tim and Miss Vicky on the Tonight Show. Tiny Tim always fascinated me. The first time I saw Andy Kaufman on SNL, I thought here's the next Tiny Tim. Not that they had all that much in common, except that they were outsiders who were so interesting.

Ms Vicky was 17 years old when she married Tiny.

Sonic Boomers has a piece written by Ms Vicky that's an interesting short read. It's apparent that her life with Tiny was too large for her. She is now blogging http://missvickinow.blogspot.com/ and she reveals a little more about their short time together. The girl from NJ is living in a rural area of Tennessee. She does have 6 chickens 4 of which are named Ginger, Maryann, Laverne and Shirley. She talks about singing Why on the Ed Sullivan show with Tiny. The clip is a fun view, especially knowing that wardrobe gave her the ensemble.

Worst Album Covers

I was forwarded a link to the 50 worst album covers.
This one is downright creepy.

Indie Music Not Hear on Radio

The Future of Music Coalition released the results of an analysis they completed to determine what radio is playing.

The results:

Using playlist data licensed from Mediaguide, FMC examined four years of airplay – 2005-2008 – from national playlists and from seven specific music formats: AC, Urban AC, Active Rock, Country, CHR Pop, Triple A Commercial and Triple A Noncommercial. FMC calculated the "airplay share" for five different categories of record labels to determine whether the major labels’ ratio of airplay share has changed at all in the past four years.

The data indicate almost no change in station playlist composition in this period. Specifically, the national playlist data indicated very little measurable change in airplay share from 2005-2008, with major label songs consistently securing 78 to 82 percent of airplay. The format data showed some modest increases in airplay for indies on some formats (Country and AAA Non-Commercial, in particular) but otherwise the data from year to year changed very little. An examination of airplay by release date showed that many formats leave only small portions of their playlist for new material, with current songs sprinkled in among well-worn hits.

Not surprisingly, there is only 18% dedicated to non-major label musicians. I guess the flip side to this is that most people are not learning about new music from terrestrial radio. It's YouTube, friends and social networks leading the way to discovering new artists. Does this make it easier for news artist to get heard? It certainly is more accessible for them.

The State Of Radio

Clear Channel will be laying off up to 1000 people, mostly in programming in mid and small size markets according to an article in Paid Content. Wikipedia state that Clear Channel owns 900 radio stations and is the largest radio station group owner. Not much talk is directed at the state of radio for the down slide in sales in the music business. The consolidation and control of radio to a handful of companies has had a monumental effect on how people hear music. I don't know anyone who listens to terrestrial radio now. Radio used to be a personal and local comfort. Stations are now programmed by one body of people, rather than each station taking into account their audience. The Jack stations sounded like an iPod on shuffle mode. Songs are not back announced so you have no idea what you just listened to. Major labels should have been protesting that years ago. You can't buy a record if you don't know the artist or what the title of the song is. The listener doesn't get insight on the recording, who may have played on it or when the artist will be in town. All of that came from a knowledgeable, passionate radio station staff. That all used to be part of the listening experience. Public radio still serves people this way (think WFUV, KEXP).

It was reported over a week ago that online radio listeners have increased to 42 million from 33 million in 2008. More on an article in Billboard. In most cases the stations that are truly online stations and not streaming from an existing terrestrial station are programmed by DJs in their home and sent from their laptop. It may not be a local thing, but it's a much more personal thing. The playlists are usually posted live; therefore, you never have to guess at who you're hearing. I remember putting my transistor radio, tuned to WABC, under my pillow at night. There was nothing more reassuring than that. The image of a child falling asleep with her laptop at her head, is probably not that different a scenario.

A Social Media Strategy Outline For Bands

Hypebot posted a graphic that sums up why bands must use social networking tools. It's not telling artists anything new, but it does lay it out and makes it all very logical. This will help bands to focus their marketing. At the center of the hub is the website from which all roads (whether Reverb Nation or Twitter) lead to.





Study Finds Those Who Download Free Music, Tend To Purchase 10 Times More Than Those Who Don't

According to a Norwegian study, those who downloaded free music, either legally or illegally, purchased ten times more music than people who did not download free music. Billboard recaps a story in Afterposten. The study followed 2000 people over the age of 15.

This points to what I always believed, that serious music lovers will always purchase music. I think a lot of people download music to get a preview of what they will purchase. The few seconds you can sample on iTunes is not enough to judge. How long did the major labels release albums with one hit and 9 inferior songs without the option of buying just the single? The music consumer got fed up with it. They got hip to the lousy music. Wonder why the single is king now?

Saturday is Record Store Day

Unfortunately record stores are becoming a dying breed. Go support your local record store tomorrow.

What Do Royalties From YouTube Amount To?

Peter Waterman, songwriter of Rick Astley's hit "Never Gonna Give You Up," is not happy with Google's royalty payments and compared his royalties from YouTube to the "exploitation" suffered by foreign workers in Dubai according to a piece in the Telegraph. The Astley video has been viewed 154 million times on YouTube, according to the article, and Waterman says he has received £11 ($16.30) from Google. There are several posting of the video on YouTube, including Pop Up Video versions. The views ranged from 1.5 million to 16.3 million views. I'm assuming these are global views and not just US. If so, the 154 million claim seems rather high.

The PRS For Music organization based in the UK, wants Google/YouTube to pay higher royalties to songwriters for use of their work online and Waterman's comments were part of a press conference for the PRS for Music group, which is demanding higher payments to content creators.

Season Opener At Shea (oops!)

Tonight is the Mets official opening of Citi Field, which I continue to call Shea. My friend T'Boo refers to it a Two Shea (touche). In the spirit of things, my dog Dusty put on her game face and donned a Mets jersey. Let's Go Mets!

NIN Drummer Update on Promotional Campaign

Josh Freese, the drummer from Nine Inch Nails, posted a bunch of ways his music could be purchased: lunch with him, he'd write a song with your name in it, hanging out with Mark Mothersbaugh, etc. He wrote to Bob Lefsetz with an update on how his promotional campaign is going. The beauty of the campaign is that he did something with humor and integrity. How could you not be taken in by it? He seems to be enjoying it as much as his fans. It sounds like it is a winner. Here's the posting.

From: Josh Freese
Subject: Checking in with an update.
,
Hi there Bob. How are ya?

So, I wanted to check in and give you an update on what's been going on just after the first week or so of my records release. My label, "Outerscope Records" (that's me, my girlfriend and our nanny when the kids are asleep) is proud to report that I've sold about 150 of the $50 of the packages and all 25 of the $250 packages (those went in the first 24 hours.) In less than a week I have sold 4 of the $500, 2 of the $2,500, 2 of the $5,000, and the big old $20,000 package! No one has bought the $75,000 package yet but I've had someone fairly serious inquiries about it (still only "talk" at this point though.)

Any-hoo, I just started my "lunches" with people and I've been on the phone nonstop for the past few weeks with people who have bought the record (and a phone call option). It's actually been completely hectic and I've just finally got my head above water for a minute. My friends were joking the other day that I may be the only person in the music business that considers himself to be selling TOO MANY RECORDS right now! These phone calls and lunches are a lot to keep up with and I've hardly just begun. I still stay "BRING IT!" though. I made my bed and now I gotta' sleep in it.

I'm still waiting for some numbers regarding how many downloads or just regular CD's I've sold but my expectations aren't very high. But if it all stopped right now I can walk away feeling successful about the whole thing and I am pleasantly surprised at how many of the "packages" have sold. I truly did not expect them to sell so well. And sure it's been great to make some money doing it, but the most rewarding part has been getting feedback from people about how much they liked what I'd come up with. Or how much they laughed while reading the stuff at their desk or in the studio with their friends huddled around the computer. Getting the nod from smart, creative people always feels good. I've received emails and phone calls ranging from guys in Pearl Jam, to Tony Hawk to Trent Reznor to Billy Gibbons to Devo to top producers and label people all loving it and giving me big props on the whole thing. I had the head of marketing at a very prestigious and famous company (who shall remain nameless) tell me that she "hung her head in shame for a week after seeing my marketing plan." It was like, here she was doing this for a living and some dumb-ass rock drummer came along and smoked her at her own game... or something along those lines (sorry, I think I just pulled a muscle from patting myself on the back.) We had a laugh about it and I thanked her for the compliment. Point being, it's been nice receiving so many accolades from people I admire and from professionals who deal in this world every day. I also love the fact that this has nothing to do with drumming and writing music but EVERYTHING to do with being creative and unique.

I've got 6 of my 25 lunches under my belt now and it feels pretty good (and weird.) I've got one tomorrow and I'm doing 2 back to back on Saturday. I schedule all lunches from 11 AM to Noon so I can continue on with my "normal life" of showing up and doing sessions. So far people seem surprised and appreciative when I call them at home in Texas or Iowa or Greece or Australia (called all those places and another 100 cities so far.) The guy from Florida that bought the $20,000 package and I have been joined at the hip since Sunday and I won't even go into all the stuff that we've done in the past 4 days but I've already gone above and beyond for him and we're continuing to have a blast. I'll start posting stuff soon on my website and on youtube but just to give you a quick idea...mini-golf with Maynard James Keenan, pizza at Mark Mothersbaugh's house, sensory deprivation tank sessions, a signed snare drum I used on a Nine Inch Nails tour, slumber party at the Queen Mary, going to gigs of mine with me, pulling items out of my closet, etc, etc......He's a great kid and a friend for life. We're having him check out of his hotel and stay at our house tomorrow night. It's a LONG, LONG story that I'll write about later. You can laugh when I say this but it's true when I tell you that he came into my life for a reason other than just the $$. I actually feel bad about taking the $$ because at this point I'm not hanging out with him or pretending to be his friend for the cash. He got all of his stuff (and a bunch more that wasn't on the original menu) a while ago. He's a sweet 19 year old kid who's had a really rough last couple years (like REALLY fucking rough.) Like....this money he spent to come out here is part of a inheritance he received (you can fill in the blanks there.) I feel like his big brother and I'm trying to make this one of the best weeks of his life. OK, we're getting a little too heavy here SO...for now here's a shot of me and my first lunch date last week at the ol' Cheesecake Factory. His name's Andrew, he's a photographer for the OC Weekly and a super guy! Bob....if you want I'l throw ya a free $500 package and we can go floating in Venice and then whip over to Sizzler sometime. I'm telling ya man....you'd dig it! Trust me...I'm a drummer.

Josh F

Friday Night Lights

Tonight is the season finale for Friday Night Lights. I should have been telling you to watch it at the beginning of the season, but there many ways to watch a show now. This season was first aired on Direct TV before airing on NBC, which is why the show is still in production. It's been renewed for two more 13 episode seasons. The writing and the acting are quality. It's also nice that this show is not chock full of gratuitously placed music. It's a show about real people, oh it happens to involve some football.

Common Line of Clothing Inspired by Microsoft

Common, the rapper and actor has two endorsements running now: a new fragrance for Diesel called "Only the Brave," and a line of PC-inspired clothing called Softwear for Microsoft.

According to the article in Billboard, Common has also partnered with Microsoft to launch Softwear, a clothing line inspired by PCs and revolving around when the machines started to become popular. Softwear tee-shirts, some of which were designed by Common, were made available in retail stores just a few weeks ago. (This news was originally reported in December)

After reading this I had to see what clothing inspired by a PC looked like. I can't imagine Microsoft sparking a person's creative inner fashion designer.

A Common designed shirt:


This design immediately takes me back to the 1980's. This shirt would be worn with leggings, possibly belted and of course the wearer would have on pointy-toed boots.

Here are two samples of classic shirts:

Nothing immediately comes to mind after viewing the DOS shirt or the one that features Bill Gates. Wait, wasn't there a Jim Morrison T Shirt with his mugshot from his arrest in Florida? These two are part of the collection but not designed by Common. I wonder if these are selling. I couldn't find sales figures. According to the clothing line's website, these cannot be purchased online, only in select stores. This seems like a very low tech strategy. In fact, this all seems very misguided. I'm not sure who the audience is or if there is an audience for items. Does Common have the influence to make this work? Has anyone seen a person wearing one of these shirts?

Amanda Palmer

Amanda Palmer wrote to Bob Lefsetz about her experiences with her record label, Roadrunner Records and her fight to be dropped from the label. She recorded a song called Please Drop Me to the tune of Moon River. Shades of Graham Parker's Mercury Poisoning. She's a member of the Dresden Dolls and made a solo record with producer Ben Folds in Nashville. Not being able to listen to Please Drop Me, I still decided to follow the link she provided. My puppy is sleeping (I have to grab the time when I get it), so audio was out of the question. Amanda is entertaining and informative. I guess I shouldn't find this story hard to believe, but it is. From her Leftsetz posting:

i had to EXPLAIN to the so-called "head of digital media" of roadrunner australia WHAT TWITTER WAS. and his brush-off that "it hasn't caught on here yet" was ABSURD because the next day i twittered that i was doing an impromptu gathering in a public park and 12 hours later, 150 underage fans - who couldn't attend the show - showed up to get their records signed.

Here are some other links to read about what makes her tick. I promise to listen to her song as soon as Dusty wakes up. I'm intrigued.

The Dresden Dolls
Who Killed Amanda Palmer
Amanda Palmer

Mary Tyler Moore at the Y

Leonard Lopate the legendary radio show host on WNYC, interviewed Mary Tyler Moore at the 92nd St Y. Mary has a new book out, Growing Up Again, which focuses on her life with diabetes. She was candid about not being a model for those with diabetes. She drank and smoke for many years after her diagnosis, which occurred after a miscarriage. The smoking actually caused her eyes to "bleed" and cloud over. She eventually had an operation which enabled her to see, but she no longer has peripheral vision. Mary looks great. In fact she looks better than she has in awhile. She looks more like the TV Mary we grew up with.

Leonard brought up Mary's fondness for Fox News, which of course created a nice banter between the two. Both saw Bill O'Reilly in a different light. She's a supporter of stem cell research. She believes there will be major breakthroughs in curing diabetes in her lifetime.

A highlight of Mary's career occurred in the second season (according to her, Wikipedia has it listed as the first season, airing on Oct 10, 1961) of the Dick Van Dyke Show. She was cast as the "straight man" for Rob Petrie. The writers took note of her sense of humor and decided to write a little bit of comedy for her. Laura dyes her hair blond to make her more attractive to Rob. She explained that when Rob came home she hid herself and her hair behind a life raft (who knew why that was in their house)to explain why she dyed her hair. To applause, she recreated her famous "Oh Rob" lament.

The Dick Van Dyke show, filmed 30 episodes per season. It seems that all my current favorite shows, including Friday Night Lights which was picked up for two more seasons, have less than half that per season, coming in at 13 episodes.

Bill Persky was in the audience. When I heard that name, the opening credits of That Girl came to mind. He's a writer/director who worked on That Girl, The Dick Van Dyke Show, Kate & Allie, etc.

They didn't touch on much involving her own show. They mentioned the amazing cast and that she was diagnosed as the show was in development. She said she based her character in Ordinary People on her father, a very stoic man, who never said I love you.

Mary did mention there was some movement on a possible return to the theater for her.