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Zappa Plays Zappa – Baker Street Closes – Pink Floyd Ends a Legal Dispute?

6 Jan

Dweezil Zappa Talks About His Father


Growing up in the Zappa household must have been a wacky atmosphere teeming with psychedelic drugs, right? On the contrary, Dweezil Zappa, 41, remembers his house as clean and sober.

“We grew up having a lot of respect with our parents and none of us ever got in trouble,” Zappa told Spinner in an interview. “I’ve never taken a drug in my life, I’ve never gotten drunk and I’ve never smoked. Frank never did drugs or got drunk either. People assumed he did because of his music, but Frank used the power of the mind.”

This is one of the wide misconceptions about the older Zappa who died of prostate cancer in 1993.

Yet, do not think for a second that the Zappa house was conventional in other ways.

“To rebel in our house, I always said I’d have to become an accountant or a lawyer,” said Zappa

Zappa is currently playing Frank’s 1974 album Apostrophe in it’s entirety on tour. He admits it is tough playing his dad’s material which is infused with several different musical elements that he studied for two years before assembling his band.

Link: http://www.spinner.com/2011/01/03/dweezil-frank-zappa-apostrophe-tour/

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Gerry Rafferty Passes

Gerry Rafferty, the Scottish singer/songwriter who brought the world “Baker Street,” “Stuck in the Middle,” and “Right Down the Line,” died on Tuesday of liver disease. He was 63 years old.

Rafferty’s musical career is marked by the success of these three songs.

“Stuck in the Middle” was written by Rafferty and Joe Egan, both members of the band Stealer’s Wheel. The song hit immediate success, peaking in 1973 at #6 and the Billboard Hot 100 chart. It now remains a staple for classic rock stations.

And, for the soft rock stations, “Baker Street,” an entirely different soft rock classic, may very well go down at Rafferty’s most successful piece. The infectious saxophone solo, performed by Raphael Ravenscroft, is one of the most noticeable sax riffs ever. The song reached #3 in the UK and #2 in the U.S.

Rafferty spent years fighting alcoholism and depression and eventually the alcohol consumption did catch up to him. His music still does live on.

Here is “Baker Street”:

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Floyd Ends Dispute

The dispute you are all thinking of ended a while ago. Now, simply, Gilmour does not want to work with Waters anymore because, well, Waters is arrogant and domineering. He is incredibly talented, but, you catch my drift.

Pink Floyd did settle a legal dispute with their long time record label EMI. The two sides agreed to a new five-year deal, officially ending the legal battle over whether or not the label could rightfully take apart their albums and sell individual tracks online.

The news is not at all exciting, but, let’s face it, most news is not. EMI should be happy to have Pink Floyd back, though. While no new material will ever be created, the band still generates a ton of revenue from their expansive discography.

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The Judgement of Social Media – More Beatles’ Auctions – Abbey Road

3 Jan

Justin Bieber is Loved by the Internet

Link: http://www.nme.com/news/justin-bieber/54412

According to the social media calculator Klout.com, Justin Bieber rules the web with an iron fist (more like a scrawny fist). Klout measures internet popularity by combining tweets, Google mentions, Facebook likes, and other web indicators. After analyzing the details you are given a score out of 100. 100 marks popularity. Bieber has a perfect score (most likely the only thing he has ever scored 100 on). That is more than President Barack Obama who scores 88 on the service. I have a score of 21! Yeah! I’m moving up in the world.

So, does this matter at all. No, of course not. It is simply a way to judge your internet popularity and if people searching or mentioning you matters for your psyche, then I guess this is important. (Mention me! I want better Klout!) But, in all honesty, most internet users have the attention span of a goldfish and clicking the mouse is the portal to the grand diversity of internet addiction. Seriously, you can probably get from this post to a rousing video of animals jumping on trampolines. That probably would have an awesome Klout score.

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Beatles’ Auction…Again

Link: http://www.billboard.com/#/news/lennon-s-abbey-road-suit-sells-for-46k-in-1004137651.story

Wow. Another item of Beatles’ history was up for auction. Beatles’ items are being auctioned off faster than beanie babies used to sell. It seems that everyday I see another thing being sold. At Braswell Galleries’ annual New Year’s Day auction, John Lennon’s famous white suit which he wore on the Abbey Road, was sold to an anonymous bidder for $46,000. That is one expensive, ugly suit. Soon enough they will be selling grass from Lennon’s grave. Anything auctioneers can take from Lennon they will. Heck, they may even auction off Yoko.

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McCartney talks Abbey Road

Here is a great video of Paul McCartney talking about his experiences recording music at Abbey Road during his Chaos and Creation at Studio 2. Here is some talking and a beautiful performance of “Friends to Go”

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An Educated Gilmour Guess

1 Jan

Happy New Year! If we can base music predictions off of 2010, I believe 2011 will be another great year for experimental genres and folk-blend rock. Harmonies are in! That is good news folks.

There are some confirmed tours for 2011, but we will have to wait a little while for most of the Spring/Summer concert schedule. I can tell you that Roger Waters is still doing his The Wall tour. It picks up again in March (Lisbon, Portugal).

Now, remember, David Gilmour will join Roger Waters for one show to perform “Comfortably Numb.” This was confirmed last summer. After it was confirmed, I predicted where Gilmour would join Waters. This is what I said:

“My guess is that Gilmour joins Waters at the 02 Arena in London on Tuesday, May 17, 2011. Yes, the tour reaches far into the new year. The 02 Arena is in a convenient location – it is near Gilmour’s residence – and the date is the last in the straight series of five shows played in London, only a mere hour away from the original Pink Floyd stomping grounds, Cambridge. It just all seems to perfect. But, like most things, we must wait and see.” July 19  https://musiccourt.wordpress.com/2010/07/19/relax-ill-need-some-information-first-just-the-basic-facts-where-is-gilmour-going/

UPDATE

I took this straight from Roger Waters’ website (www.tour.rogerwaters.com)

“Roger Waters will be filming and recording all 6 shows at The O2 Arena in London in May.”

I smell clue. Roger Waters likes money and attention. Many would argue that these are his two most favorite things. Music is in there as well, of course. Filming implies a concert DVD. And, what better way to draw buyers than feature the Waters/Gilmour reunion on DVD. I am not saying that this is set in stone, but I do think that the filming may be evident of the “Comfortably Numb” reunion taking place during one of these dates. So, you have a 1/6 chance to pick the date. My guess was May 17. I stated that it was the last date for Waters at the O2 arena and at the time it was. But, another concert was added for Wednesday. I change my guess now to May 18. I guess we will see if I am right.

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Rock n’ Roll Hall of Fame Induction – John Lennon Tribute – John Lennon Tribute?

16 Dec

John Lennon Look-Alike

Yes, I know what you are probably thinking. He repeats himself in the title. Well, let me explain myself.

Meet Street Corner Symphony. If you have been watching the Sing Off on NBC, then you are well acquainted with this Nashville sextet that combine good ol’ fashioned southern charm with funk elements in their music. No instruments. The show is pure A cappella, a style vocal-only music that has become a popular part of our musical culture again. Back in the 50s and 60s, A cappella style was a nice sized part of the musical culture. Well, then again, what wasn’t available on the musical dinner plate.

The Sing Off is really the only show I watch and it definitely is the only reality show I find myself viewing. There are a few reasons for this. The talent is extraordinary for any music lover. Unlike American Idol or any other singing show, this pins intelligent musicians who have mastery over their voices and vocal choreography against each other in a short format. The show runs for only a couple of weeks in 2-hour episodes. Next Monday is the finale. Yeah, so instead of suffering through Months of American Idol, you receive quick results and don’t get sick of the judges. I also like the show because Ben Folds is a judge. ‘Nuff said.

Street Corner Symphony is one of the four bands that will be in attendance at the finale. America now votes on who wins. They are not my favorite, but they still are tremendously talented…and one of their members may be a reincarnated John Lennon.

If the picture is not enough. This was taken during their Beatles' medley!

Scary. Judge Shawn Stockman finally acknowledged the underlying thought in every viewers mind after this performance by saying that Richie Lister (playing the part of John Lennon above) really looks like Lennon and it was scaring the hell out of him. You are not alone Mr. Stockman.

Tweedy Lennon

In other John Lennon related news, Wilco lead singer, Jeff Tweedy, made a surprise appearance at an Autumn Defense show. Autumn Defense is the side-project of two Wilco multi-instrumentalists. Tweedy played Lennon’s “God” to honor Lennon on the anniversary of his death (Dec. 8).

Rock n’ Roll Hall of Fame Inductees

School’s out for sweet Caroline. Alice Cooper and Neil Diamond are Cleveland-bound and ready to suit up for the Rock n’ Roll Hall of Fame.

Cooper and Diamond will be joined by Tom Waits, Darlene Love and Dr. John as they are all honored on March 14. Congrats to the inductees.

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Make Michael Buble Crazy, Willie Nelson Smokes Marijuana Part 2, Beady Eye is Transparent

6 Dec

Make Michael Buble Crazy:

We begin this installment of court links with a brief list of instructions on how to make Michael Buble go crazy:

1.) Go to one of his shows (sit close to the front)

2.) Interrupt show and tell Buble you want your son to go on stage to sing with him

3.) Tell teenage son who is quite nervous to go on stage

4.) Let him sing and blow everyone away, including Buble, with his singing ability.

5.) Buble WILD!

Don’t believe me. Watch this video. Thanks Fark.com for posting this!

Buble really goes wild. I mean, look, is it awesome that the kid can sing well? Yes, of course. Do you have to pick him up? That may be crossing the line. I laughed. Buble is a great sport. Plus, it are these moments that can make a kid’s life. I mean, what a story. Yeah, I impressed Michael Buble with my singing voice. No big deal or anything!

Willie Nelson Smokes Marijuana Part 2

A while ago I posted this to the blog. https://musiccourt.wordpress.com/2010/04/19/willie-nelson-smokes-marijuana/

Well, I wasn’t joking. After being arrested last week in Texas for marijuana possession, Nelson’s charge was dropped down from a felony to a misdemeanor. This means lesser fine and maximum jail time. This all according to a Rolling Stone article by Jem Aswad

Link: http://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/68404/239424

You can quote me on this: Nelson will not serve jail time. Why? Well, first off, he is a 76-year-old celebrity musician who advocates marijuana usage and will never stop smoking. Jailing Nelson would just be stupid. You would be depriving the public of Nelson for a period of time because he was in possession of six ounces of marijuana. Seriously! Sometimes I question the law. Legalize it. Tax it. Make money. Nelson can go on and do what he does…and he will be providing money for the U.S. Government in the process. Instead of propagating this conservative hoopla of arresting people for possession. Let’s keep the law and lawyers out of a place they do not belong…Willie Nelson’s tour bus.

Beady Eye is Transparent

So, you know how occasionally when I review a new band I mention how their sound reaches back to the old days of rock n’ roll, 60’s style. Well, Liam Gallagher has made his living trying to be Paul McCartney on every Oasis album. Now that Oasis has broken up, Liam has gone on to bigger and better things, exploring more musical styles and finally breaking free from the grip of attempting to copy 60’s music. Did you believe that last sentence? Yeah, I am not a good lier. Liam’s new project, Beady Eye, is a flat-out copy of 60’s everything. Here is their new album cover which was just released.

And, how about a band picture:

Seriously. Can you rip the 60’s off anymore? Listen, I do not mind being inspired. Heck, 60’s music inspires me too. But, when you have spent your entire career unsuccessfully copying music from an era 45 years ago, maybe you should just collect your money and stop. I shouldn’t say he has been unsuccessful. Gallagher has made a lot of cash doing this. Just stop. I don’t need to hear your music anymore. But, if anyone is interested. Here is a song from Beady Eye.

It sounds like “Great Balls of Fire” with the piano. It is like early 60’s fused with some background musicians attempting to harmonize with the nasally Gallagher. Well, enjoy!

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