Reading up on the catalog of John Martyn, who’s early 70’s albums are among my favorite of all time, I came upon this review from the All Music Guide of one his albums from the 90’s…
Sporting one of the truly terrible album covers in rock history, Couldn’t Love You More unfortunately doesn’t redeem itself much with its musical content. Primarily the unfinished tracks which were eventually released as the (slightly) better album No Little Boy, it was released without Martyn’s approval by the record company he was signed to at the time… Though Martyn is quoted as saying of the album “I hate it. It sucks. It’s horrible,”…
Volovan
I’m totally digging the sound of the Mexican Indie band Volovan whom I first heard on the PRI show “The World”. The band is definately worth checking out…
Rather than describe themselves, I’ll pass along a description from ArtistDirect.com.
“Gliding harmonies, airy changes, and hanging Fender Rhodes chords keep the music suspended above the ground, and on “Violines” they add some wonderfully luscious strings into the mix. Of course, they don’t ignore guitars, but rather than propelling the songs, they become part of the overall fabric.”
Nashville Underground
I am not a fan of Flash when it is used as the primary display and navigation device for a web site. However, this site from a group of Nashville based artists collectively named Nashville Underground is perhaps the finest flash designed site I’ve seen.
It really is a work of art and is worth the wait if you are looking at it from a 56k modem.
New David Gray
As a fan of David Gray, it’s great to be able to listen to a full stream of his new album over at the davidgray.com site.
It will be interesting to see how critics and fans react to the follow-up to the wildly sucessful “White Ladder”. I remember how many folks seemed disappointed by Essence, Lucinda William’s follow-up to the brilliant Car Wheels on a Gravel Road. Personally, I thought Essence was an extraordinary record.
The Price of Oil
Once again the Internet shows its power as a populist tool to spread the word, or in this case, the music…
Billy Bragg has recorded a song about the pending U.S. Attack on Iraq, and at his recent concerts he’s been urging fans to burn the song and to pass along. So in doing our part, here’s a link to
Download “The Price of Oil”.
Neil Finn – One All
Doves
Tom Waits Says…
In an interview discussing his new album “Alice”, the always interesting Tom Waits shares his view of the music business…
”Most people in show business are mining the strangeness that’s inside of them. I tried for a long time to be like everybody else. You know, there’s only seven haircuts available at the barbershop and a certain limited supply of shoes. But at some point, if you do have things about you that are irreconcilable, you say to yourself, ‘Maybe I can make some money out of this.’ You join the circus. That’s what music is. So that’s what I did.”
Donal Lunny
Janis Ian Discusses Free Downloads
A few weeks ago I was reading Performing Songwriter Magazine, one of my favorite music magazines, when I read a great column by songwriter Janis Ian (a regular contributor) about downloading music from a musician’s point of view. It was a great article, one of the most insightful I’ve yet read about the positive side of music sharing.
Today I noticed that ZDNet had published the same piece under the headline Free downloads play sweet music. Interestingly enough, they don’t mention anywhere in the ZDNet version that the article was originally written for Performing Songwriter.
Radio: Don’t make us pay Web fees
In a motion filed late Monday, a group of radio stations said a federal court in Philadelphia and the U.S. Copyright Office had misinterpreted the law when they said that radio stations had to pay musicians and recording companies when they stream their songs over the Internet.
Emusic post Universal Music downloads
Today I was looking through eMusic, the music subscription service I joined a long time ago, when I saw tracks from Universal Music Group available for download. But what I didn’t know was that Universal, the media giant, had purchased eMusic a few months ago.
I have to admit that as a follower of the digital music world, as well as a long time subscriber to eMusic, I was embarrassed at my lack of knowledge of this big turn of events. For those who don’t know eMusic, their service has long given consumers almost complete access to a huge catalog of Indie labels for a mere $15 a month. For that fee, you can download, keep and burn MP3 tracks from some of the best bands and labels out there. Are you a fan (like me) of Yo La Tengo? Their complete catalog is available through eMusic as is that of Mogwai and many others.
What I did notice though about the Universal content, is that they feature only B-list stuff that they sell very few copies in-store. In posting content from labels like “Island” “Verve” and “Impulse”, you can find a small selection from lesser artists or lesser albums. Still, it’s still a pretty interesting experiment.
Grandmaster Flash on Fresh Aire
On Monday’s Fresh Aire program, Terry Gross had a really interesting interview with Grandmaster Flash, where he discussed the origins of his music.
JACKO GOT OFF-TRACKO
And in dumb ass comments part II:
Last weekend Michael Jackson accused SONY label head Tommy Mottola of being a racist.
Almost as stupid as the Callahan quote above, Jacko stated at a rally with Rev. Al Sharpton,
“If you fight for me, you’re fighting for all black people, dead and alive.”
Labels to Net Radio: Die Now
I have been horrified to watch the legal system roll over net broadcasters as they have sided with the labels and publishers in demanding royalties that will put most net radio stations off the net.
This week’s Newsweek features a great article, Labels to Net Radio: Die Now:
“You’d think the record companies would love Internet tunes – instead they’re trying to kill them…”
Third/Sister Lovers
Recently I’ve been listening to Big Star’s brilliant Third/Sister Lovers album.
Reading what All Music Guide had to say about the album is a good way to judge a person… after reading what they have to say, are you drawn to immediately listen to the album or do make sure you steer clear of it?
“A shambling wreck of an album, Big Star’s Third/Sister Lovers ranks among the most harrowing experiences in pop music; impassioned, erratic, and stark, it’s the slow, sinking sound of a band falling apart. Recorded with their label, Stax, poised on the verge of bankruptcy, the album finds Alex Chilton at the end of his rope, sabotaging his own music long before it can ever reach the wrecking crew of poor distribution, indifferent marketing and disinterested pop radio; his songs are haphazardly brilliant, a head-on collision between inspiration and frustration. “
Personally, I find it a stunning album and no where near as dire as it is made to be, but then I love Nick Drake…
Nico’s These Days
A few weeks ago I was ranting about the use of old rock songs to sell various products on TV. Well here I am at it again…
Recent K-Marts ads use a wonderful little jangly electric guitar riff which has sounded SO familiar, yet I couldn’t place it. Well this morning I finally figured out where I knew the sound from, it’s the opening riff from a song called “These Days” that a teen-aged Jackson Browne penned for by Nico for her seminal recording Chelsea Girl. Who would ever have thought that music that grew from the Velvet Underground would be used to sell K-Mart products?
For those who don’t know the album, “Chelsea Girl”, recorded in 1966, it features the moody and off-kilter (yet stunning) vocals of the German born singer/model Nico. It was produced by Lou Reed, and uses lush string quartet arrangements to surround a set of delicate songs. Also on the album is one of my favorite songs of all time, also written by Jackson Browne, “The Fairest of the Seasons.
What to hear Nico for yourself? Click here to listen to “These Days” (in Real Audio).
New Beth Orton Album
I’m excited to see that Beth Orton’s new album Daybreaker is going to be released on July 30th.
Beth is an artist who’s albums I will buy without hearing them first. However with a list price of $18.99, I wonder how the record companies expect to do anything to battle the tide of pirated downloads.
EBTG
One of the things that excited me about the web from the first time I used it was the concept of it creating a level playing field where any user could communicate any message, any time. I was reminded of this wonderful aspect of the web when I headed to the official Everything But The Girl web site the other day. Below is the opening paragraph on the site. To my way of thinking, the web fulfills it’s intended purpose when an artist can directly communicate with its fans, and even criticize the media companies that control their musical destiny.
“… we put together a great alternative album of old cuts and stuff due for release this summer, but it seems the bean-counters at WEA are reluctant to play ball. virgin are keen to put the thing together, but we are stuck in the middle of shitty major record company politics. sorry, everyone.”
Fans: Music Should Rock, Not Lock
In a new article titled Fans: Music Should Rock, Not Lock, Wired totally nails it when it comes to what consumers want in digital Music:
“Matthew Davidian loves music… He’s got 550 albums that he’s bought over the years and has since ripped into digital files. He doesn’t use file-sharing applications like Kazaa unless he’s checking out some new music. Admittedly, Davidian, 32, doesn’t buy many CDs, but it’s not because he’s not willing to part with the cash. It’s just that nothing much on the radio interests him…
“In short, he’s the type of guy the recording industry should be salivating over. He’s into exploring new music, he’s into legal sites, he’s had a history of purchasing albums and says he has no problem with the concept of paying for music.”